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Posts Tagged ‘Styrofoam’

Lady in a White Dress

Posted in Absurd, art and environment, creativity, environmental art, Falls of the Ohio, Louisville, Kentucky, public art, recycled art, Styrofoam, tagged , , , , , , on September 6, 2010| 7 Comments »

Ah, how nice it is to be in the great outdoors and filling my lungs with fresh air!  The passing weather front has made life bearable again and the fleecy white clouds are a reminder that Autumn is near.

Visitors are down on the fossil beds trying to imagine what life must have been like all those supposed millions of years a go.  I can see a few fishermen too, but I think the water is too warm and the fish won’t be in the mood.  I wonder if when our kind passes into the next geological age…what presences will we leave behind?  Will our very bones turn to stone too and leave a layer here for “others” to discover?  I doubt it.

It’s all so mind-boggling to me that life could have evolved out of some stagnant pool of algae ooze.  I’m not sure I believe that because here I am in my white dress floating over this landscape.  That would have been too unrefined a beginning for someone who is closer to the angels than to the amoebas!

Surely, all this exists for our benefit?  I mean what other use could it have?  Do we think that the animals or plants have the means to develop this site or have the wherewithal to see a bigger picture?  If it’s all going to become history anyway shouldn’t we use our resources as we see fit?  Isn’t that what Darwin meant by survival of the fittest?

Nature is okay, but a little untidy for my tastes.  What the natural world needs are beings like us to organize this place and turn it into a garden.  When I visit the Interpretive Center I think I will plant that idea in the suggestion box.  There are so many more useful ways to experience this landscape  if only the people in charge would clean things up a little.

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Dog Day Birds

Posted in Absurd, animals, Art, art and environment, birds and birding, creativity, ecosytem, Falls of the Ohio, Louisville, Kentucky, nature photography, Ohio River, public art, recycled art, sculpture, Styrofoam, tagged , , , , , , on September 3, 2010| 14 Comments »

It’s official, this summer was our toastiest.  I looked at the lead article in the local newspaper and words like historic and unprecedented are being used.  We beat the old record that stood since 1936 by a degree and a half!  In meteorological terms that’s a lot.  This was determined by factoring the daily highs and lows and taking the average temp for the day. Louisville had more than 80 above average temperature days this summer which was more than any other city in the country.  No wonder working at the Falls felt so harsh.  We had a number of high pressure systems that just hung around the Ohio Valley making life difficult for everything including these vultures.  Of late, every year has had something climatically anomalous about it.  Too dry, too hot, too wet, too cool…missing are words like usual, normal, ordinary, and uneventful.

The variety of bird life at the Falls has been down this year too.  When you are a creature that is sensitive to the environment and have the advantage of great mobility…your instincts can tell you to go elsewhere.  I think this is what happened this year.  I will be really curious to see what comes by on the Fall leg of migration.  This year the Black vultures did well as did the Canada geese.  I could count on seeing those two species in good numbers most anytime I came out to the river.

From what I can see “anecdotally” the Canada Geese are on the rise here.  We have few predators to challenge them.  I have seen some very large flocks out on the water and they are keeping the grass clipped short along the riverbank too.  Friends told me that in the “old days”, you could find large stands of native river cane on the margins.  That’s something I don’t ever recall seeing out here.  One of the values I place upon this blog is to act as a record of the environment as I find it.  We have journals and first hand accounts of what this place looked like two hundred years a go and I believe that two hundred years from now…people will still be interested in the Falls of the Ohio and how it has been changed by civilization.

One of my favorite summer birds are American Goldfinches.  There is something cheerful and friendly about them.  The male with his bright yellow and black plumage is an unmistakable bird.  Many times I have watched the dipping and rolling courtship flight and listened for their call notes.  In the past, I have seen this species in mass, but not this year.

