Patience is a virtue

Patience is a virtue, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I've been making a photo library to track the progress of Jesse, OSU's second Titan Arum to bloom, and in back-to-back years with Woody - our first, which bloomed April 23, 2011. All Titan Arums (aka Corpse Flowers) are given names as they approach flowering time. Woody was named after Woody Hayes, a beloved football coach, and Jesse is named for Jesse Owens, a legion in breaking barriers and in track and field.

For more information, check these links:

https://www.facebook.com/WoodytheTitanArumatOSU

http://bioscigreenhouse.osu.edu/titan-arum

White-faced heron

White-faced heron, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Back to Australia for today's picture. This one was from Lake Merimbula during the early morning. There is a lot of wildlife that hangs out around the shores of this huge lagoon, and it was a real treat to see the white-faced heron fishing for breakfast.

Rhododendron

Rhododendron, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Last Sunday morning I did a drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina before heading to the airport. The rhododendrons, azaleas and mountain laurel were in full bloom. I never found a spot to pull off to photograph the mountain laurel, but I did find some areas where I could spend some time with the rhododendrons and azaleas. They are so beautiful in their native habitat.

I well remember my feelings about seeing the rhododendrons in bloom in the Himalayas in May 2009. Spotting them last weekend in the mountains of North Carolina brought a smile to my face with the memories of that fantastic trek with Jon Miller and Chris Marquardt as part of the Rest of Everest podcast.

O-H-I-O!

O-H-I-O!, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

We'll have a Corpse Flower in bloom in the next day or so at the Ohio State University Biological Sciences Greenhouse.

Rainbow Lorikeet

Rainbow Lorikeet, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

One of my favorite birds from the eastern coast of Australia is the rainbow lorikeet. Not only are they beautiful, but they are fun to watch as they forage for seeds by hanging upside down in the trees.

North Carolina Barn

North Carolina Barn, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I visited with John Hill and Clay Foster Saturday evening. When I was loading my car to get ready for a drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway and then to the airport I noticed how the light was playing off the weathered barn on John's property. I love the warm glow the early morning sun has, and it illuminated the barn at just the right angle for a beautiful composition.

Gaura

Gaura, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

The wildflowers in bloom right now in North Carolina are very beautiful. I hadn't seen Gaura since I was a graduate student in Oklahoma. It brought back some memories of my photography days in film. I won an award for a Kodachrome image I had printed - way back in the late 1980's.

Iris

Iris, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I'm in North Carolina this week to visit Polk County High School. Check out the link on the right for the "news from the wolfe lab" blog and you'll see the posts I've done about my site visit to a biotechnology classroom. This is an iris at the guest house where I'm staying.

Australia landscape

Australia landscape, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

March 27, 2012 - near sunset, between Cooma and Jindabyne, New South Wales.

Morning Run

Morning Run, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Back to Australia for this morning's post. This photo is from the first day I walked the beach at sunrise. Only a few turners at Turnfest 2012 made it to the beach at that early hour, or shortly after dawn. Here are Sharon Doughtie and Christian Delhon running the beach in the early morning. Christian's wife is also one of the runners

The beach across from SeaWorld is really a pleasant place to walk in the wee hours of the morning. For an early riser, it's perfect - very few people are up and about at that hour and so there is a wonderful feeling of solitude and contemplation as you walk the sands and hear the surf, birds, and watch how the light changes as the sun rises above the horizon.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there., a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

I've had a very relaxing day, I think. I guess it was pretty busy - mostly with finishing a construction project for a plant cam stand. I'm doing a time-lapse photography project in the OSU Biological Sciences greenhouse.

Actually, the fun part of the day was a visit to the movie theater to watch "The best exotic Marigold Hotel." It was such a great movie, and it appeals to all ages, not just the baby boomers out there. It was filmed in India and reminds me so much of what we experienced in Kathmandu, Nepal in 2009. Go see it!

Carolina chickadee

Carolina chickadee, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

A few weeks ago I was walking the boardwalk at Magee Marsh when a chickadee caught my attention. It was a slow day, and so I thought I would quietly observe it. I couldn't figure out why it was staying in one spot for so long. It turns out that it was the mate of this chickadee who was in the nest with either eggs or chicks. The male was bringing food to its mate, who would pop out to see what was taking so long after a while.

King Parrot

King Parrot, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

One of the things I enjoyed most about my recent trip to Australia was the diversity of birds there. It's so cool to be out on a trail, watching a variety of parrots in the wild. Birds that we see only in cages or zoos here in the North America are native to Australia, and they are loud, raucous, and fun to watch.

Australian Pelican

Australian Pelican, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Most pelicans are kind of homely, but the Australian pelican is rather cute, in my humble opinion. This one was walking the tidal flats along the Sapphire Coast of Australia.

President Barack Obama

Interlude between blog posts about the campaign rally last Saturday. This is one of the portraits I did of the president during his speech.

President Barack Obama, a photo by andiwolfe on Flickr.

Here is the entire speech, posted on YouTube. I was inspired during the rally, and I found the speech inspiring while watching the video. If you know where to look, you can see me taking photos....