nature's hoarder

the

eastern gray squirrel is a scatter-hoarder.

unlike me...

who tends to be a scatter-brain.

(at times)

i'm not a hoarder...i'm a collector.

this past week i took so many pictures of squirrels,

i couldn't decide if i should climb a tree,

stick my head in the bird feeder

or squat & bury some acorns!

it took me so long to pick out a few squirrel pictures...

i didn't have time to do any of that.

my favorite...

i had to 'morph' this guy. 

here he is in 'emboss' mode...

and now...what would a blog post about squirrels be, without squirrel bones.

well, yes, i do have squirrel bones, but decided to just go with the skull.

squirrel skull

flip side, squirrel skull. look at those 2 front teeth!

time to get outa here...signing off with last night's moon.

life's a journey.  enjoy the ride.

laura

“My friend is going to save a little girl from monsters. I am going with him. That's what friends do.” 

~Jim Butcher, Changes

(i read  A LOT! right now i'm loving Jim Butcher's 'dresden files' series!)

lizard love. scat. skull. and a couple of tree huggers!

it's still a little on the chilly side here in north central florida.

we've had some frosty mornings & the water in the bird bath freezes over night.

i love it!  but most of the little critters are still in hiding.

this past week i've been lucky enough to spot a few lizards (anoles) sun-bathing!! yay!

(FYI: the anoles with the patterned stripes down their backs are Non-natives.

from Cuba or the Bahamas)

* * *

lately we've been hearing what sounds like a pack of pups 

barking & kind of howling...just before dawn and around sunset.

the PROOF is in the SCAT.

out back, in the wooded area...COYOTE poop!

it's not the freshest scat around...but it's loaded with FUR & BONES!

i went online and listened to what the coyotes sound like when they 'talk'...

and it's exactly what we've been hearing!

SO, knowing this, we have had numerous talks with emo & otis.

stressing to them that they have to watch their backs!

our little 'tree-huggers' have been practicing climbing trees!!

* * *

this past week i started working on a HOG SKULL 

i found last year in the field across the road.

(acrylic paint & Sharpie paint pens)

 

* * *

i leave you now...with a parting moon shot.

(NO, not THAT kind!!)  :)

11 feb 2015

stay cool & be safe.

laura

“The things that make me different are the things that make me.”

~A.A. Milne

...testing...

it's been a long time.
more than a year!
we moved more north in florida...but now we are back
to our humble, comfortable home.
aaaaaaah. home sweet home.
where i can wander out back...
in the woods...or across the street in the wooded field.

i'm going to work my way back into blogland.
yes, i finally got a 'smart' phone...which is why this is a test. i hope this works! fingers crossed...
then i can do either phone or comp.

so...i'll attach 2 pictures & see how it goes.
(fluffy otis up a tree & a big skull i found over the weekend)

in the meantime...
be safe. stay cool.
laura

sent from my...uh...phone  ~:)

time to peek in...

i'm back.

where have i been?

nowhere in  particular. right here.

living life.

reading books. a lot!

taking pictures. a lot!

enjoying...

a purple passion flower

i've thought about entering blog-land...many times.

but for some reason i just couldn't get motivated to do so.

this morning

emo found a snake in the garden...right by the front steps.

fortunately he (emo) was smart enough to leave it alone!

i did pick him (emo) up and bring him indoors...just to play it safe...

while the  VENOMOUS Moccasin  moves on!

pretty, eh?

(pretty scary too!)

a snake.  

it's the year of the snake.

and i was born in a snake year too.

so i thought it an omen!??

today seemed like a good day to poke my head in and say 'hi'.

i want to ease my way in.

one of the reasons i took a blog hiatus, was i started to feel overwhelmed.

now i plan to take it slower.

less often posting...and not trying to read every post of every blog i follow!

so

come on in

and enjoy a few pictures.

tiny tree snail, out back at the edge of the woods.

a Fence lizard

the next two pictures are of STINK BUGS!

stink bug nymphs

Green stink bug

one morning in may...about 7am, i looked out the back door...

and here's what i saw!!  a Barred Owl perched on the bird feeder...looking right at me!!

a Barred Owl

this is one of my favorite dragonfly shots i've taken lately (in june)!

perched on a cactus

a Zebra Longwing - the state butterfly for florida...feeding on lantana

about dem bOnes.

of course i'm still into bones.

finding them. cleaning them. turning them into...art?  jewelry? it all depends...

a hog skull my son travis found for me! =)

another great find!

i'm pretty sure these are Opossum feet!!

ok

the end is near.

ONE more thing to mention.

emo!

he sure has grown!!

and what a personality!

he is a butterfly, dragonfly, mole & mouse chaser.

he is an expert climber,

drinks out of the sink faucet,

and still sucks on our fingers at night.

here he is...deep n thought.

and here he is...passed out in sam's lap.

“No need to hurry. No need to sparkle. No need to be anybody but oneself.”

~ Virginia Woolf, A Room of One's Own, and Three Guineas

stay cool.  be safe.

laura

mushroom mania. lizards. skull art.

we've had lots of rain lately- which is a good thing

since we're usually in drought conditions.

the rain and the heat...the overall humidity...

means the ground gives birth to MUSHROOMS!

i love mushrooms.

we have such a variety...popping up all over...

i wonder if some are edible.

i think even if i had a mushroom ID book,

i still wouldn't pick them and cook 'em up...or add to salads.

would you?

anyway, i have tons of 'shroom pic's, but don't want to overload you.

so i've picked out some of the more unusual ones...

with a few lizards tossed in, just to add a little spice.

"Life is too short to stuff a mushroom."  

~Shirley Conran

(uh...no it's not. stuffed mushrooms! yum!)

a Green Anole in the brown phase

a Green Anole

"I'm just some lunatic macaroni mushroom, is that it?"  

~Joe Pesci

EarthStar 'shrooms

a Five-lined skink 

growing on the base of a pine tree

down for the count

a Brown Anole. a bit blurry, i was lucky to get this...he took off running a nano-second later.

~O~

you may know i like to collect...bOnes.

i decorate some of them.

here's one of my found deer skulls, after cleaning it up...

same skull after i gave it a mottled purplish look...

after giving it a moon...and a few stars...

and then painting a crow or a raven...or something in between...

on a tree branch...

after some touch-ups i'll seal it front & back with Acrylic spray.

~O~

well, that's it. gotta run. have two more massage appointments today.

stay cool  &  be safe.

laura