One of the things Molly the Cat likes to check out when she goes out to the backyard is a bucket full of water that sits next to the patio. I wonder if she sees what I see in the bucket. Today I'm participating in Our World Tuesday . Click here to join in and/or to see what's going in other parts of the world.

Today I'm participating in the Friday's Hunt , a new weekly meme hosted by Teresa of Eden Hills . You have until Sunday to hook up. Click here to join and/or to check out the participants. It's trés fun! Now, on with my finds. Starting with B That's the Mama's tiny banana grove in August. It didn't get as full as usual last year because of the drought. The grove usually yields two to five banana blossoms, which the Mama sometimes harvest for us to eat. Sometimes tiny bananas grow, but the cool weather sets in before they can ripen. Here's what the banana grove looks like today. I pruned the dried tops of the banana stalks (Are they called trunks?) last week. They'll grow back by Spring. Hopefully. This is the first year I pruned the grove without the Mama's instructions. Week's Favorite Molly the Cat yawned just as I snapped the camera. I think she did it on purpose. She doesn't care for me taking photos of her. I wonder

To celebrate the last Tuesday of the year, I'm hooking up with Our World Tuesday , a weekly meme hosted by Lady Fi, Gattina, Sylvia, Arija, Sandy, and Jennifer. To check out other participants, as well as to join in, click here .

I took this photo of a nearly full moon on Christmas Eve, then cropped and added art filters in Photoshop. 

After a rain, a temporary shallow puddle develops on our patio. I like to call it our cement pond. The cool thing about this cement pond is the reflection I can see in it.  That's what I saw this morning.

Tilda-Hilda and I went out for an early ride this morning, just over four miles. We went downtown so I could take photos for my other blog, Take 25 to Hollister . We did a lot of stopping, so I figure I got a bit more exercise in from getting on and off Tilda-Hilda and walking her along the sidewalk. It was a nice brisk morning to be out there. We even got to ride through a few rain puddles. Yay!

This morning I took Tilda-Hilda out on a spin because I wanted to get some early morning photos that I might use for my other blog, Take 25 to Hollister . I caught a scene that I liked, which is here . Tilda-Hilda and I pedaled through some of Hollister's original residential neighborhood and then out towards new development. All in all, we traveled about five miles.  It felt wonderful being out in the crispy Autumn morning. By the way, Tilda-Hilda is posing in front of the high school where I went. San Benito High School. Haybalers, aka Balers, are us!

The big news is that it has been raining today. Those glorious drops of water on the Mama's rose are raindrops. Hurrah! Showers were steadily beating the rooftops and roads between very early this morning (maybe 1:00 a.m.) and just before noon.  It looks like more rain is on the way. Maybe even a thunderstorm or two.  Whoo-hooo! I got happily soaked twice, once walking around the neighborhood, taking photos. As I was bending down by a gutter taking photos, a  driver at the stop sign called over to me, "Are you okay?" It took me a moment to realize he was speaking to me. I stood up and turned, pointing to my camera, "I'm fine. I'm taking photos." He laughed. "Thanks very much," I said. He waved and drove away. The second time was a quick dash over by bicycle to the godmother. When I left her house, I felt like bicycling more in the rain. I was good and whooshed straight home. The Mama said it the best about our good fortune today, &q

Red Pallets Zipping Down the Highway . Sounds like a good title for something, don't you think? Yesterday morning, I saw a rig loaded with red pallets zipping past us at the traffic light. It was a poem in movement. "There goes a picture," I said to the Husband. "Too bad I didn't have my camera out." "What?" "That truck with the red thingies on them." "Those are pallets. What makes that a picture?" "Because they're red. How often do you see fire-red pallets? And, a lot of them piled high on the back of a truck?" About seven minutes later, the Husband said, "We're coming up to the red pallets." I fumbled for my purse, hoping the traffic lights up ahead would stay red. I got the camera out. The lights turned green. I rolled down my window. The husband pulled into the left lane to get around the truck.  I focused the camera. Oh well. I got a little bit of the red pallets, at least.

The Husband thought the photo was that of a cave. Nope. It's the hollow of the mighty old oak tree that I shared in last week's The Weekend in Black and White . And, that's where I am again, today. To participate in this Friday meme hosted by Dragonstar, or to check out black and white photos from bloggers around the world, click here .   

It's Friday and means the Weekend in Black and White hosted by Dragonstar. To participate or check out other B&W photos, please click here .

I simply stood there, mesmerized by the yellow duckies floating in a carnival booth at the county fair. I had no idea what the game was. I didn't even care since it probably meant having to pay five bucks to play it. Then I noticed a guy taking a photo of the duckies and walking away.  So, of course, I took a photo. Quack! Quack! That reminds me of when I was younger thing. A friend and I paddled a patched up rubber raft in a rubber ducky race. We were fortunate to make it to finish line without sinking.

Hooking up with The Weekend in Black and White , a weekly photo meme hosted by the delightful Dragonstar. It has been a while for me. To participate or to check out other black and white photos by bloggers around the world, click here .

Okay, I have 3 minutes to post something for today. Two minutes now. One minute. Okay. I cheated. I published this post, and have now come back to write more. Simply had to make sure I didn't miss my daily post. Oh, these are signs that I saw in Half Moon Bay, about 25 miles south of San Francisco, which I'll write a bit more about in tomorrow's post.

Time to hook up with The Weekend in Black and White , hosted by the generous Dragonstar. To participate or to check out other black and white photos, please click here .

Yesterday morning, I was being resourceful in front of this building, which once-upon-a-time was the hospital in Hollister. It was in fact the place where I was born, one of many babies that came into the world between 1907 and 1962. Today, the building is home to various offices and shops. Probably a few ghosts, too.  Anyway, back to yesterday. I was lying on the bottom steps trying to take a good picture of the huge trees that line the sidewalk in front of the old hospital. I was doing as someone said to me about getting one or all five trees in a picture, "Be creative." Imagine what the drivers passing by must've thought.  Or, the Mama, if she had seen me.

It's The Weekend in Black and White , hosted by Dragonstar.  Click here to participate or to check out other black and white photos by blogging photographers around the world.

Hello. I'm participating in a new weekly meme today. The Good. The Random. The Fun.  It's a Monday meme hosted by Random-osity . You blog about a good, random, and fun thing that happened in the past week. Yes, I know today is Tuesday. What can I say. THE GOOD  My high school graduating class—San Benito High School (aka Hollister High School) Class of 1971—established a scholarship about nine years ago. We have the distinction of being the only alumni class at the local high school to sponsor a scholarship, thanks to Rudy, Debbie, and Debbie who had the vision, heart, and diligence to make it happen. In the last eight years, we've given $14,000 in scholarships to 10 Baler graduates. (Baler, or Haybaler, is the high school mascot.) Whooo-hooo! On Saturday we held our annual Class of 1971 Scholarship fundraiser in town. It was another successful luncheon, silent auction, and raffle. Each year, we get a bigger turnout with newer faces showing up. It felt

Happy Monday, Dear Readers! It's another glorious morning. There aren't many morning glories in the Mama's garden this year because of the drought. Those that managed to pop up are flourishing happily. They're all 11th generation volunteers. Today I'm participating in NatureFootstep's Catching the Light meme. Click here to join in or to check out photos by other participants.

Trivia about me: When I was in high school many, many, many years ago, I wrote a high school column called The Baling Wire for the local newspaper.  The high school mascot was/is a Haybaler. Baler for short. Not the machine, but the young farmer.    It's the Weekend in Black and White , hosted by Dragonstar.  Click here to see B&W photos by other participants from around the world.