How About A Nice Picture Of A Squirrel

 

"That women's got nuts lose in her brain, and a bunch of squirrels chasing after them."

~Sleyca

Yep, that just about sums it up.

I'm nuts!

This was a day on earth! Things are getting worse... apocalyptic in fact. 

So, I have nuts in my brain.

Autumn, Leaves, Modeling And I Guess, Nuts?

"Not much goes on in the mind of a squirrel. Huge portions of what is loosely termed "the squirrel brain" are given over to one thought: food. The average squirrel cogitation goes something like this: I wonder what there is to eat."

To be fair, I watched this squirrel engaged in many actions as I observed him in the wid. He climbed up AND down a tree. Played with leaves. Played with a clump of dirt, sought out, and found, nuts, and finally engaged with me, by posing in several emotional poses, such as this one, called... indifference. I love the magic of autumn!

The Darkening October

 

“He couldn't stop smelling the air in great, deep, loud sniffs. It was so delicious. It smelled of water, and mud, and maple trees, and autumn.”

 

~Elizabeth Enright,

  The Four-Story Mistake

 

I went to Sacramento yesterday, to peep some leaves at my favorite park in the city, Crocker park, which is so named because it sits right next to the Crocker Museum. Sacramento is known for, among other things, it's love of trees. It's estimated that there are approximately 1 million tress, all within the city limits! That's a lot of leaves! And it's home for a lot of critters! I have kept to just a couple key areas on the city, for doing my Sacramento leaf peeping, but this year, as time allows, I think I would like to explore more parks and the capitol grounds. As you can see, Autumn is getting off to a slow start there, but that's fine, I need more time to consider what my options are. One thing is for sure, October is almost over and the days are getting darker earlier, so early mornings are going to have to become my friend. For right now, I know it's always just down the road, and there is always something to see!

 

 

 

 

His Autumn Colors...

 

“Sitting under a tree in a park in the summer,

 listening to birds and squirrels

 chirping while reading a good book is priceless.” 

~ Charmaine J. Forde

 

 

I was in my favorite park, Cull Canyon, checking on my favorite tree, the other day, and there he was, a Red squirrel, as well as several other of his friends, skittering about gathering acorns. Winter is coming. I don't really want to think about it. I am in Autumn, so why dwell on it leaving me two months from now? I am just going to live in the moment, and be grateful I have all that I love right in front of me at the moment. I just wish my sleepy tree would wake up and put it's autumn coat on. El Nino will be bringing heavy storms back to California this autumn and winter, and I'd like to see my tree in full autumn leaf bloom before the storms blow all the beauty to the ground. My fingers are crossed that there isn't too much damage. I really love that tree, and the pretty little squirrels that play around it!

 

 

One Month, A Million Little Joys Plus Autumn Leaf Of The Day #29

 

"I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers."

 

L. M. Montgomery

Anne Of Green Gables

 

Fuzzy little autumn creatures. What's there not to love? And it's even better that I spotted it in October. My favorite month gives me everything in just 31 days! My anniversary. Halloween candy. The turning autumn leaves. The Pacific Flyway, virtually at my front door, as I know the mergansers will show up in the channel eventually. The smell of cinnamon and clove is everywhere. Spumoni. Halloween costumes. Scary movies. And that first cool breeze. One month, a million little joys. October.

 

~Me

World Events...

 

 "Even a blind squirrel will finds an acorn sometimes."

~Proverb

This post doesn't feature a new photo, or a photo from the archives that hasn't been previously posted, but that's okay I think. I love this photo, and the memory of haven taken it. Alan and I were on vacation, on the 17 Mile drive in Monterey, and this little guy had just been attacked by a rather large, mean, seagull! Fortunately, Alan jumped to the rescue, yelled and waved his arm at the mean bird and chased off, probably saving this little guys life! The poor squirrel was so frightened that he just stood in place, on that rock, as his whole body shook from fear. It broke my heart. But he finally calmed down, and went about his business... he was fine... I never forgot him!

And now a little wisdom from Mark Twain

"Man is the Reasoning Animal. Such is the claim. I think it is open to dispute. Indeed, my experiments have proven to me that he is the Unreasoning Animal... In truth, man is incurably foolish. Simple things which other animals easily learn, he is incapable of learning. Among my experiments was this. In an hour I taught a cat and a dog to be friends. I put them in a cage. In another hour I taught them to be friends with a rabbit. In the course of two days I was able to add a fox, goose, a squirrel and some doves. Finally a monkey. They lived together in peace; even affectionately.

