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Showing posts with the label nature

From Gate to Grate and a Bit Beyond

"Just from the gate to the grate," I said unsurely to the Husband yesterday, as he swung the car around to park on the other side of the rutted lane. We were at the eastern end of the Juan Bautista de Anza national Historic Trail in San Juan Bautista. It's been almost two years since we've walked here. The last time we got as far as we did today because the Husband's heart couldn't take it. We didn't know then what was going on with his heart. I'm happy to say that the Husband and his friend, Gerry Andy Pacemaker, felt g-r-e-a-t . They had no problem going that short distance. This time round it was me that we were being careful about. I discovered that my knees can handle walking on uneven, forgiving dirt with the help of a cane. I woke up yesterday morning determined to walk a bit up one of our favorite trails.  Looking at the trail from the car, I wondered if I really could walk between the gate and cattle grate. The Husband thought the distance

Viewing the Solar Eclipse

I woke up to a heavy fog cover this morning. If I didn't know better, I would've said no eclipse for us today. I kn e w better. About 15 minutes before the total eclipse, I put on my sunglasses, grabbed a stool, and went out to sit on the driveway. Molly the Cat followed me out the door but she swerved to the right to stare at the pine cone covered with spider web nudged in the fence. The Husband came out seconds later. "You aren't going to see anything." "Sure I will." He went back into the house only to return with a cup of coffee for me.  Such a guy! "Where are the cards?" I asked. He had pricked 3x5 cards for us to view the eclipse. "You're not going to see anything." "You don't know that." He sighed. Still, he went inside and fetched the cards. While he was gone, I looked up into the sky. It sure seemed like I could see the outline of the sun through the fog cover. For sure, the sky was ge

See the Strange Thing!

Come See the Strange Thing! Posters called out to the Husband and me once upon a time at the county fair. Only a Dollar! How could we resist? We walked up to the counter, plunked down our two bucks, and entered the tent. Pictures and articles were plastered on the wall. I didn't want to read. I wanted instant gratification. Where is the Strange Thing! ? Then. . . . Eeeeeeeeeeeew! On display was a shriveled up something that looked like a dried up armadillo. Yuck . The Strange Thing! was said to be a blood-sucking creature called a chupacabra. Was it real? Qué sera, sera? The Internet mostly says the chupacabra is an urban legend, but that doesn't keep the curious from conducting field research. Years later the Husband and I crack up whenever one of us brings up The Strange Thing! Have we learned our lesson? Will we plunk down hard-earned cash to see the next Strange Thing! at a county fair? Qué sera, sera? By the way, we have our own little strange th

Heat!

Molly the Cat can't stand the heat. Neither can the Husband and me. Nor can the computer. The last couple of mini heat waves were simply high temps. Now Mother Nature has added another element—humidity. (Or is it us humans that has created the change?) Bleack . It's very unusual for our neck of the woods. Poor Molly under all that fur. She looks at me and questions why I'm not doing anything about the heat. Kweippppp! Time to hook up at All Seasons , a weekly meme open from Sunday to Wednesday, hosted by Jesh at Artworks from Jesh StG. Click here to join in or to read the tales of other participants. Thanks, Jesh!

First Day of Spring 2017

The Mama's purple daisies. Molly the Cat was right (See yesterday's post ). Primavera. Earrach. Jaro. Molla. Musum semi. Spring! Our first late afternoon of Spring began with a gentle rain. I got a few plants and a bunch of seeds into the ground just in time. Hurrah! Here's a little bit of what Spring looks like around our house. Asian pear blossom. Volunteer lupine. Domesticated mustard (not at all tasty like wild mustard). Check out what's going on with other bloggers around the world at Our World Tuesday . Here's the link . Happy Spring, One and All!

Spring is Around the Corner

"I'm going around the corner," said Molly. "That's where I'll find Spring." Molly and I are linking up with All Seasons , a fun weekly meme hosted by Jesh who blogs at Artworks from JeshSTG . Click here to check out her blog and the meme.

