The elder Free-Ride offspring got to go on a field trip this week to an area lagoon. The high points of the visit included seeing a Steller’s Jay (we more frequently encounter scrub jays), looking at a possum skull, and being pointed in the direction of the turkey vultures who were eating the rest of that particular possum.
But the favorite part of the field trip was the visit to the laboratory (which I’m guessing might have been air conditioned) to look under the microscope at some pond water.
Elder offspring: There were a bunch of little critters that kind of looked like tadpoles of different sizes, and some that looked kind of like shrimp, and a bivalve, but it didn’t actually have a smiling face that I could see.
Dr. Free-Ride: Neat! Did you realize before you looked at it that pond water was going to have so much life in it?
Elder offspring: Well, I knew about the fish and the bugs and the water birds, but these were life forms you can’t really see without a microscope.
Younger offspring: Did you see anything like this?
Dr. Free-Ride: Hey, mixed media!
Elder offspring: No, that looks more like an ocean creature to me than a pond creature.
Younger offspring: I want to look at ocean water under a microscope, then.
Dr. Free-Ride: I think that would require a separate field trip. So, about the microscopic pond life you did see …
Elder offspring: I think the smaller microorganisms get eaten by the medium sized microorganisms, and those get eaten by the larger microorganisms, and those get eaten by little fish, which get eaten by the birds. It’s all part of a food web.
Dr. Free-Ride: So from now on, when you see little fish in a pond or a creek, you’re going to have a hunch that there are microorganisms in the water that they’re munching.
Elder offspring: Uh huh. The smallest things you can see with your naked eyes are probably eating something even smaller.
Dr. Free-Ride: So, does it embarrass you at all to be walking around on field trips with your eyes naked?
Elder offspring: Ha!
Dr. Free-Ride: No, seriously, I don’t think you should feel selfconscious about it, but I know how kids your age can be.
Younger offspring: Your eyes are naked, too!
Dr. Free-Ride: Yes, but parents of a certain age are embarrassingly unselfconscious about ocular nudity.
You tarts!
It reminds me of being a kid looking at pond water…i could never get enough (looking, not drinking). I can’t wait until my dtr is ready to hit the ‘scope.
I’m sure there’s a congressman out there somewhere willing to try and stamp out rampant ocular nudity! 😉
Ocular nudity in parents of a certain age is likely to put their offspring in certain danger. Particularly when combustion engines and heavy machinery are involved, both of which will likely be employed for transport to this weekend’s soccer matches. For this reason, I must insist on properly clothed eyes.
Elder Tax Deduction,
Here’s an experiment you can try, with the aid of your parents. You’ll need a plank of wood about 6 feet long. Scrap lumber from a construction site will do, but make sure dad gets all the nails out and sands it out good.
Once that’s done lay it out in the backyard (Dad can help there too). When it’s in place you walk up and down and backwards on it. When you can do that without looking down to see where you’re putting your feet, you’ll be ready for the next step. Walk up and down and backwards on it with your eyes closed.
How is this possible? Kids your age become body aware. A set of nerves called the stretch receptors become active around your age, and they tell you where your body or parts of your body are at any particular time. Along with the map you create of the world around you, this gives you a pretty good idea of where you are and what you are doing even when you can’t see. And this is something Younger Tax Deduction can’t do yet because her stretch receptors aren’t online like yours are.
It also means your coordination gets a whole let better, because you now know what your body is doing, instead of having to check up on it all the time. Have fun with your new talent.
I love that drawing, is that your kid’s?! Very clever. I think looking at pondwater under a microscope as a 7 year old was a pivotal moment!