Praying

Song - Wishin' and Hopin' by Dusty Springfield

This morning I went out to the car to run some errands and who do you think I found?

I haven't seen a Praying Mantis in over 20 years.

Luckily I was putting some shopping bags in on the passenger side so I spotted him before driving away. They are considered beneficial insects as they like to dine on flies, crickets, moths and mosquitoes......and sometimes the female will eat her mate!!!

After this series of "head shots", I carefully moved her from the car to a nearby bush.



"Praying Mantis Folklore"

• In some parts of Africa, it is considered good luck if one of these curious creatures lands on you.

 --From the Farmers Almanac 1792

The Sky is Falling

Song - The Sky is Falling by Chicken Little

 Last week I woke up early and went out on the deck to watch the sun come up.  

I love this time of year when it's comfortably warm in the day time but at night and in the early morning it's crisp. 

Later in the week we had a sky full of clouds with only a few drops of rain.  It was fun to watch the clouds sweep across the dark sky. It defiantly felt like fall.

Most nights Mr. B and I like to sit on our back deck in the evening.  We have a glass of wine and talk about our day or make a plan for the future and enjoy the various birds in the yard.


One little chickadee has lived in the light fixture shown above for the past two years. We are not real sure why he or she has chosen this as her permanent home but it has been fun to greet her each evening right before sunset as she first lands in a nearby tree and makes a little call.  She checks to make sure that it is safe and in the blink of an eye she flies from the tree, under the deck umbrella and up into the light fixture!


Last night I thought I would finally catch a photo of her.

I set up my tripod about an hour before sunset and put the camera on "Machine gun fire" so I would hopefully capture her approach and quick entrance.


But nope....with no warning call...........she was in there lickety-split......dang......

 
It was a wonderful evening and we lit a candle as the sky darkened and then I saw this......

Aliens?



Helicopters?


It lasted for several minutes and then "poof" it just disappeared.

Later we found out that Vandenberg Air Force Base had launched a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on the west coast.  We didn't know about it before hand but were glad that our little bird helped us to experience the sight!

"It's not the falling down that counts.  

It's the getting up."

--Mary Pickford

Just Fishing

So sorry if you receive this twice but I accidentally posted this on my painting blog instead of my personal blog!

Song - Belted Kingfisher sound

Monday morning I woke to a gathering of Cedar Waxwings on the bare tree in our backyard creek.  Since the sun was behind them I had trouble getting a good photo.

But trust me, they were Cedar Waxwings with their beautiful eyeliner showing.....

On Tuesday, as the sun was setting, a Belted Kingfisher landed on the same tree and posed for about 20 minutes. You can spot him right?

  He even stayed there while I ran inside for my camera and found a better spot to photograph him from. 

 Mr. B and I hear them all day long going up and down the creek looking for fish but it is rare for one to sit this long.

Thanks little guy as it was a good way to end my day!

"Nature always wears the color of the spirit"

--Ralph Waldo Emerson

Simple Pleasures

Only two small patches of snow left on Mt. Tallac.  Wonder if they will make until the next snowfall. Some summers I have been on this same beach and the mountain will be covered with snow. It’s most impressive feature is that a cross is formed in two small ravines near the top.

Love this little Western Aster growing near the cabin.  There are so few wildflowers this year due to our dry winter but don’t worry.....

As there are plenty of chipmunks, squirrels, bears & Stellar Jays to keep me entertained!

The Mountains Are Calling

In the mountains of Tahoe, I am at my second home.  My grandparents, father & uncles built a little cabin here in the late 1950’s on Forest Service land at the base of Mt. Tallac.  For me it’s my heart & souls place to reconnect with nature and myself. 

Over the weekend all three of our sons and their wives or girlfriends came up to join us. My heart was full seeing them share their boyhood memories with their significant others. 

On Saturday we spent the day at the beach and then had dinner at the cabin. Sunday we drove to Angora Lake were they rented a boat and rowed around the little Alpine lake.   We had planned to go out to dinner but the traffic around the lake was so bad that I made a big bowl of Pasta Salad & we enjoyed another evening at the cabin visiting & playing Canasta!  Everyone took off early on Monday so Mr. B & I have been relaxing. 

Stand By Me

Song -  And I Love Her by The Beatles

Thirty nine years ago Mr. B and I said "I Do!" 

We look so serious during our outdoor vows. 

I love the twinkle in my dad's eyes as he hands me off to Mr B. 

I'm thinking that he is wondering if we "kids" know what we are getting into.

We all look a bit more relaxed now that the service was over and the party was about to begin!

