Wednesday, January 19, 2011

fox, owl and oodles of found bones!


i've been trying to find the time to write a post.
now...home between appointments...i'll get started!
appointments? you may ask...
i'm a massage therapist. 
and no, i don't massage squirrels!

Massage is the study of anatomy in Braille.

i've been licensed since '97...
(a kind of late in life career change. i was the oldest in my massage class. 
before that, i worked as a Tech Assistant in Rehab...before that, screen printer...)
i work  mainly with the elderly and individuals with Cerebral Palsy, 
Prader-Willi Syndrome, Cystic Fibrosis and AIDS. i love my work!

but i'm also looking forward to the day i can retire...
when i can wake up in the morning 
and NOT gather all my massage stuff for that day's appointments.
i want to get out of bed...and think to myself...
hmmmm...what do i want to do today? 
maybe go hiking. boating. camping. or just sit around and read all day. 
or get on the computer and spend the day in cyberspace.
or make something. be creative.
or just do nothing!
aaaaaaaahhh...
ok...enough dreaming for now...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
sometime over this past weekend, sam spotted the first stinkbug of the year!
this may not sound like much...but i love taking pictures of all the bugs
and lizards we have here in florida! and believe me...we have A LOT!
but during the winter...you don't see too much...
so you can imagine my excitement when sam yelled
"STINKBUG!!"

we've also been seeing the gray foxes lately...strolling through the backyard. 

The art of healing comes from nature, not from the physician. 
Therefore the physician must start from nature, with an open mind. 
~  Philipus Aureolus Paracelsus


and the owl! 
a pair of Barred Owls have been hanging out in the yard lately too.
unfortunately, i haven't been able to get a picture of them together. 
but we can hear them hooting...
and doing their monkey-like scream back and forth to each other!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
last weekend we went exploring...out back...
working our way through the vines and underbrush...
in search of...artifacts...evidence of animals...feathers...
or just really cool things to get pictures of!


Always watch where you are going. 
Otherwise, you may step on a piece of the Forest that was left out by mistake.
~Winnie the Pooh 

after wandering around for a while...we decided to head across the street...

to the field where we usually find bones!
bones from carcasses dumped by the hunters...
after they have cleaned their kill...and filled their freezers.

if you've been here before...then you know me...you know my love of bones.
i like to collect them. clean them. display them. decorate some of them.

i don't know what it is...but there's just something about BoNES.
their feel...shape...texture...they inspire me.
they fascinate me...and i respect them.

ANYWAY...WE FOUND THE MOTHER-LODE!!
oodles of bones!
SIX deer skulls, jawbones and assorted vertebrae...scattered in this one area of the field.
 
well...needless to say...i started to hyperventilate!! WOW!
sam turned the 4-wheeler around and we raced back home to get a bucket
so we could collect the bones!
"my bucket-'o-bones"   :]

a couple of days later...after a little cleaning...
see that one skull in the back, right side...the upper skull is sawed off.
must've had a nice rack...and the hunter kept it.

that same day we also found another small skull...

