Royalty-free images by Mike¹ — No. 91 of over 1200 images

Butterfly and Purple Coneflower, West-Central Arkansas, June 25, 2011

American Lady²

The American painted lady or American lady (Vanessa virginiensis) is a butterfly found throughout North America.

Vanessa virginiensis is most easily distinguishable by its two large eyespots on the ventral side, whereas V. cardui has four small eyespots and V. annabella has none. V. virginiensis also uniquely features a white dot within the forewing subapical field, set in pink on the underside and usually also in the dorsal side’s orange field.

The largest spot in the black forewing tips is white in V. cardui, pale orange in this species, and orange in the West Coast species. The latter also has a purer orange background color of the dorsal side, as opposed to the darker and (especially in V. virginiensis) redder hue of the other two.

A less reliable indicator is the row of black eyespots on the dorsal submarginal hindwing. In the American painted lady, those on the opposite ends of the row are often larger and have blue “pupils”. In V. annabella, this applies to the inner two spots, while in V. cardui some of the black eyespots may have tiny blue pupils in the summer morph, but usually have none at all, and the eyespots themselves are all roughly the same size. The size of the wings are about 5 cm (2 in) across.

Echinacea purpurea³

Echinacea purpurea (eastern purple coneflower, purple coneflower, hedgehog coneflower, or echinacea) is a North American species of flowering plant in the sunflower family. It is native to parts of eastern North America and present to some extent in the wild in much of the eastern, southeastern and midwestern United States as well as in the Canadian Province of Ontario. It is most common in the Ozarks and in the Mississippi/Ohio Valley. Its habitats include dry open woods, prairies and barrens.

Echinacea purpurea is an herbaceous perennial up to 120 cm (47 in) tall by 25 cm (10 in) wide at maturity. Depending on the climate, it blooms throughout summer into autumn. Its cone-shaped flowering heads are usually, but not always, purple in the wild. Its individual flowers (florets) within the flower head are hermaphroditic, having both male and female organs in each flower. It is pollinated by butterflies and bees. The alternate leaves, borne by a petiole from 0 to 17 cm, are oval to lanceolate, 5-30 x 5-12 cm; the margin is tightened to toothed.

The inflorescence is a capitulum, 7 to 15 cm in diameter, formed by a prominent domed central protuberance consisting of multiple small yellow florets. These are surrounded by a ring of pink or purple ligulate florets. The tubular florets are hermaphrodite while the ligular florets are sterile. The involucral bracts are linear to lanceolate. The plant prefers well-drained soils in full sun. The fruit is an achene, sought after by birds.

1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
2. American Lady – Wikipedia
3. Echinacea purpurea – Wikipedia

Notes:

• This image is also shared as public domain on Pixabay,  Flickr, and Pinterest.
• Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
• Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
• All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.

It still feels surreal to walk into a place of business with a mask on my face.

In other times, a masked man would certainly be viewed with suspicion, as though he might be there to rob the place.

Today, though, while some may view those who wear masks with ridicule, mask wearing is the norm and, in a great many places, expected.

The newest update guidance from the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC) “recommends community use of masks, specifically non-valved multi-layer cloth masks, to prevent transmission of SARS-CoV-2.”¹

Masks

• “are primarily intended to reduce the emission of virus-laden droplets (‘source control’)”…,
• “also help reduce inhalation of these droplets by the wearer (‘filtration for personal protection’).“
• The community benefit of masking for SARS-CoV-2 control is due to the combination of these effects; individual prevention benefit increases with increasing numbers of people using masks consistently and correctly.

More than 50% of transmission of cases are estimated to come from infected people who feel well and may be unaware of their infectiousness.³ These people would be asymptomatic or presymptomatic.

The updated guidance from the CDC says that the wearing of masks “to reduce the emission of virus-laden droplets by the wearer is especially relevant  for these people.”

Given all of that, it seems that the non-mask wearers are the ones who might well warrant being regarded with suspicion since most transmission of the disease occurs from people who just feel fine.

I feel just fine… and plan to wear my mask whenever I am out and about.

• 1. Scientific Brief: Community Use of Cloth Masks to Control the Spread of SARS-CoV-2 – CDC
  2. November 10, 2020
  3. The implications of silent transmission for the control of COVID-19 outbreaks; Moghadas SM, Fitzpatrick MC, Sah P, et al.; “We found that the majority of incidences may be attributable to silent transmission from a combination of the presymptomatic stage and asymptomatic infections. Consequently, even if all symptomatic cases are isolated, a vast outbreak may nonetheless unfold.”

Four years ago, just before the anniversary of the September 11th events, using public domain images from the Library of Congress and the U.S. National Archives, I created a remembrance video, September 11 – Remembering after 15 years, and posted it on YouTube.

Yesterday, I received an email from YouTube that the video had been flagged by a user for review and said, “Upon review, we’ve determined that it may not be suitable for all viewers and it has been placed behind an age restriction.”  The age restriction was probably because of what someone considered “graphic content.”

