Gigglin' in the Rain

It's been a dreary couple of days - a bit cooler, some rain, and mostly cloudy.  It was beginning to get me down.  Until I looked out back to see all of the daisies blooming, as well as the volunteer sunflower further unfolding.  How could I NOT be cheered up by these? 

These daisies suddenly were so top heavy that they are falling over!  I'll have to get something to help prop them up.  Do you see there are still a lot of buds that haven't opened yet?  More days of cheer to come!!

All of the daisies make me smile, but noticing how many, many, many buds there are makes me giggle in anticipation!

And the volunteer sunflower . . . love the geometric proportions and spiraling in the center, as well as the bright yellow against the dark green.  Should have done some cropping to get rid of the garden hose in the background, but that just didn't happen today!  Oops, also see my left shoe in the shot, as well as part of my purple top!

From the "aerial" shot, it looked more like the petals were flat.  As you can see, they aren't yet.  I liked this view, especially since the other volunteer sunflower was taller and I couldn't do the shot from above.  That was one of the times I really dislike being so short!

Slightly different angle, but I liked the yellow leaves from the redbud tree in the lawn in the background.

Not a greatly different angle, but I liked how this one shows off how the petals seem to almost swirl.  I get a sense of almost movement.  I also like the green of the leaves blending with the green of the grass as well as the yellow leaves in the background . . .

Now, would you believe I took all of these pics with my cell phone??  I am so happy to have decent pics from it since I have it with me almost all of the time.  It's a whole lot less cumbersome to tote around, but it does have its limitations.

The best suggestion I ever received (and I wish I could remember who told me) was that if you weren't satisfied with the pictures you were taking, to keep working on them with the camera you currently had until you were satisfied.  That was a good indication you were ready for an upgraded camera.  It's not the camera for the most part.  It's composition, lighting, shadow, and usually, timing.  Every time you take a new type of picture or try a different angle, composition, etc., it takes work to get it right.  I feel very blessed when all circumstances fall together and I get the picture I envisioned, or one better than I had anticipated.

I've been itching to get out and take pics, but I've been swamped again with "have to do" things that couldn't be put off.  After this week, I'm hoping it slows down a little and I can get back out on a regular basis.  I have a meeting regarding potential volunteer work with Goodwill Easter Seals, and I'm mailing in an application to be an Ambassador for Dogs for the Deaf.  Neither of those would be a lot of hours at any given time, but they'll give me opportunities to get out and learn new things and meet new people.

Volunteer?

It really shouldn't surprise me anymore when I notice some of the coincidental things in my life!  Yesterday I noticed that the daisies were beginning to bloom, so I had planned to get some more pics today, but different angles (and mostly the buds, not opened blooms).  Then I remembered I should check on the volunteer sunflower that had come up under another bird feeder.

And wouldn't you know, that sunflower is almost in full bloom, too.  Nothing odd about that, except that this past week, I offered my services for two volunteer opportunities.  Blooming volunteer sunflower, and I submitted applications to volunteer . . . bizarre!

 Yes, I have applied to volunteer for Goodwill Easter Seals as a reader for their visually impaired subscribers; they have special radios for those who can no longer read the printed word, and then offer regular radio programming of different periodicals being read (some live, some taped).

The other volunteer work would be with Dogs for the Deaf, but probably not on a regular basis (they are not local).  I found out about them from a service dog and her family that I follow on Facebook (Hattie's Helpers).  Hattie is a chocolate lab who is a hearing dog for her "Momma," Jen; Hattie alerts Jen to sounds like the phone or a knock on the door or the timer going off or the dryer buzzer sounding.  They work as a team and take care of each other.  Hattie has also picked up other sounds that she wasn't trained to alert Jen on - one being that irritating emergency broadcasting system testing alert.  Dogs for the Deaf rescues dogs from shelters and trains them as hearing service dogs.  There is typically a long wait for dogs, so the more the word gets out about them, I'm hoping the quicker they can get MORE dogs and get them trained and out for service.  Oh, and if the dogs turn out to not be the right fit for hearing dogs, they do not return them to the shelters; they take care of adopting them out!  I can't imagine what it must be like not to hear the things I take for granted.  Jen has said that she really didn't sleep well most nights because of all of the things she was afraid she might miss hearing while she slept - a smoke alarm, the phone, etc.  She credits Hattie with allowing her to relax a little and really begin to enjoy life and not worry so much.    Getting the word out about service dogs for the deaf?  Sounds like a lot of fun to me!

These daisy buds are so compact, it doesn't seem possible that they can hold the bloom that eventually unfolds.  How?!?!

I'm hoping that my new volunteer opportunities will also bloom into wonderful experiences that I enjoy in addition to helping others.  I'm looking forward to learning all kinds of new things and meeting new people, starting Tuesday, October 16th.