Farewell to Sunsets

Pelican Rock Sunset, Dauphin Island, Alabama

“The Sea of Sunset”

By Emily Dickinson

This is the land the sunset washes,
These are the banks of the Yellow Sea;
Where it rose, or whither it rushes,
These are the western mystery!

Night after night her purple traffic
Strews the landing with opal bales;
Merchantmen poise upon horizons,
Dip, and vanish with fairy sails.

I love watching and photographing the sun peek over the horizon in the morning and slip below the horizon in the evening, a pastime of millions (probably billions) of people.

My husband and I spent the month of February 2021 on a beach on Dauphin Island, Alabama, the “Sunset Capital” of Alabama, where we could see both sunsets and sunrises. Twice the beauty. We don’t have a view of either sunrises or sunsets from our home, so this was a real treat.

On the island, I photographed every sunrise and every sunset on the days it wasn’t foggy or raining.  I posted several of my sunrise and sunset photographs on Print on Demand sites, such as Fine Art America and Zazzle, and I’ve included a few in this post.

Toward the end of the month as I tried to get the perfect sunset shot, I thought “Maybe it isn’t a good idea to stare at the setting sun through my viewfinder.” You’re all thinking, “Well, duh, that’s an idiotic thing to do.”

Orange Sunset on Dauphin Island, Alabama

And yes, dear readers, I apparently damaged my retina and worsened my cataracts. When I got home I discovered that I could no longer see clearly through the viewfinder with my right eye. I had Lasik 25 years ago, which corrected my right eye to be able to read without glasses in the monovision procedure, and I can still do that even though everything is a bit fuzzy when I look through the viewfinder. I thought my viewfinder was dirty, but the problem is my eye.  I never used my left eye (my distance corrected eye) to see through the viewfinder, but I’m training myself to use it.

My ophthalmologist told me that I should no longer take sunset photographs or even watch sunsets. There are probably ways to do it safely, such as using the camera screen rather than the viewfinder, but I’m probably not going to take the chance.

Eventually I’ll have cataract surgery, but I don’t think the solar retinopathy is going to diminish.

Be safe out there, everyone!

Sunset Sunbeams on Dauphin Island, Alabama

Pelican Flying at Sunrise, Dauphin Island, Alabama

My Collection of Sunrise and Sunset Photographs on Fine Art America.

My Collection of Sunrise and Sunset Products on Zazzle.

Colorful Face Masks to Help in the Fight Against the Spread of Contagious Diseases.

Spiral Rainbow Tie Dye Cloth Face Mask

by Groovyshop

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the use of cloth face coverings¹ as face masks to supplement social distancing in the fight against the spread of COVID-19. While the CDC’s guidance recommends even homemade cloth face coverings to help slow the spread of the virus, now you can go a step further with a beautifully decorated face mask covering with a disposable mask insert slot. The insert slot allows you to insert a disposable mask inside (sold separately) to provide extra layers of filter protection. Our custom masks provide for personal style to match your look from fun designs to photos and even logos. With these customizable cloth face masks, you can show your personality even from six feet away!

Zazzle’s cloth face masks are NOT surgical masks, personal protective equipment, or N-95 respirators – these critical resources are reserved for the brave healthcare workers who are on the front lines, taking care of our loved ones – but rather are intended for general, everyday use while out in public when social distancing measures are difficult to maintain. We made sure that our face masks had all the most-important features to keep you safe and comfortable:

Click Here to See a Collection of My Face Mask Designs.

• Easy to use (CDC guidance on how to wear and remove a mask )
• Reusable (Wash with proper sanitization after each use)
• Machine washable
• Comfortable 100% polyester fabric (Decorated front material is a poly sheeting, and the back is made from poly microfiber)
• Sturdy over-the-ear elastic straps for a snug fit
• Machine washable and reusable
• One size fits all (7″ x 3.5″) to cover your nose and mouth
• May be worn alone, but designed with an insert slot for an optional surgical mask or a disposable mask which acts as an additional barrier to fluids and particulate materials (not included)
• Please note that the our face masks are not intended for medical/personal protective equipment which requires flame resistance or skin sensitivity testing

Shamrock, Four-Leaf Clover Cloth Face Mask

by catherinesherman

Coral and Peach Pink Streaks Cloth Face Mask

by Groovyshop

Spiral Tie Dye Teal and Blue Cloth Face Mask

by Groovyshop

Spiral Tie Dye Raspberry Cloth Face Mask

by Groovyshop

Spiral Tie Dye Teal and Blue Cloth Face Mask

by Groovyshop

Purple Butterflies Cloth Face Mask

by catherinesherman

Spiral Tie Dye Teal and Blue Cloth Face Mask

by Groovyshop

Magenta and Hot Pink Streaks Cloth Face Mask

by Groovyshop

Spiral Tie Dye Red Cloth Face Mask

by Groovyshop

Spiral Tie Red and Blue Cloth Face Mask

by Groovyshop

 Spiral Tie Dye Blue and Red Cloth Face Mask
by Groovyshop

Spiral Green Tie Dye Cloth Face Mask

by Groovyshop

There Will Be Blog

That time I sat next to Tom Wolfe in the Boston Airport. He was dressed in his “uniform” of a dapper white suit; I was dressed much, much, much more casually: To read the Tom Wolfe section in this blog post, you’ll need to click on “view original post.” Sad news today, Tom Wolfe has died at age 88. https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2018/05/15/tom-wolfe-author-right-stuff-dies-87/611175002/

