Photo 365 #340: Where everybody knows your name

July 13, 2015October 7, 20154 Comments

Mmm, reuben and chips, omnomnom!

Writing, of late, has been an odd sort of chore. I love to write – I yearn to write – but lately when I find myself alone with my thoughts and a pencil, I find that the words won’t come. They used to spill forth from my fingers like fat drops of rain from a heavy summer storm cloud. They used to burst froth from my pencil like rushing floodwaters through a broken dam.

But now?

Now, I find myself extracting each precious word like a miner with a gem. Or, more accurately, like a dentist with a particularly stubborn tooth. Bubbles’ first tooth, with its inch-long root and insistence on clinging to his lower gum, springs instantly to mind.

But that’s if the words come at all.

Today, for a change of pace…

Photo 365 #335

July 8, 2015Leave a comment

When I’m not busy running around like a chicken with my head cut off, I’m still hard at work on The Lokana Chronicles and, as writing has been on my mind quite a lot lately, today’s photo features a progress update:

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Do you leave notes for yourself in the margins of your WIPs? I do it all the time – if I didn’t, I’d forget everything that crossed my mind while writing. *sigh*

In other news, I’m going to be doing my first book signing next week, and I’m kind of excited about it. If you’re heading out to the Tama County Fair on Thursday the 16th, stop on over to Smith’s General Store and say hi! I’ll be there from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., signing books and chatting with anyone who wanders in. I’m planning a giveaway for those who subscribe to my mailing list (see the link in my sidebar – no spam, I promise!), and I know it’s going to be a ton of fun.

A metric ton, even. 🙂

Also, congratulations to Piper McDermott, the lucky winner of e-book copies of Tuesday Daydreams and A Song for All Seasons!

Photo 365 #325

June 28, 2015June 27, 20157 Comments

More fun with my macro lens.

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I just love the way this turned out. I had a little more luck this time since the wind wasn’t blowing. 🙂

Photo 365 #324

June 27, 2015Leave a comment

Last night was the Corn Carnival parade, which is always a lot of fun. We took the kids and had a great time, although hopefully the boys acquire some patience in time for next weekend’s Fourth of July parade.

In this picture, Cricket was unhappy that they weren’t throwing candy to him. He spent a good couple of minutes telling me how if he waved to the people in the parade, then they would throw candy at him. He made sure that he waved at every single float, but not all of them were giving out candy, and he finally got upset about it.

In the end, both boys came home with sacks full of candy. Now to make sure they don’t eat it all in one sitting… 😀

Photo 365 #316

June 19, 2015June 5, 201510 Comments

I love it when insects land on the flowers I’m photographing. I think it’s fascinating to see them this close-up, and I really like this shot.

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I’m a little disappointed that the fly isn’t more in focus, especially the tail end of his body, but I love the dreamy effect of the blurry flower edges and the out-of-focus background.

Of course, the only way to get the kinds of shots I’m after is to keep practicing, and I have absolutely no problem with that. 😀

Photo 365 #314

June 17, 2015June 5, 20158 Comments

Here’s one of the flower shots I mentioned yesterday:

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I spent a good half hour outside trying to get my flowers to sit still and behave for me before giving up and heading back inside. Of course the one night I have a few free minutes to play with my camera is the night the wind decides it needs to blow steadily at 20 mph (the gusts were stronger than that). I took a bunch of pictures, but this one turned out the best.

Photo 365 #313

June 16, 2015June 5, 20156 Comments

Behold, the Shadow Cat:

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I had been trying to take some macro shots of the flowers on this side of our house when all of a sudden I heard a threatening growl from near my feet. I looked down and Buddy was sniffing at Shadow, who evidently wasn’t feeling overly friendly at that particular moment.

At least not to Buddy – when I bent down to pet him, he started purring.

Cats are weird, yo. 😀

Photo 365 #304

June 7, 2015June 3, 201514 Comments

I do love being outside. The wind in the trees, the birds singing gaily, the sun on my face, it’s all just so –

SQUIRREL!

Okay, that was a bad joke. But that was also my favorite part of the movie Up, and I know I’m not the only person who loved that part. Believe it or not, it even has something to do with today’s post:

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See? Squirrel! 😀

The squirrels in my old stomping grounds are full of personality. This particular day, they were also apparently full of hormones, but that’s another story. As I cautiously photographed this particular one, I could hear him screaming, “Get off my lawn, you crazy person, you!”

Heck, I wouldn’t have been surprised to see him shaking a fist at me. 🙂

Photo 365 #291: Memorial Edition

May 25, 2015May 24, 20152 Comments

My hometown does something pretty special for Memorial Day every year. In addition to putting out the usual rows of flags along the lanes, they also put out smaller flags next to all the veterans’ graves. But on top of that, they put up white crosses with the names of local veterans and the wars in which they served.

I spent some time out in the cemetery a few years ago photographing some of the crosses. I knew we’d sent many people to war over the years, but I was surprised to find out just how far back some of the veterans had served. For instance, we have a veteran from the War of 1812. Iowa wasn’t even a state in 1812!

We have a veteran of the Civil War, too, and of course there are plenty of veterans from both World Wars, Vietnam, and the Persian Gulf. Someday, there will be other crosses from the current conflict to join them – I can’t count how many of my classmates joined the service after 9/11.

I’m proud to be from a place where veterans are accorded such respect. They certainly deserve it – without those who would fight and die for our freedoms, we would be a much different country than we are today.

Photo 365 #287

May 21, 20157 Comments

I find the prettiest little scenes in my yard. Last year it was a couple of tree roots sticking up out of the ground, and this year it’s a stick and a flower: