My room smells of pickling alcohol. I received two more specimens for the job I am doing for ERCCIS today and have been preparing them to set in resin tomorrow.
This is an Asian shore crab Hemigrapsus sanguineus. It was all closed up and soaked in alcohol. So I am pinning it out as much as I can as it dries, hopefully showing more of the identifying features.
Also this bryzoan, Bugula neritina Lisa sent me a link to a blog called Harbour Watch with lots of information about this one. But there’s all sort of other stuff about marine invasives on American coasts too. Like the blog about massive bits of dock arriving in Oregon in 2012 from the Japanese tsunami of 2011 laden with Pacific marine life.
On this job I’ve also nearly finished the frame for the wakame Undaria pinnatifida …
… and have pressed some wire weed Sargassum muticum gathered from Prisk a few days ago.
Gathering the wire weed meant a long slow walk along my favourite beach where I found along the neatly sorted tide lines, shells, crab moults, dried seaweed and most importantly, peace and stillness.
Life is so busy. This is just one job of many. Where is the space for stillness and my art I wonder?
But as I made the frame for the wakame I looked around my garage and picked up things half finished, remembered ideas unrealised. The busy time will pass and I will be pouring resin tomorrow.
I have not poured any resin for ages – there are plenty of bits lying around.
I will play with a few things…
… with words that need new wings.
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