I’ve had conversations with people bragging about their fishing luck or skill, but none of them can hold a candle to a cormorant.  The Double-crested Cormorants in this picture are able to find and catch fish when nothing else can.  Of course, it helps to be able to swim and pursue prey underwater!  These birds are wary and very hard to approach.  In other places of the country, fishermen have persecuted this species because they compete very successfully against the rod and reel.

One of the few interesting and new birds to write about is the Azure-winged Mockingbird.  I have encountered them by my studio under the willow trees.  They are fearless and will drive away larger birds.  Among their notable features is the way they flash their wings against their bodies which makes them look more aggressive.  I have wondered as I make my Styrofoam sculptures, if these birds are drawn to the mosquitos and gnats that find me!  This is not a common bird and has been rarely recorded here.  I expect that in a few weeks, it will be winging its way to Central America.  I wonder if this year’s events in the Gulf of Mexico will compromise it and other birds in some way?  The forecast for this holiday weekend looks great and I’m anxious to spend a bit more time out here on my projects.  I’ll close with one more image of my mockingbird friend and a sculpture still around from several weeks past.

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Styro-Odysseus

Posted in Absurd, animals, Art, art and environment, creativity, ecosytem, environmental art, Falls of the Ohio, fresh water, Louisville, Kentucky, nature, nature photography, Ohio River, public art, recycled art, sculpture, Styrofoam, watershed, tagged , , , , , on August 26, 2010| 12 Comments »

Battered and tired the old soldier looked wistfully to the west.  They said it would be an easy war as wars go.  And sure enough the enemy that wore a uniform was quickly overwhelmed.  Much, however, had changed since Styro-Odysseus began his career as a common soldier. 

Victories were no longer clear-cut and the peace was hard to recognize. Nobody could remember what they were fighting for?  After many years of trying to win the hearts and minds of the occupied people it was time for Styro-Odysseus to return to the muddy shores of his origin.

He had his country’s thanks, but all the old soldier wanted now was the comfort of his family and familiar surroundings.  His valor was now a thing of the past.  It would take all of Styro-Odysseus’ remaining energy to walk the distance towards the life he most desired.  His armor, shield, and standard that he once wore with pride grew heavier with each passing step.  He thought often of the innocence of childhood and green fields.

Along the way, Styro-Odysseus could not help noticing that the country he had risked his life for had fallen into neglect and ruin.  In places it looked as though the war had happened here.  He could not understand his countrymen’s apathy?  He wondered if people still cared?

Rounding a bend by a river, the returning veteran had the oddest sensation that the people had in fact been bewitched and turned into geese.  That would explain the poor condition of so much he observed around him.

Meeting fellow travelers along the way Styro-Odysseus learned that much of his beloved land was in a similar condition.  The ordinary man had become disillusioned by evil pundits who were masters of instilling fear and preyed upon the best intentions of the good.

Styro-Odysseus had much to think about.  It seemed to him that righting the course of his own country might prove to be a greater challenge than fighting a foreign enemy.  What force of arms could be used to fight the new enemy that resides within? What could inspire the people and renew the idea of a shared common purpose?  While Styro-Odysseus’ mind grew cloudy…his feet kept on walking and soon he reached a familiar path.

Styro-Odysseus was home and he forgot the great weight he carried upon seeing his family.  For now, he would set aside his armor and forget the duties of being a soldier for at least a little while.  He would try to allow what sweetness that remained in the world to begin the healing process.  The old soldier would rest and renew his energy for the next task at hand.

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Figure with Very Long Arm

Posted in Absurd, Art, art and environment, creativity, Falls of the Ohio, Green, Louisville, Kentucky, Ohio River, Originality, public art, recycled art, sculpture, Styrofoam, tagged , , , , , , on August 22, 2010| 11 Comments »

The heat and humidity remain unabated.  I think this is the hottest summer I have spent at the Falls of the Ohio.  Yes, there were always super hot days in the past, but this year we have had many more of them.  I was excited about this weekend because I have three days off, few family obligations, and I planned to go out to the river to see and make what I could.  I have collected some large pieces of Styrofoam and it’s time to use it before the river eventually rises and carries it all away again.

