Wild Things

Grand Cayman

2011-11-02T00:39:00.009-05:00

"Neither should a ship rely on one small anchor, nor should life rest on a single hope."
Epictetus

Spring Flowers

2011-06-01T19:48:00.000-05:00

"Flowers always make people better, happier, and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine for the soul."
Luther Burbank

Gateways

2011-05-14T23:18:00.001-05:00

"Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors where there were only walls."
Joseph Campbell

"Love unlocks doors and opens windows that weren't even there before."
Mignon McLaughlin

Easter Day

2011-04-24T22:57:00.001-05:00

See the land, her Easter keeping,
Rises as her Maker rose.
Seeds, so long in darkness sleeping,
Burst at last from winter snows.
Earth with heaven above rejoices... ~Charles Kingsley

Going to A Go Go

2011-03-23T22:21:00.005-05:00

Goin' to a go go
Goin' to a go go
Na na na na, yeah

Well, there's a brand new place I've found
Where people go from miles around
They come from everywhere
And if you drop in there
You might see anyone in town

Goin' to a go go, everybody's
Goin' to a go go, well, come on now
Don't you want to go, yeah -
Smokey Robinson 1965

Highway 360, Arlington, Texas

Barnwell Center

2010-12-10T14:56:00.002-06:00

Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul. ~John Muir

Circles

2010-11-18T23:47:00.001-06:00

"The whole universe is based on rhythms. Everything happens in circles, in spirals." John Hartford

Reflections

2010-11-18T23:15:00.003-06:00

"A circle is the reflection of eternity. It has no beginning and it has no end - and if you put several circles over each other, then you get a spiral."
Maynard James Keenan

"The world is a looking glass and gives back to every man the reflection of his own face."
William M. Thackeray

Port Sanilac, Michigan

2010-10-30T23:30:00.000-05:00

In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit. ~Albert Schweitzer

October at Forest Lawn

2010-10-29T22:49:00.000-05:00

"There is a garden in every childhood, an enchanted place where colors are brighter, the air softer, and the morning more fragrant than ever again." ~Elizabeth Lawrence

First Cruise

2010-09-19T23:59:00.008-05:00

"Surely, two of the most satisfying experiences in life must be those of being a grandchild or a grandparent."
Donald A. Norberg

View From A Bus

2010-09-07T21:29:00.002-05:00

"Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down."
Oprah Winfrey

Hitchin' a Ride

2010-08-20T01:03:00.003-05:00

Ride, ride, ride, hitchin' a ride
Ride, ride, ride, hitchin' a ride
(Vanity Fair)

Dog park or bust!!!

Mountain at Bullhead City, Arizona

2010-07-10T00:04:00.001-05:00

"Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves." ~John Muir

L'amour Est Rouge

2010-06-06T23:05:00.001-05:00

Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind. ~Dr. Seuss

L'amour Est Bleu

2010-05-23T00:26:00.000-05:00

Blue, blue, my world is blue
Blue is my world now I'm without you
Gray, gray, my life is gray
Cold is my heart since you went away

(Sung by Andy Williams)

Every Flower Was Once A Seed

2010-05-22T23:41:00.007-05:00

When I reach the place I'm goin'
I will surely know my way
And I will turn and look inside me
And bid farewell to one more day

Every light begins with darkness
Every flower was once a seed
And with the sun and wind to test us
We are bound to be released

I will fly beyond this valley
And I will open up the gate
And when I reach the place I'm goin'
I will surely know my way

We have hands to hold our sorrows
We have tears to heal the pain
And though your eyes ask many questions
On your lips I hear my name

I was born without a whisper
I was born beneath the rain
But when I reach the place I'm goin'
I will surely know my way
I will surely know my way

(Emory Gordy Jr./Joe Henry)
Sung by Wynonna Judd

Poppies

2010-05-13T22:32:00.006-05:00

"As for marigolds, poppies, hollyhocks, and valorous sunflowers, we shall never have a garden without them, both for their own sake, and for the sake of old-fashioned folks, who used to love them."
Henry Ward Beecher

Main Street Fort Worth Art Festival 2010

2010-04-08T23:03:00.000-05:00

"What art offers is space - a certain breathing room for the spirit." ~John Updike

Be Careful What You Wish For

2010-03-10T17:48:00.006-06:00

Should have rethought "Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow." Still cleaning up a month later!

