A Quote for Monday and Atchoo!

"Loveliest of lovely things are they
On earth that soonest pass away.
The rose that lives its little hour
Is prized beyond the sculptured flower."  William Cullen Bryant 

The Fall Equinox brought me a nasty head cold, and how I wish it would soon pass away!  But it seems to be sticking around, although I am feeling better than I did last week.  At least my head doesn't feel like it's stuffed with oatmeal mush and some of my brain function has returned.  It seems like I am unable to think when a cold first hits.  Science invented the Internet and all sorts of other wonderful things...why can't it find a cure for the common cold?

Autumn Equinox 2014

The equinox will arrive here at 7:29 p.m., just about 30 minutes from now.  In the Southern Hemisphere, it's the spring equinox.  "Equinox" means "equal night" in Latin, but it isn't really true that the days and nights are of equal length; the latitude you're at determines the length of the day.  But I like to think of time, all over the world being in balance, however briefly, of things being in balance, even if it's not necessarily true.  It was a very calm, peaceful day here today...I wish there were peace all over the world. 

Faeries Friday

In the last ray of the setting sun, when the rest of the water is taking on the color of the approaching night, sometimes the Water Faeries appear.  Sometimes they seem to be tiny flecks of gold, or a turquoise mist under the water...but sometimes, rarely, you can see the wings of a Water Faery.  I spotted one, I hope you do, too!

Hit and Miss

I found this photo on the local ABC station; I can't give credit to the photographer as ABC had it listed as "photo from viewer." 

Anyway, this is of Highway 18 winding up into the mountains with a huge rain cell dumping rain on Highland and Redlands (I think).  It really shows how storms here in the Southwest can be so 'hit or miss.'

We had a little rain yesterday that was accompanied by terrible thunder and lightning.  Several tiny fires were started by lightning strikes; one of them struck a house down in Crestline and set it on fire.  Thankfully, no one was hurt and all the fires were quickly put out by our firefighters and the rain.  Also, thankfully, there was no wind blowing. 

It really terrifies me to look at photos of the fires in Northern California.  If the trees and brush up there, which are so much more hydrated than the ones here, can burn so viciously...

I wish so much that we would get enough rain to put an end to fire season soon.  And I pray that they get enough rain in Northern California to put out those terrible fires immediately.

A Quote for Monday

"The Crone cannot be a Sage or Wise Woman until she reaches beyond the shallow confines of her skin.  Children of the earth must also change, as the seasons do."  A. Foster

Sunday Sunsets

Three

I was so happy to see this little person today on my walk up to my studio.  In 2008 there was a terrible squirrel plague of some sort (no one has ever been able to say exactly what it was) that killed most of the squirrels.  I went from 15 to 20 squirrels visiting my feeders a day to none in the space of a few months.  The following year there were 2 squirrels living in my area of the forest, and I thought they were making a comeback, but their numbers didn't really increase.  But, this little one makes three!  I hope this one is a girl because the other two are boys.  Maybe (hoping wildly) next spring there will be babies that are immune to whatever it was that killed so many...

Wednedsay's Winding Road

A sharp right curve leading up to Twin Peaks.  Lake Gregory is about 900 feet below, out of sight to the left.

A Quote for Monday

 

"The moon does not fight.  It attacks no one.  It does not worry.  It does not try to crush others.  It keeps to its course, but by its very nature, it gently influences.  What other body could pull an entire ocean from shore to shore?  The moon is faithful to its nature and its power is never diminished."  Deng Ming-Dao, from "Everyday Tao: Living With Balance and Harmony" 

This is a photo of the Harvest Moon from September of last year.  It's cloudy here (it rained twice today, hooray), and I don't think I'll be able to get a photo of tonight's Harvest Moon.  But, even if I don't see Her, I know the Grandmother is there.  It is Oglala Sioux tradition to call the moon Grandmother.  There are four traditional names, common to many Native American tribes; Mother Earth, Father Sky, Grandfather Sun and Grandmother Moon. 

Lovely, Generous Clouds

Yesterday the weather people were predicting that we'd have heavy rain in our mountains.  I thought, "Yeah, I'll believe that when I see it." 

Well, I'm a believer today!  This morning the clouds started gathering and by 1 p.m. this afternoon they had all joined together and poured out the rain!  The rain was so heavy that when I looked out my windows it looked like I was standing behind a waterfall.  It rained like this for about thirty minutes, then slowly tapered off.  I don't know if that will be enough to raise the levels of the lakes here, but I know the trees must feel a little better after such a good soaking wash!

Early Autumn Roses

In a pumpkin-shaped cup.  I don't know what caused those odd, grayish shadows on the lace on the left side of the photo.  I kept looking at the photo in the camera, then at the lace cloth, then back at the photo.  The cloth had no shadows, but the photo did.  So I took another, then another...all the photos had shadows!  Must have been the camera pixies...

Wednesday's Winding Road

Will you find something nice around the bend?  Or are the shadows a hint of what's to come?  Is the white trunk of the leaning tree on the right just a tree, or is is a magic gate that will crash down behind you once you've passed under it, trapping you somewhere you might not want to be? 

Hmmm...

Bee Appreciation

I'm always happy to see bees!  Or, even one bee.  There were lots of other bees around but they didn't want their photo taken...

A Quote for Monday

"Live each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influences of each."  Thoreau

The leaves don't have on their Autumn dresses yet, except for the occasional one there and there, and it doesn't feel anything like Autumn and probably won't for at least another three or four weeks.  I feel a kinship with those impatient leaves though; I'm always in a hurry for fall to arrive, as long as it arrives with plenty of rain.  Then I can take long rambles under a sky that is many shades of gray while I breathe in the damp air that carries the particular scent of Autumn, revel in the colors of the dogwoods, oaks and maples, pluck an apple that's been washed by rain, then sit on my favorite rock while I eat the apple and drink a cup of hot chocolate from a thermos.  And, of course, take photos.  (The photo above was taken in Autumn of 2012).

The colors show up much better, I think, on a cloudy day than on a sunny one up here.  The light is so intense that a sunny day can, quite often, bleach the colors, especially if you try to take photos around noon.  That's why I like early morning and late afternoon on sunny days; the light is so much more interesting.