Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign

When I was putting together this collection of images, it struck me that it was full of signs. In some cases, literally. In other instances, I simply saw indicators of an upcoming event or the status of a current situation.

The combination of rolling countryside, multiple road signs, colourful wildflowers and rows of harvested crops is a good sign that we're no longer in the city.

A red maple leaf is often the first sign of autumn.

Indian Balsam is a sure sign that summer has come to an end.

Their seed pods grow plump. This one has attracted a small seed from a different plant.

The slightest touch causes them to burst open with a silent pop, resulting in the scattering of the seeds contained within. They're quite irresistible - like bubble wrap.

Another sign of the season's change - a cloud of grackles flying south.

This was a sign I snapped from the highway on a "drive-by shooting." No, I wasn't doing the driving.

A message written on a park bench "Wanna get high?" and its reply "Only with U."

This little guy is a pretty good sign that the lake water is healthy.

And here is a universal sign of hope.

It's On!

Back to my summer schedule, it looks like I'll be enjoying some cottage time semi-soon. Some of you may have already noticed that my visits have been dwindling and my comment responses are often lacking. I won't apologize because when I do, so many of you kind folks tell me not to, and to just enjoy my real life away from the computer. So I'm going to do just that.

Through the summer, I'll visit when I can, comment when I can and put together the Posts of the Week when I can. And when I can't, you can be sure I'll still be taking lots of photos to share with you when I find that time to do that.

For now, I'm scheduling a few posts and my online time will be sporadic. I may pop in here and there. But I may not. Oh, who am I kidding? I probably will. But if I don't, you'll know that I'm off experiencing new photo opportunities.

Summer mode is officially ON!

Red poppy in full bloom - a side view

And a little more over the top.

An up close and personal view of a red maple leaf as seen in the previous post.

Crab apple blossoms. As fresh as spring itself.

A cute little muskrat makes its way down the shore bank after grabbing a few dandelion leaves to bring to its home.

He brought the leaves into the water and swam several yards before disappearing into the bank.

Faceoff at the seed post, between a cowbird and sparrow. Nobody won. They both took off when they heard the camera click. Edited to add that these are actually two cowbirds - the male on the left and female on the right. They were not facing off but merely enjoying a romantic dinner together. Now I know what they flew off to do. This information courtesy of Frank.

Another cowbird watching from a small branch.

As I sat watching the creek water gurgle and swirl past me, this handsome grackle stopped by to have a bath and a drink along the opposite shore. The sunlight certainly brought out his best colours.

Mental Snapshots

The other morning as my son Alex was getting ready for work, and the cats were loudly demanding their breakfast, I stumbled downstairs to feed the felines and make a lunch for my boy. The first order of business was to give the critters fresh water. I stepped into the kitchen, barefoot as usual, and found that their water bowl was in the middle of the floor rather than against the usual corner of the room. There was also a small tidal pool of water surrounding the bowl, which has two little arches on opposite sides to ease lifting it from the floor. The cats watched me expectantly as I scolded them for making such a mess of their water bowl. I had to wonder what made them so rambunctious as to move it so far from the corner in the first place. Seconds later, I had my answer.

I lifted the bowl to empty it, and refill it with fresh water when I saw a small, wet figure in its place - standing stock still. I remembered the fluffy, grey toy mouse that we've had for years. My cats show occasional interest in it but tend to lose it behind a sofa or desk. It shows up again when I do a decent house-cleaning. My house must be quite overdue as I've not seen the fake rodent for many months. I figured that Alex had found it, and knowing that I'd be the one to tend to the cats in the morning, he'd hid it under the water bowl to jump-start my morning. I was about to curse him under my breath, when the tail moved. This mouse was real.

I'm an animal lover and have always felt uncomfortable with the notion of mouse traps. The one time I was aware of a wee rodent in my attic, I engaged a live trap and left cheese and peanut butter treats for the unwanted guest. He quickly obliged by feasting on his high-protein meal and I was able to release that mouse safely into the park. This was different. I had no trap. I didn't have anything close at hand with which to scoop him up. The poor, little thing was frightened and wet. It looked quite pathetic. I put my hand down on the floor in front of him, hoping he might decide to hop on for a ride. No such luck. He turned around and hesitantly scampered in the opposite direction, toward my floor-length venetian blinds, which he then tried to climb. While he was semi-vertical, I scooped my fingers around his mid-section and placed him into the palm of my hand, cupping my other hand over it to secure him. Alex opened the front door for me, and I walked across my deck and set him down on the front lawn. He stood there motionless. I gave him a small nudge from behind and he burrowed into the fallen leaves, and hopefully to safety. My cats, so preoccupied with anticipation of their morning meal, never even noticed what was happening, though they must have been aware of the mouse during the night - hence the relocation of the water bowl.