Catherine Sherman

The mini-van’s thermometer shot up to 94 degrees as we left leaf-shaded suburbia.  We hurried (careful not to exceed the speed limit) into the city, eager for a soft seat in a cool theater at a late afternoon movie, just before the higher evening prices kicked in.  We chose “Gonzo,” a documentary about Hunter S. Thompson, a man more than a decade older than us who chronicled our generation in a way we had not quite experienced ourselves.  We were happy to go along for the trip, even though we weren’t hurtling down a highway in a convertible Cadillac, fueled on Wild Turkey and weed ala Thompson.  We bought our tickets, fumbled for seats in the dark and settled in.

Hunter S. Thompson, Gonzo journalist.

Hunter S. Thompson was like an early blogger.  Although his words were published — not instantly blasted to the public in bytes — the impact was almost as immediate.   He created, or…

View original post 695 more words

Chiggers!

I should have taken this advice about how to avoid chiggers. I’m covered with chigger bites after working in the neighborhood butterfly garden. I haven’t seen any butterflies lately, but I know that the chiggers have found a home there.

Catherine Sherman

 

This is a chigger, enlarged about 1,500 times. Chiggers are red until they are engorged, when they turn yellow. They feed on our dissolved skin cells, not blood. (Photo — Dr. W. Calvin Webourn, the Ohio State Acarology Laboratory.)

Since I’m still scratching like crazy, I decided to get serious about avoiding more chigger bites.  (See my post, “Berry Picking by Moonlight” for an impractical approach.) If you’re wondering whether there are chiggers in your area, there probably aren’t. If you’ve been in nature, you’d already know! 

HOW TO AVOID GETTING CHIGGER BITES:

Wear Insect Repellent.

Wear long pants and long sleeves (which is so much fun when it’s 95 degrees!)

Wipe off your skin with a rough towel when you come inside.

Take a warm shower or bath with soap after coming indoors.

Wash your clothes and used towels in hot water and detergent to kill any chiggers hanging…

View original post 277 more words

Historic South Carolina

Charleston, South Carolina is one of the most beautiful cities in the country.

Happy Day!

Here is a view from beneath the cables of the Ravenel Bridge in Charleston, South Carolina. The Arthur Ravenel Bridge over the Cooper River opened in July 2005. This eight-lane, cable stayed bridge with two diamond-shaped towers allows clearance for ocean freighters to access the port of Charleston, South Carolina. The bridge connects downtown Charleston to Mount Pleasant. It is the third longest cable-stayed bridge in the Western Hemisphere.

Ravenel Bridge, Charleston, South Carolina Poster

by catherinesherman

A small dog on a walk enjoys the brightly colored houses line East Bay Street in Charleston, South Carolina. Thirteen historic houses make up Rainbow Row. Built in the 18th century, the Rainbow Row houses represent the longest cluster of Georgian row houses in the United States.

Charleston Rainbow Row Poster

by catherinesherman

A black bicycle is color coordinated with the white clapboard house with black shutters on Meeting Street south of Broad…

View original post 227 more words

Glass Labyrinth

Visitors to the Donald J. Hall Sculpture Park make their way slowly through the Glass Labyrinth. The labyrinth is one of the many sculptures and art pieces on the grounds of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri.

Glass Labyrinth Instructions, History and Details.

It was a beautiful day, the first day of September (humid, but you can’t escape that in Kansas City), perfect to explore the 22-acre Donald Hall J. Sculpture Park at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Missouri. One of the art installations on the museum’s vast lawn is the Glass Labyrinth, designed by Kansas City native Robert Morris. Installed in 2013, the labyrinth is a 7-foot-tall triangular sculpture consisting of one-inch thick glass plate walls topped with bronze.

Neither of us had ever explored it before. We watched another person seemingly lost inside trying to make her way out. We stood at the entrance a while, deciding whether we wanted to be trapped inside, too.

Pat enters the Glass Labyrinth.

Pat entered first. I documented her trek with my camera. Would she ever return? Then I followed in her footsteps.  She was hurrying ahead to help the trapped woman. I could see them both, but couldn’t reach them.

I love to read everything but instructions, so I entered the glass labyrinth without knowing that you are to make your way to the center of the labyrinth and then retrace your steps to the entrance, which is also the exit. I did read that you need to move slowly, because it’s very easy to bump into a wall when you think it’s an opening. The glass is amazingly clean and clear. It helps to hold out your hand ahead of you. It was very warm inside the labyrinth, and it doesn’t take much to give you a feeling of panic at being trapped. After I reached what seemed to be the middle, I continued on (since I hadn’t fully read the instructions), finding dead ends. I turned around and walked back the way I came, thinking I had cheated by giving up, when I had actually taken the only path to get out. There was the entrance/exit! I was out!  Soon afterward, Pat led out the trapped woman. Freedom! I confess I felt a little dizzy.

