let it shine

the light is changing. can feel the change in intensity? here in the north, this is the season of snow-blindness. while march is the cruelest month for sure, i do love the sound of tinkling meltwater. it is one of the most vivid memories of my childhood. i remember walking to the bus stop as a child, hearing the water running under the ice, and knowing that warm weather was just around the corner. ahhh, so much anticipation.

eucalyptus leaves

happy vernal equinox!

happy first day of astronomical spring everyone!  (meteorological spring occurred on march 1st). can you feel the change in the intensity of the sunlight? i sure can. i suppose i should be commemorating the the equinox with something spring-like, or at least light saturated. but, instead i have for you oyster shells. i have two boys (my husband and my son) who adore oysters. so, last night we had a couple dozen oysters for our son’s last night home for spring break (he headed back to nyc this afternoon). after the boys ate their oysters, they then soaked the shells in gin overnight, in order to make an oyster-shell acquavit of sorts. the maceration worked well (the gin has a lovely mild brininess to it) and the oyster shells got lightly bleached in a way that emphasized their striated coloration.a win for STILL. a win for the boys. spring is here and everyone is happy!

reminds me of…

spining plates? pringles-on-a-stick? holiday garland? jack’s bean stalk? a sixties mod room divider screen?

the stiffness, the color, and the shape of eucalyptus leaves makes them one of my favorite subjects.

eucalyptus 

everyone has their own path

i bet this columbine stem has an interesting story or two to tell.

wild columbine winter stem

beautiful and interseting

you don’t really think i was going to be satisfied with just one image of those thistle leaves, do you?  you guys know me better than that. look at all that texture! the color! the tension between the graceful organic leaf shapes and the severe sharpness of their needled tips! so much personality in each leaf. pure STILL blog gold.

dried thistle leaves