Thistledown

The wind was blowing a little. Not enough to move the leaves,

but enough to make the thistledown dance.

I am linking this with Nature Footstep Catch the Light.

 

Chicory

The blossoms are winding down.

It is time to set seeds, and settle down for the winter.

I am linking this with Today's Flowers.

 

Swarm of Flying Things

Walking beside the pond, I noticed this swarm of little bugs, and wondered if a photo would turn out.

It did.

I am linking this with Nature Footstep Winged.

And just in case anyone hears about the fatal bus accident in Ottawa, I was nowhere near it, and I am praying for all who were.

Leaves

I love the patterns these leaves make in the sun.

It is hard to decide which pattern I prefer...
I am linking this post with Nature Footstep Blo-Ma.

 

Travelling Daughter

My elder daughter is starting work on Master of Science, Biology. I got an email from her last night -  I'm in Frankfurt, five hours into an 11 hour layover. I wanted to go into the city but got herded through security instead and they made me take everything out of my bag. I  don't feel like going out in the pouring rain, figuring out how to buy a train ticket in German, possibly seeing something interesting, then getting back to the airport and doing the whole security thing again. If it was sunny I might go for it though. The town dates back to Roman times and I'd love to see Roman ruins.

Ethiopia has ancient ruins too, from the Axumite civilization that
would have been around the same time as the Romans. It's a very
historical country, I hope I can see lots of stuff as well as the
geladas.

and another one this afternoon - Just letting you know I got here ok. No problems with customs and the hotel is fine. They have a great lunch buffet, lots of spicy Ethiopian stews with injera bread. We will have a least a couple of days in town to get permits and supplies, then it's on to Guassa.  Addis is much nicer than most African cities I've been to. The traffic is not bad and people are really friendly. You can walk around and not be harassed much. There are supposed to be mangoes but all I've found have been underripe oranges.

I am not sure what I think of this, but I know better than to say anything.

Datura

There were several datura plants blossoming at the college.

I was early enough to catch the dew on some of them.

I find the most fascinating thing about these flowers is the way they unfurl.

The curves are just so beautiful.

I am linking this with Nature Footstep Blo Ma.

Spiderweb

It's that time of year when the spiderwebs are so visible!

I am linking this with Nature Footstep Catch the Light.

X-Rays I Have Taken

 I promised I would show you the x-rays I have taken at school.

This is the maxillary central incisors of Dexter 1. Translated into English, that means Dexter 1's two upper middle teeth.

We can't take x-rays of each other, so the school has 2 manikins, both named Dexter, with real teeth and bones, and we practice on them.

Each Dexter is only the head, with levers in the crown of the head so we can move the jaws to hold the bite block. With no neck, it is a bit of a challenge to make the apron covering his non-existent privates stay in place...

This is an x-ray of Dexter's lower central incisors. The white circles are some of the bolts that make him work.

By Christmas, I will have x-rayed all of the teeth of one Dexter or the other, and will be marked on them.

So far, I have a 94% average in all my tests, and I am settling in to school. I am starting to have fun with this!

 

Tiny Pink Flowers

I don't know what these pretty flowers are, so if anyone can identify them, please let me know...

The plant is 10 to 12 inches tall, and the flowers are about half an inch. The leaves are sort of strap-like.

I doubt I would have noticed it if the flowers had not been blooming, in amongst the grasses and weeds.

 

Borage

One of the nice things about borage is that you only have to seed it once, and you have it forever...

It helps that the flowers are such a gorgeous colour

and that they, and the young leaves, go so well in a salad...

 

Old Photos

Does that TV bring back any memories for people?

This photo is me and my younger sister, the Christmas she was almost 2 and I was 4 and a half.