The prickly pear cactus is a beautiful plant. Paddles of green rise up from one another, and the flower buds appear on top. The buds are the “pears” and are very tasty! The paddles of the plant (which are really trunks and branches, with the thorns for leaves) are also quite edible. The paddles are cut off, quite carefully, and held over an open flame to remove the thorns. Once done, slice and stir-fry. Very good in scrambled eggs.
Personally, I like looking at them more than harvesting them!
I’m trying to reclaim my life in some ways – the hours I’ve worked have been awful, and since changed for a bit more humane schedule. So, to reclaim my life, it means I cannot let the whiney, lazy me take over and say, wah, not enough time! This morning, up at 6, coffee, pulled on my stinky clothes from yesterday, and went out, film cameras and phone in hand. What a delightful thing to do! No one around . . . the birds were singing their mating songs (especially lovely were the mockingbirds) and flitting about. Everywhere, the pungent scent of the chaparral’s resinous plants. The sun was still low in the sky. As I walked, I looked, and saw . . . a wild rose in bloom . . . quails running for cover . . . mourning doves within a few feet of me. A slice of heaven!
Having a phone camera can be rather nice . . . not always the best shot, but sometimes the most candid and discreetly taken. Everyone has a cell phone, and everyone has cameras in their phones (for the most part). In bad light, blur; in good light, glare. And in perfect conditions, sometimes it is nearly impossible to tell it was taken by a phone.
A part of something, to me, is always more interesting than the whole. It is the parts which create the whole – without the parts, the whole does not exist.
Usually, I take my cell phone with me, set so I don’t hear it ring. I bring it for emergencies, not because I want to text friends or take calls or listen to spammers or check my email or the stock market. It’s a practical tool. I forget about it unless there is something I want from it. And I forget that it has a respectable camera on it – the Samsung Galaxy 5 is not a slouch of a camera, and I even have VSCO on it as my primary editor. When I want to, I use it.
Yesterday, out on The Trail for the Blind here in town, early in morning, I was wishing I had my camera with me – so many beautiful things to see in the morning sun. And, as I was looking, hands in pockets (it was only 44F!), the answer to my desires appeared in my hand. Rather magical on a magical morning!
Ink, Yarn & Beer 