"If a man could have half his wishes, he would double his troubles." ~Benjamin Franklin

Let It Snow

2010-02-11T14:35:00.001-06:00

Oh the weather outside is frightful,
But the fire is so delightful,
And since we've no place to go,
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

Mustang Island

2010-01-30T13:55:00.016-06:00

Mustang Sally, think you better slow your mustang down.
Mustang Sally, think you better slow your mustang down.
You been running all over the town now.
Oh! I guess I'll have to put your flat feet on the ground.

All you want to do is ride around Sally, ride, Sally, ride.
All you want to do is ride around Sally, ride, Sally, ride.
All you want to do is ride around Sally, ride, Sally, ride.

Wilson Pickett

On the Driveway on a Rainy Night

2010-01-28T19:08:00.003-06:00

Nobody likes me,
Everybody hates me,
Guess I'll go eat worms,

Long, thin, slimy ones,
Short, fat, juicy ones,
Itsy, bitsy, fuzzy wuzzy worms.

Down goes the first one,
Down goes the second one,
Oh how they wiggle and squirm.

Up comes the first one,
Up comes the second one,
Oh how they wiggle and squirm.

Neither Out Far Nor In Deep

2010-01-04T23:24:00.001-06:00

The people along the sand
All turn and look one way.
They turn their back on the land.
They look at the sea all day.

As long as it takes to pass
A ship keeps raising its hull;
The wetter ground like glass
Reflects a standing gull.

The land may vary more;
But wherever the truth may be---
The water comes ashore,
And the people look at the sea.

They cannot look out far.
They cannot look in deep.
But when was that ever a bar
To any watch they keep?

Robert Frost

A Texas White Christmas

2009-12-25T20:22:00.001-06:00

"Unwarmed by any sunset light
The gray day darkened into night,
A night made hoary with the swarm
And whirl-dance of the blinding storm,
As zigzag, wavering to and fro
Crossed and recrossed the wingèd snow:
And ere the early bed-time came
The white drift piled the window-frame,
And through the glass the clothes-line posts
Looked in like tall and sheeted ghosts."

John Greenleaf Whittier

Hail Atlantis

2009-11-19T16:31:00.003-06:00

Atlantis

by Donovan

The continent of Atlantis was an island
Which lay before the great flood
In the area we now call the Atlantic Ocean.
So great an area of land, that from her western shores
Those beautiful sailors journeyed to the South
And the North Americas with ease
In their ships with painted sails.
To the east, Africa was a neighbor,
Across a short strait of sea miles.

The great Egyptian age is but a remnant
Of the Atlantian culture.
The antediluvian kings colonized the world;
All the Gods who play in the mythological dramas
In all legends from all lands were from fair Atlantis.

Knowing her fate, Atlantis sent out ships to all corners of the Earth.
On board were the Twelve:
The poet, the physician, the farmer, the scientist, the magician,
And the other so-called Gods of our legends,
Though Gods they were.
And as the elders of our time choose to remain blind,
Let us rejoice and let us sing and dance and ring in the new . . .
Hail Atlantis!

Way down below the ocean, where I wanna be, she may be . . .
Way down below the ocean, where I wanna be, she may be . . .

My antediluvian baby, oh yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah,
I want to see you some day.
My antediluvian baby, oh yeah, yeah, yeah-yeah-yeah,
My antediluvian baby.
My antediluvian baby, I love you, girl;
Girl, I want to see you some day.
My antediluvian baby, oh yeah,
I want to see you some day, oh,
My antediluvian baby.
My antediluvian baby, I want to see you;
My antediluvian baby—gotta tell me where she gone—
I want to see you some day,
Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up, oh yeah;
Oh glub glub, down down, yeah . . .

