Senior pictures

I am a delinquent mom. Don't most moms of high school seniors have the party all planned, announcements ordered, and senior portraits in a fancy box, ready for distribution by March? 

I admit, I don't know how to do this, and frankly I'm not ready. I can't believe my first born is graduating from high school. But, I am not one to worry about things prematurely. I come from a long line of worriers, and I guess it is my calling to break that chain. 

When I was in high school, we had senior portrait day in August, where a contract photographer would come in and take stiff indoor portraits. We could opt to have portraits taken by another studio, although they usually cost more. It was virtually unheard of to take your own. Of course, we did not have digital photography then. Nowadays I can take a higher resolution selfie than my senior portrait. 

I don't want to diss professional photographers either. They do a good job, and there are times when you don't want your memories left to you and a few friends. That said, I had my wedding photos taken by a couple cousins, and while they are not like the posed shots you see these days, they were fine for me. 

I never could see my son posing indoors wearing a suit. He did not own a suit until a month ago, when I had to buy one for his classmate's funeral. 

So, deadlines were approaching, and we did what had to be done. The first reasonably nice March day, Monday, it was sunny and 55 degrees. He and I had an unspoken agreement that pictures would be taken at Banning State Park, which in my opinion is one of the most beautiful spots on Earth. However, Banning is also the home to one of those adventures kids have that parents never want to hear about. It is part of Vinny's story, so I have to share it. 

One day in February 2014, Vinny and his friend Austin had some time to kill before catching the bus for an away basketball game. Since Banning State Park surrounds the school, and the park entrance is just down the road, they decided to check the ice on the Kettle River. Long story short: The ice was thin in places, as river ice is. Vinny had to explain to the coach why his pants were soaking wet on the bus. 

Anyway, the opportunity presented itself Monday, and we had a great time hiking around taking informal portraits. 

This captures Vinny more than any indoor portrait in a suit ever could. 

Bog beauty

Bog laurel (Kalmia polifolia) and Labrador tea (Ledum groenlandicum) in bloom.

Same scene, different year

I am thankful that, if I have to have a 30 minute commute to work, at least I get to do it in light traffic with some gorgeous scenery along the way, especially this time of year. According to my computer, this photo was taken October 6, 2006. The leaves looked about the same today as I crossed the Kettle River.

I savor my drives to and from work this time of year, the brilliance and ever changing hues of the leaves. I know that in just a few weeks, cold gray November will be upon us, which makes the beauty of the leaves and the blue sky even more precious.

Testing...

The main reason for my lack of regular posts lately is that I have been struggling to find an iPad app that will do what I want it to. I thought BlogPress was okay, but I realized when I tried to make photos publish the size I wanted them, it would just enlarge a thumbnail and the result was blurry photos.

I didn't think I could post photos by going into Safari and using the regular Blogger interface, but apparently that has changed. All I had to do was download the Google Plus app, and upload the photos from my iPad into a Google Plus album. Uploading is a slow process, but it's about halfway through the photos now.

As a test, here is a photo I took at Edisto Beach, South Carolina in August. On a damp, chilly November day it makes me smile.

Swans on Grace Lake

I knew when I zoomed in on this pair of trumpeter swans with my iPhone camera, the results would not be that good. However, I kind of like the soft, artistic quality. A little PhotoShop might make it even better. If I had the time and inclination to mess with things.

photo comparison, and Brew Cat

Just sayin'. I snapped this with my iPhone with its micro lens, and ended up with a much better exposure than what I took later with my Kodak Z740.

While I'm at it, here's Best Cat Ever (aka Frisky), looking on with interest as my St. Paul Porter is being transferred to the carboy for an excruciatingly long waiting period of secondary fermentation. This is my first brew in a few years, and I must say it is about time!

fall is happening

And I am doing my best to stay awake for it. Life seems more hectic here than ever; I haven't even had the time to stop at my refuge, Banning State Park, for over a week. These are photos from my last visit there, and my, things have changed in a few days.

