Rabbit tracks

Cottontail rabbit

tracks bounding through the back yard.

Bound on furry friend.

Simple elegance

Simple elegance.

I too want to open and 

blossom to the world.

Snowy Archipelago

 

Archipelago

carved out of snow on the pond.

  A cold replica.

Snow waves

Waves of drifted snow

flow across the pond's surface.

Water waits below.

Fox trot

 



Signs of a fox trot

left behind on the pond's snow.

Prance on my fox friend.

Ice Dragon

Out of Lake Calhoun
an icy dragon appeared.
Thank you MIA!

(Follow additional celebrations of the MIA's 100  year birthday on their website, http://new.artsmia.org/100/)

Warm thoughts on a cold day

I'm thinking warm thoughts
on an extremely cold day.
It is still cold.

As I start a fire,
warmth overtakes the cold,
and it brings real change.

Thoughts alone do not
change a room's temperature.
A blazing fire does.

Awaiting metamorphosis

Barebones skeleton

standing ever fast for spring’s

metamorphosis.

                                  -Dan Johnson

Firmly waiting for spring

Still waiting for spring.

Planted I stand in the pond.

Frozen in the ice.

Standing quietly.

Expending no energy,

I make not a noise.

Days come and go by.

I move not even a twig.

Firmly, I still wait.

                            -Dan Johnson

Water, snow and ice

Water, snow and ice.

You rely on each other.

All of one parent.

Calmly you co-exist.

As three siblings, side by side,

chilling together.

                               - Dan Johnson

Spring will come

Cattail and falling snow

Yes it is still cold.

Winter lingers and bites

at my toes and ears.

Cold pierces my pours.

My face silently screams ouch.

Spring come quickly.

Footsteps sound loudly

in the frigid winter weather.

I tread on the cold.

Try hard as it might,

it cannot last forever.

Spring will indeed come and rule.

                                                  -Dan Johnson

Snowfall

Snowflakes gradually

drift gently from the skies.

Hurry not my friends.

Falling randomly,

each flake unique, yet the same.

All fall together.

So effortlessly

you go with the flow.

Flow snow, down you go.

                        -Dan Johnson

More on walking meditation

Nourishing steps

Walking meditation is like eating.  With each step, we nourish our body and our spirit. When we walk with anxiety and sorrow, it is a kind of junk food. The food of walking meditation should be of a higher quality. Just walk slowly and enjoy a banquet of peace.

The long road turns to Joy, Tich Nhat Hanh

Walking and gardening, by Tich Nhat Hanh

You are the gardener

Every time you practice walking meditation, investing your mind and body in every step, you are taking your situation in hand. Every time you breathe in and know you are breathing in, every time you breathe out and smile to your out-breath, you are yourself. You are your own master; you are the gardener in your own garden. We are relying on you to take good care of your garden, so that you can help your beloved to take care of hers.

The long road turns to Joy, Tich Nhat Hanh

Happy Valentine's Day

What is love?...  

"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love." 

I Corinthians 4-13

Where was all the food before the first supermarket?

It is said that the first supermarket in the US appeared in 1946.  Where did we get our food before that?  According to Joe Salatin, it was in our homes, gardens, local fields and forests.  It was near kitchens, near tables, near bedsides. It was in the pantry, the cellar and the backyard.

Current information on Carbon Dioxide in our atmosphere

I discovered an informative site, CO2 Now, that provides current carbon dioxide (CO2) readings.  It indicates we just went over the 400 atmospheric parts per million in January.

I discovered from this site that the ocean receives about a fourth of all the CO2 emitted from human activity, which in turn makes it more acidic.  This then has serious consequences for all ocean life. 

More from the Walker Art Center

Self Portrait with "Passing Winter" by Yayoi Kusama (2005)

Walker Art Center Turns 75!

A city powered by renewal energy!

Congratulations to Burlington Vermont for being the first city in the United States to be totally powered by renewal energy sources.  You can hear/read about their accomplishment on a PBS broadcast, Running on renewable energy, Burlington, Vermont powers green movement forward.
In addition to being good for the environment, it is also good for their financial bottom line. They anticipate saving 20 million dollars over the next two decades.  

Mallards in the snow

Afternoon snow in the park

Wake up call regarding climate change in Minnesota

A report on Minnesota Public Radio, "Climate Change in Minnesota: More heat, more big storms", clearly indicated reason to be alarmed at our rapidly warming state and increasingly intense storms.  A few quick take aways:

• This past century the state has warmed two degrees, and in some parts three degrees, with Minnesota winters warming faster than all of the other states.
• The growing season is several weeks longer than it was in the 1970's.
• There is has been an increase of 37 percent in the number of large rainfalls over the past 50 years, with many being the largest on record.

Many might be happy to see our cold winters becoming more mild.  However as the report indicates, this also dramatically impacts the wildlife, trees and plants which are native to this region. 

Computers are no panacea for education

Computers and internet access alone will not solve the challenge of successfully educating all of our nation's children.  A commentary, "A computer for every student? It's backfiring." in the StarTribune by Susan Pinker suggests that computers without quality educational software and or teachers who know how to integrate them into their lesson plans can do more harm than good.  Much like televisions, the distraction posed by computers is tremendous.  That said, the tremendous access to quality information in our "information age" is staggering. As in all things, moderation.

Luminary Loppet

Yesterday evening I visited the Luminary Loppet at Lake of the Isles, in South Minneapolis. What a wonderful job by The Loppet Foundation and volunteers to construct a beautiful Luminary Loppet.  

I spoke with the young man responsible for managing the construction of many of the taller luminaries.  He was amazed at the level of volunteer support that helped to make the 1,200 luminaries.