phantom kitty

the dairy state

2012-01-23T09:42:00.000-06:00

Had to drive over to Jefferson County on Saturday. With camera in tow, this 20 mile trip took me an hour and a half. I'm pretty sure a handful of you can relate. ;o)

gotten pioneer cabin

2012-01-20T16:04:00.000-06:00

This cabin from the 1850's, sits across the road from Paradise Springs.

It is currently about 5º out and we are getting 6" of fresh snow. There were a dozen cars off the road on my way home today, and one semi that had plowed right into a guardrail. Glad to have made it back in one piece myself. But, now that I'm all warmed up, I should get out there and shovel so my husband can get into the driveway.

The pugs aren't happy about this one bit. Sure looks pretty from behind a window though.

Stay safe and warm, everybody. Happy Friday!

more from paradise

2012-01-17T15:45:00.000-06:00

I'm currently between classes. They all seem to be ending early today since instructors are just going over the syllabus and materials needed, then sending us on our merry way. So, no homework yet means I can sneak in a post...with words.

My classes are at the downtown campus this semester, as oppose to prior ones which were at a larger location, and actually had parking. I have to look into taking the bus downtown to avoid the cost of a ramp all day. Don't need that expense.

Looking forward to the design and art history classes. Sadly, more algebra is also required. Five days a week too! Criminy! The literature class I think I would enjoy more if I were taking it leisurely, but whatchagonnado. Algebra will cut into all the spare time I'd like to be working on the other classes, as I'm a mathematical doofus.

I'll check in on everyone else's blogs when I can, but for the most part I'll probably just be "dumping and running" on my own. Don't feel like you need to comment on every photo. I always appreciate when you do, but the guilt of not having time to comment back starts creeping in about week two...

:o)

paradise springs

2012-01-16T12:34:00.000-06:00

you can smell the rust from the minerals

open water year round

only about 12' tall

witch at the bottom of the waterfall

gp and steve peeking out from the spring house

I have a ton of crap to get done before I start class tomorrow. But when our pal, Steve, suggested we go on a photowalk Sunday, I wasn't about to turn it down. He and my husband went a few months back and I was too busy to join, so I didn't want to miss out this time (twelve year old, that I am). Since we received a fresh, white canvas of snow to shoot, I suggested we head to the Southern Unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest about 45 minutes away. We covered maybe 10 acres of the 22,000+, staying within the Paradise Spring Nature Area. A beautiful little spot that once housed a resort with baths and tennis courts, in the early part of the 1900's. Now, nature has taken back over and only the spring house remains, sans roof, and a few stone foundations that you have to go off the beaten path to look for.

It was a gorgeous walk on a beautiful day, with the silly immaturity of two men who've known each other for thirty odd years. I'd say going was a no-brainer, but they might not appreciate the pun. ;o)

More pix to share as I get to them...

post holiday elephant

2012-01-12T13:17:00.001-06:00

We're currently getting snow!! About 3" so far! To celebrate it actually looking like Christmas, I plan to spend the evening taking down decorations.

If you're curious about the photo on the wall, you can find details on this old post. :o)

still no snow here...

2012-01-11T13:52:00.001-06:00

I love the light in winter streaming in our house. As long as the sun is shining, I don't mind the cold. But that hasn't been a concern either this year. We were in the low 50º's (F) yesterday! And since I needed to make a trip to the post office and "the pig", I decided to do so by bike. Which is just insane. By my standards, anyway. I have a friend in Madison who bikes year round, but our little no-horse town isn't exactly bike-friendly. Basically, your limits are the post office and "the pig".

I'm taking part in a scavenger hunt over at google+, and this last pic is part of some trial and error shots I'm doing. I can't share the one I'm using as we don't reveal our entire set until after judging. But this one is different enough, and I don't have very many google+/blogger cross-followers, so keep this under your hat.

***********

A thank you and shout out to Buttons for so kindly giving me a blogger award! It's meant to be given to undiscovered bloggers with fewer than 200 followers. I really appreciate her acknowledgment but oh-my-gosh, I could never keep up if I had that many people coming here and leaving comments! I love chatting with those who do, and visiting their blogs, but seriously, I don't know how some of you do it with a gazillion followers! It takes me a few hours to make the rounds to the small group of folks I touch base with now! Sometimes, I wonder what I'm doing wrong being so slow. Maybe I need a speed-typing class. I have yet to visit those she recommended along side me! (My god, I suck.)

No pressure, huh?

So, the rules say...

1. Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you.
2. Reveal your top 5 picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.
3. Copy and paste the award on your blog.
4. Have faith that your followers will spread the love to other bloggers.
5. And most of all - have fun!

Here's the thing. I've just spent two hours trying to figure out how many followers my (few) followers have, and I've come up with three obvious contenders. I met these fine folks through flickr and they tend to spend more time there than at their blogs, so you may want to hunt them down that way, if you'd like a speedy response:

Ellen Jo pumps out one painting after another! Holy crap, she is a machine! Plus, she loves travel, kitsch, and photographing Floyd and Ivan in silly hats.

Jeanna loves sweets more than I do! Is this possible? Yes. If there is such a thing as a candy-nerd, she fits the bill.

Heidi is a photographer, designer, single mom and pug-owner that I met through flickr, who happens to live in the same town as my son! But, I have yet to visit my son where he lives, so in turn, yet to meet Heidi.

I'm sure if I tried, I could find two more people but holy crap, I just killed half my day, and I told my husband I'd come in and do taxes this afternoon.

It's probably best I stop accepting awards for the sake of my own sanity...

snack time

2012-01-09T11:39:00.000-06:00

New Dingo sticks!!

I don't use iMovie enough to actually learn the darn program, so I stop at "eh, good enough". It plays a little bit larger in flickr. (Music credit: Theme from The Green Hornet—Al Hirt)

We had a wonderful and warm weekend! Highs near 50º! We had friends over for dinner on Saturday, as sort of a late Christmas celebration. We agreed to get together monthly over the winter since both men suffer from SAD. Luckily, with the temps and sun we've been having, no head-knocking has been needed yet.

Then on Sunday, we took the neighbor girls to see Arthur Christmas, which was pretty entertaining! No surprise really, as it's the folks who brought us Wallace and Gromit. Lizzy declared it was better then Chipwrecked. We're gonna take her word on that one.

long shadows of winter

2012-01-06T09:49:00.000-06:00

wardrobe malfunction

2012-01-05T10:59:00.000-06:00

elvis presley's favorite pound cake

2012-01-04T12:50:00.000-06:00

Holy crap! This recipe is to die for!

Plus, I now know the secret behind the majority of Elvis's weight gain.

suburbia

2012-01-02T11:27:00.001-06:00

My 11-11-11 captures. Yeah, tell me about it...

I shot a leaf macro one day, and thought it had an interesting likeness to a google maps image, so from there I started picking up interesting leaves on my walks with the dogs. I found that the uglier leaves had better patterns then the pretty, solid color ones.

These are all lensbaby shots as it's the only macro I own, using a light table.

I currently have the Rose Bowl Parade on, although I'm not really watching it, I'm always secretly pleased when a west coaster pronounces Wisconsin correctly. Leno seems to think there's an E in the first syllable. As if there's an "East Consin".

It's the little things.

• • • Linked to Lisa's Macro Monday • • •

a cupcake photo shoot!

2012-01-01T17:20:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year, all!!

