Guess Who Came Home for Spring! by: brendasue

Hi Everybody:  Come on in.

I have been so worried about this Hawk, Rambo, as I have not seen her in all of January until today!!!

Do you know how crazy that sounds: "worried about a wild Hawk"?

I wonder does anyone else on the planet worry about a wild Hawk?

So, Today, I can say:  "She's Back"!

...this is brendasue signing off from Rainbow Creek!
Happy Trails to You!




katescabin@gmail.com to contact brendasue about cabin info.








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Morning Glory Wars, Strawberry Bush, Hawks and Outdoor Malls! by: brendasue

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Welcome Everyone!  November in Texas and flowers are blooming everywhere as there has not been a freeze. The migratory birds did bring the cold air and two inches of needed rain!  This has triggered a bloom-off of these Heavenly Blue Morning Glories all over my Yard! My Mom's favorite flower she loved with a passion and planted everywhere.  My Dad's most hated plant, he hated with a passion and pulled them up as he saw them.  The Morning Glory Wars is how I saw it.  Now they are gone but the War Rages On inside of me!  I love these Blues and I hate them all at the same time! The part I love is the beautiful blue flower! The part I hate is the aggressive vine it grows on! Sometimes whatever wars the parent believes in, the child learns to continue whether it makes sense or not!  My Dad would have me stand guard watching for Mother while he pulled up 'a few dam weeds'.  Mom would have me stand guard watching for Dad while she 'planted a few little starts' of the vine. This went on for years-all my life. In their last years when Dad was in the wheelchair, sometimes we would go out to the porch. He would sit there looking around for awhile. Soon, he would start to shake his head in disbelief at how prolific the plants were.  (They did grow surprisingly well once he could no longer pull them out!)  Anyway, funny thing is the behavior that had set precedent all my life continued. He would sit there in his chair and sooner or later he would ask me what Mother was doing or where was she. As soon as I indicated it was 'all clear' he would say-Good, get over here and pull some of these dam weeds!  Today, I have literally hundreds of these blue jewels blooming. (They came from Mom planting 'starts' at my house!)  So when I snapped the flower below this Morning, I said to myself:  Mom would have loved seeing these Glorious Glories. As I kept walking to the car I found myself shaking my head and adding, but Dad would have hated them! The war rages on inside me! All things considered, I am lucky to be in only a morning glory war. In some families, it is religious wars that continue.  My morning glory war really does not make much sense.
But then again, some religious wars and the reason they continue, don't make any sense either. We must all learn to disengage from our parents ways that were forced on us 'because they said so'.
Here is the Newsflash:  Our Parents were not always Right!

I Love You Mom, Look at This!  (Sorry, Dad).

On the way to the car, I found this ruby!  This is the seed pod of a Strawberry Bush. (We had no strawberry wars!)

The seed pod resembles a strawberry is the reason for the name. This bush does not grow the kind of strawberries we eat.
 Euonymus Americanus has several common names. One is strawberry bush. Others are:  hearts-a-bustin' and bursting hearts.
It is also referred to as Spindle Tree as the larger European tree was used in making spindles for spinning wool.
It is grown in gardens for its brilliant Fall display of seed pods busting open to display the red berries.  The leaves take on a red tint also. The rest of the year, the bush goes unnoticed.
Here is a link:


http://www.learn2grow.com/gardeningguides/shrubs/featuredplants/EuonymusAmericanus.aspx

