Serenity

Today was one of those days.  You know the one.  It’s the one that at the end of it every thing just feels right.

It wasn’t a day of vacation.  It was a normal work day for me doing the normal bookkeeping stuff, visiting with customers, answering phone calls and cleaning up cars.  It wasn’t extraordinary in any particular way but it felt right.

After work I took the top off the Corvette and drove a half hour through beautiful countryside to meet friends for dinner.  Wires must have been crossed because when I got there no one was there that I was supposed to meet but it was okay because it was a beautiful evening for a ride.

When I got home I stood outside taking clothes in off the clothesline and just listened.  In the distance I could hear the kids singing from the local bible camp across the road, loons calling in the distance, and an occasional fish jumping in the water.

I watched the changing colors across the lake as the sun was setting and a bat swooping down to the surface collecting bugs for its dinner.

It’s been a while since I’ve taken the time to appreciate all that surrounds me.  It’s beautiful and serene.

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Wildflowers with some Fiddle heads thrown in for fun.

Each spring I delight in looking for wildflowers in our area of Central Minnesota.  This year it has been difficult because of the late spring.  I have a few favorite places where I know I will find wildflowers each year.  I visit those places each week in search of the flowers I think should be blooming at this time of year.

This morning I visited one of my favorite spots along the Mississippi River in Little Falls, Minnesota.  I was searching for Bloodroot which is usually one of the first wildflowers to bloom in our area.  I found White Trout Lillies first.  Here is what they look like growing near the Mississippi River in a wooded area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next I found the Bloodroot.  They were not as plentiful as the White Trout Lily but they are some of my favorites.  Before their flowers open they remind me of miniature tulips.  I wish they bloomed longer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After I found the Bloodroot I got a couple of shots of the ferns starting to shoot up. and that’s where the Fiddleheads thrown in for fun comes in.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next I headed over to another favorite wildflower place in Little Falls, Minnesota, Pine Grove Park.  It was there that I found the Trillium just starting to bloom.  Next week they should be in full bloom which is always fun.

 

Last but not least were the Hepatica.  I love how these wildflowers come in various hues from white to blue with a little bit of purple on occasion.

Have a great weekend.  I am hoping to enjoy the rain we desperately need this weekend while reading a good book.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the Passenger Seat

Early this morning my husband and I a trip to the Twin Cities to pick up a car he bought for our car lot.  I was playing with my camera while riding in the passenger seat.

It is so easy to just set my camera to the auto mode and let the camera decide what my picture should look like instead of trying to learn the manual mode for my camera.

I love the artsy look to the freeway traffic this morning.  It wasn’t my intention to get the traffic in my photo but the right sunrise exposure.  I didn’t get the sunrise picture I was looking forward to but I did learn a few things about the manual settings on my camera.

Any day I learn something new is a good day!

 

 

Weekly Photo Challenge: Entrance

This is the doorway to the shell of a burned out building near the Fergus Falls Race Track. The bright blue trim drew me in for a closer look. The building has no roof left over it so there is a lot of natural light inside. I was curious as to the use for the chain with the hook hanging on it next to the door frame. I don’t know what the original use was for the building since I am not from the area and found no one who knew its history. Surrounding the building are piles of materials that suggest that someone a while ago was sorting contents from the building and from other sources for possible recycling. It doesn’t look like there has been much progress for some time.

 

Wildflower Wednesday Revisited

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On Memorial Day when my husband and I were out for a motorcycle ride I spotted some wildflowers on the roadside of a nearby country road. Since taking pictures from the back seat of a motorcycle rarely goes that well I decided to take my camera and drive to the country road last evening after work to find the wildflowers I had spotted.

I was pleased to find the Wild Geranium and the Columbine that I was looking for along the roadside. After I parked my car to take pictures I wandered along the road and found some Pussy Toes and Wild Strawberry plants. The Pussy Toes that I found in my yard earlier this spring were not as large or the pastel pink color of the flowers I found today.

There was a nearby gravel road that meandered off the road I had parked on and I decided to walk up the road a bit to see if I could find anything new. I was excited to find a Nodding Trillium along the side of the road. I almost missed it because the flower for the Nodding Trillium is under a triple set of leaves. I recognized the leaves but thought I might find a Jack-in-the-pulpit under the leaves but when I moved them I discovered the Nodding Trillium.

I have looked for wildflowers for the past four or more years in our area ever since I took a class at the local arboretum. This is the first year since my class that I have found the Nodding Trillium. It makes me want to look under every leaf to see what hidden treasure might be there.