Rainbows and Blueberries

    "The work will wait while you show the child the rainbow, but the rainbow won't wait while you do the work." 

         author unknown

         

     My grandson came over Sunday. Spring has come to us early so I took him for a walk outside.
    Actually, I walked. He is always carried like the son of an Egyptian pharaoh.
    A breeze blew the baby's hair and he raised his eyebrows. A hawk cried overhead. I helped Jacob touch his fat little hands to the flowering trees while the crow cawed a warning to his flock that we were about.
    I had toured the same yard the day before. With a child in my arms  I noticed for the first time how pretty the blueberry bush is when in bloom. I resolved to get up early the next morning and take a photo in the soft just-after-dawn light.
    Thank you, Jake, for showing me this.

Jammers

    This weekend I went to the Roller Derby. It was like going to another world. I have struggled all week to find the words to describe the experience.
     The names the players choose for themselves are puns and word plays often based on pop culture. Tattoos were common and the helmets were well decorated. Some wore elaborate makeup. And there were costumes. My best guess is that in the photo below the girl on the left is a slab of bacon, but that could just be me.
    After throwing away the photos that were out of focus or just plain no good I still had 571 that were keepers. So I decided to make a link to a slide show so that you could see what it was like.
    I am totally psyched about this experience and I hope you enjoy my photos. Feel free to leave comments.

   

I'm babysitting lol

    Last night I had my first babysitting job since the 9th grade. I think it went pretty well. His name is Jacob. He cries sometimes but all babies do that. He pees a lot. He's pretty cool. The parents were nice. Jobs like this don't pay much but they let me eat anything I wanted and they have a nice TV. It was okay. I'll probably do it again if they ask me.

    Click to hear Jake talk.

    

Go Fly a Flag

    These guys have a tough job! On this January morning it was 45 degrees with winds of 5 mph, which doesn't sound like much of a breeze until you imagine yourself in a bucket suspended 80 feet above Mother Earth.

    I don't know if they were replacing the flag or untangling it. I do know that they were there several hours and that when I magnify the photo I can see that they have raised or removed a panel from the pole, exposing the "guts" of the pole. It also appears that they have a tether running from the bucket to the ground, possibly to prevent swaying and swinging.

    I had to try several highway exits to get a clear shot of these guys. I did not notice the "Don't Put Your Life on the Line...." sign until much later. I think it adds a little to the shot, don't you?

Sticky Notes

    Honey Bunny walked down to the barn today to turn out the horses. He carried his big stick with him. Because, as you know, snakes are a big threat this time of year.

    When he returned Kira barked at him loudly. I thought it was just because she didn't recognize him. I watched out the window as he approached closer and closer, carrying his big stick but not waving it around. Kira became more and more alarmed with each step he took.

    As he ducked under the fence behind the house he spoke to her and I saw her body language change. Her tail wagged and her ears went into a relaxed posture. But still she barked and backed toward the house.

    Finally she ran onto the porch, ducking behind he porch furniture to protect herself from Stick Man. I reached the porch door as she scratched at it frantically. When I opened it she practically fell into the house.

    I don't know anything about Kira's past and I don't want to read too much into today's behavior. But I couldn't hide the emotion in my voice tonight as I laid a hand on her side and promised her that nobody would EVER hit her with a stick.

    

  

Stroke of Lightning, Stroke of Luck

    Whenever I go out with my camera I always spend time carefully checking the trunks of dead trees for the creatures that make their homes there. 

    A few months ago a thunderstorm caused a large dead tree to fall onto my pasture fence. I spent my morning sweating and cursing as I pulled the tree off of the fence with a pick up truck and a sturdy chain.

    Suddenly I realized what a stroke of luck this was. Previously I could only access the first six feet of a standing tree trunk for close up photos. Now that the tree was on the ground I had access to all forty feet!

    A short walk to the house and I had my camera in hand. No photo expedition would be complete without my trusty canine assistant Kira to accompany me, dashing around playing with sticks and crashing into me and my camera gear. Even Charlie the cat got in on the action, following at a safe distance in order to avoid the collision prone Kira.

    Upon our arrival we were rewarded with the sight of this fellow patiently stalking ants for a high protein breakfast.

Groundwork

"And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair."

KahKahlil Gibran