nature

Yellow/Orange Flowers

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Garden flowers: It took me a fair bit of Googling but I believe these are Canna Lilies. Although the flowers look a bit droopy, their bright orange hue caught my eye as I was walking through my neighborhood, and I had to go back for a photo. The colors here a more subtle but still glorious.  I’m lucky to have neighbors who enjoy tending to roses, and just walking past the colorful blooms brightens my day. Wildflowers: Indian paintbrush along the base of the cliffs at Negro Bar State Park. I had to try several times before finally getting some good shots of these flowers; they lie at the base of a cliff that gets heavy sunlight most of the day, and that tends to make accurate photo coloring tough.  If it’s not too sunny, it’s usually too breezy — these beautiful buds do a lot of swaying in the wind!

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macro

White Flowers

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Hollyhock flower seen in my neighborhood.  These flowers originated in Asia and Europe and are now widely popular with gardeners.  Kyoto, Japan, holds an annual Hollyhock Festival every May. For white flowers, I need look no farther than the camellias in my driveway.  We have two plants; one produces white petals and the other produces pink/red flowers.  Now is the […]

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Animals

California Coastal Critters

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I took these photos in September and December 2015.  I was delighted to get close enough for decent shots with my point-and-shoot camera; but at the time I could only identify my subjects as seals (or possibly sea lions?) and birds that looked like gulls and “sandpipers.”  I’m pleased to say I finally took the time to sit down at the computer and educate myself about these California coastal critters. “Pacific Harbor Seals are found north of the equator in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. In the northeast Pacific, they range from Alaska to Baja California, Mexico. They favor near-shore coastal waters and are often seen on rocky islands, sandy beaches, mudflats, bays, and estuaries… “Pacific harbor seals spend about half their time on land and half in water. They can dive to 1,500 feet (457 m) for up to 40 minutes, although their average dive lasts three to seven minutes and is typically shallow, and they sometimes sleep in the water. They are opportunistic feeders, eating sole, flounder, sculpin, hake, cod, herring, octopus, and squid. While harbor seals swim safely in the surf, they will often curiously watch humans walking on beaches. However, they are wary of people while on land and will rush into the water if approached too closely or disturbed. In fact, if disturbed too often, they have been known to abandon favorite haul-out sites or their pups.”  Quoted from The Marine Mammal Center web […]

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history

WPC: Weight(less)

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The Daily Post weekly photo challenge for the week of January 8, 2016 This enormous granite core is displayed in Folsom’s Pioneer Village just off Sutter Street. Here’s a close-up of the attached information card: And for contrast, here’s a feather I spotted as it seemed to levitate near the edge of one of my favorite portions of the Pioneer Express Trail at Negro Bar State Park.

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history

WPC: Circles

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The Daily Post Photo Challenge for the week of January 1 Most knitters, whether they’ve learned to spin their own fiber into yarn or not, will feel the urge to sit up and take notice whenever they spot one of these: I’ve no interest in learning to be a spinner, but when I saw this old wheel in the Folsom History Museum, I felt duty bound to take some pictures. Because even though, these days, most yarn does not come from such a spinning wheel but rather from big industrial machines, those of us obsessed with the craft feel a firm connection to knitters in the past, who didn’t have the convenience of a quick trip to the local yarn shop or ordering online.  The ones who had to prepare the fleece and spin up their own wool before they could knit a pair of socks or a hat.  

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nature

Red Flowers

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Well, now that my somewhat crazy December is finally over, I hope to return to the habit of posting on a regular basis.  I definitely have a lot of new photos to share, and maybe even a few interesting things to write about. First, I want to jump back into some photo challenges!  Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge this week is Red Flowers.  I’m very lucky that in my neighborhood there are always a few bright and colorful gardens I can’t resist pointing my camera at. This heart-shaped crape myrtle always reminds me of Valentine’s Day. For this beautiful red rose I played with some of the photo effects available on Flickr. Here’s a bright accent at the edge of this corner lot. I’m not sure what this flower is, but it’s a real beauty.

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Knitting

Orange and Green

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Oh yes, this week Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge WAS a bit more challenging — but still fun! The very first thing I (eventually) thought of was this yarn… …which was included in a big box of yarn I bought from another knitter’s destash, back in 2009.  It’s laceweight and not exactly my color combination of first choice.  But it’s definitely eye-catching, and apparently unforgettable.  Luckily I had Ravelry to remind me where I’d stashed it away. So, it was all good, photo challenge sorted.  Except, Just then I happened to glance out my front window, where I saw this: So, thank you, Cee, for reminding me to open my eyes and realize Nature always has just the right colors, if you’re paying attention!

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