Saturday, March 03, 2007

Deck Blogging


This morning, with the temperature hovering around 50 F, I decided to try "deck blogging". If you haven't yet enjoyed this form of relaxation, I highly recommend it. The picture above is just that...the picture above, as I sat in the sun enjoying the morning. It's not yet spring here, as you can tell, but the sky was blue and the sun was bright. All-in-all a wonderful day for outside surfing.

The birds, on the other hand, were not enamored of my idea and did not appreciate my proximity to their birdbath. Their squawking and disgruntled looks finally persuaded me to bring the laptop inside. Not more than a minute after my things were gathered, a big robin landed on the lip of the bath.

We have had a wonderful weekend so far. Thursday afternoon, right after I arrived, Mike, dad, Shasta and I climbed into the Camry and went for a drive. It was windy and wintry, but we all agreed that it would be good to get outside and take a look around.

Our first stop was about 2 miles from the house. I got out of the car to take this picture and nearly tipped over, the wind was so strong.

We stopped atop the Roscoe Hill and I took this picture out of the car window. It was entirely too cold and windy to get out of the car. I about froze to death with the window open, but what a view, eh?

This is the same area, taken with my 300mm lens. We drove on from there, deciding to take a back road rather than the main "drag".

The road we took was....well, the road less traveled. In fact there was a fairly monstrous drift on a downhill stretch that we nearly didn't make it through. The bottom of the car drug in several spots and the BBITU kept joking that the car must be alright because the oil light hadn't come on, yet.

This picture was taken from the front porch. There were several of these birds riding the weather out in this tree, but by the time I got the camera out of the case, only one remained. I know it's not a great picture, but for some reason, I like it.

Tomorrow I go back to Forsyth. I have a banquet in the afternoon where I will be showing a PowerPoint I put together on conservation practices. Pam, over at Mind Trips graciously allowed me to use a piece of her artwork for both the presentation and the cover of my annual report. She is an ardent supporter of conservation and an amazing artist. If you click on the link above, it will take you directly to the piece I used.

Thank you, Pam!

40 comments:

Anvilcloud said...

You sure seem to be having some fine weather, and I like that picture of the bird too.

Ur-spo said...

lovely photos; they were cheering.

dmmgmfm said...

AC, it has been a beautiful weekend, aside from the wind.

Ur-spo, glad you enjoyed them!

Squirl said...

Laurie, those pictures are just beautiful. It's nice to a robin and no snow. We're full up again. With snow, not birds.

Any luck on the calling? I just tried again, and nothing.

dmmgmfm said...

Squirl, I'm glad you enjoyed the photos. The one of the snowy trees really isn't blurry, it's just how the snow was blowing.

No luck calling here either. Did you try his son's number again? I am pretty worried.

LauraHinNJ said...

Beautiful photos - love the cooperative robin. It was 50 degrees or so here today - it was so nice to get out, though I didn't have nearly the view you did. Those mountains - wow!

dmmgmfm said...

Laura, the robin stayed there for quite awhile. I think it appreciated that I'd just cleaned the birdbath.

Jacob said...

Yes! Yes! YES!!!! No, I am not trying to do that scene Meg Ryan did in When Harry Met Sally at the restaurant. No, Laurie. I am exclaiming sheer joy over these pictures. WOW-zers! Without Googling, is the robin Rufus migratorius? I'm thinking so. Something very similar, anyway. Keep snapping birds and animals and I am your friend for ever.

Thank you so much.

Jacob said...

Hey, I see there is an Anvilcloud who comes to you here. Well, I just took two pics of such an event over the ocean a few days ago. Rare to see those here.

Hello there, A.C.!

dmmgmfm said...

Gawpo, I love taking pictures of all kinds of creatures. I promise to keep posting them. I will have to check out your blog for the anvilcloud picture. Thank you!

thailandchani said...

You take the best doggone pictures! One of these days, somehow, I am going to buy a decent camera. :) Of course, there is nothing around here in my urban paradise that is quite so beautiful.


Peace,

~Chani

dmmgmfm said...

Chani, I have a great camera, so that helps. In my case, it's all about the camera, not the operator. Glad you enjoyed the pics!

Unknown said...

Wow. I am transported. Beautiful, humbling vistas. The bird photos are excellent. That's so great that Pam's work/play will be on the cover of your report.

Cuppa said...

I could almost feel the wind gusting through my computer screen. BRRRR!

Another great picture show. Thanks

NatureWoman said...

