It Takes Patience to Photograph a Turtle.....

.... but, surprisingly, they can get up quite a head of steam!

Behind our house is a half acre hill that is nothing but thick green grass. Usually I see crows, squirrels or the occasional rabbit out there. Yesterday morning, though, the crows were showing curiosity about a brown lump. At first I couldn't tell what the lump was, but was afraid it might have been a dead critter. The crows weren't picking at it and soon lost interest. I grabbed my camera and used the zoom as a spyglass and discovered this ambitious mud turtle.

This is quite a steep uphill climb, but by the time I set down my nice hot cup of coffee and went down the steps from the deck the little guy was nowhere to be seen. How far can a mud turtle go in just a couple of minutes?

Soon I spotted him near the chain link fence that keeps our dogs from running off and other critters from getting in. Even mud turtles.

I went outside the fence to get better photos and "phlup!", in went head, feet and tail for protection.

Turtles don't come with periscopes, so he had to peek out every now and then to see if I was still there. I was. Patiently waiting.

But like every self-serving photographer I needed better light, so I picked him up and moved him over into the sunlight. He became a little more curious about the lens moving back and forth, so I did get a couple of good macros.

Well, considering I was running around the yard in my jammies, bath robe and slippers, plus I have snoopy neighbors, on top of soaking my slippers in the morning dew, I went back inside the fence to let him go on his way. But he didn't go away. He was back at the fence trying to get in.

He would get his head and legs through, but, of course, not his shell. I couldn't hear it tap against the metal. Not being one to give up easily, he slowly moved over to the next opening and tried again.

Tenaciously, he tried four openings before giving up and sauntering away.

Head held high, he continued his journey.

By the time I went back up to the deck he was out of sight! My guess is he was scooting along the retaining wall toward the front yard.

This might not have been his first visit here. I found a mud turtle about the same size at my front door one day. So, maybe I'll see him again.

I'd Like to Thank the Judges......

Hey, everyone, if you haven't checked out Mike's blog Ozark Photos you are not only missing out on some spectacular photography, but also stunning views of our beloved Ozarks of SW Missouri.

Mike recently hosted a contest to take high noon photos. We all know that high noon can put some very stark lighting and sharp shadows on our photos, but what a challenge to get some shots that really work. I took him up on that challenge and showed some of these shots here. I sent Mike the photo above for the contest and found out this morning that I won first place!! What a great way to start the morning! There were many great photos submitted so be sure to check out Ozark Photos to see them.

Thanks, Mike, for the fun challenge.... what's next? Thanks, everyone, for stopping by and I hope your week is wonderful!

Barb

In God We Trust

Country Roads

It is hard to believe that we have lived here in the Ozarks for nearly two years. Arizona is a fond memory now as we love it here. Let me show you why.

Just a short half mile from our house is this part of the country road I drive from and to home all the time. The canopy of trees will soon be turning all shades of reds and yellows as fall approaches.

All of the photos in this post were taken at high noon in response to a challenge by Mike over at Ozarks Photos to capture images with the sun at its highest. The photo below is my favorite of the day!

Just a few steps away from the road are thick woods and ravines, spring-fed watering holes which often host deer and other wildlife, wild flowers, dragonflies, butterflies, and meadows. There is even a dilapidated milking shed that sits within feet of the road but because of the thick woods it is often not seen unless you know exactly where to look. So, with just occasional words of explanation, here is life on my country road:

Around a bend and up a hill, the canopy opens up to reveal the ridge on which we live. The view of neighboring ridges and ravines is spectacular any time of year.

Then in my own front yard are splashes of color around the front porch, bordering on a thick green lawn.

The best part is that all of this grows freely and without need for sprinklers or irrigation. There is enough rain and ground water to maintain this beauty.

Thank you for taking this jaunt down our country road. It is really gorgeous in person when you can smell the freshness of the trees, watch a bright red cardinal fly from tree to tree, hear the sounds of the woods, and take in the silence. To answer the question, "When a tree falls in the woods does it make a sound?" I don't know for sure --- I've never heard one.

The weekend is coming. I hope you have a great one. Find a place and take in the silence --- you'll be surprised what you hear.

