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Seasonal Survivors

I purchased these wonderful purple and yellow wonders at the end of the season last year....for 75% off. They didn't look as if they had any chance of surviving with only a couple leaves in a 6" pot that had soil just dripping wet...way too much for these heat loving, drought tolerant specimans.

This year...they have given me so much sunshine, so many different photo shoots of them as well as the bumble bee visitors that dine off of them daily.

Worth so much more than some might have thought.

Photo Favs

I love the creativity photography allows me to enjoy. A craving that every one of us needs to satisfy on an on going basis. It keeps the brain strong, the mind sane, personal growth healthy. At this point in my life.....I soak it up. I. Crave. It. Live. For. It. Each and every day. I look forward to coming home each evening anxious to find my next shot (okay....a bit repetitive lately maybe...but...life...well you know.)

I have some shots that I do on a regular basis....because they are fun, bring a different perspective. I'm always trying to find a different way to utilize the same process. Some of the shots I love to take:

Framing things
Shooting with a view through things....as the photo above. My garden of Susans as seen through the back of a patio chair.
Bokeh
Totally Candid portraits
Shooting from underneath. I do this a lot with floral pictures...in case you haven't noticed.
Shooting from behind....people, animals....walking away.

I'm always looking for ways of creating in the above formats. I know....there is so much more I could do....that I could learn. I'll get there. I'll expand. I promise.

Thursday Thoughts

I had a day of vacation last Friday.
It's month end at work.
Business is booming right now...which means....long hours again...or should I say longer.
I was out ill on Monday.
It's month end. The everyday 'needs to be done' stuff was pretty much taken care of before I left last Thursday.
I was quietly reprimanded for being behind on Tuesday. Two days behind...which turned in to many days behind before Wednesday was over because of the booming business stage.

Lunch is at the desk again...not much out of the ordinary. I did try to walk today....cell phone rang....it was work and five minutes into the walk...I turned around.
My brain...is exhausted....literally exhausted.

I worked out extremely hard last week....as I did in June....then came July....a 'holiday' month, right? I take a day off at work....and get behind. I take a day off from working out...and get...more of a behind. lol!!!!

I didn't have the energy to do much of anything when I got home almost 13 hours after I left this morning. I wanted to attend Music on Main today...with the Reggae music going on. I didn't. Wish I had.

I stood at my back fence for a few minutes...camera in hand...wondering what would enchant me today...with such an exhausted state of mind.

The river.
Down the hill.
To the river edge.
Meandering.
Frogs jumping.
Fish jumping.
Reflections.

We sit.
We watch.
We think.
We wonder.
We....take a deep breathe, a sigh.

The magic...the peace...the tranquility.........

Shortening of Days

Well.....the summer is coming to an end.

The days are getting shorter.

The daylight hours after work are getting less and less.

The sunrise in the morning is starting to greet me again on my ride to work. As much as I enjoy them, I wish I could push it back just a couple of months. Start the summer again....knowing what I know now!!!

Okay...so maybe...more than just a couple of months. Maybe...a few....several.....a decade or two or three....not four!!!!

A 'List' Item

I have a list.

Of things I want to do....in this life time.

An ever changing one.

Continuously growing.

Take one off....add five more...that type of list.

I need to work on that....taking them off...completing them...versus just cancelling them.

I need to work on that....today....tomorrow....this week...this month...this year.

Not knowing.

Expecting the worst.

Hoping for the best.

This is one of them...or maybe two....

Taking a ride in a hot air balloon.

Going to the Hot Air Balloon festival in New Mexico.

hhhmmmm....in the fall. hhhmmmm

Siblings

Siblings. You love 'em. You hate 'em. You grow up with 'em...bickering, fighting, laughing, 'rastling', sharing, not sharing, arguing over something so...so silly (toys, games, books, sides of the bed, bedrooms, boyfriends, girlfriends), blaming, cheering on, kicking, biting, laughing, crying, planning evils together, keeping secrets....or not.

Do you remember being a 'poor sportsman' when it came to games? (oh no...that was just my brothers!! hehehe).

Wearing sister's clothes...with or without permission (I was the oldest so it was mine that got shared....as well as handed down. Six kids. Airforce income.

I was the family babysitter.

I had to be the responsible one.

I....grew up before all the rest (yep...probably even before my one and only big brother!!!)

I, also, was one of the first to leave the nest...and missed alot from my younger siblings' lives. Memories...that I missed out on....but we had our own. Memories. Still do.

It's nice that we got to share some of those this weekend.

It's nice that we were able to really laugh at them. REALLY LAUGH.

It was nice to...play games together....and not argue...at least not seriously.

It was nice...to share another day of life together.

In the end...even though we have differences of opinion (oh yes); even though we live miles apart, even though those of us that do reside close by get on each other's nerves...too often...or too little.....in the end....we love each other. YES WE DO!!!!