The One That Got Away

Taking photos of nature can be a bit like fishing.  If everything doesn't come together or just right you'll be sitting there with the proverbial empty hook or perhaps even worse, you'll glimpse greatness with that shot that could have been.  Like that fish that slips the hook while fishing, once a photo opportunity is gone it's generally gone for good.

Today, I had that experience.  I took a once in a lifetime closeup of a great blue heron coasting over the Pascagoula River.  He was beautiful, graceful and powerful.  That photo was the best opportunity I've ever had to capture a heron in flight.  I was elevated, he was camera level, not far from me, and lighting was great.  I saw him coming and almost faster than I could track he was in the view finder and in a beautiful frame.  I depressed the shutter-release. Click.  Life was golden.


THEN, I got out of the bright mid-day sun and back to where I could see the lcd screen.  Oh, the humanity... In my haste I had not checked my camera settings and the camera had been knocked into a strange conglomeration of settings I never use.  


I knew it was no good. I could just tell just from that three inch square on the back of the camera.  There wasn't even anything there that I could fix on the computer.  It was just hopeless.  Oh, I tried but it was a lost cause from the beginning.  The above photo is part of the same series of shots, the heron perching on a pier.  Of course, the settings were wrong for all of the photos.

Tres tragique!  

They are all beyond repair.  It would have been an amazing photo.

Lunch With 'Gator

This week, I've made the effort to carry my camera to work more often and get back into the swing of my lunchtime photo walks.  I fell out of the practice because I simply carry TOO much paraphernalia out the door every morning.  There is my lunch, and my tablet, purse, and sometimes my Ukulele, and sometimes things I need to present preschool storytime at one of the libraries, my coffee, my water bottle, etc. etc. The Finman calls me a pack mule. 

I'm sure he means it in the nicest possible way.

Anyway, I'm sure you can imagine why I got out of the habit of bringing my rather bulky camera.  Imagine my frustration at lunch Monday when I was forced to watch a hawk perching in a nearby tree being dive bombed by the neighborhood mockingbirds.  The grainy photos I took with the five megapixel camera in my tablet didn't really work out.  Thus, the camera is added back to the routine. 

Today, I spent the work day in Ocean Springs and headed down to the Inner Harbor Park for lunch.  What a treat to find this guy soaking up some sun.  It's not every day I have lunch with an alligator.

For Old Time's Sake...



Looking at a P-51 Mustang and B-17 from inside a B-24



As the title states, for old time's sake and not simply because our topic has a bit of history but in my case I'm thinking, "For old time's sake because I used to be a blogger."  More and more lately, I'm trying to come to terms with the idea that perhaps after almost ten years, life-changing events, and countless new friends thanks to the blogoshpere... perhaps, I am no longer a blogger.  Sigh...

For tonight at least I'm a blogger.  So, back to the topic at hand.  Today, on the Mississippi Coast we had a visit from some WW2 Flying Machines.  The Finman and I wandered over to the airport this afternoon for a look.

This was the conversation as we were leaving the car, "I guess I should check my camera battery."  Fin replied, "Good idea."  "I have 41%, that ought to get me through," I said.  Fin affirmed 41% would be enough.  "Of course," I continued, "I may not even take any pictures.  Planes are like waterfalls, you can only have so many photos of planes."  (Fin and I know this to be true because a few years ago while driving in Maui from Lahaina to Hana we pulled over for the 50th time to take photos of yet another breathtakingly beautiful waterfall, in front of which we needed a photo, and we looked at each other and knew, enough was enough.  You can only have "so many" photos of breathtakingly beautiful waterfalls.  After awhile, it's just overwhelming.) 

Since I met Fin, I've taken LOTS of photos of airplanes.  So, you would think I have enough and that actually would be true. I do have enough. Fin and I walked away from the airport 70 photos later.

Back In The Saddle Again...

Necking

The Finman and I hit the road today via bicycle for a 10-ish mile peddle through the neighborhood.  Here's a glimpse of a few of the neighbors. 

Ready for a Closeup?

At The Feeder - Pine Warbler

One of the greatest joys of the weekend is the luxury to watch the activity at the bird feeders.

Fall Parade

What a surprise this morning to see this parade amble across the property,  an almost silent flock of wild turkey.

