Recipe of the Week: Road Trip Picnics

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Now that summer is here - day trips and vacations are more prevalent. The ‘recipe’ this week is some suggestions for picnics…assuming a good ice chest and some thoughtful preparation before starting down the road.

Do you want to eat while driving or at a picnic table/on a blanket?

If you need to eat while you drive - select foods that can be eaten without a lot of fumbling or mess. Vegetables and fruits that are naturally (or can be cut into) easily consumed bites without anything left over; prepare the food in serving sized containers before you set out. Keep in mind that eating one thing at a time is easiest. A moist (not crumbly) muffin can also be consumed easily while driving as can larger nuts (i.e. avoid smaller nuts like sunflower seeds since they are more challenging to handle while driving).

Picnicking with a table or blanket is easy - particularly if the ice chest can be brought directly to the area from the car. The old standby of sandwich and fruit can be prepared ahead of time or assembled just before eating. I prefer to take the ingredients separately: toasted bread, smoked turkey, lettuce, tomato, and other condiments; even though this requires a plate and a knife - there is no risk of soggy bread as sometimes happens with sandwiches prepared ahead of time. My favorite picnic lunch is a chef salad assembled on a large plate from little containers of ingredients packed in the ice chest. Or consider having food borrowed from an afternoon tea menu as a light lunch: spreadable egg salad used as a dip for cucumber slices, a muffin, and pieces of fruit.

All of these choices are nutritious and won’t leave you too sleepy to continue on down the road! Enjoy!

Cheekwood Tree Houses

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As promised in a previous post - this post is about the “tree houses” at Cheekwood Garden and Art Museum in Nashville, TN. They are all sized in a way that children can climb up into them and were very popular. There were families and groups of summer-program children all around them so it was good that they were scattered throughout the garden. My favorite is a giant fish that has recycled CDs for scales!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was a conch shell, a slide that was built with a ramp and sides with every non-walking or sliding space covered with plants,

 

 

 

 

 

a ship,

 

 

 

 

 

a traditional looking house among the trees , and

 

 

 

 

ball of yarn suspended over a pond (there was a walkway into it just out of the picture).

The excitement these structures evoked from children changed the tenor of the gardens!  It was a high energy place.

Cheekwood Garden and Art Museum

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Cheekwood Garden and Art Museum was my favorite place on a recent trip to Nashville TN. The weather was near perfect and the place was full of other people (young and old) enjoying the place. There was a great-grandfather looking for the Howe Garden with his granddaughter and her two children. Groups of children in look-alike T-shirts were roaming the garden enjoying the tree houses or in art programs. I’ll post more in upcoming days about the Howe Garden and the tree houses…so the pictures below are just an introduction.

The glass bridge (1st two images in the collage below) was in the forest. The dappled sunlight enhanced its appeal. The stream with plantings along each side was lush. The sculpture of a mythical plant (a combination of several) seemed to be what Cheekwood is all about - the blending of art and garden. Finally the owl sculpture was in very bright sunlight and dessert plants. There is something to enjoy at every turn at Cheekwood.

Museum Strategies

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I’ve been visiting a lot of museums recently and discovered that I very quickly settle on my strategies for a particular venue based on my experiences with other museums of the same type. I’ve listed the ones I’m most conscious of below.

Slow and read everything or fast for ambience. If the topic of the display is something I am really interested, I read everything - pull out drawers for extra information, push a button to watch a short video or hear a noise; in other words - I do everything the curators offered. This tends to happen in historical or science related displays. An example of this strategy, was in the Frank H. McClung Museum on the campus of The University of Tennessee in Knoxville; they have a detailed exhibit on the Native Americans in that part of Tennessee and a very well done video about Cherokee perspective. In art museums I tend to move through looking at pieces rather than reading the plaques - unless it is a piece I really like; it’s not necessarily ‘fast’ but it is not following every lead the curators have provided. I applied this strategy in the Cheekwood Art Museum in Nashville; the piece I walked up and read everything about was the Alexander Calder ‘Snake’ made of hemp rope (since I had never seen a Calder work in fiber….the metal mobiles are his best known work).

Pick favorite pieces. In art museums, picking a favorite piece (or 2 or 3) makes the museum more memorable. The Calder piece was my favorite at the Cheekwood Art Museum and Reclining Dress (pictures below) was my favorite from the Hunter Museum of American Art in Chattanooga. A Caddo Indian pot was my pick from the display at the DeGray Lake office of the Corps of Engineers in Arkadelphia, Arkansas.

Pictures. When museums allow pictures - they are a great way to capture the essence of the museum. The Hunter Museum allows pictures in same galleries and I captured the reclining dress along with the information about it with my camera.