Pumpkin Season

2009-11-16T00:34:00.005-06:00

There is always one moment in childhood when the door opens and lets the future in. ~Graham Greene, The Power and the Glory

When grandparents enter the door, discipline flies out the window. ~Ogden Nash

Shreveport

2009-11-14T17:39:00.003-06:00

"Divine Nature gave the fields, human art built the cities." ~Marcus Terentius Varro

Julie's Cat

2009-11-07T16:42:00.000-06:00

"There's no need for a piece of sculpture in a home that has a cat." ~Wesley Bates

Louisiana

2009-11-06T22:12:00.004-06:00

Give Me Louisiana
by Doralice Fontane

Give me Louisiana,
The state where I was born
The state of snowy cotton,
The best I've ever known;
A state of sweet magnolias
And creole melodies
Oh give me Louisiana,
The state where I was born
Oh what sweet old memories
The mossy old oaks bring
It brings us the story of our Evangeline
A state of old tradition,
Of old plantation days
Makes good old Louisiana
The sweetest of all states.

Give me Louisiana,
A state prepared to share
That good old southern custom,
Hospitality so rare;
A state of fruit and flowers,
Of sunshine and spring showers
Oh give me Louisiana,
The state where I was born
Its woodlands, Its marshes
Where humble trappers live
Its rivers, Its valleys,
A place to always give
A state where work is pleasure,
With blessings in full measure
Makes good old Louisiana
The dearest of all states.

Give me Louisiana,
Where love birds always sing
In shady lanes or pastures,
The cowbells softly ring;
The softness of the sunset
Brings peace and blissful rest
Oh give me Louisiana,
The state where I was born
The smell of sweet clover
Which blossoms everywhere
The fresh new mown hay
Where children romp and play
A state of love and laughter,
A state for all here after
Makes good old Louisiana
The grandest of all states.

Deer at Canadian Lakes

2009-11-05T23:27:00.003-06:00

Take nothing but pictures.
Leave nothing but footprints.
Kill nothing but time.
~Motto of the Baltimore Grotto, a caving society

Fruit of the Vine

2009-11-01T00:17:00.002-05:00

"We should all do what, in the long run, gives us joy, even if it is only picking grapes or sorting the laundry." - E. B. White

Paw Paw, Michigan Wineries

2009-10-31T00:32:00.005-05:00

Red red wine you make me feel so fine
You keep me rocking all of the time
Red red wine you make me feel so grand
I feel a million dollars when your just in my hand

Red red wine you make me feel so sad
Any time I see you go it make me feel bad
Red red wine you make me feel so fine
Monkey pack him rizla pon the sweet dep line

Red red wine you give me whole heap of zing
Whole heap of zing mek me do me own thing
Red red wine you really know how fi love
Your kind of loving like a blessing from above

Red red wine I love you right from the start
Right from the start with all of my heart

Bob Marley

Leonhardt Lagoon

2009-10-12T16:02:00.000-05:00

"Federal WPA (Work Progress Administration) funds constructed The Leonhardt Lagoon in 1936 at the site of the Texas Centennial Exposition. The site takes its name from philanthropist Dorothea Leonhardt.

In the 1980s, workers drained the lagoon, cleaned out excess vegetation, and introduced native Texas plants to restore the lagoon’s ecological balance.

In 1986, artist Pat Johanson fashioned two serpentine sculptures for the lagoon. Made of gunite and steel, the sculptures resemble large plant forms that entwine at the center of the lagoon to create a bridge visitors can traverse.

The lagoon is also the site of swan boat rides and The Leonhardt Lagoon Nature Walk. This walk comprises 25 numbered markers and four descriptive panels highlighting the birds, insects, plants, trees, fish and other wildlife that make their home at the lagoon. A printed walking guide, keyed to the markers, helps visitors learn more about the flora, fauna and wildlife living around the area of each of the markers.

You’ll find the Leonhardt Lagoon between the Museum of Nature & Science and the Cotton Bowl."

