Walking Away

I really need to learn when to walk away. Not from confrontation, although that is also a worthy goal. I need to learn when it’s time to close the book, log off the computer, turn off the lights, and shut down the deep dive that I often take when it comes to interesting topics. Or, rather, topics that are interesting to ME. I am first to admit that I can be rather obsessive when it comes to discovery. If you get my attention, you will most likely get ALL my attention for however many minutes, hours, days, months it takes for me to be fully satisfied that I have explored what needs to be explored. I’m a very curious soul. I don’t like to leave rocks unturned or dark caves unexplored.  That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but there is concern about the amount of time that it takes for me to follow the path(s) down the rabbit hole. Time that I should be dedicating to other endeavors.

To my credit, I don’t research just to satisfy my own curiosity (most of the time.) I usually try to take what I learn and incorporate it into my greater understanding of human nature and the world in which we live. And then I share my accumulated knowledge with the likes of you, my reader. One complicating factor is that pesky phrase "A-D-D" which I hear tossed about from time to time. Perhaps I have a little (tiny, oh so tiny) bit of Attention Deficit Disorder, so that I find myself researching, then veering off topic when I come upon another interesting tidbit of information. Something that deserves its own deep dive. Before you know it, what started as a casual glance at one tantalizing headline becomes a trek down many different paths, creating what looks like a family tree diagram of distantly related topics which all stemmed from one original story.  When does it stop? That’s what I struggle with. Walking away.

I have an irresistible urge to search deeper when I encounter a captivating topic that is new to me. Why do I do that? Because, as they say, “Inquiring Minds Want to Know.” Hey, actually, that original phrase was coined by the tabloid The National Enquirer in the 1980s as a slogan, spelled “Enquiring Minds Want to Know.” In case you had questions about that expression. It bears saying, that I don’t get sucked into all stories. I don’t read publications like The National Enquirer, and I bypass articles that are obvious click-bait with tantalizingly ridiculous storylines. I’m not a complete sucker.

Here is a brief, tidied-up example of a typical episode of Gwen needing to know more. You can see where I take off in different directions, but, to keep the story succinct, I have left out many of the moments where I got sidetracked on one topic or another.

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Recently, I saw a headline from NBC News, online edition:  

Endangered Egg-laying Mammal Seen For the First Time in Over 60 Years

Well, that deserves a peek. According to the article, Expedition Cyclops set out on a 9-week excursion to a remote, treacherous, mountainous region in Indonesia. They faced many hardships, including an earthquake and bouts with malaria, and (are you sitting down?) a leech stuck in one researcher’s eye for 33 hours. The scientists set up 30 cameras all around the high-peak area, checking the images daily, hoping to discover the object of their desire. As quoted from the NBC News article, “In the last images on the last SD card on the final day of the expedition, they finally found it.” And, “That was followed by extreme euphoria.” I can picture the scientists at their camp having extreme euphoria over their discovery. What was it that they discovered? The Attenborough’s Long-Beaked Echidna. (per nbcnews.com)

The what? Open a new search window. Cut and paste the name. Start the research. I'm not even gonna talk about how much I like David Attenborough here, so we can skip on over to the issue at hand.

Attenborough’s Long-Beaked Echidna? The extremely critically endangered Attenborough’s Long-Beaked Echidna is one of 4 species of echidna, a monotreme which looks like a cross between a hedgehog, a mole, and an anteater. This particular species was last seen in 1961, and no one had verified its continued existence. Until now. (per Wikipedia.com)

Monotreme? They are the only 5 species of mammals which lay eggs. Four types of echidna and the duck-billed platypus. (per australian.museum) Lay eggs? And then what? The Mother produces milk, but does not have nipples.  Instead, “the milk oozes from ducts onto the mother's fur, and the young lap it up.” (per kids.britannica.com)

Circle back to the Duck-Billed Platypus. I remember Perry the Platypus. I watched him with my kids on the cartoon show Phineas and Ferb. I love that guy!  My kids and I always enjoyed the silly show with its exaggerated characters. Who was the antagonist? What was his name? Duffle-somebody?

