Sunday morning in pictures

Some readers have written asking me to share the processing on some of the photographs I publish. Although I’m not in the habit of writing down the steps I take when working in Photoshop, this time I actually did. And know what’s even better?

What’s even better is that every single action and texture that was used in this group of photos was absolutely FREE. I’ll give a link on each one for you.

I liked this little grouping of birds and the color of the barn in the background.

PW’s Lovely and Ethereal action @ 26% opacity

PW’s Seventies action @ 41% (brushed off birds w/soft brush at low opacity) {instructions here}

MCP’s Dream Much texture, pin light @ 46% opacity *

PW’s Sharpen This! action (on birds only) @ 50% opacity

In know the change is subtle, but it’s what I was looking for.

* For the life of me, I can’t seem to find the free texture on the MCP Actions site or anywhere else. Sorry about that. I can’t remember where I downloaded it.

The window in my bedroom when I awoke this morning.

PW’s Fresh & Colorful action @ 38%

PW’s Seventies action @ 16%

Once again, very subtle changes.

The holiday decorations are finally put away, and aside from the puzzle thing my husband has propped up against the wall here, all is back to normal. And clean.

PW’s Soft & Faded action @ 10%

SkeletalMess Parchment 3 texture, overlay @ 29%

I like the warmth of the second photo better.

 

My husband putting away the cookies he’d just baked in the pink counter-topped kitchen.

PW’s Soft & Faded action @ 44% opacity

SkeletalMess Translucent Tones texture, overlay @ 48% opacity

I did not like the blue tones in the SOOC. At all.

I love saving energy. We’ve had this Amish drying rack for 20 years and when it’s this cold out, I like hanging the delicates inside on this. I made sure there was nothing embarrassing here before I shot the photo, taken in the front entry foyer.

PW’s Slight Lighten action @ 67% opacity

PW’s Soft & Faded action @ 27% opacity

SkeletalMess Faux Parchment 4 texture, overlay @ 33% opacity

I really disliked the SOOC. A good photographer would have probably figured out how to capture the sunshine rather than use PS to adjust it. But this post isn’t about that.

 

After taking the photo of the drying rack, I turned around to see George napping in the living room. On his own couch, no less.

PW’s Lovely and Ethereal action @ 60% opacity

PW’s Soft & Faded action @ 21% opacity

SkeletalMess Painted Canvas 3 texture, linear burn @ 37% opacity (brushed off face w/soft brush at low opacity)

I like the second version so much better.

I loved how this little sparrow looks waiting for a turn at the feeder below. At least, I think it’s a sparrow.

PW’s Soft & Faded action @ 10% opacity

PW’s Sharpen This! action (on bird only) @ 57% opacity

Michelle Black texture, soft light @ 20% opacity

I prefer the cropped version so much more.

I liked the colors in this one and all the birdie action as they jostle for a spot on the feeder.

PW’s Soft & Faded action @ 11% opacity

PW’s Sharpen This! action (on birds & some feeder only) @ 47% opacity

Michelle Black texture, soft light @ 52% opacity

I cropped this one because it asked me to.

Well, that took a lot outa me. Hope you enjoyed!

Bird slideshow

With apologies to those who still have dial-up (I truly am sorry), this is a slideshow of one of my Flickr sets. I just created this one, entitled ‘Birds’ and it includes 30 photos.

To view it with music, [click here] and open in a new tab or window. Then click play below.

This is my offering for today. Hope you enjoy.

Have a beautiful one.

Until tomorrow, my friends . . .

A snow day that really wasn’t

The snow day that wasn’t worth it is more like it. We have three snow days built into our school calendar and we follow the county when it comes to closings. And this morning, I think everyone, county-wide, was surprised to find that all schools were closed and not on a 2-hour delay.

Regardless, it sure was beautiful. After I heard the news, I fell back to sleep and when I woke up, I was surprised at how little accumulation there was. I really wanted to stay home and take photos because the snow was clinging to all the tree branches and was just so beautiful. But there was so much to do at work, and so to work I went.