Lagoon - 1972

2009-10-12T15:50:00.002-05:00

"What greater thing is there for human souls than to feel that they are joined for life - to be with each other in silent unspeakable memories." ~George Eliot

"Swan Lake"

2009-10-12T15:29:00.004-05:00

"Being born in a duck yard does not matter, if only you are hatched from a swan's egg." -
Hans Christian Anderson

Fair Park Lawn Art

2009-10-11T00:09:00.004-05:00

"As the sun colors flowers, so does art color life." ~John Lubbock

"An artist is someone who produces things that people don't need to have but that he - for some reason - thinks it would be a good idea to give them." ~Andy Warhol

Island Pastels

2009-10-10T12:26:00.006-05:00

"Why do two colors, put one next to the other, sing? Can one really explain this? No."
Pablo Picasso

Horses With Wings

2009-10-09T16:20:00.003-05:00

I'll fly away
To that home on God's celestial shore
I'll fly away

I'll fly away oh glory
I'll fly away, in the morning
When I die hallelujah by and by
I'll fly away

When the shadows of this life have gone
I'll fly away
Like a bird from these prison walls I'll fly
I'll fly away

Oh how glad and happy when we meet
I'll fly away
No more cold iron shackles on my feet
I'll fly away

Just a few more weary days and then
I'll fly away
To a land where joys will never end
I'll fly away

(Alfred Brumley)

And Horses Without

2009-10-09T15:12:00.002-05:00

The Seahorse

O under the ocean waves
I gallop the seaweed lanes.
I jump the coral reef,
And all with no saddle or reins.

I haven't a flowing mane,
I've only this horsey face.
But under the ocean waves,
I'm king of the steeplechase.

By Blake Morrison

We fell asleep, our goose is cooked, our reputation is shot

2009-10-08T23:55:00.000-05:00

Wake up, little Susie, wake up
Wake up, little Susie, wake up
We’ve both been sound asleep, wake up, little Susie, and weep
The movie’s over, it’s four o’clock, and we’re in trouble deep
Wake up little Susie
Wake up little Susie, well

Whatta we gonna tell your mama
Whatta we gonna tell your pa
Whatta we gonna tell our friends when they say “ooh-la-la”
Wake up little Susie
Wake up little Susie, well

I told your mama that you’d be in by ten
Well Susie baby looks like we goofed again
Wake up little Susie
Wake up little Susie, we gotta go home

(Everly Brothers)

Yin and Yang

2009-10-05T09:39:00.004-05:00

"There are no greater adversaries than yin and yang, because nothing in Heaven or on Earth escapes them. But it is not yin and yang that do this, it is your heart that makes it so."

Chuang Tzu (360BC-275Bc)

"The climax of the rite of rebirth
Has ascended from the underworld
Is proclaimed in light from the zenith.
In the underworld the sun swims
Between the fish called Yes and No."

Kenneth Rexroth

Colors of Key West

2009-10-04T23:48:00.004-05:00

"Many people die with their music still in them. Why is this so? Too often it is because they are always getting ready to live. Before they know it, time runs out." ~Oliver Wendell Holmes

"Life is about using the whole box of crayons." ~Ru Paul
"Maybe we should develop a Crayola bomb as our next secret weapon. A happiness weapon. A beauty bomb. And every time a crisis developed, we would launch one. It would explode high in the air - explode softly - and send thousands, millions, of little parachutes into the air. Floating down to earth - boxes of Crayolas. And we wouldn't go cheap, either - not little boxes of eight. Boxes of sixty-four, with the sharpener built right in. With silver and gold and copper, magenta and peach and lime, amber and umber and all the rest. And people would smile and get a little funny look on their faces and cover the world with imagination." - Robert Fulghum

Cottonwood Art Festival

2009-10-03T22:28:00.001-05:00

Saturday in the park
I think it was the Fourth of July
Saturday in the park
I think it was the Fourth of July
People dancing, people laughing
A man selling ice cream
Singing Italian songs
Eicay vare, eise narde
Can you dig it (yes, I can)
And I've been waiting such a long time
For Saturday

Another day in the park
I think it was the Fourth of July
Another day in the park
I think it was the Fourth of July
People talking, really smiling
A man playing guitar
Singing for us all
Will you help him change the world
Can you dig it (yes, I can)
And I've been waiting such a long time
For today

