I Got Stung

Not in the sense that Elvis meant with his song by the same name, but as David and I were cleaning the furnace yesterday this little monster "swooped down" and stung me on the ear, whereupon I brushed him off my face and directly down into my shirt, so he had the chance to sting twice more on the chest and one on the arm for good measure before I could get my shirt off. I crushed him just a little and have watched him slowly die over the past 24 hours. I feel no sorrow for him (maybe just a little as he was trapped inside my shirt, but the ear? Not called for.

Digital Damage

So here are a couple of digital pieces I have been working on tonight.

Just trying to do things a bit different, you know, spruce things up a bit.  

I can't believe I haven't posted to this since August.

    And here it is whenever I need to say it is.

Back to work.

Lawn Mowing

Torrey was out to cut the grass this morning and I got a few pictures of Jackson helping him. I have been shooting with my iPhone using the"noir" setting, and I really like the result. I need to try to emulate the effect in PhotoShop or LightRoom.

Here are a couple of the ones I like best!

Play Area

So here's the playground to date. My grandsons will have to grow into it, and I hope it will grow for them.

Chickens and Grandsons

If you haven't noticed yet, there is a lot of activity on this blog that involves my grandsons. This post is no exception, as there was an exciting day at Pineland (New Gloucester) with all the farm tractors and such that the farm uses.

What a day they both had with the animals and all the plants in the gardens to see. The boys have two chickens, but seeing a whole barn full was amazing. Rhode Island Reds, I think. Here are a few of the photos.

The hens. The boys.

Jackson and the John

While in Home Depot last week, Jackson thought it might be fun to try out a toilet that was on display. He told me right after this shot that he thought the toilet was a little "close to the wall". Finding pictures of him is never a difficult task for "Grampie", sometimes known as "Grumpy"!

There's a Dead Frog in the Middle of the Road

Out on my bike ride up to Pineland and back this morning, and the first thing I see on the Penny Road is this poor crushed frog. Colorful.

Two Days After the Fourth

 I realize more today than I have in a while just how much my family means to me and how careful I need to be with "our" relationships. Thoughtlessness, although not ever intentional on my part, can really be damaging to others, especially those that you love, and I must be more careful to realize my place in my family has changed as I have grown older and as I have become a grandparent and a parent of full grown and almost middle aged children of my own. I think I just have trouble looking back over my shoulder. I have always been forward looking and full speed ahead, and as that has worked for me for a long time, I have just taken for granted what is left in my wake. Now it is different, I don't have forever on this mortal earth, and I really need to slow down and listen to where my family is at any given time.

I don't know what to post for a photo here, but I will look and see what I have done or shot with my camera that might have helped to put me in this place I find myself.

Double Exposures...

These are all images from the "Hipstamatic" Phone app on my iPhone. I'm just trying to explore the double exposure mode with these photos, hoping to gain some experience and skill in being able to anticipate what an image or pair of images in this case, might look like together.

The first one this afternoon, below/top.

The second, below/middle, and the third, one my oldest son Matthew, is at the bottom.

Apple Blossom Enemies

There was a branch on the East Tree that was all brown and leaves falling off and such, so I looked closely and found these things on the branch. I got the trimmers and the tree lost the branch but the damage was contained. I know I don't seem very kind to the bugs, but I didn't burn them, I just put them on the shore to fend otherwise than they would have on that apple tree branch. Here they were.