Monday, February 28, 2022

2/28/22

 Happy Monday and last day of February and last day of Palindrome week!  For Valentine's Day I received a pot of lovely Tulips which have been blooming and making me really wish for spring.  I captured this one in front of the window.



Sunday, February 27, 2022

2/27/22

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  Today's image is another of the small Porter locomotive that I get to help fire on.  Porter's carry their water in a tank that goes over the boiler and the coal is carried in a small bunker on the back of the locomotive eliminating the need to pull a tender.  They were built by the H. K. Porter company and were mainly used as switchers or in coal mines or on sugar plantations due to the small amounts of fuel they can carry and their small size.  It's quite a fun locomotive to fire on.



Saturday, February 26, 2022

2/26/22

 I was told by a friend that basically, this whole week, until the 28th in fact, has been a Palindrome week.  Kind of fun.  It will be a long time till that happens again I think.  Anyway, last weekend was the Cornell Labs Great Backyard Bird Count.  I had a good variety that day and even a couple of opportunities for some photos.  An example is one of the Nuthatches that came to visit and stopped just long enough for a photo.



Friday, February 25, 2022

2/25/22

 It's Friday, TGIF!  Friday's Are Bokehlicious as well!  Today's bokeh image with my favorite kind of bokeh, bubbly is my purple Columbine.  It was flowering in late summer which was a surprise as they usually only flower in spring in this area.  I am hoping it comes back again but I haven't had a lot of luck with that.



Thursday, February 24, 2022

2/24/22

 I haven't shared a butterfly in a while.  I captured this Monarch enjoying a Zinnia in my garden this past summer.  If you are planning your garden, don't forget Zinnias which are very easy to grow from seed and are a butterfly magnet.



Wednesday, February 23, 2022

2/23/22

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  Today's flower is another vibrant colored one, Rose Verbena.  There is some of this growing out on a hill on Konza Prairie that blooms most of the year.  I captured this image of it at the old schoolhouse near me.



Tuesday, February 22, 2022

2/22/22

 It's a double digit day and a day filled with 2s!  😀  I don't often get lucky with my bird shots but one day recently I did.  I was working in my office and turned around to get something and saw this guy sitting in the tree outside my window.  This is a Red Shouldered Hawk.  There were actually 2 of them but the other was lower down and behind a lot of branches.  They both sat there for quite some time allowing me to get several shots.  I liked how fluffy the wind made it look in this one.



Monday, February 21, 2022

2/21/22

 Happy Monday!  Starting off the week with a flower that I babied along when I first planted it by my Gazebo and it survived and comes back every year and has been getting larger.  This is a miniature Balloon Flower.  The flower blooms make it fairly obvious where the name comes from.  They look even more balloon or bell like before they totally open up.



Sunday, February 20, 2022

2/20/22

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog.  Today's image is locomotive 353 at the Baker Depot during the Western Minnesota Steam Thresher's Reunion waiting for passengers to load.  This locomotive is now 101 years old.  I am happy to be able to be part of the firing crew during the Reunion Shows.



Saturday, February 19, 2022

2/19/22

 I have been capturing the birds in my backyard as well as the hawks.  I captured this Titmouse last month while it was deciding when to go down and get some seed below.  They usually don't sit still for very long but I got lucky.



Friday, February 18, 2022

2/18/22

 It's Friday, TGIF!  Today's image is another of my photogenic Sea Oats Grass.  I love how the seed heads look when backlit.  I also chose this photo for today because of the lovely bubbly bokeh because Friday's Are Bokehlicious!



Thursday, February 17, 2022

2/17/22

 I wanted to share another of my Praying Mantis images.  They are such interesting creatures with their very alien looking head and long bodies.  I was able to capture this one on a couple of pieces of wood giving me a look.  



Wednesday, February 16, 2022

2/16/22

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  I have some beauties coming up in the next few weeks.  This is one that I like a lot and grow, or try to grow, in my gardens.  This is Coreopsis, also known as Tickseed, which are in the Asteracea Family.  They are drought hardy and native in my area.  I have difficulty getting them to return.  I'll see how my newest plant does this year.  I captured these lovely ones out on a walk near my home.



