ABC Wednesday is a word meme with participants from around the world. This fabulous meme was created and hosted by Mrs. Denise Nesbitt who hails from Great Britain. Over time, others have joined in to help host this wonderful and informative meme. We are now in our EIGHTH round! Some of the participants have been with this from the very first round; others have joined in along the way. Each week we are taken across the globe to see the varied and exciting contributions people have taken the time to discover and capture. We start with the letter, "A" and each week we post something in regards to the next letter of the alphabet. This week's letter is, "P".
PIXELATED PINK POPPY
As the image heading implies (I think it does), this is an image that is photography based; whose pixels then got manipulated.
PINWHEEL
Such universal appeal, this whimsical garden toy has.
I researched the origin of the pinwheel via Sir Google (as Sylvia refers to it as!), but I really wasn't happy with the scant information. It seems that it was used in gardens to scare off the birds and perhaps other critters. Also references to it's name coming from the pin being the center from which the wheel spins around. And, another reference about it also being called the Catherine Wheel (whose modern day use is in regards to fireworks). And, when you Google "Catherine Wheel", it talks about it being a wheel of torture that St. Catherine was subjected to. So how it got from being a tortuous device to this whimsical garden toy...well, there are many gaps. Roger? Help? Anyone? Is there an Anthropologist in the house?
PRECIOUS POTTERY
You might think this broken pottery is a cast off; neglected and rejected. But, it is really part of a grave site 'decoration' in a cemetery in Jemez, NM. I suspect that the deceased must've have had some connection to the pottery-perhaps a potter. And, perhaps this broken pottery is theirs which would be an easy and obvious explanation of its significance at the grave site. I can only speculate and ponder.
PERPLEXING PATTERNS
Can you guess what created this mysterious pattern? Let's just say that it involved algae, water, a concrete block and a plastic bottom to a planter.
Give up?
We use a plastic bottom from a planter pot (you know the faux terra cotta kind). The bottom is designed to retain the water the seeps through the soil in the pot. Are you with me now? OK, so that piece serves as a bird bath for the birds and it lives in our garden. Because of the high winds and sometimes other critters that are too heavy to sit atop that tray, we place a concrete block in it to weigh it down. Over the span of several years, the algae stains the sides of the planter tray and the concrete block acts as a 'resist'. The tray sits up high on a wooden post, so it does not come down for a regular scrubbing. Which, over time, this neglect made for a really cool pattern.
And, as you might have discovered by now, no peanuts or popcorn was used to create this post with!
15 comments:
You gave me a smile today as I looked for the popcorn and peanuts...
Great abstract design in your pot picture. Loved the whimsy of this post.
Marvelous, different post for the P Day, Paula! I, too, love the whimsy! And a great smile and giggle for the morning! Hope your week is going well!
Sylvia
ABC Team
Great selection.
I may not have mentioned that I LOVE your intro every week of ABC Wednesday.
ROG, ABC Wednesday team
Really a fun post today. Grandkids love pinwheels. Some time the simple toys are the best and most fun.
Perfect, Paula! Lots of fun, even without peanuts and popcorn.
— K
Kay, Alberta, Canada
An Unfittie's Guide to Adventurous Travel
Never heard the expression pinwheel before, we just call them windmills, guess pinwheel stops confusion with the real thing:-) Love the pixalated poppy.
Such a fun Post for the day! Pinwheels are so hypnotizing to watch, aren't they? I would have guess a brick for the pattern, but wouldn't have guessed the reason. :-)
Hi Paula! You know how to find the proper words at the right time! Thanks for the explanation of the name of the pinwheel. We call them mills, because they behave like mills!
That was a fun post. Now, I want popcorn but it's too late to eat.
Another good collection for the day. I always associate poppies with Memorial Day and pinwheels with wind and childhood. Fun!
Wonderful post for P day.
You asked, so that gives me free license to expound my viewpoint. I believe the pinwheel is a wheel first and foremost, driven by wind. In the case of the photo, or the common pinwheel, it is a miniature windmill with the center point being a pin.
I love the pixilation of the poppy. There are certainly many effects that can be created digitally. You are quite good at it and make many of your pieces like individual works of art. Good job on this poppy.
That pot. I saw the outline of the brick right away, but what fooled me was the photo and the image formed by algae. I thought that fromm the strong sunlight, the pigment had bleached away from the plastic pot and the brick was seen through the now translucent bottom of the planter. That's a cool effect regardless of how it was formed, but to know it was algae etchings in the desert makes it pretty cool!
So, where is the popcorn?
Oh, and here's my "P" word for today. I use this one a lot.
Peace
My "P" is for Poor People who were lashed to the wagon wheel and then beaten for hours or even days for crimes from disobeying masters to murder. St. Catherine of Alexandria was supposed to have been put to death on one, so the iconic "Catherine Wheel" was adopted. (Sometimes a "coup de gras" was granted the person being punished, guaranteeing them a quick death.)
It's like knowing the real meaning of "Ring Around a Rosie." Best you just let the kids dance and rhyme and not dwell on the history, but unfortunately, that is the history.
Amy
http://sharplittlepencil.wordpress.com/2011/05/04/precipice/
Plum perfect p's!
I just LOVE that pinwheel. It looks HUGE!
Post a Comment