On this day, I have made one of my tallest figures ever.  This one is a head taller than I am and when you add the extra long arm…it is even more so.  I can’t say that I worked up a story to go with this one…yet.  If, however, he hangs out long enough, I’m sure I will think of a narrative.  For now, this is what I made and in the process I drank all the water I brought with me and soaked through my shirt.  A mixture of sweat and sun block kept running into my eyes which led to a few choice words said by me.  Fortunately, there wasn’t anybody around to hear them!

After I made this figure, it seemed to me that it had some affinities with the Wallace and Gromit characters.  I think it’s because of the close-set eyes and large nose?  I like that this guy has a sense of humor which can’t be said about some of the figures I have made before.  He’s probably amused that anyone would choose to spend their day off engaged in this activity!

What prompted this sculpture was the long stick I eventually used for one of his arms.  The body is somewhat elongated and the extra long arm brings this out even more.  Perhaps the arm is an evolutionary adaptation for picking fruit from the higher branches of the tree?  In this way, it works similarly to a giraffe’s neck with its ability to reach the topmost leaves.

The brutal sun kept me close to the shade of the willows, but even this had its issues.  There are mosquitos in the shadows and the humidity is trapped by the vegetation and foliage.  Being uncomfortable made me less patient with myself.  Every once in a while I would get distracted by the song of a wren or the myriad insect life around me.  There are still many butterflies and wasps visiting the flowers and willow trees.

I had a few technical problems to work out. The main one being how will this sculpture stand upright?  Even though the sand and mud are soft, this figure is clumsy and comes down to a point.  My solution was to rest the figure on a tripod of sticks.  Two of them can be seen, the third “leg” lends support from behind the figure.  Once it cools down, I would like to move this sculpture around the different vignettes that the Falls offers and see if I can improve upon the photographs.  For the moment, I consider these evidence that I made something on a fairly uncompromising day cut short by the heat.  I decided to leave early and left this figure resting against the trunk of a tree.  I can’t wait for it to cool down a little.  I can tell Autumn is around the corner.  I detect a hint of yellow in the leaves around me that were a bright green not too long a go.

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Butterflies and Styrofoam

Posted in Absurd, animals, Art, art and environment, ecosytem, Falls of the Ohio, Louisville, Kentucky, nature photography, Ohio River, Styrofoam, tagged , , , , , on August 12, 2010| 5 Comments »

 

Every summer is different at the Falls and this one is starting to feel  overgrown with vines.  Walking through the vegetation, it doesn’t take long for one’s clothes to stick to your skin.  It’s been very hot here this summer and the high humidity raises the issue to another level.  Although I have never been to the tropics, I begin to feel like I know what it might be like.  The air is filled with cicada song and there are many insects of all types to be found. 

Overall, this has been a good year for butterflies.  I have enjoyed watching, learning, and photographing them as part of my Falls project.  At some point, I will probably post all my better images in my Pages section.  For now, I will release a few at a time as I come across different species.  Here are three new images that I made on this day .

I have seen more Buckeye butterflies this year than I have any other previous year.  Last week they were positively everywhere around the Falls of the Ohio.  This is a common species, but very pretty with its eyespots.  Apparently among professional lepidopterists, there is some disagreement about how to classify this butterfly because there are variations in its scientific name.  Some books list the Buckeye as Junonia coenia while other guides favor Precis coenia.  I haven’t read a good argument why one name is preferred over another!  I’ll wager the butterfly doesn’t care what we call it.

On this outing, I came across just one of these butterflies.  As they go it is rather nondescript and small.  Often the best way to identify a species is to check the markings on the underside.  With this butterfly I had just this single image.  After cross referencing a couple of butterfly guides, I’m fairly confident that this is the Variegated Fritillary, Euptoieta claudia.  With the Fritillaria, you need to look closely because there are many related butterflies.  Now the next species was even harder to identify!

