You Capture - Fun

Beth's You Capture subject this week is Fun. At first I pondered when I could get together with some of my grandchildren to take Fun pictures but since a relaxing visit wasn't on the horizon, I thought about what I do on a day-to-day basis that's fun.

One things that's always Fun is feeding our koi. Unfortunately it's a little early in the season to get great shots so these will just give an idea of how fun it is.

Right now, though, my go-to fun activity is photographing the birds in our backyard. I try to capture them in flight or in quirky poses or just going about their day-to-day businesses.

Or sometimes in a series. Starting here, the guys at the lunch counter must surely feel like somebody's watching them.

Soon he joins in - unobstrusively.

Then he takes over.

For see more Fun shots, go to Beth's I Should Be Folding Laundry. Or join in, what could be more Fun?

Angry Birds

I've always thought of birds as such friendly, happy little creatures. Even though I've heard that their cheerful chirping isn't really a lovely tune whistled for our appreciation, but a warning to other birds to keep out of it's territory, my mind still persists in believing that they're singing and probably to me.

However, keen observation and my camera are about to prove otherwise.

Here a house finch and a female cardinal seem to be peaceably sharing a meal at the bird feeder.

Then the nasty little house finch started pecking at the cardinal.

And then, probably because he knew I was watching, he left the front perch but you can just make him out slipping around the back.

And sure enough, the aggressive house finch won the feeder.

And I'm pretty sure the cardinal was angry.

Another bird that got angry was this bluebird. He very obviously hated me photographing him while he bathed.




You can barely make him out, pouting high in this tree.

And I don't even KNOW what this bird was so mad about.

This Nuthatch tried to intimidate me by flying right at me.

The red-winged blackbird scolded me.

And even this robin took exception to my spying while he bathed.

So, yeah, I guess there are a lot of angry birds but that won't stop me from taking their pictures and enjoying their antics. In fact, I think I really like angry birds.

The Birds

I wrote about the flowers heralding the onset of an early Spring. Now it's time to write about the birds.

I waited all winter for the terrible weather to save the birds by putting out the feeder. It really never came so the couple of times that we had a little snow, I put it up. And about the time the birds would get used to it being there, so would the squirrels and every time I'd look out the window there'd be one or two dangling from the feeder. So I'd take it down. You know a person should almost trap them and relocate them. Maybe I'll write a post about that later but right now it's all about the birds.

They're all back and I have pictures of a lot of them to prove it.

Of course these guys never left.

And these guys I could live without but I guess you have to take the bad with the good.

In fact a lot of these were around all winter I guess. It's just now that we're seeing so many of them. Surely it's the amazing weather.

But the ones that really fill my heart with joy? The beautiful bluebirds.

They don't visit the feeder so I have to enjoy them from a distance but that's okay. I just love bluebirds.

And I promised to include a picture of the hyacinths in my Flower Power post so here it is. Later I'll go out and take a better one but this is all I have in my file right now.

I really need to get more pink. These are right outside our door so every time you walk in the house, the air is perfumed with their scent.

And, finally, Harry and I had a little getaway last week. We had a good time visiting the money stealers - I mean casinos - in Tunica, Mississippi. The weather was lovely and we really had a good time. Here we are near Rend Lake in Southern Illinois.

That's all for now. Later on, I really will write about what it would be like if we ever did trap and relocate squirrels.

You Capture - Spring

Normally I would do my best to hide these the pesky parts of this picture but in all honesty, nothing says Spring like these doggone dandelions: (oh..and the robin)

Spring, for me, is also the lilac. I could never say enough about its fragrance and its beauty:

And the rest of my Spring pictures were taken during the March of Dimes Walk for Babies.


To see more pictures of Spring (and who could ever get enough of this amazing season?), visit Beth at Ishouldbefoldinglaundry. And, if you really want to have some fun, join in. Post a couple of pictures and let us see what you've got. You know you want to.

Do I Dare?

I can't help it. It's on my mind all the time. It drives my emotions and my moods. So I have to tempt fate (or Old Man Winter) one more time. I have to write about Spring. Because I still think its coming. Only this time I have proof. I believe its what we all wait for at the end of every winter. And when I tell people that I saw this sign, they're very happy and a little incredulous. A customer was standing at her door the other day watching a yellow bellied sapsucker. She was enraptured by it and says she watches it every year but when I told her about my sign, she was thrilled. Another customer pointed to a cardinal in the tall tree across the street. It was singing happily and so was my customer. And when I told her what Mr. Right and I had seen, she too was excited. Three days ago a co-worker told me he'd seen a kildeer and a cardinal. He was very proud but when I came in the next day and told him what we'd seen, he was truly impressed.

So we see the most stubborn ice slowly melting away and we hear rumbles of thunder and get lots of rain driven by March winds. These are all wonderful and not so wonderful signs of Spring but they're signs of Spring nevertheless and always appreciated. But there's one sure and certain sign that brings lightness to every heart when it's spotted. And here it is. Its not a great picture because he was so far away but it's a wonderful picture because of the subject:

My bearer of good news. Mr. Robin Redbreast. He seemed a little wary. Maybe on guard knowing that Old Man Winter might still have some tricks up his sleeve but he was here and I know he's not going back...at least until next Fall. So now I'm satisfied. It's true. It's coming. Spring is in the air.