Variety is the spice of life

This is the second installment of photos from yesterday's wanderings in search of brown. Besides discovering the brightly colored California Fuschia, I found a few others blooming, like the Aster, and fall colors were sneaking up on me everywhere. None of the expansive, panoramic views of oaks, maples, and cottonwoods have yet appeared, but my inclination to look closely for detail distracted me from the focus on things that are brown. When I got home, I started reading Stephen Jay Gould's "Wonderful Life," and ran across this quote on the first page! "The beauty of nature lies in detail; the message, in generality." The first half of the quote has been my modus operandi for years. I'll have to ponder the second half a bit longer. A "message" implies a sender. I tend to think nature doesn't send messages but that we create them. In much the same manner, I don't believe in "seeking the meaning of life," but rather "creating meaning." I think that's what distinguishes humans. We are creators of meaning. In any case, i hope you enjoy these photos. Click on each one for a larger view and a caption.