Between spending much needed time today sorting through photos and burning dvds, I also christened my new Orbis ring flash that my husband got me for Christmas! Woohoo!! I can't wait to try it out on some people!

Meanwhile, we made a stop yesterday over at Cupcakes-a-gogo who now have their own store front on Madison's west side, (Double woohoo!!) and we managed to get these babies all the way home without eating them, so I could photograph them. Now, that is willpower!

They were devoured quickly after this shoot. One cherry, one cranberry-citrus, both amazing! gaaaaah...

Photo Tip: I hit Target's after Christmas sale and picked up several rolls of non-Christmas-looking wrapping paper for these shots. We have a little makeshift studio in our basement, but you can throw a roll of paper over a curtain rod, or the back of a chair, then pull the paper out to make a "sweep" to set your product one. If you want a white backdrop, a roll of freezer wrap works great too! Put the shiny side in so you don't get a glare from your flash. Happy shooting!

some real photos for once

2011-12-29T17:53:00.000-06:00

moxie rhodes

sexual chocolate

greta thorn

daisy chains

kitty larue

gang of five

The last time I posted anything except mobile phone images, was 40º F ago! On the positive side, that's only 40º ago, because November and December have been insanely mild. These were taken back in October on a 82º day. Going over this set, I've decided that my husband took most of the outdoor shots and I took the indoor ones. (Although, I'm behind the lens in this last shot.) Then I did all the potato-chop work. Which explains why they are nearly three months behind schedule. We've actually shot the Peach Pies once since then! I've included a few of those iphone shots here in this set.

At least, at this rate, I'll have images to share all winter other than snow and gray landscapes.

merry christmas to all!

2011-12-25T21:20:00.000-06:00

Recent random shots...

fragile

lady fingers from the neighbors

dipped

capital rotunda

i left a message on the car parked next to ours

christmas buffet

"the artist"

Hope everyone had (is having) a awesome Christmas!! xo!

pies and cookies and sauce. oh my!

2011-12-12T09:52:00.000-06:00

The pie is gone already. The applesauce topped our pumpkin pancakes, yesterday. (gaaaaaah, so good...) The cookies are slowly disappearing as well. This all counts towards my fruit and vegetable intake, right?

You may have noticed a few changes over there in the right column. I cleaned out the link of bloggers I follow because a) they don't update nearly as much as they used to, or b) I follow them on facebook. The few remaining are now in the "blog roll" column. Facebook is most likely the reason they don't blog as much. Me? I'm a glutton for punishment and continue to update every social network known to man.

Which has gotten me nowhere, basically.

I listed my esty shop too. I started it thinking it would help me make a couple bucks to pay for classes. But, there's a lot more to etsy then just plopping down a few products and hoping someone will buy something, so I'm learning. It requires daily interaction of re-faving other items, and getting on the boards to peddle your wares. Things I just don't have time for right now. (Hell, I don't have time to write this as I have a quiz at noon today to study for!)

Ugh.

Seven more days of classes. Finals the week before Christmas...

I need a cookie to power through this.

hivinnieiloveyoucanicomein?

2011-12-08T09:02:00.000-06:00

Kensi's tale was going full tilt at seeing Vinnie. Whereas Vinnie just kept averting her eyes. "Ugh, you're lucky there's glass here, dog."

more randomness

2011-11-30T18:11:00.000-06:00

november fields

they're grrrreat!

Hello friends and lurkers! On Monday, my mom fell and broke her hip. On Tuesday, she had surgery to replace it. Today, she's already hobbling around with a walker. Kind of amazing, huh? She should be home Friday. Like it never happened. Tonight she told me that Dad did the dishes! I told her to milk this thing.

Meanwhile, I'm overwhelmed in school and for some reason signed up for a photographic-alphabetic scavenger hunt on google+. It was due today but I only got through 16 letters. I don't know what I was thinking.

"I'll just take photos with my phone as I come across them!"

Um, sure. It's a contest so I can't share the whole set yet, but let me just say that A was for Acorn... Have you ever looked for an acorn in Wisconsin in November? I must've pulled over at every oak tree within a ten mile radius of our house only to find fat squirrels looking down at me pointing. Laughing. Patting their stomachs, and picking the acorns from their teeth.

Jerks.

I managed to find one wormy one and shot it's good side.

random thanksgiving pix

2011-11-26T15:39:00.000-06:00

dad's shop wall

in his walk-in cooler. currently full of venison and apples

kensi, waiting for turkey to hit the table

i plan to forget everything i've learned about the endocrine system when this class is over

2011-11-23T00:29:00.001-06:00

That's all I have to say about that, really.

Hope all of you have a stuffing-filled Thanksgiving! :o)

antique pool balls

2011-11-19T13:19:00.000-06:00

Purchased at an auction many years ago already. I always figured I'd do something arty with them, but as of yet, they just sit in an old wooden bowl. I've since sold half of them at one of our yard sales. Hopefully, that buyer has more ambition than I.

But hey. Here's a photo! That's kind of arty, right?

peach pies

2011-11-12T09:48:00.000-06:00

Shot last month on an 80º day. About half way through processing. Teaser...

red

2011-11-10T12:13:00.000-06:00

Through the glass of my sunroof, using a raindrop as a "filter". Wet snow, actually. (poop.)
Click the image to go to flickr if you like, where I posted a couple more shots.

If I don't check in tomorrow, I hope you all have a happy Nigel Tufnel Day!

heron

2011-11-09T18:24:00.000-06:00

I don't know why this photo turned out as dramatic as it did. The surrounding sky wasn't this dark to the naked eye.

Some day I'll pick up a real camera again, but in all honesty, all my memory cards are full. If my anatomy instructor would stop throwing tests at me every three days!

Egad...

In other news: It snowed today! But it was in the 60ºs last week, so I'm putting my foot down. Who do I need to talk to about this foofaraw?

graze/grace

2011-11-04T21:59:00.000-05:00

Another beautiful day. So, I took the scenic route home from Madison.

Happy Friday, everyone...
:o)

"green" pug

2011-11-02T18:01:00.002-05:00

Kensi likes the crinkly noise that empty plastic bottles make. Toy wise, they last thirty times longer than anything with a squeaker.

Win-win.

As I loaded this to flickr, I noticed it was my 3,000th photo. Not sure if that's something to celebrate, or a strong argument for having me committed.

wisconsin autumn

2011-10-30T11:50:00.000-05:00

What a gorgeous October we've had! These shots were taken at the Stoughton dog park. It's such a lovely location. I shot a family of four there yesterday (sans dog).

I had hoped to have a pumpkin carved/decorated by now but I don't think that's going to happen this year. Then again, it's fitting that I help pave the road to hell during Halloween, right? ;o)

not a morning pug

2011-10-28T10:38:00.000-05:00

*yawn*

cloud cover

2011-10-25T19:56:00.000-05:00

aw yeah

2011-10-20T20:41:00.001-05:00

One benefit of living near Madison?

Wienermobile sightings.

raking with the neighbor girls

2011-10-16T23:19:00.000-05:00

Knocking all the leaves out of the tree...

...so they have something to jump in.

silly hat club, lifetime members

oh. and i have a mobile phone now.

2011-10-14T10:44:00.000-05:00

The last person in America to join the 21st century.

