Janet Brien's photos

(By the way, this picture is not from Upper Klamath Lake because my images are on my laptop which is still packed away!) We are home from our wonderful trip to Upper Klamath Lake! It may be only a couple of hours away but both of us are totally exhausted from our adventure. :) My morning was absolutely amazing. As dawn lightened the sky, I awoke in my little nest. I had a bucket list item that needed tending to. The internal argument was on… "Janet, you have this one last chance to see a sunrise over Upper Klamath Lake." "It's too earlyyyyyyyy!" "If you don't get up you will be so unhappy with yourself and you'll be kicking yourself every day and totally regret it." "But I'm too tired!" "Oh come on you big baby, get up. I promise it will be worth it!" *GROAN* *MOAN* "Get up!" "No!" "Yes!" "No!" "YES!!" "AWWWWW, ALRIGHT ALREADY! STOP YELLING AT ME!!" "YES!!!" Once I kicked my *** into gear, I was instantly excited and couldn't wait to get out there. I dressed quickly, grabbed my camera and let Steve know what I was doing. He hoped that I had a great time before rolling over and going back to sleep. (Actually, he told me later that he peeked out and smiled at the sight of me out on the dock enjoying myself.) Scampering out of the trailer, I took a picture of the leafless trees on the way to the dock and couldn't believe how beautiful the sky looked through the branches. Stepping onto the dock, I was awed by the sight of the colors on the horizon. There were birds on the water which made lovely silhouettes. I made my way down to my favorite spot and sat down to watch the show, taking pictures every few minutes. Looking around, I noticed the moon was in the sky and made a pretty picture too. The sounds of the waking birds was so wonderful and I watched some geese and ducks flying by, each honking and quacking to one another. It was incredible to be out here to experience this sunrise, and as the sun's beams finally broke the horizon I could not control my emotions, tears brimming over as I welcomed this new day. I'd done it. I got to see the sunrise on Upper Klamath Lake. It was an indescribably beautiful and special gift and I was so happy that I coaxed myself to get up and witness it. After a little while I made my way back to the trailer and went back to sleep for a little while before snuggling with Steve and beginning our last morning here. Getting things stowed and ready to go was really easy and fast. We prepared as much as we could and then sat down to an incredible steak, mushroom and onion omelet made by Steve while I prepared our espressos. As we enjoyed our breakfast, we beamed at each other. Both of us were completely delighted by this trip. It was the right length for our first time out. We learned a lot, figured out a few changes to make for the future, and felt great about our fabulous RV! We were both looking forward to our next trip but also comfortable going home today. Our trip home was easy and uneventful but our initial attempt to leave our site was quite exciting, and not in a good way, lol. When we backed our trailer in originally, we were further over to one side than was ideal, putting us very close to the water hookup pipe which stuck up a couple of feet. When we went to pull out, we were too close to the pipe to actually clear it. Because it's counter-intuitive to maneuver a trailer, Steve was actually doing the opposite that he should have, which boxed the trailer into an impossible-to-get-out-of situation. However, one of the guys from the resort noticed that we were having a problem and came over to help out. Steve realized what he was doing wrong and switched his tactics to the opposite of what made sense and finally he was able to work the trailer out of the predicament. All of us cheered when Steve pulled the trailer out of the spot without a scratch to the RV or any damage to the water pipe! Hooray! We arrived home at about 2pm and had the easiest parking yet! We were both totally bushed but managed to get most things that belonged in the house back inside. I took a nap and Steve chilled out. Our animals were very mellow and tired but happy too. Our trip was a complete success! :) YAY!! ---- Ok! Well, it's 7pm on Thursday so I'll be posting my Happy Fence Friday picture! I had a picture from Upper Klamath Lake but honestly, it's not as striking as I would like, and on top of that, it's on my laptop, which isn't unpacked. So I'm posting another picture from the motorcycle trip that Steve and I went on a few years ago. I really did get so many great fence shots and it's wonderful to have the opportunity to post some of them! :) On our first day we rode from our home in southern Oregon out to the coast and south to Fort Bragg, California. Day two was from Fort Bragg south past San Francisco to Santa Cruz, California. Along the way, a bit north of San Francisco I took the picture I'm sharing today. Once again, at about 80 miles per hour from the passenger sit behind Steve! (no more pictures today, I just don't have the brain power to do more!) Finally, I would like to say thank you to all of you for your support and amazing comments and stars. I'm so touched. It tickles me that my writing is fun for you to read. It means more to me than I can say. *BIG HUGS TO ALL OF YOU* Tomorrow I'll be able to visit your wonderful pictures again and I'm so looking forward to it! :) Pam, I'm about to fall asleep in my soup but I did want to say thank you so much for your dear comments and warm wishes for our adventure. Wish you could have been with us! I'll be visiting your pictures again starting tomorrow now that things are settling down again! :) *BIG HUGS*!!!! Explored on 4/26/19, highest placement, #6.