Kansas City native Robert Morris designed this Glass Labyrinth, which is in the Donald J. Hall Sculpture Park at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri.

I’m in the center of the Glass Labyrinth at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri. You can see a bit of my reflection.

Robert Morris Visits His Glass Labyrinth for the First Time: A Slideshow and Article.

Click here to read about the Sculpture Park.

Donald J. Hall Sculpture Park

Sue, The Tyrannosaurus Rex

Sue, the Tyrannosaurus rex, in the Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, Illinois.

When I visit Chicago, Illinois, I like to visit my old friend Sue, the Tyrannosaurus rex. In early April, my husband and I got re-acquainted with Sue when we were in the city for a wedding.  We braved unseasonably cold weather, high wind (well, it is Chicago, the Windy City) and some snow and ice to see the old gal.  She looks pretty good for 67 million years old, although she does admit to some cosmetic help.

When I was refreshing my memory about Sue’s many attributes and history, I was thrilled to read that the T rex mural on the wall behind Sue is by John Gurche, a University of Kansas graduate. I’d met John Gurche years ago while I was at KU and am always happy to discover one of his works. I bought his dinosaur stamps, and of course I never used them on an envelope. (What would happen to the U.S. Postal Service is all of the stamp collectors suddenly used all of their stamps as postage!)  Gurche’s work is featured in museums and in publications such as National Geographic, Smithsonian and the Boston Globe. He was named one of the 2013-14 Distinguished Alumni of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Kansas, the highest honor from the College.

I’m not sure when I’ll see Sue again, so I will get my next fossil fix at the KU Museum of Natural History.  And one of these days I’ll post my story about a dinosaur dig I went to in Wyoming near Newcastle.

About Sue, the Tyrannosaurus rex.

 

 

John Gurche’s U.S. Postage Dinosaur Stamps.

About John Gurche.

 

 

I’m a Tasmaniac

In honor of Australia Day, I’m reposting this post about my trip to Tasmania in 2009.

Catherine Sherman

I’m envious.  Janelle of “What Makes Me Laugh” won a trip to Australia for herself and her husband by writing an essay about Jurlique products, based in Adelaide.   Her niece told her: Get your butt to Australia before my college year abroad ends (or something like that…)  So with only a few months to spare, Janelle figured out a free way to get to Australia by the deadline.

I’ve wanted to go to Australia for thirty years, but I just made my first trip there in January — and it wasn’t free.  I tried the contest method  (the 25th caller will win a chance to be in the drawing), but can you believe it, no one drew my name!  Janelle really did it the smart way, literally. (The link to how she did it is at the bottom.)

One week of her trip will be spent driving around Tasmania, which is one of Australia’s states.  I’m…

View original post 526 more words

Hearts Hearts Hearts Personalized Valentine Card

I didn’t mean to reblog this post here, but now that it’s here, I’ll let it stay…

Bill Happy Valentine’s Day Hearts Hearts Hearts Greeting Card by catherinesherman
Check out other Valentine Cards at zazzle.com

It's a Beautiful World!

Mike Happy Valentine’s Day Hearts Hearts Hearts by catherinesherman on Zazzle.

You can personalize this “hearty” card with any name or relationship! Keep in touch with Zazzle custom greeting cards. Customize all parts of this folded card – inside and out, front and back – for free!

5″ x 7″ (portrait).
Printed on ultra-heavyweight (120 lb.) card stock with a gloss finish.
Each card comes with a white envelope.
No minimum order.
Available in Note Card size

John Happy Valentine’s Day Hearts Hearts Hearts by catherinesherman on Valentine’s Day

Benjamin Valentine’s Day Hearts Hearts Hearts by catherinesherman on Zazzle.

Tim Happy Valentine’s Day Hearts Hearts Hearts by catherinesherman on Zazzle.

View original post

Official Spokesman for “Talk Like a Pirate Day”

A tattered Jolly Roger flag blows in the wind on a “pirate” ship call “Pirata” off the Coast of Santa Cruz Island in the Galapagos Islands of Ecuador.

Arrgh! It’s Talk Like Pirate Day.

Catherine Sherman

The Club Women of Napa County placed this memorial to Robert Louis Stevenson on Mt. St. Helena near the site of a cabin where Stevenson honeymooned with his new bride, Fanny. It’s a two-mile round trip hike from the parking lot.

Robert Louis Stevenson State Park is a California state park, located in Sonoma, Lake and Napa counties. The park offers a 5-mile hike to the summit of Mount Saint Helena from which much of the Bay Area can be seen. I didn’t make it to the top. Not in my shoes.

Nineteenth century writer Robert Louis Stevenson has done as much as anyone for popularizing Pirate Lingo so, of course, he’s my choice for spokesman for “Talk Like a Pirate Day” on September 19. There’s a lot of pirate talk and bravado in Stevenson’s book, “Treasure Island.”

Stevenson was from Scotland, but he traveled widely and spent some time in…

View original post 454 more words