Slow motion riders fly the colors of the day
A bronze man still can tell stories his own way
Listen children all is not lost
All is not lost
Oh no, no

Forty days in the park
Every day's the Fourth of July
Forty days in the park
Every day's the Fourth of July
People reaching, people touching
A real celebration
Waiting for us all
If we want it, really want it
Can you dig it (yes, I can)
And I've been waiting such a long time
For the day

(Chicago)

Waiting

2009-09-30T21:35:00.000-05:00

Waiting for the fish to bite or waiting for wind to fly a kite. Or waiting around for Friday night or waiting perhaps for their Uncle Jake or a pot to boil or a better break or a string of pearls or a pair of pants or a wig with curls or another chance. Everyone is just waiting. ~Dr. Seuss

Rainy Day Sightseeing in Dallas

2009-09-19T01:08:00.002-05:00

A horse is a horse, of course, of course,
And no one can talk to a horse of course
That is, of course, unless the horse is the famous Mister Ed.

Go right to the source and ask the horse
He'll give you the answer that you'll endorse.
He's always on a steady course.
Talk to Mister Ed.

People yakkity yak a streak and waste your time of day
But Mr. Ed will never speak unless he has something to say

A horse is a horse, of course, of course,
And this one'll talk 'til his voice is hoarse.
You never heard of a talking horse?

Well listen to this: "I'm Mister Ed."

Bees on Sedum

2009-09-10T17:48:00.001-05:00

The Bee

Like trains of cars on tracks of plush
I hear the level bee:
A jar across the flowers goes,
Their velvet masonry

Withstands until the sweet assault
Their chivalry consumes,
While he, victorious, tilts away
To vanquish other blooms.

His feet are shod with gauze,
His helmet is of gold;
His breast, a single onyx
With chrysoprase, inlaid.

His labor is a chant,
His idleness a tune;
Oh, for a bee's experience
Of clovers and of noon!

(Emily Dickinson)

Sailing in Forty Days

2009-08-11T21:43:00.006-05:00

"They that go down to the sea in ships: and occupy
their business in great waters;
These men see the works of the Lord: and his wonders
in the deep."
Psalm 107, v.23

"All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full."
Ecclesiastes ch.1, v.7

Shadows of August

2009-08-07T23:13:00.005-05:00

"Hope is like the sun, which, as we journey toward it, casts the shadow of our burden behind us." - Samuel Smiles

Swimming in the Colorado

2009-07-14T10:08:00.010-05:00

Enjoy thy stream, O harmless fish;

And when an angler for his dish,
Through gluttony's vile sin,
Attempts, the wretch, to pull thee out,
God give thee strength, O gentle trout,

To pull the rascal in!
~John Wolcot

A River Runs Through It - Laughlin, NV - Bullhead City, AZ

2009-07-10T13:33:00.007-05:00

"A person should go out on the water on a fine day to a small distance from a beautiful coast, if he would see Nature really smile. Never does she look so delightful, as when the sun is brightly reflected by the water, while the waves are gently rippling, and the prospect receives life and animation from the glancing transit of an occasional row-boat, and the quieter motion of a few small vessels." ~Augustus William Hare and Julius Charles Hare, Guesses at Truth, by Two Brothers, 1827

"Hey nineteen
That's 'retha Franklin
She don't remember
The queen of soul
Its hard times befallen
The sole survivors
She thinks I'm crazy
But I'm just growing old"
Steely Dan

Bird's Eye View

2009-06-20T01:10:00.003-05:00

"I believe cats to be spirits come to earth. A cat, I am sure, could walk on a cloud without coming through." ~Jules Verne

Missing Mom

2009-06-19T22:11:00.000-05:00

"If I had a single flower for every time I think about you, I could walk forever in my garden. " ~Claudia Ghandi

Alive and Well, And Living in Vegas

2009-06-11T21:38:00.003-05:00

"It's hard to imagine a bigger desert oasis than Las Vegas." ~Cinnamon Stomberger

"Las Vegas: all the amenities of modern society in a habitat unfit to grow a tomato." ~Jason Love

