The GeekHiker

I’ll get back to all the Dublin stuff in a day or two, but today I’m going to do a brief Earth Day post.

First, can I say how much I wish Earth Day was an actual federal holiday?  I’m not trying to get really political here, but imagine if that were the case.  One day off, mandated for the whole country (or, even better, a holiday shared amongst multiple countries), to celebrate and think about the planet we all live on and share.  Even if most people just used it as an excuse to lounge by the pool and barbeque, and only think about the planet in passing, one day out of 365 still seems like a decent idea.

Especially since, last time I checked, we don’t have any spare ones.

Anyway…

You may remember a post a couple of months back of some pictures that I took in the winter tule fog.  Two of the pictures were of this tree which I actually assumed was dead.

So much so, I referred to it as a “ghostly tree”

Turns out the tree is very much alive.

Leaves and blue skies

Though, of course, without the fog, the green of the tree does blend a bit more into the background:

In the fog…

…and in the sun, with power lines and houses behind

Riding by it the other day, I just had to take a few pictures.  Despite its rather odd shape for an oak tree, its nevertheless bursting out in springtime glory.

Maybe not a traditional tree shape, but pretty nice for springtime nonetheless

So, what’s it got to do with Earth Day?

You’re probably going to read a lot of articles like this one this week.  Yes, they’re depressing.  The magnitude with which things are changing can become downright overwhelming.

Every so often, it’s good to look at a tree or two, I think, to remind us of what we’re trying to save on Earth Day.

Which, ultimately, is ourselves.