Boxing Day Animal Rescue

My daughter and I found a common garden skink stuck to a piece of packing tape from a broken-down cardboard box in the driveway today, Boxing Day 2022. 

I thought it was dead, as it had been sitting in the hot Aussie sun, stuck to a Christmas delivery box for who knows how long, but she wasn't so sure, so she removed the tape from the box, brought it inside, and put it on a saucer. She poured a bed of water under the critter for it to drink and to cool it down.

After a few minutes, she noticed it was breathing!

It was quite pitiful to see the creature stuck on the tape.

She grabbed a pair of tweezers and a nail file to try to separate him from the tape, but this was that super strong packing tape used for shipping, and he was entirely stuck, from head to toes to tail.    

This lizard was so tiny and delicate that I wasn't sure I wanted to watch it.

After a few more attempts, it was clear that this little bugger was good and stuck! 

 

I suggested the internet, and after a quick surf, I found that vegetable oil may effectively remove some of the adhesive.

So, we tried it. 

Vegetable oil works well with a little patience.  

Using little drops of oil not to drown the little reptile, it took some time for the oil to soak into the tape. 

But when it did - it worked!  

Video of the removal

She freed the lizard's tail first before moving on to its tiny feet, which I thought would surely break off.

Once the feet were released, it wiggled a bit, which was scary since its little head was still attached.  

She moved the operation outside in case he wrestled himself free. After a minute, the little fellow calmed down, and she could remove its head without damaging him.

Although I'm not a fan of critters, I was inspired to see her save its life!

Once totally freed from the tape, the creature scurried away.

Now the lizard is slimy and slippery, but free!   

A lizard stuck on delivery box tape on boxing day . . .

Rescuing a critter with Canola oil and tweezers from the hot Christmas sun . . .

Bringing a new meaning to the Boxing Day holiday . . . 

I am Not in Kansas!

Jacaranda Trees

These are the first trees I learned about on my first visit to Sydney, but it's taken me more than six years of blogging to write about them. 

Captured in the Royal Botanical Gardens - Sydney

The jacaranda tree, with its blueish-purple blossoms, symbolizes Australia's dazzling charm, similar to how the cherry blossom trees signify the splendor of DC.

Interestingly, neither tree is a native, but folks still travel to see them.

The cherry blossom tree is from Japan, and the jacaranda, Brazil. 

Nonetheless, Australians view the beautiful jacaranda tree as integral to their landscape.      

A photo I shot in Sydney while out walking. Sydney is a walking city.

Jacaranda tree in my daughter's back garden

Aussies and tourists grab their cameras in search of the best place to shoot these spectacular trees. 

Some say the place to go for stunning jacaranda pictures in Sydney is McDougall Street in the harborside neighborhood of Kirribilli.

There, tree branches full of blossoms overlap, creating a dazzling lilac canopy across the sky. 

Kirribilli was my daughter Lyndsi's first neighborhood when she migrated to Sydney, and it remains my favorite. 

I would always visit McDougall Street to admire the display. 

However, I arrived there too late in the season this year.

Many of the blossoms necessary to create that fantastic umbrella-like covering had already dropped.

But that didn't stop me and others from photographing those that remained.

At times the streets were blocked by people taking pictures.

Folks photographing jacarandas on McDougall Street

I was as interested in the tourist as I was in the jacarandas.

McDougall Street

McDougall Street

Folks continued to come to McDougall Street throughout the morning.

Sistah, on McDougall Street, Kirribilli

McDougall Street, Kirribilli

These trees are so widely dispersed in Australia that you've got a chance to see and photograph them anywhere you go in the states of Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia, or New South Wales (home to Sydney).

Photo compliments of my friend Sharon Daly-Giehtbrock (Adelaide, South Australia)

Photo compliments of my friend Sharon Daly-Giehtbrock (Adelaide, South Australia)

Jacaranda trees are not the tallest, but they tower overhead high enough to provide shade. 

They can reach heights up to 49 feet, with a branch span of 29 feet.

Royal Botanical Gardens - Sydney 
(I tried to wait for these folks to leave before taking the picture, but they were there for the day, I wasn't.)

