Good fences on a bad day…

Up until today, we have had a pretty bad run weather-wise in this area.  Yesterday, it was simply abysmal out.  I knew I wouldn’t have a snowball’s chance to get a good photo unless I went looking for it so I took a drive out in the country.  I wasn’t terribly satisfied with the crop I brought home, but I found some passable fences that I am going to post here today and link up with Theresa’s Good Fences on The Run*A*Round Ranch Report.  Here they are:

There's always a nosy one in the group.

I kind of like those Dr. Seuss trees.  Very jolly.

Random thoughts lead to random photos…

The other morning I was perusing the newspaper, as I usually do, when an obituary caught my eye.  While most obituaries say, something like “John Jones, 87,” the heading for this particular one was “Harry Lengas, the Eternal Optimist.”  I had to read that one through and take a second to say good-bye to this person who is someone I would have liked had I known him.

  The Eternal Optimist…what a wonderful legacy.

A bowl of blueberries is pretty optimistic!

We’ve had a weird spring.  Usually, we go from winter to dog days without much transition in between.  But this year it has been cool, overcast and rainy all the way up to Memorial Day.  I don’t mind the cool.  It’s the constant overcast that has me down.  Oh, well, I WILL NOT complain because there is absolutely NOTHING I can do about the weather.

Believe it or not...this photo is in color.

I have less than a month left on my Flickr 365 and I have mixed feelings about that.  On the one hand, it will be nice to not have that obligation hanging over my head even though it’s a self-inflicted one.  On the other hand, the day after my last 365 photo is posted is my next birthday. And that is something I’m not so enthusiastic about. But, as they say, it beats the alternative.

My latest Flickr post.  The explanation is on my Flickr site.  Poke on the green Flickr above if you're interested.

Greg and I went to the Red Sox game last week and came home with our very own World Series Rings.  How cool is that??  Of course, the Sox lost that game and the nine surrounding it, but they won yesterday.  I keep telling myself, the season is still young and while I don’t expect them to repeat with another World Series win, I do have hopes that they won’t end up in the basement.

BLING!!

Thinking these random thoughts made me realize how much I miss our blogging friend Nancy and A Rural Journal.  If you happen to see this, Nancy, I hope all is well with you and your world.

Don’t fence me in…

Here’s what has been happening in my neck of the woods.

Last Friday, my son Evan moved out.  It was time, I’m sure.  He is a grown-up and has a decent job.  I’m sure he has wanted to be on his own for a while.  I don’t blame him.  I can remember when I was that age and itching to get my adult life started.  Still, that doesn’t make it any easier for his old mother who will miss – already misses – having him around.

I will just have to buck up and go visit him, like I visit my daughter Carrie.  Carrie and I have done some good exploring in the area where she lives since she has been there.  And while I don’t have photography in common with Evan, we’ll find something to do.  Hey, we both like to eat and Worcester is full of restaurants.  Now and then, I may even be able to twist his arm and get him to go to the Worcester Art Museum, which is within walking distance of his apartment.

So Greg and I are official empty-nesters…except for Olive the pug, of course.

The day we moved Evan to Worcester was a rainy one.  On my way home, I snapped a couple of photos of fences.  So I’m gonna link on up to The Run*A*Round Ranch Report’s Good Fences #9 and post a couple of pickets.

Lingering thoughts on Terlingua…

The other day something I read (don’t ask me what) made me think of Terlingua, Texas.  Generally, thoughts bounce around in my head like tennis balls and now and then I manage to catch one.  When I started thinking about Terlingua, eventually I simply had to go back to the photos I took when Greg and I were down there in January.  We didn’t spend a lot of time there.  In truth, we just passed through.  But the time we spent there made me curious about it.

Terlingua was once a thriving mining town with a population of around 2,000.  These days the population is more like 60 and it has the real feel of a ghost town.  But, in spite of that, it is now the home of the original chili cook-off and every year around 10,000 people stop by for that.  This year it is scheduled for October 30 through November 1.  I wish I could be there, but where visitors to this grand tradition will stay is somewhat of a mystery to me.  And I’m not one who would be comfortable sleeping in a car…or even a tent.  Even so, I imagine it will be a fun and tasty time.

Here are a few photos of Terlingua and environs.  Now, maybe I can get another thought in edgewise and get on with my life.

These photos were taken in the Terlingua Cemetery, which is listed on the National Registry for Historic Sites and is still in use today.

On further inspection, it looks like there are places to stay around there.  I think it would be best to get the reservations in early, especially if you want to stay in a nice, “quite” campground with free water and a tent with a shower.

You know, I can't help it.  I absolutely love places like Terlingua!

Magnolia Season…

Looking out the window this morning, I realized that it won’t be long before all of our magnolia blossoms will be lying on the ground becoming one with the lawn.  Every spring I look forward to those lush flowers, but they are so fleeting.  I always try to go out with my camera and see if I can save them…at least on my hard drive.  Here are the ones I am keeping around for the rest of this year.