Here is another view of my brilliant fall display (one strawberry!)
This was is growing by the front gate in the shade of a large tree.
I am heading out to the car. Road Trip today! So as I walk to the car, I am looking all around to see what is going on in the Gardens.
I am also putting out birdseed for the songbirds arriving now for winter. And, I must admit, I am searching the tops of the tall trees for Rambo, my red-shouldered Hawk friend. I have not seen her or heard her in over a month now. I worry if she is okay.
Now I know there is probably not one other person on the whole Earth that walks around looking in the tops of trees for a missing Hawk. (Well, mom would have). This must be the manifestation of a mental illness passed down from Mom and Dad. I am walking down to the pier on the creek yelling: "Rambo" in the woods. (My poor children!) I wonder if Rambo is dead. I worry a person will shoot her with a Gun as many people still shoot to kill Birds. Something they learned from their parents, no doubt,  before there were grocery stores to hunt for dead birds. One of my photo album online friends posted a photo of a bird hanging dead on a wall.  People were commenting on what a great photo it was. I did not see it that way. So I left a comment asking him why he hung the bird? He replied: to photograph it. Ever since then, my mind has been seeing Rambo hanging on a wall with a pretty ribbon. I am the first to admit this sounds crazy.  The cards I have been dealt.
Suffice it to say: Every human on Earth has a different way of looking at things and perceiving those things.


Get in the car, brendasue, Road Trip! 

Okay-Gate is closed and here is one last shot of my poisonous strawberry. It is a cool looking strawberry and I hope the bush will grow large and have massive bustin out!


We are off!  Today our mission is to drive my mostly blind friend down to an Outdoor Outlet Mall about 30 minutes away. And, he is treating me to the Sushi Restaurant-Shogun (I am not using a fork).
We are going to a Caphalon Store so he can buy a cooking pan that is reduced 75%.


So here we are at the stop sign by the store. I am turning onto the main Farm Road. (did I really say 'main' Farm Road??!)
It is a beautiful day for a drive. Not a Cloud in the sky. Cool and crisp. I have my moon roof open, (but I will have to close it when I get to his house). But for right now It is riding high with the Blue Sky into the Wild Blue Yonder as the song says!

OMG- Look what I see out my Moon Roof in the Tall Dead Tree!!!


Okay, I pulled off the 'main' road onto the non shoulder and I am shooting through the open Moon Roof (a window on top of car).
This is incredible. We were just talking about Rambo. Her she is! Out on the 'main' street.  Hi Rambo.  (I am waving but she has never seen me by looking down at me through the Moon Roof. Oh well, I have never seen her by looking up through the moon roof  in a dead treetop while driving on the 'main' road). She knows it is me!

Look how Beautiful She Looks!


Cousin Harry will love seeing this photo. (Yes, I pulled off the 'main' road and turned the car off and am shooting up through the moon roof (with a camera).  I could quickly imagine my own obit:  Kooky old Birdwatcher run over by a Mack Truck on a Main Farm Road while photographing through the Moon Roof the Hawk she loves and has been having nightmares of the Hawk hanging on a wall with a pretty ribbon, Dead. So, I pulled off the road. (I did almost hit the tree. There is a reason they do not let old ladies drive).

I am sooooo happy to see this bird!!! She looks funny with the wind blowing her feathers up on her head! Bad Feather Day! Well, I am sure I look funny with the wind blowing the curls right out of my hair!  A long horse mane in the wind!


But the bird and I are friends so we accept each other no matter what we look like or where we are! She still looks crooked from her suspected broken shoulder (to me). She is Alive!!!  That is the Great News of the day. She is not hanging Dead on a wall. (I guess a picture does say a thousand words) (or so).

I Love you Rambo and I can see and feel you Love me.


(Oh brother, an out of species relationship----my poor children!)



Okay, we are on the road again! Wasn't that great to see Rambo!
We are pulling into the parking lot of this outlet mall.