It's been a week and I've yet to talk to anyone on it.

pies in the hayloft

2011-10-13T08:37:00.000-05:00

A shot of Daisy and Moxie taken from my husband's photostream. We had the pleasure of shooting Madison's burlesque troop, the Peach Pies, last Sunday! A barn full of beauties! Such fun!

Unfortunately, I'm currently in the middle of midterms, so processing those 9Gs worth of photos is not going to happen overnight.

I could make good use of a clone of myself these days. Or two, as I currently have a hankerin' to make some cupcakes.

Hankerin'... Could this post get any more countrified? I should throw in a "yeehaw!!"

the last of 'em

2011-10-12T01:10:00.000-05:00

I seem to be shooting quite a bit vertically these days. hmmm...

You can see the entire set from the day here if you so desire. My pal, TLC, (that's her reflection in the building) has a few on her flickr page as well. But, I know for a fact she took more than four. I guess she's busy. Newly engaged and all. I'm lucky I dragged her away long enough to go on a photo shoot with me!

;o)

(p.s. "Forward" is Wisconsin's motto. Even though we pretty much took a massive step backwards in 2011. However, it's much too late at night to get all political up in here.)

beauty everywhere

2011-10-08T08:46:00.001-05:00

Sorry to dump and run, and for neglecting all my blogging friends. I've got three tests to prepare for next week, and now two model shots this weekend. eep.

Currently, the sun is hitting the yellow leaves of our maple in the front yard as they blow off the tree, and geese are honking overhead. Makes my trigger finger quite itchy.

Hope you're having an equally beautiful weekend... :o)

worldwide photo walk 2011

2011-10-07T02:36:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday, a friend and I attended Madison's chapter of Scott Kelby's Worldwide Photo Walk. Something I had foolishly signed up for a month and a half ago thinking I could squeeze it in when the time came. Sure! You'll notice I'm processing photos at two in the morning? But I don't have class tomorrow so I'm taking advantage of the fact I can sleep in.

Honestly, I still have photos from August to go through. Plus, it's hard not to keep shooting as autumn is in full swing and there's beautiful color everywhere! AND, we've been back in the 70º this week! Woo hoo!! It's awfully hard to study outside with leaves littering your keyboard. I know, rough, huh? Hopefully I can get the rest of this series up this week as we have a model shoot this weekend.

I could get so much more done if I could just do without sleep.

Ok, quick story before I head to bed...

This morning I took the pugs in to the vet. It was still early so they hadn't pooped yet, which always means that when they get to the vet, they'll poop. So, they did their business last minute, I took them in, they got their shots, their nails trimmed, yadda, yadda. On our way out, they perused the yard again, then I put them in the car while I went back to clean up their poop from earlier. Me, being the good Samaritan, cleaned up three addition piles. Well, that'll be the last time because I gave a pug an extra minute to find and hit the door lock button!

Yes, the keys were on the seat next to them.

I went back in to see if I could call my husband to run home and get our spare key, but he works around 18 miles away, so the pugs would have to sit it out for a while. But, the vet assistants just chimed in that one of them could drive me home, which is probably less than two miles from the vet office. So, we returned and freed my little criminals in about five!

Note to self, leave a few biscuits, a fifth of whiskey and a deck of cards in the back seat to preoccupy them, in case this should happen again.

max on the patio

2011-10-02T21:29:00.000-05:00

"i'm bummed..."

"summer's ending..."

"can i get a redo?"

grapes diptych

2011-09-16T00:33:00.000-05:00

50mm lens, separated from the camera.

let's eat!

2011-09-09T21:54:00.000-05:00

Hubby and I are celebrating our 16th anniversary today! Although, I guess I over fed him because he is dozing off on the couch. Ah, young love...

My gift to him was paella and a bottle of port. And he got me (well, us) tickets to see Tim Minchin, who's coming to Madison in October! Which I am all squeeee about!!

Not to mention, it's currently 64º, I think I aced my anatomy quiz today, and tomorrow we're going to friendzes' house for a bonfire, where both sons plus one wife will be in attendance! Woohoo! There may even be more bocce ball involved...

Life is pri-tty darn sweet, if I may say so.

xo...

2011-09-06T11:04:00.000-05:00

I've posted this image already, but today my parents (far right) celebrate their 54th wedding anniversary and I don't have time to locate and scan in another photo of them together, so this will have to do.

It will also have to suffice as their card from me.

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!!

etsy

2011-09-06T00:25:00.000-05:00

I'm broke.

...and Physics class is expensive, so I started selling prints on etsy. Feel free to pimp me out.

Thanks y'all!

phantomkitty on etsy

young man...

2011-09-03T12:34:00.000-05:00

I wanted to mention on my last post that I need to take a hiatus from blogging so I can dedicate my time to homework instead, but my computer was spinning and not really wanting me to write anything. A sign?

Yes. Here's a sign.

You'll be looking at it for a while. I won't be coming around to view your blogs much either as I feel I need to read things I'll be graded on instead. Sorry. I know I'll probably lose some of you for not being a dedicated blogger, but I'm afraid I'll start mismanaging my time. If I check in with one of you, it'll snowball into checking in with 25 of you, and then my morning will be lost.

Fact is, I'm a slow reader. Also a re-reader being a tad on the dyslexic side. So, naturally book-learnin' ain't my thing, so I need to work a little harder at it. I'll be adding pix from time to time, but not writing much. No pressure for you to engage in these one-sided posts. :o)

Meanwhile, I hope each of you have a wonderful Labor Day weekend, and autumn yet to come.

Thanks for all the fish...

dragonfly

2011-09-02T23:43:00.000-05:00

ellie

2011-08-26T16:08:00.000-05:00

You can go to the first link in the list to the right if you'd like to see more of Ellie. She certainly is a beautiful dog...

Once again, come Monday, I'll be heading back to school full time, so my posts will be few and far between. I'll try to get another one in over the weekend, but in case I don't, I didn't want to just leave you all hanging. I'll do my best to make weekly rounds and see how all of you are doing.

In the meantime, I hope all of you along the east coast are staying safe. Wisconsin's weather has been so absolutely prefect for weeks now, that I almost feel guilty about it.

Almost.

That said, the dogs and I are off to take a walk. We may even run into Ellie.

Later, tators...

magoo, before and after

2011-08-24T18:30:00.001-05:00

I shared this tutorial over on G+, and thought I'd include the info here for anyone interested. This tut is using Photoshop. If any of the steps are unclear, just ask! :o)

here are some simple, beginner corrections to make a shot frame worthy! this shot of magoo was ok, but needed a little help...

1. a light sharpening on his face (i go the duplicate layer, high pass route, masking away what i don't want included. set that layer to overlay or soft light.)
2. dodge the dark areas of his face. (5%, highlight or midtones. start small)
3. clone some green grass into the brown spots (watch for obvious repetition!)
4. a light burning to the edges of an image usually helps the center to pop out! (again, start small, 5% midtones/shadows)
5. i then cropped out his rear leg. just didn't like my eye going to his knee. (as shown with dark border.)
6. a little general curve rarely hurts.

that's it! simple! hope i've offered some info you can use to help a problem image. :o)

fresh on the market!

2011-08-23T19:49:00.001-05:00

open floor plan

sunny porch

ample seating

central air

Contact Blight Realty for a personal tour of this property today!

