Learning

This is my dog, Axl, smiling pretty for the camera.

We had a little visitor pass through the front yard this morning and I was lucky enough to see him and had time to get the camera and get a few quick shots. He walked through the yard, down the driveway and off down the road. I've been seeing his tracks all over in the woods lately when I'm snowshoeing. This is a cropped version of the other pic.

These were piled nicely on my truck this afternoon.

Two cows got into a head-buitting, pushing match, and our Pack o' Black sprang into action, trying to get the baby out of harm's way and trying to break up the fight. They got the baby out of the way, but the pushing and shoving continued out into the field and went on for a while. They were both fine at the end of it all. No one got hurt,.

Super Macro of a snowflake against my winter coat.

Looks like more snow for the mountains.

....._____. I don't know - fill in the blank.

One of the European red squirrels just for you!

Enjoying the snow in North Dakota

an ice formation in the frozen brook 'floating' on top of the surface with all these ice crystals growing on top of it..looks like a fairyland crystal palace..the whole formation is probably not more than two inches long and high..

Train passing thru.....

3 flakes, so alike, yet so so different.

Ski resort Jasna in Nizke Tatry mountain range. For more info visit: www.jasna.sk

Boat out enjoying the Talkeetna River this afternoon.

Ella 1 day old

At first glance it looks like this squirrel is behind a steering wheel.

Even though we are in Construction mode I do have some flowers in bloom. I never knew that Petunias (Wave type) smelled good. These are by the front door, and you can smell them when you walk in and out.

Warm December day!

Maggie followed me around as I took pictures. She, and all of our dogs, love the snow.

Starved Rock State Park

I'm not sure what caused the shaft of light to go straight up out of the sunset, but it surecaught my eye! I kept waiting for the truck to drive on, but I guess he was gawking at the sunset, too.

Looking out the kitchen widow I saw our cat, Keeper up in this tree with the sun rising behind her! Great way to start the day!

A little bit o' Snow; a little bit o' Sunset; a lot of Shivering

Clavell's Folly atop the cliffs at Kimmeridge in Dorset UK, available for renting, has 2 bedrooms, and some views. Built in 1831 as a folly, has been used as a coastguard lookout, but was moved 25 yards inland from the cliff edge in 2005, and saved so that I could take a picture of it.

Ice storm! This was taken just 45 minutes after the first in the series.

Obviously there was no wind, as each surface has a nice, even layer of snow.

Although the barn cats are feral, they are spoiled by us, getting cat food and milk every day, along with special safe, warm places to sleep. They are getting friendlier all the time. I love this little guy's face.

Only one leaf to eat for the 2 of us? NO worries, Daisey and Sophia( our mini donkeys) have lots of hay in their barn. They were in the barn when I approached with my camera, guess they came out to investigate. Danny wasn't leaving that dry, warm barn, smart boy! About 6 inches of snow have fallen, more snow and ice to come!

The edge of the world in black and white.

Bryce Canyon N.P, Utah

The flash on the camera reflected on the snow crystals to make Shadow's muzzle look like it was topped with glitter

Continental Divide...Monarch CO.

It ain't *Track 29* and it ain't Chattanooga. It -is-, however, in the vicinity of a Pennsylvania station.

15 minutes before sunrise.

Stellar's Jay with his prize of the day!

Two chuckers in IL

There are 11 baby goats to love today. This is a sweet moment between siblings. (All shots are outside no barn.)

Ready for his field trial. Richmond, IL

These were taken during the Oklahoma blizzard of 1 Feb 2011. The birds went through a ton of seed that day and were fun to watch.

Hubby got home after being in Des Plaines about 48 hours. He really IS winding down plowing the driveway after this storm. They declared the incident a level 3 on Monday afternoon at about noon. (not sure what level they ultimately went to, but you all know it was a disaster declaration by the Governor). Plans were made for 12 hour shifts beginning Monday night at Midnight. He packed for what would be an event lasting 1 or 2 nights. The Emergency Operations Center was opened and they all spent the night directing Emergency rescues, clearing paths to hospitals for Emergency vehicles, some power outages, and attacking the storm. Behind the scenes as we wait for our roads to be plowed, it was our police, fire, and public works guys and gals who have made this look like just an inconvenience and another storm. Kiss a Public Works and first responder today! And be prepared and helpful, and patient...they are pooped, and deserve BIG KUDOS!

Just checking to see where all the white stuff is coming from.

I wanted to get to the beach way before sunrise to get some night shots. This shows the night stars including Orion's Belt, the lifeguard tower standing watch, a glow behind it of the lighthouse beam. The beam passed through 3 times during this 30 second exposure.

Great Blue Heron is bringing gifts to his mate.

Sprint mushing in full swing in Alaska. This 10 dog team makes a good showing during the Raven Electric sponsored race at the Tozier Track in Anchorage. The morning had idea conditions for the dogs - 15 degrees F - and not quite warm enough for the likes of the photographer.

Snowball plying in the snow.

My youngest kitty, 3yr old CharleyGirl, is NOT amused.

Every time I drive by this place, I love their view, so this time, I thought I'd share it. Not a cloud in the sky, but still pretty chilly here.

That last blaze of color in the sunset turned our yellow metal shed into a bronze beauty!

...one way to beat the winter blahs.

Enjoying the warm sun. Less than 12 hours old.

This snow white angel is less than 12 hours old and born on my mother's birthday. Happy Birthday Mom, we miss you everyday!

Snowman and Chickadee

While I was in Lakewood, I went back to that brand new park. I really love the views from there, and todaythe clouds were diverse and interesting, too. Enjoy the view!

Tynemouth Priory seen from across the bay during a rough sea.

Took a Sunday drive and saw all kinds of animals,including buffalo. I'm glad they had a strong fence. These guys are BIG!

My new best buddy had fun in the snow yesterday. He actually stood still long enough for me to snap this photo. He was standing so proud because he thought he was so good looking in his bandana I just put on him.

Lulu is four days old.

Yearling buffalo jumps through a recent heavy snow in Yellowstone National Park.

Zion Canyon is a deep and narrow gorge in southwestern Utah, United States, carved by the North Fork of the Virgin River. Nearly the entire canyon is located within the eastern half of Zion National Park. The beginning of the canyon is usually delineated as the Temple of Sinawava, a vertical-walled natural amphitheater nearly 3,000 feet deep. The canyon actually begins much further upstream, however, and runs southward about 16 miles through the Narrows to reach the Temple, where the North Fork plunges over a tall waterfall. The gorge then runs southwest through the national park, approaching 2,000 feet deep in places. While the canyon rim is dominated by desert, the canyon floor supports a forest and riparian zone watered by the North Fork Virgin River.

Point Arena Lighthouse from Manchester Beach