Saturday, October 31, 2015

Dead Battery........Gone.


I have tried at "hit and miss" to get shots of one of my two goldfish that are orange and black. A stroke of luck came a few days ago and I got them both in the same picture.  My battery to my Olumpus has died.  I had forgotten how the super low charged battery causes the camera to do spooky things. My Nikon was like that.  It would turn on and off continually until it just gave up the ghost.  I looked it up in the online manual and on page 71,  I was informed that I will eventually have to replace the rechargeable battery.  When I looked at the date of the battery it was a year old before I received the camera as a gift. I guess it is less expensive to give you an expired battery when they sell you a new camera. I will be visiting Best Buy today and pick up a new one. I am going through camera withdrawal as I write.

Friday, October 30, 2015

A Bee Has to Eat............


The bumble bee's are still eating.  I don't know where they go all winter but this guy is still trying to get as much together as he can. I took this a couple of days ago when we were still seeing the sun shine. There was a frost this morning so I wonder what will happen next for them.

Thursday, October 29, 2015

Spook Tree..............


The silver maple is old with lots of large branches dying here and there.  This is my Halloween branch that is breaking off parts at a time.  The winter will be a time for ice and snow to bring more parts of it down to the ground.

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

Heavenly Blues One More Time.....








It rained all afternoon on Tuesday.  I am glad I had my work done in the morning.  The air felt like it could have put out sleet instead of rain. The glories continue and someday soon they will be no more. Some photographers carry a spray water bottle with them so they can create this effect on flowers.  Mine was created naturally from rain falling from the sky. It actually was a sprinkle as rain seems to take out the glories.

Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Scolding Me.....


While out and about with the dogs this squirrel was giving everyone a scolding.  I suppose the lack of leaves makes it feel unsafe up among the branches as he is out in the open.  He chattered at me while I went towards the garden shed so I took his picture. He really was able to back track to the trunk and move on but it did seem to think it was cornered up there.

Monday, October 26, 2015

Monday's Rose Report......


My William Baffin rose is putting out a few more blooms before the hard freeze.  We were close to freezing in Iowa in our area but it is warmer in town than it is in the country. A blurry ladybug is hanging on up on one of the buds.

Sunday, October 25, 2015

Hanging On..........


The very last apple on the tree is changing color as it rots on the tree.  Bugs have already dug a large hole on the opposite side.  The set the apple off to be a bright color and the shadows of the leaves are so good too.

Saturday, October 24, 2015

Inside the Dark Side.........


The darker side of a balsam pine tree.  The tree is old and has grown very tall.  The old Christmas tree lights still hang inside next to the trunk from when the tree was a lot smaller.  Wire and plastic does not decay.  I had three of these trees.  The other two were planted next to the alley.  When we had the tornado come through town it snapped both of them off at their  lower trunks.  This one was protected by the house and neither the house nor tree were effected by the strong winds. Others down the street didn't save their houses.

Friday, October 23, 2015

Brick with a History........


This brick was on my property when I bought it.  It has a lot of history but I don't think it was from being used under my house.  The cement used to stick it to another brick or foundation still is attached.  I noticed from the photo that the two holes on the left are different sized from the one on the right.   I don't know why they would construct it that way. The arch on the left window means that possible the other two are also arched. 

It is a very heavy brick compared to the modern ones that I have around on the property.  I set it into the bottom of my stock tank/ fish pond.  I set the pump on it so it will be just the right height for circulation of the water and sometime a fountain spray. The brick used for my basement are red ceramic brick and maybe the stairs down from outside to the basement were originally made from some of these.  I don't have any other bricks like this on the property.

Thursday, October 22, 2015

Thursday's View.......Looking Down.


Moss grows well on a sidewalk even if it is dry weather.  The leaves on top are compliments of the neighbor's two maple trees. There are two different kinds.  The large yellow ones comes from the house to the west and the smaller red and yellows ones blow in from the north. 

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Fall Colors......


The new color schemes that this zinnia has is completely different than its original bright color.  I think it was a pink flower but now it is a set of colors of subtle tints of the original.  The zinnias are standing out in the garden all alone like on their own island as I have mowed everything else around them.  They are the last of the survivors ready to be kicked off of the island. 

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Looking Through.......


It is just another view of my birch tree.  It is, though, the best one that I have taken so far as the sun was in the perfect position. The loss of some of the leaves helps to reveal more of the trunk and branches. 

Monday, October 19, 2015

Tree on Fire...........


The sun helped to illuminate the red leaves as the sunlight shown through and the wind blew shaking all the leaves back and forth. 

Sunday, October 18, 2015

Sunday's Posey.........



They are all on their last leg so to speak.  I have everything mowed up around them and they are falling over to the ground. The determination of this planting has kept me in flowers for a long time. That season is almost completely gone.

Saturday, October 17, 2015

Gone Fishing.......Not.


My large goldfish is really doing well in his new inside location.  I am working on the lighting situation so that I can actually get a good photo.  The picture window back lights the fish, making them glow. Nary a focused photo do I take because of it.


I can buy a background to be placed on the back glass that would stop that.  I want to place a cardboard there first to see if that really is the effect that I want to create.  I am working on cleaning up a hood for the aquarium and the light shinning down would make it possible for me to get focused photos.

The fish do have a list of things for me to buy.  One of them is more gravel for the bottom of the tank. I gave away all my gravel to my neighbors when I gave them my 50 gallon tank. I will have all winter to perfect the technique and hopefully I can take some better shots.

Friday, October 16, 2015

Transformations..........








Unlike a butterfly the opening of the bud is the beginning of the end of the flower.  The blue ones stay open night and day for a couple of days before they shrivel up to a seed head.

