Why, why, why........I've uploaded this photo three times and it keeps loading sideways. Thus, here's a cockeyed view of Swamp Milkweed, Asclepias incarnata, growing in our road ditch. The scientific name is intriguing........Asclepias comes from the name of the Greek god of healing and medicine, and incarnata from the Latin word for "flesh". I think this particular milkweed has gorgeous color......rivaling the rosy-est rose!! (The color in the photo is unaltered.)
Milkweeds of various sorts were used medicinally by native peoples, and also served as food. The flower blossoms were stewed and eaten like preserves. Here's a informative paragraph from Wildflowers of the Tallgrass Prairie by Runkel and Roosa: "Milkweeds are characteristic of the prairie ecosystem. Some are exceedingly rare----the presence of these and other prairie plants gives ecologists the information needed to determine the quality of the prairie."
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"Summer breeze.....makes me feel fine"------at the bottom of this blog is a music playlist, including that Seals & Crofts song, popular in my high school days, which is playing as I type this! You can click on the songs to hear them. Cool, cool, cool! (Especially if your internet connection is fast!) By listening to certain songs on the list-----my favorites of long ago-----I can feel instantly young again!!! Its totally delusional, of course.......but, SUCH FUN, so why not indulge!!
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An afternoon spent reading a book.......on Sunday it seemed like the most pleasant activity in the world! I sat comfortably on my version of the beach-----our shady, screened porch beneath the whispering pine trees, a gentle summer breeze surrounding all.
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In the mood I was (as always) for a historical mystery set in a foreign locale, and found Iain Pears' modern-day art history tale, Death and Restoration, waiting patiently on my bookshelf. One of my many bad habits is buying books and then allowing them to age on the shelf for a couple years before reading them! Perhaps a well-aged book is better, just like fine, aged wine!
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At any rate, I enjoyed this book very much and may try to find more of Pears' books. His writing is witty and wry........and uncontroversial........I literally found myself smiling on nearly every page! A Googling of Death and Restoration turned up a good review of the book on this blog. The mystery in the book involves a Hodigitria.
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HAVE A MARVELOUS DAY!!
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8 comments:
You never fail to inform and amuse, and your [many] fans are grateful. But saying "In the mood I was" is a little too Yoda-like backward-speak for me. Too jolting to my senses it was at first. Confused I was, but onward I read, and understood it I did at last. :)
I read several Pears books some years ago and found them both delightful and very informative. I foresee a trip to the library for this one.
In a much lighter vein, Elizabeth Peters (of Amelia Peabody in Egypt fame) wrote a series featuring one Vicki Bliss, not your average art historian, who becomes involved in some strange capers. Good "escape" novels.
rhymeswithplague,
Well, I first typed it the usual way, "I was in the mood.....", which is too typical of my writing style......too many sentences beginning with "I" and too many "I's" to begin with. Got that. In truth, I'm in awe of YOUR writing style! I'm humbled that you stop in here! Have a great day!
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Pat,
Oh, good, you've read some Pears! And, thank you for mentioning Elizabeth Peters.....I will have to look for her books. Art history really is fascinating, and makes for great stories! Its not so serious that humor can't be added, unlike with other mayhem, like murder.
Thanks for stopping by! You have a great day, too!
I love the milkweed photo. Pretty...but I have never seen that around these parts.
I love milkweek. I thought that catterpillers set their cacoons on them and but I may be wrong. The word asclepias is also a garden perennial, so it must be related and a hybrid of the native variety. I always thought they smelled like lilacs. I used to pick them and put them in a vase and they just made the house smell wonderful!
Thanks for the info on the book. It sounds interesting.
And that milkweed is a beautiful color.
I started to leave a post about humorous murder and mayhem stories, and I will be back to do that in just a minute, but the word verification for this post caught my eye. It is "ekyis," and it triggered a strong memory in me. It's not spelled the same, but all the letters are there, just a trick of the eye. One of my favorite books is "Gifts From Eykis" or "A Gift from Eykis." I'm getting old.. .and I have to leave this post to look up the absolutely correct title and the author; I think I know, but it would be horrible to attribute it to the wrong person. It's all about unconditional love, and is not the usual stuff. I'll be back with the details. I recommend it!
I'm back! The correct title is "Gifts from Eykis," by Wayne Dyer.
Now.. back to murder and mayhem and humor: Tamar Myers (author) and her Penn Dutch mysteries starring Magdalena Portulaca Yoder. They are a hoot!!
Hmmm this word verification (ajxaeg) triggers nothing; aren't you glad?
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