Visiting an old friend

It's been a while since we've been by to visit the tortoise statue, but today was a good day for it.

It was also a good day for spotting rainbows, courtesy of the beveled edges of the glass walls around the snack room at the museum.

This was one of 12 we could see from our table, including one that hit both a wall and a trash can that reflected it onto the floor - bonus!

Butterfly, butterfly

Liza and I went over to the Cleveland Museum of Art today, and we made the most astounding find ... CMA has a piece by Damien Hirst on loan for the next five years, and it involves neitherformaldehyde nor dead animals.

Er, actually, "Bringing Forth the Fruits of Righteousness from Darkness" does have dead animals. Lots of them. Like thousands and thousands of them. Thousands of dead butterflies, glued down precisely so that the pattern of their wings mimics a triptych of stained glass windows.

check here for a larger resolution copy of the pic - it's worth the extra click to see it

The piece is huge and gorgeous. From a distance, it's a beautiful piece. From up close, it's astounding. There's really no other way to describe it. Liza wanted to draw something inspired by it in her journal, and we sat on the floor in front of the piece for maybe 20 minutes. Yes, I was crocheting at the time, but I was still captivated by it.

Now, if I could just find a print of it, I'd be super, super happy. Or maybe I could just wallpaper my bedroom with a similar print ...

Proof that the science nerds have a sense of humor, too

From today's trip to the natural history museum, I give you ...

Part of the display of "beetles"

Part of the display of nests and "eggs"

Part of the library in the education center

I believe that may be the best book title, ever.