A Garden Full of June

2009-06-01T00:50:00.017-05:00

"What is one to say about June, the time of perfect young summer, the fulfillment of the promise of the earlier months, and with as yet no sign to remind one that its fresh young beauty will ever fade." ~Gertrude Jekyll

"Then followed that beautiful season... Summer....Filled was the air with a dreamy and magical light; and the landscape lay as if new created in all the freshness of childhood."~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Coneheads

2009-05-31T22:30:00.000-05:00

"France is France and a grand place for Frenchmen." ~Harry Truman

Rolling on the River

2009-05-30T20:29:00.001-05:00

Rolling, rolling, rolling on the river.

If you come down to the river,

Bet you gonna find some people who live.

You don't have to worry 'cause you have no money,

People on the river are happy to give.

Rolling, rolling, rolling on the river.

Written by John Fogerty

Miss you today Dad!

Purple Reign

2009-05-20T23:30:00.000-05:00

"All the other colors are just colors, but purple seems to have a soul. Purple is not just a noun and an adjective but also a verb - when you look at it, it's looking back at you." ~Uniek Swain

"Art is Man's nature. Nature is god's art." ~James Bailey

Purple rain, purple rain

I only want to see you

Only want to see you in the purple rain - Prince

Feeling Lucky

2009-05-19T13:35:00.002-05:00

"You will always be lucky if you know how to make friends with strange cats." ~Proverb

"The way to keep a cat is to try to chase it away." ~E.W. Howe

Star of Wonder

2009-05-18T22:41:00.001-05:00

When you have only two pennies left in the world, buy a loaf of bread with one, and a lily with the other. ~Chinese Proverb

Mellow Yellow

2009-05-17T22:43:00.002-05:00

I'm just mad about Saffron

Saffron's mad about me

I'm just mad about Saffron

She's just mad about me

They call me mellow yellow(Quite rightly)

They call me mellow yellow

Donovan

In My Mother's Garden

2009-05-16T23:19:00.002-05:00

"You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them." ~Desmond Tutu

"Call it a clan, call it a network, call it a tribe, call it a family. Whatever you call it, whoever you are, you need one." ~Jane Howard

"To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die."~Thomas Campbell, "Hallowed Ground"

Honeysuckle

2009-05-15T13:43:00.002-05:00

To Earthward by Robert Frost

Love at the lips was touch
As sweet as I could bear;
And once that seemed too much;
I lived on air

That crossed me from sweet things
The flow of--was it musk
From hidden grapevine springs
Down hill at dusk?

I had the swirl and ache
From sprays of honeysuckle
That when they're gathered shake
Dew on the knuckle.

I craved strong sweets, but those
Seemed strong when I was young;
The petal of the rose
It was that stung.

Now no joy but lacks salt

That is not dashed with pain

And weariness and fault;

I crave the stain

Of tears, the aftermark

Of almost too much love,

The sweet of bitter bark

And burning clove.

When stiff and sore and scarred

I take away my hand

From leaning on it hard

In grass and sand,

The hurt is not enough.

I long for weight and strength

To feel the earth as rough

To all my length.

Before and After

2009-05-06T23:09:00.000-05:00

"Plants give us oxygen for the lungs and for the soul." ~Linda Solegato

Mum's the Word

2009-05-05T23:50:00.008-05:00

"Seal up your lips, and give no words but- mum." - Shakespeare, 2 Henry VI., i. 2.

Stopping For Lunch

2009-05-04T20:58:00.002-05:00

"A squirrel is just a rat with a cuter outfit!" - Sarah Jessica Parker

The First of May

2009-05-01T09:40:00.004-05:00

On May Morning - John Milton

Now the bright morning Star,

Day's harbinger,

Comes dancing from the East, and leads with her

The Flowery May, who from her green lap throws

The yellow Cowslip, and the pale Primrose.

Hail bounteous May that dost inspire Mirth and youth, and warm desire, Woods and Groves, are of thy dressing,

Hill and Dale, doth boast thy blessing. Thus we salute thee with our early song,

And welcome thee, and wish thee

long.

