Let the Wind Blow

Located in Stevenson, Washington, this unexpectedly beautiful metal and glass sculpture moves when the wind blows.

In subtle summer breezes, the sculpture gently whirls in graceful complicated obits.

But in stormy weather this sculpture is truly a terrifying thing to behold. Colorful wheels and whirls slip and slide, twirl and dizzying fling.

I love the wind. I love the way the wind intertwines with this unique sculpture.

Bird, Beach and Rock

What a lovely trip we had! We walked on the beaches, enjoyed sunshine, good company, great food.
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Every morning, just outside the window this little fellow basked and preened in the sunshine. (grin) Here he's wondering about that camera lens perched on the curtain rod. Hmmmm...

He cranked his head to the side. What IS that, anyhow??? I couldn't help but laugh at him. Poor fellow, he seemed quite flustered.

There was a Reach the Beach event in town. As I watched people from the balcony, I happened to notice this lovely little girl savoring a tasty ice cream cone in the bright morning sunshine. As you can see, there are many ways to enjoy a bicycle race!

Back to the birdie--here he seems quite proud of his, er, chest. Hmmmm.....

It seemed like he might have been posing, because then he leaned to one side as if to say, "Did ya' get that?"

The weather was wonderful--here is a photo of Teacup Rock. If you look closely you can see a face at the top of it. It has also been called Indian Chief Rock. So you see, I'm not the only one to notice that majestic, craggy face.

Back to the Birdie. Here he is doing a winged machine-gun move in Itty Bitty Birdie Kung Fu.

Uh, I'm not sure what this move is--but I am quite convinced that at ANY age, I would not be able to manage it!

"What?! You've been taking my picture?!" (As if he didn't know already.)

"Well! I'm outta here!" Which set me to giggling.

Thank you for coming along! (grin) Have a wonderful day filled with happy little places of laughter and joy.

Flaming Hilltop

My Husband and I traveled to a nearby beach to celebrate our 26th wedding anniversary. The first night it stormed, the fierce force of the wind bending the window glass inward.

But the next three days were balmy--a warm sunny hug over the ocean waves. Thursday night we were treated to this amazing spectacle of a sunset--truly the hills were aflame with passion and beauty.

The Watcher

Out in the garden tangle, pulling weeds from the daisies and strawberries, I felt someone watching. I think I caught her here--a dark shadow with bright eyes, peering at me through the fragrance of springtime leaf.

Green Starburst

I was captured by the startling contrast of colors in this burst of starry clump of green leaf, with its glowing red blossom.

Yon Twirled Stairway

There is something so beautiful about the graceful way this cement and stone stairway twirls to the ground below. Magical, even. The sunlight lying on the stones excites my curiousity--where does it lead? What is around the corner? I think I'll go down those stairs now...

Crickette' in a Drawer

Here she is the little scamp!

I'd left a drawer open, and Crickette' decided to take a nap on all my nice soft silky things. Tch tch tch! I'd say that look in her eye says, "I'm comfy! Don't you DARE think about moving me out'ta here!"

Winged Kitty on a Surf Board

This is one of the best cloud pictures I've ever taken. I was in the middle of a field out in the country when I spotted this winged kitty on a surf board. There's also a few cloud cats alongside watching in disbelief. I have not touched up this photograph in any way. This is just how it was. God surely does have a GREAT sense of humor.

Blue Vortex

We were out for a drive to the beach. On the way, my friend stopped to do a quick errand. As often happens, things took a little longer than she thought. After sitting for so long, I felt a little restless. So I got out my camera.
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You'll never guess what this is!
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Though it looks for all the world like something out of a science fiction movie, it is actually a photo of the sunlight shining down through my water bottle. Heh heh heh...

Band Kitty

I was perusing my older photos to find something to post this morning--and wahlah! This is a photo I took around Christmas time over a year ago. We were getting ready to leave for a performance, and she took up residence on my guitar case.
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I have NO idea how what happened when I clicked this picture of our darling Crickette' kitty, but it turned out really COOL!!! One can see music shimmering around in the air.
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If you click to make the picture bigger, you can see the center of the photograph seems to be Crickette's eyes. They almost look like cartoon cat eyes. There's a certain magic going on here. (grin)

Whassat!?

