fourth and final year of my most popular blogs, and news (Arts Fair, George Ella Lyon book)

post #218

A bluebird nesting box in our yard, opened recently to reveal an even more crowded living situation than my study!  It is nice to have beautiful companions in crowdedness....

        Who would think it.  A post from a year ago ends up on my top three from year four.  It is called a change of seasons sweep-up: post #164 on 11/17/13.  There is mistletoe, barns, a four wheeler, and information about the upcoming annual Arts and Crafts Fair at Morehead State University.  I am thinking the number of page views might have something to do with the Fair, actually, since two weeks later, on 12/8/13, for post #167, I have some photos from the Fair -- which also made the top three posts for the year.  In fact, there have been recent viewers!  I do give the link for Monarch Butterfly stations, however, a hot topic in recent years.  The post is called Updates: monarch butterfly stations, the local arts Fair, and frogs changing colors.  
         I love that little frog whom I would not have noticed perched on a milkweed pod had I not been looking carefully at the plants almost every day, for art's sake.  Here is another photo of the frog when I went back to revisit him later in the day.  He had moved to a lower leaf, still green:

tiny!

This is just another version of the frog earlier, on the milkweed pod above the leaf.

       The top post for year four includes a couple of milkweed in winter mode, several interesting but far from awesome photos of some mourning doves making do during a snow storm, and two scenes from down near our waterfalls. I don't even show the waterfalls, shaped by ice.  I have NO idea what draws attention to this post, #171, on 1/5/14.  A good mystery to have.  Maybe, now that I think about it, it might be due to the simple mention of milkweed in the title.

      By the way, I am doing the Appalachian Arts and Crafts Fair at Morehead State again this year, on Saturday, 12/6/14, in two weeks.  The hours are 9-4.  Of course my own hours are a lot more than that -- prep time earlier in the week, set-up time on Friday afternoon, and regrouping time after the 4 pm closing.   As my new bumper sticker points out, "ARTWORK IS WORK."
      This year I will have my photo note cards, as I always do, but I will have many more 8 x 12 photos matted in 12 x 16 archival mat board, each in a protective sleeve, $25 each.  I will be sharing a double booth again with Jennifer Reis!!  As I say every year after she and I do this, "ARTWORK SELLING CAN ALSO BE FUN!"
       If I manage to be on top of my game, I will post a photo from the Fair in a special blog post early that day!!  Girls gone wild!

         Speaking of artwork, it is a privilege to announce that George Ella Lyon has two books coming out in November.  The trailer for the first book, VOICES FROM THE MARCH ON WASHINGTON, has just been released, and she sings on it! Beautifully. The book contains poems written by two poets, George Ella and J. Patrick Lewis. They imagine the voices of people who took part in the march.  (Published by Wordsong, an imprint of Highlights, 2014)
        The link to the trailer is HERE.  I love the fact that her singing sounds louder and stronger just as the resolve to be there became stronger for those many people who went.

        This coming week, my plan is to take a photo a day for next week's post. I haven't actually ever done that yet, and I think it is way past time to try it.  I'm rewarding myself for finally studying the instruction booklet for my "new" camera....  In the meantime, here is a photo to keep you warm.  It shows all the wood my husband has prepared for this winter for use in our wood burning cook stove!  It is currently sheltered in the barn, with some logs used already since I made this photo.  Surprise, Frank, and thanks! 

milkweed tell-all, part 3 of 5, visitors

post #181
     It's Sunday again, so here is another selection from my milkweed collection and more memories of my amazement.

       I start with an iPhone overview of location #2, midday in early September, 2013:

  
      BEFORE YOU LOOK AT THE NEXT THREE PHOTOS, TRY TO SEE A VISITOR ON THE PLANT!  HOW GLAD I AM I TOOK TIME TO MAKE THIS PHOTO (even though the midday light is rarely the best) BECAUSE I WOULD NOT OTHERWISE HAVE BEEN LOOKING CLOSELY AT THE PLANT TO SEE WHAT WAITED FOR ME -- the unexpected!  And it is also true I might have not gotten into the habit of looking, looking, looking from then on, taking a chance each time for wonder.

     I was so taken by the frog that I went back that very evening to see if it was still there.  I was rewarded by seeing another visitor, plus the frog had moved -- to the leaf just below where it had been before:

I love the frog's shadow through the leaf.  I think he or she thinks I can't see any frogs, thanks to their turning to green.  In any case, there is no attempt to escape.

The seed pods are beginning their autumn voyage from green to gray.

       Can you now find the frog in this evening overview photo??  (Hint: look in the middle of the photo)

 
  Five days later, I start seeing more milkweed bugs.  I still am not sure if they help with things or if too many of them damage the plant.  Again, my lack of biology training slows me down a bit.  I suspect an overabundance of them means trouble for the plant, and, were there monarch butterfly eggs, definitely trouble for the monarchs.

I loved seeing this spider returned and still at work. I hope it is not one of the spiders that eat butterfly eggs....

      About ten days later, I discovered LOCATION #3 along the road on the way to town -- with an actual place across from these several plants where I could pull the car off the road.  I found wonders here, too, but I will wait until next week (part 4 of 5) to show more than this single photo from there.  Of course I had been driving by this place all summer without paying full attention.  I am so grateful I finally came to my senses....so to speak.

    
          So, for now, Hey, good lookin' -- to you all.

Updates: monarch butterfly stations, the local Arts Fair, and frogs changing colors!

post #167
        I had a lot of fun yesterday at the MSU Arts and Crafts Fair, even though I worked hard all day long and didn't make any more money than the usual.  It really keeps me going to have so many repeat visitors with their stories of where an image of mine might be hanging or how they can't bear to part with a favorite card.  Of course, I'd also like them to be out of cards and buying more.  Yet somehow I can't get too worked up about that particular conundrum since I know it is kindly meant and not really a problem at all.
        The following photo from yesterday is thanks to Jennifer Reis, made just before the doors opened at 9 a.m.  I like to think I was hamming it up for some good reason, but probably I was just simply hamming it up...  Her photo just shows my section of our doublewide.  I never had a chance after that to get a good photo of our entire set-up!  I guess that was a  good problem to have had. 
         

 
      Actually, Jennifer also made a photo for her facebook page that shows her side of things....  She is an amazing fabric artist who also makes jewelry, knits winter head bands, and much more.  I'm regularly thankful she is smart and funny as well!  Here is a hint of the some of her items for sale:
       

  
         I have wanted to share my photographer friend Betty Hall's information connected to  her passion for saving the monarch butterfly.  This is the link to her RESOURCES PAGE on her blog. She especially recommends a recent article about monarch stations, here.  Bravo, Betty, for all you do and share with others, and for the beauty of your garden of native plants.
        I am still in thrall with my few milkweed plants even while they look dead and dry.  I suspect the real action going on is the work of the new seeds, currently covered by snow and ice.  I will continue to follow them for months to come. 
        I did find out from a science teacher who came by yesterday that the simple reason the frog on the milkweed pod is green on top is because he has turned the color of where he is situated.  I should have known that many other creatures besides chameleons use that strategy to protect themselves, but I did not.  I am glad someone I asked could finally tell me.  Whew.  Here is the photo again:

       I can tell I am currently a bit wore out, as they say around here, so I am going to save the printing discussion until next week.  It is an important topic for photographers to think about!  Right now I am going to publish this blog for today, grateful to have the needed electricity to do that despite the chilly, soggy, ice-producing weather.  Warm(!) good wishes to everyone,  Ann