Memes

  • Memes,  Outdoors,  Wildflower Wednesday

    Narrowleaf Goldshower, Galphimia angustifolia | Wildflower Wednesday

    Let’s rewind to July 2021 and a hike at Pedernales Falls State Park for today’s Wildflower Wednesday. We were there to celebrate my birthday weekend and if I recall the hike was rather cloudy, which was probably good considering the heat. When I found this flower back along the Wheatley Trail near the property fenceline, I thought it looked very similar to a tropical gardening plant I knew in Florida, thryallis. Which makes sense because they are both in the genus Galphimia! There’s not a lot of information online about the species but you can find it throughout the Texas Hill Country from Austin to San Antonio and scattered west…

  • Memes,  Texas,  Travel & Places,  Wildflower Wednesday

    Agalinis fasciulatus, Beach False Foxglove | Wildflower Wednesday

    The Agalinis species can be a little confusing to tell apart, well, at least I tend to think they are. I’m trying to get better at identifying them so if I’m completely goofed, let me know! These were seen in Angelina National Forest last October, along the Sawmill Trail. We were in the area again two weekends ago but the bustling area of various blooms from October didn’t exist quite yet. I was a bit disappointed not to see at least something blooming there–I was mostly on a lepidopteran and insect hunt and was thus disappointed. A couple of guides for figuring out this species: pfau_tarleton’s iNat journal entry and…

  • Memes,  Outdoors,  Wildflower Wednesday,  Wildflowers

    Woolly Ironweed, Vernonia lindheimeri | Wildflower Wednesday

    We came across this gorgeous ironweed species back in July 2021 at Pedernales Falls State Park. Like many other Texas species, it was named after Ferdinand Lindheimer, the botanist who was the first permanent-resident collector in Texas. I have a book about his journals that I’ve been meaning to read for a year and this might be the year I actually tackle it! This particular species is very much a central Texas plant, and on iNaturalist you can easily see all of the observations starting in DFW and trailing down along I-35 to San Antonio and then west towards Kerrville. There are a smattering of sightings west of this area…

  • December Reflections 2022,  Memes,  Thoughts

    31. My Word for 2023 – December Reflections 2022

    Well, these last few days have escaped my attention here and that is all fine by me. I’ve been off this week and with Forest and Chris was out of town for work, so Forest and I have been doing various activities together and cleaning up after the holidays a bit. My parents came down (and are currently here) so my focus has been elsewhere and not on writing here. But I figured I should at least wrap up on this last day of 2022 and finish out this reflection challenge. I haven’t done a word for a few years now. I found that much like resolutions I would focus…

  • December Reflections 2022,  Memes,  Thoughts

    27. Windowsill – December Reflections 2022

    At home we don’t have houseplants because we have housecats. They enjoy nibbling on plants that would end up poisoning them so we keep those out of the house. But at work, we both have a varying array of plants. I mostly keep clearance rack orchids from Kroger but also some other various ‘houseplants’ and that has expanded over the years. Earlier this year I bought a plant called string of needles or Ceropogia linearis. It’s a succulent-ish plant that requires low water. I keep it and several other low water plants in a south facing window in the kitchen at work and the heat that the window gets allows…

  • December Reflections 2022,  Memes,  Thoughts

    26. So Grateful For… – December Reflections 2022

    The ability to still hike and walk! Aging and aches and pains makes you grateful for what you are able to accomplish. My ability to pick Forest up from school and then bring him back to the office—the school is right across from our office! Lunch breaks at home! My group chat text sessions with my friends—love those girls so much! Books…always grateful for the amount of books just begging to be read! This week off work after Christmas! I always cherish it. Warmish afternoon, almost 60* today! Uncovered the plants and now I’m excited for spring. (shh, I know we have to get through two more months of cold!)…

  • December Reflections 2022,  Memes,  Thoughts

    24. Stillness – December Reflections 2022

    Today I’m flying low and I’m not saying a word I’m letting all the voodoos of ambition sleep. The world goes on as it must, the bees in the garden rumbling a little, the fish leaping, the gnats getting eaten. And so forth. But I’m taking the day off. Quiet as a feather. I hardly move though really I’m traveling a terrific distance. Stillness. One of the doors into the temple. by Mary Oliver

  • December Reflections 2022,  Memes,  Thoughts

    21. Growth – December Reflections 2022

    This seems like a rather deep topic and one that probably requires more introspection than I’m willing to give at the moment. But let’s give it a whirl considering I’m a day late on this one. On the personal growth front, I think it was a rather low impact year for that. The last few years I had used Elise Cripe’s Goal Tracker to keep track of workouts. I was pretty good with it in 2020 and semi-good with it in 2021 but 2022 I didn’t even make the effort. I let go of trying to feel the need to keep track of that and it felt great. I did…