Tuesday, April 29, 2008
guess what #2
Here is another "guess what?".....Good Luck to One And All.....! I have no idea if this will be hard or easy....Mostly, I hope it is fun!And as a bonus....here is a kind of sweet picture that almost looks like a painting, to me.......
Be sure to click on this one so you can see it a bit bigger.....I love these two guys.....I love Spring.......
More To Come........
| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 1:26:00 AM
Friday, April 25, 2008
birds of spring
There are so very many birds around right now. They are everywhere. There are nests everywhere and all the birds are looking for food or scouting for good safe places to build their nests, or bringing food to their already hatched young.
This picture above is a 'close-up' of that first Dove at the top. The look on his face is so quizzical, isn't it? I have a couple of more pictures of him....Now, he was scouting for a safe place to build a nest.
Sitting on top of the Chimney of the house right next door. It is a popular place for many birds to come and sit and survey the land....
There is a spot that many Doves have built nests over the years that he seems to be eyeing....At least that is what I thought he was looking at....It is not as protected as it once was, because the big plant that was there had to be cut down.....
Here is a darling little bird carrying a bit of food to the baby's in a nest that is hidden in this hedge....It's my other neighbors hedge, that sits right at the entrance to her gate....in fact, that is the gate opener that this sweet little birdy has landed on.
A closer look at this dear bird. It was like she or he waited a moment or two before entering the little opening in the hedge before hopping in, making sure it is safe....I couldn't see the nest in there---it was so well hidden...But here below is this Mama just inside the hole in the hedge.
Then there are the Finches....I love Finches...The Beautiful color that shows up on the top of their heads and their necks and breast....Here is one that landed on one of the Red Trees that is just beginning to get it's leaves.....
In a month or so, I won't be able to see any birds landing here because the Beautiful Leaves will cover them and hide them really well....
The leaves are so lush and beautiful and of course cover any little bird who fly's in to rest for a moment....But, for now, I can see the birds really really well.....
I LOVE these little birds....I use to see more of the Finch nests around, but I don't see them very much any more....But I know they are around because there are lots and lots of Finches in the area....They have obviously found some great places to build their nests that are quite well hidden.
He is so very sweet! And of course there are lots and lots of Doves around, everywhere! I have so very many Dove pictures right now.....I love it!
I swear, sometimes I feel like these birds are looking right at me....! It's almost like we are having a silent conversation with our eyes and our inner beings.....It certainly feels like we are communicating.
And one more below.....This guy was just sitting and I believe guarding a nest that I couldn't see from my vantage point...but that is what they do all the time, when they are not looking for food, that is......
He sure is puffed up there, isn't he? Very sweet.
And another view above of that same Dove....Still pretty puffed up....lol...And last but not least...One more, below.
Such a pretty pretty Dove.....! Do be sure to click on all of these pictures so you can see them bigger. I hope everyone has a lovely weekend. It is supposed to be 90 here on Saturday and Sunday....! Summer, already? Well.....that is Los Angeles for you....It could be back to the high 60's on Monday.....More To Come.......
| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 2:22:00 AM
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
two little videos +
The little video above is a rather close look at the Bougainvillea down below, next to the other Date Palm in my garden....the smaller, much younger Palm....It all looks so pretty....especially the Fronds swaying in the breeze.....And this second one is that same younger Palm and the big one with all the fruit on it.....I just love seeing the fronds moving in the wind....! I went down into my garden again today...(Someone was with me, I'm happy to say....) And I was able to get much closer to those Seed Pods.....It was very very exciting....! They are really so very beautiful....And there will be more pictures of them, very soon....Here below....A "preview"....
What a thrill, to get this close to these BEAUTIFUL little oval-ish roundish orange seed pods.....the 'fruit' of the Palm.....Oh, I cannot resist....Here is another view of this very magical art form that nature has created, all on her own. Without us. Without the meddling of man.
Very hard not to show you more, now that I've started.....Okay. One more, till next time.
There Will Be......
More To Come.......
| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 12:22:00 AM
Saturday, April 19, 2008
date palm heaven
I have always thought the shape of Date Palms was just beautiful, beyond words....I actually love most Palms....And I have some other types of Palms in the garden...A King Palm, A Queen Palm, and some smaller 'Volunteer' Date Palms....But this one I am posting about today has these very beautiful seed pods happening right now.....
They are a bright bright orange and they are on this Palm in abundance, at the moment....! There is something about the graceful yet strong shape of the Fronds on this Palm, too....And the many kinds of shadows cast by these Fronds when it is windy and when the sun is hitting them in just the right way....
A closer look at a shadow design created by the sun hitting the leaves in a certain way......
Right there a little left of center...That design, created by the sun streaming through the leaves....! Gorgeous! All very sculptural to me.....The green of these fronds is so deep and rich......and the contrast, at the moment, of the orange of the seed pods and the green of the leaves on the fronds....well, it just takes your breath away, as you will see as we go along here.
