The Spell Of The Yukon

[labelwench]

Those of us who reside in Yukon jokingly refer to any trip beyond our borders as going 'outside'.

We recognize that we are privileged to live in one of the more beautiful and least populated parts of the world and we guard our treasure fiercely.

The following e-mail sent tome today by one of my neighbors.

"Earth From Above" is the result of the aerial photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand's five-year airborne odyssey across six continents. It's a spectacular presentation of large scale photographs of astonishing natural landscapes. Every stunning aerial photograph tells a story about our changing planet.

http://justpaste.it/3ky

[SteveA]

Those are definitely lovely images, Lorrina. Thanks for sharing such a spectacular view of things

I just did a little search of some National Geographic images to make a quick contribution as well:











Yes, quite an interesting world

[labelwench]

The late afternoon sun was my cue to cease present tasks underway and to head out over the hill where I am fortunate in having low bush cranberries growing on my own property. The leaves were quickly beginning to drop and would make picking more difficult, as they covered the elusive fruit which tends to grow close to the ground, in areas shaded from direct sun, favoring the nutrient rich soil around fallen trees and decaying windfall.

Most people prefer to pick blueberries, raspberries and the other sweet wild fruit, which leaves an abundance of the tart cranberries for those who recognize the value of this hardy and dependable species. Though I had plenty of berries in the freezer from last year's bumper crop, picking the cranberry is as much a rite of autumn as an opportunity to restock one's supply, and a day such as today was not to be missed, as often one is battling inclement weather and chilly fingers to secure their harvest.

I managed to sneak off without Madelaine and Handy following, as they ever associate containers with horse treats, lol. In about half an hour, I had filled the two cup container and scouted out the prospects for future efforts. Neither as numerous or large as previous years, I would pick two cups a day for as long as the weather and/or my patience held. It would be enough. The cranberries are used in sauce and spread, fruit smoothies and in pancakes and occasional baking.

Upon reflection, it has been decades since I have purchased commercially prepared cranberry sauce.

Nutritional properties

The berries contain plentiful organic acids, vitamin C, provitamin A (as beta carotene), B vitamins (B1, B2, B3), and the elements potassium, calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus. In addition to these nutrients, they also contain phytochemicals that are thought to counteract urinary-tract infections, and the seeds are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids.

[r.p.bibra]

Nature, Thy name is beauty!

[labelwench]

Nature, Thy name is beauty!

Nature is indeed beautiful in her most elemental state.

Even in her seeming rampages of destruction, she is awesome to behold, though fearful to her creations of life.

Yet she but creates a new palette of opportunity for life in the wake of such occurrence.

That we may take exception to her absolute rule is perhaps due to our own arrogance in assuming the right to manipulate elements without a thorough understanding of the mischief we are about.

We forget that we, too, are a part of the beauty of Nature, and she but reminds us of this fact.

[labelwench]

This is the season, also, of apple harvest and our apples come up the highway by transport truck, carefully packaged in a variety of ways to safely endure the 1300 mile trek over climbing, winding and often rough roads, in climate controlled reefers. Some of the apples come in large orchard run bins, approximately 4 feet across and 30 inches deep. This method utilizes the least packaging per unit, and I prefer to select from these bins when opportunity is there.

This morning, I grabbed some fruit for a breakfast on the go, and arriving at work, I took the apple to wash it. I delighted to see that there was still a small green leaf attached to the stem, now almost completely dry, yet evidently in good health at the time of picking, as it showed no spotting or sign of disease. Evidence of the life-force in this apple, which would add it's energy to mine once eaten.

A small but personal moment with my food, giving thanks to the earth, and Nature, who provides all.

In 2010, an Italian-led consortium announced they had decoded the complete genome of the Golden delicious apple.[5] It had the highest number of genes (57,000) of any plant genome studied to date.

All Golden Delicious apples are descended from a single, chance seedling. The story at the following link.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Delicious

[austintorn@aol.com]

It was so cold…

[labelwench]

It was so cold…

Lol.....




The image is of frog legs fried in garlic and herb butter with lemon.

So the moral of the story would be, if you are a frog, make certain that the pail of milk that you churn into butter belongs to a vegetarian.

[austintorn@aol.com]

I see a lot of frogs going around in wheelchairs these days.

[labelwench]

There are few frogs to be found in these parts, save near areas with natural warm springs, as the winter temperatures and permafrost are too harsh for those species to endure.

Deer and Cougar have ever moved northward in response to habitat pressure and moderating climate, so it is possible that frogs might eventually find a toehold as well.