HeLLo!!!

Nantucket Daisy...

It's the last breath of summer...

Falling leaves to come...

~~~

xoabb
expect anything!

Dora, LaLa & Me

Last weekend I went on adventure with my friends Dora-Dog & Miss LaLa. Miss LaLa had been telling me about this glorious park across from her abode for months and I was itching to go see it. (Amazing as this is the same park that was next to my kid's [Catholic] elementary school all those years ago...and a place I never had heard about, let alone visited, tho my kids?? They knew all about it.)

See that big leaf and log water-blocking dam? Something definitely had to be done about that! Obviously to us, those were leaves and water eddies behind them that just had to move on to their ultimate destiny, of course with the help of we two humans! (And what five-year-old kid wouldn't agree with us - yup we happily reverted to childhood:-) ?)



While I had already freed the current in the lower left of the photo, it took a much younger woman than me to take out that large log you can see being maneuvered, above. While I was quite ready to clear paths in the river with my feet planted firmly on the bank, I was not ready to step on river rocks to clear that big log, which really had to go! Not to worry, it was Mama to the rescue! She handily skipped over the rocks, maneuvered that pole (with a lot of direction from me, thank-you-very-much) and got that big log floating downstream. (I do think we two are responsible for a non-stagnant stream!) Hope you noticed Dora-Dog keeping watch on her mom's safety.

Once LaLa was done with her current-freeing job, Miss Dora was free to defend the rest of the river side. She did a very good job! She single-handedly caught every wayward leaf and destroyed it! It truly was quite the sight to see.

The late summer flowers in the park meadow were also just spectaular! And I've never seen so many bumblebees, honeybees & all kinds of birds. Such a wonderous sight! Everything from goldfinches to birds of prey - we think they were hawks.

I've forgotten how good it is to walk in nature.

O what I've missed!
but not again!

~~~

xoabb
~sigh~

Last Day of Summer...

Glorious fading morning glory from our deck planter, October 2008. One of the last of the '08 season.

Welcome to the last day of summer...(o yes, there's a cliche coming), ~I can't believe how short it was, can you?~ There, that's over!

I had no morning glories to speak of this summer; no more than a bloom here or there. Our growing season was less than ideal, both for flowers and veggies. And if I have another year like this one at our community garden plot, that plot's gonna be 86'ed (86'ed is legit - I looked it up) from my life permanently, thanks almost entirely to the very well fed (read FAT) ground hog wreaking havoc on everything in our plot, though our crazy weather did play a part as well. I do believe our entire harvest consisted of 10 peppers and 7 tomatoes. Very disheartening, especially after last year's success.

I really don't know where I've been for the last months. I've been so very inconsistent with everything blog related. It's like my curiosity has up and gone. Hmmm...but I've begun to read books again - something I haven't done in a long long while. I think I like the curiosity better. Possibly I need to spend some time figuring out how to have both in my life.

Here's to the coming sweater weather! Nothing better than crisp days, fireplace smoke scenting the air and apples - I always think of apples when autumn rolls around. Oh, and pumpkin fields. Gotta borrow a kid to go pumpkin picking!

~~~

xoabb

happy autumn!

Sunday Serenity

The little path that leads to home,
That is the road for me...

excerpted from:
~ Edgar Guest

xoabb
xoxoxo

Sunday Serenity is....

...having Tervis Tumblers returned...

~~~

xoabb

So happy!

P. S. - Miss LaLa (above), back from her recent Tuscan escapades came to see me yesterday and with her she brought six glasses she'd borrowed over the past few months. Two of them were my beloved Tervis Tumblers and two actually belonged to Julie, who you can see taking them. Now if only the other missing eight (at least) of those naughty tumblers would find their way back to their mama...I miss you Jayhawk and pink golf cart and Pippen's Home and Tortuga Grand Cayman and hibiscus and '09 VA blog fest SO MUCH! Get on back home!

MO Sunset

I have the great pleasure of going home to Columbia Missourahhh once or twice a year to spend time with my parents. Columbia also happens to be the town where I grew up and I do not believe there is a better place to spend one's childhood. Not perfection, because nothing is, but pretty damn close!

Another thing I love about my Missourahhh home is the sky. Big sky. Big sky is not something one finds in Lower Fairfield County, Connecticut. Sunsets like these are not to be seen here. Too many trees and hills.

My Connecticut is beautiful...but it's not my Missourahhh.

~~~

xoabb

xoxoxoxox

Sky Watch Friday

do join us!

Sunday Serenity

A long ride home is best finished in a big old easy chair

With a good cigar
(so says the hubs)

~~~
xoabb
expect anything!

A Question of Balance (Oh and SWF!)

(No, this isn't a Moody Blues post, tho maybe someday it will be as I LOVE them)

There's all this professional photography talk about "using flash" or "not using flash", let alone anything else to do with any kind of picture taking. OK, you've completely lost me as I've not a clue about anything other than sometime liking what I see through my camera lens!!
I have my wonderful very simple little camera that fits into my pocket (waterproof you know!) that does next to nothing fancy, but takes really pleasing photos - at least to me. I've read about those folks who never ever use flash - so not real - and then those who think that at times it adds something to the composition of the shot they're taking. I just use my flash willy-nilly. And it works! For me at least...

Below are two shots of the same thing. The one taken with the flash was not intentional - I didn't know the flash setting was on automatic. The second is natural light.

I really don't know which one I like best.
What's your opinion?

~~~~

~~~

xoabb
I love The Moody Blues!

Skywatch Friday!
Do join us!

Ahhhhh...Hot Sum!

No, not a new Asian dish...

But what I hope we all have had all summer long!

~

On another note

Our first school ~snow~ day
Caused by that Hurricane Earl?
Yup! Quite possible!

~~~

xoabb
expect endings...then beginnings

Happy happy birthday to one of my very favorite people EVER!
And may you have many many more, AuntieM!
I'm so very fortunate to count you as part of my fambly.
Love, love LOVE you!