Next, in another cage I confined an Irish Catholic from Tipperary, and as soon as he seemed tame I added a Scotch Presbyterian from Aberdeen. Next a Turk from Constantinople; a Greek Christian from Crete; an Armenian; a Methodist from the wilds of Arkansas; a Buddhist from China; a Brahman from Benares. Finally, a Salvation Army Colonel from Wrapping. Then I stayed away for two while days. When I came back to note results, the cage of Higher Animals was all right, but in the other there was but a chaos of gory odds and ends of turbans and fezzes and plaids and bones and flesh... not a specimen left alive. These Reasoning Animals had disagreed on a theological detail and carried the matter to a Higher Court."

~Mark Twain

 Letters from the Earth: Uncensored Writings

Mood: Okay/Happy/Good... I'm Good!

~Me :)

Round Robin Challenge: Spring Time! + A Week Of Yellow Day Six: Soft Yellow

Soft Yellow California Poppy
Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
Spring, 2012

"It's spring again. The earth is like a child that knows poems by heart."

~Rainer Maria Rilke

RRC: Spring Time

I think I should probably begin this post with a heartfelt I am Sorry Karen, because I know that flowers are not at the top of her list of favorite subjects, both to look at or to photograph. But here's the thing, I found myself absolutely drawn to them this year, probably because of my illness last Spring which kept me housebound for most of the season! I didn't get out to do much photography from late February thru early June, and by then, most of the first young lovely flowers of spring, were moving over for the more hardy plants and flowers of summer! 

The summer flowers are beautiful, and you know I would give up all the flowers of both seasons, in favor of the leaves of autumn, but when you can't photograph them, you learn to not take them for granted. So, this post is quite flower heavy, with flowers from springs past, and a couple from spring of this year! But hey, it's not a total loss, there is also a furry wild creature or two to break up the flower monotony! :)

My Spring Gallery...

Happy Squirrel
Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
Spring 2010


Purple Flowers
Tilden Park, Berkeley, California
Spring 2006
 

Yellow Flower With Bee
Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
Spring 2005


Spring Bouquet
Berkeley, California
Spring 2014


Spring Balloons 
My Favorite Color Combination
Spring, 2011


Japanese Tea Garden
Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
Spring, 2005


Purple Ice Plant
Pacific Grove/Monterey Bay, California
Spring, 2010


Queen Wilhelmina Tulip Garden
Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
Spring, 2005


Spring Blossoms With Bee
Berkeley, California
Spring, 2006


Pink Blossoms
Pleasanton, California
Spring, 2014


Tree Blossoms
Golden Gate Park
Spring, 2013
 

"It's spring fever. That is what the name of it is. And when you've got it, you want... oh, you don't quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!"

~Mark Twain

Okay, now that you have seen my post for the Round Robin Challenges, how about joining in? I know Karen would be thrilled to have a new player joining us. Just click the link at the top of this post to be redirected to the official Round Robin blog, where you can find all the information you need to play along, plus the links to the other participants for this challenge. Please consider joining us!

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

Round Robin Challenge: Wild Thing

"When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe."

~John Muir My First Summer in the Sierra

Round Robin Challenge: Wild Thing.

For this challenge, I bring you two kinds of Wild...

Wild #1. Wildlife

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Wild #2. Just Wild







From my perspective, Christmas is as commercialized as we decide to make it. We can go out and spend a ton of money, or we can make gifts. We can spend the next year paying off things we felt some need to buy, or set individual budgets. I find the whole "War on Christmas" and "Christmas is Commercialized" arguments silly. You can choose to be as negative as you want to want to be. But negativity is not for me, I will just enjoy awesome creativity and sparkly lights.

Okay, you've seen my pictures and read my rant, now go see what the other Round Robin participants are up to! Hey, better yet, you can play along. Just click the link at the top of the post to be redirected to the official Round Robin blog where you can find the list, and information on how to join in the challenge.

~Me :)

Round Robin Challenge: Heads Or Tails?

"It gets you nowhere if the other person's tail is only just in sight for the second half of the coversation."

~Winnie the Pooh

RRC: Heads Or Tails

I choose Tails...

First, Lets Look At My Dragonfly (Tails) Collection...





 

 

 

 

A Mermaid, And Her Tail, Soak Up The Sun...

 

And From The Undersea World Comes Many A Tail...

NOTE: Yes, I know the Jellyfish don't actually sport tails, I just included them because they are pretty, and tentacles kinda look like tails... right? ;)







Tail Of The My Favorite Alarm Clock...



Tail Of A Furry Resident Of Golden Gate Park...



Cat Tails...

Dylan


And Elvis's Friend Ernie...



Two Friends Who Live In A Window In San Francisco...



And Now, How About My Favorite Faces...

Dylan (R) Hendrix (L)



Okay, you've seen my post for this round of RRC. Now, go see what the other Robins have chosen for their "Heads Or Tails" post. You can find the complete list of participants by visiting the official Round Robin blog by clicking the link at the top of the post. By the way, there is still time to join in. You will find all the information at the Round Robin blog!

~Me :)