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On my daily walk downtown - well, down the hill to the Starbucks at 15th Street - I usually read. Not to worry, I am aware of my surroundings - I've done this for years, and Shanghai surely
honed my skill in ambient awareness. I don't just notice traffic. This blooming succulent under a palm tree, caught my eye today. If you
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look closely you'll see that its blooms have given way to baby leaf pinwheels!
Things overhead aren't as easy to notice: it was first the smell of eucalyptus that alerted me to this tree's pruning yesterday.
Pruning? Today the smell was still there but the tree is gone.