**********

A few folks, Tricia included, have recommended I link up to Barn Charm this week! Although this post features the house on the property, please be sure to check out my last posts for the area in and around the barn. And thanks to everyone for all the kudos this location has received. :o)

homestead

2011-08-22T14:13:00.000-05:00

a rustic beauty

childhood, key lost

ajar

approaching the house...

forgotten

2011-08-21T12:32:00.001-05:00

We've driven by this abandoned property that sits just outside of town, a thousand times. Right now, at the height of summer, you can't even see the buildings due to all the trees and brush. I still look that way even though currently, there's nothing to see.

On this day, I was returning home, had my camera, and two gentlemen stood talking in the garage of the house across the street. I pulled over and asked if they owned the property, and whether they cared if I shot it. They didn't. So, I spent the next 45 minutes roaming through waist high brush (thorny ones too) shooting all this beautiful decay. This was my first look in the barn.

Now, of course, I want to go back and do some night shots. But the terrain was so full of branches, old fencing, and metal I'd probably break an ankle and become breakfast for coyote.

Maybe when the snow returns. Then you'll see me from the road.

Linking to Tammy's—

hello shmo! whatdaya know?

2011-08-20T16:08:00.001-05:00

More of Shmo (Schmo?) and his "sister" Itty over at Who Shot Your Dog?

ladies: naked & dressed

2011-08-19T17:30:00.001-05:00

My resurrection lilies have exploded from the earth! I'm amazed each year as they appear to come from no where with little warning. We have three different clusters of these beauties in our yard, and I had no idea what they were when we moved in more than ten years ago now. My neighbor referred to them as "naked ladies" which offers a very different type of search in google, so be sure to add "flowers".

For all the plants my Great-gramma Hippy grew in her garden, this one was new to me. But then I was small and was probably more interested in her garden swing. I do recall her hollyhocks towering over me. There's a plant you don't see much anymore.

About her name...Great-gramma got stuck with the nickname "Hippy" because Great-grampa was known as "Hip" or "Hipper". I have no idea how this originated. That's a question for Gramma when I see her. They did however, acquire these labels before the words hip or hippy were part of common vocabulary. They could've gotten stuck with much worse, I suppose.

Bone and Boney. Skipper and Skippy. Jerk and Jerky...

finale

2011-08-18T17:02:00.000-05:00

Ha! Fooled you! I said to miss a day if you were sick of seeing cars, then I go and skip a day! Sucker...

This is the last of the car pix! Yay!! I've found that if you upload too many of the same thing on flickr you don't get many hits. One nice car? Hey, looks great! Forty-seven nice cars? Holycrapenoughalready.

I decided to feature a Ford Galaxy (pic 2) 'cuz it's one that my uncle Donnie owned, and the Ford Econoline (pic 3) 'cuz this was my Grampa's work truck which he drove into the ground. I remember in the later years, you could see the road whizzing past you through the rusty floorboards. This one was considerably better shape.

I had one photo shoot this morning and another this evening, so hopefully I can catch up with each of you late tonight or tomorrow. Hope you're having the same gorgeous weather that we are here in Wisconsin! :o)

cars cars cars cars cars...

2011-08-16T23:48:00.001-05:00

My Dad had a white T-bird just like the third car here when I was a kid. He sold it before I was old enough to drive. I don't why he hated me so.

The dog's name (last photo) is Bronson. He was a little freaked out because a car had backfired. The child is not related. And in my way frankly, because I only wanted a shot of Bronson. (I'm such a jerk.)

Ain't gonna lie to you. There are more cars coming yet. Skip a day if you like.

varooooooom!!

2011-08-15T18:26:00.000-05:00

I have a love/hate relationship with vintage car shows. It's best that I stick to the small town ones to keep from filling two 4gig cards.

This set will grow as the week progresses.

dolly

2011-08-14T16:22:00.000-05:00

ISN'T SHE ADORABLE?!

Yes, Dolly is worthy of caps lock. You can see the whole set here.

fennel. better to photograph than to eat

2011-08-13T21:18:00.000-05:00

It certainly looks pretty, doesn't it? I like the braided appearance. Not to say it tasted awful. The balsamic vinegar and orange juice reduction meant to go on the top, was much better served on the chicken, and was even a big hit on strawberries for dessert!

As for fennel? Meh.

friendship

2011-08-10T15:23:00.000-05:00

Isaac giving Kensi some sugar.

Remember the other day, when I said my brother and nephew were passing though on their way to Chicago? Um, yeah, about that...Monday's game was rained out and rescheduled for Thursday, so they asked if they could stay until then. At this point, I've already seen more of the Disney channel then I would have hoped humanly possible. At least they didn't bring a gaming system with them this time.

After three days, I'm really missing public radio. Sadly, I'm jonesing for falling stock market reports and London riot updates. Ah, good times...

jungle cat

2011-08-09T00:15:00.002-05:00

Models can be such prima donnas sometimes.

More of Vinnie's "session" here.

Oh, almost forgot! Scott Kelby is sponsoring another worldwide photowalk the weekend of October 1st! Go here to find a host city near you, that register before all the spots are filled. It costs nodda and you get to spend a couple hours with like-mind ~~obsessive~~ photogs. I'm already signed up for the Madison shoot. Maybe I'll meet ya there!

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This photo was entered into the I Heart Faces photo challenge—
I Heart Faces
(for some reason, my "insert image" button is ignoring me.)

colors, shades & tones

2011-08-08T02:05:00.000-05:00

I thought it'd be better to composite the day's flower shots into one, so as not to overwhelm anyone. Instead, I overwhelmed myself with color and wondered what it would look like in b/w. Not sure which one I prefer.

Don't bother asking me what all of these are. I could maybe name five. The bottom image, second column looks to me like queen anne's lace but in purplish-red. I didn't even know that Mother Nature had made this an option. I love the red, weepy thing on the top of column three.

midwest greenery

2011-08-07T16:20:00.001-05:00

Gotta wonder how many more pix I'd have taken if the bridge that went over the river here, wasn't closed to traffic. The farm shown yesterday was reached by foot.

More yet to explore on another day, I suppose.

Today I spent indoors, cleaning and organizing. My brother and nephew are coming to spend the night, before heading into the city to catch a Cubs game tomorrow and transform themselves into sweaty, hot dog-eating, bleacher bums.

Hey, hey, whadd'ya say!

Do any one you have a particular summer activity (like a baseball game) that you try not to miss each year?

rustic red

2011-08-06T13:50:00.001-05:00

A few more captures from one particularly lovely farm along Rustic Road #20. As I was standing along the road with my camera, the owner pulled out of his driveway and waved, so I'm probably not the first barn nerd he's encountered.

If you click the first photo, I've included a look at this shot on flickr, straight out of camera (sooc). I thought the power lines were a little distracting here, and removed them.

The last shot is from a nature trail that cuts along the side of their farm, so you're looking into their backyard. I had to shoot over my head for this as the wildflowers were so tall, they are all I could see. :o)

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Late entry to Barn Charm Click to see others!

state of wisconsin, state of mind

2011-08-03T17:18:00.001-05:00

I find it difficult to drive past one of our rustic roads without going down it. Especially when I've got a camera with me. Some day, when (if) I grow up, I'm gonna live on one. This is R20, off Hwy 51 between Stoughton and McFarland.

You'll be seeing more pix of this particular road when I get around to processing them all. (Of course, there are quite a few. You know me.) Meanwhile, if you have any WRR images to share, please add them to the flickr group! :o)

a wonderful bird is the pelican...

2011-08-01T17:36:00.003-05:00

a wonderful bird is the pelican
his beak holds more than his belican
he can hold in his beak
enough food for a week
and i'm damned if i know how the helican

Actually, I'm even more confused as to why they're here in Wisconsin. The neighbor gave me a heads up that these guys were hanging out in some wetlands about a mile out of town. Considering the rainy summer we've had compared to much of the rest of the country, I suppose we were looking mighty fine from 100 feet up. These are the only three shots I got because as I was getting out of the car, a semi truck came barreling towards me, and frightened them all farther out into the marsh. I suppose I should be thanking him for the actions shots.

Classes are finished so I can once again commit myself to wasting precious time blogging! Until fall classes start, that is. I've been shooting this whole time so I currently have 8 gigs of images that need processing (which I will never find time for). Someone will simply have to share them posthumously. I'm sure their value will double by then. (As in 0x2=0.)

This weekend we headed to the north woods and spent time with Gramma who turned 89! She had baked "better than sex cake" to serve up to anyone who came by to wish her a happy birthday. The cake was delicious, but my husband begged to differ over the title.

My blog quietly celebrated it's fifth anniversary in July. I was too busy to plan any formal celebration in it's honor. I'm sure it will find some way of rebelling when it reaches it's teenage years, or put me in some low-grade nursing home when the time comes.

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Joined in on Tammy's "behind the camera" group this week. (I always seem to think of these groups after already posting. I'll catch on one day...)

three-fer

2011-07-22T17:15:00.000-05:00

home office (complete with laundry and lounge areas)

unpaid interns/cleaning staff

world's saddest employee

Poor Max. We think he may have arthritis in his front legs because he has a slight limp and his top half begins to droop after standing thirty seconds or so. Plus there's the fact the only time we've ever noticed him wagging his tail is when he's dreaming. His nickname of "sad boy" seems pretty fitting. He's happy to clean Kensi's ears though. That's when she pulls out the sad look.

werewolves and vampires

2011-07-19T14:18:00.002-05:00

Today, I uploaded my final paper for my online English class. I think she gave us a break for this last project as everything leading up to now had required tons of research, and was heavy in detail. Ugh. This time we got to pick from several different categories, were to keep it short, and only had to describe which of the writing techniques we used during the course of this class. Which I won't bother to address here. But I thought I'd share my final with you just for shits and giggles. I can't imagine I'll get anything other than an A! Seriously, I'm no writer. I'm good for a few one-liners accompanying a photo. Hopefully, I'll get back to my primary goal of nonsense soon.

Image of Barnabas Collins, swiped from the internet

WEREWOLVES AND VAMPIRES

     In recent years, we’ve seen a large shift in villains of the horror genre. Basically, they are rarely seen as villains any more. Writers and movie producers are taking what once was considered horror-based creatures and have turned them into love interests. Where have we gone wrong?

     I speak, of course, of werewolves and vampires. Bloodthirsty monsters of the night, ripping flesh from bodies, or sucking them dry of their blood. Those are the characters I grew up with. Barnabas Collins on Dark Shadows was so creepy with those sinister eyes and sunken cheeks; you’d be hard pressed to find anyone willing to get within thirty feet of him. I used to bury my head under the covers at night thinking he might fly into my bedroom. Now, we can look forward to Johnny Depp as Barnabas Collins, and this time my attitude is, “I should be so lucky.” Why, even the 1960’s version of a vampire is exponentially more appealing than 1922’s Nosferatu. Though the years, they remain very pale, and rather gifted in some area or another because they’ve had hundreds of years to practice speaking Russian or play piano, but there was a day when vampires used to disintegrate in sunlight, where now they sparkle. It’s my guess that in another forty years, their bite will cure AIDS.

     I recall seeing An American Werewolf in London many moons ago. (Pun.) David was another character that frightened the hell out of me. I don’t remember him having a chiseled body however. I’m sure werewolves get quite a workout, but if they’re going to have their clothes torn to shreds, why just their shirts? I conducted a simple search online and found a link describing how one can tell if someone is indeed a werewolf. It listed; increasing violence, restlessness, and unprovoked rage. It’s my guess, one would find a similar laundry list if they were to search “signs someone is on steroids”. Maybe there are more werewolves out there than we care to admit. The janitors at Gold’s Gym may have additional insight.

     I’ve also observed that these days, you tend to see both these creatures everywhere together. Seems you can’t throw a vampire without hitting a werewolf.

     Now, what’s the story with zombies? When did they get so damn fast?

odetta

2011-07-17T13:07:00.001-05:00

Whole set of Odetta here. These two are my favorite. Taken the weekend of the fourth. That's how far behind I am.

This weekend Edgerton celebrates Tobacco Heritage Days. (Holy crap, it's on facebook!) A few years ago, they dropped the word "tobacco" and the old-timers got pissed. We pretty much avoid anything to do with it. Some years, we've gotten down to the old car show to get some shots, but Odetta came to us this year, so meh. We did take part in the city-wide rummage sale by throwing a bunch of ~~crap that didn't sell at last year's sale~~ wonderful wares in with our neighbor's pile this year. We ended up making $85. I got a feeling they may have counted wrong though cuz that seems like too much. Let's just say, our taste in goods don't jive well with tobacco spitters.

Just minutes ago, the Shriner's drove by in their tiny cars, fez tails fluttering in the wind! Wheee!! The parade route is 6-8 blocks from here (I'm assuming), and they must gather in the church parking lot several blocks in the other direction, because every year they tool right down our street. Sadly, there's always one or two being towed on the return trip. Those cars must have some seriously low standings on Kelly Blue Book.

dancing to cajun/ride to the clouds

2011-07-14T14:28:00.001-05:00

Scenes from Madison's la fete de Marquette celebration last week. Check out my flickr friend, Craig's scenes from the same time and location. He shoots using a kite! How awesome is that?

Sorry to still be in "dump and run" mode. English comes to a close this week, so I may have few free hours to spare in the week ahead. I was talking rather casually to two people at school this week; an instructor and a receptionist, and brought up that I was taking three class. The response from both was "WHAT?!!" I said to the receptionist, "That's the reaction I got from my algebra teacher too! Isn't this done?" She said, "Sure, but they're condensed, so three summer classes is like six winter ones!"

It's probably a good thing I didn't know this going in.

"no, don't eat me! i'm your fairy god-(craw)daddy here to grant you a wish! you're not buying what...?"

2011-07-10T23:49:00.000-05:00

Hey folks! Thought you lost me there, didn't cha? I thought since I actually had some time left over in the day (where homework was done before midnight), I'd throw images from the craw-fish boil on flickr. Frankly, I'm still too tired to reload them all here so you can view them there if you like. Apologies to Luke and Tria's friends that I didn't get any photos of. Really, they do have friends...

a quick preview of photos to come...

2011-07-04T09:05:00.000-05:00

I'm up to my armpits in anthropology essays and algebra exams, but Saturday all was set aside for my son's 30th birthday party. Classes are finished in two weeks...

Will she find time to post party pix before then? Place your bets, folks!

harumph

2011-07-02T00:37:00.000-05:00

seriously, cat. stop already.

2011-06-27T21:40:00.000-05:00

Yes. That's all off of him. He has a few bald spots now. The more vigorously I comb him, the more he loves it. I'm practically abusing him and he's purring and rolling around like he's getting a deep massage.