Well, would you look at that city bird on the mirror! This bird was on the ground when I pulled in to park. I had my camera ready to shoot and he jumped up on the mirror! I just swung my camera up and took the photo in a snap without really looking at the frame.
Later when I reviewed the frames on computer, I really stated looking at this frame.  In my mind, I snapped a bird that jumped on the mirror of a red car. But this is a perfect example of how the camera is a tool that digitally records the light it is pointed at. It records everything. In fact there are many things recorded that you never notice in a photograph. I like to accent some of these unseen things for us to look at. Let's look at some strange things about this photo. There is one bird on the mirror right? But there is another one in the reflection of the window on the car. You can see his body, tail and feet on top of the mirror in the reflection. Now if you view the bird you can see he has a tail. But far behind him is a dumpster overfilled with brown carboard boxes and blurred in the distant field of vision. The birds tail blends in exactly with the top of those brown boxes, distorting how the mind sees and identifies the tail of the bird. the tail. Looking closer, you will see three tails. One on the bird, one in th reflection and one in the shadow cast on the red car top! There is blue sky behind the bird. There is one tiny wedge of blue sky in the mirror under the birds feet. Finally there are two white dots. The dot on the left is the reflection in the window glass of the sun. The dot on the right is the image of the sun that is reflected on the glass. Two suns!. All in all, I just like the photo because the bird looks really cool on the red plastic car. The white rock behind his head accents his head while his tail disappears!
Hope some of those ideas help you in developing your art.
 I also recommended that you review your photos on a large screen to see some detail that has been recorded while your brain was only seeing something else. By judging every one of your photos, you will begin to identify what you like about them and what you do not like. You will train yourself in the direction of shooting what you know you will like.  Do not ever worry about if other people like it or not. You please yourself and your view in your art  in which you have complete control. For every person who likes one of my photos, there are hundreds who would not like my photos. You (or I) will never be perfect. Your recording light device (camera) will never be perfect. The only thing that is perfect is the Nature you are shooting.

Here is the interior of the outlet mall. Essentially these are concrete buildings with little caves for the shops. The only windows are storefront as seen here. This section does have a covered roof to keep rain off. There are so many cute little shops. No one appears to be shopping too much. I do not know how these stores will make it!

This is the structure you walk under to enter. In the hollow looking space between the 2 boards is a chain wall that comes down to be locked at night. The whole perimeter  is connected by concrete walls and these gated entrances.

I am standing under one of these and photographing the other 3 in front of me. This is the walkway to the parking lot. These massive columns seem to support a very light weight rooftop. The roof is  slat boards with spaces inbetween offering no shelter from rain. There is a covered roof over the shops, but you would be wet from the parking lot by the time you got in! The purpose of these structures seems to be purely decorative, having no other function.

The very last column on left has a pole coming out of it. It supports a lightweight Flag!

And it is a windy day! Well we found the Caphalon store and my friend got is cooking pot on sale. It was alot of walking and I saw enough today, that I do not need to go back again!

Here is pretty bird following me around, begging for food!

Bye--We are heading back out to the Country!

...this is brendasue signing off from Rainbow Creek

kates@gmail.com

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NATURE PHOTOGRAPHY BLOG FOR DIGITAL CAMERAS-KATES CABIN ON RAINBOW CREEK, A BIRD SANCTUARY IN TEXAS

Sorry Class:  Only 2 Photos Today.

It seems I have exceeded my quota to Picassa Web Albums, so I am blocked from uploading Photos until I can get this matter resolved.

I do not know who has the key to the photo bank, but I will try to find out. (Grandmothers (in general) have a difficult time with every new thing we learn on these computers)

Just when I thought I was "Blogging and Googling"

I discover I am now Blocked.

When I began this site last December, I declared this was a photography blog. For six months I have been telling Nature Photostudies with Photos. My mistake was in assuming there was enough room in the file room for photos for a photo site. I will be back when I find out how to order more Space and make a request for this to be done automatically in the future.

Well on the High side, the photo I really wanted to share with you today is of Rambo and her Mate. I have had this photo on the site before as a header, but now that so many new people are joining our Class, I wanted to show it again. Also want to announce that this photo is headed to a contest.  They requested your favorite photo of all time. As this is a once in a lifetime shot and it is of Rambo, I chose this one. Any Comments?

Well, wish us luck!

The Photo below is of yesterday's sunset in Texas.  We will complete our photostudy soon.

......this is brendasue signing off from Rainbow Creek

katescabin@gmail.com

over and out!