I am not at all certain on this one, but my educated guess is this is the Scalloped Sootywing, Staphylus hayhurstii.  It’s fairly small and nondescript.  The very tiny white dots on its fore wing are a clue along with its fringy wing margins.  The geographic range looks good because this sootywing is found this far north.  I also note that one guide said this species prefers moist areas near willow and cottonwood groves and that certainly is here.  The sootywing is a member of the skipper clan which are a group of interesting butterflies that share characteristics with moths. 

For me, learning what other organisms share this space is a celebration of life.  Even the rather dull looking sootywing is spectacular by virtue of its existence which took millions of years of development to reach this point in time we could share.  On this trip, I enjoyed  just watching what types of insects were feeding off the loosestrife flowers.  It was easy to forget oneself in the collective buzzing and busy activity around this plant.

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Mister “A”

Posted in Absurd, Art, creativity, environmental art, Falls of the Ohio, Louisville, Kentucky, Ohio River, Originality, public art, recycled art, sculpture, Styrofoam, tagged , , , , on July 31, 2010| 3 Comments »

When I asked my youngest son Adam if he wanted to go to the Falls with me he said yes for the first time in a while.  Everyone has their busy schedules these days, but somehow our calendars intersected on this day.  We went after supper when there was still a couple of hours of good light left.

Adam asked me if I had a fort out here like last year?  You know, the one with all the Styrofoam in it and if so, are we going there?  Barely were the words out of his mouth when he walked into my studio site.  Everything was as I left it except for the big helmeted figure which had fallen over.  In a way, this piece has become the figurehead of my driftwood boat for this season and as my unofficial mascot I respectfully stood it back up.

Adam wanted to go exploring around my area and while he did that I made this quick figure.  Two pieces of found polystyrene, coal eyes, plastic pen cap nose, wooden ears, plastic mouth, a plastic neck collar, and five sharpened sticks along with a foam letter “A” comprise the materials used to make this guy.  By the time Adam got back from circling around the site it was time to go…but first we could make a few photos along the way.

Of the pictures I took of the “Mister A” figure, this was my favorite.  The wrecked cooler adds a lot of formal interest.  Adam was getting hot and thirsty and so it was time to move on home.  I thanked him for coming along and promised him a cold sports drink at the next convenient store down the street.  Maybe it won’t be so hot the next time we explore together and we can stay longer?  Here’s one more shot before closing.

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Loosestrife and Butterflies

Posted in Absurd, animals, Art, creativity, ecosytem, environmental art, Falls of the Ohio, nature, nature photography, Ohio River, Styrofoam, watershed, tagged , , , , , , on July 28, 2010| 5 Comments »

Continuing my last walk…I came to the area that would be my base for the day.  There is a favorite tree with exposed roots that you can sit under and remain cool and out of the sun.  Previous visitors decorated this spot with many vertical sticks that give a fence-like impression.  Here’s two views, first the base of this tree as seen from the outside:

…and a view from the inside.  Over the years, I have left many small sculptures in this area.  They never seem to last very long in here.

Last week was my birthday, and so on this outing I have new tools.  Earlier in the year, I lost my handy two-bladed Swiss Army knife which was a previous gift from a friend.  It had a nice, easy to sharpen blade and a toothy saw that could cut wood.  Replacing that knife are these two objects.  My family gave me the updated Swiss Army knife complete with tweezers and toothpick.  My friend Jeff gave me the bigger saw.  Its blade folds out and has the advantage of locking.  I definitely can chew through a nicely sized limb with this baby! 

On this particular trip, the heat and humidity put a damper on doing anything ambitious.  I hung around this area for a couple of hours and made this guy who was checking out the butterflies in the purple loosestrife.

