Their Landjaeger is just Marvelously Yummy…

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Photo #781: Snow Covered SausagesLocation Taken: Frankenmuth, Michigan
Time Taken: January 2011

I’ve been staring blankly at my photos for far too long.

What the heck, SNOW COVERED SAUSAGE SHOP!!!!

This little shop is Kern’s Sausage, a little German store and sausage shop found in a town full of little German sausage shops. My parents always stop here when we drive through, to buy their marvelous sausages.

Frankenmuth, Michigan, is a pretty little town. A large number of Bavarians settled in this one spot and kept up their traditions and decorative style. Which happened to draw tourists, so they kicked it up a few more notches. It’s quite different from most of the towns in the area, and home to a host of unusual shops.

Though perhaps the most unusual, and the best known, is Bronner’s, a year-round Christmas decorations shop. Seriously, if you wanted to buy ornaments in May, you can. I’m not sure who does, but the store is gigantic, and they have billboards up states away. Obviously they’re doing something right. Me, I’ve never cared for the decorating side of Christmas enough to even stop.

I’d rather buy sausages.

  

It looks just like this! Only not.

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Photo #779: Little Yellow FlowerLocation Taken: Powder River Pass, Wyoming
Time Taken: June 2008

The trails near my new place are surrounded by dandelion-yellow flowers this time of year. Not dandelions themselves, mind you, but bushes full of flowers that look just like the one in the photo.

Well, not exactly. I think they only have four or five petals, not six. And the leafy part of the plant is completely different. But the shape and color of the flower? Exact match.

I should snap a few photos of the ones here, show you what I mean. I just have to wait for the light to be right. Hmm, looks like it’s going to actually not be cloudy the next few days…

  

So many dangers to a river plant; floods, droughts, sportsmen…

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Photo #778: Niche ReedsLocation Taken: Thousand Islands, Ontario, Canada
Time Taken: June 2010

Aren’t reeds awesome?

They’ve found a niche, far enough into the water to drown most other plants, but close enough they can still reach both soil and air. There aren’t too many species that go for the borders like that, the in-between zones.

There’s a lot of advantage to those who can live there. Usually they have limited competition, after all. And yet, there’s a reason few species claim these niches. All it takes is one large storm upriver, and these reeds will be underwater, torn apart by the swift current. On the flip side, if things dry out, they’ll be deprived of the water they’re accustomed to, and likely wither away.

You don’t see reeds along every river. They tend to be found where things are more stable. This river, for instance, is fed by the Great Lakes. It would take an epic cataclysm for it to run dry. It’s also wide and slow enough that it would take biblical flooding before the reeds would have trouble. In fast moving narrow rivers, or in frequently dry wadis, you never find reeds.

You can also find them along most coastlines. But then, what is the ocean but the widest, slowest, most stable river on the planet?

  

Things to Avoid: Light, People, Sunlight, Noise, and have I mentioned Light?

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Photo #777: Overly Bright FallsLocation Taken: Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Time Taken: June 2010

Headaches, why do you exist?!?

Seriously, what possible reason is it a good idea evolutionary to have someone prone to pain inside their skull? It decreases perception, reflexes, and motivation. Couldn’t we have weeded out those genes long ago?!

Ah well, I suppose it doesn’t affect reproduction too much, all told. Despite claims otherwise of men who were turned down by their wives.

And I think I’ll leave off any further exploration of this topic. I have a headache, after all.