Gravel

Gravel looks different when seen with the yellow light of a lamp post.

In the day, it has a bluish-gray tinge. At night, it looks gray. Most people don't notice the bluish-gray tinge gravel has. In most drawings, gravel appears gray. When you ask people what color gravel has, they will answer that its gray. Some don't even think about gravel at all.

Gravel is beautiful. I love how the shadows emphasize the geometric shapes of gravel. You can't miss its texture. Sometimes, I imagine touching the jaggedness of gravel with my fingertips.

I love how a path layered with gravel gives an illusion of uniformity although it's not.

I think it won't be easy to paint gravel. You have to consider it's three-dimensional shape. You must have a knowledge of just how much blue or gray or black paint you need to use. You need to consider where the shadows will fall. It's easier to take a picture of a gravelled path and paint it than start from scratch with your imagination.

Gravel is one of the things which doesn't have a distinct shape. Of course, in general, rocks don't have definite shapes either, but gravel gives a more illustrative example.

I wonder about how gravel is formed and about its properties. I wonder about its chemical composition. I imagine it has loads of oxygen and minerals. I wonder about the name of the rock where it comes from. I wonder how a machine is able to break gravel rock and transform it into relatively uniform pieces.

Gravel is better than sand, in some ways. Each piece of gravel is distinct. Sand grains are too small to standout on their own. Gravel gives a feel of independence and uniqueness. Gravel is beautiful but it will hurt your bare feet. Sand is soft, but it will give you a grainy uncomfortable feeling when it sticks on your skin or gets inside your clothes. You won't have those problems with gravel.

In my dormitory, there is a single lamp post left on when it's late. I like to go outside the dorm when there's nobody around and look at it and watch insects fly around it. At times, when I'm smoking, I like to look at how the light makes my cigarette smoke more opaque.

Often, when i'm smoking just outside the dorm, I'm listening to music as well. As I ponder about my thoughts and emotions, I lean on the stone railing, and I look down on the path made of gravel.

It was there that I discovered that

Gravel looks different when seen with the yellow light of a lamp post.