(+2 insets) (Sorry for the War & Peace length…you can skip to the end for info about the pictures! It's important to me that I have a nice journal for myself, so this is excessively long! However, if you've been enjoying my adventures, go get a pot of coffee! :D) Last night after dinner, Steve and I walked out onto the dock and sat down to listen to the evening birdy show. So many kinds of birds I'd never heard of before. My favorites were the birds that sounded like laughing hyenas…one would start going and then a whole flock would join in. I couldn't help but laugh myself! :) Steve thought we could be more comfortable so he returned a few minutes with our new comfy deck chairs and a coat and hat for me. It was starting to get quite chilly with the sun gone for the day and the breeze was kicking up over the lake. My warm sweater wasn't enough but the coat and hat fixed all of that and we sat together in bliss. Almost all of the birds were in the marsh quite some ways from us and we could only see a few specks. We didn't care…being out there was such a joy. The lake and mountains all around were just so lovely. We heard flapping just overhead and saw a pair of Canada Geese fly in and land on the grassy bank nearby. Then we heard honking and in came another one. It nearly crash-landed on one of the two and ran after it, honking and flapping its wings. The two ran around with open wings, challenging one another before taking off and flying out into the lake, making a wide turn and coming back in again, honking the whole time. The third one flew off, honking, to land in the water far off. The two flew away, one chasing the other, and after a couple of minutes, one of them returned to land with the third one in the water. Well, well. Some satisfied honks and the pair swam contentedly away. What a cool thing to witness! With that we decided to head in. It was getting dark, cold and windy, and we were very happy with our commune with Upper Lake Klamath. Bedtime is just like at home with Pumpkin cuddling for an hour while we watch a tv show or part of a movie. We're hoping the tv we got can be better calibrated for proper color rendition but otherwise it's perfect. (Update: Steve fixed the color, yay!)(By the way, watching a show is a nightly routine to get our parrot ready for bed and something we've done every day for almost 20 years since we brought her home! :D) ------------ This morning Steve and I were awoken at 6am by a very loud beep that repeated every 30 seconds or so. We finally determined that it was the propane gas alarm but before we did anything else, Steve opened the doors to ventilate the trailer in case there were any fumes. We were surprised because there shouldn't have been any problems since we weren't doing anything out of the ordinary. Once Steve located the online manual he learned that the sensor was giving an "end of life" battery alarm. We'll replace that first thing when we get home. With the alarming (literally) early wake-up, we both went back to sleep for another hour or so and continued our happy new trailer tradition of a snuggle before starting the day. We are certainly enjoying our trailer and all of us are sleeping very comfortably. This campsite has "full hookups" which mean we have water, electricity and sewer too, so it's all been super easy for us, just as we wanted for our first time out in our RV. The kinks are also worked out for just about everything so our lists of "things missing" and "need to add/fix" are getting much shorter--hooray! Today Steve and I took a canoe out onto Upper Klamath Lake's canoe trail! As expected, we were really excited! After an early brunch of eggs, bacon, and an avocado--along with world-class espresso & cream--we put together a daypack with plenty of snacks, applied sunscreen, brought bug spray and bottles of water and headed out. Steve took his Canon 5D MkIII with our awesome 24-105mm lens. My choice was a no-brainer. I brought my awesome new Sony with its 25x zoom. I had to snicker to myself though…ever since I got my Canon 5D MkII, I'd been dreaming of coming back to Upper Klamath to "retake" my "inferior" pictures (they are actually just fine) taken with my old Canon SX30IS superzoom camera. And now, when I finally get the chance to retake those pictures with my MkII, I'm not doing it. I'm taking my Sony and laughing the whole time! (Also, even if I'd wanted to take it, we have only one 24-105mm and though this is the proper use of our 100-300mm, I'm just not going to deal with that monster lens…it needs a tripod. A tripod in a CANOE? Um…no. LOL. We need to sell that lens I'm afraid. It deserves a home where it will be used! Our canoe trip was a truly lovely experience, as we knew it would be. You cannot beat the beauty of that lake. What a nice time it was, paddling along the canoe trail and listening to the birds everywhere. The sounds of the water as we dipped into the lake and stroked along was soothing as was the lapping of the water up against the boat. Twinkling water and pretty ripples everywhere--it was truly a form of natural meditation to go on this adventure. So serene. We did have to laugh though…getting closer to the birds was not happening. The moment they saw our canoe, you could almost hear the birds scream "EEEEEEEEE!!!" as they took off and flew away! Oh well, we didn't care. Birds were not the only reason to visit this lake! :-) The weather simply couldn't have been better. Blue skies dappled with white sky sheepies, a light breeze and the perfect temperature. We were so happy! We stopped to nibble our snacks here and there, our canoe parked on reeds while we listened to the symphony of birdlife everywhere. Even though the hoards of waterfowl we'd envisioned weren't there, I did get a few pictures of some birds I have never seen before, including my picture of the day! :) One species which is common in wetlands is the lovely Red-Winged Blackbird, and though Steve and I have seen these birds (and now on our property too!), we've never had the chance to take pictures. We got many opportunities on our adventure, which made us both really happy! (I know I got at least one really nice picture but won't be posting it today…I'm so delighted though!) The scenery was also incredible and will be fun to post images of what we got to see! What a place. Totally spectacular!! At one point we passed by some manmade bird houses and sitting on branches nearby were a pair of lovely swallowtails who were contentedly preening their feathers. Overhead there were at least half a dozen more zooming around, diving low over the water and then up again, doing all kinds of acrobatics. All of them were twittering and carrying on grandly. It was straight out of a Disney scene! We were so happy for this aerial show! We ended up going for about 5 miles and both of us were ready to be back after 3 hours of paddling. My arms and shoulders will have a few things to say to me tomorrow morning, I expect! :D What a great time we had! Steve prepared dinner while I read my book "Paddle to the Amazon" in our hammock hanging between two trees, what fun. He knew I'd wanted to spend some time "hanging out" and was happy to accommodate for my "bucket list" item, what a sweetheart! Ok, I have to be done!! Today's picture is a duck that I believe is called a Buffelhead...if you know what else it might be I'd love to have it properly identified! The two insets include a Brewer's Blackbird that I photographed at the campground, and a view of the lake from the camp. So peaceful. :) Pam, I'm hoping all is well with you! Thank you for your sweet comments on my adventure so far! *BIG HUGS* Explored on 4/25/19, highest placement, #3.

(+4 insets!) Sun shining into my cozy little nest woke me up at 6:30am this morning. Pulling out my earplugs, the world was filled with the songs of waking birds in the trees and geese in the distance. It was so fabulous! (see my first inset!) I went up front to snuggle with Steve for about 15 minutes--we both slept very comfortably and felt great! Then we got up to the sound of Pumpkin peeping happily at us. As for our showers, we discovered that if we put her into her plexiglass travel cage, it sits perfectly on the toilet seat while each of us showers…perfect! Pumpkin adores the sound of splashing water so this way she can be in the bathroom with us, whistling and carrying on like the silly girl she is. :) Because we'd done a "trial run" of staying in our RV on our property, there were absolutely no problems with taking showers and getting our day started…how awesome is that?! :) Once Steve had dressed, we set Pumpkin up in her cage and took Molly out on her leash and I took my Sony with me to get some early morning pictures. What a lovely day it was!! Wisps of clouds dotted the bright blue sky and the rippling water twinkled with sun shining on it…so pretty!! I walked out onto the floating dock down to the far end and sat down to soak up the atmosphere. The singing of the birds in the trees was so wonderful to hear. I could see the thick marsh not far off that was a din of birds making all variety of noises. It sounded like an over-booked convention and I looked forward to getting a closer look either today or tomorrow in a canoe. For now, I took pictures of a coot which was swimming around in the reeds, a pair of mallards and some too-far-away ducks I'd never seen before. Got a few pictures of grebes too. None of the birds were really close enough though. I'll cross my fingers for better pictures at some point during our stay. (my last inset shows where I sat!) (By the way, last night I got some really nice pictures of some Brewer's Blackbirds and I hope to get those processed and posted at some point. There is a flock that lives at the resort so getting pictures is a simple thing.) It was the perfect temperature to just sit and enjoy this amazing place…how fortunate we were to have this chance to stay at Upper Klamath Lake! What a pleasure. After enjoying the lovely solitude and beauty for a while, I made my way back to our home away from home and at noon we had a brunch of eggs and sausage with avocado on the side. YUM! Steve is now performing a bit of minor repair to Pumpkin's small hiking cage. We'll take her with us on a little walk along the shoreline while Molly guards the homestead. :) We won't go too far but it's sure to be great fun. :) We just got back from our walk! There was no trail along the shore…much too rocky…but there was a road which followed the lake and there are no cars so it was peaceful and beautiful. We wandered for about a mile or so and stopped at a pretty resort where we all enjoyed some snacks at a picnic table overlooking the lake and its little marina. Pumpkin had a lovely time with us and enjoyed the attention of some folks who came by, totally amazed that we took our parrot with us in a hiking cage! :) When we told them that she's been to Yosemite and loves Tuolomne Meadows and the famous Mist Trail they were properly impressed! :) Our girl's been around and she loves it! :) Well, the barbeque is heating up and we'll be having steak for dinner so it's time to close this report for now! :) My main picture is a view down one side of the RV park's dock with Steve at the end, hands behind his back, appreciating the view. I love this picture because it shows the amazing view of the lake, the dock, and Steve, who was largely responsible for making this dream come true for us. He is content and happy. Everything has worked out perfectly. We did it right. We took our time. This is our reward. How cool is that? :) I'm including a number of insets: PiP #1: My view as I peeked out the window of my "nest" this morning! (This image is poor quality but the view isn't! :D) PiP #2: A beautiful view just a few feet from our RV out onto the lake first thing this morning! PiP #3: A pretty view of the left-side dock with a framing of trees PiP #4: This is where I sat at the end of the dock this morning, drinking in the beauty and serenity of this place. Isn't it amazing? :) Pam, I am sending my happiest wishes your way! And thank you so much for your lovely comments about my trip so far! We're having a lovely time! *BIG HUGS* Explored on 4/24/19, highest placement, #1.

