Half way up the mountain (aka Haleakala) the conditions are perfect for growing protea. There are lots of different varieties, but these bright and beautiful pinsushions grabbed my attention. 
A floral Sputnik on steroids. Not keen on the yellow or red variety ?? No problemo.....
..... e voila!
Back home I gave Cozmo bonus points for his feline creativity in fnding a spot that wasn't wet.
In contrast, half way down the mountain are visions like this which are so frustrating. No one should ever be allowed to make another plastic bag again....ever. Sharon's new rule: if you need a plaggy bag just drive by your local landfill and pick one up. 
I can let the trash bum me out, but we all know everything has its purpose. Without those ugly plastic bags would we see the glory of the protea? I wonder if everything was perfect in our world, would we still find something to whinge about? The contrast is what makes us grow, appreciate and fine tune our existence into that which is pleasing to us. Take two: I can appreciate everyone who threw away those plastic bags because without them, I would not have had that startling wind blown vision. Which in turn wakes me up to be a more conscious recycler and allows me to cherish nature even more than I already do. Mo bettah.
Beauty is in the eye...and all that.
