Winter Frog
It is January and this is a frog. That is somewhat odd, I think. 
Anyway, here it is, in a creek of northeast Oklahoma where the high was 60 degrees on that 29th of January.
One should always ask questions.
Is this a mature frog out of hibernation for a bit? Is it even a frog or is it a toad? Is is a baby? - which would imply that it was warm enough for eggs to hatch, tadpoles to grow and metamorphosize, and this exothermic (cold-blooded) frog to move around and seek food?
Oh well, more than question, one should always appreciate the small unexpected delights of being alive...like finding a random winter frog.
Watercress flourishes in small pool created by a recession of the creek. It has been dry so far this winter.
Many of the rocks here contain fossils. The rocks are mostly chert of the Carboniferous Period, 354 to 290 million years ago during the late Paleozoic Era. During this time, Oklahoma was south of the equator and began to drift slowly north; the state was mostly covered with a shallow sea, though some areas were briefly above sea level. Several mountain ranges arose in Oklahoma during the Carboniferous, including the Arbuckle Mountains, Wichita Mountains, Ouachita Mountains and Ozark Mountains. There was also a trend toward milder temperatures during the Carboniferous.
(below) The fan-shaped pattern towards the top center, belongs to a brachiopod. Brachiopods are hinged mollusks similar to clams.
The round impressions were left by discs that were parts of an amimal known as a Criniod. Crinoids looked roughly like a flower or a sea anemone.
At the edge of the same rock is a cast of a trilobite tail (below). Trilobites were similar in appearance to horseshoe crabs and molted their shells in three separate sections (hence: tri-lobe-ite) as they grew. I've found a few tail sections over the years but no heads or thoraxes.
The other side of the same rock displays a mold of a trilobite tail (below, near bottom of picture).
All of that was on the same section of rock, about three by three inches.
Below is another rock with criniod impressions in it. At left you can see an impression left by part of a stem of the animal, which was made up of discs. At right are a couple of partial disc impressions.
There is much to think about and to explore in the world around us, and wonders everywhere, such as may be found on a short winter's walk.
Anyway, here it is, in a creek of northeast Oklahoma where the high was 60 degrees on that 29th of January.
One should always ask questions.Is this a mature frog out of hibernation for a bit? Is it even a frog or is it a toad? Is is a baby? - which would imply that it was warm enough for eggs to hatch, tadpoles to grow and metamorphosize, and this exothermic (cold-blooded) frog to move around and seek food?
Oh well, more than question, one should always appreciate the small unexpected delights of being alive...like finding a random winter frog.
Watercress flourishes in small pool created by a recession of the creek. It has been dry so far this winter.
Many of the rocks here contain fossils. The rocks are mostly chert of the Carboniferous Period, 354 to 290 million years ago during the late Paleozoic Era. During this time, Oklahoma was south of the equator and began to drift slowly north; the state was mostly covered with a shallow sea, though some areas were briefly above sea level. Several mountain ranges arose in Oklahoma during the Carboniferous, including the Arbuckle Mountains, Wichita Mountains, Ouachita Mountains and Ozark Mountains. There was also a trend toward milder temperatures during the Carboniferous.
(below) The fan-shaped pattern towards the top center, belongs to a brachiopod. Brachiopods are hinged mollusks similar to clams.
The round impressions were left by discs that were parts of an amimal known as a Criniod. Crinoids looked roughly like a flower or a sea anemone.
At the edge of the same rock is a cast of a trilobite tail (below). Trilobites were similar in appearance to horseshoe crabs and molted their shells in three separate sections (hence: tri-lobe-ite) as they grew. I've found a few tail sections over the years but no heads or thoraxes.
The other side of the same rock displays a mold of a trilobite tail (below, near bottom of picture).
All of that was on the same section of rock, about three by three inches.Below is another rock with criniod impressions in it. At left you can see an impression left by part of a stem of the animal, which was made up of discs. At right are a couple of partial disc impressions.
There is much to think about and to explore in the world around us, and wonders everywhere, such as may be found on a short winter's walk.
posted by Ace Jackalope at 4:40 AM
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Ace and my two ever-patient friends waited as I stopped - every block, it seemed - to shoot buildings and signs on our east-to-west drive through town. To be more informative to the Route 66 traveler, I have included links to sources with more information on these places.
The Juan Pollo restaurant chain is owned by the man who bought 
There's a nice mural downtown. Barstow, by the way, was founded in 1886 when a railroad junction previously known as Waterman was re-named Barstow in honor of William Barstow Strong, Santa Fe Railroad president at that time. Settlement grew rapidly around the railroad juction, but Barstow was not incorporated as a city until 1947.
Hey, someone's mom and/or dad, wanna see what the kids were doing when they borrowed the car August 4, 2005 at 1:25PM? Thats right, they were mooning tourists who'd stopped to see your mural. That license plate number is 3JWZ771, by the way...just in case you ever decide to google the plate number of your white Ford Escort LX. Oh, here's an enhanced close-up of those little cherubs.
I'd really like to look inside the KATZ restaurant...dining and dancing...man, to have a place with good steaks and a band playing Sinatra while I dance with my pretty girlie.
The "El Rancho Motor Motel"...or "The El Rancho Motel", depending on which piece of signage you go by, is probably the best known structure in Barstow; it is certainly the most visible with its 100 foot tall neon sign. I've seen several dates given as it's year of construction. The 
Geoffrey Willis, reporting for Roadsigns, the newsletter of the California Historic Route 66 Association, also placed the date as 1947 in an 
Willis continues, "It was built in 1947 entirely of railroad ties from the Tonapah and Tidewater Railroad. It served employees of the Santa Fe Railroad and travelers on Route 66 until 1979 when it was closed to the public and rented exclusively by the Santa Fe. In 1982 the Santa Fe abandoned the motel. Having lost its' major long term tenant as well as the majority of travelers to newer motels just off of I-40, El Rancho limped along until 1987 when Rick Byers, who concentrates on restoring older properties, bought it. At a cost of $400,000; it was entirely repainted, refurbished, and proudly reopened. Five short years later, however, it had declined into a state of disrepair and neglect due to ineffective management and hard times."
Willis: "In the spring of '94 Byers bought the property again and promptly poured another $300,000 into another restoration. This time is different in two major respects. El Rancho now features the Historic Route 66 Visitors Center adjacent to the motel office. There you will find maps, newsletters, and general tourist information geared specifically for those following the Mother Road. The walls are filled with colorful paintings and drawings evoking the atmosphere of the American West. No shortage of friendly and helpful assistance here either. Motel employees seem anxious to show off their new hospitality room. Each room door now displays a plaque which reads "World famous El Rancho Motel, Historic Route 66." A huge glass and neon sign in the shape of a highway shield is perched above the dining room proclaiming this historic landmark on old 66."
Willis: "The second distinguishing aspect of this renovation is the emphasis on long-term rentals. Although twenty-five poolside units will be reserved for overnight rentals, the other seventy- six units including twenty-six with kitchenettes are being promoted for senior residences. This is beneficial in two respects: 1) Re-establishing the long-term rental base lost when the Santa Fe moved out, 2) Reducing wear and tear created by transients and younger long-term renters."
The really neat (though not updated since 2000) website, 
There's a really cool 
Los Angeles Time machines has 
This isn't the kind of center of gravity I like to see in the vehicle in front of me. It really was *that* tilted; compare it to the phone poles and building fronts. Rt66 arcs a bit upward in the middle here, so that increased the angle. We passed it, and continued out of town on 66, on toward Oro Grande and Victorville.
