Migraines, Shutdowns, And Ornaments Oh My!

Ornament #1 Penguin with Hat

"If ever the difficulties of your life seem overwhelming, consider the prospect of being eaten alive by savage penguins and rejoice that such horrors are unknown to you."

~A. L. Kennedy

Now That You Are Back

I am struggling. I just said goodbye to the only season that makes me feel alive, the parks, this week, will be shuttered, due to the stupid partial government shutdown, being waged by an orange toddler, the sky becomes cloudy, every night about 7:00 PM, as to obscure my view from the Christmas comet, and I have been plagued by Migraine headaches, on and off, for well over a week, with no apparent end in sight! So, now what? If so many roads of photography are going to be cutoff to me, I guess I will get creative.

In past years, I would gather up the cameras and head to Tilden, to photograph the Christmas carousel, and all it's lovely trees and ornaments, but Berkeley is so far to go, and well, my life has changed. So, I thought it would be fun to photograph some of the lovely ornaments Alan and I have given each other over the years, and share them here! We picked out such pretty ones, that it seems a shame to not share them over the holiday weekend. 

Forget that orange Grinch, happiness is all around!

 Right? 

~Mood: Happy

~Me :)

 

Welcome To Winter

"In the winter, she curls up around a good book

 and dreams away the cold."

~Ben Aaronovitch

Broken Homes

Winter begins at 5:22 PM (EST) 

 

Fleur-de-Lis

"It looks like fallen petals and it looks like rain.

 It looks like the sounds the birds make at dawn. 

It looks like the aisle of grocery stores when a song I love suddenly begins to play overhead and I cannot help but dance a little dance. It looks like a sigh

 a kiss, an unmade bed.

 It looks like Cheerios in a white bowl

 with a bit of silence on the side.

 It looks like a plain vanilla cupcake in white paper, a dance on the wind, pink toenails, warm socks. 

It looks like a fire against the cold of winter, and a deep lake cool against a summer sky. It looks like chick flicks, books that make you cry, and all the candles blown out on the first try."

~D. Smith Kaich Jones

It was a perfect Fleur-de-Lis!

"The most beautiful experience we can have is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science."

~Albert Einstein

One day, about a 10 days ago, I was in a grove of beautiful trees, searching for as many lovely leaves as I could find, for my autumn leaf project, when I saw a particularly lovely one, separate from it's tiny gray branch, and dance slowly to the earth. It gave me chills, because it had an interesting shape to it, and it's color was striking! But I knew I was experiencing a moment of magic, when I realized the leaf's shape  was a perfect example of the symbol of a Fleur-de-Lis. I couldn't believe it! 

I looked up in the branches of the tree that it had come from, but there wasn't any other leaf that had as perfect a form as this one did. There were some that came close, but there just was no rival. It was a magical little leaf, and it will always make me smile when I look back on it. I knew that I had to make it the final autumn photograph, for autumn 2018! Not the final, Leaf Of The Day, mind you, but the final photograph of my favorite season, autumn!

I will miss you magical Autumn!

"We should consider every day lost

 on which we have not danced at least once." 

~Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche

Here is our one last leaf...

 #91 Leaf Of The Day

December 21st 2018

Photographed December 15th 2018

Stockton, California

Samsung

~Mood: Quiet

~Me

 

Catch Me, I'm Falling...

"Trees are the poems that the earth writes upon the sky."

~Kahil Gibran

It's the last full day of autumn 2018, so it's time to take another look at the absolute beauty of another year! Leaves are the soft goodbye of 365 days of history. I love them so much, because when I look at their colors, I tend to come to grips with all the emotions and dreams and fantasies I had during the year. Daydreams of love, and connection with other human beings that are out of touch, but who live in my heart all the same. I am so happy to have all this beauty and color to carry me through the dark, shadowy days of winter, and all the pain and uncertainty of this time.

 It's the best gift!

Once seen, like falling stars,

 they shine bright in the memory forever.

And now, the Leaf Of The Day...

