1.02022 Archive of RENATURED, Marina Zurkow's Research Bloghttps://o-matic.com/blog-archive-2022Marinahttps://o-matic.com/blog-archive-2022/blog/author/admin/Well I left the beef fat and downstream petro behind, and took a plane to Midland TX. The earth looks scraped clean - and it kind of is, at least in patches (scraped and then bored down down through strata of hard and soft, old and older. Lots of oil pump jacks - the term I like best for them is Thirsty Bird... but more on that soon. [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="401" caption="Hello Oil! Derrick at work."]<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22155573@N00/5340554667/in/set-72157625661895461/"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5166/5340554667_223dc66d0b.jpg" alt="Hello Oil! Derrick at work." width="401" height="226" /></a>[/caption] [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="402" caption="Thirsty Bird pads"]<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22155573@N00/5340552065/in/set-72157625661895461/"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5242/5340552065_5656061c06.jpg" alt="-" width="402" height="227" /></a>[/caption] The <a href="http://www.sibleynaturecenter.org/essays/moseying/exploringnature/040825_oilwellpad.html" target="_blank">Sibley Nature Center</a> in Midland, whose director Burr Williams is my new naturalist hero,  has a good essay on the <a href="http://www.sibleynaturecenter.org/essays/moseying/exploringnature/040825_oilwellpad.html" target="_blank">ecology of oil pads</a>... +++++++++++ Then I hopped in a rental that looks like a cop car (black 4 door, maybe the FBI will forgive me now) and drove to Marfa. Nice clouds, look scribbled and placed. [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="400" caption="-"]<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22155573@N00/5340564627/in/set-72157625661895461/"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5288/5340564627_c9f609985b.jpg" alt="-" width="400" height="226" /></a>[/caption] [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="401" caption="-"]<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22155573@N00/5340566673/in/set-72157625661895461/"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5082/5340566673_b0a2145ecd.jpg" alt="-" width="401" height="226" /></a>[/caption] [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="402" caption="-"]<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22155573@N00/5341146926/in/set-72157625661895461/"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5049/5341146926_f38ea9698c.jpg" alt="-" width="402" height="301" /></a>[/caption] [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="401" caption="-"]<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22155573@N00/5340541099/in/set-72157625661895461/#/"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5167/5340541099_8566750f5c.jpg" alt="-" width="401" height="225" /></a>[/caption] [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="400" caption="-"]<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22155573@N00/5341140954/in/set-72157625661895461/"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5002/5341140954_9c62545eb9.jpg" alt="-" width="400" height="300" /></a>[/caption] [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="401" caption="Cop Car."]<a href="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5201/5343356722_40066d3c8c.jpg"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5201/5343356722_40066d3c8c.jpg" alt="Cop Car." width="401" height="300" /></a>[/caption] Lots more pictures on <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/22155573@N00/sets/72157625661895461/with/5341201938/" target="_blank">flickr</a>.rich