Autumn Leaf Of The Day #33

 

“If I could write words
Like leaves on an autumn forest floor,
What a bonfire my letters would make.

If I could speak words of water,
You would drown when I said
"I love you.”

 
~Spike Milligan 

 

I absolutely love October. Always will! I may have used this quote before, but using it again makes me smile. It fits how I feel about every autumn day.

 

 

November's Moon

 

AUTUMN AIR

The autumn air is clear,
The autumn moon is bright.
Fallen leaves gather and scatter,
The jackdaw perches and starts anew.
We think of each other- when will we meet?
This hour, this night, my feelings are hard.” 

~Li Bai 

 

I love photographing the moon and autumn leaves in the same shot, although sometimes it seems almost impossible, and therefore completely frustrating. Either the moon is out of focus or the leaves are, but that dynamic came be quite pleasing to the eye. I got lucky with this shot, while the moon is a bit fuzzy, it is bright and clear, so the detail comes through. I don't know, I kinda like it. It's the moon, in an a clear twilight November sky. Autumn was smiling down on me, and it made me smile back! I used to try to photograph all the full moons in a year, but sometimes the sky refuses to cooperate. The clouds of January and February were brutal, so it's really hard to plan for it, and it looks like the roughest part of the Atmospheric River will take place in those two months again. 2024 will promises to be as wet or wetter than this year was. That will make for quite a challenge. Maybe I should simply plan to do a photo as close to the full moon as I can, and not worry so much about whether stage it's in. Like with this shot, it's not quite full, but it still made for a beautiful photo.

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #63

 

"Thanksgiving is a joyous invitation to

 shower the world with love and gratitude."

 

~Amy Leigh Mercee

 

A Year of Sumac And Red

"Her pleasure in the walk must arise from the exercise and the day, from the view of the last smiles of the year upon the tawny leaves and withered hedges, and from repeating to herself some few of the thousand poetical descriptions extant of autumn... that season of peculiar and inexhaustible influence on the mind of taste and tenderness... that season which has drawn every poet worthy of being read some attempt at description, or some lines of feeling."

~Jane Austen

Persuasion 

I love that green leaf! Unfortunately, the photograph was taken late last summer, long before the year turned autumn, so I couldn't include it in my project. But it's so pretty, I thought it needed to be seen. It's not perfect, but the green is so striking, that it just popped! That's the one thing about the leaves of autumn, there are very few examples of the color green, although I did find a couple of nice deep green leaves, but it wasn't many!

Sometimes, as I am preparing for the coming colors of autumn, I go to some of my favorite locations, and study which colors are making an early appearance. It helps me with the practice of different settings on my camera, especially when I haven't picked the camera up for a while. It also helps me decide which trees will provide me with as many different colors as possible, to balance out the collection. 

This autumn it was all about the color red! Red is difficult for me. It can be harsh, and especially so, when the sun is shining through the leaf. When I saw I'd be working with a lot of red this year, I was really happy because I knew it would be a challenge, and it was. With my Fibromyalgia, I get headaches easy, and this year the normally bad headaches turned into migraines. Fun. I think it's because of the air pressure in the Central Valley, but that's just a guess, anyway, the color red, in the leaves, seems to give me headaches! 

Weird, right? I am going to have to check with others who deal with my condition and see if they have an intolerance to light, and certain colors. Life is a challenge, right? But it feels good to be continuing to learn about my condition, my photography, the natural world around me, and even weather conditions, and what causes them to affect my body. I like this hobby, and the fact that I can get out of my own head for a little while, and be in nature.

 No two leaves are the same, and when a single leaf is gone, you will never see it again. They are the fingerprints of a year gone by, and after this past year, I can understand red being the predominate color. What do suppose will be the predominate color for 2019? Personally, I am hoping for a deep lavender. Or maybe yellow. Yellow is a bright sunny color, that is invigorating, and not painful to me at all. I am hoping for yellow, but I am kind of thinking that 2019 seems like it will be most likely be red. Red in day to day life, and in leaves.

I'm happy with this years collection.

  I hope you have enjoyed it too!

#83 Leaf Of The Day

December 13th 2018

Photographed December 9th 2018

Stockton, California

Samsung

~Mood: Happy

~Me

Who Does That?

"Life isn't always about fireworks. Your fireworks will come Sarah, and they will fizzle out just as fast. Life is an experience, not a destination. All of us has the same destination, but not one of us has had an identical experince. You'll find someone who will be there when the fireworks fizzle out and the sky turns black and love you just the same. That's the one to hold onto."

~Marilyn Grey

Bloom

Okay. Life is many things. I got that! It's at times... BORING, HECTIC, SEXY, FUN, MYSTERIOUS, STUPID, MEAN-SPIRITED, HAPPY, DEVASTATING, LOVELY, COZY, FUCKED UP, UNFAIR, BARELY TOLERABLE, AMAZING, SCARY, PAINFUL, JOYOUS, and we defy the odds to even make it here for the brief time we are allotted. I am in the middle of all those things that make life worth living. Everything you see listed above and more. All I really want is to put the last few months into a tidy little file and forget it ever happened, but that isn't really possible... is it? 

