alligator Teeth

...in South Dakota, no less. Yikes!

:o)

techniColor

front porch coleus that the deer haven't eaten YET.

the magpies' Domain

The Magpie Ravine, on the Moon Meadows Road, between the cattle guards, below the sky. I see them here all the time, especially when I have no camera with me.

the Clean-up Crew

There is a road-killed deer down the road from us, the magpies have found it and are following Ma Nature's plan for recycling. Deer recycled into Magpie. This was a one shot wonder, I sneaked up slowly in the Highlander, being watched with great suspicion. Not ready for Nat. Geo, but the best picture I have gotten of a black-billed magpie, ever. I have been trying to photograph this family for a long time, so this is a keeper.

macroMum

I love working with the macro lens, you just never know what you'll see up close and personal.

little glass Beads

Ma Nature decorated the Dusty Miller leaves with rows of little glass beads of water on a foggy morning. Maybe it was an apology for a nasty, cold, drippy day she dished up for us.

old Coots

and new coots. The pond that I census for several bird counts has been home this summer to several families of American coots. There were 9 in this picture, but two disappeared under the water just as I took the photo. They were having what looked like a green
spaghetti feed out among the water weeds. A collection of coots is referred to collectively as a raft, these guys didn't look too raftlike to me, it was more a free for all.

message for Boreas

How many skis does it take to convince Boreas, God of the North Wind, to bring snow for the snowboarders and skiers? Ya think my neighbors are anxious to get on the slopes??

beginnings of Change

 The Autumnal Equinox  

September 22    9:09 pm MDT

The Autumnal Equinox, the ash trees are the first to change color. Soon the Angus herd of summer will move to different pastures for the winter. They'll be back when high summer comes again, the first week in July.

photoshop Phinagling

Sometimes the exposure, or the focus, or the composition doesn't work out like I wanted.

Playing in Photoshop sometimes turns out some very cool stuff that might just work.

 

The "ripple" function in the filter gallery turned black-eyed susans and thistles into something completely different.

Colonel Hathi's March

Colonel Hathi's March

(from Disney's Jungle Book) 

Hup two three four
Keep it up two three four
Hup two three four
Keep it up two three four
Company sound off!

Ho, the aim of our patrol
Is a question rather droll
For to march and drill 
Over field and hill
Is a military goal!
Is a military goal!

Hup two three four
Dress it up two three four
Hup two three four
Dress it up two three four

By the ranks or single file
Over every jungle mile
Oh we stamp and crush
Through the underbrush
In a military style!
In a military style!

Hup two three four
Keep it up two three four

neon on a drippy Day

drippy day, temperature 41 at noon, sedum "Neon" is a day brightener. It attracted drops of mist instead of the usual butterflies today.

feet and legs and Shoes

Raider football, first you get yourself to the field, THEN you put on your cleats. The perks of playing varsity mean you get a bus, if you play 9th Grade ball, you are your own bus.

head down, tails UP

Did it ever occur to YOU to have a snack while hanging upside down?Red-breasted nuthatch people seem to think it is perfectly normal.

heading North

 

Perry's Weathervane

Using the direction of the wind to foretell the weather and warn of approaching storms is an ancient tool for farmers and travelers. Before the days of modern meteorology, low tech devices and simple observation of Mother Nature's patterns served to keep people and crops safe.

Strips of cloth and flags were first used as wind indicators, and the word vane actually comes from an old English word, fane, meaning flag.Therefore a weathervane is technically, a "weatherflag".Common early American weathervane designs included ships, roosters and running horses, such as this one.

the bow of Artemis

The silver bow of Artemis, September's waxing crescent moon. She was riding the early evening sky with her companion, Venus, low and to her right.

look out, Donald Duck

Walt Disney's Chip and Dale first appeared in 1943 in a "Pluto" cartoon as unnamed supporting characters. They became Donald Duck's chief antagonists in 1947 and remained in that "job" until 1989. Their original voices were created by several secretaries in the Disney offices doing short audio clips that were strung together to make dialogue.

These two are packing birdseed away for a long winter in the rock wall at Garnet Lake Lodge in the Black Hills. They were surprisingly not interested in sharing our picnic, thank you very much anyway.

the au pair Girl

She was loafing in the shade, waiting for me to get out from under the neighbor's pear tree so she can snitch a snack! Which is exactly what she did as soon as I went back in the house.

9/11

in Honor

liquid Gold

 

Sunrise, the instant the upper edge of the sun breaks over the horizon in the east.

photo safari Encore

Little Sis

photo Safari

Becka and Andy

on the Trail

This Corgi kid got so busy exploring the undergrowth that his walking companions got way ahead of him. He suddenly realized that he had been left behind and quickly disappeared down the path and around the bend.  His retreating self made us laugh.

the Fair #6

The joys of childhood, my favorite picture! This little girl had the entire Ferris wheel to herself on a hot afternoon, sitting, for the moment, on top of the world.

the Fair #5

The Godzilla Chickens!

the Fair #4

Deafen your seat partner by screaming in his ear on the Flying Dragon.

the Fair #3

The ever popular $25 carnival game prize. Not that they cost that much to buy, they cost that much to win!

the Fair #2

What's not to love about a carousel? A manly rooster and caparisoned steed like knights of old rode into a joust. I wonder, do you still grab for the brass ring on a carousel, I didn't see one. Probably liability insurance issue.

the Fair #1

A couple of pairs of socks, some mittens and a scarf or two, on the hoof.   An alpaca with lunch in his hair, part of the FFA exhibit in the Little Red Barn.