Steve and I woke up at about 6:45am this morning, SO EXCITED to go our very first RV adventure! We were almost completely packed and only had a few last things to pack before we were ready to leave. After a delicious breakfast of eggs and sausage, we got on our way at about 10am. A quick stop at a ranch store for few necessities and we aimed towards our destination of Upper Klamath Lake! The drive was incredibly beautiful as it always is, but I don't know if I've ever seen this trip during the vibrant glowing greens of spring. Combined with a bright, sunny day, it was postcard-pretty on our 1.5 hour drive from our home to our camping spot! We were so keyed up, excited and nervous, but we listened to music and just chilled out. Steve had no issues with pulling our "home away from home" and our full-ton, long-bed diesel truck pulled it as if it wasn't pulling anything! Hooray! Once we got there, the folks at the campsite were there to help direct Steve in the back up and positioning of the trailer but armed with walkie-talkies, I was able to do the job just fine and Steve got the trailer in place on the first attempt! He's so awesome! :D Getting set up was fast and easy and soon we were sitting down to hamburgers for lunch, YUM! Afterwards, Steve set up a hammock and enjoyed his handiwork with a well-deserved nap. :) Molly (our dog) and Pumpkin (our bird) both settled in with enormous happy smiles on their faces! They absolutely love this RV deal…heh…YES! Pumpkin was whistling non-stop and Molly was completely entertained by everything she saw. We couldn't be happier. Upper Klamath Lake is just GORGEOUS!!! I'll be sharing plenty of pictures but just didn't have time to post anything but my image for Macro Monday today. I took my older Mark II camera and went on a quick photo shoot but I wasn't happy with what I got so after lunch I grabbed the Mark III and spent more time wandering around. So many neat things to take pictures of! I ended up getting a whole bunch of really neat images that would have worked for Macro Monday but in the end, the picture I chose has a real magical feeling about it and that is the perfect mood for the day! :) Pam, I hope that you have had a nice day! You are in my thoughts and it would be such fun to teleport you to my side so you could be here in this lovely place too! *BIG HUGS* from Upper Klamath Lake!! :) Explored on 4/23/19, highest placement, #4..

Please forgive me if this offends you...it's part of the Cycle of Life and a very rare and special sight! Please note: Tomorrow (Monday), Steve and I will be travelling with our RV to our campsite on Upper Klamath Lake. It's about 1.5 hours away and the plan is to arrive early so we can set up and have the rest of the day to relax and enjoy the amazing environment. We don't know what internet reception will be like, or if there will be a cell tower anywhere nearby. Therefore, I may or may not be able to post any pictures while we are gone. The hope is that we'll have enough signal to upload at least one picture each day. No promises though! Cross your fingers! In the afternoon two days ago, I looked out the kitchen window and nearly fell over. In the 12 years we've lived at our property, we've never seen turkeys "getting down to business" before but there they were!! I yelled to Steve and he ran over to see. We couldn't believe it! Steve told me, "Janet, I can't believe you're not out there with your camera already!" Staring at the spectacle out in our meadow, I answered, "Oh, by the time I get my camera they'll be done, and besides, I don't want to disturb them." "You should try!" was his response. I grabbed my new camera and took some pictures through our kitchen window. Steve continued, "They probably won't notice and you should go outside! Come on! I'll open the back door!" With that, I peeked out with my camera once the door was open. They didn't notice!! At full 25x zoom, I was able to get pictures that cropped to full-frame and still had plenty of wiggle room if I'd needed it!! The light was great and so was the angle…what were the odds??! I took lots of pictures at different apertures and then Steve said, "Why don't you try sneaking around the side of the house for an even better angle?" I thought that was a good idea, since I got all the pictures I wanted and if I didn’t get any more, it would be fine. And, as it happened, by the time I rounded the corner, the hen was gone and the tom was looking very satisfied and going back to his full-fluff display. No worries, I couldn't be happier!! Steve took a peek at my pictures before I went up to copy them over and he was like, "JANET!! THESE PICTURES!! THEY ARE AMAZING!!" :D And once I looked at them on my computer I was just so happy…all but a couple were perfect. I am posting the most "PG" version because I got some others that had my extremely liberal husband screaming, "EWWWWWW!!" ROFLMAO, that's just so funny! I would never have gotten this picture if I didn't have my new Sony camera. Again...what are the odds? I'm so happy...and I'm thanking my lucky stars!! HOORAY!!! Not going to post any other pictures today…the main picture is too distracting! :D Pam, I looked up "turkey" and found a marvelous tom with such beautiful coloring! What a delight to see these modern-day dinosaurs walking around so close to us! :) I hope that this day is treating you well! *BIG HUGS* Explored on 4/22/19, highest placement, #1.

(+4 insets) ACK! Double ACK! I was finishing up a special post for today when I remembered that it was SATURDAY! ACK-ACK!! It's Saturday Self-Challenge and I totally forgot!! *shakes head* I read about the topic a few days ago, "backlit", and because that's a common type of picture I take, I promptly forgot all about it until now. (I'll post my intended picture tomorrow!) :) The only pictures that might have worked that I'd taken this week were from last Saturday and well, that's kind of too old. So I needed to rush out and take some pictures now…and it was 3:30 when I stepped outside…and now it's 4:30! (I finished this post and made it public at 5:40!) Did I mention that there is an actual wind-storm going on outside? It's whistling through the roof and shaking the windows. In other words, it's not a good time to be outside. By the way, have you ever tried to take pictures of flowers when there's a breeze, let alone strong wind? I began cackling like a mad woman and pulling my hair out. But I had to try. Fact is, if I was unsuccessful, I'd be able to get something inside but well…a challenge…gotta do my best, right?! I only looked at my pictures after I typed the text above, so I'm adding this after I've processed the pictures I'm posting today. Can you say AMAZED? I simply do not know how I was able to get a single passable picture…but somehow I managed! I did try to go to spots where the wind wasn't blowing so much but there was nowhere to escape the gusts! I was literally laughing at the ludicrous impossibility of it all. I thought I'd have to cheat and use an older picture. I guess not. :) The main picture today has turned out to be one of the best images I've ever taken of a Mariposa Lily. These treasures grow all over our property and I adore their alien-like hairy petals and soft pink colors. What I love about this picture is that you can see the hairs shadowed on the petal! It's really neat. (you'll also find an archive inset which shows this lovely flower from above so you can see how amazing it looks from that angle!) The first of the two insets is a picture of a lovely little flower called a Goldfield. Well named, they grow in massive carpets and are found where it's very soggy. They are in full bloom now, but what a challenge to find one tall enough that I could get a picture from down low! Can't believe this picture turned out!! The second inset is a Common Brodiaea, and it also grows in profusion around our property. They are just starting to bloom now and I figured they would be a super choice for a backlit subject. Except. They grow on tall, flexible stems and you would have cackled right along with me to see them whipping back and forth in the wind. "YEAH, RIGHT!" was my mumbled comment as I tried to get a picture when the wind wasn't blowing. How I got this picture…I do not know!! My last inset is just to show you the sort of result that I was getting with that crazy wind! :D It's howling now…and I'm giggling back at it! I WIN, you confounded windstorm! :D Pam, I searched for "wind" and discovered the perfect picture! I landed on your Windflower collage and what do you know? They are incredibly beautiful in stunning back lighting!! HOORAY!! Really stunning flowers, Pam, it's obvious that you revere these gorgeous blossoms…as you should. They are amazing. Thank you for sharing them with us so perfectly. What an awesome display. :) I hope that you are doing well today my dear! *BIG HUGS* from southern Oregon! Explored on 4/21/19, highest placement, #1.

