September Sunset
Posted: September 30, 2009 Filed under: 365 Life in the Bogs Challenge, Adventures in art, Autumn, beginnings, Earth, endings, Fire, home, mummers, nature, Photography, water, weather | Tags: sunset 16 Comments
(132: September sunset. Photo © 2009 by Robin)
I’m probably going to regret this…
I signed up for October’s NaBloPoMo. The theme for the month of October, in case you hadn’t heard, is HAUNTED. It appealed to me for some reason. It will give me a chance to do something with all those photos I took in a New Orleans cemetery back in April.
It’s still raining here in the Bogs. Mostly it’s a light, misty type of rain but it sometimes goes full-out into deluge mode. I took a short walk in the rain this morning. It’s a good place to cry.
For those inquiring minds that wonder how I’m doing, I’m sad. The weather isn’t helping but I suppose it isn’t hurting either, as it is giving me a chance to allow myself to sit with the sadness and just… be sad.
It’s ok.
Still stormy
Posted: September 29, 2009 Filed under: 365 Life in the Bogs Challenge, Adventures in art, Air, Autumn, Earth, garden, home, nature, Photography, weather | Tags: flowers, sunflowers 16 Comments
(131: Cloudy with spots of sunshine. Photo © 2009 by Robin)
Early this morning the furnace kicked in for the first time this season. The rain and gusty winds continue. And the sunflowers are almost finished for this year. The birds have been chowing down on the seeds and it won’t be long before it’s time to cut down the plants.
I’d like to get out and work in the garden, get it winterized. Unfortunately the weather has not been cooperating. M and I also need to do some work back in the woods where there are large branches and whole trees down. The pond needs some help from us as well. The weed growth this year, in spite of the cool summer, has been tremendous. We’re thinking of doing a drawdown this winter in hopes that freezing will kill off some of the plants.
Hopefully the weather will clear up soon. The gray and gloomy weather make it difficult to maintain a sunny disposition.
September reflections
Posted: September 28, 2009 Filed under: 365 Life in the Bogs Challenge, 365 Yoga Challenge, Adventures in art, Air, Autumn, Earth, Fire, Healthy Living Plan, home, nature, Photography, Spring, water, weather | Tags: fall foliage, pond, reflections 14 Comments
(130: September reflections on the pond. Photo © 2009 by Robin)
I can’t believe September is almost over. Where does the time go?? It just keeps speeding on by, faster than I can keep up with lately.
M and I had a quiet day yesterday. A day of rest. It was nice. Refreshing and rejuvenating as well. I feel ready for the week now. Perhaps one day of rest each week is not a bad idea.
The weather here in the Bogs is taking a turn towards autumn. After a week or so of warm, humid, almost tropical weather, a cold front is blustering its way through. Through the night we had lightning, thunder, heavy rains, and gusty winds. We’re under a wind advisory until tomorrow morning, with sustained winds of up to 45 mph. Now that’s breezy!
(This morning’s view of the pond.)
Toad
Posted: September 27, 2009 Filed under: 365 Yoga Challenge, Adventures in art, Autumn, Earth, home, nature, Photography | Tags: animals, toads 9 Comments
(129: Toad. Photo © 2009 by Robin)
Fish tacos
Posted: September 26, 2009 Filed under: 365 Life in the Bogs Challenge, Adventures in art, Autumn, Earth, food, friends, home, nature, Photography, water, weather | Tags: goldenrod, pond, wildflowers 4 Comments
(128: A view of the pond through the goldenrod. Photo © 2009 by Robin)
The sun made a brief appearance here in the Bogs yesterday. Then the clouds moved back in. It’s been raining today. We need the rain. I can almost hear the earth sighing with relief.
We’re having friends over this afternoon for a fish taco feast. I made some salsa and chopped up the veggies and stuff for the fish tacos. One of our friends is bringing the fish, which she will season, the corn tortillas, and a bean salad. We’ll be grilling the fish.
I will also be making margaritas, per a request.
It should be fun. We were originally supposed to have this get-together a few weeks back but I cancelled due to not being in the mood. Then everything happened with Mom (so fast!), and well, I’m not sure I would have rescheduled at all except I came to the conclusion that I need to be around friends right now. Otherwise I tend to isolate myself and that wouldn’t be good.
So, I’m looking forward to fish tacos, margaritas, and spending time with friends.
I hope you’re having a fun Saturday too.
