"Travelogue: Toadstool Geologic Park, Nebraska"

Welcome to Toadstool Geologic Park in northwest Nebraska...

What I remember most about this area is the number of long-term South Dakota residents who knew nothing of this unique area only an hour south of Hot Springs, SD, just over the NE border.


Full of fossils and unique "toadstool" formations, this special geologic attraction is well worth visiting if you are anywhere close by. There is even a very comfortable (yet small) National Forest Service campground there, albeit with primitive support services...and a sod house reproduction, to boot (the park is part of the Oglala National Grasslands).

Some call it Nebraska's Badlands, though the scope of the formations is much smaller in size compared to its SD and ND siblings. Still, the formations are quite unique in their own right, providing wonderful photographic opportunities at every turn.


On a sunny summer's day, Toadstool will cook and tan you brilliantly, given the whitish reflective surface of the sandstone and siltstone formations which make up most of the park. Once formed and then carved by rivers long gone, you can see the layering and rounded erosion forces quite clearly. Aeolian (a.k.a. Eolian) forces (wind-driven erosion) have added their final artistic flairs, as well.


Age-wise, the geologic formations were deposited from the late Eocene to the Miocene age 30-40 million years ago...starting about 10 million years ago, this region began the uplifting process which dried up the riverine sources, leading to the formations seen today. The sandstone layers are far more erosion-resistant, creating mushroom 'caps' when overlying the softer siltstone formations.

FYI, the photos shown were taken with an older camera, which shot much smaller images than the large ones you are used to seeing from my newer camera in many of my prior travelogues. For TV and computer screens, they still look quite nice...but for printing onto paper, they're simply too small. So enjoy them on the blog!

"Wednesday's Word: Wacky"...

It's as if everything is out of kilter, ain't it. Inside, I know I am. Outside, there is the persistent wintery weather in the upper midwest with baseball games being called...because of snow....and a doozie of another winter storm brewing in southern Minnesota...to the ever disparaging news revealing yet more devastating crop damage from the Southeast's record cold last weekend, and some growers reporting a 100% loss already.

At least the freezing is gone in the South, as much needed rainfall is starting to trickle from the sky. I tried to get as much sanding and such done outdoors yesterday before battening down the hatches for today's showers, tonight's thunderstorms, and tomorrow's very windy conditions. March came in like a lion, went out like a warm lamb, and now in April is acting like a Tasmanian Devil. The weather apple cart has definitely capsized.

Feeling that way inside a bit, myself. My plate, per usual, is almost overloaded with things I need to get done, but the weather has played a major role in reshaping what I can do when. Too, pulling a bit more double-shifts than usual, like today, which throws a few wrenches into 'normalcy'. And for those of you who deal with daily pain, I figuratively and literally feel your pain. While I have knee surgery slated for the end of April, I've been unable to walk without pain for several months now, and pain simply wears you down over the long haul...kind of like being in a NASCAR race and having your car break down on the back stretch, opposite the pit area...

I am excited over a new flute I began sanding down yesterday...a couple of years ago I obtained some absolutely stunning curly Myrtle (Oregon), and this will be the second flute I've made from it...I'll be sure to post the pictures of the intense figuring in this pale yellowish wood when I finish it, which may not be until next week. Pretty, pretty wood.

Blog inspirations have been spotty at best, lately...kinda like going fishing...you go through the motions, but you can't make the fish bite. You hope they do, but there is no forcing a hooked outcome. And so it has been of late. But as you regular readers know, on Thursdays (that's tomorrow) I take you to some neat place and share my photography with you...tomorrow's post will be some of the unique formations from Toadstool Geologic Park in northeast Nebraska. And I bet you thought it was all flat corn and wheat fields...

"Mark My Words...."

Actually, I should have titled it, "Mark, His Words"....

Good ol' Samuel Clemens, Sammy C who goes by Mark T, as in Twain. I'll rank him right up there with the wit of Will Rogers for providing us with tongue-in-cheek humor that toys with Life's topics much like a cat that endlessly toys with a mouse instead of pouncing on it once and for all.

One of my favorite Twain quotes goes something like this:

"There are 3 types of lies in this world: lies, damned lies, and statistics."

Amen to that...the veritable rubber band of truth, statistics. I recently ran across one statistic that said 5 out of 4 adults have trouble with fractions...and another that said with 100% surety that if your grandparents couldn't have children, you couldn't either.

"The man with a new idea is a crank until the idea succeeds."

Truth be told, I'm working on some big, new ideas/plans, and I'm 87% sure I've got male PMS today as a result of the whole planning and efforting process...