Flowers Now and To Come

This week has been one of delight when it comes to flowers. One of the Mama's orchids has a blossom. I only noticed the flower over the past weekend. I truly was going la, la, la when I've been watering the orchid pots. Oh well, makes for a nice surprise. Aren't the orchid's colors gorgeous? The Husband's bicycle has almost the same color of green.   Sigh. I miss pedaling around on Tilda-Hilda, my sweet pink cruiser. The ornamental pear tree is in full bloom. This is the second year that the tree's branches are in synch with their flowers. Until last year, it could've been October, December, March, June, or whenever a branch felt like showing off its blooms. I'm happy with whatever it wants to do. On Valentine's Day, I sowed a large packet full of seeds that when in bloom will attract butterflies and hummingbirds. I threw the seeds in that old drawer (in the photo) and in that space in front of it. I put branches and twigs on top of

Exquisiteness.

With all the current churning of evilness in our country's leadership, we need to take time every day to look for the wonder, the beauty, the eloquence, and the love in our lives and our environment. Call me simple, if you like. Doesn't matter. I have faith that we shall get positiveness, common sense, and humanity back in power again. It's the letter E at ABC Wednesday . To check out ABCW posts from bloggers around the world, please click here . Thanks ABCW Team!

Color!

Bold, bright, brilliant, yet tranquil, joyful, and sensual. . . C O L O R ! ! ! That's what I need to see a lot more.  The Mama put it this way , as she planted more flowers in her crowded boxes: "I like flowers. Lots of flowers."  B y the way , th at cluster of the Mama's pink roses are hanging out in the backyard. They don't seem to mind our cold wet winter . Thank goodness! It's the letter C at ABC Wednesday , a fun meme with participants from around the world. Want to join in or check out other C posts?  Then please click here .  Thank you, ABCW team!

Watching the Grass Grow

We've been having a wonderful winter of rain. The rainfall during the last couple of weeks has been like it used to be with flooding creeks, roads, and streets. It's possible the powers-that-be will say the drought is over in our area. Still, we shall need to continue to conserve water because our local population is growing due to the hundreds of houses being built. I seem to want to work out in the garden just at it starts raining. All that means is I go outside while it's just a light drizzle to deadhead flowers and snap off jade branches killed by the frost. Our front lawn has come back. With a vengeance, I think. The Husband says the grass is thick because he hasn't cut it. Not once since it started coming back. I'm fine with that. Actually, I'm curious to see how tall the grass can grow before I pull some out in a month or so when it's best to sprinkle pixie dust and wildflower seeds. I took the above photo yesterday. Below is how the lawn loo

Loving Winter

Rrrrrrrr-umble. . .BANG! Thunder! I didn't see it, but I did hear the thunderstorm sometime after midnight. I was quite happy not to see the flashes. FLASH! It has been raining. Glorious, glorious rain. And, if the weather guys are correct, it will continue to rain until Thursday. Knock on wood. During a not-raining lull this morning, Molly the Cat and I ventured into the backyard to see how things are holding up. Our raggedy back fence heartily stood up to yesterday's wind. Whhhheeeeeeeewwwwwh. . . Molly was busy sniffing out what she probably hoped would be wild animals while I shot photos. We are so different from the Mama who would've swept as many leaves as she could before she decided it was too muddy and cold to be outside. By the way, did you find Molly among all that green stuff? In the photo up there, that is. Yes, the path was once clear and free of leaves.  :-) And, look, here. A rosebud! The Mama's spirit continues to shine in her rose bus

A Sunday Drive in November

Yesterday afternoon, the Husband and I safely exited the highway onto a road that led us briefly through a magical eucalyptus forest. We zigged and zagged up hill and down dale along vaguely familiar roads to a small town where an artisan's holiday fair was happening. Shall we turn left or right? One way or the other we'd find our destination. We could've taken the direct route. But, where's the fun in that? We wouldn't have come across two young deer quietly and delicately making their way up a hillside. It was almost like they were holding their breath as they walked. Were they afraid we would see them? The Husband stopped the car and opened his window so I could quickly take a photo of the young deer. It wasn't until I was fiddling with this photo that I noticed a creature in the brush above him. At first I thought it was a bobcat or a coyote. Would the deer have gone so slowly if it was either creature?  It turned out it was another deer. I'

