When we go to Maine in the summer, one of my favorite things to do has always been to explore tidepools for treasures. Years ago I took an 'oceanology for teachers' class on the Atlantic coast, and we spent some time exploring some rocky tidepools. We sat in the same place for quite some time recording everything we saw, and as time passed, we began to discover all sorts of tiny critters that we didn't notice on first glance. I've been fascinated with tide pools ever since.
A quickie disclaimer: I usually post to the blog from a laptop or PC, but tonight I'm using the iPad app, which I do not particularly care for. Hence, the quality of these photos is, I believe, greatly diminished. And I can't seem to move them around, or control their size. Sorry! Hopefully it is 'good enough' for this post.
On our trips to Maine, there are several particularly rocky tide pool locations where I used to find lots of sea glass. I'd bring it home and put it in pretty glass containers. But in the last few years, I have been lucky to even find one piece of sea glass. But, oh, there are jewelry stores on the coast that sell beautiful delicate jewelry made from sea glass. Where do they find it all? Have they cleaned all the sea glass out the ocean somehow?
On a visit to a rocky beach at low tide this year, I was poking through tide pools when I began to notice bits of bright color. So I started to collect, and I came home with a crazy assortment of treasures, definitely not sea glass!
Yes, there's a Lego in there, and part of a whistle, and a broken bobber. And the all those colorful rubber bands- we believe they are the kind tha
t are put on lobster claws. Perhaps a lobsterman dropped them overboard by mistake?
And a kazoo, and the little yellow horse.
And this peculiar Pac-Man shaped slice of wood.
So, I brought all this stuff home, gave it a good cleaning, and now am going to incorporate it all in some sort of mixed media work of art, though I have no idea quite what, yet. Feel free to make suggestions!
Meanwhile, has anyone else read the book Moby Duck? (No, not Moby Dick, which is probably my least favorite book that I read, ever!). It's Full title: '
Moby-Duck: The True Story of 28,800 Bath Toys Lost at Sea and of the Beachcombers, Oceanographers, Environmentalists, and Fools, Including the Author, who Went in Search of Them'.
Or how about '10 Little Rubber Ducks' by Eric Carle? The book is based on this same true story of a shipment of rubber bathtub toys that fell overboard from a container ship. The fact is, there's some real crazy stuff out there in the ocean. Though I haven't found a rubber duck, I do think my little horse is kind of adorable.
And for something really goofy, there's a whole Facebook page related to the shipload of Legos that were washed into the sea by a wave (about 5 million pieces of Lego!) in 1997! Perhaps my Lego is one of those pieces?
If you are intrigued, you can find it here: https://www.facebook.com/LegoLostAtSea
What's the craziest thing you've ever found on the beach?
For the tide pool findings...I saw this at a children's museum...put different findings together in
ReplyDeleteA shadow box, have kiddos find different objects that you have listed somewhere...a yellow horse, 3rubber bands, etc. a fun project for all ages.
ReplyDeleteThe shadow box idea sounds fun, though I'm actually planning more of a mixed media collage/painting thing!
DeleteToday we rely so heavily on plastic! Although it's sad to not see as much/any sea glass your finds are also interesting... It's fun trying to guess where things came from! Did the lego come from the Lego spill? who knows, but it's sure fun to think about!
ReplyDeleteActually, my Lego is probably not from the Lego spill, since I guess those have mostly been washing up on beaches in England and surrounding area, but you never know... there's a LOT of garbage out there in the ocean!
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