haying this week plus walking to the tall waterfall

post #288
      This week has been a bit unusual in that every day it has felt positively social around here!  Several neighbors were coming by to help with the outside work, friends from town came to take a short hike and even brought their dogs, our geothermal unit got some attention, and a young man who has helped me all this year came to say goodby for awhile -- so a full week of both sad and happy moments.  This morning I decided that the photos I should share today from this past week are the ones about the hay, near the house, and the waterfall, at the other end of our property. 
       First the hay. We do have one field that's an actual hay field, but the other part requires some fancy driving to get around things like a tree here, a tree there, a terraced section of a hillside, etc. Even so, Jamie managed to round up 6 large bales, and he may come back to do some corners needing the bush hog instead.  (I looked this word up on line and found out a lot about something I thought I already knew what it was -- but now I know more:  A bush hog is a type of rotary mower. Typically these mowers attach to the back of a farm tractor using the three-point hitch and are driven via the Power take-off (PTO). It has blades that are not rigidly attached to the drive like a lawnmower blade, but are on hinges so if the blade hits a rock or stump, it bounces backward and inward, and then centrifugal force makes it go outwards again.) I say why bother to do a blog post if I can't also learn something myself!

The mower behind Jamie's tractor is behind and off to one side, so it doesn't show up in this photo.

the hay taking over, between house and barn

looking back toward the house

       For a book project, I need to show "milkweed in the meadow". Luckily I had taken some photos in the early morning light, not knowing the haying would begin that afternoon.  A close call!!

I think this is my favorite milkweed plant compositon.To me it looks like the plant is about to take a bow.

       Now our walk to the waterfalls, ending up at the tallest one:
 

        I'm really happy with this photo. I've taken so many other photos down here that don't do the falls justice, and yet this one is able to give a feel for the place. It's hard to get the light right, for one thing. Being there in the evening helps.

looking more to the south from the same location

   Don't forget to give one of the photos a click so that they can each then be seen in a larger size. Enjoy, enjoy, and thank a rock today for me. 

Kentucky Cousin Camp follow-up, on Book Lovers Day

post #243
       Our local indie bookstore (CoffeeTree Books) has reminded us that today is Book Lovers Day.  That is my excuse for actually reading in my book this morning for awhile instead of getting this post out in a more timely manner!  I have a special book reading moment photo that I will save for the end of this post.
       It helps that there is currently a break in Cousin Camp, though a mini version starts late Tuesday.  To tide myself over, I decided to post today some more family photos. So what follows is four sets of four photos each: the swing, the farms, the toss, and an appreciation.

       The swing J. built on day one gets lots of use. Here is one sequence I got to watch. I did try out the swing myself, but it is of course way too close to the ground for my long legs. 

                We visited nearby friends whose farms have all kinds of animals, from kittens to rabbits, chickens, guinea hens, peacocks, small ponies, goats, sheep, and llamas (to keep the sheep company and protect them). Our thanks to all.

    Then there is the Big Toss, all three cousins headed toward one big safe splash.  They had all done it before so they knew what was coming.  THANKS, J., and wow!!

   
    I can't help it, I am going to add a fifth pond photo, having fun with the new noodle:

         As my readers know, I am always saying thanks, and meaning it, so first are two photos of Maleigh, who helped host the gang at her grandparents' barn.  I like both these photos of her.  I hope she likes them as well! 

      Then, as a photographer, I appreciate others who carefully look at things and see possibilities.  These two photos of my granddaughter fascinate me.  She turned 4 in May, but she instinctively holds the camera well and she waits until she has the image lined out the way she sees it before making the photo. The first photo is by me, and the second one,  is by her, though I don't remember being aware of her choice of subject. I say bravo!

     Well, I have this post mostly finished, it is only 1:13 pm. I have, as stated, saved this last photo for the closing of today's post.  Our good friend George Ella Lyon came by for a visit to be with the cousins, and she sang them farm songs with accompanying washboard.  She also read a book or two, of course, and she even stayed for dinner!  Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.