Just the other day I was in the grocery store and heard, 2 aisles over, two little kids screaming and running up and down the aisle...I glanced over at a vendor stocking a shelf and said, "And where is the mom or dad???" He mused back that they had just come down his aisle and if I were to go look for myself I'd understand 'why'....I knew I'd best not go see for myself, since I had a good chance of saying something...alas, I was garbed in my fire engine red News 14 coat and thought better of it...so when I read this baseball story I had to laugh...

"To the Public:
TWO HUNDRED & FIVE DOLLARS REWARD--At the great baseball match on Tuesday, while I was engaged in hurrahing, a small boy walked off with an English-made brown silk UMBRELLA belonging to me, & forgot to bring it back. I will pay $5 for the return of that umbrella in good condition to my house on Farmington avenue. I do not want the boy (in an active state) but will pay two hundred dollars for his remains. - Samuel L. Clemens."

I am a big proponent of being all you can be (no, that doesn't mean join the Army), taking advantage of open doors, or when you hit a shut door that you look for a couple of open windows instead...to follow your dreams and truly 'live' your Life. This Twain quote is another pearl of wisdom for us all...

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

Good advice. How will you know you lived to your fullest?

"Let us so live that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry."

Good ol' Mark Twain...

"When You Think of Easter in the South..."

(as always, click pics to enlarge)

...you do NOT think of this!!!

(Mom and Roger's fireplace getting a rare April workout...)

The cold temperatures came, and in most places they conquered with lows well enough down in the 20s Easter morning to kill new buds/blooms/growth at my sister's home in Tryon, NC...

Her one plant that did fare well, however, was her hardy phlox...

Yet, just 10 or so miles away at Mom's home, the temperature hovered at 30-31 degrees Sunday morning, that pocket or relative warmth sparing her azaleas and other plants, which were mostly already in full bloom. Over 2 decades ago my grandfather planted myriad species of azaleas, which I can only tell you are the 'yellow ones', the 'red ones', the 'large pink ones', etc., most blended in the edge of the yard against the woods, with some striking ones along the house...




Mom also loves to bring the profuse color into the house, which was a nice if not odd contrast to the wintry-like temperatures...

The dogwoods were also adorned in their regalia, though a few had some freeze burns...


Interesting what lighting can do for a shot...the dogwoods above against the cobalt blue sky in direct sunlight...versus the almost painting-like look of the same tree late in the afternoon (below) with the roof of the house blocking the direct sunrays...the lighter blue of the sky almost matching the typical shadowy blue cast of the flowers, making them look almost transparent...

If you didn't have a thermometer and didn't step outside, you would think the balm of spring were running rampant this past Easter weekend...alas, reslient Nature will continue to do what She does best, arise from the frozen ashes where needed....

We now return you to your regularly scheduled spring weather....!

"EUREKA! I Found The Answer!!!"

Of Life's many conundrums, one we've all heard on multiple occasions is...

"Which came first:
the chicken or the egg?"

And then, it hit me just the other day. Be it the grocery store, Target, WalMart, you name it, as soon as you enter you are slathered in colorful seasonal candies for sale, and Easter is as big as any of 'em, holiday-wise. The more colorful the better, too. Easter is all about dying eggs at home and getting that Easter basket full of sweet goodies that we really don't need to be eating, truth be told.

And so it was in that cornucopia of sugary offerings that I found the 'enlightenment' to answer the age old saying above....bear with me, please...

When you think of traditional Easter candies, what comes to your mind? I'm a softie for the malted milk eggs, myself, but I digress. Of the several stand-out finalists to that question, let me spill the (jelly) beans:

Chocolate eggs and Marshmallow Peeps.

Most of us can handle the chocolate egg part. Not nearly as many can stomach the sticky baby chicken "Peeps" which come in yellow, pink, purple and who knows what other colors and shapes...and now species. I've heard you can do neat things to them in the microwave, but there I go digressing again...
(Google it for some fun...)

So from that point of analysis, which came first: the chocolate egg or the marshmallow chicken? Enquiring minds wanted to know...

Let us begin with the unusual "Peep", unique to the world of American confections. Though hard to truly nail down a true birth date, it looks like "Peeps" as we know them made their commercial appearance in 1953, though there were earlier test markets back in the 40's. To further complicate the issue, it is said that the "Peeps" pusher Just Born (no kidding, that's his name) used a formulation that Rodda Candy Company used back in the 1920s for the same type of marshmallow chick...but that was cool, since he bought the company the same year he launched the "Peeps" family ...I suppose it's fair to say marshmallow chicks, themselves, were around in the early 1920s, though just not known as "Peeps."

And now, to the chocolate egg. No doubt when you think of the filled egg you immediately think of Cadbury Creme Eggs, which made their debut back in 1923...so already there isn't a clear winner, given the 'fudge' factor involved with sticky chicks...however, if you widen your definition to just a chocolate egg, you can find records of the French and Germans making them back in the early 1800s...