I appealed the age restriction.

I reviewed the video several times and there is one image (above) of the explosions accompanying the impact of the second jet and one image with a man with a bloody face in the background.  I didn’t find anything that would warrant any sort of age restriction if it were in a movie.

The appeal was denied.

Royalty-free images by Mike¹ — No. 90 of over 1200 images

Wild Geranium, Shenandoah National Park, Virginia, May 13, 2009

Geranium maculatum²

Geranium maculatum, the wild geranium, spotted geranium, or wood geranium, is a perennial plant native to woodland in eastern North America, from southern Manitoba and southwestern Quebec south to Alabama and Georgia and west to Oklahoma and South Dakota.

It is a perennial herbaceous plant growing to 60 cm (2 ft) tall, producing upright, usually unbranched stems and flowers in spring to early summer. The leaves are palmately lobed with five or seven deeply cut lobes, 10–12.5 cm (4–5 in) broad, with a petiole up to 30 cm (12 in) long arising from the rootstock. They are deeply parted into three or five divisions, each of which is again cleft and toothed.

The flowers are 2.5–4 cm (1.0–1.6 in) in diameter, with five rose-purple, pale or violet-purple (rarely white) petals and ten stamens. In the Northern Hemisphere, they appear from April to June (precise dates depend on the latitude). They are grouped in loose corymbs or umbels of two to five at the top of the flower stems.

The fruit capsule, which springs open when ripe, consists of five cells each containing one seed joined to a long beak-like column 2–3 cm (0.8–1.2 in) long (resembling a crane’s bill) produced from the center of the old flower.

The rhizome is long, and 5 to 10 cm (2 to 4 in) thick, with numerous branches. It is covered with scars, showing the remains of stems of previous years’ growth. When dry it has a somewhat purplish color internally.

1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
2. Geranium maculatum – Wikipedia

Notes:

• This image is also shared as public domain on Pixabay,  Flickr, and Pinterest.
• Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
• Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
• All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.

Royalty-free images by Mike¹ — No. 89 of over 1200 images

Fordyce Bathhouse Lobby, Hot Springs National Park, August 19, 2012

Bathhouse Row²

Bathhouse Row is a collection of bathhouses, associated buildings, and gardens located at Hot Springs National Park in the city of Hot Springs, Arkansas. The bathhouses were included in 1832 when the Federal Government took over four parcels of land to preserve 47 natural hot springs, their mineral waters which lack the sulphur odor of most hot springs, and their area of origin on the lower slopes of Hot Springs Mountain.

The existing bathhouses are the third and fourth generations of bathhouses along Hot Springs Creek and some sit directly over the hot springs – the resource for which the area was set aside as the first federal reserve in 1832. The bathhouses are a collection of turn-of-the-century eclectic buildings in neoclassical, renaissance-revival, Spanish and Italianate styles aligned in a linear pattern with formal entrances, outdoor fountains, promenades and other landscape-architectural features. The buildings are illustrative of the popularity of the spa movement in the United States in the 19th and 20th centuries.[3] The bathhouse industry went into a steep decline during the mid-20th century as advancements in medicine made bathing in natural hot springs appear less believable as a remedy for illness.

Fordyce³

The Fordyce opened March 1, 1915. Designed by Little Rock architects Mann and Stern and constructed under the supervision of owner Sam Fordyce’s son John, the building eventually cost over $212,000 to build, equip, and furnish. Totaling approximately 28,000 square feet, the Fordyce is the largest bathhouse on the Row. It has three main floors, two courtyards, and a basement under most of the building. The Fordyce became the first bathhouse on the Row to go out of business when it suspended operations on June 30, 1962, but it was extensively restored by 1989 and is now enjoying a renaissance as a historically furnished museum.

1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
2. Bathhouse Row – Wikipedia
3. Fordyce Bathhouse – National Park Service

Notes:

• This image is also shared as public domain on Pixabay,  Flickr, and Pinterest.
• Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
• Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
• All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.

Royalty-free images by Mike¹ — No. 88 of over 1200 images

Fort Parker Palisades, Old Fort Parker reconstruction, near Groesbeck, Texas, January 27, 2007

Fort Parker²

Fort Parker was a private fort built by Silas M. and James W. Parker near the headwaters of the Navasota River in Limestone County, between old Springfield and the present site of Groesbeck, in 1834 or 1835. It may have also been known as Fort Sterling. Cabins were built at the fort to be occupied by nearby families in case of Indian attack. The outer walls of the cabins were part of a surrounding stockade perforated with loopholes for defense. On May 19, 1836, the fort was attacked by 500 to 700 Caddo and Comanche Indians. Silas was killed, and his nine-year-old daughter, Cynthia Ann, and six-year-old son, John, Mrs. Rachel Plummer and her son James, and Mrs. Elizabeth Kellogg were captured by the Indians. A replica of the fort was erected in the 1930s and rebuilt in 1967. Originally operated by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department as part of Fort Parker State Recreation Area (now Fort Parker State Park), in 1992 the City of Groesbeck assumed control and operation of the site with the formation of the Fort Parker Historical Society. Living history events take place at the site, located eight miles southwest of Mexia on State Highway 14. Nearby Fort Parker Cemetery contained the graves of the victims at Fort Parker and was still an active cemetery in the early 2000s. By that time the replica was operated under the joint efforts of the cities of Groesbeck and Mexia and Limestone County.

