A Walk in the Woods

Googled "Bill Bryson" and read a little about him on Wikipedia.  He is one of those gifted writers who can write about a variety of widely different subjects.  He wrote travelogues, nature, popular sciences and the English Language.  But then again rich experiences surely grant rich and versatile writings. 

Just started reading A Walk in the Woods, and its hard to keep a straight face reading this book on the subway.  For a lot of people, hiking in the woods and be surrounded by miles of impenetrable nature is such a romantic notion.  And so far, A Walk in the Woods utterly dispels that notion, though it is done in such a coffee-choking manner.  I was told by a friend that hiking is actually a very dangerous business.  Though it is not absolutely necessary to be armed to the teeth with professional and savagely pricey hiking gears, without the right hiking attire and with the wrong parts of your bare skin exposed, you could get a deadly tick bite and lose sanity (if not your life）for the rest of your miserable life. 

同鳳閣鸞台平章事

大概是小學的時候在電視上看過86版的狄仁傑斷案傳奇，從此留下深刻的印象。之後，通過書籍或影視作品又不斷地接觸到狄仁傑的各種以史為據或完全虛構的故事。

根据百度的资料：狄仁杰（630-700），字怀英，山西太原人（唐代並州太原人），唐初期傑出的政治家，武朝的中流砥柱。武曌稱其“囯老”。狄仁傑為官，居廟堂之上，以百姓心為心。他在武朝曾擔任唐最高司法職務，判決積案、疑案；昭雪錯案、冤案。任大理寺丞時，一年内判決處理了大量積壓案件（可見當時其他官吏的無能怠職）。武朝天授二年（691），狄仁傑被任命為同鳳閣鸞台平章事，開始了其短暫的宰相生涯（後因武承嗣罷為彭澤令，於697年再度官復原職）。

　圣历元年（698年），武则天的侄儿武承嗣、武三思数次使人游说太后，请立为太子。武则天犹豫不决。狄仁杰以政治家的深谋远虑，劝说武则天顺应民心，还政于庐陵王李显。当时，大臣李昭德等曾劝武则天继续以四子李旦为嗣，但没有为武则天接受。对武则天了解透彻、洞烛机微的狄仁杰从母子亲情的角度从容地劝说她：“立子，则千秋万岁后配食太庙，承继无穷；立侄，则未闻侄为天子而附姑于庙者也。”武则天说：“此朕家事，卿勿预知。”狄仁杰沉着而郑重地回答：“王者以四海为家。四海之内，孰非臣妾？何者不为陛下家事！君为元首，臣为股肱，义同一体。况臣位备宰相，岂得不预知乎？”最终，武则天感悟，听从了狄仁杰的意见，亲自迎接庐陵王李显回宫，立为皇嗣，唐祚得以维系。狄仁杰因此被历代政治家、史学家称为有再造唐室之功的忠臣义士。（摘自百度）

狄仁傑於久視元年（700）病故，武曌泣曰，“朝堂空也。”

Spring (photos unavailable yet)

Peony (Photo Credit - NYBG)

As a general rule, if you wish to be surrounded by throngs of people, if lots of hustling and bustling is your thing, and if you wish to, at the same time, enjoy decent horticulture as sort of a background delight, the Brooklyn Botanical Garden would be the ideal venue, especially during the month of Hanami (cherry blossom appreciation month).  On the other hand, if you simply wish to be surrounded by breathtaking nature without the cacophony of the city, go to New York Botanical Garden (the one in Bronx, next to Bronx Zoo). 

西南干旱文章

西南干旱以来，一直希望读到专业人士的评论，终于找到一篇：
<转自一五一十博客>一位生态人类学家眼中的西南大旱