It has been unseasonably warm and very dry here. The fall colors are beautiful, but I enjoy them more on a crisp, cool day.

My life mostly revolves around driving to work, and driving my kids to and from sports. My 2006 Subaru Outback just hit the 100,000 mile mark two days ago, which is not out of the question considering we live 15 miles from school and 30 miles from my job, but still it is a sobering reminder that I am, for now, dependent on driving. I love these fall days, but sometimes I wish the progression of the seasons, and the events in my life, would just slow down for once so I could enjoy them a little.

I mean, how in the heck did my kids end up so old already? :)

cedar waxwing

Seen while fishing a secret spot this evening with a favorite fishing buddy (Joe). No fish, just tangled lines and a few nibbles. And a few good birds.

guess who came to my feeder today?

I think I've just died and gone to heaven, except the TV is playing a tribute to Harmon Killebrew, who is there now, so I must still be here.

An Indigo Bunting! And I got a clear, croppable photo! Made my day. :)

A sunny scene for today

Navarro River Redwoods State Park, California, 2002

 This picture has been hanging in my office cubicle for a long time, and today I decided it would be good to scan it before it faded. Calvin and Starflower were 5 and 3 at the time. Mr. Attitude was less than a year old.

Calvin, by the way, won the school spelling bee Monday night! He gets a cash prize of $50, plus the chance to compete in the regional spelling bee in a couple of weeks. In his usual style, he didn't do much to prepare for the competition; he just told me afterwards "Spelling is easy!" He must get it from me. :)

wild cardinal flower

I had another fish-seeking adventure at work today. The destination was a small, unnamed tributary to the St. Croix River that I first blogged about nearly four years ago. I can't believe it's been that long already. If you were following me at that time, you may recall that this stream had been dammed by beavers and was quite difficult to walk. This year it did not appear to have any active beaver dams, although remnant logs were scattered here and there and the stream was still challenging, especially on a humid 85 degree day. We only caught two trout by electrofishing, one of which may have been young-of-year, but several others were missed in the dense overhanging vegetation and swift current of this cold, clear stream.

I was at this stream about a month earlier than the last time, and there were more species of flowers in bloom along the stream and river banks than I remembered. Ironweed, blue gentian, Joe-Pye weed, goldenrod, and cardinal flower, which I have not seen any further north along the St. Croix River than this area. I took this picture on an island where we paused for lunch before walking the stream.

Tomorrow I am headed back to the river to sample another small brook trout stream just north of the Osceola landing. I am told that one is much easier to walk, and much more scenic, than this one was. I'll bring the camera!

the summer look

I switched back to this header photo I used last year, because I think it captures a Minnesota summer better than any other photo I have ever taken.

Speaking of summer, it's coming by leaps and bounds here. The next three weeks or so will be the peak of daylight at 46 degrees north latitude, which means the last streaks of light disappear about five hours before they reappear in the eastern sky. I love June. I only wish I didn't feel so squeezed for time in my daily life.

surreal...

Mr. Attitude called me outside to see this extraordinary scene this evening.

springtime in the woods

This lovely island woods on a lake in east central Minnesota was where I spent my lunch break today. Alone. I like it that way.

The spring beauties and anemones were in bloom. Too bad the work camera wasn't focusing the best, but you get the idea.

And I found just what I had hoped to see. Trilliums were just coming out. I don't have any of these white trilliums in my woods, so it is nice when I can find one to photograph up close.

hooded mergansers

These three sharp looking guys were cruising the pond this morning.

starling

So many other highlights from today's Christmas Bird Count, but I love this photo. I should probably crop it a little, but I'm not too fussy that way.

A walk in the November woods

This morning I had an urge to go for a walk in our woods. Although the woods are practically at my doorstep, I do not get out there nearly as much as I should, and since during the week I leave at dawn and return in dark these days, today was a rare opportunity to explore.

