Look what I missed...

I totally forgot about the plum tree in the backyard... 

Look What I missed.

These are the sweetest little things...

Now how could something this incredible be overlooked?  Evidently it can happen.  The plum tree is right there in the corner of the yard just a few feet away from the apple tree.

The Backyard

My room-mate, Roberta's house is on two acres of land.  Here is a partial view of the the back yard.scanning from left to right, from the patio... 

I've walked off the patio toward the field,

To the far left of the middle left field, 

is, ...Ta Da, the "Hunting Lodge".

In the far back field, is more land...  Here is one of my most favorite sights...

Morning Glories

Isn't the color stunning?

The back yard neighbor's property is vacant.  Their apricot tree hangs over our property.  The fruit should be ripe in a week or two.  I can hardly wait.

Roberta's No Name Goose cannot fly.  It took refuge in the back right field and decided to take up permanent residence.

The No Name Goose

No Name Goose Pond

This is the pond Roberta's ex, Jim, dug for the goose this last spring. Hopefully one day it will be full to the brim.

I've turned around and started back toward the house.  This is the view from the middle field.

Roberta tending backyard beauty

The lemon tree should give a good harvest.  Last year I made Lemon Curd.  Sounds awful, tastes wonderful on toast, in baked goods, ...mmmmmm.

The apples are ready for picking.

You can eat them right off the tree.

Here is some backyard beauty.

A tomatoe in the making...

One of the little workers that makes it all possible.

That's all for now folk, xoxoxo.

Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow...

The star of the show today was discovered at the South Natomas Library Rose Garden yesterday - and is being featured today, which yesterday was tomorrow...  if you follow my drift.

 Presenting the bodacious 

"Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow" rose

At least I think that's what it is called.  It blooms one color the first day, the next day it is another color, and the day after that - the third color.  Yellow, pink, and white, if I can determine the sequence by the state of the blooms.  

Suzanne and I wanted to explore some of the libraries we had not visited before, and discovered this patch of beauty.  I wanted to take her picture with these flowers, but it was too hot for her.   To hot for me too...  I took a few pictures of this pretty, and one more bush, and had to retreat to the cool of the library.

 Here I am almost as pink as this rose...

It was very hot

The object of my attention 

had a fragrance as beautiful as it's appearance.

It was enough to make you swoon from sheer pleasure.

Incidentally, my car "Failed" the smog test.  Have till the end of September to get everything corrected, and will say no more till it's done.

TTFN my love to all.

Relented - just a little

Okay, so I've relented - just a little. 
I've added a bit to my profile - music.  That seems harmless enough...

These two pages are my take on visual word challenges.

"Quiet"

 Does this represent "quiet" to you? 

Standing on a still beach under the stars,

Or the sound of a cricket on a dark night?

"Change"

 Change can represent many things...

From the metomophis of a catapiller

To changes in our personality.

And there's always the change in your pocket...

And I wanted to share this little guy...

Ain't it the truth.

That's it for now... gotta get my car Smog Checked. There is only pass or fail.  Here's hoping for a "Passed".

What's on my mind...

Last night I went insane... truly.

I added to my profile - all kinds of stuff.  Just typed my little heart out for all the world to see. 
This morning I woke up, horrified, felt like an open book ...Exposed.

Well, not for long.  I erased it ALL this morning.  Couldn't stand the exposure.  Sorry guys, it's just too much, I can only share a bit at a time.  Anyway, I've got a bit to share this morning.

Camera Love! Saw this guy by the edge of the road Sunday morning.  By the time I drove close enough he slipped under the fence and was taking off.  I was thrilled to be able to catch him at all.

See him there, to the left?

I know this is grainy,
but I just love what my camera can do!!!

 Doesn't he look a bit like a kangaroo with wings!

This is what's been on my mind for the past week... 