(+3 insets!) Please view large for more hideous details! :D Steve and I are simply bouncing up and down in excitement!!!! Our tails are flapping wildly!! We cannot control our ear-to-ear grins and happy squeeing! On Monday, we will be driving our RV about an hour away to Upper Klamath Lake where we will park at a reserved campground space!!! AHHHHHHHH!!!! *more uncontrolled bouncing* We plan to arrive at about noon on Monday, stay for 3 nights and leave on the morning of the 4th day. This campsite has water and electricity hookups and more, so it will be just like being at home. Except for one thing…WE WON'T BE AT HOME! :D For our first trip we wanted to go somewhere close by that was familiar to us. It wasn't hard to choose because most places we thought of are still too cold to camp at…but not this spot! Upper Klamath is the largest lake in Oregon and features an enormous variety of local and migrant birds, both waterfowl and others. One of the coolest features found here is the 9.5 mile canoe trail that takes you around and through the shallow marshy areas and give you access to views of many species of waterfowl. Steve and I have paddled this trail one autumn many years ago and it was an amazing experience for both of us. If you'd like to see pictures of our adventure, I have an album that you'll enjoy: Upper Klamath Lake We know that Upper Klamath Lake attracts countless birds during springtime, both as a breeding ground and also a stop-over for birds in migration, but we've never been able to visit during any of the peak times. We're hoping to see lots of birds but even if we don't, it will be an incredibly beautiful place to stay! Where we're staying also has trails to hike and cycle, though we won't be bringing our bikes this time around. The plan is to drive out there and just hang out. We want to just enjoy the beautiful area and not do too much. We need to see how we like this camping business. Heh. Pumpkin and Molly will also be going so we'll have the whole family with us! We can't believe that we're really and truly going to begin our RV touring in just a few days! That being said, we still have lots of things to do but we'll be ready and on time when Monday rolls around. Today I'm featuring pictures I took a couple of days ago with my new Sony camera! Steve and I drove about 30 miles to Grants Pass to do some errands. Afterwards we drove to a park that lines the edge of the Rogue River. While Steve entertained himself on his phone, I hopped out and dove into ducky and goosy heaven! :) There are always lots of people-sensitized Canada Geese and Mallard Ducks there so I knew I'd have plenty of opportunities for some close-up bird pictures. Other species are usually there too and this day the star was a gorgeously hideous Muscovy Duck! A resting seagull made for some nice pictures too. I wasn't sure how much luck I'd have with my new camera but I clicked away and crossed my fingers. Imagine my delight when I discovered dozens of excellent shots that were crisp and included soft backgrounds! I can see that over-exposure will be an issue on bright days--you may notice some blowout here and there--but because I have the choice to save my images in RAW format, I was able to correct most of the problems very nicely. I can't tell you how pleased I am. This camera is so much better than my last bridge camera! I mean, obviously it should be--a camera from 2010 should be blown out of the water by one from 2017--but it's awesome to see this for myself. I am finding some aberrations at full zoom but hey, my Canon 100-300 had them too. They aren't bad and easy enough to fix. To have the freedom to capture portraits of animals I hadn't been able to for so many years…I'm over the moon! :) Today's main picture is a portrait of the Muscovy Duck. I'm afraid this species fell out of the Ugly Tree and hit every branch on the way down! *cringe* :D However, they are really interesting to look at and have gorgeous variegated feathers to appreciate. I'm also sharing a full view of the Muscovy and mallard hybrid with a portrait crop that I captured. The mallard looks different than the normal longer-faced types I've seen. I know they interbreed with other ducks sometimes, maybe that accounts for the lovely petite face? I'll have more to share in the next few days, including some neat Canada Geese images. :D Pam, I did a search for "duck" and came up with Flicka and his ducky toy ! Awwww, how adorable. Moosey and Zoey both loved to shred stuff but Moosey loved STICKS. He'd happily gnaw on a stick until there was nothing left…then he'd look up at us and he mouth would be covered in stick bits and drool…*shudder*…but he was so proud and happy that of course we'd exclaim, "YOU DID IT!! GOOD BOY MOOSIE!!!" And he'd beam with big happy eyes and bang his tail on the ground in joy! :D *sigh*…we miss our Moosey and Zoey ever so… I hope that the storm is long gone and sun has brightened your day like it has here! *BIG HUGS from southern Oregon* :) Explored on 4/20/19, highest placement, #3.

(only one picture today and no time to chat, I hope to write about our exciting updates tomorrow!) It seems like all of my days lately are so busy that I am running out of time to do one thing or another, ack! I am also getting turned around…for instance, all day long I've been thinking it's Wednesday but in fact it's Thursday! That means that the birdy pictures I planned to post today will have to wait until tomorrow, boo! :D Instead, I'll be posting my Happy Fence Friday picture. The bummer is that I'd planned to put up another fence picture from France along with collection of images but…I don't have time to write about the pictures and put them all into insets! Another boo! Oh well! :D My image today is from the motorcycle trip that Steve and I went on a few years ago. This one is from a stretch up the eastern side of California, an incredibly remote and beautiful area that we loved riding through. Pam, how is the weather out your way? It was almost 80 degrees today, what a change from the cold weather we've had up to the past couple of days. I looked for "hot" on your stream and found this darling squirrel who's splayed out on a branch …it's just so funny and cute!! I hope all is well with you today my dear!! *BIG HUGS* Explored on 4/19/19, highest placement, #2.

(+5 insets) (please view large) :) Today is the day. YES!!! *fist pump* TODAY IS THE DAY!!! What?! What's today?! Today I will be getting a package from B&H Cameras!!! *bounces around squeeing in excitement* WHAT'S IN THE FREAKING PACKAGE?!!! *beams in ROL/PHOTO's direction* It's a camera!! A NEW CAMERA!!!! AHHHHHHH!!!! *explodes into a whirling dervish of cartwheels and backflips* *Notices that everyone is staring with fright in their eyes* *composes myself into a proper lady once again* Ahem. Specifically, it's the Sony RX10 IV, touted as the best bridge camera currently available!* I'm so excited I'm about to pop! *peeks out the window just in case a delivery truck will materialize on the driveway…noop!* :D *(Please note: there are countless wonderful cameras out there that work great, from phone cameras and easy-to-use pocket cameras to high-end DSLRs or actual film cameras…I'm not making a judgement call on anyone's camera…the fact is, the quality of an image has much more to do with the person behind the camera than the camera itself--awesome pictures can come from any source. My statement of "best bridge camera" comes from the countless reviews on this type of camera that places the Sony RX10 IV at the top of the heap!) :) WHY would I get another camera when I'm obviously head-over-heels in love with my Canon 5D MkII and MkIII, paired with my beloved 100mm 2.8L macro lens? *visibly confused readers scratch their heads in wonderment* Here's the thing. When I gave up my old Canon SX30IS super-zoom point & shoot camera back in 2011, I had to really fight with myself. Yes, I dearly wanted the high-quality images, dreamy bokeh and incredible macro capabilities of a DSLR. But I was in love with the SX30's 35x-time zoom and its ability to take any sort of picture I wanted. This versatility was extremely hard to give up, even though the quality just wasn't up to my developing standards. In fact, I became a much better photographer because I made it a mission to push the limits of that little camera with the aim for DSLR quality. Ultimately I didn't get what I'd hoped for but I really learned a lot about how to get the most out of a lower-quality lens. As the years passed, I've kept an eye on "bridge" cameras. In case you're not savvy to that term, that's a camera which is higher quality than your standard point & shoot camera but is not a DSLR. They have non-interchangeable zoom lenses and smaller sensors. (If you're interested in learning more, the article, The Best Bridge Cameras in 2019 will give you all the information you need.) To be honest, I was surprised that a suitable bridge camera didn't appear soon after I traded up to my DSLR in 2011. But no. The years ticked by and still the quality was not measuring up. So many models from a vast array of manufacturers but nobody produced the quality that truly satisfied the big-time camera reviewers. Until late 2017. My attention had waned by that point so I didn't know that the belle of the ball had finally arrived…namely, the Sony RX10 IV. I was taking a break from photography but finally came back on the scene to begin my Pictures with Pam project in October 2018. Finding my passion again, I immersed myself in photography and also reacquainted myself with friends and contacts on ipernity. That's when I started seeing some totally awesome bird and animal photography by my contact and friend, Roland (ROL/Photo) . I kept seeing consistently lovely, detailed close-ups that really impressed me. (If you'd like an example: "A Beautiful Profile" is a stunner!) When I looked at the EXIF data I expected to see a DSLR with a ridiculous cannon-sized lens. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that he was using a bridge camera I'd not heard of before! Reading reviews of the Sony RX10 IV filled me with great excitement because I learned that finally there was a bridge camera out there which had the quality that I demanded in an "all-in-one". Immediately I began dreaming of owning this camera. As much as I love our Canon Mk II/III's, the only way I can get proper zoom range is with our 100-300mm lens. That thing is a BEAST. It's huge, heavy, totally unwieldy and requires a tripod and not moving around a lot. I've used it to photograph birds on our feeders but that's about it. That's why my bird and non-insect wildlife photography totally took a dive after I gave up my SX30. I really hate it. Everyone knows how much I love animals. It would be so nice to take pictures of the critters I see on walks but my current setup just doesn't allow for this. If only. If only. I began to save my pennies. Finally, I was able to scrape enough coins together to buy one of these cameras. I could have kept saving towards the next Canon camera in line but the fact is, our cameras are perfect just as they are. What I don't have is the option for zoom photography. Also, we'll be doing some traveling soon and what better than to have the perfect travel camera with us? Steve spent time looking into this camera as well and was equally impressed. With a green light, we ordered it, and it will be arriving today!! Hooray!! UPDATE: IT'S HERE!!! IT'S HERE!!! SQUEEEEEEEE!!!! And…put on the brakes sister…its battery is charging. Heh. I have a couple of hours to wait before I can play with my new toy and truthfully I'm really looking forward to trying it out. However, unlike the me of year's past, I'm perfectly content to wait. Anticipation can be a delicious thing, so I'll read the manuals while I wait. :) I hope my next update will be me letting you know how it went and details on my main picture! :) UPDATE 2: HOOPS TO JUMP THROUGH but eventually…SUCCESS! :D My camera was finally charged and out I went to take my first pictures!! I had some trouble learning how to focus but I got the hang of it. I still have to learn what all the modes and settings are but I managed to get by. :) As you can see, I got a BUNCH of winners!! I'm so happy!! This camera is EXACTLY what I was hoping for, HOORAY!!! My main picture is a portrait of a lovely tom turkey, isn't he amazing?! I'm also sharing five insets of some other happy successes! A Black-Headed Chickadee, a male and female Golden-Crowned Sparrow (the female lacks the yellow on the head) , a female House Finch chomping on a sunflower seed, and a close-up of a tom-Turkey's gorgeous feathers! I would have to say that's very encouraging for my very first test drive of this camera!! I hope you enjoy the show! :) Pam, I did a search for "bird" on your photo stream and landed on your fabulous "Young Mr Bluebird Collage" that's just running over with goodness! :) Who needs a fancy bridge camera with 25x zoom?! Your camera is totally fantastic! And would you just take a LOOK at that bokeh?! WOOT! Outstanding images my dear! And here's hoping you had a nice day too. *BIG HUGS*! In case you're interested, here's an in-depth review about this camera from a site I really respect, DP Review's: Sony RX10 IV If you'd like to watch a super video review from a photographer who took this camera on a cruise, you'll really enjoy Maarten Heilbron's Sony RX10 IV - My Vacation Hacks and Photos Explored on 4/18/19, highest placement, #6.

