THURSDAY IN JULY

Drove out by Garrison Lake today for a couple of photos. This one of Tseriadun shows off those wonderful ghost trees. I love their wind and rain washed glow. I noticed that the lake grasses and dune grasses are all at their peak right now.

This flower below is beautiful, isn't it? It was over at my neighbor, Nanci's, for one day only. Then it was 'gone with the wind' as frequently happens in Port Orford.
I don't know the name of this flower.......anyone??

A recommendation for those of you going to lunch at Redfish anytime soon.....at least before they change their menu. The carmelized scallops were fantastic!! On top of a bed of sauteed baby beet greens in some delicious liquid........Oh Yum! And tomorrow will find me back there again since this was Norm's choice on where to go to lunch for his birthday. Opps.......I understand from a friend of his that he's been telling, when asked, that his birthday isn't for weeks and weeks. Ha!
Anyway, I think I might try the crabcake sandwich.............doesn't that sound unusual?? And I love crabcakes so I don't think I can go wrong. Feel free to envy me............

Have a wonderful Friday and a safe and fun weekend!

JULY SURPRISES

More summer treats in the form of blooms and thanks to all that endless winter rain we had.........Norm has been clearing out some of the jungle that was once our garden and came across this enormous and deeply purple butterfly bush flower. Even "he who yields a ruthless set of clippers" knew enough to save this for a floral display. I soooo appreciate him for his gardening help..........which had very distinctly passed long ago the 'cottage look' and moved into wilderness of Oregon chaos. Truly an act of love on Norm's part since I'm not able to get out there much lately.

Now this little group of flowers is actually the rose compion, hybrid style. The last few years I had both the white and the deep pink. I would throw the spent flowers over the fence below the deck where it is free to do what it will. I ended up with these varigated flowers, both pink (a lighter pink) and the white.

Recently I asked a Facebook friend about a particular book that I've had but hadn't gotten around to reading yet. I asked her what it was about. She has set me on a new path with a wonderful group of spiritually minded people and I can barely keep up with it all. They all have so many great and uplifting thoughts, words and quotes. And many more books. I have a definite weakness for books! Almost as much as bubblewrap! And the list just keeps expanding. Takes my breathe away!!

Well, my Monday has begun great and promises to get even better. Hope your's does the same. This Friday is Norm's birthday........One year ago at this time I was going crazy planning his big #80 birthday. That seems like about 5 years or so now......so many things have taken place over the past year. Mainly his surgeries and health challenges. For those of you who have known of this, you'll be happy to hear that he's just getting better all the time.....feeling good (although at this moment he's fast asleep in his chair pretending to watch one of his favorite programs, even though the sound has been on 'mute' for the past 10 minutes! 8-)
Ahhhh.....he must have heard me cause he just turned back on the sound.

His birthday......he wants me to take him to Redfish for his birthday. OK.......that's hardly a hardship for me!

Enjoy our sun!!

RAIN, RAIN GO AWAY!

My niece up in Beaverton was still getting rain today, but I think a return to summer is coming to Oregon.

Today had me putting some of my photos down at Dorothy & Denny Dana's 'Trading Post".........their delightful little gallery of this n' that. It's always fun to see your own work up in a new display. If you get a chance, drop on by, take a look and let me know what you think.

The black and white photos are from my files.......I seem to still be in my B&W mood. These were taken at Garrison Lake while ago.....maybe last summer or fall.

