"The piece I'm going to repeat," he went on without noticing her remark, "was written entirely for your amusement."
Alice felt that in that case she really ought to listen to it; so she sat down, and said "Thank you" rather sadly,
"In winter, when the fields are white,
I sing this song for your delight--
only I don't sing it," he added, as an explanation.
"I see you don't," said Alice.
"If you can see whether I'm singing or not, you've sharper eyes than most," Humpty Dumpty remarked severely. Alice was silent.
"In spring, when woods are getting green,
I'll try and tell you what I mean..."
(from Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll, Chapter VI, Humpty Dumpty, 1871)
I know that many of you are still digging out of the ice and snow. If you manage to break free, make sure to visit Northwest Florida this Saturday, March 6, so you can participate in the annual Forestry Conclave and Lumberjack Festival in Milton on the Pensacola Junior College campus. It truly is one of those participatory festivals, even if the only thing you can do is tap your foot to the bluegrass music, cheer on some of the lumberjacks in the various competitions, or smile and say hello to one of the volunteers making it all happen. Yours truly will be (wo)manning one of the booths for part of the afternoon. I'll let you guess which one it is. Hints: It's a natural extension of something I love to do, and try as I might, I'll never be a master at it.
The two photos on this post--don't you just love a brevity break?--were taken while hiking the Bear Creek Trail and Ravine Trail on the Bear Creek Tract--part of the Lake Talquin State Forest--near Tallahassee last weekend. It's a fascinating place with many habitats and woodland features to explore. SAM and I liked it so well that we visited it on Saturday and Sunday. I took this second picture on Saturday which was cloudy and cold. On Sunday, as you can see from the first photo, the sun broke free of the clouds and at least gave us the impression that warmer days are ahead. That tree, named musclewood for obvious reasons (although this site calls it "hornbeam"), gave me the impression that I need to start lifting some weights again.
Please visit Ramblingwoods.com for another Nature Notes/Signs of the Season post and make a point of visiting the various bloggers who have participated this week and added a link.
Well...isn't that a STRONG looking tree??? Hee hee hee...how cool!!!
ReplyDeleteLake Talquin State Forest sounds so great...one day I must get to the Pensacola area. It is sooooo far away from us down here in the pit of Florida! Miles, and miles, and miles. I sure would love to come and say hi at the festival. I've never seen a real lumberjack before, and it sounds like it will be such a great time with the bluegrass music and all. I am a LOT jealous!!! :)
Have a wonderful time, and think of me down here all alone in the pit of the state.....(just kidding). LOL!!!
I never seem to get the hang of these new comment procedures. I thought I posted one but your blog takes a two part verification procedure and I missed the second part so the comment is now lost in some netherworld cyber realm.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, it is interesting to think of lumberjacks in Florida. To me they are always plaid wearing, ax toting, blue ox leading, north woodsmen:)
Enjoy the weekend.
Marine
Julie, I thought we were in the (arm)pit of Florida! At least it feels like it in the summer. I'm looking forward to the festival tomorrow. We've lived here a while, and this will be our first time visiting it. Forestry is a big deal around here, and I'm hoping to learn more about the native species.
ReplyDeleteMarnie, you're the second person to remark about the problems with the embedded comment section, so I switched back to the pop-up window. Thanks for being patient and trying again. I wonder if the blue ox will make a surprise visit to the festival tomorrow? If I see it, I'll let you know. Have a great weekend yourself!
That sounds like a great way to get master gardener hours. I hope it is most fun!
ReplyDeleteSounds like you will have a great time! I love bluegrass music and it's been years siince I've attended! Years since I've been in your neck of the woods, as well. Enjoy your day, have fun in your booth! And thank you for the link to Talquin State Forest. Next time I trave S, I'll definitely make it a point to check it out in person. Thanks for visiting my blog and following me. I look forward to visiting with you again! ~karen
ReplyDeleteI would never have thought of a lumberjack festival in Florida; sounds like a fun time! I am definitely ready to break free of winter.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you went back to this commenting format. For some reason, I can't leave comments on the other kind when I use Internet Explorer, and I have to switch to Firefox. It might help if I'd finally get around to updating my browser:) A couple of people have told me they can't leave comments on my posts, and I can't figure out what to do.
I really loved the comment you left about your daughter singing with the birds..It's that kind of memory that touches us and leads to a life long connection with nature...
ReplyDeleteLumberjacks in Florida... Really? I love how you weave your literary magic..so unique..I love it... Michelle
Such an interesting festival!
ReplyDeleteHave lots of fun.
Spring is wakening up in my gardens.
Sherry
(I'll try commenting from my IPhone again, the last attempt failed.)
ReplyDeleteI bet Linefork's bluegrass with flair would go over big there.
Sounds like an interesting festival. I can not picture lumberjacks in Florida. I hope you have a great day.
ReplyDeleteThat festival sounds interesting. Your tree looks like a flexed arm showing off its muscles. Cool.
ReplyDeleteShoot. I'm going to miss it by a little over a week. First ever trip to Florida, arriving with spouse and another couple at Fort Myers on the 16th for Twins spring training games and visits to Sanible and Corkscrew Swamp. Can't wait.
ReplyDeleteLumberjacks in Florida? Who'd a thunk it. Sounds like a great festival - wish I could go!
ReplyDeleteWe have a musclewood tree in our front woods; it's kind of creepy, how much it looks like gray skin stretched over muscles and sinews.
I should see the movie. I always use the story of the Humpty Dumpty to explain Everglades Restoration ...
ReplyDeleteEveryone, the festival was great, but guess who didn't have the camera handy to capture anything? Oh, and I missed the bluegrass music by about 10 minutes. The booth that another volunteer and I were in charge of was tucked away in the back of the main building. She--who was there all day as the person in charge of this event--said it was very busy in the morning because it was located where they had the children's indoor events. I did get to meet 12 "contacts" and hand out brochures describing the proper care and common problems of turf grass. Did I know anything about turf? Certainly not! I just smiled, pointed to my badge identifying me as a volunteer/trainee, and referred the curious ones to the website and phone numbers listed on the UF brochure. You understand; it's my first day on the job, and I know next to nothing. The experts at UF and the extension office will be more than happy to answer any questions you might have...
ReplyDeletethat is a great photo of a musclewood tree. Hope you had a great time at the event. (you know me from my faded away Pathway Horticulture blog)
ReplyDeleteread the above comment... sorry you missed the bluegrass
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by and saying hello, Wayne! I'm glad that you haven't given up blogging. I tend to take little mini-breaks now and then, and I don't post as often as I used to, so it's more manageable. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDeleteThe twisted tree has an interesting, window like shape. It seems to me, this tree like the nearby tree much!
ReplyDelete