Sunday, September 20th, was International Rock Flipping Day, a sort-of-goofy, sort-of-serious way to appreciate nature.
Here in southern New England, we know what to do with rocks.
Near the stone wall, I flipped a rock and found...
I was reminded, naturally, of a few children's books.
Wiggling Worms at Work, by Wendy Pfeffer (illustrated by Steve Jenkins)
Diary of a Worm, by Doreen Cronin (illustrated by Harry Bliss) Funny!
Compost Critters, by Bianca Lavies (She is a fabulous photographer who used to work for National Geographic.)
Many others participated in International Rock Flipping Day, and looking through the list is a great way to find nature blogs. The big roundup of rock flippers, compiled by Wanderin' Weeta, a British Columbia-based blog, is as follows:
The Natural Capital Fertanish Chatter Roundrock Journal Just Playin' Around What It's like on the Inside KrisAbel BugSafari Sofia_Alexandra Growing with Science ChickenSpaghetti NaturalNotes Yips and Howls Rock, Paper, Lizard Outside My Window The dog geek Dave Ingram's Natural History Blog Via Negativa Unplug Your Kids ORCA: Observar, Recordar, Crecer y Aprender Will Rees Fine Woodworking ... The Marvelous in Nature Pohangina Pete Ontario Wanderer Bare Baby Feet The Homefront Lines Crazy Maize World Dr. Omed's Tent Show Revival Wanderin' Weeta And don't forget to check the Flickr group, too.
Don't forget HOW TO EAT FRIED WORMS. I never actually saw the movie, but I definitely remember the book. :)
Posted by: aquafortis | September 21, 2009 at 01:24 AM
Oh, yeah. That's a good addition, AF!
Posted by: Susan (Chicken Spaghetti) | September 21, 2009 at 07:18 AM
Lucas turned over a rock in front of my porch last week and found three little toads, so this has become a daily ritual. The toads don't seem to particularly enjoy it, but they aren't moving, either. (The bug pickings on my front porch at night are particularly good.)
Posted by: adrienne | September 21, 2009 at 11:28 AM
Adrienne, did y'all take any pictures? I love the idea of checking in on the toads. Very Arnold Lobel-ish of Lucas.
Posted by: Susan (Chicken Spaghetti) | September 21, 2009 at 12:28 PM
Well, today we remembered to bring the camera outside, but when we looked, they were GONE. Lucas was a bit concerned about it. It was raining, though, so they may just have been staying out longer than usual or maybe moved somewhere drier temporarily? I don't know. We'll look again tomorrow.
Posted by: adrienne | September 22, 2009 at 03:51 PM