Deck blogging - now that sounds like heaven. My laptop is tethered to the DSL line, although I do have a really long line that I could plug into, hmmmm, first the snow needs to melt off the deck and the weather needs to turn nice here, too!
I love your mountain photos! Glad you're enjoying your weekend!

Mary said...

The camera "operator" took some great photos! Happy to see a Robin - good weather sign ahead.

Those mountains are quite a sight. Unfamiliar here unless I travel a few hours.

Enjoy your weekend. Sounds like fun.

Keep us posted on Nick.

dmmgmfm said...

Potatoprint (Caroline), I am so excited to be able to use her artwork. Everyone that has seen it so far has been so impressed!

Cuppa, it wasnt' nearly as windy yesterday which made for a fun time cutting firewood for Uncle John!

TK, I'm so glad you liked!

Naturewoman, we picked up a wireless router for around $50.00, but then of course tech support a.k.a. the help desk (my son) had to install it for us techno-dinosaurs. I am loving it!

Mary, no luck on Nick so far, but I promise to let you know when I hear from him. Thank you!

dmmgmfm said...

Everyone, Nick is staying at his mother's house until he can get some things in order. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

wd said...

Those pictures are so beautiful ... they make me somewhat (only somewhat) homesick for MT.

(HUGE bear hug) ...b

valerie walsh said...

Beuatiful pix especially the birds!

Pink said...

Hi Laurie - just came over to see that you knew about Nick. Glad to see you do. Phew.

steve'swhirlyworld said...

Great photos of the birds.

dmmgmfm said...

wd, it is beautiful here, but there are certainly things I would change if I could. Thank you!

Val, glad you like the pix and glad you stopped by.

Pink, I wish there was something to do for him other than worry...

Steve, the birds are just starting to come around again. I'll try to get some more varieties soon. Thanks!

Frank Marcopolos said...

beautiful pics!

Anonymous said...

The more pictures you attatched here the more I wished I could go buy the same camera you have. They are really good and the one you said isn't so good is actually really neat!

I hope your freind is feeling better and you called to express your concern. I don't think that is so creepy! I have been sparse this last week so I expect to hear from you soon! *L* ;)

dmmgmfm said...

Frank, so glad you like them!

Butterfly, he's doing alright. With his illness and situation, I was concerned. I'll be stalking YOU later!

I'm glad you like the pictures. I love taking them, so you'll see many, many, many more...

threecollie said...

Great pictures! Wild, beautiful country out there for sure. Glad you got that great new camera

Cathy said...

Oooh - I like the misty pictures of mountain valleys and the trees. The silhouette of the bird is very sweet. I just can't imagine living close to gorgeous scenery like that. I'd be dragging the bottom of my car through drifts for rich visual rewards like that. (Glad you've linked us to Pam's blog - very wonderful things there)

Mary said...

Glad to hear Nick is OK.

mist1 said...

I practice dick blogging all the time. What's that? You said, deck blogging? Oh, well then, never mind.

dmmgmfm said...

Threecollie, I absolutely love this camera! It is even nicer than my other rebel, which is back from Canon and as good as new.

Cathy, the powerpoint (using Pam's picture) turned out very well. I had numerous positive comments about the picture. I can't wait to tell Pam!

As for the snowdrifts, I think my brother is getting a Honda CRV soon so we don't have to worry so much about the "drag". He has a Toyota pickup, but it doesn't hold all of us very comfortably.

Mary, thanks! I will pass that along to him.

Mist, are the dick, er, deck links on your blog? ;-)

Menchie said...

those pictures are beautiful. it must be nice to live in a place where you can see those kinds of views.

Pam said...

Your photos are simply beautiful, may I have your permission to "play" with one or two?

In response to your blog on blogging, I agree with your feelings of attachment. I have made some wonderful friends here and care very much about how they are.

dmmgmfm said...

Menchie, I feel very blessed to have views like these within minutes of the family home.

Pam, of course! I would be honored to have you "play" with any of my photos!

Bonita said...

I love the feeling of the Roscoe Gorge, with the weather all turbulent. I can see why you would zoom in on that. Sure looks like some blustery weather!

dmmgmfm said...

Bonita, it was really odd weather. I wanted to take a picture of the leading edge of the storm, but we couldn't find a safe place to stop. The wind was blowing too hard to walk the half mile or so it would have been from a parking spot to where I could take a shot.

In hindsight, I wish I would have done it anyway.

Unknown said...

Great Shots !!!!

dmmgmfm said...

Thanks Dave. :)

Carol said...

You live in an incredibly beautiful area! There are no such things as mountains in this country and not much snow to speak of.

dmmgmfm said...

Carol, you should come and visit! I'd love to show you the area. :)