Had to get California license plates for my car this month.  It cost three times as much as it would have in Alabama, or Oregon...  AND I have to get the car smogged before they will give me my plates.  Plus my check engine light has been on for almost a year, which (I learned) means an automatic fail on the smog test. I bought a new gas cap, filled up the tank, and had a friend look at it.  He said I have "an emissions leak".  It's the most common cause for smog check failure.  He doesn't have the equipment to check this for me, but wrote everything down that I might need to know.  The new gas cap may fix it, but probably not.  He, kindly, reset my check engine light, and said to drive 75 to 100 miles to reset the "thingy" (my word, not his...), and maybe the light will stay off, if not...  (Incidentally, while I was there, his darling wife was busy canning in the kitchen - she gave me a jar of the most delicious zucchini relish I have ever tasted, and I am not a relish person.)  Sweet, sweet people, thank you very much.

To add insult to injury my brakes are now squealing, as in one minute they weren't, and the next minute they were.  I was driving home from Suzanne's, stopped at the post office for her, and... Awful sound!  Creeps me out!

A reminder for me

The birds in heaven do not sow seed...

The lilies of the field do not weave cloth....

Stay centered, try to keep my eye simple.

 I love "The Art of Imperfection" by Vienne & Lennard

Well that's it for now.  Have to figure out what I'm going to do about my car.  If you've read down to here then thanks for sticking with me for my "bit of a grumble".

Last night & Yesteryear

Take a peek at what I worked on last night...  I'm reworking a set I never liked much from the start.

I'm liking it much better now. 

It was hard to catch how pretty the pendant really is.  I took it off a very inexpensive (read cheap) necklace I acquired just to get the rose.

I just love this little rose...

Does the pendant on this look familiar?
I made it about a week ago.

It's hard to see the neat affect the light has on these beads. 

The total results of last nights play...

Thought you might enjoy seeing some "netting" I designed years ago. These necklaces are very delicate and are quite pretty on the neck, my daughter has several.  They were "hot" sellers at the time, couldn't make them fast enough...

 Don't you just love the way the light glints on these beads?

Still have not got to my paints, but am not dissatisfied with what I did get done.
Oh yes, and for my MFF, I can hear quail in the backyard crying Chi-Ca-Go, Chi-Ca-Go...
That's it for now...

It's a Beautiful Morning...

It is a beautiful morning... I've flung the doors and windows open, and a mockingbird nearby is serenading the neighborhood...

Please meet Poisson Chat (I'm not sure of the spelling) it's French, and fancy sounding for Cat Fish.  Ha! 

This was done on a wood panel, the lines are burnt in with a wood burning tool.  You can actually feel the groove - the black outline is a natural result of the burn..  I used some of my hand carved stamps for the border and stars...  then painted with acrylics, and metallic acrylics.   If you click on the picture you can see the final step was glitter (I'm such a magpie) I just  love things that shine and sparkle...  I rather like the pensive expression.  I miss the sea... 

Have been sidetracked with mundane things and have not painted anything new this week.  Gotta remedy that!!!
 

That's it for now, let me know what you think...

Cat, Fox & Starry Night

Cats, foxes, starry nights, who could ask for more?

A Cat Is A Cat,

And That Is That!

(Ogden Nash)

He needs no explanation, does he? 

This is a favorite piece... don't ask me why.

Here are three of my hand carved stamps...

The picture cuts off the leaf so you can't see all of it.

It's pretty don't you think?

Don't forget, you can always click on a picture, if you want to, to enlarge it...

Ta ta for now...

2nd Post of the day...

Okay, so I know I can't really make up missing two days of posting, but I thought I'd kick in something extra to try to "make it up..."  :-)

Little sketches from some of my journaling...

I did some wire pins for a while...

I just love these little guys...

 Make believe facing reality!!!

The Beach is one of my favorite places to be...

What do you think...?

Little Felted Purse...

Here's a little purse I designed quite a while back, my first attempt at "felting"...

The "button" & leaves

 are free form crochet, the "stem" is corded yarn.

The "button hole"...

On paper...

I originally planned two leaves on cord for the "button hole", but it was too bulky... 
"Click" on the picture to see better details.

TTFN... :-)