Blah No More

I've been having a pretty crappy day.  Sinuses are all plugged up, stupid people are everywhere I turn, and I'm tired.  The 2 hr. dozing nap helped a little, but not enough.  Guess it's definitely time to turn to the photos for a mood lifter!

I went out to Cox Arboretum the other day, mostly to see the new tree tower and see if I could make it to the top of it.  Physically that wasn't an issue.  Mentally and emotionally, I didn't quite make it.  I'm afraid of heights.  This structure is wooden, with a beautiful spiral staircase.  It was a very windy day.  Whether or not it really happened, by the time I neared the top, I felt slight movement in the structure and decided I'd gone high enough.  It was high enough to get some good shots of the tops of trees w/ the leaves changing color, as well as some of the pine cones clustering near the tops of trees.  I was VERY glad to get back down to solid ground.

Now that I selected the pics to share w/ y'all, I really am in a better mood.  I'm hoping that once they're uploaded to the blog and I make a few comments, I'll be well on my way to a good mood!

No, Mr. Duck, when you live at a MetroPark, you have absolutely NO privacy.  Besides, you're so gorgeous, you should be used to people stopping and staring at you.

Once again, I was as intrigued by the shadows as what caused the shadows . . .

Nice, bright, and colorful flowers that just made me smile.

The newly opened tree tower.  Pretty cool, but this girl prefers to be on the ground level . . . it was worth the climb, and I will try again to see if I can make it to the top.

Looking up at the tree tower from the ground.  Love the symmetry and geometric shapes.

I liked the way this tree looked at ground level, but there was something more intriguing about it when seen from above.

These branches were relatively close to the tree tower, several landings up.  I think I made it at least one more landing up after this one!

Back down on terra firma, I looked up to see these pine cones almost directly above me (quite a few feet above me, really).

I really like the Monet bridge, and thought it was interesting through the trunks of two trees.

More colorful flowers that made me smile.

This contortionist duck made me laugh, too.  I got about 5 shots of her preening, but this is my favorite.

In all of the trips I've made to Cox Arboretum, I've always looked for this border collie, Zipp.  He is a working dog at the park who keeps the geese away from the pathways.  This was the first time I'd sighted him, so I had to make sure I got a picture of him.  He seemed more interested in keeping an eye on the people walking around than on these ducks.  But since they weren't near the pathways, I'll cut him a break!  Would have LOVED to have been able to pet and play with him, but he was working.  Darn it!

Yes, I'm in a MUCH better place than I was when I started this post, emotionally speaking.  One of the many reasons I love photography - it has the ability to transport me to another place and time and completely change my mood.  When I'm out looking for pictures, it does the same thing, so it's definitely a win/win situation.

Idyllic, Not Idle, Day

I'm not a morning person.  I like staying up late and sleeping in until I wake up.  If only the world revolved around me and let me do this more often.  Today was a HUGE event day.  I was going to my almost 5 year old nephew's first soccer game.  Considering he told his mom after warm ups at the first practice that he'd rather go back to baseball 'cause he didn't have to run so much, I wasn't sure what to expect.

Unfortunately, I hit the snooze button a couple more times than I should have, and ended up rushing around to get on the road to make the game on time.  Fortunately, I remembered to check the sky for a cloud and attitude check.  It's another beautiful day in SW Ohio, with nice fluffy clouds and beautiful blue skies.

As far as the soccer game went, the nephew had a few good moments.  I do believe the boy is a dreamer though.  There were several times the swarm of boys went right by him and he didn't notice; at one point, he just sat down on the field 'cause he wanted to; and he turned his shirt around at one point so the number was on the front.  I got some great shots of him laughing and having a good time, along with a few of him actually going after the ball!

After the game, I stopped for a quick lunch at Sonic, then headed over to Carriage Hill MetroPark for more pictures.  The clouds and blue skies had me convinced I was experiencing a peaceful, calm, relaxing, or idyllic day.  Could I share that feeling through pictures?
 

I hope you got some of that "peaceful, easy feelin'" I was experiencing.  It's been a great day for photography and laughter, but now it's a great day for laundry and baking.

Sending you all wishes for a peaceful and blessed remainder to your weekend.

Cloudy Vision

The experts say the first step in overcoming a problem is admitting it.  I feel it's time I admit that I am completely obsessed with clouds.  

We've been having another hot and humid weather system, and I've not been up to battling the heat or headaches to get out and take pictures.  I hate that.  But, as I drove hither and yon, here to there and back again, I noticed that for the last week or so, we've had a LOT more clouds than normal, and they've been awfully pretty.

I had planned to go out a little earlier to visit Mom today since I knew it was going to be another scorcher, so on the off chance the weather wasn't too oppressive when I left her place, I put the camera in the trunk and off I drove.

