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Orchid
"The camera is a sketch book, an instrument of intuition and spontaneity." ~ Henri Cartier-Bresson
orchidplantflowerfloralbloompurplecolorfulflowering plantbilateral symmetry of flowermany resupinate flowershighly modified petalfused stamens and carpetssmall seedsperennial herbbirthday
The Structure of Things
"Photography gives us...a feeling of the structure of things with an intensity which the eye...has hitherto been quite unable to perceive." ~ Otto Steinert
plantgreenwhitegardenslightflowerfloralbloomsdrippingbotanicalpetalsleavescorollacalyxsepalsstamenscarpelsblossomclusterfloretefforescenceflourishingshootnaturebirthday
Amaryllis Flamenco Queen
"There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer." ~ Ansel Adams
AmaryllisFlamenco Queenflowerpetalsdeep red brushmarksfrettingedgingcalm whitecool greenfloralflowering bulbplantbelladonna lilyJersey lilynaked ladyamarilloEaster lilyMarch lilybulbous plantcrimson veinsHippeastrumperennial herbacious plantornamentalbirthday
Mute Swan in Winter ~ Cygnus olor ~ Huron River
"Beauty, picturesqueness, and all loveliness are the food of art." ~ Henry Peach Robinson
swanmute swanCygnus.olorwinterHuron RiverexoticelegantRussian balletsEuropean fairytalesnot native to North Americanatureoutdoorsriverbirdwaterfowlorange bill with black basewhitefloatingmonogamousThe Ugly Ducklingbirthday
Cattails ~ Huron River and Watershed
"In nature, everything looks so imperfect and unscaled, but the formation is so beautiful." ~ Bhavesh Chhatbar
cattailswetland plantsflowering spikeplantmarshbulrushreedmacepunkscorn dog grasscumbungirhizomes are edibleherbaceousperennialwinddispersed seedsdominant competitorHuron River Watershednatureoutdoorsbirthday
Old Friends on a Sunny Day
“Old books exert a strange fascination for me ~ their smell, their feel, their history; wondering who might have owned them, how they lived, what they felt.” ~ Lauren Willig
friendsbooksshelvessunnyprinted workbindingstitlescoverseditionfictionnonfictionnovelpublicationvolumehardcoverreaderbookshelfbook
Green-eyed Blue
“Meow” means 'woof' in cat.” ~ George Carlin
Oriental ShorthairBluegreen eyescatfelinekittypetcomfortdomesticfurrycarnivorousmammalanimalhouse catfelidsocial speciesblueticked tabbycompanionsoftindoorsgood sense of smellalertbirthday
Blue
"Cats are connoisseurs of comfort." ~ James Herriot
catOriental Shorthairfelinecomfortdomesticfurrycarnivorous mammalhouse catfelidsocial speciesblueticked tabbypet companionsoftgreen eyesindoorsgood sense of smellcover
Blue, Oriental Shorthair
"It is impossible to keep a straight face in the presence of one or more kittens." ~ Cynthia E. Varnado
whiskersfelinecatkittenOriental Shorthaircarnivorousmammalfurgreen eyesshort snoutkittypetfaunaanimal
Blue Daniel Bear ~ Oriental Shorthair
"What greater gift than the love of a cat." ~ Charles Dickens
catfelineOriental Shorthairanimalpetsoftfurrygreen eyesOrientalcolorful personalitysvelteelegantsleekalmondshaped eyeslargeflaring earsfoundation in Siamese breedsleek and muscularplayfulaffectionateloyalbirthday
Here's Looking at You, Kid
“Ilsa, I'm no good at being noble, but it doesn't take much to see that the problems of three little people don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world." ~ Humphrey Bogart, *Casablanca*
winetoastwinter's dayindoorsrefreshmentcrystalglassesglassliquidsnowalcoholfermented grape juicepinto grigiofriendshipdrinkspiritsrelaxingglasswaretablesettingwidowchaircheersbottoms uphere's looking at you kidbirthday
Into the Light
Blue LIght
“The mind is ablaze with light if we will look.... what we see outside is what we project from inside, and were we to not only look outside in life for truth, but also turn our gaze within, we would find that same Milky Way of light reflected inside as well. In fact, we would also realize that the outer is the reflection of the inner, and not vice versa.... If the mind is like an ocean, let's not spend all of our time in the shallows.” ~ Michael Erlewine
Grove of Dancing Trees in Autumn
“There are no words that can tell the hidden spirit of the wilderness, that can reveal its mystery, its melancholy, and its charm.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt
grovetreesdancingnatureoutdoorsautumnfallgroup of treessmall woodplantsflorastandbranchestwigsstemsgrassgreencrownsceneryfrolickingbarktreearboretumlandscape
"Waiting 'round the bend...."
