A Perfect Diversion
When your mind is has turned to mush
Because my little family has been continually hit by cosmic snowballs for the past six weeks — death of a beloved cousin; anniversaries of my mother’s and teenaged son’s deaths; deterioration of my cousin’s longtime partner L to the point of requiring 24/7 care in the home done, mostly by my a handful of the cousins; to, finally, introducing L to her new home in the memory care unit of our local Brookdale yesterday — I decided today was the day to sit and read and scroll and, I hope, paint.
But in my scrolling this morning I ran into a series of photos that made me want to go exploring. Only this time it was to a world I will never have access to — the deep ocean.
Who can resist the charms of the Red-lipped Batfish (Ogcocephalus darwin)? Or the baby Red-lipped Batfish?
Not I.
Or the remarkable Barreleye Fish (Macropinna microstoma)?
This little lovely, about 6 inches long, has a transparent head with two upward-pointing, tubular green eyes. They live in the North Pacific twilight zone (2000-2600 feet deep).
Finally, there’s the Stoplight Loosejaw (Malacosteus australis) found between 1,600 and 8202 feet. According to Wikipedia, they are the only known stomilids that do not seem to conduct duel vertical migrations (do not move up to the uppermost layer of water at night and return to the bottom of the daylight zone during the day).
What weird sinkholes do you fall into when your mind turns to mush?
Damn. I so needed a diversion that I included a typo in the title. Oh, well.
Not mush. Look at the curiosities and wonders of our world. You reminded us to look not only beyond ourselves but beyond the narrow boundaries of human existence, toils, and trouble. Thanks.