I was definitely punked by the weather...

Decidedly NOT springlike for the last week or so.  Very cold, but sunny and snowy!  Makes for some really nice photo opportunities.  If I was a winter sport enthusiast, this would be great weather.  For the record, I would be a "Lodge Enthusiast" if someone forced me to go to a ski hill. This afternoon I'm being a "Nice Warm House Enthusiast."

These are shots taken from the top of the Orofino High School baseball field.  They were heavily photoshopped with the clone stamp tool and content aware in order to get rid of the HUGE light poles.  I'm pleased that I don't look at them and go "Oh, that was photoshopped."

The two blips to the right in the last picture are either Eagles, Ravens, or possibly early Osprey.  Let's just leave it at "Really Big Birds."  I didn't see them in the viewfinder when I took these.  Nice surprise when I went to work on removing light pole clutter.

Spring is Coming!

Or at least the weather is cooperating for a little bit.  Today was Beautiful!

Took my Rickety Old Rottweiler Hanna for a walk around the block.  She really enjoyed that.  Then Kermit (my husband) and I took Maggie and Penny for a walk around the neighborhood.

Kermit opened all the windows in the house for a nice airing out.  The first time this happens every year is so sweet.  The air is so clean and crisp, gets the musty out of the house after a long cold winter.  He also cleared out the stairs from the outside to the basement.  I don't exactly know how it started, but when shoes no longer fit, or whatever, we'd just throw them down there.  Kermit just picked up about 15 years worth of shoes.  We've cleaned it out before, but it was quite stacked up down there.

Then I got to play in the dirt!  Well, it's still mud.  Dug up some vinca.  Nice up on the hill, put a pain in the perennial beds.  Just wants to take over everything.  Cut back some bushes and looked at different plants peeking up out of the ground.

White Hyacinth

Tree Peony

One of my vegetable beds with a row cover on it.  I put in lettuce seed, but so far just wildflowers have come up.  The stool is an old milk jug with a seat from a tractor welded onto it that my neighbor made and gave me a few years ago.  The rocks in front really need to be moved.  I need to hire a strong teenager to haul rocks, move fallen limbs from the big winter storm, and general back breaking work that I don't want to do.

Back from Yearbook Hiatus...

I've never been so happy to do a few loads of laundry EVER.  Only a few more drawings, and I'm DONE with the Yearbook.  Next time I have such a great idea, I will do a test before I open my mouth about it.

Spring seems to be right around the corner.  Snow is gone, getting a little warmer.  Grape Hyacinth are poking out of the ground.

My seedlings are doing pretty well.  The plants that I was keeping in water died.  I tried to put them in dirt, and they did not like it.  Hence, if it isn't broke, don't fix it.

Peppers and Chamomile:

Boxwood Basil and an unknown that came with the soil.  I think it's Red Chard.

Pumpkin has been very friendly lately and I'm enjoying it.  It's nice to have a kitty to scratch at night.

An often forgotten member of the household when it comes to picture taking.  Poor fish doesn't have a name.  "Large Yellow Fish."

And just because, a picture of Maggie.

 

Five Day Weekend coming to a close.

We had an Ice Day on Thursday, so it's been a really long weekend.  I've enjoyed it.  Doing illustrations, went and took pictures at the Maniac Invitational on Friday and Saturday.

It's been raining like crazy here.  Yesterday we had a short respite, so I took Penny the Wonderdog for a long walk.  The town was like a ghost town.  Noboday out doing anything.  A few people here and there on the main street through town.  But downtown?  No one.  Empty.  So very quiet.

The creek is rushing along, brown with mud.  About 6' from the bridge.  We'll see how high the water is later this week - more rain predicted.

The fish in the pond are enjoying the warmer weather.  They're moving about instead of sitting at the bottom.

Dogs, cat, and I happily huddled in the house, warm and cozy.

How I get my toys

"I" as in "I get to use" a Cannon T1i, with two 2.8 lenses.  One at 70-200, one fixed 115 with Macro.

They are not mine.  The reason I get to use them is this:

Do I work for the local paper?  No.

Am I a hobbiest?  No, that wouldn't pay for the equipment.

I am a High School Yearbook Advisor.  I also teach Visual Media as part of a Professional Technical program in Idaho.  So, I'm in charge of getting the pictures.  Sometimes the kids sign up to do them, sometimes I take a student with me to train, and other times I go for fun.  This was a fun game.  Alas, we did not win (our shooting ratio needs to be better), but it was a GREAT GAME.

Taking pictures of the students is a BLAST.  The athletes are amazing, the kids that come to cheer are awesome,  the band is wonderful.  I love my MANIACS!!!!

No new pics today...

So into the archives I go!

This past summer, Mr. Fleuron and I put in a new pond.  I sited it, did the sketches.  He completely built the pond.  I did the landscaping work around it.  The landscaping is barely started.  This summer my whole garden budget is going into perennials for this border, the front yard, and the hill.

And here we go...

Before we started digging everything up, in late June.

First we sited it out, then put a soaker hose around it so Mr. Fleuron could dig.  The ground was pretty hard and dry in July.  That is Hanna the Fabulous Rottweiler checking it out.

And the digging commences...



1st layer completed

Penny the Wonder Dog Supervising

Laying in the liner.  Luey helping Dad.  Once again, Penny the Wonder Dog making sure things get done just right.

Cut the liner, put in the final blocks, fill and switch fish to new pond.  A little bit of landscaping started.

At the end of the summer you have...

Happy Fishies



And Happy Wildlife!

I can hardly wait until what it looks like by next August!  Even through the winter, it has been lovely.  A little bit of icing over, some snow on that.  Fishes are hibernating at the bottom of the pond.  The winter birdies have been sipping from it, and one even took a very brisk bath!



Pajama Day!

Last Sunday before the return from Winter Break, so I just hang out in my pajamas all day.

I was sitting on the sofa surfing, and Pumpkin joined me.  The camera was sitting on the end table, so I snapped some pics of her.

This is where Big Old Dogs nap when the whole sofa is occupied by other furry creatures.

This picture was taken the other day by Mr. Fleuron.  The ice on the pond is intriguing.  The water is clear all the way to the bottom, so we can see the fish laying there hibernating.  One of them was really active the other day when it got up to the 30's.  Seeing a fish swimming around our little pond in January is not a common thing.