Connected and (a few) Posts of the Week

If all the beasts were gone, men would die from a great loneliness of spirit, for whatever happens to the beasts also happens to the man. All things are connected. ~ Chief Seattle of the Suwamish Tribe

Lest I leave blogging behind all summer, I figured I'd better get a post up now and again. This is the now. Before too long, there'll probably be an again.

Below are a few images of creatures I've happened upon in one way or another - at or close to home.

A few weeks back, Frank discovered a large hole near one of our pine trees. He surmised that it could belong to none other than a groundhog.

Sure enough, a few days later, a glance out the kitchen window, toward some movement in the garden prompted me to grab the camera and capture this little cutie.





Nom, nom, nom.






We're hoping that none of the neighbours see him. Some didn't take kindly to the beaver in our lake - understandably since they have done serious damage to trees on the property. We know that groundhogs aren't generally very popular critters either so stay less visible, little guy!

Early summer is a busy time for egg-laying, if you're a turtle. Unfortunately, very few of them seem to make it to maturity since other creatures, like raccoons are quick to find the unattended eggs. The sides of the road (near the swampy areas) are strewn with small white opened and empty egg shells.


I was driving along our road when I saw this Common Snapping Turtle busy laying her clutch. She's way bigger than she appears, and gave me a few warning snaps even though I never left the car to photograph her.






Later that same day, I was driving along a country side road when I saw this little guy sloooooowly making its way across my path.






I got out to have a closer look, and found that it was a very pretty Painted Turtle. It was only halfway across the road and I figured it needed a bit of help getting to its destination safely.






Of course, I took the obligatory up close photo before sending it on its way. He's a bit shell shocked. ;)






Benny spends a few active hours after dark, looking for and chasing night creatures. Ninety-nine percent of the time, his chase is only in his imagination - although he was observered by our neighbour cavorting with a red fox a couple of weeks ago. He charges, snuffles, barks and then disappears for a few minutes, until call back. Most of the time, he returns all proud of himself for playing the fierce doggie cop - to nothing.






But every now and then, there's truly a reason for his guarding duties - like this young raccoon raiding the bird feeders.






He's managed to get himself stuck between the feeder and the lamp. Help! He left soon after Benny came back inside. I love his little foot print on the siding.






Last, but not least, this odd looking creature is a very wet, Skittles. He needed a much-hated bath after a two hour round trip to the vet. He didn't like traveling in the carrier without his brother and had a couple of accidents - there and back. "Smelly cat, oh smelly cat, what are they feeding you?"

Hopefully there'll be more photos coming up soon. Blog visits will happen sporadically. I hope everyone in the northern hemisphere is enjoying this wonderful summer. I know I am, and that's the main reason that I haven't collected too many Posts of the Week, recently. I do have a few photography posts for you to visit, and a couple of our regulars have sent me posts which they have recommended. So please do visit the few offerings that I have for you, and I'll try to have more for you soon-ish.

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And now, without further delay, here are the Posts of the Week. The icon below is yours for the taking if your blog post is named as a POTW.

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PHINE PHOTOGRAPHY

Brian II
by Adrian
at Adrian's Images

Macro With Red Background
by Linda
at The View From Squirrel Ridge

Stormy Beauty
by Fiona
at Lady Fi

Close That Oven Door
by Tabor
at Room WIthout Walls

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READERS' CHOICE
 
Recommended by:  Joeh
The Satellites are Laughing
by Murr
at Murrmurrs

Recommended by: Eddie
D-Day Remembrances: 70 Years On
by Hilary Melton-Butcher
at Positive Letters ... Inspirational Stories...

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Please drop by their blogs for a visit and leave a kind comment if you have the time. Also, please feel free to add your own choices (for any blog except this one) for a specific blog post in the comments section below, where others can see them.

Thank you

Beautiful Babies

This post was created and scheduled a few weeks ago - before we acquired our new place. Right now, I'm back in the city continuing to ready my house for sale.

You must have been a beautiful baby, 'Cuz baby just look at you now.

~ Johnny Mercer

Spring and summer - the time of year when we see so many babies of every kind. Of course those of the human variety are no longer bundled up, so we can see them in all of their cuteness. Birds and other critters choose this warmer weather to have their young, and we get the pleasure of enjoying them all. I hope you also enjoy some of the baby photos I've taken semi-recently.


This little cutie brought his own balloons and bench to pose for a photos. His parents thought it would be cute if they snapped his picture out in the park. And it was.





Here's a closer look at Mr. Charming sans balloons. You're grinning like a loon, aren't you?






Five little sweet balls of fluff were born on our pond, earlier this summer. I didn't have the lighting or the lens for this but they were still irresistible to me.





Not quite so cute right now but these babies are going to go through a beautiful transformation before long.





Okay, so I'm cheating a bit here. These aren't really all that young but they are baby roses. The blooms were profuse, this year. The plant was a Mother's Day gift from my son a few years back. I'll hate to leave this behind when I move.





Judging by his adult plumage, I don't think this guy was all that much of a baby either but he acted helpless and wasn't overly fearful of me and my camera. My guess was full grown but still with a sense of entitlement, like.. you know - a teenager.





Bunnies are not the smartest creatures on the planet (except for Maggie Mays' sweeties, of course), but they are among the cutest. This little one was nibbling grass in my front yard, one morning. I took a few photos through the glass then dared to open the door and step outside. Of course the rabbit stood stock still, rendering itself invisible. So what you're looking at is a picture of grass only. There is no bunny to be seen here. Let's move along.






Frank and I had just been to see the house that we ultimately bought when he spotted this turtle by the side of the road. She kept a wary eye on me while I snapped a photo from a respectable distance. You don't want to disturb a mama while she's laying her eggs.






I heard a few odd vocalizations while walking with Benny, one day. I couldn't recognize them as any of the familiar birds I generally hear and see each day. Eventually I found the source - this young blue jay calling for its mama. It sounded nothing like the typical adult blue jay calls. It won't be much longer before this passive little guy becomes a loud, boisterous and bold bird.






On to my favourite non domesticated animal - the furry little bandits who have taken up permanent residence in my heart. My neighbour, Caroline called me over to see these quintuplets (the fifth one was further out on a limb) playing in the tree, visible from her back yard. Mama was off somewhere - probably getting a much needed rest from her rambunctious kits.






Tell me, could it get any cuter than this?






All together now... awwwww!





And because I can never get enough of them, I have one short video of a couple of the kits playing on the branch.

More photos in a few days.