"Moon River, wider than a mile.
I'm crossing you in style some day.
Oh, dream maker, you heart breaker,
Wherever you're goin', I'm goin' your way.
Two drifters, off to see the world.
There's such a lot of world to see.
We're after the same rainbow's end.
Waitin' 'round the bend, my huckleberry friend,
Moon River, and me.
Oh, dream maker, you heart breaker,
Wherever you're goin', I'm goin' your way.
Two drifters, off to see the world,
There's such a lot of world to see.
We're after that same rainbow's end.
Waiitin' 'round the bend, my huckleberry friend,
Moon River, and me."
~ Johnny Mercer, Henry ManciniriverHuron RiverautumnMichiganwaterfallcolorsreflectionsriver bendtreesleavesyellowredfoliagesereneoutdoorlandscapechallenge
Something of Value ~ Great Egret ~ Ardea alba ~ Huron River and Watershed
"I have always believed, and I still believe, that whatever good or bad fortune may come our way we can always give it meaning and transform it into something of value." ~ Hermann Hesse
Great EgretArdea albaHuron River WatershedMichiganholding pondbirthday
Quiet Eventide ~ Eastern Seaboard
"The quieter you become, the more you can hear." ~ Ram Dass
EventideeveningEastern SeaboardMainewater boatsskycloudsgreenbluebirthday
Camden and Penobscot bays ~ Eastern Seaboard
"If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away." ~ Henry David Thoreau
CamdenPenobscot BayEastern SeaboardMainewaterblueislandsseashoremistbirthday
Looking at Penobscot Bay from the Top of Mount Battie, Camden Hills State Park ~ Eastern Seaboard
"All I could see from where I stood
Was three mountains and a wood;
I turned and looked the other way,
And saw three islands in a bay..."
~ Edna St. Vincent MillayPenobscot.BayMainewaterskymistCamdenMount.BattieCamden Hills State ParknatureviewislandEastern SeaboardseaPenosbscotoutdoorseascapecoastshorebirthday
Sky over Bagaduce Bay ~ Eastern Seaboard
"In dwelling, be close to the land. In meditation, delve deep into the heart. In dealing with others, be gentle and kind. In speech, be true. In work, be competent. In action, be careful of your timing." ~ Lao Tzu
greenery ~ Eastern Seaboard
"I don't know where I'm going from here, but I promise it won't be boring." ~ David Bowie
greenplantEastern SeaboardNew Hampshirefoliagefloralightbirthday
Traveling Along Route 6 in Pennsylvania
As a few of my ancestors began to move out of the Upper Hudson River Valley, they sometimes settled in areas along this route. "Named by National Geographic as 'One of America's most scenic drives,' US Route 6 in Pennsylvania is the heart of the American Dream. This magical and tranquil highway along Pennsylvania's northern tier is 400-plus miles of history and heritage, linking small towns, generations of people and wondrous sights often forgotten." ~ http://www.paroute6.com
travelRoute 6Pennsylvaniascenic drivehighwayPennsylvania's northern tier400 mileshistoryancestorsfamily
Sailing Ahead ~ Lake Michigan
"There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind." ~ C. S. Lewis
Cedar Waxwing, Juvenile ~ Bombycilla cedrorum ~ Huron River and Watershed
"Enjoy when you can, and endure when you must." ~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Cedar WaxwingjuvenileBombycilla cedrorumHuron River WatershedMichiganbird
The Harmony of Starlings ~ European Starling, Juvenile ~ Sturnus vulgaris ~ Michigan
"After a visit to the Wordsworths in the Lake District,
Coleridge caught a glimpse from his stagecoach
Of a gigantic flock of birds as it swooped, rose then fell
Above the frozen, wintry fields of a passing farm.