(+1 inset) (looks extra special enlarged) Once again I'm very late with my picture and post! Steve and I were out on many errands today and didn't get home until after 6 so I'm going to have to make this short… While we drove around, we got to enjoy a typical spring day in southern Oregon. The weather that ranged from overcast to rainy to a bright sunny day with blue skies filled with fluffy clouds. It's so green and lovely now with flowers popping up everywhere. Such a delight. I got a couple of pictures processed from our adventure to Jacksonville and thought they would be perfect for tonight's post. Jacksonville has a large public garden that I visited, and though it was pretty sparse in terms of flowers, they had an enormous lawn that was dotted with the prettiest daisies I'd ever seen! I had a wonderful time taking pictures and the main image turned out just as I'd hoped! I rarely see daisies adorned with pink-tipped petals but there were lots of them everywhere in the grass so I went crazy with pictures! As I wandered around I found a little wasp on one of them and I managed to get a good picture of it too! (I'm also sharing a panorama showing the sort of lovely day it was today!) (I also got lots of flowering tree blossoms while I was there, and a bunch of others too, I hope I'll get to post them at some point!) Pam, I looked for a picture of a daisy...noop! I looked for another wasp picture other than the one I'd already featured...only hive pictures and they are too scary and creepy! So I did a search for "bee" and pounced on this lovely image of a bee on a moonflower at dusk . Perfect! Your main image is fantastic, as were the insets you also included. It's so nice when we provide a wonderful source of nectar for them...when I had my poppy garden it was the most popular place for a mile around I think...I could hear the buzz of bees from a long distance and they were all over the flowers and yet, so docile that I could move among them in complete harmony. Wonderful memories, thank you for that! Well, here's another wish that your day went well! More *hugs* for you! Explored on 4/17/19, highest placement, #1.

(+4 insets) Ok, so ever since daylight savings time arrived, I've been slowly losing the battle to get up as dawn lightens the sky. There's just no way to keep up! It's now getting light at about 6am and I'm sorry but that's called "0-Dark-Hundred" in my book. Times have certainly changed though. There was a time when my normal wake-up time was 10:30am. Seriously. I'd stay up until 4:30am and sleep until…ok, I'm lying about 10:30…I sometimes slept in until noon. Really. It's kind of shocking to think about to be honest. My defense was that I was up the same number of hours as everyone else, it's just that I was a night owl and my hours were much more favorable to Dracula than to Robin Red-Breast! There really isn't anything the matter with the hours a person keeps--except if it doesn't mesh with your true desires. I always hated the "holier-than-thou" attitudes of early risers who would look down their noses at me when I admitted not remembering my last sunrise and my near-noon wake-ups. Why is a person better or worse depending on when they get up? It's totally ludicrous. The world's greatest talent and brilliant minds can be found in both camps. Enough said. As for me, there has always been an internal battle which got louder as I got older. I have always loved nature and on the occasions when I'd be awake when the sun was coming up, it was absolutely magical to me. Try as I might, I could not deny the fact that being up early felt "right" to me. I felt at home and at peace when I could experience dawn and the sunrise. And yet, being a night owl also sat well with me. In my late teens/early 20's, I would go on my daily run at 1am in the beautiful residential neighborhood where my family lived in San Francisco. Few things are more awesome than breaking into a run and disappearing into the cool, foggy night, the mist sometimes so thick I couldn't see more than 100 feet in front of me. I always felt safe because even if there might have been bad elements around, they wouldn't have time to react to me emerging and then disappearing back into the fog, wrapped in a protective cloak of darkness. After Steve and I moved up to southern Oregon, I kept my night owl hours for many years. One reason I'd sleep in was because I resented being forced to get up to go to work and so I'd sleep in whenever I could. But when my work situation changed to freelance, I kept my own hours. I slowly lost my resentment at being forced to get up earlier than I wanted to. It literally took years but one day I began to get up earlier to beat the summer heat. My reward was getting to go on a beautiful morning bike ride before the summer sun turned the oven onto high. Riding in sub-80-degree temperatures was so nice and as I gradually got up a bit earlier week by week, it would be about 65 degrees when I took off. Getting up earlier and earlier, I got to experience what it was like to listen to the birds waking up in the trees, filling the world with their cheerful song. What a joy! And then, I got to experience a lovely sunrise without being forced to get up. The peace and serenity of these special moments made me feel as one with the land around me, a part of it all. For the person that I am--whose heart is wholly bound in Nature's embrace--this is the time for me to rise and start my day. However, there is a limit. The 0-Dark-Hundred limit. It's becoming clear to me that I can't keep pushing the clock back to rise with dawn because at some point it will be 4:30 when light cracks the darkness of night. I also have to be reasonable because my husband refuses to get up earlier than about 7:30, and that's totally fine! He usually rises at between 8 and 9, and if I am getting up at 5 in the morning, I'll be asleep in my soup at 7pm while he's still lively until 9. Thus, I must lose this battle to get up with dawn. I'm fine with that. It amused me to no end that I'm putting the brakes on my desires to get up before the sun rises! (By the way, I got up at 6:30am this morning and it was wonderful!) Well, we all know what today is, right? It's Macro Monday, hooray!! :D The theme this week is "knives" and I knew exactly what I'd be taking pictures of! In the outfitting of our RV trailer, we bought many new kitchen utensils, including a full set of brightly colored titanium knives. They are so beautiful and sharp too. What fun to get to take some pictures of them for the Macro Monday theme! My main image shows all of them in a circle and just their tips showing. What a wonderful rainbow of colors with sparkly metallic flecking! The insets show a couple of the knives with extremely shallow dof which fade off into bokeh. What fun. I am also sharing a couple of pictures from a past project for the "Bokeh Thursday" group when their theme was "Tools." I hope you enjoy the show! Pam, I got a face full of "raspberries" when I searched for "knife" and "blade", but when I tried "sharp", I got an amazing group of results…that had absolutely nothing to do with "sharp" (except for focus, heh). So I decided to look at the thumbnails and pick one that delighted me first…and the winner is your AWESOME collage for "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles…" What a gorgeous image. So much work to create this outstanding artwork, and I am so happy that I get to discover your past masterpieces to enjoy and give you some strokes. :) Here's hoping you had a nice day, all things considered! *BIG HUGS from southern Oregon* :D