Barb

In God We Trust

Surprise Visitors

We enjoy living in the country and seeing all kinds of beautiful birds and other wildlife. Since we have several bird feeders out we get lots of birds and now ground squirrels (that I thought were chipmunks) and typical bushy-tailed squirrels. They all like to catch the sunflower seeds that drop from the feeders. Normally the only critters that come near the patio or deck are the hummingbirds and orioles because their food is on the deck.

Yesterday I had a couple of surprise visitors up on the deck, which is 10 feet above the back yard. These two little squirrels looked right at home all sprawled out on the deck railing! I don't have any food up there so the purpose of their excursion is still a puzzle. They stayed for several minutes, after I spotted them, even though our cat was watching them from inside the patio door. I snapped these photos from several feet inside the door, but even when I opened the door they didn't scurry off right away. I don't know if they have visited before, but it does explain the black walnut I found on the deck one day. The nearest tree is half an acre away and my dogs don't go down there.

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you are having a great week!

Thematic Photographic 24 --- Rows in Rainbows

After a night of rain the morning air was crisp, clean and ..... colorful! I walked onto the deck just in time to catch a full rainbow. Each color in its respective.... row! Arches can have rows, right?

So, this is my second entry for this week's Thematic Photographic: Rows.

What photos do you have of rows? Show us by posting them on your blog and leaving a link at Written, Inc. Be sure to browse through the comments to see some very creative exhibits of rows, like Ragamuffins most unexpected rows of penguins!

Drama At the Bird Feeder

Living in the country is so awesome! The bird feeders are out and we are visited daily by gold finches, cardinals, bluebirds, redwinged blackbirds, hummingbirds, chick-a-dees and the ever-popular sparrows and cowbirds. For me the biggest thrill is capturing these quick little creatures in photos. After scaring away countless feathered friends, I found the best way to take pictures of them is from far away with a really long lens. Sometimes things get a little blurry, but the camera captured the "Drama At the Bird Feeder":

The little sparrow sounds a warning to the approaching cowbird.

The cowbird continues to threaten!

The little sparrow holds his ground -- er perch! Go, little sparrow!

The cowbird takes another attack! Little sparrow hangs on and appears to get in a glancing peck.

Oh, no! Little sparrow is hanging on by one little foot! What's with the big ugly bystander, just feeding his face?

Woo Hoo! Little sparrow is back on his perch! He shrugs his feathers back into place and.....

Oh, no! It's all a blur, but the big, mean cowbird seems to be coming back for another attack!

The little sparrow is ready to defend once again!

What's this? The other cowbird has taken his big, hungry beak out of the bird seed!

Everything is so blurry.... but it appears that the little sparrow isn't the target this time! The feasting cowbird is being chased away!

Alone at last!

Working Our Way Out of Retirement

Our temporary retirement will soon be coming to an end. Since leaving Arizona over 4 months ago most of our time has been spent putting our house together (which seems to be a never-ending task). We've done some traveling to the east coast and to the far north; the holidays were our best ever with 10 days of celebrating with family. But with the coming of the new year it was time to prepare for our new livelihoods.

Jerry has been wanting to get back into truck driving for a very long time but needed to get his Commercial Driver's License (CDL). The Ozark Technical Community College provides a 5 week driving course that not only prepares the drivers for their CDL, but carries clout with the hiring trucking firms. Jerry has completed the course and passed his CDL test. Now he can not only drive a truck but is qualified to carry any kind of cargo. He is certified for hazardous materials, tankers, 18 wheelers, you name it. Jerry is really pumped and can't wait to be driving everyday. The most likely prospects for driving jobs are right here in southwest Missouri which would be great. We both prefer that he is home every night.

Congratulations, Jerry!

As for me, all these photos I have on file are ready to pay off. Also, the handmade designer greeting cards are going on the market! Made For Keeps Originals will soon have its Grand Opening. The most successful and respected craft mall in Branson will be my "store front". The Branson Craft Mall is very popular because of the variety of the crafts and that all the vendors are artists, filling their spaces with products of their individual talents and creativity. My mother is having terrific success there with her sweatshirt jackets. I don't know exactly how many jackets she has sold, but it numbers in the hundreds!