A maple
Posted: September 25, 2009 Filed under: 365 Life in the Bogs Challenge, Adventures in art, Autumn, beginnings, Earth, endings, family, Fire, friends, garden, home, nature, Photography 4 Comments
(127: The sun shines on gifts. Photo © 2009 by Robin)
When M and I lived in southern Ohio, in that place where West Virginia, Ohio, and Kentucky meet, we bought our first house. One of the things I fell in love with was the Japanese maple planted in front of (and centered quite nicely before) the picture window that looked out on the street. It was a gorgeous tree that must have taken many years to shape and grow. I have pictures of it but none do it justice. Sometimes you had to be smack dab in the middle of it to see its beauty. Sometimes you had to be standing across the street.
The branches were smooth and flowing so that when the wind flowed through and set it to dancing the first word that came to mind was graceful. I loved the grayish-pink of the branches and the way that gray allowed the colors of the leaves to show off while still maintaining, and sometimes highlighting, a beauty of its own. The leaves, so delicate in appearance, would start out a glowing shade of red in the spring, turn a lovely soft green in the summer, and a brilliant scarlet in the fall.
We sold the house when we moved up here to the Bogs. And with the house went the tree. To my dismay, the people who bought the house cut down the Japanese maple, probably with little to no idea how much a tree like that would cost to replace (and certainly disregarding the beauty of the tree and the time it takes to grow a tree like that). If we’d known they were going to cut it down, we might have attempted to move it.
I don’t know why the subject came up but for some reason Mom and I discussed the tree when I was visiting with her last November. Like me, she admired the beauty of the tree and she couldn’t believe someone would cut it down.
When our granddaughters were born, we planted trees in their honor. After the funeral I got to thinking I’d like to plant a tree in Mom’s honor. I wasn’t sure what kind of tree or where I’d put it.
On Wednesday a box arrived in the mail. It was clearly some sort of plant material (as it stated boldly on the box “plant material”). I hadn’t ordered anything recently so, puzzled, I opened the box to find a red-leaf Japanese maple tree (pictured above). A dear friend sent it to me with a note about how she wasn’t sure if this was appropriate but she thought I might like to plant a tree in my mother’s honor.
It was the perfect gift. And I know where we will plant it.
Thanks, Deb. 🙂
All abuzz
Posted: September 24, 2009 Filed under: 365 Life in the Bogs Challenge, Adventures in art, Air, Autumn, Earth, garden, home, nature, Photography, Walking, wandering | Tags: bees, Dancing With the Stars, flowers, wildflowers 9 Comments
(126: Hide and seek. Photo © 2009 by Robin)
As you may have guessed, I have been feeling more than a little blah and blue lately, finding it difficult to get excited about much of anything including my photography. I realize it’s understandable and normal. It’s also frustrating in a way as the lack of energy and ambition has led to a further lack of energy and ambition and that, my friends, leads me to a messy house. Depressing.
Yes, yes, yes, I know. Honestly, I do. I know that a messy house is not the end of the world (a favorite phrase of Mom’s — “it’s not the end of the world”). I will not go to my grave regretting that I didn’t spend more time cleaning. It’s just… clutter and mess are not conducive to bringing me up and out of the blahs and blues. A disorganized house, for me, is a disorganized mind. They feed on each other, creating a cycle of clutter and depression. It’s about getting things under control although why I think things need to be under control is beyond me.
So yesterday I gave up on control and energy and ambition. I ignored my to-do list. I watched Dancing With the Stars on Hulu. That cheered me up a little. The bizarreness of their “star” choices is too funny. Tom Delay?? Good grief.
Then I stepped outside for a little while, bringing the camera along with me to take a picture of some flowers that my sister-in-law sent. I thought she might like to see them. My intention was to snap the shot, put the camera back in the house, and maybe wander around outside for a little while. I started out well. I took the photo of the pot of flowers. And then I got distracted by a low hum coming from the wildflower meadow. With camera in hand, I walked over to see what all the humming was about.
The meadow is buzzing with bees. All sorts of bees. Honey bees, bumble bees, and carpenter bees were the three I was able to identify with some degree of (un)certainty. There are so many bees that their hum and buzz is almost carried up into the house. One giant of a bee attracted my attention and the next thing I knew, I had all but forgotten to be blah and blue while I followed the bee around the goldenrod.
It was a lovely respite.
Life in the Bogs 