Antidote

When all is gray and cold, memories of gardens past warm the soul. 

(From my garden of June 2008, in a previous home.)

A Handful of Snowflakes

Linked to Macro Monday.

January Night Sky

Subtle moonlight veiled

by a patchwork of clouds

dances off contrails of

the traveling jets

that are playing peekaboo

with the seven sisters 

of the Pleiades 

Orion nods and disappears

for a private moment

behind the clouds

while Jupiter reappears 

and wipes the snowflakes
from his noble brow.



Linked to Real Toads.

Music Sculpture

A few years ago one of Michigan's small towns decided to have a chainsaw sculpture carving contest to turn the dead ash trees in the little park in the center of town into art.  A few weeks ago I shared photos of the sculpture that won second place. This detailed sculpture won first place and is appropriately located by the park's band shell. 

Morning on Ice

 Photos taken earlier this week at the little marshy pond down the road from us. 

Leaf Patterns in Frost

The thermometer dropped into the single digits last night and we woke up in the morning to some pretty  frost patterns on the kitchen window. 

Pipeline Sunrise

There is a crude oil pipe line that runs through the farmer's field that borders the East side of our property. For the past several months there has been much digging and clatter of big machinery as new pipes are installed and the pipeline is being updated. 

Linked to Skywatch Friday. 

Insect Art

Pattern in a dead tree made by an insect...

Edited to add this comment from Susan Sawyer, one of my readers: 

"These are the galleries of bark beetle -- or, I should say, a bark beetle mama and all her offspring. She made the big tunnel in the center and laid eggs along it --the little larvae then each made its own tunnel, the radiating lines. They start small and as they eat cambium and innner bark, they grow. They never meet each other in the tree, but after they pupate (usually over the winter), they tunnel out and fly around to find the right kind of new tree. Mating usually occurs in the beginnings of a new gallery. And that's the real story, but don't they look supernatural?"

Linked to Macro Monday. 

Clouded Sunrise

Dried stalks of great mullein stand tall against a clouded January sunrise. 

Linked to Skywatch Friday. 

Morning Snack

About a week ago I realized that Emily has lost quite a bit of weight since she came home to live with us. While her brothers are pretty good about sharing the hay, and they do leave her in peace when they are all outside grazing, they still go after her when when  they are getting their bedtime snacks and beet pellets. She is a very dainty eater. While her brothers are practically inhaling huge mouthfuls of food, she delicately eats her food one little piece at a time. While this is endearing to watch, it doesn't work very well when you have two greedy brothers who want your all food. So now Emily gets a high calorie snack outside the barn each morning (with her brothers locked inside) so that she can have a few minutes to eat quietly in peace. 

Hopefully she will gain the weight back. I am keeping a much closer eye on her now. 

Silver and Gold

The day started with silver frost on the windshield...

...and ended with a golden sunset reflected in the little pond across the road from us. 

Just Relaxing....

Sculpted Eagle

Over the past several years the Emerald Ash Borer has killed hundreds of thousands of ash trees across Michigan. Most of these dead trees are being cut down and used for firewood. However, one little town in Michigan decided to feature its dead trees as sculptures in the little park in the center of town. 

Here is one of those sculptures-a magestic eagle that took 2nd place in the sculpture carving contest. 

Linked to Macro Monday.

Lone Tree

There is something about a lone tree, leafless against sky. 

Linked to Skywatch Friday.

Keeping Warm

It is cold out there!

But not to worry--we've got ways to keep warm....

Oops, I don't think they are supposed to be in the woodshed...

Linked to Macro Monday. 

Oddly Left Behind

The bitter north winds of winter

bring the icy fingered

 frost faeries out to play

silvery laughter sparkles in the snow

on the sharp razor-fine line

 between the real and imagined

 just a blink and they are gone--

but--hush! in the snow

(oddly) left behind is a  fairy scarf

thrown lightly over a fraying twig

spun delicately of innocence

 woven with the shimmer of snowflakes

 bound together with a confounding dose

of endless imagination and mystery. 

 Linked to Real Toads--where the prompt today is a word list. Photo taken on a hike along a nature trail yesterday.