Buy the museum book. If the museum does not allow pictures - consider buying the museum book. I checked the Cheekwood Art Museum book for the Calder piece; it wasn’t included….so I didn’t buy the book.

Check out the museum web page. Many museums have wonderful web pages. The Hunter Museum of American Art has particularly good ones. My favorite painting was a picture of the moon through trees titled Landscape with Moon by Ralph Albert Blakelock and sure enough - they had a page about it on their site. There was also one for the Reclining Dress by Karen Lamonte.

What are your strategies for enjoying museum visits?

Gleanings of the Week Ending June 9, 2012

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles I read this past week:

Animals Benefiting From Climate Change - a slide show from Discovery News

Dark Chocolate Could Prevent Heart Problems in High-Risk People - Evidence keeps mounting re the benefits of 60-70% dark chocolate

Things That Go Bump—or Hoot—in the Night: 5 Animals You May Hear While Camping in Your Yard - pictures and recordings of sounds they make

Discover Life - free on-line tools to identify species, share ways to teach and study nature’s wonders, report findings, build maps, process images, and contribute to and learn from a growing, interactive encyclopedia of life

How much energy does the internet use? - about 2%...quite a bit is by huge data centers and the article discusses the methods used/proposed to reduce their consumption

Brainmail Bonanza - Richard Watson’s (accidental futurist) newsletter highlights

Horseshoe Crab are blue bloods - their blood is copper rather than iron based

'Safe' Levels of Arsenic in Drinking Water Found to Compromise Pregnant/Lactating Mothers, Offspring

Top Wind Power Countries per Capita

After three months of trying to contact the Mars rover, NASA is calling it quits - Goodbye to Spirit

Gambrill State Park

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Gambrill State Park is in the Catocin Mountains near Frederick, Maryland and is a pleasant morning trip from where we live. Morning is the key this time of year - before the heat of the day gets too over powering. We were there by about 9 on Memorial Day and it was pleasant but humid...then warm and humid by the time we finished our short hike. We only hiked about a mile through the woods - enough to see some of the highlights of the park at this time of year.

The mountain laurel was in bloom...and the bees were enjoying the nectar.

And then their were ferns - at least three different kinds. They were well past the fiddlehead stage and transforming swaths of forest floor with their floating green. Stumps and fallen trees peek through the fronds in the slide show below.

The mosses grew in cracks of rocks and nearly covered others making them look like green islands in the leaf mulch of the forest. They seemed to not grow so well on the quartz as they did on the other rocks.

There was plenty of evidence of the storm that came through the night before: the muddy trail, small branches with green leaves detached from their tree laying on the trail with water droplets still intact.

The insects were warming up as we got ready to leave; next time we'll try to remember the insect repellent!

Longwood Gardens in May 2012 - Hibiscus

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Longwood Gardens always seems to have hibiscus on display in the conservatory in the same room as the roses. The large blossoms seem to always be in all stages from bud to wide open. There are lots of colors too.

Our May visit to Longwood was no exception to this previous observation. There were lots of people in the relatively narrow walkway in front of the plants. My favorite photos of hibiscus from day are shown below. Enjoy!

Previous Posts about Longwood Gardens:   

 

Memorial Day

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Today is Memorial Day - a three day weekend for most of us.

It is a day to remember those that sacrificed for our country. Many communities have events that are a combination of solemn (flags on graves, wreaths at tombs) and celebration (parades). Events that bring people together in a commemorative activity - like the Rolling Thunder of motorcycles in Washington DC - are popular.

It's a good time of year for doing things outdoors so Memorial Day is often used as the 'kickoff' for summer. For years - hot dogs cooked on a grill have been our traditional Memorial Day meal. I've made a few changes toward 'healthier' this year: better quality hot dogs, no bun, Mrs. Dash on the corn rather than salt, a veggie side. Later in the summer, more of the veggies will come from our garden or local farm. This early in the season, the only thing on the plate from our garden is the Italian parsley!

Enjoy your Memorial Day!

 

Longwood Gardens in May 2012 - Water

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Longwood Gardens has a lot of water features and they were all in working order last week for our visit. I’ve included two photographic montages in this post. The first is of water features inside the conservatory. There were pink hydrangeas framing the pools of water as we came in. The rooms of tropics plants had water gurgling everywhere and water droplets on the plants as well. There were whimsical fountains with ferns around them and colorful tiles under them in the children’s garden.