I love to imitate the birds as they call to one another. Sometimes I have lengthy conversations with them. That particular morning, I was yakking with a blue jay, who finally flew in close to see who was doing all the talking.

When I pulled up the picture and noticed the look on his feathery blue face, I laughed and laughed. As you can see, he was absolutely flummoxed to discover I was human.

Fragrance of Spring

There is nothing so wonderful as walking on a warm spring day. The air is layered with the delicate purple scent of lilacs.

The lilacs are blooming now. There are great purple bunches of these delectable fragrant flowers everywhere. These lovely flowers bring Spring by perfuming the very air we breathe. One can almost taste their aroma. Ah, Spring!

Bee Pretty in Pink

Honey bees are tiny heralds of spring. With their cheery hum, and gentle disposition, they bring with them a sense of contentment. This good-natured little fellow let me follow him around the tree clicking photos as I went. (grin) He was a little frustrated with me by the time I caught this lovely picture of him. He was never mean, did not try to sting me, and kept on working.
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What a happy industrious little insect. I imagine I would be happy too, if I were a bee, loaded with purpose, lost in all that pink fragrant blossoming--even with a crazy human following along with that gigantic black eye, clicking and buzzing...indeed, I would be happy.

Stormclouds and Rainbows

As you know, we had a tremendous thunderstorm sweep through our area yesterday. I usually do not post two blogs in one day, but I was just going through my photos of the storm...and found these! The sun looked so strange I clicked a picture of it. Here it is--have you ever seen anything like this before? I can't say I have.

The sun looked so eery and full of color. I knew I was seeing something unusual, but the sun was so bright I couldn't look straight at it. The camera caught what I was seeing better than I saw it.

Here is another angle of the sun's stormy rainbow.

This is a taste of the indigo blue of the storm clouds which roiled overhead, then smacked the earth with their fury. Unexpected it was. Thanks for putting up with two blogs from me in one day! Have a wonderful rest of the weekend!

My Afternoon Walk

Yesterday afternoon, just before the terrible thunderstorms which swept through our area, I went for a walk. The first thing which caught my eye were these tresses of blossoms. Aren't they gorgeous? I feel inspired to draw a little fairy with luscious flower hair like these. Some of my best inspirations come from nature herself.


The next thing I noticed was a perfectly shaped daffodil puffer. Yes, puffer! These were made specifically for children (and those young at heart adults), to pick, puff and watch in glee as the little parachuters float away into the air.


Here I caught our black cat Snow sunning herself in my garden. Yes, she was sitting on my catnip plant. Silly me to plant such a thing in my garden!

There was a spat of rain. I hid beneath a tree until it passed, then noticed a bluebell drenched in raindrops. She was so lovely I could not help but to take her picture.

Then I walked home and settled into daily life. That was before the storm struck! The lights flickered, the wind pounded in gusts up to 50 miles per hour. The rain pelted down so furiously it actually pushed itself through the ancient wood of the double hung windows of our old home.

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When I went back outside, it was as though the world sighed in relief. Blue skies accented the dark clouds quickly moving across the skies. They blustered away in an unusual northeasterly pattern signifying the enormous power of the storm. In the front yard I found petals scattered deeply across the grass. And the beauty of a raindrop in the blossoms left behind.

What a wonderful day for a walk!

Hemmed in Ice

In January the cold ice slicked and sparkled over our entire world. My Grandfather called this phenomenon a "Silver Thaw." Which is a lovely and whimsical way to to describe an ice storm.

Over the space of a week the icicles on the eves of our home grew to over three feet long. This is the view from one of the upstairs windows. It looks for all the world like a hem of icy fringe.

Years ago I remember my siblings and I flocking outside to marvel at a magical world covered with glittering ice. We would slide across the little pond and pull ice leaves from plants to eat them. Ice leaves seemed to have a flavor all their own. Then there were the icicles, which, held in our sock-clad fingers, also made a lovely winter treat.

Ah, Winter. Though you are intriguing, I am glad Spring has finally melted you away!

Giggling Violets

I was working in my garden when I thought I heard the faint sound of giggling somewhere near the foot of the old treehouse. Searching the flowerbeds, I discovered these two mischievous violets grinning up at me. They'd laughed themselves pink in the face. (Grin)

It is true, you know, the earth DOES laugh in flowers!