Who are you?

It’s hard to fathom how many different kinds of butterflies and moths there are in the world until you attempt to identify one.  Can you believe I just spent about forty-five minutes trying to give this guy a name?

The Postman is feeling a little randy.

As it turns out, I’m still not sure if it is a Piano Key Butterfly or a Postman Butterfly.  But, I guess it really doesn’t matter for my purposes, which is just to show off the photos I took when I went to Magic Wings with my daughter Carrie last week.  In fact, I came across a site on the Interweb that says that the Piano Key and the Postman are one and the same.  So I will go along with that bit of wisdom.  It is the Heliconius Melpomene.  Yes, it does makes me feel smart to spout the Latin name even though I managed to wriggle my  way out of taking Latin 2 in high school.

This beauty is the Cairns Birdwing (or Ornithoptera euphorion) and is a native of Australia.

And here is the Euploea core aka the Common Crow butterfly.  He is common in south Asia.  This particular Common Crow was having a hard time settling down.  I just love those spots.

This is the aptly named Zebra Longwing or Heliconius charithonia.  He is found in South and Central America and as far north as Texas and Florida.

This Malabar Tree Nymph (Idea malabarica) was interested in Carrie’s camera.  This species is normally found in India.  I think this is one of the jauntiest butterflies going so I call it the Prom Dress Butterfly.

But, here’s my particular favorite because I love blue.  It’s known as Peleides Blue Morpho, Common Morpho, or The Emperor (Morpho peleides).  This butterfly is found in Mexico, Central America and northern South America.  Can you imagine stepping out your front door and finding these flying around?  That would be sweet.

We had a terrific time at Magic Wings.  I am grateful to have a place to go to see these magnificent creatures in the flesh.  But both Carrie and I decided that we won’t be going back until it gets cold out again.  I guess butterflies like the kind of weather that makes me feel like a wet rag.  That’s not so great when it’s 70 or 80 degrees out F. but does feel nice when it’s 10 degrees F. out.

The butterflies seemed particularly active when we were there.  Could it be mating season?

Good simple fences...

Dropping in on The Run*A*Round Ranch's Good Fences today.  Here are a few I managed to catch this past week.

Here's a simple country fence.  I'm not sure what it's keeping in or out.

This one seems to know what it's meant for.

And you don't see this everyday.  It serves to keep the dogs safe from escaping out the window, but it does nothing for the noise control.  Cute little buggers, aren't they?

Life’s little things…

Why is it that it’s always on the weekend that the kid or the dog gets sick?  With the kid, you can always take them to the emergency room, but it’s not quite so easy with the dog.  Olive, the pug, started acting strangely in the afternoon on Saturday.  The strangeness continued on into the night.  She wanted to go out all the time but didn’t seem to do anything.  Greg was out of town so it left me holding the leash, so to speak.  Olive was up all night, in obvious discomfort, and I was up with her.  Believe me, this is not normal for a dog who usually requires 18 hours of sleep to have the energy to get up for dinner.  Well, long story short, it seems that she has a bladder or urinary tract infection, poor baby.  On Sunday, she actually seemed to feel a lot better, but we have an appointment this afternoon at the vet to make sure all is truly well.  I, on the other hand, still feel like I’ve been hit in the head with a two by four.  It’s no longer so easy to lose that much sleep and snap back.   But I will feel much better when Olive has a clean bill of health.

Meanwhile, she walked with me to check out the new ferns that are coming up.  I think they may be my favorite thing about spring.

The Double Date

Spring Dance

In other news, I am displaying some photos at the Spencer Public Library for May and June.  It’s part of a program with the Massasoit Art Guild to display local artists’ works at various places in the area.  Here’s one of the photos that I hung over there.

I think that it is incredibly difficult to decide what actually rates a public showing when it comes to my photos.  Good photography is so very subjective.  But I just kind of pick things I like and go from there.  That can be a long and arduous process.  I know from being on Flickr that what I like isn’t always well received publically. But what the heck, as far as hanging stuff in the library, it’s good to have the exposure…no photography pun intended.  The thing I like most about this program is getting to see the insides of these fantastic library buildings.  The Richard Sugden Library in Spencer is a truly beautiful structure.

  I actually have this pipe dream of photographing all the public libraries in Massachusetts.  There are 370 libraries here and I have photos of about six.  I guess I better get some sleep and start moving.

A Good Fence in Wales...

Dropping in quickly to link up to The Run*A*Round Ranch's Good Fences.  

Here are a couple of pictures I took earlier this week when I was desperate for something to photograph for my Flickr 365.  The weather was dreary and it spit rain all day.  I found myself in Wales, Massachusetts at one of the cemeteries there.  Actually, this is Wales Cemetery No. 2 next to the old Town Hall and one of my favorites in the area.  I really like the fence.