Sunday, March 31, 2013

Saturday, March 30, 2013

An Adventure.......


We took a trip over to the Saylorville Lake area to see if we could spot any bald eagles.  As you can see these are not them.  We have never had seagulls in Iowa until this lake was built thirty some years ago. I suppose there were gulls along the two rivers on the sides of the state.  As a young boy a stray gull might fly by in southern Iowa but it would create quite an uproar of excitement in the whole neighborhood.  We would also see a stray pelican once ever ten years and that was like having alien visiting from Mars.

This shot was taken at the overflow site below the dam.  The lake was filled to its normal level from snow melt but its normal is not a very high level in this lake.  The overflow water was a very small amount of  water coming through the spout.

Friday, March 29, 2013

The Blurry Past.........


I found an old photo of students riding a bus on a field trip to who knows where.  I was a sponsor for this bunch while we visited different businesses for the day.  It was career education in its finest.
The faces are all familiar and I can give you information about them all and whose family they each belong.

The girl in front on the left is Dawn D.  She lives in New York and travels the world regularly.  She was so creative as an actress as she did many a skit that were originally Carol Burnett's skits. A few of the other girls in the photo are now married with children.  The majority of the group were in my youngest son's class but he was not on this bus.  He is thirty four years old now.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Sunshine.............


Spring is coming and it is about time.  The sun is shinning each day and the overnight lows are now becoming above freezing.  There isn't that flush of green anywhere at this point but it will come soon.

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Sunshine Coming Through........


This snow is in the shade of the fence so it is still around waiting for a little bit warmer temperatures. It was below freezing again last night but we are up to 35 degrees F. by mid morning.

Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Sprouting Tulips........


I lost today's photo.  It was a shot of tulips pushing through brown leaves.  It was very spring like and I must have save it in Neverland.  Searches for it are futile as it just didn't get saved or I am getting too old to save shots.  I was efficient and trashed it already so I wouldn't a large build up in iPhoto. The imagination can help you to visualize the tulip leaves and the one above is the consolation shot.

Monday, March 25, 2013

Sculptural Red Form.......


I promise to get out and get some new photos.  I had a busy week and weekend and it seems I am at the bottom of the barrel for new material.  I will work on that. The Thanksgiving cactus is at its last blooms.  A light flurry of snow that lasted 12 to 14 hours has given us a two inch coating of new snow. It isn't 13 inches like in St. Louis and it isn't 31 inches as in Minnesota.  The snow is a very crystalized snow and the ice underneath it made the streets bad to drive on this morning.

Sunday, March 24, 2013

Indifferent........


Our one American robin is waiting for the ground to warm up so he can find worms. They tend to fluff their feathers to help them to keep warm so he really isn't a fat bird.  We hav light snow again today but warmer weather is on its way.

Saturday, March 23, 2013

A New Variety........


Stems with buds are pushing up quickly on a lot of the collection. The longer days of light are helping them to start blooming again.  I hope I can start taking tulip photos in another month.

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Color on a spring day......inside.


I purchased this geranium as a seed plant and it has lived a couple of years for me.  I bought it more for the color of the foliage but the pink flowers are nice too.  I see that the dead flowers are still laying in the soil.  The were in bloom when I brought them in the fall and one like myself is too lazy to take the spent buds to the waste basket.

We are  being promised warm weather in April.  I do think that is a given as by then the earth has titled enough to compensate for an erratic jet stream.  I will be snowing south of us to day for a change.  We are to be clear for the next two days for sure but Sunday looks like our day of weather with moisture.

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

First Robin........


Our first robin of the year sits among the branches of snow in the spreading juniper. I had seen him earlier out messing in the snow covered grass trying to find something like worms. He may have been working on barberry fruit which was in the area.  They do eat berries until the insects come around and this one is eating the blue berries on the juniper.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Cedar Waxwings......


I saw my first robin on Monday, out digging in the snow.  Later I saw him out my side porch door window sitting in the juniper bush eating berries.  While going for the camera I came back to look out and see five or more birds flocking to the same juniper bush.  It was a flock of cedar waxwings.  We never see them in town.  I know of people who go to the river east of here and they see them in the summer but this was a rare sight. I am not sure that they may be actually migrating north.