(+ 3 insets!) (please view large for more droplety goodness!) Steve drove his sister to the airport this afternoon and what happened to me? I found myself making a beeline for my bed! I couldn't believe how tired I was! Isn't that interesting how exhausting company can be? We all had a very nice time though, and Steve got to spend lots of quality time with his sister and that was really great. I was so befuddled this morning that I thought it was Monday! I hadn't taken my photos for Macro Monday yet so I grabbed some knives--the subject this week--and took a bunch of pictures. I really didn't think I'd have anything worthy because I was pretty low-energy but it looks like I'll have a few nice images to post tomorrow! Hooray! I was hoping to process a few pictures from yesterday's adventure to the Pear Blossom parade, street fair, and especially of Jacksonville but I clearly need some recovery time. Instead I'm going to post something else from my bloated folder of finished pictures. Let me see what looks good! *peeks into my archived pictures* Oh, perfect!! The other morning I went out to take some pictures after a long night of rain. I'd seen some mushrooms on my walk that I couldn't resist and grabbed my camera when I got back. However, as I turned to head down the drive, a tiny flash of purple caught my eye and I remembered what I had noticed. The afternoon before I saw a Henbit Deadnettle plant with buds just about to open and made a mental note to come back with my camera the next day. And there we were! I had no idea how fabulous these little 1/3" flowers would look drizzled with raindrops! What a sight! I'm sharing another picture I took as an inset and also a pair of other pictures I took from a few years back. To me they look like miniature orchids with their juicy color and spots. :) Pam, I looked to see if you had any Henbit or Purple Deadnettle flowers but I didn't find any. However, I did find a gorgeous little flower that will do just fine, your lovely Prairie Violet. Such a beautiful little blossom! We don't have anything like that here but I've seen similar flowers growing elsewhere in southern Oregon's wilds. Makes me wonder if I have any good pictures to process so I can show you. Happily I remember exactly where I found them. Hmmm...I'll have to look and see. Sending much love and hugs your way, ma'am! *big hugs* Explored on 4/15/19, highest placement, #1.

(please view large) Oh dear. I'm terribly late again today! And on top of that I'm totally exhausted so there is only one picture tonight! What luck! Today was Medford's annual Pear Blossom Parade and street fair--the perfect event to bring Steve's sister to! In the dozen years we've lived here, Steve and I have never actually gotten our act together to go so we were delighted that we finally got to take part in the festivities. None of us minded walking so we parked the truck well-away from the parade route and then made our way over to take a look. I was immediately drooling at the Corvette Club's 25 entries that drove by in as many models and colors…they are one of my favorite cars and it was such fun to see them. We decided to walk towards the street fair area and we were walking at the same speed as one of Medford's high-school marching bands. As they played, a smile bloomed on my face and I fairly beamed in absolute bliss. The piece they played was one of my favorite songs, "Shake Shake Senoroa" and you'll recognize it from Beetlejuice, which is also a cult favorite of mine! (I've linked the YouTube video) For the first time in many, many years, I was hearing a band play very close to me and could feel the music course through me. The magnificent beat of the drums, the horns, the flutes, all of the instruments thrummed through me from head to toe. It was the most wonderful feeling to be part of the awesome music that unfolded as we walked along. I absolutely couldn't get enough of this awesome experience. Not only was my whole body completely captivated, watching them was pure, high-octane eye-candy! In front were the "color guard" or flag-twirlers and they spun their colorful flags and danced to the music…what fun they were to see! Such cute outfits, all of them were full of energy and each wore a big smile. Then the conductors in their festive hats walked backwards the whole time, leading their flock of musical sheep. Then the reed instruments, the drums, the horns, and others, with a row of officials to bring up the rear. I saw it all. I got the unique experience of being a part of their outstanding performance for nearly an entire mile!! When they got to the end of the song, they did some fancy drumming and then started over again…I felt like the world's happiest purring kitty. What a show! What a delight! It was fabulous. We then walked around all of the booths at the street fair and there I got to enjoy people watching and saw lots of really neat arts and crafts for sale, and endless types of food offered by a myriad vendors. The smells were so mouth-wateringly delicious…I felt like I was gaining weight just from the smells that wafted everywhere! HEAVEN! The sound of a band began to encroach on our senses and what we were hearing was one of my favorite kinds of music, bluesy-soul and the woman singing was AMAZING! Again I could feel the performance and just stood and enjoyed every song. (I found the band: "Not Too Shabby" and here's one of their pieces on YouTube: (click the words) ) Steve and Deanne both wandered off to get food and I had a bite of the sausage Steve got to tide me over. I loved watching the kids dancing to the music and the occasional adult that couldn't keep their bodies from moving to the rhythm. It was so neat. Eventually we had our fill and made our way back to the truck and headed over to the historic (albeit incredibly touristy) town of Jacksonville where we started off by going to our favorite coffee house there and enjoying perfect creamy coffee. Then we spent a couple of hours wandering around and enjoying the sights. Me? I had my camera with me and lost myself in hundreds of pictures of spring flowers and other cool sights. (I took a few at the festival but I had my 100mm with me and it's not conducive to street photography so I didn't really bother…no worries, I wasn't really in the mood to deal with possible agro from people.) We finally left and were completely happy with the day and totally exhausted from our activities. What fun!! Oh…yeah…I didn't forget about today's photo assignment! The Saturday Self-Challenge theme is "Your pet in black and white." OK! I suspected I'd be wiped out at the end of the day so before we left this morning, I had Steve handle Snakey McSnakerton, our beautiful 4-foot-long California Mountain King Snake for a photo shoot! I got lots of super shots but I don't have the time or energy to process any more than my main image. Isn't he gorgeous?! We adore him! Pam, it looks like you don't have any snake pictures on your stream but you did have a lovely skink picture which I really loved! Super cool to see this fellow, we have them on our property but I've only seen them a few times. I hope all is well with you, I enjoyed reading about your scorpion encounters and I'm glad you haven't been stung by any. *BIG HUGS*!! Thinking of you!! Explored on 4/14/19, highest placement, #3.