Our cat's a freak.

dog fest "dock dogs" event

2011-06-25T23:36:00.002-05:00

lab in flight

"i wanna jump too!"

unsure about this whole thing

Sorry about the infrequent posts and visits, folks. I'm so dog-done busy these days, that these pix are from two weeks ago when we went to Dog Fest. I didn't get many photos though because I had put in what is apparently our suckiest camera battery, and it died about ten photos in. Dem's da breaks. This is from the dock diving competition, and the last dog shown here was just seven months old and had never attempted this before. His handler was a young boy of about twelve. The crowd was cheering them both on, trying to get the young pup to jump off the pier. But as you can see, he opted for wading in.

I'm at the half-way point with summer school now and averaging about 95%! Woohoo!! Yes, that's counting algebra. Honestly, that number would be closer to 80% if my son, Luke, weren't tutoring me every Friday. (So, thanks for that, dear boy.) Over summer, they cram in a whole semester's worth of crap in six weeks. So, my new found abilities in math tell me I have three weeks of class left!

Woohoo²!!

fans of the wiener

2011-06-21T17:54:00.003-05:00

Only in Wisconsin can you make a facebook post about where the Wienermoblie is going to be, and wind up in a parking lot with a bunch of friends a few hours later eating hot dogs.

I posted the rest on facebook this time 'cuz it's a bunch of people you don't know. But you're welcome to be nosy...meet the husband if you like...

Our friend Francee, on the left, is up from Miami. Her mother volunteers for Echo, who hired the Wienermobile to make an appearance and draw a crowd. Francee begged them to take her for a ride around the parking lot when they arrived, but they said they couldn't for insurance reasons. "No one has to know! she pleaded. I guess she needed to grease some palms to make that happen.

If you want to see some older weiner shots, go here. I promise no congressmen. But I have to say, this one is my personal favorite! Taken at the Milwaukee Art Museum with a Holga camera and a Polaroid back. (Mental note: search out more Polaroid film.)

Ok, that's plenty of wiener for now. Nothing says there won't be more in the future. I do live in Oscar Mayer territory. Why this particular vehicle has California plates is beyond me. Blasphemous even.

collapsing/cream brick goat house

2011-06-17T12:58:00.000-05:00

Some wonderful old buildings in the farmland between Edgerton and Cambridge, Wisconsin. If you look closely at the brick building, you'll see it houses goats. If anyone had been around, I probably would've asked if I could shoot inside. I was curious to see how many goats were climbing in the rafters. But then, hubby was waiting in the car, so he probably wouldn't have been too excited about that prospect. Considering he didn't bring a book or anything along with him.

ride the drive

2011-06-13T18:06:00.000-05:00

Argh! I'm never gonna keep up my blogging/visiting with this whole school thing getting in my way! :oP

To top off homework and tests, we had such a hectic weekend. The Cambridge Pottery Festival, dinner with the in-law's (Mom W's birthday) and Mounds Dog Fest. All those shots are still in the camera. It seemed faster for me to open one from the weekend before when Madison had their Ride the Drive. I had mentioned we'd been to this before and I didn't have many captures that varied from prior years, BUT seeing this image a second time, I realized it was a good candidate for a faux tilt shift effect.

So, yup. That's what that is.

I've posted a how-to link in the past, so just click "tilt shift" in the labels to find it. And if you try this yourself, please let me know, or include your link! I'd love to see what you did with this technique!

kitty & moxie

2011-06-11T02:53:00.002-05:00

We're so happy for our friends, Kitty & Moxie, who've hit the big time, and had their first show in Vegas last week! Hubby drew this illo and made stickers for them to hand out! Cool, huh? Sounds like the show was a big hit (according to all the love they're getting on facebook)! We've seen their act locally, although it would've been a blast to see in such a huge venue. Seated next to Penn Jillette. Or Wayne Newton.

Um, let's just go with Penn Jillette.

You can watch one of their acts here, but turn your volume way down as the audio is awful. Also, these women are burlesque performers, so skin is shown.

Maybe it's too late to point out my liberal views concerning the nude form. Didn't mean to shock any newbies. We raised our boys with the belief that seeing a nude body on screen is more natural then seeing someone's head getting blown off. Guess we're just unamerican in that regard.

a walk in the park

2011-06-10T00:16:00.000-05:00

yay! new monkey bars!

bouncy thing, debounced

timber(!)

out on a limb

it fell, then crawled three feet away

pick-up sticks

a lovely park view

Wanted to share scenes of the damage from last night's 100mph winds. These were taken at a park two and half miles from our house. The wind started up pretty unexpectedly. We have this 3-cornered canvas canopy (you can see a tiny bit here) that detached itself from the tree and was whipping up against the side of the house and up onto the roof! My poor hubby had to go out there with a ladder to take it down. "Can you bring in my potted tomatoes and peppers too?!" I shouted into the wind.

Aren't I considerate?

"Honey, could you please put your life on the line to bring in my $8 worth of produce?"

To be fair (your honor), it didn't appear all that scary.

...from the safety of the porch.

heavy

2011-06-08T18:50:00.000-05:00

My peonies have all burst open in the last two or three days! I went out (in the 90º heat) yesterday to take a few shots, but the few bunches I brought into the house are much happier then what's still out there, smoldering. This morning a freak thunderstorm came through so most of them are now lying on the ground. Along with about 45 pounds of tree limbs.

So, do you care to guess how I got the shot above? Hint...

No camera is needed!

Ok, enough suspense. I simply laid them on the scanner with the lid open. You've probably all done this with your face, right? Well, why not try it with something attractive? Ha! I'm speaking for myself there, folks.

I got a pretty scan of some tulips a few years ago, which worked much better than peonies. The weight of the peonies pressed them onto the glass, smashing them. After a couple different attempts, I decided a single flower was the best way to go. The two flowers in the background are being hand held. Verrrrrrry still. I also experimented moving the flowers.

But then I remembered I have homework now and should stop screwing around. Ah, things never change...

We've got more storms heading our way this evening. Because the thunder gods demand I collect branches twice in 24 hours. Homework be dammed!

heads of state/thugs

2011-06-05T18:27:00.000-05:00

Today Madison held another Ride The Drive event, where several major streets are closed to vehicles for six hours. We went up to take photos, but things seemed a little more lackadaisical this year so I really didn't capture anything terribly exciting or different then prior years.

What really made my day was when we saw the Klement Sausages making an appearance at the capital! Can I get a woot?! For those of you unfamiliar with these fine gentlemen, they have their own wiki-page! I don't think they're even the Brewer's official mascot, as that title goes to Bernie Brewer, but I seriously don't know anyone who cares about Bernie.

Even his wife left him back in 1994.

I mean, come on, he slides into a mug of beer every time there's home-run. The guy's a lush.

The Sausages are the real stars. Put "sausage race" in youtube and you'll see what I mean. I even featured them in our Christmas card one year. I thought I had shared that on flickr, but apparently not. Note to self: Scan sausages.

In other (major, life-altering) news, expect to see less of me around here for the next couple of months. Tomorrow, I head back to school. Been unemployed for far too long, so it's time to take drastic measures. Will try to make the rounds to say hello, and possibly do a "dump and run" on my own blog when I can, but I imagine I'll be up to my eyeballs in homework.