I don't like to use up my really good pictures all in one day but I need to share this other shot to go with the theme.  It is a beautiful bird. When I see photos of them in birder magazines they are eating on berries of all kinds.  I suppose that is why they are flocking to eat the bluish berries from my juniper bush.

Monday, March 18, 2013

Stardom is Hard Work.........


We  made it to Chicago to see our new 3 week old grandson, A.J. on Saturday.  He is a star for now as he is our first grandchild. My wife and I both were able to hold him for long periods of time.

Friday, March 15, 2013

Sitting on the mantle.......




I sat the cactus on the fireplace mantle to catch light shining through the flowers.  The figurine just happened to be there and I was planning on moving it away from the plant, but I am glad that I did not.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

One little bird......


I didn't think this was such a great shot as two of the birds seem to have their backs to me.  Then I looked again and there is one little bird posing for the camera. We will be melting a lot of this white stuff today.

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Light in the kitchen........


It was and still is a cheap lamp that I bought many years ago.  The best part of it is the little metal knob that is used to turn on the lamp.

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Looking Out.......



Yes, it is just another snow scene.  I did see some people have tulips sprouting up on the south sides of their houses.  It looks like the sidewalk will need to be shoveled again.

Monday, March 11, 2013

No one is at home......


We did get our snow that was predicted.  It is probably only six or more inches.  It was a wet snow this time and as you can see it did stick to  everything.

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Sunday and it is snowing...........


What can I say? We needed to clean up the mess out there with a fresh white blanket of snow and so it will be.  It is suppose to last until tomorrow morning some time.

Saturday, March 9, 2013

Spring?


One of my wife's figures in her collection seems to look like a fairy that might just bring us spring. Yes, I know, probably that isn't going to happen. Lots of rain for a couple of days and snow will follow the next two days in our neighborhood.

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Still life.........



Balance in an imbalanced world.  The beauty of an orange can be seen in this photo.  The oranges in this pack that we bought are very sweet and good.  Sometimes I  wonder where they were grown as our store does ship in from South America as well as from all over the United States.

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Pop Art Orchids......


An archived photo that I had taken when I once was growing an orchid.  The photoshop program allowed me to create a modern composition similar to an Andy Warhol poster.  

I saw a garden show today in which the viewers were encouraged to grow them.  I wanted to believe them that they are easy to grow but the people were standing in an outdoor green house, part slat house in Florida.  I would like to try it again some time but I don't think that my house in the winter could ever keep them alive.

Monday, March 4, 2013

Line and Shape Design........





The old fashion rose bush puts out a great line design against the snow.  I do like to trim it back each year but it wasn't done this fall.  We didn't get the severe weather predicted as it stayed about two counties north of us.

Sunday, March 3, 2013

Returning to the old days......


Another set of pictures from my photo shoot of my model cars.  This is a classic as far as car design goes.  I believe it is a 1932 Ford.


I think it is interesting to see the front bumper design on this car.  It is said to be form follows function.  The bumper design on this vehicle really is a plain looking matter of fact thing.  I have seen old movies where they would run these cars in to trees or other cars and the would come to a sudden stop.


Saturday, March 2, 2013

Split Rock Lighthouse........


The featured photo today is of our little model of the Split Rock lighthouse.  The real lighthouse sits atop a large rock formation along the shore line of Lake Superior in Minnesota.  My wife and I have painted and drawn at the location for many summers.

The story behind it being built includes the lack of roads to get there at the time made it hard to get the supplies on the site.  Everything was shipped in by boat and an cable system was built to move the brick and mortar up the very long, steep incline.

Breaking my rules of only using photographs of my own or close family, here is a photo of the lighthouse from the internet. As you can see it is sitting out on a rocky cliff.  One can tour the lighthouse and go up into the very top of it.  We have done it once, with my wife not telling me how terrifying it was for her to walk the metal stairs up to it.

Friday, March 1, 2013

The Friday Blues.....


We are having a decorative kind of snow today with little puffy flakes floating down from the sky.  I doubt it will be measurable but it is going to be around most of the day. They are coming from the tail that has swung around from the main front that is now out east.  The different effects of this snow seem to be creative as the wind blew it sideways as it came down and drifted in various patterns on everything.

Blurry Blue Cup Day.....

 It is Monday and I am a little blurry eyed today. It is fitting then my blue cup is blurred a little because it is in low light. I was too ...