Solnhofen limestone located in what is now Bavaria, Germany has long been famous for its fossils. Many fine specimens have been unearthed there, not because of its abundance of fossils, they are actually quite rare there, but in part because this stone has been quarried for hundreds of years. This Jurassic rock, which is so hospitable to death’s remains was direly toxic to life. The high salinity and low oxygen found in the shallow lagoons where this limestone and its fossils were formed, trapped its unwary visitors, whose misfortune it was to visit these locales. Much like the fossil of this unfortunate horseshoe crab, which eventually succumbed to this inhospitable environment millions of years ago.
2023. Our next-door neighbor Ethan was graduating. He will be attending the University of Evansville in the fall, majoring in Mechanical Engineering and Archeology. It has been a few years since Anne was last at the high school and more than a few years since my last visit there. As in our son’s days the graduating class was still less than hundred, but the amount of new construction ongoing at the school speaks of larger student bodies to come. A whole new wing is being built, in what once was the old school parking lot. The school buses have been moved and a concrete pad laid down, with steel girders sprouting from it, in their place. They plan on growing the high school student body from 300 to 400. Probably, because the lower grades have already increased in size by a third. Many of the faculty that Anne used to work with have already moved on. Dwyer and Stocker are gone. After this year the turnover looks to markedly increase. Some are aging out of the profession; some are moving to greener pastures and some just do not like the new administration.
Saturday morning, we visited Tower Grove Park. The farmer’s market there was going great guns. There were more booths than I have ever seen at the market. Anne met a woman from whom she has bought yarn from in the past and, of course, bought some more. Pictured are some fungi from a farm that we used with our Christmas gift baskets last year, but it was too hot and crowded to stay there long. Walking around the park, darting from one patch of shade to the next, we happened upon the Pagan Festival. Years ago, while cycling in the park, we had also happened upon this festival. Then one of Anne’s students greeted us then, ran to get her mom, and then introduced us with, “I did not know that teachers came to the Pagan Festival.” The vibe of this event is best symbolized by the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. This organization’s claim to fame is that they were ejected from Dodger stadium during their gay pride celebration, for being too gay. I guess that makes them potential Giants fans.
