Old Autumn

I saw old Autumn in the misty morn stand shadowless like silence, listening to silence.

~ Thomas Hood

Every now and then, I have a few photos which kind of get lost on my hard drive. Time goes by, seasons change and before I know it some images are left behind and are in need of rescuing if they're ever going to see the light of day - or the pages of my blog. It just so happens - like in the previous post (and quite possibly the next),  the following images are among those stragglers. These are from October. I hope you enjoy them.


I know this looks like the dead of winter but I assure you that the water is completely liquid. It just appears icy because of the lovely fog surrounding the area across the bay. Every day, there's a new view outside our window. Fog offers some of the most interesting, evolving landscapes around here.






My older son and I took a drive north to Barry's Bay during one of his visits. Autumn was still doing her thing in the hills.






But she wasn't going to be able to hang onto her fiery colours once the wind picked up.






Here's a view as seen by boat. The seagulls seemed to be occupied with a meeting of sorts, and congregated on the roof of this boathouse.






Another boat tour allowed us a colourful look at Blueberry Island as the sun was beginning to set. As you can see, we weren't the only ones out there enjoying this day.







On another day, both of my boys were up for a visit. We snapped this photo atop Eagle's Nest, overlooking the town of Bancroft.






This Black-eyed Susan was one of our last holdouts from summer. It glistened in late day sunlight after a rain.






And where there's rain and sun, there's often a rainbow (different day than the one in the previous post). This day didn't disappoint.






And neither did the setting sun.

Little Things

Little Things Mean A Lot

~ Edith Lindeman

Nothing in life is worth turning your back on, if you love it.

~ Albert Camus

A ruby-throated hummingbird - turning its back on the camera.

You're only here for a short visit. Don't hurry, don't worry. And be sure to smell the flowers along the way.

~ Walter Hagen

The daisy is a bit withered and worn but still every bit as attractive to this insect.

I had a missed call. It's probably the all you can eat buffet calling to say, "Come back! We know you can eat just a little bit more."

~ Jarod Kintz

The critters around here have their own all you can eat buffet. And trust me, they eat a lot.

I'm a fountain of knowledge, like a water fountain, only thirstier. And quenchier.

~ Jarod Kintz

And of course we also provide their water - just in case there's not enough in the lake itself.

Food is our common ground, a universal experience.
~ James Beard

Rufus isn't the only one who eats at the buffet. This sweet little chipper is one of many who knows where to find a good meal. Note the seed dust on his little nose.

Patience and tenacity are worth more than twice their weight of cleverness.
~ Thomas Huxley

And this is Indy. He's REALLY spoiled as you can probably tell. He hops his way up onto our laps without any hesitation, noses his way into my closed palm and dives into Frank's pocket in hopes of finding a peanut or twenty.






Here's a quick video of some of his antics. Unfortunately, Indy has not come around for well over a week now and we fear he may have "moved on."

The cautious seldom err.

~ Confucius

A sweet little sparrow cautiously keeping an eye on a rather extended camera lens.

If a man can make a better mousetrap, the world will make a beaten path to his door.

~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Whomever designed this live mousetrap, built a far better device than the classic snap trap. Of course a quick death from the snap trap is still preferable to those horrendous sticky traps which I believe are one of the most vile, barbaric and cruel ways to do away with pest mice. No animal should suffer like that. Of course, if you have cats around (and we do), more mice are likely to meet their demise that way (and some did). Anyway, this little cutie was set free in the wooded area across the road. Who knew that Cheesies would make a such effective bait?

There is virtue in work and there is virtue in rest. Use both and overlook neither.

~ Alan Cohen

I only expected to take a photo of this lovely Black-eyed Susan but there it was, a tiny wasp-like insect resting delicately on a petal, just posing so perfectly. How could I not include it? Who knew when it would fly off...

Fight or flight? If I had wings, there would be no choice. But since I don't have wings, I have to rely on my cape, and a long running start.

~ Jarod Kintz

Oh.. thanks for this, little one.

Sometimes goldfinches one by one will drop

From low hung branches; little space they stop;

But sip, and twitter, and their feathers sleek;

Then off at once, as in a wanton freak:

Or perhaps, to show their black, and golden wings

Pausing upon their yellow flutterings.

~ John Keats

This sweet little fresh-faced goldfinch practically smiled for the camera.

If there was any petting to be done...he chose to do it. Often he would sit looking at me, and then, moved by a delicate affection, come and pull at my coat and sleeve until he could touch my face with his nose, and then go away contented.

~ Charles Dudley Warner

In case you hadn't noticed, this post was all about little things. And this is one of my favourites. That cute little nose on the face of my precious Skitty. A nose that has been kissed many times. Of course, just like a little kid, he wipes them off right away - but always lets me do it again. Gotta love cats.

More photos coming up before you know it. Or a little while after that.

One Touch of Nature

One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.

~ William Shakespeare

It would seem that the vast majority of my photos from summer can fall under one of four categories - winged things, furry things, flowery things and weather conditions. I also have images from a couple of weddings and a few other things but I guess I'll start with a mix of a few photos from each of the above-mentioned groups.


