Before and After

One of my students walked through the door this morning and presented me with this basket of... do YOU know what these are? Well, for those of you who don't, they are horse chestnuts. The big green objects with the spiky protrusions (looking not unlike land mines) are what they look like when they first fall to the ground. If you open the lime-colored covering, you find the beautiful, brown chestnuts! Guess it was wise of Mother Nature to at least cushion their fall somewhat with a soft shell. Imagine the damage they could do (bigger than a quarter) if they fell without!

More Mums

This was another quickie tonight. Seems as though there is always something to do after school, and the sun keeps setting earlier and earlier, making natural light shots less convenient. Luckily still some flowers in bloom to shoot!

Spider Web- Remix

In mid-August I shot an orb weaver spider. Curious that I should find an almost perfect web in the drizzle this afternoon just feet from where that shot happened! My first spider web shot was back in early June, and I wasn't satisfied with it. These shots are much more gratifying!

Day at the Fair

Today we drove to a country fair in-state that emphasizes organic farming, environmental sustainability, and traditional skills. The Canon came along and captured lots of sights such as this demonstration of mules plowing a field...
...lots of livestock, including this sheep...
...these sheep and goats (part of a Border collie demonstration)...
...this little piggie going, "zzz, zzz"...
...and lots of demonstrations of wood stoves and splitters. This "curl" of wood was laying on the ground; thought it looked curious. A fun time was had by all (especially the Canon).

View From the Top

I attended a genealogical conference today. After lunch I took a drive to the top of a nearby mountain to check out the bay. Still a little foggy near the islands, but a gorgeous view nonetheless!

New Lens

This is a quick post tonight- one of the first experiments with my new zoom-telephoto lens. Now I'll capture a sweet moon shot!

Painted Sky

I awoke to a pastel sky this morning, that looked like it had literally been painted with a brush. Not even sure this photo does it justice.

Perturbed

Sometimes when I look at my shots of Graham, I think that's the only mood I can capture... like it's a constant state of being. Or perhaps it's just that he really doesn't like having his picture taken. Regardless, here's another shot chock full of feline attitude!

Mums

I love getting new pots of mums each fall- it helps me ease into the "loss" of summer. Tonight while I was shooting these mums, I heard a flock of geese overhead, presumably flying south. I guess with the autumnal equinox arriving tomorrow, it's time to let go of summer.

Brown Sea Glass

More of the sea glass that I've posted on previous days. I love the different shapes and textures. It also occurred to me that this must represent quite a few broken beer bottles!

More Maples

Another fall capture. Not feeling particularly creative today- fighting off a head cold.

Pumpkin

Fall can't be far away once the pumpkins start showing up!

Pink Stonecrop

This pink stonecrop has recently bloomed in one of my garden beds. I love perennials for their low-maintenance nature!

New Pennies

Somehow I missed out on the fact that our penny was undergoing redesign this year. My husband was given these two as change at the hardware store yesterday. The "heads" loos the same, but the "tails" is all new!

Pin Cherries

I need to carry my camera with me more each week. This morning I had it and spied this colorful pin cherry tree outside my allergist's office. Beautiful reds and greens!

Sprinkles

You know you're a project365 blogger if... you see an ice cream topping in the grocery store, and before considering how flavorful it might be, you first think... "hey, that'd make a cool photo"!

Sunflower

One of the teachers at my school planted sunflowers with her class last year. Several are up and blooming near our bus road. They are a cheerful welcome to school each morning!

Dew

Went to check my rain gauge this morning. No rain, but some interesting dew formations!

Ah-Choo!

Goldenrod can be quite lovely when you ignore the fact that it's a weed that can set off some people's allergies. I'll be happy when the weed count goes back down!

New Hair

Every once in a while, you just need a change. For me it was having 2-3" of hair chopped off today, and a new style. My students are always thrown a little at first by changes like hairstyles, etc. Wonder what they'll have to say?

Cortland

This is one of the apples that was spared the paring knife on Sunday when my daughter made her apple pie!

Acorn Season

It's acorn season again. These cute little nuts have been perpetually pounding our house as of late. Note to self- park new car someplace else!

Apple Pie

My daughter got the urge to make her first apple pie this afternoon. Thankfully she is a MUCH better cook and baker than I am! Quite tasty to say the least!

Outlandish

No, you aren't seeing double. This is a one-of-a-kind bicycle that my 17 year-old son made today. He welded two bike frames together, somehow created an extra-long chain for the sprockets. Even the brakes work from up there! Any surprise he's looking at various mechanical engineering programs for college next year???

Freshwater Snail

In preparation for Hurricane Earl, my son and I made a quick trip to our camp this morning to pull in our float from the water. Although Earl will likely be a tropical storm by the time he "visits" us, we didn't want our float smashed on the rocks thanks to tropical winds. After we brought it up on the beach, I spied a few freshwater snails laying on the sand. I love the spiraling formation of their shells. It almost reminds me of a french horn!

It's September???

See, now I could have sworn, as I sat in the sweltering sun at my daughter's 90˚F field hockey game, that it might have been mid-July! Those poor kids- one actually collapsed from heat exhaustion, and was driven away by Rescue. Could this game not have been postponed?