This has been a long, hard winter (globally, this March was the fourth hottest on record, while the eastern US sat in unusual cold). The image on the left was taken in our woods on May 3rd, 2010. The picture on the right was taken in the same place last Sunday, April 27th. May 3rd is this Saturday. While I would not be disappointed in a miracle that could transform our woodland into something that looks like the first image, I am also not very hopeful. I am more inclined to think it will snow. Click on the image for a larger view.
Monthly Archives: April 2014
This Year’s Tomatoes
We are going through the annual ritual of starting the garden. With the short Maine summer and unpredictable spring, many plants need a little help. With about one hundred tomato plants, it gets crowded in the house as they grow and need replanting. However, it is well worth the effort as they give us a year’s supply of their wonderful fruit. Click on the image for a larger view.
Hard Cider
This weekend we bottled our hard cider. We made seven and a half gallons or twenty-eight liters, which we store in half-gallon jugs. That should last the year.
We start in the fall with sweet cider pressed at the hight of apple season. We are able to get the juice without any preservatives. We simply add sugar or honey for primary fermentation and then use uncoated raisins for the secondary fermentation. Depending on the flowers the bees feed from, the honey can impart a subtle fragrant flavor. Most raisins are coated with oil to prevent them from sticking together, but the oil will contaminate the cider—uncoated raisins are tricky to find. We make a single batch in a nine-gallon container, but we have also used one-gallon glass jugs.
Passing Time, Part 4
Click on image for a larger view.
Horizons
Taken from Mt. Washington in the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire. Click on the image for a larger view.
Cumulonimbus
Cumulonimbus: a heap of luminous clouds, at least that is how the latin is translated. While the reference to a heap (cumulus) sounds a little undignified for these massive structures, the luminosity or halo of saints or supernatural beings (nimbus) reflects their magic. And when mortals are left in dark valleys at the end of the day, these clouds seem to generate their own light. Click on the image for a larger view.
Spring Floods
From Tuesday to Wednesday last week, a huge storm passed through Maine. With the snow melt and the saturated ground, water has few places to go. Hallowell, a small town on the Kennebec River, was one of the places effected. For three consecutive evenings from the river cresting on Wednesday, I photographed the receding water. During the summer, the wharf at the edge of the river is eight to ten feet above the water. Click on the image for a larger view.
A Year in Color, a Year of Color
This is a year in color, starting with January on the left to December on the right. The color from twelve photographs from each month of the year where blended to illustrate the changing seasons in Maine. Click on the image for a larger view.
Tea Houses and Spring in Japan
With cherry blossom season in Japan comes tea. The tea house has a long and important tradition. A place to quench your thirst and refresh your spirit.
A visit becomes a ritual for the senses—the bitterness of the tea, the sweetness of the cake, the warmth, texture, and color of the cup, the scent of the air, and the sounds in the world. A simple experience that brings calm and wonder. And all this for a bit money and a little of time. Click on the image for a larger view.
Hanami—Cherry Blossom Viewing
Every spring the Japanese celebrate the blossoming of their cherry trees. People flock to parks, gardens, temples, and shrines. They spread blankets and tarpaulins under the flowering branches and eat and drink and sing. Special tours go to places known for their expansive cherry tree orchards or for extremely old or grand specimens. What a wonderful thing to celebrate. Click on the image for a larger view.
