Leftovers Again?

I have a few leftover images from the month of July. At the time this post was scheduled, I hadn't even uploaded photos from August. I suspect you'll be sharing summer with me for quite some time.


Praise is like sunlight to the human spirit: we cannot flower and grow without it.
~ Jess Lair





I never saw an ugly thing in my life: for let the form of an object be what it may - light, shade, and perspective will always make it beautiful
~ John Constable





Be like a duck. Calm on the surface, but always paddling like the dickens underneath.
~ Michael Caine





I don't even know what street Canada is on.
~ Al Capone





There stood the purple spires with no breath of air
Nor headlong bee
To disturb their perfect poise the livelong day
'Neath the alder tree.
~ Robert Frost





There is no reason to fear the wind if your stack of hay is well tied
~ Irish Saying






A green heron sits
Watching the sunfish as it gleaming flits
From sheen to shade.
~ Maurice Thompson






There was a girl knocking on my hotel room door all night! Finally, I let her out.
~ Henny Youngman






When the red bird spread his sable wing,
And showed his side of flame
When the rosebud ripened to the rose,
In both I read thy name.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson






“When the sun gets hot and the moon gets hazy
good girls go bad... and it gets crazy!”
~ Rachel Thompson

Back with more soon.

Petals & Wings

It seems that I have an abundance of flower and bird images and so please bear with me for one more round of photos depicting what has caught my eye through summer.



I love the simple beauty of the wild chicory. I photograph it often.





Touch-me-nots (or Himalayan Balsam) are so named for the pods which grow and ripen late in the summer. One very gentle touch and they pop open to reveal the seeds inside. They're irresistible - kind of like nature's bubble wrap.





The pods were just beginning to grow on this plant iwhen the photo was taken. They sure do look pretty in the late-day sunlight.




As do these blushing rose hips.





I'm sure somebody, somewhere knows the name of this wildflower, but it isn't me.





Likewise for this lovely purple plant.





This one I know. It's a coneflower or echinacea.





Sometimes a blossom looks just as pretty from behind.
 

On to the birds...


Mallards are lovely creatures - even when they're moulting heavily. You can see the wee bits of green feathers just beginning to grow back on this fellow's head.





Male cardinals certainly add a splash of colour to their surroundings. This guy is eating Chez Frank.





And this sweet little sparrow became familiar to us over the course of a couple of days. Frank dubbed him Big Nose. Unfortunately, he wasn't coping as well as his mates. He'd stop by the feeding station and eat well enough, but he appeared to struggle and flutter to keep his balance. He flew just fine the first day but his wings didn't seem to be able to give him quite the lift he needed by the next day. By day three, he was clearly ailing - unable to fly at all. Frank tried to coax him into a cage where he'd be able to find food, water and safety from predators overnight but that was just not to be. I think a swift kill (if that happened) was probably the kinder end for Big Nose. We never saw him again after day three. In retrospect (and by Googling) we determined that he probably had the West Nile virus.





Rest in peace, little Big Nose.

Stay tuned for more photos in a few days.

Flowers and Flutters

Yet another scheduled mini-post...


These beautiful coneflowers (or echinacea) grow in the field across the street from Frank's place. They attract butterflies.. which is fortunate because the parks and recreation folks have dubbed this small piece of land The Butterfly Garden.



Yet when I strolled far from the garden, this is where I encountered most of the Monarchs. They sure are lovely to watch.

Back in a few days with another mini-post.