Fun with fall and other random things…

1)  I am sure enjoying falling into autumn.  We are a far way from peak here where we live but the trees are turning and it is just beautiful.  I love it and the little fall tidbits.

2)  One morning when I had to get up early, I walked Olive the pug down to the pond.  The air was pretty chilly but the pond water was still warmish.  So the result was a nice mist rising off the pond.

  Just beautiful!

3)  Can you believe it?  I signed up with Twitter again.  I swore I wouldn’t do it but one night I wanted to respond to something while we were watching a Red Sox game and I couldn’t because I wasn’t on Twitter.  Now, I can tweet baseball to my heart’s content but I haven’t felt strongly enough about anything to tweet about it.  Another of life’s lost opportunities…

4)  I’ve been going to water aerobics at the Y with a friend this week.  The jury is out as to whether or not I will become a water aerobics fan.  For one thing, it starts too darn early in the morning and for another thing, you have to get into the water.  I have to admit, though, that it feels kind of good while I’m in there, but the minute I leave the pool I feel like I’ve gained 85 pounds.

5)  Olive is still in the running on the TripAdvisor Facebook thing.  Here’s the link if you want to stop by:  https://www.facebook.com/TripAdvisor?v=app_448952861833126&rest=1  No pressure from either Olive or me.  Voting ends on the 30^th.  This link takes you to the home page for this contest.  If you click on "View Entries" and then click on the drop down menu "Sort by," you'll see "total votes."   Once you go there, you will see the running pug in all her glory.

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RANDOM 5 FRIDAY!

My Friend's Dog (and a little shameless begging)...

“Dogs have given us their absolute all. We are the center of their universe. We are the focus of their love and faith and trust. They serve us in return for scraps. It is without a doubt the best deal man has ever made. ” 

~ Roger A. Caras

Last week I got the opportunity to go to my friend Kristen's house and photograph her dog Rorie.  What a great time I had!  Unlike my pug dog Olive, Rorie posed quite nicely and never complained.  I guess I stick the camera in Olive's face a little too frequently and she's tired of it.  I am posting some of the fruit of my "labor."  You will see that Rorie is absolutely adorable.  

Now for the shameless begging part.  Olive, the pug, and I have entered a photo contest on TripAdvisor's Facebook page.  Here's the link:  https://www.facebook.com/TripAdvisor/app_448952861833126  It's a contest about taking your pet on vacation.  Here's the picture we entered:

We are currently in third place, but with a little help from my blogger friends, maybe we can move up.  You can vote once a day and there don't seem to be any ulterior motives by TripAdvisor.  Thanks in advance!

I just realized that the link I posted takes you to the home page for this contest.  If you click on "View Entries" and then click on the drop down menu "Sort by," you'll see "total votes."   Once you go there, you will see the running pug in all her glory.

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TUESDAY MUSE!

Here's to autumn...

Happy first day of autumn to us here in the Northern Hemisphere!  It got off to a good start here in Central Massachusetts.  Seems like overnight, the leaves have started to turn.  I love it!!

Seven Mile River, Brookfield, Massachusetts

Random day…

1)  Have you ever noticed that many people don’t know to use an apostrophe?  There is a restaurant we go to often and like a lot.  The food is good and reasonably priced.  The wait staff is friendly and efficient.  In general, I have no complaint.  They have a specials menu that they print weekly.  Whoever puts it together just doesn’t know how to use an apostrophe.  I’ve been collecting these little gaffes.  Today they were serving a “French Dip sandwich with fries & a side of auju’s.”  One day not long ago, they had “Spinach & Artichoke Rangoon’s.”  They’ve also served “Korean Taco’s (5) served with Pineapple Dipping Sauce” and, on the children’s menu, they have “Virgin Colada’s; Daquiri’s and Shirley Temples.”  Oh, my…

2)  Yesterday, I went out in the yard to find something for my Flickr 365.  I found a few dead and dried up flowers.  I am not sure what is so appealing to me about such things, but I managed to use them two days in a row.

3)  It’s apple season here in Central Massachusetts.  Here is what I did to celebrate.  These beauties are Honeycrisps.  They are a good apple to eat with cheese.

4)  Well, who am I kidding?!  I would probably eat darn near anything if there were cheese involved.

5)  We are having a nice warm spell right now, but I am prepared for the winter.  I just finished crocheting this warm shawl.  I have found over the years that if my neck is warm, I am warm.  This will help.

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RANDOM 5 FRIDAY!

Gathering fire...

I know I’m jumping the gun and we have three or four more days of summer left, but it feels like fall here today so…

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TUESDAY MUSE!

Thanks, Nancy!  I used your Sakura texture when I process this photo. 

Simple reflections....

Earlier this week while it was still really hot out, Olive the pug and I walked down to the pond early in the morning.  I like the pond in the morning.  Often it is very flat and  therefore gives good reflections.  We were rewarded that morning and got a few nice photos.  The one that I am posting here was one of my favorites of the day.  It is a section of Wells State Park across the pond that has a circular aspect to it.  Why the trees have grown like this, I'm not sure, but I like it a lot and I often stop to look at it.  It is a little world reflected upon itself like a nice phrase stuck between parentheses.

Today, I am linking up to Simple Things Sunday.  Stop by there if you have the time.

Fall is coming and other random stuff…

1)  The worst day this week was Wednesday.  It was terribly uncomfortable.  I had to get up early that day and when I went out with the dog, the hazy, hot and humid conditions that had already arrived made for some very nice visual effects.  I posted one of these pictures on Flickr and one of my contacts asked me if I had put in the rays using Photoshop.  Well, no, I didn’t.  The funny thing about that is I am not adept enough at Photoshop to do stuff like add rays in the woods.  I have to depend on Mother Nature.

2)  Walking around the other day in the heat and muggies, it was hard to believe that we are close to autumn here.  But looking around I saw evidence in the woods.  It seems like the little bits of red out there are indications that we are headed in the right direction.

3)  But this morning I got up and it was in the 60s and quite pleasant out.  The pond was flat and I managed to take advantage of that.

4)  Enough about the weather…  We are excited here that the Red Sox are doing so well.  We are big baseball fans and it has been just such fun to watch them this year after that fiasco of a year last year.

I know this picture has nothing to do with the Red Sox, but I like it anyhow.

5)  My last post about Olive, the pug, and the yard sale got some really lovely comments.  I appreciate it when people stop by.  But my old friend “Anonymous” left a comment that said point blank, “What an ugly dog!”  Can you believe that?  To me, that statement is akin to saying “What an ugly baby!”  All I can say to that is that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and Olive the pug is such a loveable little being that it is impossible for her to be ugly.  Anonymous’ mother must never have told him/her that if he/she didn’t have anything nice to say, then he/she should just shut the piehole!

LINKING TO A RURAL JOURNAL'S

RANDOM 5 FRIDAY!