#90 Leaf Of The Day

December 20th 2018

Photographed December 9th 2018

Stockton, California

Samsung

~Mood: Sad

~Me

One End Is Moo

Lockeford Meats

Lockeford, California

August 18th, 2018

"The cow is of the bovine ilk, one end is moo, the other milk."

~Ogden Nash

  Free Wheeling

There are ups and downs to everything. Right? I know this time with Donald Trump will eventually come to an end. The dominoes seem to be falling fairly quickly now. There were rumors for years that Trump had stolen from his own charitable foundation, but it wasn't until yesterday that that was finally confirmed. Sigh. This is all so stressful, and I am tired. I am fed up. I am disappointed in the government. I am scared because the government let things go this far!Was it greed? Was it fear of Trump wielding his mighty mouth sword? Are they being blackmailed, by either Russia or Trump? Is it ideology? Is it ambition? Is it cruelty?

When all is said and done, whenever that is, America will have proved it's strength, and perhaps be stronger than ever. But if the worst happens, and a panicked Trump decides to take us all out, by launching the nuclear codes or by simply handing America over to Putin, then what? One way we die quickly, the other we suffer the rest of our lives, however long we last. So, boys and girls, it's going to be up or down. Up or down. But in the meantime, I have plastic cows to photograph, holidays to plan for, and my own problems to overcome, such as my health issues. My Fibromyalgia has been raging lately, and I don't feel good. I feel like that plastic cow, fading in the unbearable, treacherous summer heat.

Fun Note: The Central Valley town of Lockeford is a registered as a California Historical Landmark, so I will be doing a post about the town in a post after the new year. In fact, I think I will be exploring a lot of the little towns around the valley, there is a lot of history out here! At least I hope I will.

#89 Leaf Of The Day

December 18th 2018

Photographed December 15th 2018

Stockton, California

Samsung

~Mood: Tired. Is tired a mood?
~Me  

 

Christmas Stars And Shy Comets

"... freshly cut Christmas trees smelling of stars and snow and pine resin... inhale deeply and fill your soul with wintry night... ."

~John Geddes

 A Familiar Rain 

Isn't that beautiful?

I am still working on getting a photo of the Christmas Comet, but the weather is not cooperating... at all! Still, in that I am up all night, I am going to keep checking for a bit of clearing, as the rain moves through. Never give up, right?

 #88 Leaf Of The Day

December 18th 2018

Photographed December 15th 2018

Stockton California

Samsung

~Mood: Happy

~Me

 

Happy Holidays

"Although it is pleasant to think about poison at any season, there is something special about Christmas, and I found myself grinning."

~Alan Bradley

I Am Half-Sick Of Shadows

Now, before you ask me about that quote, you should probably know, I am not super sentimental about Christmas. Yes, I am a Christian. Yes, the birth of Christ means something to me. Yes, my faith is deeper than ever, but when it comes to all the other stuff, the nonstop Christmas music, the endless Christmas movies, and all the other super sentimental stuff, it's just not my deal. Although a quiet night of romance, decorating the tree, and snugly Christmas mornings... well... that's what fills my heart! 

There, I said it! 

 # 87 Leaf Of The Day

December 17th 2018

Photographed  September 29th 2018

Cull Canyon

Samsung

"Maybe spring is the season of love and fall the season of mad lust. Spring for flirting but fall for the untamed delicious wild thing."

~Elizabeth Cohen 

The Hypothetical Girl

~Mood: Happy

~Me :)

A Time For Letting Go...

"Autumn is the time of year when Mother Nature says, "Look how easy, how healthy, and how beautiful letting go can be."

~Toni Sorenson

Time to let go of autumn. Okay, I know that I still have five days, but I have so many beautiful leaves left over, that it breaks my heart to not let them have their day in the sun. So, here are some of my favorites, and as I deal with all the old feelings of how I have grieved, let go, and looked for the road back to peace of mind, which really only lives in autumn, at least for me it does, I will miss autumn, but I will be okay...again.

And Now...

#86 Leaf Of The Day

December 16th 2018

Photographed December 15th 2018

Stockton, California

Samsung

~Mood: Quiet

~Me