This is what the driveway looks like with an inch of snow and the morning sun hitting it.

This is looking back towards the house. Our driveway is a third of a mile long through a wooded area.

 

The main roads were a piece of cake, and the side roads were icy in some spots. This is the school driveway. There are two entrances and this one was created several years ago when the addition was built. My youngest was the first class to graduate in the larger school (class of 2005).

As I write this, it’s Friday evening. My husband is doing the dishes. Tonight I made {Willow’s Saucy Mushroom Pork Chops}, creamy mashed potatoes, and carrots with a butter/maple glaze. And I’m thinking at this rate, I’ll never lose that 5 pounds I put on over the holidays. But my house . . . it smelled divine. Still does. And my husband said it was better than his pork chops. And life . . . it is good.

Hope things are going well in your neck of the woods.

Love you and potatoes,

For those who want to friend George on Facebook, {link}. Yes I am crazy, Adrienne. Join the club.

The fast and the furious

My husband surprised me with a Sony Handycam for Christmas. I was truly shocked, as we’d both agreed that we weren’t buying for one another again this year.

We’ve been trying to get the hang of it and it’s just so different from using a camera. Today when I came home from work, he told me he had recorded some birds at the feeder and he wanted me to download them so he could watch the movies he made. He had set the camcorder up on our little tripod outside on the picnic table and caught some wonderful birdy action, however the recorder ran for 15 minutes and the action is few and far between. I’ve been trying to figure out how to splice all the emptiness out of the loop, to no avail. I finally just gave up and went back to watching the wonderful old BBC series, All Creatures Great and Small which is available instantly on Netflix.

In the meantime, I discovered a 10 second clip that I don’t even remember recording. I have no idea where we’re going here, but George does love a good ride in the car. (And rockin’ music so turn your speakers down a bit).

This is all I have for you today, my friends.

Ten seconds of a dog riding in a car. It’s why I have the disclaimer on my blog header that warns you not to get too excited.

Until tomorrow, my friends . . .

For those who asked about George on Facebook, visit {here}.

A night off for me

I am taking the night off from the computer and don’t try to talk me out of it. I am not going to succumb to the pressure! I’ll be here in my living room with my blanket and my sheep slippers, watching the pilot episode of All Creatures Great and Small, from Netflix. And I may just watch some more episodes. Thanks to Firelight for pointing out the BBC series on Netflix.

Afterwards, I am going to read my book. No Photoshop. No blogging. No letting the dog get on his Facebook account. Just quiet.

I do hope you understand.

So I’ll leave you now with these tufted tweeters. I took these photos last February and played with them last night.

And life is sweet.

The windows of my soul I throw
Wide open to the sun.
~John Greenleaf Whittier, My Psalm

Until tomorrow, my friends. It’s always a pleasure when you stop by.

PS~To find him on FB, it's George Young.

Apparently, I’ve gone off the deep end

This afternoon, while busily working at my desk, I answered the intercom phone. The caller ID showed it was Rich, from the business office.

HIM: You’ve gone off the deep end this time, I’m telling you.

ME: What? What’d I do now?

HIM: You’re cracked, I tell you. Cracked.

ME: What! Why?

HIM: Your dog has a Facebook account?

ME: Who told you that?

HIM: I can see him. He’s got a Facebook account. And you told me this morning, ding dong.

ME: Oh, right. I forgot.

HIM: Well, why didn’t he friend me?

Alas, I have succumbed to peer pressure and opened a Facebook account. But I didn’t open it under my own name. I’ve been avoiding Facebook like the plague because it’s just another thing that will involve time spent in a seated position at a computer. And I already do enough of that. Besides, I’d heard it was really addictive, like crack. Or worse, Photoshop.

So I opened the account under George’s name after a friend did the same for her dog, and begged asked me to pleeeaaassseee get George on Facebook. Her dog already had 19 friends and I needed to hurry.