Thursday, October 15, 2015

Fall View of River Birch........


The river birch in the background is trying to turn yellow.  It just isn't going to be a very colorful year for the trees.  My regular birch is dropping leaves right now and they never did get to their bright yellow color stage.

The tree puts out so many small branches.  It makes it the kind of tree that it is but I have to keep trimming it as the bottom branches seem to always sag down and hit me in the face.

Wednesday, October 14, 2015

Wendesday's Shot.........


The last of the blooms for fall.  They have had a good season of blooms and now the last of them are the only color in my garden.

Tuesday, October 13, 2015

Damaged Goods......


I hope that if I ever loose my head that I have enough sense to hang on to it.  The construction crew took this guy out a couple of months ago.  I glued him a little and now will have to reglue him. It makes for a fun photo I must say.

Monday, October 12, 2015

Salute.........


As the birch turns yellow the flag is brighter looking than ever. I will have to bring it in the first time the snow starts to fall.

Sunday, October 11, 2015

The Red Returns.........







The snow will fall, frost will kill and the growth cycle will cease.  I was able to document the red morning glory one more time.  I thought they were done as the vines are in serious decline.  I know that I have been shooting a lot of morning glory shots but the vines and leaves seem to give me modern abstract compositions.

Saturday, October 10, 2015

Unfolding for Fall........




It is nice to see a few small buds that are struggling to get out before the frost.  There are still about a dozen buds on the plants. I didn't notice until I looked closer to see that petals still haven't completely unrolled.

Friday, October 9, 2015

Color in the World..........


The old zinnia still has it stuff as it puts out all this color.  It does look like a  weathered warrior and yet still puts out a great look.  The area was invaded yesterday and the fiber optic guys got to see it in all of its splendor.  I trimmed back a few so the machines could go through the area without hindrance. I now have a vase of indoor zinnias for an indoor photography session.

Thursday, October 8, 2015

Looking Up......


My dad's old ladder stays standing in the tree as a decoration.  I don't really have a place to store it and I almost gave it to the landfill last weekend.  I like it right there.  I think that all the apples are now down.  I need to start trimming back some branches. More work with less time in my schedule these keeps me buzzing.

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

Leaning into the Past........


Summer did go too fast as we are living the life of fall temperatures.  The wild grape vine is loving the windmill as it can put out so many more leaves than just growing on the ground. As I wandered yesterday afternoon I was able to take a lot of quick photos.  The light was low then and I really didn't get to keep many of them.  Later in the evening the sun broke through the clouds but it was past my time to be outside.  I have rules you know and so it goes.

Tuesday, October 6, 2015

A Tree for Tuesday........


This birch tree keeps giving me such beautiful views. The light of the sun shines down through its leaves.  A few of them are changing color now but it doesn't appear to be the normal change. They look more like they are lacking water rather doing the seasonal color change thing.



In one section there is a group of leaves that are turning yellow with brown spots included.  I did trim up the tree from its base this summer but it really isn't noticeable as the bottom branches always sag down a low as they can reach to fill in gaps.

Monday, October 5, 2015

Front to Back........




Both views of the dahlia have their merits. It took the blooms a long time to finally show that yellow center on the front side.

Sunday, October 4, 2015

Neighborhood Feline........


Our neighbor's cat made a great escape to come over again to just hang out. We had not seen him for a month and he is really thin.  When we returned from Des Moines Saturday afternoon he was sitting on the porch step ready to be fed. We put out cat food and as long as he hangs around we will feed him and pet him too.

Saturday, October 3, 2015

Yesterday and Today...........



I was surprised to see that I had a white morning glory.  It didn't show up very well against my aging white trim boards.  Yesterday I spotted it when I came home from school. Up to that time I saw the bud but couldn't guess what color it would be.

This morning the second one bloomed.  The cold wind chills make it seem hesitant to bloom.  I think the vines will be dead before all those buds ever get to bloom.

I replaced most all of my trim boards on my house but this back side shows what a 111 year old house does as it's paint jobs decay.  New fresh wood or a heating tool to remove all the old paint would get rid of all that texture. The siding you see there is also just as old and has not been replaced with new like the most of the house has had done.

The Picasa was refusing to download one of my blue morning glories this morning.  I think it has seen enough of them too.  I spared the viewing of it and once the frost hits I will be moving on to other things.  I see my birch and red maple are both starting to turn in places today.  

Friday, October 2, 2015

Life and Death.............


The skeletal remains of a zinnia tells the story of winter being just around the corner. I went outside late afternoon yesterday and took a few shots.  It is definitely fall and in many ways feels like winter.  We had windchill charts this morning to view to show how the temps are dropping.



To counterbalance the dismal shot above I will share a cheery shot of the Heavenly Blue morning glory.  It was too tall for me to take a good shot from above it. When I shot this from beneath I was surprised to see the transparency of the bloom.   The particular variety bloomed around noon yesterday in cold wind and stayed open all night.  At two in the morning it was still trumpeting towards the sky and is still open this morning.  It is the first morning glory that I have ever had like this as most of mine bloom and shrivel up so quickly.

Thursday, October 1, 2015

A Pair of Unmatched Chairs.........


Trying to find a photo that doesn't have any blooms in it and here it is.  I collect free chairs.  I was given the rocker in the background back in 1975.  A neighbor was clearing out her collection of chairs.  The foreground chair is a free one from off of the curb.  I like good design and I really like good hardwood chairs.  I don't need this chair.  I was surprised my wife didn't tell me to put it back but she has that same weakness.  I promised myself that some one more chair will now leave the house.  I have a few that can go and I will never use them.  This chair would make a great desk chair.

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 ...