Because, Because, Because, Because, BECAUSE by: brendasue

Hi Everybody----Come on In

I have found the Gold at the end of the Rainbow

and captured it for You.

This Golden Beauty  is a day lily.  I assume someone named it that for the length of time the flower is open (which is one day) These lillies started out in china (as most of our flowering plants did/do.)

There is a green bud next to the flower that is the perfect size to be collected  and stir fried with other Chinese Veggies. Yum Yum

In the states, however, these plants are more prized for their flower open and very stunning planted in long rows as a border plant.

This is a close-up of the anthers and pistol waiting to be walked on by the bees and birds.

Within this Post tonight will be a  not so veiled secret message to my Cousin Harry as his wife does not look at a computer.

Excuse me, just a moment,

Cousin Harry:  Your wedding anniversary is this coming Sunday in case you forgot.  I am printing out some of her favorite Hummingbird prints for your present.  I will make her a card also.

 You are suppose to be coming to Kates Cabin and I am preparing a turkey dinner.  Can you bring the cranberry sauce?

More later, lets get back to the Class

Sorry to interrupt the class and I do not know the customs in every country, but here in the states the wedding and the following anniversaries are deemed important. So Cousin Harry is 83 years old.

You better not miss this one!

Let the Class Begin!  Thanks, superbuzz for opening the class today.

We can see you are enjoying a snack on that mimosa flower!

You Go, Superbuzz, Go!

(Hey, anybody want to place bets on whether or not SuperBuzz stops to smell the roses?)

Warning: Viewing the photostudy tonight could possibly make you sad. 

So if you do not want to see the photostudy tonight, just click off and come back another day.

To the rest of the class, I am not sure, but it appears one of Rambo's chicks is gone. I have not seen him all day. Like I said,  I am not for sure.

I have only seen this one standing by himself in the nest.

This is the second day he started looking at me and becoming aware that I am a crazy, wild woman (with 4 dogs) and that I am pointing something at him.

This is what I call their ugly phase as they lose the down and get new feathers. The hawks spend alot of time messing around with preening their feathers

So I guess her name will be Ima Hawk.

Now I can not see down in the nest, but she has not stood up all day.

Last year, the mom, Rambo, was born and had a twin. I will never know for sure, but I believe Rambo pushed her twin out of the nest as I saw them playing tug of war.

However, there are night birds of prey around here and big chicken snakes.

All I can report is the facts:  that for 2  years twins were hatched in both nests , but only one bird made it to the finish line.

I am sorry to be the one to tell you looks like the other twin is gone.

But these things happen in Nature. Everything that lives one day must die.

Humans attach emotional feeling to loss of life.

I do not know if other species grieve over their dead.

I have seen dogs grieve over losing their master, but who knows what they really think or feel?  No one.

Humans are the only species on Earth that bury or burn the dead body in ceremony.

We just have to look at it as today is a great day and we are looking at a fine bird.

Yesterday we were lucky to see two.

If we try to figure out what happened in the night, in the tree, in the nest, whatever, we will never know.

That is just how it is. Here today, possibly gone tomorrow. We all have to accept that is how it is; or go nuts!

I

Well this concludes our Photostudy for tonight.

(Second secret message for Cuz Harry:  Could you go over to lowes or home depot and get a bag of sunflower seeds and wild bird mix. We are running out.)

Now if anybody out there wants to send a donation to help us, it would be a blessing.

Please send check or money order to:

Brendasue Watson

P O Box 743

Hempstead

Texas

77445

katescabin@gmail.com

This Tiger lily has come back as it does every spring. My friend, Vicki, gave me these bulbs after my Mom Died. Today when this flower opened I said Hello Vicki, I remember you so you live on. I miss you.

Vicki died last fall after a long battle to live. But as you see her flower is here today and I am relating to all that she was a kind and loving soul and a dear friend.

As the sun comes down to our trees, I say let's go to sleep, please. Gentle rest and gentle breezes