 

 

a tribute to a neighbor's sister, with photos of her garden 2 weeks after she unexpectedly died

post #201

      Bonnie lives a couple of hollows over from us.  She loves working hard, loves farming, loves chickens, and she loved having her sister, Mary Ann, and husband living with her for the past five years.  Her sister was retired and put a lot of caring and energy into their flower garden.  So, when I saw Bonnie at her sister's visitation in early July, she asked me if I would come over and take some photos of this special garden. I finally was able to do it a week ago, in the evening, though no one was there at the time. The light was just right.  I want to share some of those photos on this blog today; I will be making prints for Bonnie and for Mary Ann's husband soon as well. I hope I managed to get what Bonnie wanted me to.

barn and bales near the garden

the front part of the yard

by the front porch

        I will be seeing Bonnie soon, and if there are more photos that she wants, I will be adding them to this post.  Bonnie, thank you for asking me to take these photos, a small thing I could do for you at this difficult time.

finally, some fluff -- on the milkweed

post #158
     This month is the beginning of my fourth year posting weekly on this blog.  Wow!  It's still fun to do, so I look forward to everything I can't imagine yet that will show up here in the future. In honor of the occasion, I plan to post a review of a few of my all time favorite photos.  I can't start that today, however.  I'm too impatient to share some very recent images made last week.

     The overall scene I was working in:

      Busy milkweed bugs, bigger and badder than when they were younger and without markings -- doing vital work?  It looks to me like the milkweed pod has finally opened up or is it being opened up by the bugs? 

 

         The reason I wonder is because this next pod has split open and the the seeds are sitting there neatly folded together before the wind blows them out and about.  But no bugs. 

       The next picture is kind of a miracle.  I was on my way to town, after all, with not much extra time to get where I was headed.  This particular group of milkweeds is on the way, and there is now place to pull off of the road nearby.  I had been gone five days so I stopped to check out the scene.  It was 6 pm with full sun on the plants, usually not a good light for a photo.  However, when I looked more closely, I saw a grasshopper on the one pod that was open -- with seeds starting on their way.  After the frog and the spider visitations earlier in the milkweed evolution, I was literally disbelieving that I was now seeing still another visitation.   And within the only few minutes I had.  I did realize I needed to stop thinking and just make a photo in a hurry before the grasshopper moved on, the seeds blew away if a car came by, or the light changed.  Hand held camera.  Holding my breath.

 

  

          The remaining photos are more of what I saw when I returned the next morning around 8:30, with an overcast sky. I didn't get any other good grasshoppers shots on day 1; my focus on that moving target was off.  It happens.

next morning, 8:40 a.m., seeds dispersing

from the other side, grasshopper gone, seed pods on their way, bugs still busy

what is visible from a passing car -- just 3 plant clusters

This shows some farm activity across the road, next to where my car is sitting.  Anyone from the neighborhood will now know exactly where I was!  And will be again soon.

ONE LAST NOTE: I now have seen the actual book I wrote about last week!  The cover looks even better than I could have hoped.  Nice!  Great job, Counterpoint Press. Bravo!

4H day in Elliott County, part 2

post #154
        Today I promised goats, beef cows, sheep, pigs, and rabbits, but I also prefer to post  decent photos.  For some reason, I didn't do as well with the pigs, so I will be leaving them out.  My apologies to all porker fans!  These photos all come from the showing of the animals, late afternoon during the 10 hour 4H day on August 28, 2013.

preparing Natalee's goat for the upcoming show time

four young farmers line up their goats after the judging

Issac shows his beef cow that goes on to win the top prize of the day and then be sold for $1,400!

more of the beef cows in the competition, with the judge, on the right

                         Then the sheep:

All the sheep are closely shorn for the show. 

a quiet moment during the sheep showing

Gracey's sheep is the grand champion!

Next: rabbits, two in the cage and one to carry

Issac, in the middle, with friends Hunter and Casey.  Issac was the grand champion of the day!

 Congratulations to all the kids and their families and their 4H leaders for a job very well done!