Through rain and snow the mail must get through

I was walking by the front windows when I saw our intrepid mailman drive by in his truck. Alas, this was as far as he got so he got out and delivered the mail on foot from here.
Here he is going box to box...
But when he got back in his truck he could not get going again. He started to reverse down the hill but more snow piled up around the chained wheels and he came to a complete halt. I alerted my own snow removal team and they headed out with shovels in hand to dig out around the wheels. It took a bit of shoveling but soon they had cleared enough space for the truck to get turned around. And off he went about his delivery rounds.
The teenagers from the side street who had watched the happenings were there to applaud once the truck got underway again. We watched as that mailtruck skidded and slid and with a rattling of the chains set off up the hill and passed out of sight.

The mail got through! And after all that excitement it was only a couple of bills and an envelope of coupons that got delivered.

A pretty real weather event

We are in the midst of an unusual December weather event. Snow is falling at the rate of 1 - 2" per hour and is scheduled to continue all day long. This storm has the potential to be the biggest snowfall on record for December.
These birds are doubtless regretting that they forgot to fly south for the winter. However, officially winter does not begin until December 21 so they still have a few more days to flee.

I try to have some images that I record in various seasons. Here is the back garden pagoda but it is in danger of disappearing. I like the way the snow has sculptured a perfect form on the roof tops of the pagoda.
Here, above, is the first man of my snow removal team. He did a great job clearing the front walk.
And the number two man on my snow removal team had the smelly noisy machinery to deal with. But it does get rid of the snow at a faster rate than the shovel will. Before we started clearing the snow we measured it at 9.5" in the middle of the driveway. That was at around 10:45am and the snow is ongoing.

The snow began around 9pm Friday evening. When I looked out at 7am this morning the snow had stopped falling but it began again by 8am and has not stopped since then.

It looks as though the snow plow did come down our street once in the night but we have not seen it in the daylight. We will stay safe and dry at home as road conditions are very dangerous.

There is so much snow already that it is safe to say we will be having a white Christmas even if, by then, it is a dirty white.

Seasonal colors

Today we had fall and winter collide. Despite the predictions of the weathermen for a 70% chance of snow that would not stick...we did have snow and it has stuck all day long. Around 3pm I ransacked the closet to find my snow boots and ventured outside with my camera. I liked the contrast of the last red leaves on a small viburnum bush with the otherwise snowy scene viewed through an already denuded viburnum.
Here, the foo dog seems to be smiling at the weather. See how the mossy green coat on the dog contrasts with the wintry backdrop. And no, there are no eyeglasses on the face of the dog, it is just an illusion.


But, perhaps you need some brighter colors. Below is a shot of a bunch of flowers that are well past their "sell by" date. These were arranged ten days ago for Thanksgiving but look how colorful and vibrant they still are.

I am enjoying finding seasonal color in whatever form to share with you.

Day is done, gone the sun and the summer as well.

Today we had one of those bonus days you sometimes get in the Fall with a lovely azure backdrop and temperatures rising at least to the 70s. It was an opportunity to get outside and soak up the vitamin D while doing more cleanup to prepare for the winter months. The colors have been spectacular this year and it is hard to pull out those annuals while we still get days like today. As you can see, the petunias put on their pleading faces and they got a stay of execution.



As I was dragging my weary body upstairs to change out of my dirty gardening clothes I glanced out the window and saw the sunset was just as pretty as the day. My photo does not do justice to the sky but I liked the way the jet trails were all lit with pink.

Lastly, I know a picture is better than a thousand words, but I am not bold enough to take a photo of a playful dog and his owner who live just up the street (I'll try to keep the description under the thousand words however). This spunky dog is perhaps a couple of years old and several times lately as we pass by walking our dog we see the dog and his owner out on the front lawn playing soccer together. Nothing unusual you might be thinking. But the dog is a tiny scrap of a thing, a Yorkie, and the ball is bigger than he is. The man gently kicks the ball and the Yorkie darts around barking with delight. It is a sight to behold.

Look up, look up!

Driving home one day at the end of October I glanced at the sky and noticed how dramatic the golden yellow maple tree looked. I dashed inside and grabbed my camera to capture the moment in the minutes before a drenching rain.
Surprisingly, I got my photo shot and the clouds moved on with narry a drop of rain.
And here, among some trees I had been observing the changes in each day, the fallen leaves reveal a penthouse apartment for a squirrel. When the leaves are on the trees and the wind blows, that tree really sways. And now the leaves are off? I hope that squirrel has laid in a supply of Dramamine (motion sickness remedy) along with the acorns and walnuts for the winter months.

A visit from the painter

Way back in April I sought input about what to do about the newly built screen around the ac units.
This week, the deed is done. The screen now matches the newly refinished deck. Once the spring and summer come back and flowers begin to appear in front of the screen it will soften even further. But for now, well, Jack Frost junior has already visited and the plants are looking scraggly. Basil is still trying to hang in there but his days are numbered as Jack Frost himself is due any day now.

The colors of nature

A few weekends ago I went on a tour of the studios of local artists when I got the opportunity to speak one on one with several artists and hear how they see their surroundings. Now when I am out and about with my camera I'm trying to make vignettes or look at color combinations

Just look at the wonderful colors combined here with the crepe myrtle in the foreground and the New England asters behind.
Now you get the rich brown shot of color from the deck and the fall colors of the crepe myrtle with a last gasp of an almost lime green basil leaning to the left paired with the darker green of the rosemary to the right while just edging in on the extreme left is the dried lemon grass.


Last night we had a speaker (Ricki Silva) come to our quilt meeting. At one point she had a slide up showing a sunrise and she mentioned looking at that glory of nature and wanting to take her scissors and snip out a piece of that sky color to add into the quilt she was planning.


I can "see" a quilt in this lineup of autumn plants outside a nearby landscaper's storefront.Which plant shall I take the clippers to and add to my fabric stash?