Saturday, May 24, 2014

Dog and buttercups

For the record, I did not ask the dog to pose for these shots. I happened to be walking by and saw George sitting among the buttercups in the shade of a tree so I told him to stay and went inside for the camera.

He really does seem like he’s posing though, doesn’t he?

 

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We had some nice weather this week and then some rain. And by the time I’m writing this post, the grass has been cut and the buttercups are gone. It is beautiful outside and today was perfect, although I spent much of it doing indoor chores that needed to be done.

Early last night, I sat on one of the Adirondack chairs on the front lawn in the waning light. George was with me and lying on the grass about 10 feet away from me when from the darkness of the woods, a deer slowly emerged. It continued to get closer and closer to where I was sitting as the night started to come full on. Fireflies had begun to appear and I whispered to George to ‘stay’ and told him he was a good boy. It was so peaceful.

And then George decided to get up and sit right next to me. The deer startled, giving a huge snort, and took off back into the woods with its tail raised high. What a nice memory.

Thanks for stopping by, my friends ~

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Saturday, May 17, 2014

A beautiful morning

It’s early Saturday as I write this and I’ve just spent some time outside enjoying my coffee on this stellar morning. It rained all day yesterday and at times, it was a total downpour but by late afternoon, it had all abated and the clouds began clearing.

May is always particularly busy at school with the winding down of the year while having admissions for the following year in full swing. This week was super busy with all the final preparations for our school’s 125th anniversary celebration on the campus today. We have entertainment in the outdoor amphitheater, a small museum set up in our beautiful lobby, an alumni baseball game, a 5K run this morning, and a carnival-type atmosphere outside with tents, food, and drink. Plus we’re having fireworks at dark! Each of the faculty members has a 2-hour time slot to work and I chose to be the docent at the museum in the lobby from 6-8 tonight. It should be fun and I’m really looking forward to it.

 

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I took some images yesterday evening after the rain stopped and then played with them in Photoshop last night. This is a spent dandelion that I applied a texture to and a little saying that I like.

 

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Another spent dandelion. Today the air smells sweet, the sun is shining, and the weekend looks to be a promising one. I have chores to begin soon so I’ll sign off now.

 

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But before I go, I’ll share one last photo of a cedar waxwing that visited the property last weekend. I have never seen these birds here before, and am glad I ran inside to get the camera. This isn’t the best photo, I know. But I was excited to have one visit, although I wondered why he was alone because they usually travel in flocks. Sure enough, when he flew away, several more that were hidden in the tree went along with him.

A treat to find in your binocular viewfield, the Cedar Waxwing is a silky, shiny collection of brown, gray, and lemon-yellow, accented with a subdued crest, rakish black mask, and brilliant-red wax droplets on the wing feathers. In fall these birds gather by the hundreds to eat berries, filling the air with their high, thin, whistles. In summer you’re as likely to find them flitting about over rivers in pursuit of flying insects, where they show off dazzling aeronautics for a forest bird. ~Cornell Lab of Ornithology

 

And now to start my chores.

Hope your weekend is off to a great start. Thanks for stopping by today ~

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Monday, May 12, 2014

This evening

I sat out on the back porch this evening and watched the rain that had begun to fall. It was such a nice ending to a busy day.

 

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The sun was slowly setting.

 

 

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You can’t see the rain but it was falling at a good clip.

 

 

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I got some mulching done this weekend.

And put together some planters.

 

 

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I need to put down some grass seed in those bald spots.

 

 

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There’s a lot to do yet.

Or I don’t have to do any of it.

We’ll see ~

 

 

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Pretty sky tonight . . .

 

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Hope all is right in your world.

Thanks for coming by.

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Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Wordless Wednesday at my place

 

 

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And that’s all I have to say about that.

 

 

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{thanks for stopping by}

Thursday, May 1, 2014

Life is beautiful

Ok, calm down now. I know posting three times in one week is something that’s a little out of the ordinary for me right now. But there was a time in my blogging life that I wrote on a daily basis taking off only for weekends.

Speaking of weekends . . .

 

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Last weekend I went to Alisa’s senior thesis at the university she attends in Philadelphia. She’s studying photography.

Alisa is the granddaughter of my friends, Jeff & Karen.

 

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She is a great kid.

Very talented.

Very cool.

 

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I am not a fan of crowds. I could handle them much better when I was younger but it really gets to me now. The place was packed and full of tiny rooms. After I visited Alisa’s exhibit and looked around a little, I found a quiet place outside in a little courtyard. The wall to the back of me was full of plants and a fabulous tree that kept me dry in the rain. The other three walls were hallways with glass walls that framed the courtyard. I could sit there and people watch while the rain fell softly around me.

It was really nice.

 

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Then we drove to a bar to meet up with other friends who were already there to celebrate Alisa’s accomplishment. The bar was across from the Keswick Theater in Glenside.

Several women came in from the show across the street and mistook my friend, Karen, for a wild, zany woman who sat near them at the show. They had the wild and zany right and Karen just went along with playing the persona of who they thought she was. They gave us tiaras because they were so taken with Karen.

 

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And then she kissed everyone.

It was a fun night.

 

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Our breakfast the next day.

Oooo lah lah.

It was so nice to have a bloody mary (or two) on a lazy Saturday morning.

 

 

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This evening, taken from the front porch.

 

Life is beautiful.

 

And that’s what I have to say about that.

 

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