(+12 insets!!) The White Rabbit from "Alice in Wonderland" is reading my mind with this quote: “I’m late, I’m late! For a very important date! No time to say ‘hello, goodbye,’ I’m late, I’m late, I’m late!” It's long past due to post my picture today, eek! Having a house guest definitely makes schedules more difficult to keep, and so I'm behind but I hope you won't mind! :) We didn't end up going out today as planned because Steve's sister was under the weather. I was feeling cooped-up though so at about 2pm I popped on my rubber boots and knee pads, grabbed my camera and made a beeline straight up our steep hillside to the ridge line trail. From there I walked the half-mile or so to the trail's end and kept my eyes open as I walked along. I hoped that I might find the white/creamy yellow Oregon Fawn Lily. This little beauty can only be found near the end of the trail, far from our property. I knew I would probably strike out because these flowers are long past their blooming time but I couldn't help myself from trying to find one. Though I did find a few bedraggled Henderson's Fawn Lillies, I didn't find the creamy-colored ones. Boo. Well, when I took the pictures of the purple ones the other day, I knew that I should really to go find the yellow ones too. But it was late and about to rain and after that it didn't stop raining for days. It's ok though because I got some awesome pictures of these in the past. (I'll show my Oregon Fawn Lily pictures as insets!) I ended up spending a couple of hours up there just enjoying myself. I got pictures of so many things--flowers, a mushroom, huge burls on an oak tree, pine cones, curls of manzanita bark, beetles and a bee on flowers, different species of leaves glowing in the afternoon light, I even got a picture of a frog! It was a lovely, wonderful, peaceful adventure and I felt very much connected to the land. Pure bliss! There are two logs at the end of the trail which I always look under because they are so lucky for me. I found our California Mountain King Snake under one many years ago. I've found beetles and other insects, and I've found scorpions on many occasions! And so, when I lifted up one of the logs today, I was delighted to find a little scorpion huddled on the dirt and very much unimpressed with the blasting light accosting him. This darling little guy is a Northwest Forest Scorpion and measures about an inch long--very small! I've seen them more than twice that size but in any case, they are barely poisonous to humans. I think they are totally cool and wonderful! Unfortunately I wasn't able to get really good pictures because of where he was positioned but they are good enough to post. After taking pictures I carefully replaced the log…I think I heard him swearing at me for turning on the lights when he was trying to sleep! I don't blame him! :D (I've also included several insets of other pictures I've taken of these fascinating creatures for you to enjoy!) Pam, do you have scorpions where you live? I was totally amazed when I found the first one many years ago after lifting a log up to see what was underneath. I also thought all scorpions were really dangerous but they aren't. These guys are a "1" on a scale of 4 for dangerous. Now…once I was in Costa Rica…at about 2am I got up to use the bathroom and saw a shadow on the ground…turned on the light and HOLY EXPLETIVES, BATMAN, it was a 3" black scorpion on the floor, right where I would have walked!!! Can you say totally freaked out? We ushered the unwelcome guest out of our bungalow and checked regularly every night afterwards in the different places we stayed. YIKES! The only thing I found on your photo stream that looked menacing was a wood wasp picture you took. I'm glad it wasn't aggressive towards you, it sure looked nice on that lantana! Let us hope all is well for you today and I promise not to put a scorpion on your floor! *BIG HUGS*

(+11 insets!) (Please view large, you won't regret it!) Today we're all stirred up! Steve's sister is coming to stay with us for the next few days so we've been cleaning up and getting ready. It's been a while since I've seen her so it will be nice to catch up. The weather isn't going to be super but we'll get to take her to the Pear Blossom Festival and Parade this weekend which should be fun! I don't know how busy I'll be so my commenting is likely going to be spotty at best...my apologies in advance! Today is also the day when I post my Happy Fence Friday picture! Lately it's actually turned into my own Happy FRENCH Fence Friday! Along with a fence picture, it's been a perfect opportunity to share another set of pictures from our trip to Provence, France last year! If you've been following along with my trip so far, you may be amused that I've only shared pictures from our very first stop--Nice! We arrived late one night, spent a full day and left the next morning. However, in that time I got so many useable pictures that so far I've posted 41 and today I'll be posting another 11! I'm not quite finished processing the last of them but I have about 25 more ready to go--which will be two more sets at this point…I expect there will be another set at least, if you can believe it! As I've mentioned before, it's been really fun exploring my France photography because it's such a different style than I'm used to. I'd like to say thanks for all of your enthusiasm--I know it's not my usual type of photography but the positive response I've gotten leaves me glowing and so appreciative! :) Ok, let's go to Nice, shall we?! My main picture today was captured along Nice' famous Promenade des Anglais, a busy avenue and wide walkway that hugs the coastline of Nice. This particular spot featured a sweeping turn and heavy-duty guard rail, along with a pair of fellows who sat conveniently on one end! The picture cried out to be a very wide panorama in strong silhouette--I hope you like how it turned out! :) The insets cover a lot of the time that we spent walking along the waterfront but includes a couple of others as well. Here are details about the insets! :) PiP #1: Near where I took the guard rail picture there is a pull-out and this enormous sign to promote Nice. Kids were attracted like bees to honey and crawled all over it incessantly! The fellow in the bicycle taxi tried very hard to solicit our business long before we arrived at this spot to find him here, watching the kitlings play on the sign. He was listening to very loud music but it was really fun and it added to the enjoyment we were having this late afternoon. :) PiP #2: There was a rocky beach which ran along below the road and Steve and I enjoyed looking down to see the various clusters seated here and there or walking at the water's edge. This group was having a wonderful conversation and I got several pictures of them laughing and having fun. PiP #3: At the bend there was also a nice view in both directions. This picture shows Old Town Nice as it reaches out to the edge of the sea. PiP #4: As luck would have it, we arrived as the sun was beginning to set and we got some very dramatic images of the sun sinking below the far hills. What a view! :) PiP #5: We also saw lots of fishermen along the way, and many of them set up their poles on this point. Great people-watching here with folks looking at things on the ground and chumming around with one another. Good times! PiP #6 : Walking along the popular Promenade, this picture is an artistic, blurry impression of the people enjoying an early evening stroll--or run--with colorful lights beginning to show themselves in the background. I think the runners on the left might have noticed me…do you think?! :D PiP #7: I found this old man, down on his luck, snoozing on his bike to keep it safe from thieves. You can't deny his great style with his bright red sarape and sombrero hat. Entering the frame from the right is a pigeon who I distinctly heard say, "OLE!" :D PiP #8: Everywhere you go in Nice you will find inviting restaurants with plenty of outdoor seating. This nicely-furnished business had just opened up for the evening…pizza anyone?! PiP #9: Nearby a very busy café vibrated with great energy as friends and family enjoyed delicious food and drink a-plenty. I took this picture without even noticing the star of the show. When I took a closer look on my computer I burst out laughing…would you just LOOK at that dog?! Its master is clueless and deep in a conversation with his friend (who thinks I'm taking a picture of him, lol) but his dog is at the leash limit and in seventh heaven from two-scoops of love from a pair of joyful ladies who love this darling pooch! PiP #10: A close-up of the belly-up pup, showing her delirious state of happiness…"DON'T STOP!!!" :D PiP #11: And finally, as the evening grew darker, a beautiful cobbled alley, bedecked in pretty light prompted my eager attention. What a cool sight! Pam, I expect you've seen plenty of places similar to this in your caravan days, no? I have been so surprised to discover the wonderful seaside scenery in England. Of course I shouldn't be surprised but for some reason I didn't think England would have pretty views, isn't that odd? Ipernity has certainly opened my eyes to the splendor of England. As well, seeing all of the amazing pictures you shared in the book version of your 2011 Snowdrops Anglo-Saxon Chronicles I especially loved the sunset at the Valley of the Rocks at Lynton , what a gorgeous picture! :) Here's hoping you're doing well today! MANY HUGS from southern Oregon! Explored on 4/12/19, highest placement, #1.

