joker

as much as i enjoy word games and puzzles, i am not a fan of board games and cards. but this afternoon for hours i played this new game with two old friends and a new acquaintance - a lovely but rugged 88 year old woman who maintains her own home and property, makes great cookies, and was a patient and understanding teacher to this student who, in spite of the many moments of admitted fun, was quite distracted and very far away.

maine morning

the view out the window from the quilt covered bed in the charming white bedroom on a beautifully clear morning in maine.

in the fog

while dining with friends, i was distracted by the appearance of this heron in the distance, fishing for his own dinner in the fog off the rocky coast.

a morning farewell

russian sage flowers in the back of the beach house, with the vast marsh beyond reflected in the water droplets. the end to a lovely family vacation by the ocean. good times, good memories.

stormy seas

no need for suntan lotion on a day like today. the rain is driving, the wind is whipping, the ocean is wild. later if the rain stops, perhaps a walk on the beach to see what the storm blew in.

castles in the ocean air

the arrival of the little girl to the vacation spot unfortunately did not bring the sun. but it was still a perfect time to build a sandcastle (or a birthday cake!) in the summer's biggest sandbox.

displacement

years ago i went to ireland. the rugged western shore was strewn with rocks and it was difficult to pick a favorite as i always do on vacation. finally i selected an elongated rock, far bigger than i would normally choose, but as green as the irish countryside. a perfect memento of the emerald isle.

a week later at home, when i drew the prized rock from my bag, the vibrant color was gone, in its place an ordinary muted grey. in vain, i ran it under the tap, hoping water would restore the green color. but to be as it had been, the rock needed something that was not in the new england environs, some natural element that was unique to the air over ireland or the waters of the north atlantic. like so many things in nature, it needed to be enveloped in its native surroundings to be what it was truly meant to be.

the beach in rain

a dreary day at the beach, grey and rainy. a good day to visit, to read, to nap, and to practice with the new lens. it took many shots before i was even a bit satisfied with this one. can you see the beach?

dawn

morning has broken, like the first morning
blackbird has spoken, like the first bird
praise for the singing, praise for the morning
praise for the springing fresh from the word

mine is the sunlight, mine is the morning
born of the one light, eden saw play
praise with elation, praise every morning
God's recreation of the new day.

-cat stevens

a day at the beach

day one: morning coffee at the window, reading on the deck, and snoozing in the sun. this afternoon, sandcastles to photograph on the beach, inspiration for an adventure with the little girl later on in the week.

a whole new perspective

what is this flower? a mammoth sunflower? a daisy? nay, it's chamomile, the most diminutive little flower ever, no bigger in diameter than the nail on my pinkie. here's another shot of it in a wee little windowsill vase. this tiny flower appears ginormous and detailed because i took the shot with my brand new new macro lens! if you click on the photo to make it bigger, which i hope you always do anyway, you will see the intricate sunflower-like pattern in the center of the flower. you may also notice two inchworms dancing on the flower's head. amazing!

i'm going to need a lot of practice and experience - but oh, the things you and i are going to see through this lens...!

the conundrum of stuff

the older i get, the more stuff i seem to have accumulated. it feels imperative, as i age, that i weed through my stuff and either organize it or throw it out, if only to save a loved one from dealing with my stuff after i am eventually gone. but the older i get, the more i like my stuff, with the memories they provide, the reminders of love and friendship, the mementos of happy times. so, do i need all this stuff? heck no. do i want all this stuff? i'm not sure. all i really know is this: it's not so easy to part with some of a lot of this stuff.

july morning

into the garden early with coffee and the camera...

hosta la vista

alas, someone somewhere has eaten all the large glossy leaves from this huge hosta plant in the garden down by the sitting spot. i do hope its appetite is satisfied and it doesn't go after the others. one of the down sides of rural living.

good camera

back in business with a new memory card for the camera. even though i still had the small cheesy camera that i carry all the time, i was feeling a bit inept and lost without the "good" camera. so i'm relieved to know the card is all formatted correctly and the camera is once again working as it should. from tonight's trial run of around-the-house shots, here's my favorite "vase", an old redware spice jar that once held "cloves & nutmegs".

concert on the common

a free concert on a village green on the fourth of july weekend. folk music with a celtic, french-canadian feel played on guitar, banjo, ukelele, and bodhrán. byob (bring your own blanket) and free popcorn at the back of the crowd. children dancing in the grass as the musicians sing and play. the american flag flying high above the gazebo in a cloudless blue sky as the crowd sings along at the chorus. a summer evening doesn't get more small town new england - or more wonderful - than that!

4th of july

the best fireworks i saw all weekend!

about time

just an ordinary field down the street. but after weeks and weeks of clouds and rain, it's such a treat to be able to see the moon at twilight.

memory card

in the early hours of yesterday morning, after i took the picture of the rabbit, below, the memory card for my good camera, the digital slr, sputtered and, refusing to give up its images, died. the card has lived a long and happy life, and served well, documenting all manner of important and not-so-important events: the girl's wedding, the little girl's birth, numerous vacations to the ocean, family at christmas, snow days, birthdays, children, parades, stars and insects and just about every flower here in the garden. in addition, it's preserved sights and scenes that captivate me and recorded images that i've glimpsed and want to hold in time. it's been a steadfast extension of my mind's eye. that must be why it's called a memory card.

first of the month

a child once shared with me that it was good luck to say "rabbit, rabbit" before anything else upon awakening on the first day of a new month. i usually don't remember to do it and don't even think about it until much later in the day. but today i did remember and now feel oddly satisfied with the fact that i said it! maybe i should go buy a lottery ticket!