I took this picture on a neighborhood walk - I love how the camera captured the colors!

The jacarandas spaced apart add color throughout the neighborhood.

My daughter's back garden, my favorite jacaranda to photograph

A friendly neighborhood picture I took from the footpath.  
There are two jacaranda trees in the shot - can you spot them?

This photograph is from a Sydney suburb on my bus line - taking photos gives me something to do while waiting on the bus.

The jacaranda in front of City Hall, Sydney

As spring fades into summer, the purple blossoms slowly fall to the ground like purple rain.

However, unlike the song in which purple rain signifies the end of times, the falling purple blossoms of the jacaranda tree mean new beginnings: Spring!  

And, if you're fortunate to have them land on your head, it's a sign of good luck!  

Photo compliments of my daughter, Lyndsi

Jacaranda flowers covering the ground creates an illusion that the blossoms are a mirror image of the tree.

For me, the sight and smell of the jacarandas flavor the city. 

Indigenous South Americans call the tree 'Guarani,'  which means fragrance. 

But the floral smell from the actual blossoms is mild. 

It is the dried-out leaves that have accumulated under the tree that has a robust fragrance. 

A back street heading towards the Forrestville shops

The colors and smells from the blossoms and leaves stimulate the senses, which can be hypnotizing and tranquil. 

I remember thinking one day while walking past a groove of jacarandas that the air smelled like Sydney! 

Photo compliments of my friend Sharon Daly-Giehtbrock, (Adelaide)

In contrast to the sky, the blossoms have a majestic hue that is picturesque and downright flamboyant!

Another view of our jacaranda from my daughter's deck

Jacarandas in Circular Quay leading towards the Sydney suburb called "The Rocks."

Photo taken at the Forrestville shops

Royal Botanical Gardens - Sydney 

The soft, delicate purple blossoms grow in clusters and are shaped like little trumpets, making them seem like royalty compared to the other trees in bloom.

Once off the tree, the petals wither and turn blue before completely drying out.

Close-up of jacaranda petals 

Jacaranda petals after falling off the tree

While many may love the jacaranda season, some do not. 

The petals on the ground leave a mess and make it challenging to keep the footpaths and decks cleared.  

And the petals are very slippery when wet. 

Fallen Jacaranda petals

Jacaranda petals on steps 

Kirribilli neighborhood

My daughter's back deck, littered with petals thirty minutes after sweeping

Sweeping up jacaranda petals must be done twice daily to keep paths clear.

One dustpan full - more to go!

My daughter's neighbor has been asking her to cut down her jacaranda because the petals constantly fall onto his property.

He minds the mess!

My daughter's jacaranda is encroaching on the neighbor's house.

And my cousin lives in LA and has a jacaranda outside his apartment.

He frowned when I asked him about the tree.

I don't know the problem - the blossoms only last about two months!

That's a little to contend with in exchange for the tree's beauty and elegance.

A field we call the secret garden, which is near our house where we take the dog to run

Houses in the back of the Secret Garden

A view from the side of the Secret Garden

After the blossoms, the tree is lush with feathery fern-like leaves on stems 4 inches long. 

In the winter, the leaves turn yellow, and the tree's thin scaly reddish-brown bark is exposed.  

The bark twists and zig-zags like it's spinning out of control, resembling strange objects from a Dr. Suess book.     

My daughter's crazy jacaranda tree

My daughter's jacaranda tree, lush with fern-like leaves

I think about Dr. Doolittle's story when I see a possum sitting on a jacaranda branch, watching me, watching him.

Sistah in Oz - Possums

The leaves peeking out from behind the jacaranda tree trunk below is from the bamboo trees my daughter planted, not a part of the jacaranda. 

Most of the year, the tree goes unnoticed because there are so many exotic trees in Sydney.  

But come springtime, from October to December, the jacaranda tree commands attention like a good piece of art.

It took me so long to write about jacaranda trees because I didn't have the words to express their beauty fully, but then I remembered a picture is worth a thousand words.

 McDougall Street, Kirribilli photo - compliments of my daughter, Lyndsi. 

Purple rain...

Zig zag branches... 

Possums perched on branches, looking at me, looking at them...

I am NOT in Kansas!