Today we started arranging the display fixtures and soon will be filling the racks and walls with photographs and greeting cards. It is fun decorating my little "shop" with my own style. I have been spending a lot of time in preparation, and I can't wait for the day that all I need to do is keep the shop stocked. I see that being a full time job! This is quite an adventure, one I have dreamed of for so many years. We are starting with baby steps, but are prepared to start running any time.

So, if you have some champagne handy, or any beverage will do, let's toast to dreams coming true --- ours AND yours!

Murphy's Laws of Moving

This blog is titled "Murphy's Laws of Moving", subtitled "Why I Don't Have My Christmas Cards and Letters Out Yet".

With all good intentions we figured that we would have the house done and all articles put away in addition to decorating for Christmas, making and sending out over 80 cards, preparing for family from out of state, and keeping our sanity. In the process we discovered the Murphy's Laws of Moving. Not necessarily in the following order, these laws held true:

1. You will find you have more stuff than you thought, thus requiring two ABF moving trailers.
2. You will under-estimate the amount of time it will take to fill said trailers, thus getting started on the 1300 mile trek a day late.
3. You will hire people to load the "big stuff" only to find that they know very little about efficient use of space, thus you spend an afternoon repacking the first trailer.
4. You will find that said movers will have moderate regard for your belongings and that the word FRAGILE is invisible to them.
5. You will get a call that the trailers won't arrive as scheduled and when they do the balmy October breezes bring record-breaking heat.
6. You will over-estimate how much you can unload yourself, thus seeking the nearest chiropractor whose treatments will be negated by further aggravating the injured body parts in an effort to "get settled in".


7. You will find that unpacking takes longer than you thought, thus finding that two months later there is still not enough room in the garage for one of the vehicles.
8. You will move from a 1600 sq. ft house to a 3400 sq ft house and have trouble figuring out where everything is going to go.
9. When you do figure out where everything is going to go, you will find that it all has to be washed or dusted.
10. All rooms will need to be painted and will take more paint than expected.
11. You will have a meltdown or two out of sheer exhaustion and frustration. Then you get over it.
12. When buying a house that was foreclosed on you will find more vindictive vandalism than was originally obvious, thus finding yourself with 4 Direct TV satellite dishes and all are useless because all the cables were cut in the attic. (We now know at least 6 technicians from Direct TV and don't expect to win a year's free house payments in their "move free" drawings.)
13. Everything costs more and you will need more of everything.
14. Home Depot knows about the Murphy's Laws of Moving and is ready to serve your every need, at least once daily.
15. You will find that window coverings are the most expensive investment in the house --- unless you catch a 65% off custom blinds at Penneys, plus another 20% off for charging them to the Penneys card --- and get 12 months interest free, to boot. (Ok, so this is one of the laws we beat quite soundly.)
16. Said window coverings will take hours to install and multiple sets of hands to balance a 7-foot headrail. It will help if you are 7 feet tall and don't wear bifocals.

The Christmas decorations are up for the first time in years. We had to unpack anyway, so why not unpack the dusty decorations and enjoy a beautiful first Christmas in Branson.

Our plans were to set up my studio first so I could get to work, but Murphy had other ideas. Thus the Christmas cards are not finished yet. I don't know about you, but the post-Christmas Day let-down is always brightened by a late greeting to carry the season a little farther.

We do have our own "Wibel List of Learnings for Moving":

1. There are wonderful people at both ends of the move who generously give of their time to help pack/unpack and clean/paint
2. Unless you have run out of clean underwear, laundry can wait till tomorrow.
3. If you don't remember you have it, you didn't need to bring it!
4. Don't go off your meds for any reason, and keep a supply of Aleve on hand.
5. There will be times of serious melancholy and you miss everybody "back home".
6. You will get a cheerful email or unexpected phone call just in time to lift your spirits.
7. If after two months of getting "settled in" your Christmas guests are coming and there is still paint trimming to do, bathroom tile to lay, and a whole bathroom still off limits, just put up the sign that says "Pardon our mess while we clean up someone else's".
8. When all is said and done, you will stand back and say "Now this feels like home!"

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone!