Space Alien Stick Invasion

I'll take care of that pesky monster for you!

Sunday Stills: Powerlines and Landscapes

Because I live in an extremely remote place where there are only 4.4 people per square mile there are not a lot of powerlines other than the ones that directly supply us and our handful of neighbors. At first I didn't think I could come up with anything for this challenge. In shooting I realized how much I have blocked them out and subject matter was there after all.

It's been such a strange week, I decided to be experimental with the photography. We've had some rain, so the clouds made it all the more interesting. These were all shot around sunset.

I knew that the lines would not photostitch smoothly, but I kind of liked their angularity and how abstract this pano of them crossing the road turned out. I'm taking an abstract quilting class next spring so some of these could be useful as ideas.

Here, the powerlines and clouds work together drawing the eye into the trees. The next three I ran through multiple filters.




This is the clear cut for the main lines bringing power into the community. I had never noticed it before and I have walked the dogs by it every day for almost a decade. It's amazing how a camera can help you see!

You can visit all the other interpretations of this challenge at Sunday Stills.

A Photo About Gain

Excuse me, but can you spare a saucer of milk?

A Photo About Loss

Had a good cry this morning seeing Teddy's empty apartment while feeding the sheep. I'm in a funk. I know she was frustrated by her physical limitations and now she is free.

A tiny kitten appeared in the carport when I got back from the vet's as if there was a vacancy sign. Maybe I can train it to eat the field mice in the pumpkin patch so I don't attract any more foxes.

This is a photo I took of Crow Poison, Nothoscordum bivalve, and altered through digital manipulation. I turned the white flowers black to show how I will miss Teddy Bird's presence.

Speaking of crows, I read an interesting article yesterday about how a UK study proved crows rival chimpanzees in their intelligence. Although these birds in the wild don't make tools, the captive crows were taught to use them in order to get their food, and when the tools were taken away, developed their own tools to do the same tasks.

Not only do animals have the capacity for love and life enjoyment, they are also a lot smarter than given credit.

Teddy Bird

This morning I discovered our disabled hen, Teddy Bird, had passed. As much as I would like to bury her, I feel I need to send her off for a necropsy to better understand what paralyzed her in the first place and what ended her life.

She was not in pain or visibly sick. In fact, she had a great appetite. She'd slipped during the torrential downpour the other day (usually she stayed under the covered portion when it rained) and I brought her in for a warm bath and blow dry. She was back to her normal self the next day.

You may recall, Teddy made a miraculous recovery to a shuffle-walk back in October last year, after months of physical therapy on my part. We converted the chicken tractor into her home by putting a floor on it and raising it up on legs. I checked on her needs every couple hours, and she would always purr the "I love you" sound and I would purr back. I have probably spent more time with this chicken than any of the others.

She will be greatly missed.

Easy for You to Say

Today I came across this bright orange Large Milkweed Bug, Oncopeltus fasciatus, on the ripening pods of Antelope Horns, Asclepias asperula. He was extremely shy after this first shot and I kept chasing him around the plant--on my knees in a wet ditch--but this was the best one, with him smack dab in the middle of the frame. To crop would be to lose the pod and the image is really about their relationship. Maybe tomorrow he'll warm up to me and go about his business as I go about mine.

Memorial Day

My Aunt Elsie called today, remembering my mother's birthday. She hasn't done this in the past, but I guess by the time you are 89 you are filled with memories, and it was a good day for sharing them. My mother passed away over three decades ago.

Mom accompanied my father on some of his foreign duty during his two decades of service. So to honor them today, I have colorized one of my favorite photos of her as a young lady.