i wasn't sure what it was...thought maybe a small goat...
turns out it's a domestic cat.   :(    poor kitty.
we DO have a lot of cats around here. supposedly there's a 'cat lady'
living on our street some where. anyway...i didn't see any bullet holes...
i have no idea what happened to it...but its skull can now rest in peace...
it has a good home!
~~~~~~~~~~
so, here i am...here we are...
the weather fluctuating between freezing...and the upper 50's.
sam's got the burn barrel going outside...pretty much non-stop...
aaaah..feels nice. warm. toasty.

so...if you happen to wander through here on the day i posted this...
happy wednesday...hump day...
just a couple more 'til the weekend!

Weekends are a bit like rainbows; 
they look good from a distance but disappear when you get up close to them.  
~John Shirley

i have much catching up to do...with lots of things...this weekend.
there just aren't enough days in the weekend...and not enough hours in a day...
to get everything done... 

((maybe when i retire?!   but then my list of things i want to do 
will probably grow to such an extent...
that there never will be enough hours in a day!))

stay cool. travel safe. 

Little by little one travels far.      ~J. R. R. Tolkien 

have cool adventures! wander!

laura  :]



22 comments:

  1. Wonderful post - glad your weather is moderating. Ours too - we actually have sun & blue skies today! It's not just me - weatherman said last night that the last "dry" day we had was in early January! What can we expect in W. WA? Like you, I returned to school to "re-train" when I was older. I went back to art school at 50 & had the time of my life. It did NOT lead to a good job, but then that's another story...So glad to hear you & Sam found such a good cashe of bones. Can't wait to see what all you do with them. As to retirement, I waited & waited & now I'm here. Just another phase of life and as full as you want it to be. My list, like yours I'm sure, is far longer than what I'll ever be able to do in however many more days I have alloted. BUT - life is ever so interesting! Have a great week and coming weekend!

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  2. Beautiful! You succeeded where I never was able to photograph fungi!

    Wandering around in you blog is almost as good as wandering around in the woods myself! The only things missing is the feel of the ground under my feet, the sounds, and the smells...Thank-you!

    heh heh: you came close tho' with the video of the squirrel massage! very nice!

    love,
    Kati

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  3. Laura, I just wish that was me and not a squirrel!!! LOL! ...:)JP

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  4. Morning to you and your Clan Laura K,
    A very beautiful, varied and enjoyable Posting... thank you.
    You are fully one of the most interesting of People Laura K... intriguing, gifted, giving, caring... your depths infinite... a true pleasure it is discovering you and learning to know you.

    I find it the grandest feeling when a bug turns to look at me when I ask to photograph it like the StinkBug has done for you.

    Beautiful healthy Fox... about 2am a week ago one of my ganders screamed for help, I flew out of bed and down the stairs to find him being dragged out into the yard from under the house by a feral Australian Fox, who I then punched punched in the ribs with a few expletives added. The cheek! Even bypassed the night light. My gander's fine. The Fox returned, looked at me, shook its self and bolted. Has returned once, saw me and decided to leave. So far no returns. May that continue.

    Don't the hunters ever bury the remains of their killings? Thanks to you, the bones of those dead are rescued.
    I too love bones. They are fascinatingly beautiful. The structural foundation giving outer shape and inner protection. Bones to me show the similarity between all Creatures... I learn from them that we are all variations of the one blueprint.

    The Owl is very majestic.

    The Burn Barrel photo I like very much.

    You definitely live amid a fascinatingly diverse environment. Visiting your site is always a special experience.

    With heaps of appreciation and good wishes to you, from M, Australia

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  5. What a haul! You'll be busy for a while now. The picture of the blue feathers on your sidebar is really cool. And also the squirrels. It must be so exciting to be able to get pics of live fox! I look for them now, but don't know if I could keep my cool long enough to get a picture. See? You've got me wandering. Winnie the Pooh knows what he's talking about, huh? And work? Yes! yearning for that last day!

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  6. thank you! the tiny shrooms are now on my desltop

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  7. What a beautiful fox. We have them on our property, though I rarely see them. The only adult fox I've seen was one who had just killed by one of my chickens. Ironically a few days later we found an den with 5 kits that appeared to be abandoned. Three ended up dying before we could figure out the best way to save them, but was able to feed the remaining two in the den for several weeks until they were old enough to be on their own.

    Your weekend quote is perfect.

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  8. I have just stumbled on your fabulous blog ....Lovely art .......I always pick up skulls I find in the woods ...you do beautiful respectful art with them .i have thought to paint my skulls before so I might be re inspired after seeing yours ............I love the squirrels my daughter has just been studying Thai massage ...she also spent 2 months on an Ashram in India last year training to be a yoga teacher .....beautiful fox ...x

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  9. A big batch of bonus BONES,a bountiful bonanza!! There isn't enough time in the day, but I'm glad you find the time to post! I like "walking" around your backyard. :0)

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  10. I've only just found this blog but I am impressed! These photographs are beautiful, I especially like the leaves and the skulls. I take photographs similar to this myself for a hobby soI find your blog wonderful! I'll definitely be checking back for more.

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  11. Thanks Everyone...Ladybug, Kati, JP-Home in the Hollow,M, Susan, Joanne- who wouda thunk it, Kateri, artymess and Trucking Tumbleweed!!

    thanks for passing by......i'm glad that you could find the time to wander through...and take a look at my little slice of the world...bones and all!

    i'll wave at ya as i wander through YOURS...this weekend...promise!
    (and a special welcome to artymess...glad you found me...welcome!)

    take it easy! laura :]

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  12. What a symphony of earth tones! Fantastic.

    (And I love the squirrels.)

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  13. The squirrel massage gave me my first full-fledged, ear-to-ear smile of the day. Thanks!

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  14. b-e-a-utiful post! im watching movies non stop nowadays...hence the Jim carrey way of saying it ;D
    You continue to amaze me.. a massager and ex rehab tech... awesome!!! prader willi syndrome? I don't even know that yet :P
    I SO know what you mean about the weekend whizzing away thing, my hols are almost over... cant believe it! All the best :D

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  15. nnice post!! i wonder wat kinda place is that whr u live in where u can get ur hands on so many skulls!!! n sriously its one of the most different hobby i've seen!!! :):)...but i love ur art n craft!!simply lovely bone work!!!:D:D

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  16. I really love how you give all those bones a better place to be than just being discarded. Bones were living things too.

    Beautiful owl and fungi pictures. Enjoyed having a roam through the underbrush with you.

    Many Cheers :D

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  17. Oh my dear Laura, what wonderful animal pictures again, i would like to see fox, owls and all your animals in californie, it's a dream, so you can be very happy to live in such a wonderful nature world.
    Here in Austria in winter it's too cold, to go out and the animals are hidden.

    I look forward to earn much herbs in spring and summer and also to your blog posts, which i like sooo much.
    Take care and make it like the sqirrels.....lol

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  18. Such great pictures, thanks for sharing.

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  19. Snail! Garden Path! Amused Medic! pranky! Susan! Hexenessel! and Toyin! so happy you dropped by and wandered around! the weather's weird here in north florida...and the little critters don't know if they should stay in hiding...or come out to play! hopefully where ever you are, you're staying warm...and feeling good! :] laura

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  20. Isn't it odd that for all the world has become, people still work in order to retire. I am the same way, I can't wait for the day when I can just wake up and at that moment, decide what my day entails (mostly it entails getting caught up on all my reading). But that is still a long way off. I do sometimes wonder if marrying rich and becoming a home maker would not have been the answer, but then again, I married my best friend. Can't get past that.

    Love the pictures as always, especially the fungi.

    Will pass by this way again.

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  21. loving your blog and all you photos, its really inspired me to record life with pictures! The fox is a beauty!

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  22. Keda, yes...it DOES kind of *suck* to have to work so hard to survive...only to finally be able to retire...and hopefully by the time that comes around, we hope to be in good enough shape to enjoy our time off! marrying your best friend is waaaay better than marrying for money! you are the lucky one!!

    Lisa, thanks for stopping by...glad you enjoyed the pictures...and especially the fox!! what a special surprise it is when we see him wandering through the yard!

    take care you two!
    laura :]

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