The Goddess Of The Season +Autumn Leaf Of The Day #79

 

“It's autumn," I said. "I can see the trees turning through the windows."
He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear.
"It's going to be the Day of the Dead soon," I said.
"Sounds gruesome."
"It's a festival." I looked at him over my shoulder. "The only one that gentry and peasants share. We celebrate Persephone going down to Hades for the winter, they remember Tom-a-Lone getting his head cut off by Nanny-Anna. Everybody makes grave offerings, then there's a great sacrifice to Hades and Persephone, and that night there's a bonfire and they burn a straw Tom-a-Lone dressed up in ribbons.”

 
~Rosamund Hodge,

  Cruel Beauty

 

 

I am doing a lot of reading about the Goddess, Demeter. She is the goddess who governs Autumn and the harvest. Until yesterday I hadn't realized that there was a specific goddess devoted to the seasons, which is embarrassing because of course a higher god, or goddess would watch over the harvest, it's just that I always focus on the god, GOD, as being the one who does all the work to bring my favorite season to life. Shrug. But I love reading about mythology, always have, learning about her is a good and fascinating thing to do. I grew up with the movie Xanadu, which tells the tale of one the 9 sisters of the arts and science, the daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne.

 

 Olivia Newton-John played the muse, Terpsichore, the muse that inspired dance. The film was a was a homage to the wonderful 1947 film, Down To Earth, which starred Rita Hayworth as Terpsichore. Both films are great for different reasons, but hey, what about Demeter? What an amazing tale that would be to watch. She has been imagined in the arts, mostly, as an older woman, and I could see anyone from Meryl Streep in the role. She has truly mournful story. You can read about her life here. It's worth a look see. That leaf is absolutely gorgeous. So pretty it took my breath away. And it's a very nice thought that a lady like me created it, and appreciated all the things about Autumn I do, I think she would also understand my grief as well. That's comforting. Really, Hollywood should do less from the Marvel Universe, and more from mythology.

 

An Osprey A Kestrel And A Cormorant

 

“His eyes reflected the open grey of the autumnal sky.” 

~Juliet Marillier,

  Daughter of the Forest

 

 I visited the Clifton Court Forebay yesterday, and unfortunately there is still very few birds to be found. During most years the forebay would be filled with all kinds of ducks, coots and gulls, in addition to many other birds, but yesterday there existed a few coot, a couple cormorants, and some raptors, but in single digits like the Osprey and the American Kestrel. I am going to check in on my friends at Cosumnes and Desmond road on Saturday, hopefully I will be pleasantly surprised and a beautiful noise a million birds will waiting for me. Cross your fingers. I need to see more beauty, and I only need 9 more birds to reach 170 birds for 2023!

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #78

 

“The seasonal urge is strong in poets. Milton wrote chiefly in winter. Keats looked for spring to wake him up (as it did in the miraculous months of April and May, 1819). Burns chose autumn. Longfellow liked the month of September. Shelley flourished in the hot months. Some poets, like Wordsworth, have gone outdoors to work. Others, like Auden, keep to the curtained room. Schiller needed the smell of rotten apples about him to make a poem. Tennyson and Walter de la Mare had to smoke. Auden drinks lots of tea, Spender coffee; Hart Crane drank alcohol. Pope, Byron, and William Morris were creative late at night. And so it goes.”

 
~Helen Bevington

  When Found, Make a Verse of

 

Winter Art

 

“Sometimes one is stuck helplessly between autumn and winter:

 One does not want autumn to end,

 but one does not want to miss the beauties of winter either.” 

 
~Mehmet Murat ildan 

 

This photo was taken earlier this year, in winter, I think some time in late January or early February. It kinda looks like a barn, or perhaps studio flats, long forgotten, yet still barely standing on a farm on Woodbridge road. All the water you see is the result of one of the Atmospheric rivers that hit the state of California early in 2023. The devastating rain made rivers out of farm roads, and made it possible to see hundreds of swan swimming about. I took the photo of the swans and the Great Egret on the same day as this shack, it was just stunning. I am not sure if the shack/barn still stands, I hope to check soon, and if it does I will post an update. Or maybe I will just post something new from Woodbridge road. You know how it is, you go in search of a specific thing, and usually see so much more than you plan for. Photography is never dull!

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #77

 

“Days decrease, / And autumn grows, autumn in everything.” 

~Robert Browning 

 

Winter is knocking at the front door, It rained yesterday, and brought with it cold temperatures. Autumn in California, the San Joaquin County specifically, takes you from the last of the summer's heat, the kind of heat the Mexican Free-tailed bat like to play in, to winter chill, the kind of chill that brings us the gorgeous Common Merganser. I haven't seen any yet, but I can't imagine they wont be much longer in their arrival. Anyway, for this to be considered the saddest part of the autumn season, the death brought by winter's bite, everything, including the tree in the yard has burst with color and beauty. It's as if the autumn is screaming, FUCK YOU, WINTER, I WILL DIE IF I WANT TO, AND IF I DON'T WANT TO, FUCK YOU! Not all years are like that. This year, Autumn nudged summer out of the way, and it is nudging winter too. If this keeps up, I should be able to find autumn leaves well into spring, and if possible, I will!

Not Previously Posted

 

“On my canvas of life, you bring colors of love and joy,
Just like in winters,
The setting sun brings beams of red and purple to the sky.” 