As we get in closer and closer the contrast becomes clearer and clearer......
And in a bit closer, yet again......
And closer, yet again and again.....
And more of these amazing little orange pods.....
And because I think each of these pictures is unique...And I am an excessive person anyway.....Here are some more....!
Does anyone else find these as fascinating and beautiful as me? LOL...Well, I'm posting more anyway.....Cause I just think these look good enough to eat....!
And the birds think so too! These darling little orange seed pods seem to be quite yummy to the birds, making them a perfect food for the many dear species that visit my garden....
I just cannot get over how full and lush these hanging seed pods are this year....They have been on this Palm each year for the last five or so years....but this year, well.....this year is fuller than ever, and I just love it!
And yes....here a few more pictures of this wonderful Spring happening....
I love how the leaves are just there with these gorgeous pods behind them....the color contrasts here are just so very beautiful...!
See...I'd like to just take a handful of these and eat them like grapes! I have no idea what these actually might taste like---Hmmmm....maybe I need to try them out! Maybe they are as good as grapes, and I just don't know it, you know?
Well....I have got to get Joe over here so we can go down into the garden again, and I will pick off some of these seeds---if I can reach them----And just see what they actually taste like.....At this point I had a little short video to show you of this lovely Palm swaying in the breeze.....But blogger is kind of constipated today and would not let me upload it---And I tried, five times....Given bloggers problems today, I hope and pray this post will publish.....More To Come.......
| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 12:10:00 AM
Thursday, April 17, 2008
visiting doves
Here below are two little videos I took from my Deck, looking down into my garden, below....There are lots of Doves around now that Spring is here and these are two little videos of two different Doves searching around for food..... 
I hope to take some more video of these dear birds....And of course, a lot more pictures, too......More To Come.......
| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 12:02:00 AM
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
the answer +
There were many wonderful inventive creative guesses but, there was only one right answer, and it came from Fliss of Fliss and Mike Adventures! In all honesty I thought more people would recognize this....But I was wrong! And in fact, it wasn't until Monday Evening---at the "eleventh hour", so to speak, that the correct answer was forthcoming! So, here below, for your great pleasure and enlightenment is the answer.
That 'guess what?' picture was a very close look at this very beautiful Shell above. And here below, another shot of the same Shell...just a bit further away and on a slight angle.....
I have loved Shells for so very many many years....and have collected them in all sorts of places....New York, California, Florida, Hawaii, St. Thomas, Vieques, Antibes.....And like many people, I have bought some shells, too....This one above was not a 'find', but one that I bought...(I cannot remember where...!), many many years ago....The beauty of design is quite astounding to me....Nature's Sculpture......That is to say, more of Nature's Sculpture..... 
This next one above in close-up, looks like a series of very delicate necklaces to me.....And then below, pulling back somewhat so we can see a bit more of the Shell..... 
And then....the whole Shell, just slightly bigger than two and a half inches at it's widest point.....Looking like a spinning top....!
There are so very many seaworthy animals that live in beautiful Shells...too numerous to count and in truth, I know very little about all of these thousands upon thousands of sea creatures.....What I do know is how the many Shells they once lived in, have enriched my life with their beauty.
This Shell above, which is a very good sized one, was 'found'....This came from St. Thomas, back in 1966.....My then Brother-In-Law, who had a fantastic eye for everything, saw this Shell right there in the water....And the 'animal' was still living in it....! There is a truly terrible story connected to how my BIL got rid of the animal....It is still so painful to me...I cannot even write about it and I am deeply ashamed of my part in it, though it was in a passive manner.....I can only say that it was before I was truly in touch with the idea that everything living "feels"....It pains me for that dear animal, even all these 42 years later.....!
My BIL gave me this Shell as a present, and it has a place of honor in my home.....And it is, for me, a great and important reminder----every time I look at it----that all life is precious and of value, even when we might not understand that value. I think it is so very very beautiful....That color inside is the actual color.....And a little closer look at that color and that beautiful edge surrounding the opening to the interior......
It is so extraordinary that all these colors exist in this one shell.....Here below, is another view....And in this case, it is of the back side of this incredibly sculptural object.
And here below is a closer look at this amazing almost abstract pattern....The many hues of browns to tans to whites.....Just Gorgeous!
The complexity of nature's creations....whether under the sea or on land, just takes one's breath away...well, I should say it takes my breath away.....Here below another close look at a different shell.....
Would you know that this was part of a Shell if I hadn't said anything?There is a lot more to this Shell, and I will share that plus a lot more, next time! Meanwhile, I thank ALL of you for playing and for the many many terrific answers that were forthcoming.....And Fliss....my heartiest Congratulations to you! A Surprise will be coming your way, very soon!
More To Come........
| posted by OldLady Of The Hills at 12:01:00 AM
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