Uplifting

Nature is uplifting. Full of grace. Unconditional love. This photo (my favorite this week) is my contribution to Friday's Hunt hosted by Teresa at Eden Hills.  Her weekly meme asks participants to share photos to three prompts.  The prompts this week are:  1) Starts with U  2) Week's Favorite  3) Nature To join in (it's open until Sunday evening) and/or to check out other participants, click here .

Simply Amazing!

The clouds last Saturday were simply amazing. I saw various shapes floating through the sky. This spectacular cloud reminded me of an animal. I just can't figure what kind.  See its little ears sticking up, its eye, and its snout. What do you think? This photo (my favorite this week) is my contribution to Friday's Hunt hosted by Teresa at Eden Hills.  Her weekly meme asks participants to share photos to three prompts.  The prompts this week are:  1) Starts with S  2) Week's Favorite  3) Amazing To check out what others are sharing and/or to join in the fun, please here .   

Friday's Hunt v2.18

The cues: 1) Starts with R   2) Week's favorite   3) Black and/or orange Raindrops grace a bare rose plant in the front yard. Leaves turn color on it, too.  Click. That's my favorite shot to share in this week's Friday's Hunt , hosted by Teresa at Eden Hills. Click here to see what other participants have posted. 

First Rain of the Season!

Late Friday night, we had our first rain. I don't think it rained too long, but it was enough to give us that shiny wetness the next morning. As I'm writing, I hear the plunkity-plunk of the rain on some part of the roof,  the swissshhhh! of water as cars drive by, and the general gentle fall of the rain.  This is our first rainfall since May. Hurrah! I'm linking up today with All Seasons , a weekly meme hosted by blogger friend Jeanette. Click here to check out her post and the link that leads other participants in the meme. You have until Wednesday, if you'd like to join in.

Friday's Hunt v2.15

The cues for this week are: 1) Starts with O  2) Week's Favorite  3) Eyes Don't you think this tree's "eyes" look owlish? Ha-ha! O for owlish. O is also for opposite. On the opposite side of this tree is young growth. Very cool, which is why this photo is my week's favorite. Friday's Hunt is a weekly meme hosted by Teresa at Eden Hills . To check out other participants, please click here .

Friday's Hunt 2.6

The cues for this week's Friday's Hunt , hosted by Teresa of Eden Hills , are: 1) Starts with F  2) Week's Favorite  3) Shiny It's been a busy week—high school class reunion stuff (45 years! Tonight is our dinner-dance.)—so I'm doing a stretch with my entry by using a photo I've posted last year. This morning I was looking at the print of it on our kitchen wall and thinking this is one of my favorite photos. Light bulb! I have my week's favorite photo. Some of you are familiar with the Husband, and maybe even this photo. There you go: Familiar . Shiny —the sunlight reflecting on the creek. To check out other entries for Friday's Hunt , click here .  Gotta run. See ya.

Eden Hills' Friday's Hunt v2.5

Today's topics are 1) Starts with E   2) Week's Favorite  3) Bounce I like coming up with a photo that covers all three topics, because, I admit it, I'm lazy. This afternoon I didn't think I could come up with something even for the letter E. Maybe I'd simply flake out this week.  While getting a photo ready for my other blog, I thought how much I liked the way it turned out, so maybe I'd also use it as my week's favorite for Friday's Hunt. Boom. Pow. Light bulb. Oh, yeah. The photo was of eucalyptus trees. Ha! I bounced back. The photo covers all three topics. Okay, I may have stretched the bounce part. But, I'm sticking with it.  Okey-dokey.  Now, head on over to Teresa's blog, Eden Hills , to check out what other participants have posted for today's Friday's Hunt .