I must have seen a bit a movement out of the corner of my eye.  By the time I had my camera they were turning to the back of the house.  This saw me running out the backdoor, through the gate and dewey grass to get a peek.

They had a slow stroll along the edge of the woods, a stop in at the compost pile, and vanished into the sunflowers.  All the while they meandered with the quietest of gobble, gobbles.

Here is Papa Turkey.

It is difficult to see in this size photo but I truly didn't realize that they had so many colors.  If look closely, you'll see blue bars on some feathers and blue on his head.

Lovely fall surprise.

Comparisons

So, I saw these guys in Dauphin Island, Al. last week.

They reminded me of these guys.

The sea lions I saw in Monterey, Ca two weeks ago.  Something, about the sense of community.

From The Redwood Forrest, To The Gulf Stream Waters

I don't know about you, but I love Woody Guthrie.  Those that deal with those cute little people (by which I mean pre-schoolers)probably know already that those "Folk" folks connect with the younger crowd.  Also, "This Land is Your Land" translates well into Ukulele and I have vivid memories singing this song practically every day in music class when I was 10.  (Every day might be imagination but after a certain amount of time things begin to blur.)

Therefore, I found a certain kind of synchronicity (thank you friend for using that word in conversation today and reminding me how wonderful it is) in the realization that a little over a week ago I stood in the shadows of the Redwood Forrest...

and on Saturday I was on a camping trip on an island in Alabama where the Gulf Waters lapped over my bare feet.

Happy times both.

For those of you unfamiliar with the American Folk Revival of the Mid-Twentieth Century, Woodie Guthrie, and "This Land Is Your Land" here's a Youtube:

New Toys

Good heavens... I'm exhausted with trying to blog tonight! The Finman  and I are on vacation.  I have a new tablet that should make my life much easier.  (Actually, it has made it much easier.)  I just spent over an hour trying to load a silly photo to Blogger.  

Everthing else is fairly workable BUT Android and Blogger simply don't play well together.  I was going to blog our vacation but... Well, we'll see.

Photo:  Out the window near Sedona  

Simplicity

I am attracted to simplicity.  I crave a simple life, a small life full of personally rewarding things.  A life of gardening, tending, puttering, writing, appreciating, laughing, walking, and watching with open eyes. 

I think that desire for simplicity is why I am so attracted to photos that catch a single moment.  This house attracted my attention while running an errand for work with a co-worker.  I was so attracted to the splash of yellow from the rain lilies blooming by the porch that I returned on my lunch break to photograph the house.

It didn't feel very simple when I was sitting in an unknown person's front yard photographing their porch.  There is a fair amount of trepidation that accompanies that kind of behavior.

For me, it was worth it.  Can you see the untold story here?  The evenings, after a long day of work sitting on the porch, enjoying a break outside and watching traffic pass.  Maybe, chats with neighbors or chats with a spouse and sending children in to finish homework.

I know it doesn't make sense in a society where we commonly build houses for two and three people that have over 2,000 square feet of living space but I could be content in a cottage like this.  I admire the simplicity.

Pest Control, All You Can Eat Buffet

A Few Days Ago, Looking Out The Window:

"Oh look, that tufted titmouse just grabbed a caterpillar off the porch railing," I told The Finman.  "They've been falling out of the oak tree.  Oooh gross, look at that, caterpillar insides are gooey."

"There are caterpillars in the tree?" Finman asked.  "I didn't know there were caterpillars in the tree."


"That's because I didn't tell you there were caterpillars in the tree."  (The Finman likes to kill things.) 


"Now, we don't have to do anything and the birds have dinner.  See how nice and circular that is.  We don't need to do any killing at all."

(Poor Finman, he really does like to kill insect-ish things.)

Discourse

The other evening as The Finman and I perambulated around the perimeter of the grounds, we carefully dodged one of our temporary guests.  I greeted our lodger, "Hello Orb Spider, what a lovely nest of webs you've built there."  The Finman and Hound Dawg paused to cast dubious glances back at The Orb's web. 

"What?" I wondered.  "Most people don't talk talk to spiders," pronounced The Finman.  "Wilbur spoke to Spiders," I replied.  "Wilbur was a pig. Do you really want to follow that line of reasoning?" queried The Finman.  