Alan and I are still mulling over our options. We need to reconsider how much we can afford for rent, and if we can afford to go home again. I think it's possible, especially in that we were smart and didn't spend the settlement money we got back in May. We can pay all our bills off, which will free up a sum to put toward rent. It's just now a matter of finding an apartment or a house to rent. Wish us luck. We are going to need it.

I wish I could say more about what happened, but for right now I don't think I will. I don't want to dwell on my blog, not now. The negativity is sitting on my soul every single day when I wake up. It probably will until we find a place to rent. I just keep wondering how someone could have done what they did? How could they sit in front of us and LIE... with no thought of how it would damage us?

Who does that?

Don't worry friends, posting to Ellipsis daily is how I find the beauty and happiness in the world, so as the next few days and weeks go, my posts will come around to the beauty in the world and eventually the comically absurd. That is why posting daily is so important for me. Please don't give up on me because of this temporary negativity, I have some beautiful photos planned for later this week, Just be patient while I wade through the muck on my way to the shore

I'll get there, I promise.

Mood: Quiet

Fireworks July 4th, 2015

~Me

Round Robin Challenge: Red

"When I am an old woman, I shall wear purple. With a red hat, which doesn't go and doesn't suit me. And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves. And satin sandals, and say we have no money for butter."

-Jenny Joseph

One day, in the spring of 2005, I went to the, Japanese Tea Garden, in Golden Gate Park, to take some photos of the new spring blossoms. The place was so alive with wisteria, and azaleas and cherry blossoms, but it was also alive with beautiful winged creatures, such as this red dragonfly. I had no idea dragonflies came in this color, so I was absolutely amazed and inspired, as I watched her float from lily pad to lily pad. Beautiful and graceful. I know I have shared her picture with you before, but really, when I think of the color red... I always think of her. :)

Here is another example of RED that I found with my camera, while visiting Alamo Square Park, in San Francisco. The park sits across the street from the famous, "Six Sisters," row of beautiful Victorian houses, so not only does it have one of the most stunning views of the city, but it also has a "Shoe Garden," which sits at the highest peak in the park. It's fascinating and magical to try and figure out, who may have contributed shoes over the years. Someday, I would like to donate a pair of my own shoes to the garden, just my little grab at immortality I guess. :)

Ruby Red Slippers, Alamo Square Park (Shoe Garden), San Francisco.

Thank you Pam, for challenging us with such a pretty subject. Pam is the author of the AOL journal, "My Photos," please be sure to pay her a visit to see her entry, and also check out the entries of the other participating Robins. Simply follow the links below. :) Don't forget to come by the official Round Robin Photo Challenge Blog on Thursday of this week, to find out what our next challenge will be. Hope to see you then. :)

Round Robin Linking List

1. Pamela... My Photos
POSTED!

2. Carly... Ellipsis... Suddenly Carly
POSTED!

3. Janet... Fond Of Photography
POSTED!

4. Karen... Outpost Mavarin
POSTED!

5. Schelle... Fractal Myth


6. Kimberleigh... I Shaved My Legs For This?
POSTED!

7. Suzanne R... New Suzanne R's Life
POSTED!

8. Linda (Lou)... Blah Blah Blog
POSTED!

9. Kerrin... Kerrin's Daily Photo
POSTED!

10. Gattina... Keyhole Pictures
POSTED!

11. Steven... (sometimes) photoblog
POSTED!

12. _rRose... WAIT-NOTYET-/
POSTED!

13. Julie... Julie's Web Journal
POSTED!

14. Nancy... Nancy Luvs Pics
POSTED!

15. Annie... The Lights Are On... But No One's Home
***WELCOME NEW MEMBER***

POSTED!
16. Gina... Gina's Space

POSTED!
17. John... Personal Effects
POSTED!

18. Teena... It's all about me!
POSTED!

19. Patrick... Patrick's Portfolio
POSTED!

20. Brad... We-IS
POSTED!

-OndineMonet

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Let There Be Light

"In the right light, at the right time, everything is extraordinary."

-Aaron Rose

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Snap a picture of a really interesting lamp or light fixture. It doesn't have to be in your home, although it's nice if it is. Note that for this Photo Shoot I am explicitly excluding holiday lights and decorations; we already did that. These lights should be ones that you'd see on a non-holiday. Note also that, of course, shooting a picture of a light fixture can wash out the details of said fixture if you're not careful. It's a little bit of a photo challenge.

-John Scazli (By The Way)

I thought this light might be a good example for this week's photo shoot. What you see here, is an up close view of that little red navigational warning light that you see positioned on top of bridges. This type of light was once in service on the Golden Gate Bridge, and the San Francisco/Oakland Bay Bridge, before being retired to the Caltrans museum in Oakland. This type of light was replaced in 1980, with a newer design of 360 degree rotating beacon. I thought it was kinda fun to be able to see it in person, although it was a bit smaller than I had imagined. :)


Here is how the navigational lights look now...



The Light At The Top Of The Tower


Light can be gentle, dangerous, dreamlike, bare, living, dead, misty, clear, hot, dark, violet, springlike, falling, straight, sensual, limited, poisonous, calm, and soft.

-Steven Nykvist

-OndineMonet
Navigational Light
Caltrans Museum
Oakland, California
Spring, 2005
Afternoon