Maybe I am part Termite?

I just keep looking at tree bark... I love the textures. These pictures are of burls in the trunk of a pepper tree.

This one reminds me of a lava flow.

Self Portrait from my Mixed Media class.

Got all the essentials, the kids, Brenda and Kathy, books, flowers, birds, kitty ( symbolized by the kitty tracks) bunny, all the states I've lived in. Picture of me circa 1980 something.... I still had color in my hair back then!

Things happen, even to the Little Blue Bird of Happiness.

A while back this little guy showed up at my feeder.He was a beautiful aqua blue, in the sunlight he almost glowed.

At first I thought it was a Western Blue Bird, but the color was wrong. The Western Blue Bird is a darker blue with a buff to almost orange breast. This little guy was feeding on seeds, the blue birds eat worms and insects, sometimes berries, not seeds.

I got a better picture of his beak and it is differently a finch like beak, so I thought ,well, maybe a Blue Bunting, but again the color wasn't right and Buntings are not usually in my area. I posted his picture on the California Audubon page. It turns out he was a pet store ecxape, he is an African Cordon Bleu Fnch. No wounder I couldn't find him in my guide books.

He hasn't been back to the feeder for over two weeks now. I keep hoping he will come back. We had a cold snap, so I wounder if that was too much for him. We have a coopers hawk that nest here and takes her bath in our koi pond, she might have got him.

We have a neighbor kitty that patrols the back yard, and she may have gotten him. There have been a few birds hitting our windows so that could have happened. My husband even suggested he just likes someone else feeder better, Never! What ever the cause , I miss seeing that little glowing bird out at the feeder. Maybe he will show up today.

Mardi Gras Whing Ding.

We are having a few friends over for a Mardi Gras dinner of Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya. This thing is an artery choker...but we are celebrating Fat Tuesday, aren't we?

Welcome!

I collect salt and pepper shakers. so i am using a few of my sets, my Wicked Witch of the West and Glenda, a matador and a bull and two fish, on the table tonight.

Martini glasses...

For the recipe for the Jambalaya Click here

Nap Time.

This morning , we got the sharing  idea.

The two larger babies learned how to get up on top of the nest box.

They still pile on each other to sleep. 80 degrees and they will pile on each other...

Little brother figured out how to join them and now all three are settling down for their morning nap.

They really are like toddlers...but then I guess all baby every-things need lots of food and sleep.

Botanical Photography workshop

This afternoon I took a workshop with a Debbie Prince, who was a professional photographer at the Botanical Gardens in Edinburgh Scotland. I have a link to her web site in the link section on this page. I learned a lot and met a nice lady! Or as they would say in Scotland, a lovely lady. I took 116 photos. Don't worry, I whittled it down to just 16 I think. It was hard. We had great late after noon light.

There is a picture of tree bark, a hub cap,and a toy boat, I liked them so I put them in .

The language of bark...seeing things on my walk...

I love the patchy flaky bark that Sycamore trees have. Today I just happened to look a little closer....

Can you see the star and also a whale, think Pacific North West Indian art.

A baby rabbit.

A shark.

A goose.

All on one tree!!!!!! Probably more too. I was starting to get funny looks from other folks in the park so I quit looking. Maybe you see something in these pictures I missed. If you do let me know!