I found a little bit of Styrofoam to work with and this red plastic object that looks like a pipe.  I used tiny plastic fishing bobbers for eyes and the ears are clam shells.  Later because the shells kept falling off, I substituted a flat rock and sand-polished glass for the ears.  It’s subtle and you might not notice this change at first.  As for the place I was working at…last year the Purple Loosestrife was getting a foothold and now it is firmly entrenched.  This is a hard to get rid of invasive plant that plays havoc in small wetlands like this one.  The butterflies, however, love this weed. 

Among the many species feeding from the purple flowers is this Tiger Swallowtail, Pterourus glaucus.  This is a boldly patterned and large butterfly of summer.  I have seen some beat up looking butterflies of different species and am assuming they are from an earlier brood that perhaps over-wintered here?  The tiger swallowtail also has a common melanistic form and I also saw one of those out here today.

You can see the “tiger stripes” showing on his hind wing.  Also working these flowers were the large bumble bees we saw earlier on the morning glories.  I also observed several large, blue-black wasps that I associate with being spider hunters.  They are so intent on gathering nectar that they pay no attention to me.  All through the loosestrife insects were working the flowers.  Clearly, this plant has no shortage of pollinators.

Mr. Red Pipe was enjoying himself in all this purple haze and humidity.  There was something reassuring about watching all this insect life packed into a relatively small area.  Another favorite butterfly is hanging on a loosestrife blossom not too far away and if we move deliberately…we might not spook it away.

It’s an Orange Sulphur, Colias eurytheme.  We have several other members of the Sulphur family out here along with Viceroys, Red Admirals, and a couple different Skipper species.  I love the yellow-green eyes on this butterfly which seem to have a glow to them.

All my water is gone and so the idea of returning to my car sets in.  I have another bottle waiting for me there.  Tomorrow is supposed to be another high temperature day in the 90’s.  After our June being a record setter, it seems July is out for bragging rights too.  Before leaving, I snap one more picture of the Purple Loosestrife in its prime with the railroad bridge visible in the far distance. 

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Stroll Before a Storm

Posted in Absurd, Art, art and environment, creativity, ecosytem, Falls of the Ohio, fresh water, Louisville, Kentucky, nature, Ohio River, public art, recycled art, Styrofoam, watershed, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 20, 2010| 11 Comments »

The other night after supper I had an hour or so to visit the river before the sun set.  So, I escaped to the river and my favorite park to check out the quality of the light as it slowly sets below the horizon.  During this time of year, the days are longer.  In short order, I was able to make this little figure from Styrofoam found on site.  What looks to be a green feather on this guy’s head is actually a miniature plastic skateboard missing its tiny wheels.  I used found coal for his eyes and his ears are small clam shells.  I tied some string around his waist for a belt.

Although it rained lightly a couple of days a go, things are looking a bit stagnant and dry in places.  The weatherman on the television gave some earlier hints that strong storms were a possibility for our area.  We shall wait and see.  For now, a quick stroll is in order before the rain comes or at least until the sun sets for another day.  Wandering near the river, I hear the calls of Killdeer plovers who are so good at sounding the alarm whenever danger is present…in this case, it’s me.  I managed this one quick photo of a bird hiding in an isolated patch of  grass.  The bright red eye-ring is visible making its eyes appear larger.

I noticed that whenever one of the resident vultures flew over, this bird would duck down in the grass.  Although the vultures don’t pose any danger, the Killdeer instinctively hide from what might be a bird of prey intent on eating it.  I have seen an American Kestrel make a meal of one of these large plovers before way out on the fossil beds on the Kentucky side.

There is a drying out occurring and all the small pools of water are evaporating.  In the process, they become more and more stagnant and I bet there’s a wealth of life in a single drop of this water.  I move the figure closer to the river’s edge to see what we can find.

The fishermen have had their moments.  Left on the bank are the remains of dead fish and the trash the anglers didn’t want to deal with packing back to their vehicles.  Of course, the vultures love all the fish and make short work of them.  What the birds miss…the flies find.

