a farewell toast to 2010

Bottoms Up!

at the Edge

At the edge of the ice at Canyon Lake, open water and melt water, reflections of the canyon wall.

The lake is Rapid Creek dammed up, with a spillway. The  water passing under the thin edge of the ice sheet was singing. It had a glassy sort of musical sound that was quite intriguing to listen to.

through the Window

Winter storm warning, cold and snowy, house finches through the laundry room window at 2 pm. Inside the window, the summer's impatiens is spending the winter days waiting. Pink and Pink

melt Water

A December visit to Art Alley, Ma Nature makes her own compositions. Meltwater off the roof.

some things are Universal

pigeon in Provence

( borrowed from blog Paris Postcard)

pigeons in Rapid City

Some things are just Universal!

sherbet for Dessert

 

 For friends along the Atlantic coast who might need a break from winter, a little summertime sherbet for dessert.

:o)

the dinner who Wasn't

Santa not only travels with reindeer, apparently he brings turkeys along as well.

Christmas meringue

Lemons from my cousin Bobby's tree in central FL, to me in SD turned into Lemon Meringue Pie for Christmas dinner. How yummy is that!

Merry Christmas!

Peace on Earth,

Goodwill toward Men and

All Earth's Creatures.

we need you, Rudolph

Then one foggy Christmas Eve, Santa came to say,

Rudolph, with your nose so bright, won't you guide my sleigh tonight?

It's been foggy in the Black Hills all day.....

full steam Ahead

Part of the Canyon Lake Navy, two mallards and a bufflehead drake on maneuvers.

winter Solstice

Frost flowers for the Winter Solstice

Did you watch the Lunar Eclipse overnight? There were high, thin clouds here, and a ring around the moon, but my NiteOwl child, the Schnauzer kid, and I watched till totality arrived. It was 14F, down jackets and snowboarding clothes were the attire. We finally called it a night about 1 AM. According to what I read today, the last total lunar eclipse on the day of the Winter Solstice was in 1638!

the cold Shoulder

The turkeys came running the minute I stepped out the door. They thought I had breakfast for them, all I had was my camera. I immediately got the "cold shoulder" and they left in a huff.

star light, star Bright

Do you see a bright star in the southern sky early in the evening on these December nights? The "star" you are seeing is the King of the Planets, Jupiter. With binoculars you should be able to see Jupiter's Galilean moons as well.

balsam in the LR

just hanging out

the goose is getting Fat

Christmas is a-coming,

The goose is getting fat.

Please put a penny in the old man's hat.

If you haven't got a penny, then a ha'penny will do,

If you haven't got a ha'penny, then God bless you!

God bless you, gentlemen. God bless you.

(old English carol)

the lunch Crowd

I have no idea what was so interesting to this clan of mallards, but something certainly caught their attention. Must be something tasty for lunch, McDuck's maybe?

holly for Helen

The mockingbird and the robins will soon have the berries, but aren't they gorgeous! These are in my parents' front yard in northern New York. I always send my mother holly for her December 18th birthday, but I'll have to think of something else, she has bushels of it this year.-

he of the golden Eye

Welcome  visitors, the Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula). These tree-hole nesting diving ducks spend their summers in Canada and Alaska and come to South Dakota waters only in the winter months. I always knew them as "Whistlers", which is what they are commonly called in the Lake Champlain valley where I grew up. Their wings whistle loudly when in flight, hence the colloquial name given this elegant little duck.

at the Crack...

...of dawn on a December morning. Most of the world is still sleeping and misses "rosy-fingered Dawn " painting the sky.

an exciting Discovery

 

Spanish researchers have discovered that caffeine and glucose -- found in those longtime favorites, coffee and doughnuts -- actually make you smarter. In a study published in the journal Human Psychopharmacology: Clinical and Experimental, researchers at the University of Barcelona discovered that the caffeine-glucose combo boosts your brain in terms of attention and memory. Rock on, doughnut lovers, we thought that stuff was bad for us!  

freezing Fingers

When your fingers are freezing, and it is dark, and the  shutter speed is verrrry slow, Christmas tree lights come out very Baroque.

the Snowboarder

Our local ski areas opened this weekend, the skiers and boarders have been waiting, waiting, waiting!

The snow that delayed our trip to Minnesota last week helped out the slopes big time.

macro-Ms

 

 Treats in the Teachers' Lounge.

the Confrontation

round 1

round 2

Who do you think won the Birdfeeder Skirmish and who backed off?

Our Project Feederwatch journal at Lincoln Academy has some interesting observations already. My 9th Graders seem to be rooting for the squirrels, despite the fact that we are supposed to be counting birds.

Sagittarius, the Archer

A Sagittarius born on December 1 is a reputed to be a  theatrical and flamboyant person. Sunrise on this December 1 seems to be a Sagittarian as well.