Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Nature, February 2008
What would a nature collection be without bugs? Here are two taken in our very own home! The vicious looking one is a kind of ant, and harmless; the hulking one is harmless, too, and about an inch long.
Finally, a few New Year's Lions from the Chinese New Year.
¶ Wednesday, February 27, 2008 
 | One of the big highlights of the month was the total eclipse. Hawai'i was too far West to see totality, and the odds of Hilo being overcast on any given day are high. But we drove up to the Mauna Kea visitor center to get above the clouds. It was cold up there, but we did get to see some of it. |
 | How cold? Well, there's been a lot more snow on the mountaintop this year than the last few, that's for sure. |
 | Pretty much since the eclipse, we've been dealing with Vog -- that's short for "volcanic fog" -- which has some ash in it but is mostly Sulpher dioxide and other noxious gasses. The lava flow has been very active lately (not in our direction, at all!) and the gas coming out of Kilauea is very heavy. The trade winds should come back by this weekend, and then we can breathe outside again. |
 | Yeah, it's just another hibiscus, but I have a new camera.... I'm up to 8 megapixels. (What happened to the last one? Well, let's put it this way: don't leave your camera inside a reclining chair. Alternately, when there seems to be a bump in the recliner's action, look under it.) Anyway, here are a few more flowers: some kind of clover from the backyard, and some very dramatic blossoms from the farmer's market, followed by a lemon blossom and something from Max's schoolyard. |
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What would a nature collection be without bugs? Here are two taken in our very own home! The vicious looking one is a kind of ant, and harmless; the hulking one is harmless, too, and about an inch long.
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Finally, a few New Year's Lions from the Chinese New Year.
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