Sure hope my English teacher asks me to use "lackadaisical" in a sentence, because I am prepared to impress!

cold sesame noodles

2011-06-04T21:02:00.000-05:00

My thanks to Samantha for sharing this super, yummy recipe! Isn't the interweb fantastic? I didn't have any Chinese egg noodles in the house, so I substituted Thai rice noodles. (Because who doesn't have those in their pantry, right?) When hubby and I were half way finished, I remembered I had some crushed peanuts left over from a satay recipe, so we ended up throwing those on too. Ow, baby.

As you can see, unlike Samantha, I like cilantro very much, thank you.

don't try this at home

2011-06-04T09:04:00.002-05:00

I take lots of shots with my lensbaby lens, and if you've been coming around here for a while, you could very well be sick of them. But, these are not lensbaby captures. Ha! Gotcha! (*yawn* "Where is this going, pk?") In this case, I removed my 50mm f1.4 from the body of the SLR, and flipped it over, shooting backwards through the lens. Getting a focal point using this technique is even harder than with a lensbaby, in my opinion. You're manipulating the camera and the lens independently, while shooting uber-macro! Prepare to do some breathe holding.

By all means, go ahead and "try this is home" if you like, but keep in mind the inside of your camera body is being exposed to the elements. Pick a breeze-free, lint-free, dog-hair-free zone. Get your shot, and reattach your lens, pronto. Or hey, maybe you like the awesome effects that dirt produces on your images. I'm not here to judge.

I'm here to remind you that experimenting is fun!*

*But don't do drugs, kids.
____________________

Nancy has her Sunday Best post up, so I'm adding this to the line up. Pop over and check out some other blogger's faves! :o)

i wash myself with a rag on a stick

2011-06-03T17:00:00.001-05:00

When I saw Isaac in this position, licking his belly, I said to my son, Cub, who was staying here for a couple days, "Holy crap, he's so fat, it looks like he's sitting on another cat!" We laughed at his expense. Isaac is actually Cub's cat, but his apartment doesn't allow pets, so we ~~are stuck with~~ have Isaac for now. Honestly, we only fill his dish once a day.

Guess I need to invest in a smaller dish.

It may look like he has an attitude, but he really is the sweetest cat. He doesn't bite or claw. Just rubs and head butts. Can knock a pug right over if they don't see him coming. And pugs are pretty sturdy as far as dogs go.

Wasn't it Meow tse Tung who said, "The best defense is a good offense"?

laundry day

2011-06-02T15:16:00.000-05:00

Isaac being his helpful self. I think his back is to me in this shot. It's hard to tell. Usually if you make eye contact with him, he sprints towards you. "She's looking this way, so naturally she wants to pet me." He's all about the love.

And currently, the shedding. He's the reason these sheets needed washing.

lemon/lime shortbread

2011-06-01T18:37:00.000-05:00

Here's the shortbread recipe for you cookie lovers out there...

It is a Martha Stewart recipe that I adapted a tiny bit. I don't bother to roll mine out. Just chill in the form of a tube, and slice them to the desired thickness. I obviously forgo the sandwich part as I like one thicker cookie.

I make the frosting a little thicker too. Six ounces of cream cheese, and one cup of sugar is plenty.

And as mentioned, I went with lime here just because I had some. If I were taking these to some function, I'd stick with lemon as not to confuse people into thinking my cookies are broccoli-flecked.

eat up

2011-06-01T14:30:00.000-05:00

Made chicken tortilla soup and cornbread last night. Then I turned the left over lime rinds into lemon/lime shortbread. Yum, yum, and yum. Didn't get the cookies frosted until this morning, but hubby likes his shortbread naked anyway.

lush

2011-05-31T12:42:00.001-05:00

jack-in-the-pulpit

trillium

A couple more shade-lovers making an appearance in the yard. I planted trillium two years ago, so this is the first year they're flowering. I don't remember planting a purple one. Which comes as no surprise to me, 'cuz I'll walk from the living room to the kitchen and forget what I was going in there for. "Oh right, I'm hungry."

Anyhoo, everything that should be in the ground now, is. The garden, the potted veggies on the patio, my herb garden, the annual flowers... this, granted I can manage to drive by any more greenhouses without going in. So, no. I'm probably not finished. My front yard is actually pretty bare. It's considerably smaller then the back and has four humongous trees on it. Which is great considering the house faces south, and is 100% shade, so we hardly ever use the a/c. It was 90º here yesterday but we didn't know until we stepped out. On the downside, the lawn on that side is 50% moss and pine needles. Our magnolia tree and one lovely cluster of wild geraniums have all this responsible on their little shoulders to do it some justice. I seriously wish Yard Crashers or Curb Appeal would show up and de-crapify things.

Until they do get here though, I'll be out back in more attractive surroundings.

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BTW! For those of you who commented on the Mystery Swap post, the blogger and her location has been revealed! And here's a direct link to her blog if you care to read more about her! Thanks again for playing along, everybody!

have a coke and a knife

2011-05-30T11:39:00.001-05:00

Thought I'd drag out another shot of Grampa in uniform to commemorate Memorial Day. There are quite a few men in my family who have served, but many shots of Grampa (in every situation) because he was, simply put, a ham. He's actually downplaying things in this photo. That's him, far right. It's not like him at all to be the straight man.

Must've drank his Coke too fast.

forget me not

2011-05-29T10:22:00.000-05:00

I've never planted forget-me-nots, so how this little cluster ended up next to some hostas, I don't know. A bird could've dropped a seed there, I suppose. But I like to think someone who's now gone wanted to let me know they are still with me.

And no, buddy, I could never forget you...

Hope all of you are having a memorable Memorial weekend. <3

maxwell, the wonder pug!

2011-05-28T13:23:00.000-05:00

snaggle tooth

dog can't hold his licker

belle white

2011-05-27T15:26:00.001-05:00

My husband's Grandma, Adele, passed away a few months before we got married. She was an absolutely delightful woman who would've turned 100 this April. I'm glad I got to know her if only for a few short years.

When we were at the cemetery, some relative pointed out Adele's Mother's grave. Her name was Belle White. A fairy princess's name if I ever heard one.

I've researched my own genealogy, but never made it over to my husband's side since my own had me going off on so my branches, I started to get a bit lost. Couldn't see the family through the trees, so to speak. I was fortunate to grow up with two of my great-grandma's living long enough to know my own two boys. My husband (and I know many people) weren't as lucky in this regard. So, he never knew Belle White.

But honestly, how could she not have been beautiful...

Understandably, I think of this woman I never knew and yet played a part in my life, when my lily-of-the-valleys are blooming.

some pug love

2011-05-26T13:04:00.000-05:00

Starting to get more shots of these two together. Max is coming around to the fact that he's stuck with us.

The first photo was lacking in any sunlight or drama, so I added a lomo effect in potato-chop. (Clicking the photo will take you to the tut.)

Last two shots were with the lensbaby again. Getting an action in focus with a lensbaby requires luck and planning. It's best to just call them arty for the sake of sanity.

These shots also capture our yard's signature feature of not-having-enough-sunlight-to-grow-a-successful-garden. The moss is happy though.

eat up/chow down

2011-05-25T17:19:00.001-05:00

This week I made two of the easiest recipes known to (wo)mankind, so I thought I'd share!

First up? Grilled corn! This stuff came from Florida and we were happily surprised how delicious it was.