~Hareem Ch,

   Muse Buzz

 

There were a lot of photos that didn't make it into my blog, but that I have decided to save to my Google album, as an accurate look at what I saw on my travels through 2023. This is one of the first photos of sparrows that I took this year. This picture was taken at the Clifton Court Forebay, last January. Ducks, Osprey, and all kinds of perching birds were flying around, but this bush belonged to these Golden Crowned Sparrows. A beautiful sight! I saw a lot of pretty things this year, and here is a small sampling. I will probably do another sampling before the end of the year.

 

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #76

 

“The next morning was grey and much more typical of early autumn. All I wanted to do was cocoon myself in layers of sweaters and stay in my room.” 

~Deborah Harkness,

   A Discovery of Witches

 

Rain is predicted for today. I love the rain in Autumn, it makes everything dark and brings out the earthy scents. I love that smell, especially when it mixes with the cinnamon I have sprinkled in the garden to discourage pests. I love Autumn. Have I mentioned that?

 

 

One Post + Autumn Leaf Of The Day #75

 

Rebellious leaves
going out
in a blaze of glory,
setting trees aflame
in riotous color.
Reluctant surrender
to rumors
of coming winter.

 
~John Mark Green,

  Taste the Wild Wonder: Poems

 

Yard Tree

December 4th 2023
 

This is only the second leaf I have posted from the tree in the front yard. Right now it is a stunning color of orange. I am truing to find out what it is, but it isn't easy to track down leaves. I think I will try posting a photo on X and see if someone can ID it. The closest I have gotten so far is a Sugar Maple, but I thought those were red. This one moves from green to variegated colors and then ultimately deep orange/red. I will update if I get an answer.

 

This is my only post for today, I am having trouble with my hip and sciatic nerve. The pain is going from my hip, all the way down to my foot. So stupid. But I figure it will get better with some rest, a heating pad and maybe a Salonpas patch. Hey, age is what it is. Its just that in my mind I am 28, by body is about 75. How is it I can hear a Madonna song, and instantly feel 30 years younger, but not have my physical body follow? I guess I should ask my beautiful autumn yard tree. Can you believe that these leave, came from that tree? It's just magic!

Yard Tree Leaf

November 16th 2023

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #74

 

“Life turns grey as the leaves fall in Autumn.”

 
~Kieron Shepherd 

 

 

This tiny leaf made me smile for hours! My two favorite colors, in such an awesome design, what leaf peeper could ask for more than this?

 

SandHill Crane Walk

 

“I am happy to know that not all species are forced

 to need passports and visas to experience new lands.”

 

~Rajesh

  Random Cosmos

 

 

I love those beautiful creatures, and I will never see enough of them. I am so pleased I live in an area that they visit every year. I would be lost without their beauty, and the sound of their call. The season is moving too fast for me. I need more of this.

 

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #73

 

“You resting your head tenderly on my shoulders while we sit below the old Oak tree. And we smile at each other and gaze lovingly at the fascinating sunset over the hills. This moment makes me feel completely alive as if we have reached not just cloud nine or ten but also cloud infinity!”

 
~Avijeet Das 

 

 

 

A Bunch Of Leaves In A Tree

 

“Stay I whisper to him. Stay in the car. Stay in this moment.

 But of course he never does.”

 
~Laura Nowlin,

  If He Had Been with Me

 

 

I always speak quietly to my birds. I always ask them to be nice and let me get the picture. Like this one, I asked him to be still, just for a few seconds. I got two photos of the bird, before it was on it's way to another late afternoon perch. He looked like autumn. From afar he looked like a bunch of leaves in the tree, waiting to fall. But after a moment, or so, he flew off on a gust of autumn breeze. I didn't get a picture of his lift off and flight, because I decided to put the camera down, and enjoy the moment. Red-shouldered Hawks are gorgeous inflight! It's good for the body and mind to live in the moment during autumn.

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #72

 

 

There is a time in the last few days of summer when the ripeness of autumn fills the air, and time is quiet and mellow.

 

~ Rudolfo Anaya

 

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.

 

 

On The Last Day Of November

 

 

“I could feel the bite of the autumn air,

 warning us all of the harsh winter that was on its way.”

 
~Jennifer Starzec,

  Determination

 

It was ridiculously cold at the Clifton Court Forebay yesterday, but that didn't stop this very pretty Ring-billed gull from swimming and splashing about in the water! He was half playing, half trying to beat the other gulls to the tasty school of morsels passing just under them. I watched him capture, and eat, more than one tiny fish, and I was very impressed with its ability to fly to great heights in the sky, only to fall in a deep dive, to fetch his dinner. Birds fascinate me. I didn't see any new birds yesterday, and my hands were aching from the cold, so I didn't stay long, but they were all lovely, and entertaining, and made the pain well worth the visit. I can't wait to see what other birds fly in, as December progresses. 

 

Here is bird #161 for the year.

 

Red-winged Bicolored Blackbird

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #71

 

And sometimes, and only in spring,
a dove from the river's soft vale of lilies
will fly as close to you as trust,
and a calm in the great reds of autumn
will, as often as you need, lie down
beside you, raising a brow you've known
above the eyes of the only woman
you will ever have a need to dream or touch.”

 
~James Ragan,

  Too Long a Solitude

 

 

Cinnamon Pecans

 

 

 

 

It's the first day of Autumn! 

 A time of hot chocolatey mornings,

 and toasty marshmallow evenings,

 and, best of all, leaping into leaves!

 

~Winnie The Pooh 

 

Well, it's not really the first day of Autumn, it's actually closer to the end of Autumn, but I feel the urge to bake this time of year, so I present to you, Cinnamon Pecans. Other than the Thanksgiving meal I tag-teamed with Hubby on, this is my first trip into the holiday baking realm. If you also don't count the monster cakelets I made for Halloween. I think the next might be, well, you'll just have to stay tuned.