As Paul Harvey would now say, "And now....you know.........the rest of the story...Good day."

There you have it. The egg came first. Now you can sleep better at night...unless you're dreaming of 8-foot tall purple 'Peeps' that come into your house and lay on your freshly washed sheets...

Hoppy Easter! Stay warm, y'all!!!

"Travelogue: Craven Canyon, Black Hills, S.D."

(CLICK PICTURES TO ENLARGE)

Craven Canyon is "somewhere" in the Black Hills. While on protected land, it is rather remote, and the noted petroglyphs and pictographs are not, themselves, well-protected. When I made my video postcard of this area, I spoke in advance with the National Forest personnel who watched over this treasured area, letting them know what I wanted to create and 'say' to viewers. I feel I have an obligation to show natural 'treasures' while at the same time treading a thin line to protect them, as well. Face it: there are a lot of insensitive dolts out there who wouldn't think twice about defacing such an ancient site, hence my not spilling my 'locator' beans. With research you can find it, as I did...

It's a good hike in to the 'place', no doubt...and while now a semi-arid region, eons ago there must have a been a lot of water to have carved the canyon and its picturesque walls. Spiritually speaking, the area of the paintings and carvings definitely serves as a 'power-center' for things Sacred, as it was apparently used/occupied over many centuries...

While information is not definitive by any means, Craven Canyon was used by unknown ancient cultures, in terms of thousands of years through dating of the art styles and established patinas. Sometimes there is a beauty in not 'knowing' something...we as a society have developed this obsession of wanting to know every little detail of information about any and everything, which is NOT how you find the heart of matters Spiritual. There just aren't a whole lot of answers for this unique place, worthy of protection.

For your knowledge, petroglyphs are images that are painted or drawn onto the rock surfaces...



...where pictographs are chiseled or etched into the stone surfaces...sadly, in the past certain individuals have tried to flake off the stone facing where the images are, only to destroy the very thing their greedy hearts wanted to steal in the first place.


I do remember it was a blistering hot day, and I didn't carry nearly enough water for myself. I was smart enough to leave the pups at home, knowing the terrain involved and that highly limited water sources would be an issue...

In that aridness, though, remains a rawness of beauty that makes you want to keep walking around the next bend or rise...

I made my Journey to find and see the drawings for myself, in silence, and in reverance. In so doing, I found a whole lot more along the way....

As you travel to places, be they big or small destinations, make sure you take the time to 'see' things that others might miss...rushing from point A to point B is...well....pointless. Look for the Beauty and you will find it staring at you.

"This is a BIG blog entry..."

BIG Easter weekend ahead...

BIG weather changes coming in...

BIG birthday today...

Let's start with the party hats....a big 25th Birthday
Dateline: April 3, 1972
Setting: the streets of New York
Who: actually not 'who' but 'what' was born...the cell phone! One Martin Cooper made the first portable phone call on a behemoth DynaTAC test unit. It wasn't until 1984 that a refined DynaTAC 8000X hit the public market...with a price tag well over $3,000 and a hefty 2-pound weight. As the ol' saying goes, "You've come a long way, baby!"

The weather will be causing concerns here in North Carolina...early spring cold snaps are not that unusual...but when combined with what has been excessive warmth with highs in the 80s on many recent days, plant/crop blooming and growth has accelerated ahead of 'normal' schedules...and this weekend's forecast of low temperatures down in the 20s does not bode well for botanical interests. Critical will be the duration of sub-freezing temperatures and at what level, with the coldest morning clearly being Easter Sunday morning. One of those situations where you plan for the worst and hope for the best...regardless, the 80s take a back seat while low 50s take the wheel for highs by Friday. Luckily, we start pulling out of the dive Monday afternoon.

No doubt this is a big weekend not only for religious reasons but for special gatherings of family, travel, special outdoor sunrise services...luckily we have calm and sunny weather, just nicely chilled....

"In your Easter bonnet....
With polarfleece upon it..."

Here in Charlotte is a dynamite blues singer/guitarist Daryl Ryce. I heard her sing this little ditty on a Spartanburg radio station during a live interview many moons ago, and had forgotten some of the words. So here is my version of this little ditty for you in honor of Daryl and her wonderful talents:

"See the Easter Bunny
Hop, hop, hop...

The fuzzy little ears go
Flop, flop, flop...

Behind the Easter Bunny
Drop, drop, drop....

Chocolate Easter Eggs?
Not, not, not!"

"Jonah and the Whale: A Cliff Notes Version"

Well, here are some pics of a really special project. The buyer had been in contact with me off and on for quite some time to make a custom flute...long story short, after tossing ideas left and right, he asked for a "Jonah and the Whale" theme...and my little mental wheels said "do it!".
It began with with outlining the needed dimensions, designing a little extra at the 'foot' for the overhanging tail...I usually make a flute a tad longer than needed to begin with...