Tuesday, February 15, 2022

2/15/22

 Around our area I have been seeing a different type of hawk.  This is a Red Shouldered Hawk.  They are recognized by the markings on the chest, size and color of the tail and shape and color of the head.  I was able to capture this one being chased by a Kestrel.  Fun to see the much smaller bird giving the larger one such a hard time.



Monday, February 14, 2022

2/14/22

 Happy Monday!  Happy Valentine's Day as well!  I chose this image of some lovely Roses I received a couple of years ago.  I added in the background bokeh in post.  😀



Sunday, February 13, 2022

2/13/22

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  Today's image is very steamy!  This is a shot of the Cumbres & Toltec train when I was riding it the last time.  We were going around the curve and the fireman blew down the locomotive.  They do that at times to get and sediment or scale out of the boiler using the high pressure of the steam.  It makes for a nice show and photo.  



Saturday, February 12, 2022

2/12/22

 I captured these lovely mushrooms last year when we had some moisture.  We have had a drought ever since.  The pond in town is so low, I don't remember seeing it that bad but I imagine it was at some point.  I find mushrooms interesting to capture due to their textures.



Friday, February 11, 2022

2/11/22

 It's Friday, TGIF, end of a long busy week for me.  I am dreaming of spring and the flowers returning.  This image is of one of my Lilac bushes.  I hope they have made it through the cold winter and drought OK.  We shall see.  I chose this image for today because of the beautiful bubbly bokeh because Fridays Are Bokehlicious!



Thursday, February 10, 2022

2/10/22

 I am very much looking forward to summer and seeing the sights of nature that it brings.  I love observing the Dragonflies that visit my pond.  I captured this one sitting at the top of a stem from one of the plants.  I liked how the light was giving the wings a shimmer effect.



Wednesday, February 9, 2022

2/9/22

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog and I am in the mood for something sunny!  Today's image is another of our wild Sunflowers that our state has made it's state flower.  This is the Common Sunflower and this one was a volunteer in my yard this past year.



Tuesday, February 8, 2022

2/8/22

 I have had a lot of opportunities to photograph Red Tail Hawks.  This past weekend this one flew right overhead at my house just as I got back from a walk where I had several opportunities to shoot them as well.  This one turned out really well with the light so this is the one I am sharing today.  😀



Monday, February 7, 2022

2/7/22

 Happy Monday!  Hershey Gardens in Pennsylvania was a lovely place filled with all kinds of opportunities to shoot flower of all kinds.  This is a Rudbeckia and related to a Black Eyed Susan.  I hope to find some of these to plant this year.  I love this particular variety with the green eyes and dual colored petals.



Sunday, February 6, 2022

2/6/22

 It's Steamy Sunday!  Today's image goes back to The Minnesota Steam Thresher's Reunion last Labor Day weekend.  The Porter Tank engine that I get to help fire on in the afternoon was just pulling in to load passengers near the water tower.



Saturday, February 5, 2022

2/5/22

 I would much rather get bird shots in a natural setting but I had to share this one.  I have seen an American Kestrel hanging out on the power pole fairly regulary while on my walk.  This day there were 2 sitting together and my shot actually came out rather well though this is heavily cropped.  I was very happy to get it since it is an uncommon sight for me.



Friday, February 4, 2022

2/4/22

 It's Friday, TGIF!  Today's image is of one of my stalks of  Salvia catching some lovely afternoon light.  I loved the bubbly bokeh behind and so I chose this photo for today because Friday's Are Bokehlicious!




Thursday, February 3, 2022

2/3/22

 We are experiencing actual winter again so my thoughts are going to warmer days.  I captured this Black Swallowtail enjoying one of my Teasel's this past summer.



Wednesday, February 2, 2022

2/2/22

 It's an all 2s day!  Too bad it didn't occur on Tuesday. 😄  It's also Wednesday and that means it's time for Wildflowers!  Today's wildflower is one that is common in my area in the autumn called Snow On the Mountain.  It is in the Poinsettia family.  This particular plant was one of the largest I had ever seen.  They are usually only half this size at most.  This one had to ba good 2 feet across.



Tuesday, February 1, 2022

2/1/22

 This winter while feeding the birds I have had lots of different ones visiting.  One of my favorites is this one, a Black-capped Chickadee.  I love their call and when I walk by they seem to either be telling me to not bother them while they are eating or to bring them more food.  😄  I captured this one sitting in the Mulberry tree while it was snowing on New Year's Day.