I had a special treat arrive in the mail today from my friend, David. I had posted a silly little thing on Facebook about how important bubblewrap might be in one's life. It was a spoof, of course and there were some silly comments written in reply. So, today I received a package from Amazon......it even had a big smiley face of the box. Inside, was 30' of (unpopped!) bubblewrap!! And it was wrapped in an orange satin ribbon!! When I first opened it I hadn't read the message and didn't know who it was from......only pretty sure (?) that I wasn't the one who had ordered it. So, in my confusion and until I could figure this out, I automatically began popping that wonderful bubblewrap............that IS what it's for, isn't it?? Too help me in my more confused moments?? Times of stress?? It gave Norm and I some good laughs and reminds us of how sometimes giving an unannounced and nonsensical surprise gift, for no other reason than to make someone else smile, warms the hearts of all concerned. And if not, well, I'll just go pop some bubbles! 8-))

SUMMER RAIN~~just a hiccup

I had some black and whites that seemed appropriate for this rainy day. At least it's a soft rain........still July warmth to the air. It's supposed to be like this through Tuesday so all you garden lovers will have to find something else to do. Today in the late afternoon, I put out a breadstick that was left over from last night. It was for the chipmunk or a young squirrel that hangs around........still trying to figure out how to get to that birdseed. During dinner Norm says loudly and with great gusto "There's a #@*!! raccoon on the deck~~" Said raccoon wasn't just on the deck he was looking in the window at us. As soon as Norm got up and open and slammed the door (rudely), the raccoon ran off. I guess I won't be putting anything more out on the deck. Next thing will be a return of the bear and we definitely don't need that.

I like the way these shots from Cape Blanco turned out........every once in a while I enjoy black and white. I follow a great photographer, Cole Thompson, and he works exclusively in black and white. You probably can time his newsletters by my own attempts at monochrome, be it ever so humble.

Today I made up about 100 more photo cards........tomorrow it's zucchini-rosemary-lemon bread. Yes, our zucchini is starting to produce and I need to start using it up. The rain reminds me that autumn and winter will return.......but not yet. This is just a little hiccup.

MID-SUMMER, SOUTH COAST STYLE

I've been away from posting on my blog for a little too long. There was another photo garden show + fashion show in Langlois. That kept me a little tied up for a while. These are a couple of the photos I took during the show. This first photo is of Tim Belmont's darling little pup, Blanche. She is tiny but with a very big and fun-loving heart! Loves almost everyone and especially perks up when she hears the click of the camera. A true Princess, I think. ~~~~ Princess Blanche. It has a certain ring to it, don't you think?

The garden itself isn't terribly large but a beautiful semi-casual-but neatly-maintained circle of healthy and manicured bushes and florals. In the early evening light, the low sun just set off the colors with a warm glow. The long shadows adding their own touch of suble drama. This white rose was one that just stood out. Flawless. This rose must have believed that she was part of the fashion show..........one of many beautiful models.

SUMMER ALONG THE ROAD TO BLANCO

Well, has everyone recovered from their 4th of July celebrations?? It seems to have left a lot of people sort of turned upside down in their time and space. I did get to the parade which is always fun.........love looking for different things to photograph and I'm never disappointed! Especially with the children. They are so cute and very funny! It brings me back to when I was shooting the Saturday Kids Art Program. They're just so natural and innocent in their approach to everything.......and so much is new and untried. Including their feelings about everything. What you see is what you got! And if not.........well, they're the sad ones.

These are a couple of photos I took on the way back from Cape Blanco the other day. Beautiful this time of year, hmm? The lovely wild parsnip in this one directly above.........such an abundance of it! And the top image is really of that wonderful pine that's been bent by the winds. All who live in our area know what kind of winds can be found out on the Cape. I still resent the fact that it took my favorite baseball hat I brought back from Scotland! Grrrrr...........

Simply Delightful, Jeffrey's Salon and Inge's new shop are all combining energy this Saturday for another garden show and exhibit. This one will have a fashion show with articles from Simply Delightful and Jeffrey's. And I might be running ahead of myself regarding Inge's. We'll have to wait and see. Inge is an extremely talented seamstress as well as maker of other hand crafted items. There will be music, food and drink, the fashion show and lots of fun. Photo exhibits will again be shown with Pat Stannard of Langlois, Lois Miller of Port Orford, and myself. Hope to see you there...........that's Saturday evening from 6pm to ?? Again, in the lovely little garden behind the Piercy Sweet Suites. Come have fun!