Mr. B's brother Bob (in gray) was a classically trained French chef 

and he graciously agreed to cater our reception.

The usual cast of friends (Mr. B and his friends from Chico) were there ready to cheer us on....

My mom and Mr. B dancing with his white man's overbite!!!

Me with my niece Katie and my two brothers Tim and Dave.

Cake cutting time and as I remember we had a carrot cake, a chocolate cake and a vanilla cake 

(guess we couldn't make up our minds).  

Our cake knife was given to us by Mr. B's sister Kristy.

Then Mr. B did the unthinkable.....

I can still hear my mother yelling "Don't you Dare" from across the room!

Time to gather up your bride Mr. B.....

A quick change of clothes and we are off on our honeymoon!

Driving off into the sunset in our chariot......

 err I mean our Toyota Corolla!

Thanks Mr B for 39 years of magic and love! 

"Before you marry a person you should first make them use a computer with slow Internet to see who they really are." 

—Will Ferrell

'Tis A Gift

Song - Take Me Home by Phil Collins

Happy to be at home and painting again!  Above is a painting that I started yesterday of a bouquet of peonies.  The photo reference was taken this spring in Paris. (see below)

Can you believe this beautiful and massive bouquet taken through a shop window?

"Just living is not enough....

one must have sunshine, freedom, 

and a little flower."

--Hans Christian Anderson

Gardens, Whales & Bunnies

The last two days have been busy on the island of Nantucket. On Wednesday my girlfriends and I went on the 34th Annual Home & Garden tour in Sconset.  It was another dripping hot-humid day but it was so much fun to see the decor & history of some island homes.

It went from one end of the spectrum.....

...to the other....

It was an all day affair and when we returned home, I finished my second painting for the week. Then we dined on Lobster rolls from Sayles & watermelon-feta salad.  Yum!

Thursday was spent in several museums as it was raining with thunder & lightening......and still dripping hot!

One of museums was of the islands famous Lightship Baskets. We listened to a basket maker named Jerry Brown (yes the East Coast one!) talk about his style of weaving. Unfortunately they did not allow any photos inside but look what I found in their garden below!

Next we headed for the Whaling Museum in old downtown. 

A reconstructed whale hanging from the ceiling 

The light from an old lighthouse 

Scrimshaw done by sailors on whaling boats. 

We headed back home and I began a new painting then at dinner time we drove back into town to have dinner at The Languedoc which was both relaxing and delicious! And on the way home we were treated to bunnies running amuck on our property!

Hats Off to Nantucket

I am enjoying my fourth day in Nantucket with two dear & fun girlfriends.  Even with the craziness that summer tourism brings, the Island locals are a very welcoming & out-of-their-way nice!  I am smitten.

We spent the morning picking up supplies for the house and then heading to the beach which is less than 10 minutes from home. It was so refreshing to wade into the water and cool down.  We drove home wet & sticky. 

At home we had cold showers outside & after lunch we all settled into our various creative projects until it was time to drive into old downtown.  

We realized that we all needed hats for the beach so before dinner we headed over to Peter Beaton’s Hat Studio which I had read about before coming here because his hats are quite famous on the Island AND he makes traveling hats! 

The hat I purchased is The Sconset Hat similar to the one in the upper right corner but with a wider ribbon. The young salesgirl showed us how to fold it in half and then roll it up for travel....really!!!

We had dinner reservations at a locals favorite - Queequeg’s!  It was not only delicious but it had air conditioning!  The best!!!

Tomorrow we are heading to Sconset for a Home & Garden Tour!  I just found out that one dresses up for these occasions....wish me luck in this heat!

Speedy & Window Boxes

So this is Speedy....

I came out of our driveway in Nantucket this afternoon to go to get some groceries for dinner and found this little guy heading across the main road which is dirt.  

I got out of the car thinking that I would stop traffic for him but he tucked in his head and wouldn’t budge an inch.  I was tempted to carry him across the road but I do know that some turtles carry disease so I decided to watch for traffic from my car.  

And Speedy just zipped across the street in no time and into the bushes looking for a cool pond nearby. 

Earlier in the day we had driven into old downtown Matucket to shop.  Every window box was full of beauty. 

And I forgot to tell you but there are little brown bunny rabbits everywhere, Flickers, Hawks & amazing Red Cardinals which I had never seen before but have seen at least 1-2 each day!

Here Comes the Sun

Hello from Nantucket - Wish you were here!

Lovely day at the beach and a little drive to Sconset, the dinner at home with an incredible chicken salad by chef Jackie,   

I will see if I can grab the recipe for you!

**you can now find Jackie's Incredible Chicken Salad in the Recipe tab!