Foto Friday challenge: WHITE

http://zeahrenaissance.blogspot.com/

Perhaps it was the idea of the 92 degree temperature forcast for today, or just because I was sweating during the large amount of cooking I did this morning. But, the first thing that came to mind when I thought about the theme for today's  WHITE photo challenge was: snow.

We actually have had  two or three good snow days in the last 2 years here in my part of Texas. That is unheard of!

We put out a lot of bird seed during this snow in February. Look at all the tiny little prints that remained after the feast. I remember how quiet, still and clean it was when I took my afternoon walk. The air was so cold and the ground was mostly an undisturbed field of crisp white snow. Everything felt and looked so fresh and pure. It was a joy to experience....so much white.

The "Shoe" Challenge

This week's photo challenge was "shoes".  I happened to remember this little red number....from about 50 years ago. You call that "vintage" right? It it a single shoe, a survivor if you will....

 Shows a little wear and tear...

 Look a the stylish details...

Tiny enough to hold in my hand. Tiny enough to fit a 2 year old little girl. Yes, it is mine, or my middle sister's-my mother doesn't exactly remember. To me, it is precious either way. Now, if I only had my little white cowboy boots with the fringe.......


Visit Rebecca again to see more interesting pictures.

Unfinished Business: Friday's Photo Challenge

The theme for the photo challenge this week at Renaissance was "unfinished business". Bread, after rising on the counter overnight, but not yet baked is unfinished right?

Now it is baked. You could say it is finished. However, the fact that we still need to eat it renders the whole process unfinished still. I say, time's wasting....get the butter....let's eat.

A look underneath

Once again, the ordinary becomes extraordinary when observed from a new perspective. I wanted to see if I could capture the translucence of the light from the sun.

Translucent means"Transmitting light but causing sufficient diffusion to prevent perception of distinct images". Yes, I looked that up too.

Lemon petunia. Very translucent.

 Those specks are on the inside of the flower.

A marigold. Not as translucent as the petunia.

This view did allow me to see the receptical and the sepal, which is the bulbous, green part by the stem of the flower. My camera allowed me to see a little more-and a little more clearly. And...I saw beauty.

A look inside

I took a close-up look at my new lemon petunias. I think they are so pretty, a fresh lemon color.

I marveled at the veins in the petal and the tiny pistil and stamens. I looked it up and found out that this green part in the middle is the pistil, which contains the stigma, style and ovary. The brown edged structures are the stamens. They are made of the anther and filament. These are the reproductive parts of the flower.

Isn't it amazing that even a small flower is actually an intricate, well designed, living organism!

Friday's Photo Challenge: Green

I photographed this little frog last summer and chose this picture to illustrate the concept of "green". He definitely is!
Visit Renaissance to see more pictures.

Photo Friday

If you don't already know about  Rebecca at http://zeahrenaissance.blogspot.com/ you might want to check out her blog. I think it is awesome. She hosts Foto Friday and this is my first opportunity to participate. I have shown these photos before, but they are some of my favorites. I was so glad to see that Rebecca's theme this week was "Hands". I teach a craft class at our local nursing home and one day I photographed closeups of their hands, so worn, aging, persistant, patient...symbolic of a lifetime of hard work.

  His hands are stiff and activities like this cause him pain but he comes to craft class every time. When he works on his crafts, he stops and helps others who can't see well or who have the use of only one hand.

These young hands belong to an aide who paused in her duties to help someone having trouble placing the flower petals on the pipe cleaner stem.

 Her hands are still very dexterous. She has no trouble manipulating the pieces of her flower craft.

She was a tailor for many, many years and she was also very dexterous at the time this picture was taken. The last 2 months, however, she did not participate and I could see a very marked decline. It is a reality that I have to face. It hurts to see them "wind down" but it is the way of life for all of us.

I lend my hands, and help them creatively pass the time. It gives them, and me-a time of fellowship and fun. It is a time to cherish....

Things to do when it's too cold....#2

Photograph birds...through the window...without scaring them

They were so excited by all the extra birdseed that they stopped paying attention to me, so I just sat and watched.  The male cardinals tend to "rule" and run off the littler birds. The cardinals are very protective of their females and sometimes they fight their own reflections in the window. I watched this scene a long time, marveling in how fluffed up the birds were, and feeling very thankful that we could put out some feed for them.

Simple Beauty

Apparently, something as simple as a squash blossom can be complex and beautiful....if you really look at it.

A morning gift

Misty dawn, lilac sky,

Weary spirits look up high.

Early morn, brand new day,

Rising sunlight brightens our way.

Misty dawn, lilac sky,

Each day your beauty magnified.

All the world is in its prime,

Each horizon yields a new springtime.

Misty dawn, lilac sky,

Puffy white clouds float on by.

Across the heavens eagles soar,

While far below the oceans roar.

Misty dawn, lilac sky,

All the earth must comply.

Amber light, coming sunshine,

Time to sing praises to the Divine.

   

Gil Saenz

I've been tagged

I've never been tagged before! Thank you Cat. I 'm glad that this is an easy one-a photo blog post. I am supposed to post the 6th picture from my 6th photo folder. It's King, my nephew's dog. Remember him? He was the one who almost died after getting the Parvo virus even after his first vaccination. He is doing well, as you can see. Here he is, noising around the remnants of the tree we cut down.

I want to tag 6 of you to join in the fun.

1. From the Desk of Bee Drunken http://beedrunken.blogspot.com/

2. BooneDocksWilcox http://boonedockswilcox.blogspot.com/

3. Little House In The Desert http://booposo.blogspot.com/

4. Dakotagoats http://dakotagoats.blogspot.com/

5. Apples of Gold http://applesofgoldinpicturesofsilver.blogspot.com/

6. Raising Chickies http://www.raisingchickies.blogspot.com/

If you've been tagged before, I'm sorry, I picked you because I love your blogs. Thanks everyone!