Photo 365 #267

May 1, 20156 Comments

dandy Dandelions are such happy flowers. When I was little, I loved picking dandelion bouquets for my parents. Despite their weedy status, I loved them. As a matter of fact, I still do, even though they’re threatening to take over my yard.

But really, is there any sight quite as joyful as a field of dandelions? If there is, I’d like to see it.

It must be the color. Yellow is such a happy color, and after a long winter, dandelions are like little spots of sunshine appearing to remind us all that there’s more to life than snow and gray and endless cold. Dandelions are symbols of hope, and Suzanne Collins wasn’t the first to think so.

Anyway, Thumper and Cricket are enamored with dandelions at the moment, and it’s got me thinking about childhood and wonder and seeing the magic in the everyday. Yesterday, Thumper picked a dandelion bouquet for me, and it graced the table till well after supper, even though the blooms had closed up by then. I just hadn’t the heart to throw them out. He took so much joy in picking those bright little flowers and then carting them all over the yard – they were his new best friends. They climbed trees together, they chased cats together, they ran themselves ragged together.

I don’t have a whole lot to add to that at the moment; I’m too brain-dead to come up with a decent ending to this post. Brain-deadness has become my new best friend, and it’s one I could really do without. Hopefully the solution to this problem is right around the corner.

In the meantime, may your weekend be filled sunshine, whether in the sky or in the ground. Have a great one!

Photo 365 #236

March 31, 20154 Comments

That’s right, I’m still waxing poetic about the weather. It’s another lovely day out there, and I’ve got a nice, long lunch break ahead of me to fill with stories to my heart’s content.

productive

More of this is definitely in store today. I can’t wait to get out there and enjoy the sunshine of another world for a little while! 🙂

How about you – what do you enjoy doing on beautiful sunny days?

Photo 365 #235

March 30, 20154 Comments

It is an absolutely glorious day out there. It’s so pretty, it’s hard to believe it’s actually a Monday. Well, sort of. After a crazy busy weekend full of family and fun, my brain’s a bit fried, so maybe it’s not all that hard to believe it’s really Monday after all. 🙂

Anyway.

sunburst

See? Told you it was gorgeous. It’s pushing 70 and beautiful out there, and I wish I didn’t have to stay chained to my desk for another four hours so that I could go outside and enjoy myself. Maybe the fresh air would wake my brain up.

On the bright side, I did get out there during my lunch break. Beautiful sky, sunny day, writing progress – it was a great lunch. Too bad it couldn’t have lasted longer. 🙂

Photo 365 #233

March 28, 2015March 27, 20152 Comments

We’ve had two beautiful days in a row. It’s so pretty outside!

tulip

Okay, so it’s a little chilly, but still – the sun is shining, there’s not a cloud in the sky (that I can see without my sunglasses), and it makes one feel good to be alive. Much like this pretty, pretty tulip. 🙂

Photo 365 #232

March 27, 20154 Comments

Last night, Seymour and Bubbles spent the remaining light of day playing catch out in the yard. Cricket, not one to be left behind, was desperate to go outside and join them. I snapped this as he was hurrying through getting his shoes and coat on. He was so excited that I had to be quick with the camera if I wanted to capture even a bit of his joy.

I imagine I might look a bit like this come five o’clock this evening… 🙂

Photo 365 #230

March 25, 20158 Comments

Well, so much for it being spring…

spikyice

We’ve had two ice storms since the official beginning of spring. Neither one have been too severe, but they’ve been bad enough to make getting around a pain in the butt. It rained yesterday, but it was just cold enough that the rain froze on whatever it hit. When I got home from work last night, even the grass was slick.

At least it’s supposed to warm up next week…

Photo 365 #228

March 23, 2015Leave a comment

Yesterday was a great day. I hung out with family, I ate great food, I watched Buffy, I wrote. A lot. Well, more than I have been lately, at any rate.

And then last night, after suffering through the UNI defeat vicariously through Seymour, I was rudely awakened about 2:30 a.m. by the crash of thunder. Jagged streaks of lightning ripped apart the sky outside my window as the wind howled in agony. Something clicked and clacked against the window, and I groaned.

2015-03-23 08.11.02

When I awoke this morning, these pretty little pellets were all over the place. School delayed two hours to give the road crews a chance to clear the highways. But I still had to venture out on time this morning, braving the ice-slicked roads to get to work.

Luckily, the road we live on was the worst. Once I hit the east-west road that takes me the majority of the way to work, the roads were much less slick. I’m grateful that we haven’t had more ice this year, and I hope we won’t have any more storms like the one we had last night until it’s warm enough that the rain stays liquid.

Photo 365 #225

March 20, 2015March 19, 20158 Comments

If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll have seen the beautiful blue sky we had the other morning. If not, scroll down the page a ways and look for it in the sidebar.

Go on – I’ll wait. 🙂

I took that picture on my way to work. I’d stopped to get gas and while I was filling up, I happened to notice the sky. But the beauty didn’t stop there:

I took these on my way to lunch that very same noon. I love how the clouds just feathered out at the ends, almost as if they were oil and the sky water. Except I suppose oil really doesn’t do that in water, does it? Well then, it’s almost like the clouds are smoke that’s just fading away…

Okay, that’s not a very good comparison, either. But I’m still recovering from strep, so, uh…And it’s Friday…

Anyway, I just love how these pictures turned out. The colors are spectacular, the clouds are gorgeous, and I could stare at them all day long. 🙂

Photo 365 #222: Human

March 17, 2015March 16, 20158 Comments

2015-03-03 17.59.19 I love the beauty
Of a warm spring day, but I
Loathe the allergies

That always come with
It. I feel like death warmed o’er,
And I look the same.

‘Tis such a pity
That all I want to do this
Glorious day is

Curl up under
The covers and sleep till I
Feel human again.

Photo 365 #216

March 11, 2015Leave a comment

Wasn’t it just gorgeous yesterday? The springy beauty started early and lasted all day. I had to go out yesterday afternoon, and happened to catch this:

flaggy

Flags fluttering in a light spring breeze, a vivid blue sky without a single cloud, the sun shining down – how can you beat that? Makes a girl feel glad to be alive. 🙂