Most of the color of the woods is brown these days, save for pine and spruce needles and this mini forest of Lycopodium, a club moss, growing on the forest floor.

The low light of the winter sun hits everything as it would only in morning or evening during the summer. It accented this old paper birch bark nicely.

I started my walk from the cabin, heading southeast on a path along the old logging railroad siding, which still stands slightly raised from the rest of the forest floor. When I approached our property line I turned west and walked through the fairly open forest of white and red pine. I made my way to the rim of the old gravel pit, above, long overgrown with trees. From this angle it looks like a definite trail, and it is in most places, although I would have to cut a few limbs to make a ski trail out of it.

Along the gravel pit trail I saw curious signs of a culture that had been there before me. I do not know what the ice cream pail symbolizes. :)

I went out looking for signs of birds and deer, and I did see a few. My walk was cut short as I was headed behind the new house. I heard a flock of small birds fly over, and they sounded a lot like crossbills. I followed their direction, hoping to find them in a spruce tree eating cones, but I could not locate them. But the best sighting came after I was back at the house, sitting out on the deck enjoying the noonday sun and calm, mild weather. I heard the sound of swans flying from the north. At first I thought maybe I would see a flock of tundra swans, but these had the unmistakable voice of trumpeter swans. I watched a flock of about a dozen or so as they flew over the swamp on the east side of our land. My bird of 2009 will have to be the trumpeter swan; I have never seen so many of them!

I had expected some peace and quiet in the woods, but in reality it was quite noisy. Since all the leaves are off the deciduous trees, we hear traffic louder, although thankfully there is not much. There were two or three trains that passed on the railroad some four miles away during my walk, and the sound rumbled and thundered through the woods. There were a few gunshots, probably grouse hunters or muzzleloader deer hunters. And there was the sound of Starflower and Mr. Attitude playing on the empty trailer, shouting and making it tip like a teeter totter as they shifted their weight. I guess 3 AM may be better if I want silence.

my favorite swan photo

I love the birches in the background.

lonely beach in October

On Wednesday and Friday of last week I was out of the office and on the road for work. I don't mind a 100 mile drive by myself once in a while. It's a chance to turn on the public radio news channel, or sometimes turn the radio off and just enjoy the quiet and the scenery. In order to get to and from where I was going, I had to drive around the shore of Mille Lacs, one of Minnesota's largest lakes.

On Wednesday the wind was out of the southeast, creating waves that splashed against the shore. I listened to the soothing sound for a few minutes, and I was reminded of other shores, other waters.

This beach on the north shore of the lake is a state-owned Aquatic Management Area, open to public fishing, swimming, birding, walking, contemplating, or whatever. Mille Lacs is one of the few lakes in this part of Minnesota that is big enough to have the wave action to form a natural beach, and there are very few stretches of beach along the lake that are undeveloped, in a natural state.

On Friday I drove through light rain for the first part of the day. When I stopped at the beach, the sun was just beginning to break through the clouds and mist. After I had turned away from the lake and was headed east, the wind came up, sending a storm of oak leaves and tamarack needles through the sky.

I saw very few shorebirds or waterfowl, but I did get this photo. I was carrying only my camera, not my binoculars, so I did not even see the details of this gull until I downloaded the photos. Bonaparte's?

sandhill staging

In a field about six miles south of my house, an amazing meeting is going on:

The sandhill cranes found this particular location desirable for all the reasons cranes like: plentiful food (from recently harvested corn fields), grassy fields, and marshes nearby.


It is worth noting that in my lifetime, sandhill cranes have gone from being a nearly extirpated oddity in Minnesota to a yearly spectacle. Kind of like bald eagles in that regard. I am so fortunate to have a pair of them nesting in the swamp near my home every year.

I left work early today and took a special drive just to see the cranes. On the way I noticed the tamaracks are turning golden, a sure sign of the end days of fall.