Stay I Say To Him And Autumn Leaf Of The Day #65

 

"Stay I say to him. Stay in the car. 

Stay in this moment. 

But of course he never does."

 

~Nora Nowlin

If He Had Been With Me

 

Meet the Pied-billed Grebe. What a sweet little bird. Look at his face, so curious. So gentle. He is the one bird that always reminds me of a stuffed animal. A stuffed animal. I really love this little fella, despite the strange call it has. That's just him. To me it sounds like the "bah" sound that sheep make. I should try to find a big group of grebes on YouTube that I can embed in a future post. In the meantime, look at that awesome reflection. I am thinking about entering the Audubon photo contest, which is held after the first of the year. I doubt I could win, given all the amazing entries they receive. Still, that's such a cool accomplishment, that would carry me all the way to my untimely death at the possible talons of an eagle, or the paws of an indoor orange tabby cat. 

 

 

~Me

Happy Thanksgiving And Autumn Leaf Of The Day #64

 

"Thankfulness creates gratitude

 which generates contentment that causes peace."

 

~Todd Stocker

 

Last year we didn't celebrate much, then on Christmas, of course, we both got Covid-19 ( Omicron ). We are sick every year on Christmas, well, at least every year since we moved to the San Joaquin Valley, however this year is different. Alan is retired now, so the likelihood of his getting sick, and passing it on to me, is almost zero. While we will never know for sure, Omicron was just as likely to be spread by someone causally walking past you, as someone you worked with, even if your coworkers are giant idiots! Anyway, I have an amazing amount to be thankful for. We are happily married. Dylan is still doing well, as are my other cats. I am enjoying birding with Alan, and I have a brand new box of books to read through the year. I already have a small library, and now more has been added to it. The Republicans didn't get that "Red Wave" the expected and I am enjoying making holiday graphics, like the one above, from my own photos. 2022 has been a fairly good year, I sure hope 2023 won't hold it against us. 

 

I will let you know in a year how it goes!

 

 

~Me

Blue Skies, Smiling At Me And Autumn Leaf Of The Day #63

 

"Once in a while I am struck all over again

 by just how blue the sky appears on wind played autumn mornings, blue enough to bruise a heart."

 

~Sanober Kahn

 

The sky has been amazingly beautiful lately. Of course I credit the leaves with that. Just look at those bright orange leaves. But wouldn't any color standout against a sky that blue? Well, maybe, but in all fairness to blue, I think God chose the right color to put in the sky. All the variations of blue are so beautiful,  and it's keeping my eyes focused upwards, into the sun's warm light. Blue is also the color of my love's eyes. He has the most beautiful eyes, although it was his sexy knees that first caught my eye. He was a high school athlete, track, to be exact, which explains his gorgeous knees! Anyway, his blue eyes have also encouraged me to focus upwards, in mood and in life in general. That means everything to me.

 

 

~Me

Uncanny Witcher In It's Changed Trees And #62

 

"Autumn is a classical music, when it begins, the gravity disappears."

 

~Mehmet Murat ildan 

 

 November ... with uncanny witcher in its changed trees. With murky red sunsets flaming in smoky crimson behind the westering hills. With dear days when the austere woods were beautiful and gracious in a dignified serenity of folded hands and closed eyes ... days full of a fine, pale sunshine that sifted through the late, leafless gold of the juniper trees and glimmered among the grey beeches, lighting up evergreen banks of moss and washing the colonnades of the pines. Days with a high-sprung sky of flawless turquoise. Days when an exquisite melancholy seemed to hang over the landscape and dream about the lake. But days, too, of the wild blackness of great storms, followed by dank, wet, streaming nights when there was witch laughter in the pines and fitful moans among the mainland trees. What cared they? Old Tom had built his roof well, and his chimney drew."

 

L. M. Montgomery

 

November is almost over, but I am already missing it. It has been, well, absolutely stunning! Almost as delicious as October, and I can't even believe just how much I mean that! 

 

~Me

Now For Something Different And Autumn Leaf Of The Day #61

 

"Joy ... in the fall, winter, and always in the mountains where people are few, wildlife is abundant and there is peace in the quiet."

 

~Donna Lynn Hope

 

I post a lot of photos of birds, so many in fact, that one might imagine that I only seek out, or come across, birds. That is certainly not the case, I am lucky enough to see a lot of other happy little creatures. This year for example, I saw my very first ground squirrel, and there were a ton of rabbits all through the valley, from Galt to Davis! I liked that very much. I also encountered some not so awesome creatures, such as field mice and even a couple coyotes. They were nice to observe from a distance, as was this pair. I think they were curious as to whether I had brought them an apple or some carrots, but they didn't spend too much time on it. They politely posed for this photo and then they were on their way, as it should be. It was nice. I could have stood there all day chatting, but it was cold, and it was time to rejoin the human world. Unfortunately. 

 

~Me

Autumn In Sacramento

 

"Happiness is to get lost in an autumn forest,

 and not to be found is ever a greater happiness."

 

~Mehmet Murat ildan

 

I was walking next to the Crocker Museum when I took this picture, and while this walk was not in a forest, I couldn't have been happier. Although, I wouldn't mind giving it a try. Walking in a warm, orange, russet, and yellow autumn forest would give me enough happiness to see me safely other side of this life, with no regrets or fear, where I am pretty sure it's autumn 24/7, and it smells and tastes like cinnamon.

 

 

~Me