(+7 insets!) This morning when I got up I was amazed to find that it wasn’t raining! For the past couple of weeks we’ve had so much rain that the nearby Rogue River has flooded in some places. Thankfully we are on high ground but that gives you an idea of how much water we’ve been getting in this area. We’ll have a respite until this evening and then the faucet will turn on again for another week. I have to say that it’s really nice to have a normal spring. It’s supposed to be like this instead of the years of drought that plagued us. The poison oak rash that I got from my trek up the hill the other day is finally starting to calm down. However, I was exasperated to discover a patch on one of my knees! Is there no escape from this wretched stuff?! I forgot to bring my knee pads when I went up on the hill and I must have knelt on some poison oak, crushing it enough that the oil soaked through my pants and onto my knee. Ridiculous! Poison oak is bad but there is something here which is much more dangerous: ticks that carry Lyme disease. In fact, the previous owner was bitten by a tick here and he contracted this awful malady. It's no laughing matter. That's why, when I got back from my sojourn up the hillside, I entered the kitchen where Steve was starting our lunch and proceeded to fling my clothes everywhere! Once I was in the altogether, I turned slowly so Steve could check for ticks. After all, I knew better than to chance it. I'd been basically rolling around in the bushes, laying on the ground and brushing against all types of vegetation. The odds of having a tick on me were about as 100% as possible. And yep…GIVE THAT GIRL A KEWPIE DOLL. A disgusting, nasty, creepy tick was spotted on my calf and already trying to take hold, the confounded stinker! Steve yanked it off me and washed it down the sink while I ran upstairs to toss all my clothes in the hamper. They would be certainly covered with poison oak oils from the rampant budding growth all over the hillside. Later that day I went to wash something in the kitchen sink and what did I find waving it's graspy-grippy legs at me with the hopes to continue its attempt to suck my blood? That icky thing had crawled all the way up out of the drain and up the side of the sink as if drowning in scalding water was nothing! Glaring at the nasty creature, I grabbed it and seethed, "Oh, so you want to play the Flat Game then? Ok, let's go!" Squishing it between thumbnail and the counter, the tick was soon two-dimensional and moved no more. "I win." This time when I washed it down the drain it STAYED. Foul creature. And now, something beautiful! Today I'm featuring the gorgeous Mule Ear flower! This stunning perennial fills large areas of our hillside with thick clumps of 4-7" blossoms which rise out of large, fuzzy green leaves that are reminiscent of its namesake, a mule's ears. I was overjoyed to see that after the wildfire razed our hillside, these flowers have come back more plentiful than ever. They love direct sunlight so without the trees and bushes obscuring the sun, they have really taken off, hooray! I couldn't be happier with Mother Nature's excellent choice in landscaping. :) Along with the main image, I'm sharing three others as insets plus a bunch of archive images from the past. Aren't they just glorious?! I hope you enjoy the show. My dear Pam, don't these flowers look a lot like your False Sunnies? What better, then, to look for than our favorite happy-go-lucky golden blossom?! I decided on one that is adorned with a Monarch feasting on its nectar! Such a perfect pair. Both so lovely. I envy you so much for getting pictures of these butterflies. I've only seen them laughing at me as they fly around me blowing raspberries before flying away. Rude. Well, some day I hope to add one to my collection of wild-caught butterfly images! (Yes, I do have some really nice pictures of them, but taking pictures of butterflies in a captive exhibit is not the same as being outside and getting a hot shot like you've gotten!) ALL MY BEST!! MANY HUGS!!! Explored on 4/11/19, highest placement, #1.

(+9 insets!) I've been having a lot of fun working on the pictures I took up on our hillside the other day. When I went up there, the one reason that got me to make the trek was the hope to find Henderson's Fawn Lilies. As I had mentioned, these outrageous beauties are fairly small and feature blossoms that are about three inches at their widest point. Their petals range in color from nearly white with just a hint of lavender to a rich, shaded purple. Every one has its own unique appearance because the flowers open with the petals sweeping up and back. They are one of the most elegant wildflowers I've ever photographed and it will always amaze me that they grow in profusion on our property! The challenging aspect of this flower is that they like to grow very low to the ground with their gorgeous faces positioned downwards. If you hope to do this flower justice, you must take your pictures from ground level so you can aim up and capture their breathtaking countenance. This is when an avid fan must flop on the ground, contort in strange shapes and occasionally appear to be balancing on one's head to get a good shot. I'm used to these shenanigans of course, but this flower really makes me work for nice angles! My hillside photography had me rolling around in the plants and twisting in strange shapes to get my pictures. And, when I'm focused on my photography I'm not paying attention to things that I ought to. Like poison oak, for instance. Did you know that our hillside is infested with this stuff? Right now it's exploding into growth and every one of the vine-like canes is covered with urushiol oil—that's the stuff that causes us to break out in a rash if we come into contact with it. At one point something brushed my eyelid and drew along the crease before I could pull away. I looked to see what it was. How nice...a poison oak cane. I rubbed my eyelid with a wet finger and promptly got back to my photography. When I got back to the house I wisely changed my clothes, treating them as if they were radioactive. I was sure they were covered in poison oak oil but didn't think any of it had touched my skin. Well, other than my eyelid...and anyway, I rubbed it off, right? Yeah. That's right. NOT. At about 2am the next night I was awakened to itching. My eyelid was so ITCHY! In a sleepy stupor I wondered what that was all about. And lots of spots on my left hand were itchy too. As a professional recipient of poison oak over the years it didn't take long to sink in. Oh no. Poison oak. Looking in the mirror, I could see that my eyelid was swollen and my hand was covered in welts. *whimper* I got a wet paper towel, heated it in the microwave and gently pressed it on my itchy spots. The heat releases the antihistamines that cause the itching and instantly stop the maddening urge to scratch off your skin all the way to the bone. Ahhhh...the moist heat gave me immediate relief and I went back to bed. So, I did pay a price to get my pictures but I am fine with it. The rash will go away in a week or so and all will be well! Today's main image appears to be a windswept model, her tresses blowing in the gale! Isn't she magnificent? The first two insets were also taken on the hillside the other day and give you other views of the colors and petal arrangements. The nearly white one I call my Cinderella...she looks ready for a ball, dressed in her finest! I have also included lots of others that I captured in years past. I hope you enjoy them and can see why I am so very enchanted by this stunning flower! Pam, I did a search for "lily" on your photo stream and found many pictures of the incredible orange day lilies that grow so nicely for you. I picked your Orange Day Lily as my choice today...what rich, gorgeous orange tones they have. Your picture is just perfect and does that flower proud! Thank you for sharing it with us, I adore lilies of all kinds and these are really lovely. Sending big hugs from southern Oregon!! Explored on 4/10/19, highest placement, #3.

(+13 insets!) *sheepish grin* Sorry, I got a little carried away but I think you'll like them! :D (please view large for all the neato details!) It rained and it rained and it rained, rained, rained! On and off all day yesterday and then into the evening. And as I fell asleep last night, I was lulled into dreams by the pattering of droplets on the windows. Before opening my eyes this morning I was gently guided into wakefulness with the tap of rain on the panes of glass. Will it ever end? Walking down to the gate this morning to open the gate for Steve's drive in a little while, I surveyed the damage to our road repairs. Enough rain has come down that our work to fix the road has been reversed in some places. I fixed the worst spot and was pleased to see the water flowing off the road again. There were many other places that needed attention though. Hmm. Steve will need to do some touch-ups at some point. The next week promises to continue the ongoing series of spring storms and waiting on ruts in the road is never a good thing. Steve left early to take the RV trailer into a professional shop today! He rescheduled once due to the rain but decided to go ahead today, rain and mud be damned! We hooked up the truck yesterday and today he drove carefully and confidently down our driveway and on to Medford. I got a cheerful call from him to let me know that everything had gone great and they'd have the trailer's maintenance completed by mid-week. Hooray! This is a crucial step before we go on our first camping trip. We need to know that the undercarriage is ship-shape. They will be repacking the bearings and doing a variety of other work which we'd like seasoned eyes to carry out. Steve's extremely handy but all of this is new to him and we both agreed that it should be looked at by a pro who knows what they are doing. (As it turned out, all of the brake pads were worn almost down to the plates--it was a good thing we had everything checked!) Did you happen to notice that it's Macro Monday?! YES!! This week's theme is "bark" and bark is what you'll get! When I was up on the top of our ridgeline yesterday at one point I noticed the time and told Steve I'd be right down, "10 minutes max!" Silly wabbit, I had a camera in my hand! I need to remember that if I have my camera I need to add more time to my estimation! Heh. As I headed back along the ridge to the trail down to the house, I took lots of pictures of different bark that I saw. Is it my fault there were so many interesting bark pictures to take?! Ponderosa pine and oak bark on healthy trees, charred bark on dead trees, burned bark on the ground, and the insides of bark too! I even found some bark that has termite trails on it and a woodpecker hole! It was twenty minutes before I scurried in the door with a bashful expression on my face...heh. :D Along with my main picture--which shows charred oak bark and a bit of bare trunk--I'm sharing an embarrassing number of insets! I hope you enjoy the show! Pam, I thought it would be fun to look in your photo stream for "bark" and I found one that would work for Macro Monday! Your ice-covered Redbud bark is wonderful and so interesting to look at with its fine, glossy coat! Many kinds of lichen are visible too, so pretty in all their many colors! I hope your day is going well and your house isn't floating away in the rain! :D *BIG HUGS* Explored on 4/9/19, highest placement, #2.