I do get a bit upset by the litter left behind by the fishermen.  I wouldn’t consider them sportsmen because they seem to have little regard for this resource.  I wish the people in charge of patrolling the park would come down here more often than they do.  I’m sure they would find many people out here fishing without a license.  I think some official presence visiting occasionally would be a good reminder to keep this place cleaner.

There are still isolated piles of previously collected river debris waiting for the trip to the landfill.  I hope at some point in the near future that this junk gets picked up for good.  For the moment, it represents a job half completed.  At this point in my visit, I perceive  that the quality of the light is different and a breeze is kicking up.  From the west I can see that the weatherman has a good shot of being right about his forecast.  A storm is on its way and I gather my stuff for the return trip home.  I hope the storm is a good one because this place could use a little freshening up.

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Styrofoam Spirituality

Posted in Absurd, Art, ecosytem, Falls of the Ohio, Ohio River, Originality, public art, recycled art, sculpture, Styrofoam, watershed, tagged , , , , on July 15, 2010| 6 Comments »

Early morning at the Falls of the Ohio is often the best time to visit the river in the summertime.  Of course, you beat the hard-core heat of the day and there is a clean quality to the light that makes this landscape seem new.  The other animals seem to understand this and birds in particular are more active and expending energy in search of food.  I watched a pair of ospreys diving on fish under the beaks of the herons and struggle to carry away their prizes to a nest that is no doubt nearby.  Along the riverbank, red-winged blackbirds stop chasing each other long enough to pursue and eat the latest batch of mayflies to crawl out of this water.

Following a meandering path I reach the latest version of my temporary studio site under the willow trees.  The big figure with the lacrosse helmet is still here, but we have had visitors.  A saw blade I sometimes use to trim larger pieces of wood is jutting out of the figure’s abdomen, but otherwise there is no damage.  I remove the saw blade and stand the figure back up and turn my attention to making something new.  I found an unusual piece of Styrofoam that looks like folded drapery and I create this small figure that makes his debut in this post.  I remember thinking while I made him that he represented some kind of kneeling holy figure in his sacred robes.  Among the earliest written descriptions of the Ohio River come from French missionaries who called it ” La Belle Riviere”…the Beautiful River.

I wouldn’t describe myself as being religious in the common use of the term.  I would, however, say that what mysticism or spirituality I have been able to perceive in the world has come from contemplating nature and by making art.  Something in the power of creating something from nothing conjures up the divine for me.  I guess that’s what I like about using these river found materials…it’s all rubbish, but what I select and how I put things together has the ability to elicit a positive reaction in others.  It’s more than recycling at that point and becomes transformative.

Walking along the wood’s edge I come across this Large Wood Nymph (Cercyonis pegala) and I snap its picture.  My collection of butterfly images from the Falls is growing and I follow the same rule I have for the bird photos.  Everything I include in this project has to have been seen within the environs of the park.  I have seen lots of everything everywhere else, but if it wasn’t seen in the park than it doesn’t count for this project.  I want to get to know this place as well as I can and that includes learning the names of the life forms that inhabit or visit this space from time to time.  I’m also building up a nice field guide collection along the way!

Moving my Styrofoam holy man around, I come across the results of the river sweep that occurred several weeks a go.  It’s one thing to collect this stuff, but in order for it to mean anything…some follow through needs to happen.  It won’t be long before these plastic bags rip apart and we are right back where we started from.  It might even be harder to recruit volunteers the next time around because what’s the point right?

I recall from my art school days discussions of early modernism and spiritualism.  Each seems to have informed the other.  Kandinsky in particular stands out for me because of his theoretical writings.  I confess liking his words a little more than I cared for his later paintings.  What resonated with me is the idea that there is an inner necessity for both time and space that finds expression out of the inner necessity of the artist. 

The world was in a little better physical condition a century a go when Kandinsky and the early modernists were active.  People, other artists, ask me why I’m still doing what I’m doing at the Falls because surely by now I’ve made what points I can make?  My reply is that I’m still compelled to come out here, still feel the tug of inner necessity and with each passing day feel that what I’m doing is more important than before.  What is now necessary is that we need to acknowledge and care for the physical world and the other forms of life that also call this place home. 