It was only after the mouse was gone and my hands were scrubbed, that I began to realize that I'd missed a decent photo opportunity. I suppose that there was no guarantee that he would have stayed still for a macro shot, or that he wouldn't have panicked as my camera zoomed in for a closer look. In retrospect, I would have been reluctant to risk losing sight of the mouse in my house, while I would have to find and set my camera up. I concluded that I would just have to place this non-photo alongside some of the other mental snapshots that I've taken over the last year or two - because of a forgotten camera, dead batteries or this slow-moving photographer. I'd set this mental photograph aside with the one of the little, bright yellow bird which landed on a perfect magenta flower, the majestic Great Blue Heron lifting off in flight, the squirrel which had Velcroed itself to a tree because its body and tail were so covered in burrs, and the leaves which glistened from a steady rainfall, and exploded in colour when a small burst of golden sunlight escaped the heavy band of gray clouds. That little mouse should be quite at home in that environment.

With each incident of unpreparedness, I've become more resolved to have my camera with me, no matter where I'm headed. I'll never get the missed shots back, but keeping them in my private, metal album is not so bad either. At least there, along with all good memories, they're always in sharp focus and perfectly framed.

Below are a few shots that I didn't miss. Most of the autumn colours have diminished now, but the last couple of weeks still offered up some vivid hues. As I'm usually a few weeks behind in posting what I capture, the photos below have retained some of the season's gold. Please remember to click on each image to see it enlarged.




Golden sunlight filters though a semi-bare branch to reflect in the water below.




Red oak leaves are not ready to fall just yet. They seem to desperately cling to their youth. I can relate!




Brilliant yellow, orange and red maple leaves begin to blanket the ground beneath them.




These colourful berries belong to the Spindle Tree. The tree is quite ordinary throughout the summer but in autumn the bright pink pods burst open to reveal orange seeds. When more of the surrounding trees have lost their bright leaves, the Spindle fruit stands out like a summer flower.



Walking around my neighbourhood park one day, I paused on these stone steps to capture this image of disheveled oak leaves and stem. The textures appealed to me.




Taken from a bridge, this creek which carries salmon and trout upstream during their respective spawning seasons, flows out to Lake Ontario.



This lovely pond sits out behind the house on the farm that Frank's in-laws have owned for many years. The late afternoon sun appeared though the otherwise-overcast day to cast a golden hue upon the water.




The sun's reflection peeks out from behind this beautiful, weathered old tree.



On our way home, we stopped a couple of times to have a look around. As the sun continued to set, it created interesting shadows, colour and angles on this simple wood fence.



The amber lamps which light up our park paths at night lend their warm hues to the autumn leaves. There's magic to be seen at night.

On With the Show

This past week has been unseasonably warm. This is November. This is Canada. We're supposed to be bundled up in layers and walking with hands in pockets, and heads lowered to brace for the brisk north winds. Instead, we spent the better part of last week in t-shirts, with hands free to enjoy the beautiful, balmy breezes which still carried that unmistakable scent of autumn with them.

It has cooled down again since then, and November now feels as it should. Summer has had its last hurrah. Soon I'll be focusing the camera on frost and other white reminders of the season, but for now, please enjoy these images taken over the past few weeks.

As with the previous post, there are movie quotes which accompany them. How many of them do you know? Answers can be found at the end of the post.

9) “The shadows are just as important as the light.”

The grass behind this fallen leaf was casting shadows, courtesy of the autumn sun. (please click, and then click again to enlarge)

10) “Don’t miss the wonders that surround you because every tree, every rock, every anthill, every star is filled with the wonders of nature.”

This is one of my favourite spots along the path which surrounds my neighbourhood pond. No matter the season, it always looks beautiful to me. The little bird on the lower right branch thought so too. (please click, and then click again to enlarge)

11) “What we take for granted might not be here for our children.”

This heron had been wading in the pond to the left of the path when he decided to check out the fishing in the creek over on our right. Without a moment of concern over the two of us and an active dog, he just strolled in front of us, over to the creek. (please click, and then click again to enlarge)

12) “Nobody takes a picture of something they want to forget.”

Some of these photos were taken a couple of weeks ago when autumn hues were much more prominent than they are at this time. (please click, and then click again to enlarge)

13) “Always look on the bright side of life.”

Standing here, looking out over the water, there's a bench behind me where we almost always stop to sit and maybe sip - no matter the weather. This was a rare view of the lake set ablaze with the season's finest colours. (please click, and then click again to enlarge)

14) "Heres looking at you, kid."

A robin absorbs the sunshine while watching cautiously from the safety of a still-leafy branch. (please click, and then click again to enlarge)

15) “The photograph shows only the reality. The painting shows not only the reality but the dream behind it.”

This photo of chicory growing in front of a backdrop of vivid, autumn hues did not turn out as sharp and crisp as I had hoped, so I played around with it in Photoshop, giving it a "water colour" effect just for fun, and to avoid hitting the delete button. (please click, and then click again to enlarge)

16) "The trees are strong, my lord." (quote continued below)

This is the view we see from across the creek on our late afternoon walks near Frank's place. No matter how many times we stop there, it always seems photo-worthy. (please click, and then click again to enlarge)

16 continued) "Their roots go deep."

This is a close up of the roots seen in the above photo but taken on a different day. The two quotes go together.


Answers to movie quotes
9) - Jane Eyre
10) - Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.
11) - An Inconvenient Truth
12) - One Hour Photo
13) - The Life of Brian
14) - Casablanca
15) - Harvey
16) - Lord of the Rings