I probably shouldn't admit this, but I missed my turn to the street Mom lives on because I was checking out the clouds and didn't realize I was there already.  I may need an intervention.

All of the photos above were taken from the very posh and elegant location known to the locals as the Friendship Village parking lot.  The remaining photos were all taken from the very posh and elegant location known to the locals as the Huber Heights Target parking lot.  Maybe I need a parking lot intervention, too . . .

One of my "issues" in taking pictures of the clouds is that I usually see shots I want while I'm driving.  Part of that is because there are fewer wires ruining the view, but also because there's a larger panorama to view.  Stopping in a parking lot sometimes allows for the larger view point as well as the lack of phone/cable/electrical wires.  In my case, the locations were also relatively close to the highway, and more likely to afford the views I'd been watching while driving.

I don't know if any of the Target shoppers noticed me in the back corner of the parking lot, but I hope not.  I'm sure if they did they thought I was bonkers - what the heck could I be taking pictures of?  There's nothing interesting out there; it's a parking lot, for Pete's sake!  I prefer to believe they were so focused on getting out of the heat (either into the store or getting the car started so the A/C would work) that they never knew I was there.

But what's so spectacular about the clouds that I'm constantly checking them out?  Part of it is the contrast between the white of the clouds and the blue of the sky; other times it's the contrast of light and shadow on the same cloud.

Sometimes it's a dark cloud next to a cloud so brightly white it seems to glow that captivates me.  Other times, it's a whole palette of subtle shades and colors blending and merging together as the cloud dances past.

Sometimes it looks like an artist has been trying to carve the clouds, but finds them difficult to work with and puts it aside for the time being.

Sometimes I just look up in awe at the expanse of the sky and the ethereal beauty before me, completely at a loss for words.

Dark Shadows

No, not the TV series that ran from the mid-60s to the early 70s, nor the current movie w/ the oh-so-popular Johnny Depp.  I'm talking about the dark shadows found when you're walking in a heavily wooded area . . . the kind that seem to muffle sounds and heighten your hearing and make you a little jumpy.

Sure 'nough, I was back at a MetroPark this afternoon, walking through some pretty well shadowed paths.  I went to a different entrance for Englewood MetroPark, and took a short journey.

I wasn't anticipating decision making almost as soon as I entered the trail . . . if you're interested, I took the left trail.  You can see there's quite a bit of shade, but this was actually not very shaded compared to some of the rest of the trail I was on.

Once again, the extreme contrast between the sunlight and shadow was amazing.  A momentary shift of leaves and everything seemed to change.  Light became dark, and dark became light.  It made me walk slower to appreciate those changes, the shifting patterns of shadows, the spotlight moving around.

One thing I definitely marveled at was the number of VERY tall trees.  It seemed that they were all unbelievably tall, even those that had toppled.  I'm not talking just tall to a shrimp like me, but tall to the Jolly Green Giant . . . I kept looking up in pure appreciation and insignificance.

You wouldn't know from these pics just how deep the shadows were in some parts, but when I was in those sections, I didn't get pictures.  I know I could have used my flash, but there was something almost cathedral-like about the experience that I didn't want to disturb that image.  The shot above made me think sculpture (this would have been great for the Crafty Nature post!).

You know the sun has to be very bright to cast shadows through the leaves that make the shadows appear to be a shade of green.

I'm thinking this is evidence of woodpeckers, but it could be insects too . . . I did hear several woodpeckers, but didn't get to see any of them.  :-(

This tree startled me.  Does anybody else see the face that seems to be peeking from the middle of the tree?  Yikes, and yet another shot that would have been good in Crafty Nature.

I do NOT like spiders.  But I keep trying to get good pictures of their webs, and the spiders in/on the web.  It's one of those challenges I've imposed on myself and don't think I've met.  I like this one, but . . . I know I can do better.  No, I don't go looking for spider webs (I probably wouldn't have to leave the house for that!), but when I see one, I try to capture it.  One day I will be satisfied with what I get.

I don't know why, I just like it.

There were bugs everywhere!  I was glad I had my Off battery powered repellent thingy with me.  I'm not sure what this was, but he's pretty darn big.  I heard a couple of mosquitoes, but supposedly the silent ones are the ones you have to be wary of . . .

Yes, another shot that would have been great for Crafty Nature - I saw this one and thought of Bruce, the mechanical shark from "Jaws" . . .

And not a dozen steps from "Bruce" I saw this delicate flower.

It was a nice first venture into this section of Englewood MetroPark.  I'll have to go back another day and either try to go further on the same trail, or take another one.  That's a decision to be made another day though.  The rest of today I'll ponder shadows and light.  By moving light around, we can change what is highlighted and what is basically hidden.  What happens when that changes and the hidden becomes highlighted?  What's being highlighted in my life, and what are those things I'd rather stay out of the spotlight?

Dark shadows have brought on introspection.