...Next, I went to my messy but thorough 'wood room' and had thought that Makore, a.k.a African Cherry, would be a wonderful choice. For you musicians and craftsmen, it is an awesome tone-wood for instruments... I had this idea of a whale going up the flute, with it's fluke hanging over the end of the barrel. Have I ever done something like this before? No. Have I ever done a relief carving before? No. But I knew I could. How was I going to create a "Jonah" for the flute? I had no idea...

So I began measuring...and choosing the appropriate bit for the bore...

and began cutting...

gluing...


...and then planing/shaping down to size...

What was tricky was making the final product a certain key...as you remove wood, the pitch rises, so I had to keep it pitched quite flat through many of the intermediary steps, lest I finish with the flute above pitch. You can easily raise the pitch, but lowering it?...ah, Excedrin headache #724...

As it got closer to completion, I found a diagram of a whale to serve as my model and spatial marker...enlarged it to a size appropriate for my working space...a wee bit tricky to translate and adapt it to a 3-D rounded surface... But, ultimately, it worked!

And so, the detailing/carving went, some with Dremel bits, some wood burning inbetween steps, using other hand knives...I knew, too, I needed to keep the fluke/tail area a little thick and 'supported' so it would not be prone to breaking off down the road. To top it off, I decided to use a hand-rubbed salad bowl finish on the wood for a beautiful realistic appearance...(click to enlarge any photo)

Then came the "Jonah" issue...decided to make it a composite block in 3 woods, with the boat being in the style (just not scale) of a Galilean fishing boat (see photo detail)...

...the Jonah figure is only 1.25" tall and, luckily, nothing broke! The three pieces were joined/anchored by a dowel for extra sturdiness...part of my last-minute version was to have Jonah face the player, adding the whale's approach from the briny deep behind him, though the block is reversible...

...and, well, as they say, "the bird flew!" After a little hand-rubbing with some wax, it will hit the mail this afternoon to it's new home.

Just like Life...the Joy is in the Journey...the Process...not the end result, as pleasurable as it may well be...this flute has only just begun it's Journey of providing music for others the enjoy.


Make sure you live your Life LARGE! Life is NOT a dress rehearsal...

"You Just Never Know..."

Here I sit on a Monday morning...and I'm not at work! Originally last night was supposed to have been a very special concert I was participating in that, alas, was canceled last week. I'd put in for this day off, and though the concert was canceled I decided to keep the day off and make for a creative long weekend. It worked! I plan on posting pics of a new flute someone commissioned with a "Jonah and the Whale" theme...cool looking flute, with a couple of "firsts" in my flute-making Journey. Stay tuned for that tomorrow.

Speaking of 'firsts'...loved scanning the AP wires this morning and reading about Sunday's miraculous golfing victory of Morgan Pressel, who sitting in the clubhouse after a very respectable tournament finish watched the leaders fall by the wayside on their final approaches. Suzann Pettersen had her victory all but sealed, leading 4-under with 4 holes to play before the proverbial wheels fell off her cart...her fate cemented when she missed her birdie putt on 18. In that moment, Ms. Pressel became the youngest woman ever to win an LPGA championship...at the ripe age of 18 years, 10 months, and 9 days. That's good stuff for the record books...unless you're Suzann Pettersen, of course.

Continuing on with 'firsts', the NCAA men's basketball final Monday night should be a barn-burner between two strong #1 teams, Ohio State and the defending NCAA champions Florida. I grew up in a tennis family (which is why I took up golf...Mr. Gotta-Be-Different, here!) and watched, among others, Yannick Noah play some impressive matches in his professional career (turned pro in 1977 and was inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 2005)...as you may well know, his son Joakim Noah is one of the anchors to the Florida assault sqaud, and seemingly unstoppable. Ohio State has not been to the finals since 1962, and while a unit heavy on the freshmen side, they may well have the fearless hunger to give Florida a serious run for the money...or not. While on paper it should be a top-flight match-up...well, hence my title today. You just never know...

Yet another first is apparent to those that know me pretty well...I always tell people I'm a strange male in that;

I don't watch sports, and...

I love to shop.

Weird, huh. Love to participate in sports (when physically able these days!), but to sit down and watch a full game of any sort has heretofore been a rare event for me, no matter the season or level of play. So to talk so much 'sports' in this blog is a bit beyond my norm, but as I sat down to write, that's what I wanted to talk about...and that's what I love about the creative process, writing or otherwise: You just never know...

Time to go put Jonah in his boat for his new Journey...a whale of a Journey, no less.

P.S.: It's no fluke...