More kittens!

The kittens are now 8 weeks old, pretty close to being able to go to new homes. They probably could, since they are eating solid food more, although they are still nursing. I'd like to hang on to them a bit longer, though. 

Anyway, here's some pics, since I've been a bit remiss in posting them here.

Finding new places to nap ...

Checking out Buster's bed.

The only acceptable fur to wear.

Fruit ninja!

Kitten funny

Dry Big Creek, Foggy Morning

Big Creek runs alongside my property. When there's water in it, at least. With the drought this summer, it's completely dried up. When Buster and I woke up this morning, it was pretty foggy and I had a notion to take the camera along with me. So here's a photo essay of our walk, and the dried-up creek.

My backyard.

The bridge near my house, looking upstream/north.

Downstream/south.

Field along the road on the other side of the creek.

Looking south from a bridge south of my house. The creek takes a big bend just beyond here and loops back around to town.

Looking north. Can you see it? No, not Buster's nose.

Here's a closer look. A whitetail doe, checking us out. There were at least four more that came out of the trees to the right, and they all ran upstream.

From the walking bridge at the park a few blocks up the street from my house, looking south/upstream.

And looking north, toward the 10th Street bridge.

Squirrel!

And there it is.

The dock in the park between the two bridges.

I believe this is Fourpoint evening primrose, growing along the bank.
(Source: Roadside Wildflowers of the Southern Great Plains, Freeman & Schofield) 

Not sure what this is, but I like the color it turns in the fall.

From the 10th Street bridge, looking south to the walking bridge.

And looking north toward the railroad bridge.

At some point soon, as long as the creek remains dry, I'm going to take Buster on a hike along the creek bed. I did this a few years ago with Nipper, and it took us more than two hours to get from my house to the walking bridge! Still wish I'd taken a camera that time. So maybe when the days are a bit cooler and the vegetation has died back some, we'll do that. And I'll take the camera this time, because there's some cool things along this creek.

Garden pix

We've hit the hot & dry part of Kansas summer, so I decided this morning to put some water on my shade garden in the backyard. And the light was just about perfect for some nice photos of the lillies.

This one is my favorite:


Another angle of the same two. This is the first time in several years they all haven't had just the whitish color to them:


Another favorite:

Blue heron

blue heron
Originally uploaded by junogle.

At long last, I managed to get a picture of one of the blue herons that populate the creek. This was as close as I could get before it flew away.

Crocus

Crocus
Originally uploaded by junogle.

The weekend snow didn't get all my flowers!

Good morning!

geese
Originally uploaded by junogle.

Saw these guys as I was leaving for work today. There's been a pair of geese that nest somewhere near my house ever since I bought it. Actually, it was seeing a pair of geese on the lawn when I first looked at the house that kinda had me sold on it. I like to think it's been the same pair every year, but who knows?

Green!

Green!
Originally uploaded by junogle.

Taken on my drive into work Tuesday morning (I know, I know. At least I don't text and drive.) See how the wheat is starting to green up!

Spring!

Not sure
Originally uploaded by junogle.

Lookie what I found when I came home today!

Catching up

Wind farm
Originally uploaded by junogle.

I've been a little remiss in keep up with the year in pictures project, but I have been taking photos. So here's a few I've taken lately.

Jan. 28: The wind farm, above, is located in Lincoln and Ellsworth counties in central Kansas. I was driving home from Salina, where the night before I'd gone to see Second City with a friend.


Jan. 31: Buster tries to avoid detection after making a mess with his favorite toy: the newspaper.


Feb.1: And here, just outside the town where I live, is a whole train of brand-new shiny coal cars headed west.

Warm weather day

Warm weather day
Originally uploaded by junogle.

Temps in the 40s-50s today. Made for a busy car wash.

A couple photos

I finished off one roll of film last week of shots around the yard and garden, and found an old roll that I wasn't sure what was on it. Got them back today. The old roll was from January, after the end-of-the-year ice storm. Not any shots that remarkable on it, but the last one was of Nipper:

I guess I was going for a shot like The Dog. Sure shows off his pretty eyes.

The other, from a few weeks ago, was this oriole I managed to keep in the frame somehow:

Puppy picture

First snow
Originally uploaded by junogle.

This is one of my first photos of Nipper. Sorry for the resolution, but I had to get this off my Web site. I hope to find the original print. He's about six months old here, and it was his first snow. Note the bit of snow on the end of his nose -- even up to last year, he would wind up looking like that from sticking his nose in the ground and snorting around for whatever he could underneath!

One week

It was a week ago as I write this that Mom, Dad and I were taking Nipper to the vet for the last time. It's been an up and down type of day for Mom and I. Little things have sent us into tears, but we've also shared some good and funny memories of him today. I found some more pictures and am uploading them to flickr now. Mom has some on her computer that I want copies of, and I'm sure I've got some she doesn't have either. I'd just like to get them all together for now and save backup copies on disk.

I have gotten four sympathy cards this last week. Who would have thought that? One was an e-card from a friend; one from a co-worker and her daughter, who recently lost a dog as well; one was from the vet's office, signed by the staff and included a little pin of an angel dog; and one was from some friends who lost their dog last year (she called me at work, too, after getting my e-mail about Nipper. That was sweet). The last two came in the mail yesterday, so when I got home from work, I ended up having a good cry (again).

Haven't done anything yet with Nipper's ashes. I haven't put away any of his things, either. Mom's last week at work before going into (semi) retirement is this week, so maybe after that's over and she doesn't have to sleep during the day, we'll have a little "memorial service" and do something. Maybe we can grill some hamburgers, and toss out the bites of burger and chips we would have given him along with his ashes. Something for the road. I'm kidding, or course. Sort of.

New photoset

Christmas 05
Originally uploaded by junogle.

I posted a set of photos of Nipper at my flickr site. They're some of my favorites. I'm sure I'll add more as I find them.

Springing!

I walked out to fill my birdfeeders this morning and saw my first daffodil bloom!

And there's also crocus blooming:

Looks like it's going to be a beautiful day today, so I hope to get at least a few things done. Gotta walk the dog, of course, and maybe today's the day the Christmas lights can come off the house. I was a little embarrassed about still having my Christmas lights up this late until one day driving into work last week, I noticed a house that still had a garland and wreath on the front porch railing!

Yesterday was a work day (got there at 12:30 p.m., left at 1:30 a.m.) and I'm kinda still tired from that, so I don't know just how much I'll get done. The lights and the walk are a must, but actually putting the lights and other Christmas stuff in the garage rafters might have to wait. I don't get my Monday off because someone is going to a conference all next week. So maybe I'll try and get in a three-day weekend next week (if the weather is supposed to be nice, of course!)

A flying turtle!

mass19.jpg, originally uploaded by junogle.

One of my pics from mass ascension. This flickr stuff is cool!

See the entry below for links to more pics.

More pix

More vacation photos!
Here are shots from the mass ascension, and here are shots from the balloon glow that evening.

First photos

I forgot I did get one roll of film developed while on my trip. These are photos from Saturday, when we visited the Trinity Site and the Very Large Array.

The first set is from the Trinity Site national historic landmark, which is open to the public only twice a year.

See my Trinity album here

We also visited the Very Large Array that day.

The VLA album is here.

More to come soon.