Thomson’s philosophical curiosity concerning natural reality is recorded in the fishbowls. He has very consciously chosen his back yard explorations instead of ‘Physics’ with a capital ‘P’ -and a near monopoly on descriptions and explanations of real life as we know it. Let’s hear the fish stories from the fish, he seems to be saying. After all, as Thomson well knows, potters have been using earth, air, fire, and water to create objects that hold water on functional, scientific, AND aesthetic grounds for thousands and thousands of years literally for millions of seasons. And as Thomson reminds us, natural reality remains an accessible laboratory for all of us who have retained interest in real life…for all of us who are interested in the mysteries of the cosmos but without the cash for a particle-bashing machine...Janis Runge