Artists are important in that they possess the ability to help generate the visions that will help get us through this point in our development.  This is something which seems lacking to me at the moment.  Where is the optimism we should have at this point in the new century?  Is the blatant materialism all we can connect with anymore?  Fortunately, I’m meeting more and more young people who want to become artists that are actively questioning things again and I will offer my help to them however I can.

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Twilight Runner

Posted in Absurd, Art, creativity, ecosytem, Falls of the Ohio, Ohio River, Originality, recycled art, sculpture, Styrofoam, tagged , , , on July 11, 2010| 3 Comments »

The late afternoon light has this wonderful ability to turn the normally silvery driftwood golden.  It’s a form of alchemy that nature performs on a nearly daily basis if the sun is willing.  I have a few hours to scout around and make something should the opportunity arise.  One of the first places I go by is my Styro-atelier to check on how the big figure Ariana and I worked on is holding up.  There is usually some suspense as to whether the spot has been discovered and will the sculpture be intact or there at all?

This time everything appears in order.  I sit on the nice plank of wood I found and set up to be my work area and I survey my materials.  Grabbing a smaller piece of Styrofoam, the beginnings of an idea start to take shape.   I will try to make my idea physical by using the poor materials I have scavenged off the riverbank.  I have given myself the limitation of not being able to carve the Styrofoam.  It would be easier to bend my idea to my will if I allowed myself to cut away.  As it is, I just poke holes in the Styrofoam.  In this way, I feel my process respects the shaping that the river has already done.  It’s an odd kind of collaboration, but I think the river is okay with this because the mighty Ohio has rewarded me in so many ways.  Having this limitation is also a bit of a nice challenge.

I created the head first and I have the interesting notion that much in life enters the world in this way.  Reaching into my grab bag of bits and pieces I find the plastic nozzle from an aerosol can and this becomes a mouth.  The eyes are dots of coal.  The nose is…I don’t know what, just some piece of yellow plastic.  The ears are wood.   I found a plastic pink star and this becomes my figure’s headgear.  I like the energy and activity of this pose.

When I was younger, I used to do a lot of running.  Now, I do a lot of walking.  After so many years of sports and various forms of wear and tear, I can feel my age in my knees.  The figure in my hands has turned into a runner and I set him up around the Falls as though it were a cross-country course with obstacles to navigate around.  The Twilight Runner has had an easy time of it so far, but now the course is about to test him.

After running over a fairly dry shore line, our runner has jumped into an evaporating puddle.  It’s still too wet and our guy is becoming mired and a little panicky.  I recall as a child having this classic dream of traveling in the country by train.  At one point in the journey the train stops and passengers (myself included) disembark and wander into a field.  From over the nearby dreamtime hills the sound of barking dogs gets louder.  Everyone else hurries back to the train, but I stand there transfixed watching the pack of wild dogs cresting the hill and running towards me.  I manage to turn and start running back to the train, but the ground has turned to mud and every step in running away takes the greatest effort.  I could hear the dogs gaining on me, but I make it back to the train safely.  I do recall, however, feeling scared that I wouldn’t make it.  Mud has a way of making you feel helpless.  Fortunately, the runner is in no danger and the puddle is a small one and he manages to move onwards.

There are people fishing on the riverbank as the runner goes by a tire set upright in the now drying mud.  Among the junk deposited here by the river, the runner discovers a small soccer ball and decides to use it and the tire to good use.  It is World Cup time after all and I have a team in the finals for the first time since 1978! 

I was born in Amsterdam and have always followed the Dutch team.  I will need to find my orange t-shirt and hope it brings us luck.  If it doesn’t, well, I might need to go back to the river and walks things off a little bit.  Either way, it has been an entertaining tournament. I am glad, however, that this event only happens once every four years! 

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