And then there were the water features outdoors. Our last visit in the fall has been late enough that the Italian Water Fountain was dry; the water spewing frogs and the stairway of cascading water were all in working order this time. The blue Eye of Water was also in good shape for the beginning of the season. The fountain I hadn’t noticed before was the tall one in the woods that simply fell onto tile where the water quickly drained away to be lifted into the air again. It was a fountain the creator of the garden could enjoy from his house years and years ago. I liked the fountain in the woods.

Of course - Longwood has many more fountains and they host light displays on summer nights. Those will be a topic after our summer visit to the gardens.

Previous Posts about Longwood Gardens:  

 

Longwood Gardens in May 2012

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Our visit to Longwood Gardens last week provided lots of images for blog posts. I’ve already posted one about the Catalpa Trees and Lilies and there are some other themed ones to come over the upcoming week or so. Today is a generic overview.

I always like the view down this shady pathway between the restaurant and the conservatory area. We almost always head to the conservatory right way since they only allow tripods (for photography) until noon so this is one of the welcoming views on the way.

And then comes the abundant richness of the conservatory. There are so many things to see - the children’s garden (even if you don’t have children), the plants that have been in the conservatory for a long time (like the Cherokee rose in the lower right), the bonsai display and then wonderful colors of other plants like nasturtiums and passion flowers.

Outdoors the tree houses are well established and truly in the trees this time of year. The tulip poplars are blooming as are iris, snapdragons, and jack-in-the-pulpits. The frogs were singing in the ponds….and one stayed still long enough for a photograph!

Previous Posts about Longwood Gardens: 

Longwood Gardens in May 2012 - Catalpa Trees

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The catalpa trees were blooming at Longwood Gardens when we went last week. They were past peak but it was the first time I had seen them in bloom so I took a series of pictures of them.

Catalpas are one of my favorite trees. I associate them with summers at my maternal grandparents. There was a big tree behind their business and another in front of their house that was kept small and trimmed into a round shape. Both trees provided deep shade and, by the time of year I saw them, had the long green seed pods.

Later in my life - there was a large catalpa tree over the swings in the park when my daughter was little. Again, I remember the seed pods but not the flowers.

So - seeing the trees in bloom was a special treat. I had read about the flowers - described as ‘orchid-like’ and they do resemble orchids both in shape and markings. They are large and Henry Adams mentions ‘the thick odor of catalpa trees’ in his The Education of Henry Adams  but these catalpa trees at Longwood did not seem have a strong smell. Maybe different types of catalpa have more smell that these did.

Previous Posts about Longwood Gardens: 

 

Gleanings of the Week Ending May 19, 2012

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles I read this past week:

Scientists 'Read' Ash from the Icelandic Volcano Two Years After Its Eruption - A description of how data was collected immediately following the event and how it is now being used to improve model for predicting dispersion of particles - particularly from volcanic eruptions

Sulfur Finding May Hold Key to Gaia Theory of Earth as Living Organism - looking at the Earth as a giant living organism…sulfur in the ocean, atmosphere, and land

Study in Rats Shows High-Fructose Diet Sabotages Learning, Memory - what you eat has an impact…this study says reduce high-fructose and make sure you have enough omega-3 fatty acids

Statistical Analysis Projects Future Temperatures in North America - map that shows the temperature change expected by 2070 for the US.

First Gene Therapy Successful Against Aging-Associated Decline: Mouse Lifespan Extended Up to 24% With a Single Treatment - Research from Spain. Treatment has been found safe and effective in mice. The effectiveness was shown in ‘health span’ not just life extension.

List Of "Most Endangered Rivers" Flows Through National Parks - the Potomac is #1 on this list…that’s pretty close to home for me

Yosemite Nature Notes: Water - 6.5 minute video - waterfalls, churning water, gently flowing water, rainbows in the mist…and then it’s trek all the way to the coast of California; narrated by park rangers

Evolution Of A Glasshouse: From Colonial Glassmaking To Decorative Arts - Jamestown Colonial National Historical Park includes a glassworks!

Prosthetic Retina Offers Simple Solution for Restoring Sight - just one of the promising technologies to address the problem of age related macular degeneration; I hope one of them is practical and effective by the time I need it

Backyard Color of the Week: Yellow - last week it was blue….this week is yellow

Longwood Gardens in May 2012 - Lilies

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Longwood Gardens is one of my favorite places for botanical photography. The weather was near perfect for our visit yesterday and lots of subjects for my camera both in the conservatory and in the outdoor part of the garden. I’ll be sharing my favorite images in several blog posts over the next week.

This time of the year the water lily courtyard is closed but there were fragrant lilies in the conservatory that were in all stages of bloom. The buds unfurling with the strong central rib of each petal were full of graceful curves and color that tends to fad as the flower matures.

