Shared Colors of the Brilliance of Dusk

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Photo #423: Shared ColorsLocation Taken: High above the ground near Atlanta
Time Taken: October 2012

I know this is the same sunset as yesterday, and in many ways looks similar. And yet, this one tipped over to my “Best” category and demanded to be posted now.

It’s the reservoir that really does it.

The large lake reflects the brilliant colors of the sky, drawing them down into the darkness of the land. And the darkening clouds bring the colors of the land up to the sky.

It’s a delicate balance that ties the two pieces of the picture together.

  

The Sunset of the Sky

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Photo #422: Sky SunsetLocation Taken: Way above the land, somewhere along the east coast of the US
Time Taken: October 2012

Life’s being, well, life, so I don’t have much time or brainpower to write.

So it’s time for another gorgeous sunset photo.

This one I took while in a plane heading between Baltimore and Atlanta. The sun and the clouds are at a very different angle up there than down on the group. In addition, for large portions of the ground the sun has already slipped below the horizon, covering the land in the silken darkness of early night.

It’s a view that is very rare, given how high up you have to be to see it. And yet, it is a view that is always available for viewing, for it is always sunset somewhere in the world.

  

A Most Sagacious Plant

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Photo #421: SagebrushLocation Taken: Eastern Washington
Time Taken: October 2012

I’m pretty sure this is is sagebrush. The flowers look right, and what I recall of the rest of the plant matches the descriptions.

Not that I have any photos of the rest of the plant. Admittedly, most of it was covered with these small yellow flowers, a giant fuzzy bush of soft spikes.

The flowers kinda grow on you as you contemplate them. At first it’s just a mass of yellow, but each one has a vividity all of its own, each trying its best to do its job.

The flowers were nearing the end of their cycle. At least I think so.

It was late October when I took this, after all. Not the season for flowers, really, but these ones were still giving their best. You can barely tell that they’re fading. For every one that’s brown and wilted, there’s two that are still going strong.

  

I’d like to see a blue and orange tree myself…

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Photo #420: Two Tone TreeLocation Taken: Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Time Taken: October 2012

I came across this two-tone tree along the path one day.

If you look closely, you can see that the part that isn’t green is also not the brown of dead pine needles.

Instead, it’s a deep purple-red. The color of a ripe plum. They do go beautifully with the green-yellow color of the other part of the tree, but most trees don’t bother with simple things like complementary colors.

It might be dead needles. It’s possible that this particular species just has a quirk for odd colors. I don’t live in the area, or anywhere close to where these trees grow, so I don’t know the patterns of its life.

In some ways, though, it’s incredible the entirety of this tree isn’t that purple-red. You see, the path I was on was the one by the Grand Prismatic Spring and the Excelsior Geyser Crater. Both of which emit a lot of warm steam full of all sorts of natural chemicals. And this tree was downwind of both.

Indeed, it was frequently covered by steam in the short time I was close enough to tell. It was when I walked past it the first time, on the way towards the geothermal features. When I returned whence I had come, though, the winds had shifted enough that the valiant tree was visible, and in fact well lit by the lowering sun.

I’d almost stopped looking for photos at that point, actually. Remember what I said about steam full of chemicals? I’d been getting lungful after lungful of that less-than-fresh air for the last 15 minutes, and it was really starting to get to me. I spent most of the next day feeling downright awful because of that steam, as my body tried its best to clear out the chemicals. It was a really potent mix.

Incredible that this tree does so well so close to that volatile mix, isn’t it? Even if it has developed a few odd traits in the mean time.

  

The Need for Solitude

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Photo #419: SolitudeLocation Taken: Saskatchewan, Canada
Time Taken: June 2010

I’m all peopled out today.

And right now you’re either nodding knowingly or completely baffled right now.

Most likely the second one.

After all, extroverts are far more common than introverts.

I, however, am an introvert. That means I take joy in being alone, and being with people drains me. Extroverts are the opposite, and of course there’s all sorts of permutations in between.

It’s not that I dislike people, mind you. I just prefer to spend my time away from them. They’re tiring, and they distract me from the long deep thoughts I have. It literally takes effort for me to consider talking to someone. Some people I talk to easily, others drain me really quickly.

Today, I’m peopled out. I’ve got a few social things I do each week, and at the end of this one, well, everyone was chatting away, four or five different conversations all going at once. And they started seeping in. And blurring together. And feeding off of each other.

You know how songs can get stuck in your head? Imagine that type of noise, except it’s a blurred mess of words that don’t quite make sense whirling away in your brain, digging deeper and deeper the longer you listen.

So I had to leave. I had to just get out and get away from people and the noise they create. I need peace and quiet and solitude.

A few hours of that will patch me back together, and I’ll be ready to face the world and the people that live in it again. But for now, I shall be a hermit.

It’s very pleasant, being a hermit.