Welcome to the rt tulley photography blogIt features photos, text, and poetry.May 4Passion
I am thankful for passion. Yeah, I know this is a G rated blog, so I will restrict this to mean passionate about things or ideas and not just the physical. It means to have a strong emotion about a person or thing: passionate about serving; passionate about sports; passionate about love; passionate about family. The list could go on and on. But we all need to be passionate about something. We find passion in those things that we really love doing, those things that make us happy, to the point of exhilaration. If our passion is well placed, more often than not, it does good for other people.
The photo is of the burning of people's sins, troubles, or problems written on index cards on Ash Wednesday at my church. This act was symbolic for the fact that when we repent we are forgiven of our sins and after that, they are no more. It is as if they never existed. I use the flame in this instance to represent passion. Passion can burn intense and hot. The thing we have to be cognizant of is that, much like the flames in a fire, that passion can consume us and destroy us if we let it get out of control. This is especially true if our passion is wrong, hurtful of others, hinders others, or sacrifices our character or integrity. But any passion which is overblown can lead to our demise. So remember, moderation in all things.
passion
trying to start a fire with a very wet match strike and strike again then seek another batch trying to start a fire with only green wood don’t know how don’t know if i should but a spark soon to ignite and it will burn it will burn bright embers float on up straight up to the sky small pinpoints of light blend and beautify and my fire burns to the last end till there is no more fuel for it to spend. © rt tulley
May 3Surfactants
I am thankful for surfactants. "What?" you say? The chemist in me is coming out, but bear with me. Surfactants are substances that lower the surface tension of a liquid. The most common surfactants are detergents. In medicine, surfactants are important for maintaining the integrity of our lungs. Two of these surfactants are lecithin (L), the major constituent of which is phosphatidyl choline, and phosphatidyl glycerol (PG). When I was working in a hospital clinical lab as a clinical chemist, I set up methods for the analysis of L and PG in maternal amnotic fluid to determine the adequacy of surfactant levels in neonates. Newborns, generally premature babies, that have inadequate levels of surfactant are at risk for developing infant respiratory distress syndrome after birth, which occurs in 1% of newborns and is the leading cause of newborn death. Thus, amniotic fluide monitoring in mothers is an indication of the lung status of the neonate and can improve the likelihood of a baby with mature lungs. If surfactant is low, steroids can be given to the mother during her pregnancy to improve the outcome.
I used to demonstrate to my students how surfactants work by putting a drop on water on a non stick surface such as parafin and show that the water forms a convex half droplet due to the surface tension of the water molecules sticking to one another. When surfactant is added to the water, the water spreads out into a film because the surface tension is broken by the surfactant. A favorate surfactant of many people is the bubble bath. The agitation of the water combined with the presence of the surfactant, which forms small droplets of water coated with surfactant, produce the foaminess of the bubble bath. These small droplets are called micelles.
I suppose the title of today's blog could have been Reduction in Tension, or something similar, but I stuck with the chemical term. Sometimes if there is tension between people, we are in need of a "surfactant" to ease that surface tension. Such a "surfactant" could include common interests, getting together to discuss the differences, listening to music, playing or watching sports, mutual forgiveness, or prayer.
Today's photo is of sea foam taken at the beach in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. Sea foam is created by the combination of the agitation produced by the ocean waves and dissolved organic matter from the presence of salts, proteins, fats, dead algae and the normal decay of things in the ocean. It can also be from oil spills or pollution, however, white sea foam is usually from the non-pollution related causes. Sea foam is generally quite harmless. Very large sea foams, being several meters thick have occurred in different places such as New South Wales and Australia in the not too distant past.
Just for fun, here's a video of the sea foam I took. I like they way it jiggles but it also reminds me of a science fiction movie like The Blob!
bubble baths
the girls take bubble baths i know they all like that but a guy would never be caught in such a bubbled vat for me though i have a different slant i take my baths not with bubbles but with some surfactant. © rt tulley
May 2Support
I am thankful for support. Support can refer to emotional, financial, or structural. In going through life it is self-reassuring to be supported by others in the things we do. Likewise, it is giving of ourselves to offer support to others. Without the support of others we can feel isolated and alone. With their support, we can feel whole. One of my favorite songs of all time is He Ain't Heavy He's My Brother written by Bobby Scott and Bob Russel and sung by the Hollies. It is about supporting another person on their journey through life and how it is something we do because we love one another.
This photo is of the LSU archways/walkways around the quandrangle. I am using this photo to represent support because arches are structural methods for indirectly supporting weight for a section that is not directly supported. The arches, in this case, support the roof over the walkway. The first arch appeared thousands of years ago in Mesopotamia and became commonplace in ancient Rome.
support
if you fail to be in support of me i know it’s because you know not what you see or it’s because you disagree or it’s because you don’t care about me or you're just too busy
if i fail to support you please forgive me for what i don’t do please forgive me for not being there for you please forgive me and get me out of my rut by giving me a good hard kick in the butt. © rt tulley
May 1Immune System
I am thankful for the immune system. When you think about it, it is an amazing thing. It is at work fighting countless and unknown invasions against our bodies 24/7, while we, most of the time, are unaware of what it is doing. I feel fortunate that I have had a relatively good immune system over the years. I think that may be because when growing up, our family physician did not believe in giving antibiotics or medicine for every little ailment. He believed in enhancing the body's natural defense mechanisms by allowing them to fight the small things and only used medicines in more severe cases. As can be seen with the increasing number of cases of antibiotic resistant bacterial infections being seen today because those bacteria have adapted to fight antibiotics, that was probably very wise of our family physician.
Today's theme follows in the vein of yesterday's Photo of the Day Blog on herbals as related to health. This is echinacea, or the purple coneflower. Some research has indicated that extracts of it may enhance the body's natural immune system and help prevent or reduce the length and severity of symptoms from the common cold and other inflammation. I personally do not take it, so I am not endorsing it, but many people do and there is some scientific literature to support its effectiveness. And it is a good thing if your immune system can be enhanced.
Below is a photo I took in my sister's previous hometown of Georgetown, Texas a few years back:
echinacea
can’t be caught from behind can’t ever fall down can’t ever have bad luck it is so very plain to see because i ate a flower i now have my immunity. © rt tulley April 30Heart Rhythm
I am thankful for the rhythm of the heart. Without the steady and constant beating of our hearts (average 72 beats per minute), we would be no more. And we don't even have to remind ourselves to make our hearts beat. What a wonderful blessing, when all is working perfectly!
This is a foxglove plant, or digitalis purpurea. From the ground-up leaves of this plant come the drugs digitalis and digoxin. These drugs are given to increase the force of heart contractions or to control heart rate. The name foxglove comes from "finger-like" and the fact that the flower looks like a little finger glove. The flowers also appear to look like bells, thus the name "ring of bells."
By the way, in no way am I recommending the use of foxglove for self-treatment of heart ailments. Too much can lead to digitalis toxicity, which can be very serious and life threatening. Treatment should be restricted to medical specialists, who can monitor such treatment closely.
be still the beating of you, my heart
be still the beating of you, my heart and give yourself a well deserved rest oh you say you can’t do that of that fact you can well attest the brain, muscles, and body can take a breather now and then a little rest or some sleep and they’re ready for action again no rest for the weary is all i can then say for you are not allowed to rest a minute, hour, or day. © rt tulley |