It was November 1799 and he described the phenomenon
As “a vision” in his Journal, then detailed the way
This “vast flight” drove along “like smoke, and expanded
Then condensed”, then continually shifted shape.
First he saw the starlings as an arc, then as a globe –
A force field of matter that changed from an oblong
Into an ellipse, “glimmering & shivering, dim & shadowy,
Now thickening, deepening and blackening!”
The vision stayed with him all his life – a mystery as to how
“The one be many.” How thousands of creatures
Operated as a single entity, performing extreme stunts
Of swirling acrobatics – free from gravitational pull.
Coleridge was at the time devising an ideal community,
A utopia, which he called a Pantisocracy,
And which, together with his fellow poet, Robert Southey,
He planned to introduce to America.
Now here were starlings creating a miraculous order
Just by instinct. It was an object lesson,
Spelled out by nature herself, as to how human beings
Might happily interact and co-operate.
Watching starlings, on Otmoor, two hundred years later
I saw them spelling out the same lesson:
A towering organism was moving in perfect formation
With no discernible leader. No President.
It whooshed through the air at forty miles an hour.
Each bird reacted to another bird’s movement
In a hundredth of a millisecond. They tumbled and banked
In synchronized, spatial symmetry – collision free.
They moved like iron filings drawn by a magnetic field
To create their sophisticated, aerial society;
A society that flies, instead of creeping along, suborned
By unnatural pressures and alien orders,
And the flock’s structure echoes the physics of magnetism
With each particle’s electron spin
Aligning with its neighbor’s in a symbiotic harmony
Like a metal entity becoming magnetized.
It hints at the discovery of a universal principle
Which seems to tap into a natural order:
A physiological mechanism, happening almost simultaneously,
In birds that are separated by hundreds of feet.
starling 2
Since they can mimic us with an unusual facility
It shouldn’t be too hard to mimic them:
To rise high on nature rather than wrecking it;
To enjoy a life that no one can condemn.
There are no controlling starlings exercising force;
Not a single bird’s left behind in isolation.
Not one wastes time voting – they’d lose height if they did –
It’s anarchy in motion, and a glorious revelation."
~ Heathcote Williamsperching birdMichiganEuropean StarlingSturnus.vulgarisShakespearesongbirdbirddazzlinglike fourpointed stars in flightserial balletDarwinian dancemurmationjuvenileslender beakoutdoornatureanimal
Summer Gold ~ Huron River and Watershed
"Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still." ~ Dorothea Lange
floraHuron River and WatershedMichiganflowerswildflowerspetalsgoldensummertime
Deep Roots and Old Loyalties ~ Maine
"Many small towns I know in Maine are as tight-knit and interdependent as those I associate with rural communities in India or China; with deep roots and old loyalties, skeptical of authority, they are proud and inflexibly territorial." ~ Paul Theroux
colorsflowerEastern SeaboardfloraMaineflowerssummertimeblossoms
Thick with Lilies ~ Michigan
“I know a little garden close
Set thick with lily and red rose,
Where I would wander if I might
From dewy dawn to dewy night.
And have one with me wandering.”
