This plant, I learned yesterday, is called powderpuff or sunshine mimosa (Mimosa strigillosa). It grows in the grass below Mom's apartment building, and apparently it's a Florida native, though I'm not sure I've ever seen it before.
We spotted it yesterday on our morning walk, and when I took the camera out afterwards to get a photo, my lenses were immediately socked in by condensation. The camera was cold from the air conditioning, and it is so humid outside! I had to walk around for about fifteen minutes and let the camera warm up a bit before I could use it.
We also saw this critter the other morning. It was scrounging around under the dock, where Mom says people feed the local cats. There was even a cat nearby, just hanging out, apparently completely used to the raccoon.
Because of that thick humidity, and the accompanying heat, we spent all day inside yesterday. I worked on setting up Mom's new iPad, her birthday gift from me and my brother. We installed some apps and I got her logged in on Facebook and Flickr and helped her practice using it.
I think she'll really like it. Her old computer, as I have complained before, is ridiculously slow. Using it is a Zen experience -- it forces you to confront your ideas of what a computer should do, and how it should behave, and how quickly it should function, and then abandon all those ideas and face what's really happening instead. And what's really happening is: not much.
I migrated all her old photos to Flickr, so she can see them easily. Hopefully this iPad will ease her access to the Internet overall!
I hope she gets used to the idea of typing things with a touch screen. Physically, it's such a different process from using a normal keyboard which is of course the child of the old typewriter and therefore very familiar.
ReplyDeleteYes! I saw those little mini mimosas for the first time this year on my walk!
ReplyDeleteNice raccoon!
I hope she enjoys it! Love the shot of the raccoon.
ReplyDeleteyou are a great son...!
ReplyDeletei live in the mid-west the weather/humidity is horrible. yuck!
we always called them touch-me-nots because when you touch the leaves they fold up. we used to see them down in Galveston when we had the beach house. and yes it's hot and humid here too. we'll be basically housebound for the next two months at least.
ReplyDeleteI hope your mom likes her iPad. My mom had one for a while, but the whole touch screen way of doing things truly eluded her. Nice to see a raccoon there!
ReplyDeleteLove your description of your mom's computer :) Mike got me a keyboard for my iPad, which increased my enjoyment of it exponentially. So nice.
ReplyDeleteI could never live in a hot humid country, we've has such hot weather over here recently and it kills me.
ReplyDeleteI know your Mum will love her ipad. My son gave me one a couple of years ago and I love it, only trouble is I'm on the darn thing too much.
Tell your mum to download scrabble, I am addicted to this app, who knows I may even play her.
Briony
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p.s. get her one of those pens (stylus is it? ) to type with, so much easier than fingers for us mature ladies.
ReplyDeleteBriony
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I loved your description of slow computers ... it really can be a frustrating experience if you're used to higher speeds.
ReplyDeleteIn the news yesterday there was an article on a racoon attack in Vancouver, British Columbia. Be careful - those critters can be mean, although most will run away if they have room to do so safely. The article is here: http://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/that-animal-was-going-to-kill-me-east-vancouver-woman-wounded-in-vicious-raccoon-attack ...she said she wanted to get word out to warn parents. I would extend that to the elderly, also.
Tell your mom to think of using an iPad as using the ATM's touch screen. If she can use one to get money, she can use a portable touch screen just as well. :)
ReplyDeleteThe 53 Pencil Stylus is lovely for older fingers. Heck, she can even write and doodle with it to keep wrist and fingers nimble.
You and your brother are good sons for not leaving your mother in the dark ages of technology.
I like Limner's idea of getting her a pencil stylus for the iPad touch screen. We got one for my mom and it helped her enjoyment of it tremendously. Before that she kept touching the wrong spot or touching the screen with not enough pressure. Just a thought.
ReplyDeleteI need you to help me with my iPad. It had a big hissy fit tonight and I had to rest. I had to activate it again. I don,t know why
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info and tips on my mom's new iPad, everyone! She doesn't have a stylus, but so far she handles the touch screen OK. She has an iPhone, and she knows how to use it, so we've been emphasizing that the iPad is basically the same technology, and that seems to be helping her to adapt to it.
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