My response, "Wilbur is famous.  Maybe, if you speak to spiders you become famous."

Perspective

Perhaps, I spend a bit too much time trying to see the world as children see.

This morning, while moving dinosaurs out of the reach of small hands in order to facilitate early literacy, I found myself thinking, "Oh I need to turn that dinosaur around so he isn't facing the wall.  The dinosaurs will want to see the children."

Hmmm... Personification???

Let's please refrain from arm-chair psychology.  I'm sure the dinosaurs were very appreciative.

When We Last Saw Our Heroine...

I can be the "heroine", right?  I mean it is my blog.

Anyway, when we last saw our heroine she was becoming a Ukulele Player, able to calm or excite small hordes of small preschoolers with classics such as "Wheels on the Bus" and "Skip to My Lou."  Her faithful sidekick, The Hound Dawg observed this new occupation with mixed feelings.

Somewhere along the way to Extraordinarily Tolerable Uke Playing, blogging was sacrificed on the alter of busy-ness.

Now, we must catch up with a summer's worth of blogs.  We'll start simply.

Hound Dawg celebrated his 3rd Birthday with his customary Pineapple Upside Down Cake.  The Finman assures me that this is The Hound Dawg's favorite cake and I am sure that the Finman's preferences have no influence.  It is surely an unbiased evaluation.  

The Hound Dawg was very glad to realize I was all out of party hats.

Around the Water Cooler



Click the photo, it makes it REALLY big!

 It is ridiculously hot outside.  I keep thinking, if June is this miserable, how will we all survive July and August, the really hot months?

Despite the heat, the birds are having a great time.  This year I put up this bird feeder in the front yard.  What a joy.

It's been such fun to watch the birds out the front window.  Here a Tufted Titmous and Carolina Chickadee exchange a little gossip.  The feeder level was pretty low, maybe they were complaining about the service.

Yesterday at the feeder, I also watched a mama Cardinal feeding a young-un and then watched as she led the youngster to the birdbath for a bit of a dip.  Simple pleasures, my friends, simple pleasures.

I Didn't Need That Dill Anyway

This morning in the garden:

Black Swallowtail Butterfly caterpillars indulging in a serious chow-down on my dill plants.  Colorful little guys and girls, aren't they?

I've survived the first week of the Summer Reading Program, not quite as easy as it sounds. So, happy weekend!  I'm sure we all deserve it.

Good Morning

Hello...

 
First 2011 summer sunflower.

Memorial

I'm spending Memorial Day on Long Island.  I think this is my third or fourth Long Island Memorial Day.  On Friday, I thought about taking the train to bustling NYC but just couldn't quite make myself excited about it.  Instead, I thought I would try a new adventure and I took a train the other direction.  I rode the LIRR out to the end of Long Island and then took a taxi to the Montauk Lighthouse.

This lighthouse was commissioned by George Washington and on my morning there it was shrouded in the "Montauk Fog" an occurrence I am assured is fairly common.

I thought this flag shot would be appropriate to the day.

Yes, I climbed the light, the docent at the top, a woman in her 60's (possible 70's) climbs the light three times a week.  Marvelous way to stay youthful!

A memorial left by someone else.

If anyone is interested in hearing the fog horn, which gives the whole thing incredible atmosphere, here's a short video I took:

 

Hope all my US friends are enjoying a nice memorial day.

A Week of Birdies

After a week of nest watching...

Day One: One to Go

Day Two

Day Three: Hungry?

Day Four:  That can't be comfortable...

Day Five

Day Six: I almost forgot this day, had to run out at dark.

Day Seven:  Hey, they actually ARE birds.  You can even tell now.

Only A Mother Could Love...

In this case, I guess Papa Mockingbird loves them too.  I think there are two little birdies there.  Puny little creatures, aren't they?  They kind of look all mixed up.  I managed one photo that had the cutest little beak peeping up, except it kind of looked like a nest sonogram. You know, grainy, blobby, and you needed a bit of imagination.

Oh heck, I'll throw it in and you can use your imagination:

The eggs hatched today.  I was tipped off by the long worm hanging out of a parental mouth.  Made me think perhaps there were youngins to feed.  And, so there were.  Curious to see if the third egg will do anything. 

In any case, Happy Birthday Young Mockingbirds.  Good luck with the fledging.