Phineas and Ferb. Doofenshmirtz.  Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz. That was his name. (per behindthevoiceactors.com)

Why call the expedition Cyclops? That is the name of the Indonesian mountain range that they were exploring. “A team of students and researchers, including ornithologists, entomologists, herpetologists, mammalogists, and geologists, have begun to document the Cyclops Mountains of Indonesian Papua at the invitation of the local community.” (per expeditioncyclops.org)

But, what about that leech on the eye thing?  While leeches are used in many medicinal situations, as of 2021, the National Library of Medicine had only 1 recorded case of a leech being used intentionally for eye therapy--on a patient in Tehran, Iran. It was quickly decided that Leech Therapy was not recommended for eyes because of the dangers and complications of removal. Some methods of removal include heat, saltwater, vinegar, alcohol, turpentine, and other chemicals. (per ncbi.nim.nih.gov)

What else about Expedition Cyclops? High in the perilous mountains, Expedition Cyclops also discovered lost or unknown species of birds, insects, frogs, and, get this, Tree-Dwelling Shrimp. Sounds like the expedition was a roaring success. (per ox.ac.uk)

Tree-Dwelling Shrimp? The researchers discovered an area in the mountains covered with tiny tree-dwelling shrimp. Apparently, the near constant rain in the jungle provides enough moisture for the miniscule crustaceans, who normally live seaside, to thrive there. According to expeditioner Dr. Davranoglou, “It’s a very weird creature. It’s able to leap three or four feet in the air to escape predators. We were quite awestruck, really.” (per nytimes.com)

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At that point, I sat for a minute and thought about the researchers on this expedition. All of their preparation, fund-raising, endurance-training, supply-gathering, scientific planning, and hopeful anticipation of what was to come.  I think they must be well pleased with their efforts. Sometimes we do all the planning and all the work but, unfortunately, we don’t get the reward. Good for them for making it work.

I was just about to walk away from this extended learning session when………..

From the depths of my brain, a small voice piped up and said “Hey! We could write a blog about this.”  This? Nah. I’m done. The busy neurons and synapses started jumping up and down, waving their hands in the air, chiming in, “Yes we could! We could! Let’s do it! Let’s write about it!” Look guys, there’s nothing to see here. Settle down. I don’t have time right now to think about this anymore. “PLEEEEEEEASE! PRETTY PLEEEEEEEEEASE?????” C’mon guys, drop it. “Pretty please with sugar on top?!!!" I said no. "Just this once, please? We're begging you. If you loved us…..” Big long sigh. All right, all right, I’ll take another look. Let’s see what we’ve got here. "YAAAAAAYYY!!!!"

And, just like that, the rest of my day was shot.

As I said earlier, I like to use my newly found discoveries to make connections about grand topics of human existence, more or less, and share those findings with you. This time, I leave you with some thought-provoking questions that might lead you on your own path of discovery.

1. How creative would you be if you were tasked with naming an expedition? Or a secret mission, or a rock band, or a theatre troupe, or a boat, or anything that needed a proper moniker? What if you were naming a newly-discovered plant or animal species?
2. Have you ever found yourself in some bizarrely unusual situation like leech on the eyeball? Do you stay calm, cool, and collected? Or run around like a freakin’ madman?
3. Have you experienced wonderfully satisfying success? Or, have you, despite careful planning and attention to detail, experienced disappointment? Is victory sweeter when it comes at the very last minute?
4. Do you believe that every ecosystem and every plant and animal species have value? That they can add important information to our understanding of life, limits, adaptations, and our interconnected web of existence on Earth? Or, do you think that The Attenborough’s Long-Beaked Echidna and Tree Dwelling Shrimp are much ado about nothing?
5. When you find an interesting tidbit of information, do you find it easy to walk away? Or, like me, do you delve in, because There’s always something new to learn.

I hope you have a productive and informative day!!, she said as she walked away.