1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
2. Fort Parker – Handbook of Texas, Texas State Historical Association

Notes:

• This image is also shared as public domain on Pixabay,  Flickr, and Pinterest.
• Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
• Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
• All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.

Winter is coming and the pandemic is raging.

Arkansas has set several COVID related records in the last few days.  Yesterday saw new records for number of new total¹ cases at 1,878, currently active cases, and hospitalizations.  The last two records were eclipsed with higher numbers today, with total¹ active cases at 12,152 and hospitalizations at 722. Similar records are being set for the nation as a whole and across most other states.

With winter nearing, people will be spending more of their time indoors. Holidays are on the horizon where many people attend or host traditional gatherings.  With this pandemic, many will forego these, but many won’t.

It’s also a time of shopping and holiday bargains.  While much of this can be done online, it’s likely that many will throng the stores despite the ongoing health crisis.

Hospitalizations and deaths are lagging indicators of  COVID.  The recent and current increasing case counts in Arkansas and the nation will result in further increases in hospitalizations and deaths.

For Arkansas, the 30-day average daily number of deaths is 18.9 deaths per day.  While this has been higher, the overall trend is increasing.

In the last week, including today, Arkansas has tallied 8,638 new COVID cases¹ for a daily average of 1,234.  Over the last 30 days, the daily case count has steadily climbed, with a marked change in the 30-day average over the last several days, and, today, is 1022.8 cases per day.

With the darker and colder days of winter, more time indoors, family gatherings and seasonal shopping and celebration, opportunities for the spread of the COVID virus will inevitably rise.

Winter is coming and the outlook is grim.

1. These cases include the cases confirmed by PCR tests and those cases determined by other means, including antigen testing.

Royalty-free images by Mike¹ — No. 87 of over 1200 images

Hollyhock, Mountain Farm Museum, Great Smokey Mountains National Park, near Cherokee, North Carolina, June 15, 2012

Hollyhocks (Alcea)²

Alcea is a genus of about 60 species of flowering plants in the mallow family Malvaceae, commonly known as the hollyhocks. They are native to Asia and Europe. The single species of hollyhock from the Americas, the streambank wild hollyhock, belongs to a different genus.

Hollyhocks are annual, biennial, or perennial plants usually taking an erect, unbranched form. The herbage usually has a coating of star-shaped hairs. The leaf blades are often lobed or toothed, and are borne on long petioles. The flowers may be solitary or arranged in fascicles or racemes. The notched petals are usually over three centimeters wide and may be pink, white, purple, or yellow. The fruit is a schizocarp, a dry disc divided into over 15 sections that contain seeds

1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
2. Wikipedia

Notes:

• This image is also shared as public domain on Pixabay and Flickr.
• Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
• Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
• All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.

Royalty-free images by Mike¹ — No. 86 of over 1200 images

Painted Desert Inn Viga, Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona, October 9, 2011

Viga²

Vigas are wooden beams used in the traditional adobe architecture of the American Southwest, especially New Mexico. In this type of construction, the vigas are the main structural members carrying the weight of the roof to the load-bearing exterior walls. The exposed beam ends projecting from the outside of the wall are a defining characteristic of Pueblo architecture and Spanish Colonial architecture in New Mexico and often replicated in modern Pueblo Revival architecture. Usually the vigas are simply peeled logs with a minimum of woodworking. In traditional buildings, the vigas support latillas (laths) which are placed crosswise and upon which the adobe roof is laid, often with intermediate layers of brush or soil. The latillas may be hewn boards, or in more rustic buildings, simply peeled branches. These building techniques date back to the Ancestral Puebloan peoples, and vigas (or holes left where the vigas have deteriorated) are visible in many of their surviving buildings.

Since the modern Pueblo Revival style was popularized in the 1920s and 1930s, vigas are typically used for ornamental rather than structural purposes. Noted architect John Gaw Meem incorporated ornamental vigas into many of his designs. Contemporary construction in Santa Fe, New Mexico, which is controlled by stringent building codes, typically incorporates ornamental vigas, although the latest revision of the residential building code gives credit for structural vigas. Older structures that have been reconstructed (e.g. the Palace of the Governors in Santa Fe) may contain both structural and ornamental vigas.

1. I am sharing some of my public domain images in periodic blog posts.
2. Wikipedia

Notes:

• This image is also shared as public domain on Pixabay and Flickr.
• Images are being shared in the sequence they were accepted by Pixabay, a royalty-free image sharing site.
• Only images specifically identified as such are public domain or creative commons on our pages.
• All other images are copyright protected by me, creative commons, or used under the provisions of fair use.