Saturday, September 4, 2010

here's lookin' at you...kid!

my thoughts on mirrors.

when did they all become carnival mirrors?
i've always felt young. looked young. thought young.
is it because this past august i moved a little closer to s...si...six...sixt...
'OH, go ahead, spit it out!'
this year i turned f...fif...fiftys...fifty-seven! *groan*
it's hard for those numbers to even cross my lips.

57. it sounds so...old.
i don't FEEL 57. but what is 57 supposed to feel like?

thinking back...the changes really started being noticeable at around 50.
hmmmm...changes...eyesight. difficulty driving at night. disappearance of my washboard tummy . a few gray hairs. a wrinkle here...there...
love handles...ha! they sound nice...but if i wanted handles, i would've screwed them on myself!
looser skin. dryer skin. *groan*
it definitely takes some getting used to.
those xtra trips to the bathroom during the night.
it takes a little longer to get out of bed and moving in the morning. sometimes i feel like i spent the night working out...i'm so sore in the AM.

anyway...i'm handling it. i just don't spend too much time in front of those damn circus mirrors that have seemed to magically replace all the old mirrors we used to have!

i plan to just keep on doing what i'm doing.
i feel good. eat good. work. hike. read. write. do my art stuff...
i'll try not to dwell on the fact that i don't have as many years left as i've already been through.
i'm (im)patiently waiting until i can retire!! 'til i can spend my time doing whatever i want, whenever i want.
'til i can throw all the clocks out...who cares what time it is...i have all the time in the world!  :]

Don't let yesterday use up too much of today.  ~Cherokee Indian Proverb 

i love to wander outside.
every time i walk around...i see new things. flowers blooming. insects. lizards. fungi.
it's all just so amazing. i take pictures. lots of 'em.
it's always hard to decide which ones to post.  enjoy!  :)



butterflies...dragonflies...are my favorite things to take pictures of. oh, flowers too. and lizards. and spiders and their amazing & intricate webs....  :-\







the other day...home between appointments...i heard the red-shouldered hawks out back. there's a nest in one of the pine trees out front and you can hear the whole family...making their hawk sounds and flying from tree to tree! every day! i was lucky to get a couple of pretty good shots of one of the hawks.














~In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.~ John Muir














this 'southern cricket frog'
looks a little hung over...




















strange looking fungi/mushroom....




~ Butterflies are graceful, varied and enchanting, small but approachable. Butterflies lead you to the sunny side of life. And everyone deserves a little sunshine.~  Jeffrey Glassberg 







the gardenia bush is blooming (again)!! i love that scent...



while wandering out back...i found another feather...from the red-shouldered hawk...and spotted milo passed out on the back porch...

well...i hope you enjoyed your wander around with me...
and i hope that the mirrors you look into...will not be one of those mirrors from the 'fun-house'!!
The aging process has you firmly in its grasp 
if you never get the urge to throw a snowball.  ~Doug Larson

oh! i do i do...well, i would i would...but i live in florida!   BUT  if we had a freak snowfall, i'd be right out there...making snowballs & snow angels!

OH YEAH! i almost forgot! my niece's husband keeps emailing me these REALLY cool pictures that he finds out there in cyberspace...and i wanted to post a couple. these are both dew covered insects. a dragonfly upper body and a fly.
be safe. stay cool. 'til next time,  laura  :]

25 comments:

  1. Laura, the pix of the hawks are great! Wish you could go with me on my hawk-watch...maybe when you retire! Don't fret about getting old...I'm 62 and LOVING LIFE!!!...:) JP

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  2. I really identified with your feelings about getting old... I'm heading toward 65.

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  3. thanks HomeInTheHollow! :0) i wish i could go to your hawk watch too!! i can't wait to hear about it!!
    and the 'getting older' thing...it's not so much the aging...it's the looking at myself and seeing someone i don't remember...ha! i FEEL good...and that's what matters, right!?!

    Kathy...glad you stopped by and found my little story as something you could identify with! :) (grumble grumble...ouch!) ha!

    laura

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  4. Great pictures, i love the dew covered fly! I did a post a while back to all the 20 year old women out there, stuff our moms didn't tell us about what getting older would be like. It was meant to be funny but it is so true!

    Happy Labor Day Weekend!

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  5. I can really relate to your comments - I'm a couple of years older than you. I never think or feel old, so it's such a shock when I see that person in the mirror!!

    I love your blog and your beautiful pictures...

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  6. Sad is that I can identify with the aging part of the post, and I'm only 44! That frog is too cool. He looks like he's half asleep.

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  7. Holly Diane, Alexia, and VM Sehy Photo!!! it's nice to hear from you...who can relate to my words...feelings! i mean...it's kind of hard to explain...sometimes i just feel like a kid inside...but then have to do a double take when i walk past the mirror! ha! can be very mind boggling!! :)
    THANKS for stopping by!! i appreciate it...AND for letting me know how you feel too!

    laura :]

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  8. I am constanly telling my ladies (at the salon) that they spend entirely too much time in the mirror! Then I add "I only linger long enough to make sure my shoes match and my underwear isn't showing"
    Mail me a Hawk feather when you get one you will spare? (of course I want a striking, unusual one)

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  9. who wouda thunk joanne!! hahaha!! that sounds about right!! no lingering...not any more than absolutely necessary!! ha!

    i'll send you a couple of hawk feathers...they're all striking and unusual!! :)

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  10. Laura, I know what you mean about looking in the mirror. It's too bad they have yet to design one that reflects how we feel, although, come to think of it, that could be scary sometimes...;)
    For what it's worth, I think you are putting beauty into the world! Thank you.