Rich was laughing at George’s profile, after I quickly friended him (he’s happy to be in the loop now) and was looking at all George’s friends and reading his wall and laughing at the fact that the dog admitted eating some pop tart for breakfast this morning.

I just don’t know about this Facebook thing.

Facebook is crazy and has tentacles that go into your mail system and pull up oodles of potential friends for you. Last night, I began clicking on people that I knew, and some blogging friends and did a group friend request. However, I accidentally clicked on one of my sons and after I realized I’d made the mistake, I wrote him telling him he didn’t have to friend the dog. (My sons don’t share their Facebook accounts with me and I’m fine with that).

To my surprise, rather than responding to the e-mail he friended George back. And then sent him a song he’d recorded. Unfortunately, I can now see my son’s wall. And his pictures. And holy hannah, let me tell you, it’s more than I wanted a young dog to know.

So I’ve gone off the deep end. I just needed you to know that.

What’s the world coming to?

All things bright and beautiful

Sunday was my last day of a long holiday vacation. I slept late (for me), waking at 8:30 after a wonderful dream that I couldn’t remember. I was determined not to think about Monday, not once. This was going to be a good day and I was planning on beginning it with a delicious breakfast.

My husband had just left to continue his morning walk with George, and told me he’d just finished his breakfast. So I decided to make an omelet. For one.

I got out one of my new cutting boards and a knife, both gifts from my son.

When my son bought these, he was standing in line with Brooke Shields. I kid you not. He was shopping at Sur La Table in NYC shortly before Christmas and she was behind him. So Brooke Shields saw my Christmas presents before I did.

I love the scent of onions and mushrooms while they’re cooking. And call me crazy, but I like a little bit of nutmeg sprinkled on my mushrooms. It adds some pizzazz.

This is a colorful post, so here’s some yellow to brighten your day. I whipped up 2 egg whites and one yolk.

And because the next day and the months to come would be free of fat and holiday goodies, I decided to splurge on the cheese for my omelet. This is gruyere. And my life is now complete.

The last of the Thomas’ Cranberry English Muffins, and a glass of milk completes the meal.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Getting back to school was actually great. Although I enjoy the time off, I like the steady routine of my job. And I only wish my husband had something that made him this glad. I don’t mean to put a damper on anything, but sometimes I feel a little bad about being glad.

But enough of this.

Kudos to anyone who knows the author of the book that matches this post’s title.

Until tomorrow, my friends . . .

PS ~ For those who asked the question of how I got the navigation bars at the top of the blog (under the header), the tutorial I used is here: {link}. I’m sure there are others out there, but this worked for me. Make sure you have the links ready to go, e.g. ‘About Me’, ‘Recipes’, etc. by creating a post, hitting publish and then burying it somewhere in your blog. By that I mean to change the date.

Brazen squirrels and other matters

So there we were, my husband and I, sitting in the warm breakfast nook and working on a puzzle on this cold winter’s day. He had just poured me a cup of tea and we were listening to the wind howl outside. I laughed at something funny he said, and as I did, I looked out the window.

And saw this.

Apologies for the quality of these photographs. I had forgotten to reset the ISO on the camera and was shooting through the glass of the breakfast nook. The glass is wavy. And dirty, but enough of the excuses. This squirrel was taunting me. And looking right at me, while he was sitting on the top of the feeder.

The cardinal was waiting for the squirrel to get down, so he could get a bite to eat.

My husband fills the feeders every morning. Here some birds alight after the squirrel has left.

I put a texture on most of these photos. Because I felt like it.

Oh, my heavens. Was it ever cold here today.

I took my morning walk with George and was completely bundled up as I used the hiking poles and went around the property several times along the paths my husband has created. The cold made my eyes water. I was actually crying into my scarf. Not really crying, but you know what I mean.

I had a blast, like I always do, reading your answers to yesterday’s questions. I love getting to know you all better. Thanks to all who participated. And hey, has anyone noticed that I have navigation widgets under my header (on both blogs)? Pretty spiffy, eh? I’m a technical genius (absolutely not). Would you believe that I have been wanting to do this for about three months now, and finally e-mailed my friend, Mary at {Little Red House} who told me where she got the instructions for hers. Thanks, my friend!

Back to work tomorrow. I’ve had off since December 19 and it’s probably time things went back to normal around here. ** Sigh **. Hope you have a great Monday, all.

Love,

Our evening ritual

On most evenings, I work on my photos and then will do a blog post for the next day. We’re quite the exciting couple, my husband and I. And we wear this dog out during the daytime hours, I tell you.

Tonight, while sitting across the living room from George, I looked up and noticed this.

He was sound asleep, cuddling his alligator toy. And of course, it woke him slightly when I went over to capture some photos of it.

Dear mother, I am trying to sleep here. Can’t you see that?

Call me crazy, because I like sniffing his feet. I am a sick person, I know it.

I think I have woken him.

Yes, I’m quite sure he’s awake now. He gets ready to play really fast and the last thing we had been playing with was that alligator.

Good gracious me, I love this dog.

Thanks to all for cheering me on when my cardinal photo made Pioneer Woman’s Holiday Bokeh finalists. That was pretty darn exciting. Remember that lens that went wonky the other day? Well, maybe my prize winnings will go towards a new one. Just maybe.

I also actually sold several cardinal prints from my etsy site, too. And I’d like to welcome the new faces here as well as old my old friends who keep coming back, not just for the excitement and not just for the prizes, but because they’re in love with my dog.

I know who’s famous around here.

And I love having you stop by.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ And now, some questions for you: ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

1. Because it’s the near year, what’s something that’s better after the newness has worn off?

2. What dish do you always go back to get seconds (even when you know you shouldn’t)?

3. In 2009, who made you laugh the most?

4. What is one healthy food you really, really like?

5. On what date do you think 2010 will no longer feel like the ‘new’ year?

See you in the comment section, my friends . . .

How to lift Honda Element seats in a dirty car

DIRT WARNING. I am disgusting.

1. REMOVE HEADRESTS from both rear seats.

2. FLATTEN SEATS by pulling on these tags below.

3. ATTACH SEATS TO WALL. See those little yellow tags below? Pull on them. This will disengage them from floor.

See that wall attachment there? There’s a keyring that attaches to this. With right arm, lift flattened seat towards wall. Attach with keyring.

Like this. Then do opposite side.

Totally fun.

Love,

k a t e

Another winner, and welcome Twenty Ten

It was so wonderful reading your plans for New Year’s Eve last night while I sat home watching tv in my pajamas and my sheep slippers. My husband had gone to bed early and I stayed up watching the Turner Classic Movie channel where they were hosting a Thin Man marathon. At midnight, fireworks went off around here and George came running over to me, scared. So I kissed him and wished him “Happy New Year” and we went out front where the noise was even louder.

I loved reading your responses to my question “what are you planning on doing for New Year’s Eve?” Readers from as far away as Norway, Australia, Canada, and Japan wrote in. And while I was praying, “dear Lord, don’t let anyone in another country win because I cannot afford the postage”, low and behold, number 65 came up. Congratulations to Debra/aka Mimi, a long-time reader who, to my knowledge, has never won a prize here yet.

Debra, your prize will be on its way as soon as you e-mail me your address. Debra will receive a standout print of the red cardinal that I took during the snowstorm last month.

Hope you’re all enjoying your day. Happy New Year to all and welcome to so many new readers. Must be that cardinal over on PW’s site. I read the comments over there, and some were asking if the print was available for sale. I was tempted, really tempted to put a comment in saying YES, it’s available and here’s my etsy site. But I thought that would be rude. (You know it would, too). I’m just happy that it got featured.

Cheers, all! My husband is in the kitchen doing something wonderful, George is curled up on the sofa asleep, there are fox prints all around the property, and I wish you all a year filled with goodness.

Love,

Oh, and PS ~ Here’s the proof.