Unbuilding the Grace and Pearman Bridges


For Sparky and myself, curiosity drives passion which in turn fuels our life's engine. Our passion was capturing the story of both unbuilding the Grace (1929 - 2007) and Pearman (1966 - 2007) Bridges and discovering the unbuilders. It takes a lot of passion to track a project from July 2005 until April 2007 - rain, shine, hurricanes or moving to Singapore. We discovered the joy of discovery learning. Ken Canty opened the front door for us - then Steve Testa, Ponch Billingsley and Mickey Rogers opened many side doors. Below are the highlights of what we discovered, who we met and what we learned.

And a reminder from T.S. Eliot (East Coker from the Four Quartets)

Home is where one starts from. As we grow older
The world becomes stranger, the pattern more complicated
Of dead and living. Not the intense moment
Isolated, with no before and after,
But a lifetime burning in every moment
And not the lifetime of one man only
But of old stones that cannot be deciphered.

December 23, 2006: A visit to Pulau Ubin

Today was the start of our holiday and I am determined to figure out how to make focused photos of small insects. Today's adventure was to a small island off the east coast of Singapore, Pulau Ubin. Its basically a nature preserve and is pretty much as it was in the 50s and 60s. Here is the sign:

and Pulau Ubin - some say this is how Siongapore appeared in the 50s and 60. If correct - then what a remarkable building of a country and viable infrastructure in 30 - 40 years!!

Butterflys and insects and spiders (Nephila) and small flowers - here a brown butterfly. Joe Greenfield at Duke is my butterfly professor - and will help me identify them. Assuming, of course, that I can get some sharp photos (my current challenge - project)

Here is some osrt of insect walking on a flower after a short rain. Note how the left hind leg appears to be supported by sufrace tension on the water droplet

Here are a couple of ants crawling around. But look at the magnification provided by the water droplets

This was an interesting challenge as I usually over exposed the white -

And a red ant crawling down the stem of these purple flowers

More water drops

Here is another one of the red ants - with slightly unfocused eyes. These are a quite useful test to get my focus act together

An over exposed red ant with lunch - crawling on the underside of a leaf

and a yellow butterfly

With improved focus

and suddenly, on the path, a cousin of Nephila clavipes Here instead of blad fuzz at the joints of the legs there are yellow markings

Again over exposed head

Another view

A side view

A black and white butterfly -

and lagoon

Another photo fo the black and white

and from the top

Some more red ants

and this butterfly - never quite in focus but I tried many times

and a bee

an improved bee

Missing here is the Steve Testa Orange, Jack Foley and Michael Hebb - but Merry Christmas

a greenish insect

and yellow flower

And I should know but don't know this

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

C. Frank Starmer

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