We have frequent visits from this little guy. And by frequent, I mean daily. And by daily, I mean that he's back and forth between our supply of seed and peanuts and wherever it is that he stashes the latter - all of a few feet away. In recent weeks, he's been hopping on the patio table and he makes himself quite at home skittering all over Frank's lap, reminding him that he is still around and just about passing out from hunger. He's a bit of a drama queen but adorable as all get-out. That's our Rufus.






Every now and then, he has to make sure the neighbourhood knows that he's large (he's really pretty tiny) and in charge (yeah, right). He lets out his warning call (it sounds like this) which Frank says means "Stand aside, everyone. I take large steps!" - a reference from the old movie A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.






Every now and then, when we toss a peanut for Rufie or one of the chipmunks, a bold-as-brass blue jay will beat them to it. Not much intimidates them. This guy is just learning his way around the goodie hour. He's a cute but goofy looking young one.






And an even goofier looking baldie. That seems to happen to a few of them (and other birds) sometime during late summer. It's just part of the moulting process though most birds don't lose all their head feathers at once. We have two of them in this state - this being the worse of them.






This is what a summer night looks like outside on our deck. This photo of the patio chair cushion was taken with a flash. Some of these itty bitty bugs get into our house and cling to the ceiling. By morning, they're part of the horizontal surfaces below. They don't last a night indoors. I wonder how many we inhale or otherwise ingest?






Here's a little guy we wouldn't mind seeing a little more often. We spotted him in the tree near our deck, one day and though the lighting wasn't great, I snapped a few shots, thinking he was a young Downy or Hairy woodpecker. It turns out that he was neither. We were perplexed, briefly, then Frank said "See what a juvenile Yellow-bellied Sapsucker looks like." And sure enough, that's who he is. Adorable, eh?






Our hanging pot of petunias look especially vibrant when they're back lit by the late day sun.






The Black-eyed Susans grow quite profusely around here. They're always a cheery sight on a summer day.






And the same goes for daisies. You can't have summer without these sunny charmers.






This is what early June looks like across the bay - just a little to the left. Those same spring greens are now showing signs of shifting over to autumn colours. Summer didn't last very long, this year.






Just three weeks later, across that same bay but over to the right, Blueberry Island glows in the setting sun. Funny how those fresh greens of summer can appear to be ablaze when the sun is low.






And rather than end with the sun going down, here's a mid-July sunrise, complete with the peachy hues of a misty morn. Right outside our window. Sigh!

That's it for this post. I'll have more critters and plant life for you soon. Or maybe something completely different. Ya never know.

Summer Afternoon

Summer afternoon-summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language. ~Henry James

These photos from my two weeks up at our new home, early in August.

There are quite a few perennials growing around the place. This black-eyed Susan made a point of catching my own eye.





To the left of the dock, some of our neighbours boats had Frank yearning for one of his own. He was still doing his homework on which one to buy, at that time but has since made the purchase.





I found this butterfly in a puddle in the paddleboat. I thought it was dead, but when I lifted it out of the water, it clung to my finger, so I placed it on a leaf to either recover or live its life out in a more natural setting. It hadn't moved by the next morning. I suspect its end was near - those wings won't carry it far.





This appears to be a young Hairy Woodpecker inspecting the nearby tree for bugs. In the weeks following, a very vocal Hairy (we call her Hairiette) has visited the feeder daily.





A summer sun shower is always a treat, and so is the rainbow that you're sure to find if you look in the sky opposite the sun.





A refreshing salad to serve up with dinner, loaded with blueberries and raspberries.





If that wasn't enough fruit for you, please help yourself to a banana. You might want to pass on the lemon.





As the sun sets, puffy clouds of cotton candy dot the horizon. There isn't much nicer than a mostly-sunny August day.

More photos coming up soon.

I've Brought Summer

Hi there! Remember me?

Frank and I have been on a bit of a roller coaster ride while house hunting, these past several weeks. We thought we found our beautiful waterfront home, but the inspection was done last week and it revealed a few surprises that we weren't willing to accept.

So the search continues and so will my infrequent blog visits. Posts of the Week will continue to be on hold for the time being. I apologise for that.

I will try to get a few posts scheduled though, now that I have uploaded, sorted through and readied several dozen photos taken over the end of the summer and throughout September and October.

The following images are from the end of August.



One of the few good things about summer coming to an end and the days getting shorter, is that you don't have to be awake at a ridiculous hour to see a sunrise. Benny and I experienced this one together while on our morning walk.





Winged insects seem to be particularly busy when the fall flowers begin to bloom.





Let's get up close and personal with this buzzing beauty.






Another late-summer flower is the black-eyed Susan. There's a lovely patch of them near Frank's place.






Why not get up close and personal with this blossom, too? Why not, indeed!






Berries ripen just in time to greet the migrating birds as they return to, or pass through these parts.






I'm sure that these will attract a few takers. I was tempted by them, myself.






A tiny damselfly posed nicely for me in the late-day sunlight. Thankfully, it was unaware of Benny's prancing just a few steps away.






And another wee one. The blade of grass might give you some idea of just how little it is.






There isn't a much nicer way to end the day than with clear skies and a near-full summer moon shining from above.


More coming up soon.