~ William MorrisliliesMichigangardenlilyliliumherbaceousflowerplantbeautifulbeautyperennialbulbsrhizomesyellowlatespringnaturebotanicalleiriontrueherbaceous borderTurk's Capfloweringoutdoorflorabloomsbirthday
Lesson for a Canada Gosling ~ Branta canadensis ~ Huron River and Watershed
"What if I fall? Oh, my Darling, what if you fly?" ~ Eric Hanson
Canada goslingbranta canadensisgooseHuron River Watershedyellowyoung
The Light and Dark of Water Lilies ~ ~ Huron River and Watershed
“We find beauty not in the thing itself but in the patterns of shadows, the light and the darkness, that one thing against another creates.” ~ Jun'ichirō Tanizaki
water lilieswater lily padsHuron River WatershedMichiganflorawaterlake
Song of the Brown Pelican ~ Pelecanus occidentalis ~ Southern Outer Banks
"Those who wish to sing...always find a song." ~ Swedish Proverb
Brown PelicanPelecanus occidentaliselegantAtlantic OceanCrystal CoastSouthern Outer BanksbirdbirdinflightsoaringBogue Banksglidersurfcoastcoastal Carolinasseashoreseasidesea isleislandecho of the wavesdiverseabirdEmerald Isleoceanoutdoornaturecover
Osprey ~ Pandion haliaetus ~ Croatan National Forest, North Carolina
for Richard GG ~ fellow photographer and friend ~ who showed me the way to the Osprey
OspreyPandion haliaetusCroatan National ForestNorth Carolinabirdinflightsoaringbird of preyraptor
Berry Brush, with Cedar Waxwings Feasting ~ Bombycilla cedrorum ~ Croatan National Forest, North Carolina
"The moment one gives close attention to anything, even a blade of grass, it becomes a mysterious, awesome, indescribably magnificent world in itself." ~ Henry Miller
berriesCedar WaxwingfeastBombycilla cedrorumCroatan National ForestNorth CarolinaEastern North Carolinamasked bandit
Brown Pelican ~ Pelecanus occidentalis ~ Southern Outer Banks
"I knew when I met you an adventure was going to happen.” ~ A. A. Milne
Brown PelicanPelecanus occidentaliselegantAtlantic OceanCrystal CoastSouthern Outer BanksbirdbirdinflightsoaringBogue Banksglidersurfcoastcoastal Carolinassea shoreseasidesea isleislandecho of the wavesdiverseabirdEmerald IsleoceanoutdoorNorth Carolinanature
Willet ~ Tringa semipalmata ~ Southern Outer Banks
“Each fresh peak ascended teaches something.” — Sir Martin Convay
WilletTringa semipalmataSouthern Outer BanksEmerald IsleNorth CarolinaislandAtlantic Oceanoceanseasideseashoreseanaturebird
Horned Grebes ~ Podiceps auritus ~ Southern Outer Banks
This pair are in prealternate molt ~ mostly in breeding plumage but retaining some winter plumage.
Horned GrebePodiceps auritusGrebebirdSouthern Outer BanksNorth Carolinamoltisland harbormonogamousintensely territorialintricate courtingred and black breeding feathershorns'waterbirddiveroutdoorsnaturewateranimalbirthday
Horned Grebe, transitioning into breeding plumage ~ Podiceps auritus ~ Southern Outer Banks
"If we could see the miracle in a single flower clearly, our whole life would change. " - Buddha
Horned GrebePodiceps auritusbreeding plumageSouthern Outer BanksNorth CarolinabirdduckredeyedmarinaEmerald IsleislandIntracoastal WaterwayBogue Banksnature
Double-crested Cormorant ~ Phalacrocorax auritus
"If the sight of the blue skies fills you with joy, if a blade of grass springing up in the fields has power to move you, if the simple things of nature have a message that you understand, rejoice, for your soul is alive." ~ Eleonora Duse
double crested cormorantPhalacrocorax auritusprehistoric lookingmatte blackrelated to frigatebirds and boobiesdivers waterbirdcolonial waterbirdcormoran à aigrettescormorán orejudo