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  11. Those dew covered insects are Cool! and don't you just love the scent of gardenias? Hawks are always special too.

    I can relate, girlfriend. Getting old is hell. And I agree, 50 seemed to be a major turning point with me too. I seemed to have gained 50 pounds in the last three years and driving at night is just plain scary anymore. I make it a habit to avoid mirrors of any kind. And you don't even want to get me started about the hot flashes!

    They tell me it's all better than the alternative. I'm not sure I'm convinced, but I'm not done yet and I don't think you are either. Hang in there.

    Peace,
    Sally

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  12. Trucking Tumbleweed...yeah...those mirrors!! can be a little scary no matter what! thanks for the compliment...i'm humbled to have people like you...stop by...visit...and enjoy! thank YOU! :)

    Mustang Sally...yeah! i love those dew covered bugs! i wish my camera was a good enough one to take such close up ones like that! but i prob couldn't afford one like that! the dew really makes them look so magical!! as far as us over 50ers...there's much to get adjusted to...it's tough sometimes. as for the hot flashes...at least i've been done with them for some time now! i guess THAT's when all these body changes started happening! ugh! THANKS once again for your input!!

    you're ALL appreciated so much...:)
    laura

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  13. Hello Laura..
    If your heart is younger, then nothing else matters and by the articles, stories and the photographs posted by you, i dont think you are getting older. Infact, you are getting younger..
    see mam, i am too young to give any advice or suggestions but i should
    say its all our thoughts that conveys us that we r younger or older..Dont feel like that..
    and mam you are truely an inspiration for the budding writers and photographers..

    I really love your way of expressing feelings and ofcourse those lovely
    natural photographs.
    Cheers!! :)

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  14. Neel R Anand...i know you're right...as long as i feel young inside...as long as my heart is young...nothing else SHOULD matter. it's just a difficult thing to get used to when you feel young on the inside but completely the opposite on the outside! ha! anyway...i'm dealing. :] i appreciate ALL your kind words...and you're really never too young to give suggestions or advice...we learn every day...and i think we each learn different things, even from the same experience. we all see things through our own eyes!
    thanks for stopping by!!! and taking the time to ;eave a note!

    laura :]

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  15. Hi Laura, I too had a bad attack of the mirrors - a while ago now. The shock does wear off and it hardly registers anymore. Or, er, could it perhaps be that my two yearly check up at the Optometrist is due?!! ;-)
    Love seeing what you find on your forest walks. Many thanks.

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  16. Susan! thanks...that's good news...now it's just a waiting game! :) at least i know that at some point all the mirrors will revert back to normal!
    OR...maybe i too just need new glasses?!!

    thanks for stopping by...and sharing your thoughts!! i appreciate it.

    laura :]

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  17. The trouble is - when you retire you discover there are not enough hours in the day to get everything you wanted done - done! OK, I have to admit that once I have shaken the creaking joints up and get my eyes open - the real fun starts and most of the time I have a great day. Now if only I can find another critter to photograph. (Grin). ATB!

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  18. Rusty!! there aren't enough hours in the days NOW to do all i want to do...so i guess there won't be much difference when i retire...EXCEPT that i'll be able to fill ALL the hours with whatever i want...not have to worry about getting up and ready for WORK!! :)

    and to the next person who left the nice comment "so nature"...i'm glad you stopped by and enjoyed my small world of nature & other stuff!!

    Thanks to ALL!! laura :]

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  19. My gosh I am a frogaholic and I just ♥ the 'southern cricket frog'! My frog, Al Dente, is on one of my posts on my blog. I am really really liking the S.C. Frog!

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  20. Love the bejeweled insects. I never knew they could become covered in dew like that.

    And you're only as old as you feel, right? So if you feel young, you're doing something right. Keep it up. :)

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  21. BeMistified! 'AlDente"...HA!!!! great name! oooooh...wait til you see the frog...uh, toad actually...i have ready to post next time!! what a face!! most of the frogs we have here are the little green tree frogs...

    Leah Mraz...yeah, those dew covered insects are something else!! definitely look bejeweled! and...yes, i'm only as old as i feel...until i look in the mirror! i just try to keep my distance for now... :)

    thanks u 2!!
    stay cool...laura

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  22. I really enjoyed the nature walk with you! Your photos tell it all. The hawk is stunning and so are all of your favorite critters. And Milo is classic. Glad you don't feel 57-makes us 61 year olds feel a little less 61. What a refreshing article.

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  24. susan!! glad you had time to go on a nature walk! it's nice to know there are so many others 'out there' who can appreciate all these things...

    thanks for stopping by!! :)
    laura

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thanks for stopping by! it's always nice to hear from fellow wanderers!