Yank the silk off the top, or chop off the very top giving it a butch-style hair cut. Remove any loose husks.
Soak them in cold water with a little sugar and lemon juice, for about 20 minutes (as long as it takes you to get the grill going).
Grill 20-30 minutes, giving each a quarter turn every five minutes or so. When it smells like corn, it's done. I use a charcoal grill. Gas might cook quicker.
Peel back, butter, salt, eat. Vary it up by making it Mexican!

Next recipe...Ice Cream Bread!

Mix 2 cups (1 pint) of any flavor ice cream with 1 to 1 1/2 cups self-rising flour, just until moist. (I used Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia)
Throw that in a buttered loaf pan.
Throw that in a pre-heated 350º oven for 40-45 minutes.
Eat (entire loaf, because it's so delicious you will not be able to stop.)

Aaaaaaand, there you have it! Easy-peasy, lemon squeezy!

Next time? Lemon Squeezy.

pop! pop! poppies!

2011-05-24T11:15:00.000-05:00

Eeeeeee! My poppies are blooming!!

Can you tell?

FYI: These were all shot with a Lensbaby lens, which I cannot recommend enough! If you've been dropping by here for a while, you're probably saying "well duh" about now. I have an older, beveled version with the additional macro kit. I think I paid $200 for both. Just wanted to clarify to anyone who thinks I'm doing some crazy processing here. Nope! I may have played with curves a little and burned some edges, but I do that a lot with my regular lenses too.

So, there's my buying tip for the day

???

2011-05-22T14:22:00.001-05:00

Yay! It's time for the Mystery Blog Swap! I apologize for the delay, but my computer (or server or something) was having trouble recognizing her email, so I went into the shop on Friday and wrote her from there. Then she ended up responding to that eddress. Which my husband checks. So, I ended up making this a little more complicated then necessary...yeesh.

Anyway, all has been cleared up, so without further ado, I give you...???

---------------------------

Guess Who?

I'm not a photography blogger, but I'm guesting on a photography blog. I've been through my pictures with a fine tooth comb and none come remotely close the beautiful pictures usually seen on this blog. But, I thought I'd at least stick to the main concepts - so I did find a photo rich in colour (no filters used here, this really is the colo(u)r it was. And slap bang in the middle of the picture is me. So you might recognise me. But as I don't post pictures of myself on my blog, you might not. Have a guess and see.

(extra points for guessing the country the photo was taken in. As an aside, we were actually on a walk with some of our best friends, a couple from Wisconsin. Small world huh!)

our work here on earth marches forward

2011-05-21T20:29:00.000-05:00

I have a bit of a dilemma.

I'm taking part in a Mystery Blog Swap this weekend over at The Sardine Tin, but I haven't heard back yet from my swap partner. They wrote me saying they received my post (and it's up on their blog, though I can't share where just yet), but they have yet to send theirs.

My best guess is the Apocalypse has already reached their area, and s/he is a bit preoccupied being reintroduced to his/her long dead Grandmother.

Plus, I seriously doubt Heaven has any internet connection. With God being omnipotent and all, there's no need for Him to check our facebook walls to see what we're up to. Plus, you know, there's better things to do. "Hey, if you're gonna sit at My right hand, put down the crackberry, for My sake."

I may have gotten too much sun today.

Anyway, hopefully you'll see something from this person tomorrow, and you'll get a small break from my Earth-bound drivel. But unless you were one of the lucky few now experiencing Eternal Life, consider yourself damned to see me again in a couple of days.

floral arranger

2011-05-20T17:19:00.000-05:00

There were still a few plants in this box when Isaac claimed it as his own. I had to move them to make room for his ample derrière. I've been asked if he's pregnant (before they know he's a he, of course). I wish. We could put in a side show and he could earn his keep around here.

crabapple at night

2011-05-19T13:15:00.000-05:00

Thought I'd do a little night shooting during the full moon the other night. I had been taking plenty of shots of our crabapple tree during the day, but you know, how many springs now have I taken the same shots? So, just to be different, I wanted to try some light-painting with it. Would've liked to see more stars, but it seems our overcast night are no different then our overcast days.

This last shot was still a bit dark so I decided to play it up in potato-chop. If you care to see a step-by-step tut, click the image (as always) and it'll take you to flickr.

Finally, I want to give a shout out to a highly creative friend of mine, who for the third year in a row now, has taken art and crabapples trees to the extreme! Read the description of her beautiful Wishing Tree here.

turn, turn, turn...

2011-05-17T20:13:00.000-05:00

Our red bud tree speaks for itself right now.

The last photo is my view from bed. Not that I leave the shades open when I'm lying there. Or sleep with my camera.

Just saying.

history is a set of lies agreed upon

2011-05-16T10:47:00.002-05:00

In April, I posted this shot of a slowly deteriorating building that we had been driving past for many years. Last week, when we were back in that area, it was gone. Just a fresh patch of soil. We just pointed with our jaws in our laps. It seriously looked like it could've fallen over at any moment for the last twenty years, but we never drove the extra five miles to photograph it until last month. What are the odds?

I'm thinking now we should've put some money on a horse in the Derby.

This building is more local. Only about five miles from our house. Right on the edge of a busy highway, so the surroundings aren't terribly photogenic. I took it before we saw the other structure had been leveled, which compels me to post it now. This is actually a composition of two photos. The sky being too bright to capture any detail on the building, and the building being too dark to capture the sky. Clicking on the image will take you to flickr where you can see the untouched originals.

If you're in to that sort of thing.

Linking to Nancy's group:

Go check out other folk's weekly faves!

they're multiplying

2011-05-14T11:18:00.001-05:00

Other than losing a handful of comments, it appears we've all come through The Great Blogger Debacle of 2011 unscathed. I also had some fused labels in my last few posts. Correcting them caused the post dates to update to, um, their time of correction, so it looks like I did nothing for days, then BAM, three posts in a row! No big deal.

Blogger is obviously sensitive to weather conditions dropping from 90º to 50º.

The photo is one of those weird chance things that I just liked. I turned on the auto focus on my camera, but left all other settings to manual, then held it out over my poppies. It turned out too dark, but that gave it this microscopic feel. I turned it b&w in post.

I love poppies! They're so alien looking. They grow right along the east side of the house under a window. I do, however, keep that window shut at night when they're growing 'cuz none of us want our brains sucked out while we're asleep.

mystery to me...

2011-05-14T10:38:00.001-05:00

This large fragrant bush sits right at the corner of our house. Bees love it! I prefer it at night when we turn the yard light on and it becomes backlit. Plus the bees are sleeping.

I posted these in the flickr group called What plant is this? so hopefully someone will have an educated guess by the end of the day.

Unfortunately, last night's rain took most of the blossoms off. Boy, you really gotta keep on your toes around here if you want to capture something at it's peak! The rain however, helped put a few of our flowering trees "on deck". Plus, temperatures are back down. It's only suppose to hit the low 80ºs today. Woohoo! Better get back out there 'cuz more rain is on the way.

Enjoy what you've got, when you've got it, folks!

macro buds

2011-05-14T10:38:00.000-05:00

We've had two scorching days since I took these shots so there's been a few changes. For one, my tulips, which weren't fully opened yet, pretty much exploded and deteriorated in one afternoon. Also, my pear tree is chuck full of blossoms that weren't there Monday! Currently, storms are rolling in, and to quote Snoop Dog, the magnolia blossoms are dropping like they're hot.

Seriously spring? Two weeks? You can be such a fickle tease sometimes.