The open flowers are full of frills and texture…the powder of the pollen. 

Gleanings of the Week Ending May 12, 2012

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles I read this past week:

Yosemite Range of Light (video) - Series of time lapse images of Yosemite accompanied with well selected music. Whether you’ve been to Yosemite or not…worth looking at. Double click to see it full screen (then esc to go back to smaller format)

Moon Jellies (photo) - an intersection of life and art

A Look at Solar Growth in the US - (infographic) show top 9 states (Maryland is 9th!) and the demographics on who is installing solar

Find out your city’s air pollution grade from the American Lung Association - infographic and tool using zip code or a map to search the data for your city

Encyclopedia of Life Reaches Historic One Million Species Pages Milestone - If you haven’t already discovered the Encyclopedia of Life web site, it is well worth a look

Carbon Disclosure Project - (infographic) what local governments are doing

Backyard Color of the Week: Blue - collection of photos of blue life (mostly birds)

Top Countries for Higher Education - the environment for higher education around the world....it’s a different look than we get from looking at single institutions

UK stat: growing population over 100 years old - tremendous increase projected between now and 2066. The picture is the best part of the post - implying that this increase in older population will benefit the youngest of us!

Road Trip in May 2012 - Shenandoah National Park Day 2

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Our second day at Shenandoah started out at a very foggy Pocosin Cabin area (mile 59.5). There was a lot of birdsong - almost as if they thought it was still dawn. The hike is along a gravel road. There was a collection of walking sticks at the marker post at the entry to the hike.

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Franklin Cliffs (mile 49) is, as the name implies, cliffs. It is an easy and short walk from the parking area. The green of the trees in the valley extends gradually up the hills - not quite to the top yet. There are different kinds of flowers here - lots of lichen on the rocks - and pools of water in the depressions from last night’s rain. It was quite windy and the trees made eerie creaking sounds as they swayed back and forth.

And finally - a slide show of trillium pictures taken at Shenandoah. The flowers start out very white and then turn pinkish as they age. Enjoy!

Road Trip in May 2012 - Shenandoah National Park Day 1

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Our first hike at Shenandoah was at Gravel Springs Gap (mile 17.6). It was a short hike with some steep places. The water from the springs trickled through rock lined channels that we crossed many times as we made the look. The area was lush and we enjoyed our first glimpses of the wild flowers that were already blooming - maybe a bit early this year. I've picked my favorite pictures from the Gravel Springs Hike for the collage below.

Next we decided to hike down to Dark Hollow Falls (mile 51). Like many hikes in Shenandoah from Skyline Drive, the first part is downhill and the return is up.  I took one picture of the falls and then focused on the wildflowers, shelf fungus, and the way rocks hung over the water. This was the first location I photographed trillium and noticed that the maples are significant later than at home where the samara have already flown off the trees.

By the time we made it to the hotel, my Fitbit had recorded that I had climbed the equivalent of over 80 flights of stairs! It was quite a day.

Gleanings of the Week Ending May 5, 2012

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The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles I read this past week:

Live stream of Blue Heron nest at Cornell Ornithology Lab - There are 5 chicks…two cameras. I leave it on almost all the time. I love having bird noises in my office and they are so interesting to watch. The chicks are growing fast so don’t wait to take a look. The adult male has the extra plummage on his head (the female lost hers in a battle with an owl) and a missing toe on his right foot. They take turns on the nest.

New Saturn video created from Voyager and Cassini spacecraft images - Video and music

New Reservation System In Place For Firefly Viewing At Great Smokies June 2nd—10th - The fireflies that flash synchronously have become so popular that a ticketing system has been put in place. Good to know if you plan to see them this year.

About One Baby Born Each Hour Addicted to Opiate Drugs in U.S. - very sad

Arabic Records Allow Past Climate to Be Reconstructed - Weather in Iraq/Syria in the 816-1009 time period…a time with lots of cold waves in that area of the world

Yellowstone Super-Eruptions More Numerous Than Thought? - yes, it’s still a super volcano

The Library of Utopia - Another try to create the giant online library

10 Emerging Technologies - A list from Technology Review. It has a pull down so you can look at their list from previous years too

Is automation the handmaiden of inequality? - Productivity per hour has continued to climb while the hourly compensation flatten sometime in the 1970s. Manufacturing jobs in the US have declined precipitously since around 2000 while the manufacturing output has continued to increase (and this in spite of outsource manufacturing to other countries too!). Blog post + comments to get lots of interpretations of the data.

Breakthroughs in glass technology - and they’ll come on line in the next few years...I like the idea of having wall sized screens!