Chapel at the American Rose Center, Shreveport, LA

2009-04-29T23:21:00.011-05:00

How sweet on a clear, Sabbath morning,
To list to the clear ringing bell;
Its tones so sweetly are calling,
Oh, come to the church in the vale.

From the church in the valley by the wildwood,
When day fades away into night,
I would fain from this spot of my childhood
Wing my way to the mansions of light. - W S Pitts

Louisiana Roses

2009-04-28T22:08:00.009-05:00

"I'd rather have roses on my table than diamonds on my neck." ~Emma Goldman

"Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns; I am thankful that thorns have roses."~Alphonse Karr

But, I Thought It Was a Unicorn!!!

2009-04-26T22:00:00.000-05:00

"When I was growing up my best friend was a unicorn
The others smiled at me and called me "crazy"

But I was not upset by knowing I did not conform

I always thought their seeing must be hazy.

The unicorn and I would while away the hours

Playing, dancing and romancing in the wild flowers

And we'd sing

Seeing is believing in the things you see

Loving is believing in the ones you love.

Seeing is believing in the things you see

Loving is believing in the ones you love.
- Peter, Paul and Mary

Easter Sunday

2009-04-12T16:29:00.000-05:00

"Our Lord has written the promise of the resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in spring-time." ~Martin Luther

Good Friday Planting

2009-04-10T17:44:00.002-05:00

"Where man sees but withered

leaves, God sees sweet flowers growing." ~Albert Laighton

I've Got the Blues

2009-04-07T18:36:00.018-05:00

"In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt." ~Margaret Atwood

Oh it's a blue world
It's a blue world
It takes somebody to help somebody

Oh it's a blue world
It's a new world
It needs somebody to love somebody

Oh it's a blue world - Moody Blues

Rock Me Gently

2009-04-05T00:35:00.002-05:00

"Nature teaches more than she preaches. There are no sermons in stones. It is easier to get a spark out of a stone than a moral." ~John Burroughs

"How cunningly nature hides every wrinkle of her inconceivable antiquity under roses and violets and morning dew!" ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Second Childhood for a Tree

2009-03-28T23:05:00.007-05:00

"It ain't over 'til it's over" Yogi Berra

"You can't help getting older, but you don't have to get old." ~George Burns

A Visitor

2009-03-09T23:55:00.002-05:00

"Cats are rather delicate creatures and they are subject to a good many ailments, but I never heard of one who suffered from insomnia." ~Joseph Wood Krutch

"You cannot look at a sleeping cat and feel tense." ~Jane Pauley

Reflection

2009-03-01T22:43:00.002-06:00

"Beauty is eternity gazing at itself in a mirror." - Kahlil Gibran

Hiding

2009-02-19T16:52:00.001-06:00

Hiding

by Dorothy Aldis

I’m hiding I’m hiding and no one knows where; For all they can see is my toes and my hair. And I just heard my father say to my mother -“But, darling, he must be somewhere or other;” “Have you looked in the inkwell?” And Mother said, “Where?” “In the inkwell” said Father. But I was not there.
Then “Wait!” cried my mother -“I think that I see him under the carpet.” But it was not me. “Inside the mirror’s a pretty good place,”Said Father and looked, but saw only his face. “We’ve hunted,” sighed Mother, “As hard as we could and I am so afraid that we’ve lost him for good.” Then I laughed out aloud and I wiggled my toes and Father said - “Look, dear,I wonder if those toes could be Benny’s? There are ten of them, see?" And they were so surprised to find out it was me!

February Daffodils

2009-02-16T23:26:00.004-06:00

"If you've never been thrilled to the very edges of your soul by a flower in spring bloom, maybe your soul has never been in bloom." - Audra Foveo

McCarron Airport, Las Vegas - 39 degrees

2009-02-15T22:10:00.001-06:00

"How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains!" - John Muir

Ice Storm, the Sequel

2009-01-28T12:12:00.001-06:00

"O, wind, If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind? ~Percy Bysshe Shelley

Winter Evening Sky

2009-01-15T19:27:00.002-06:00

"I often think that the night is more alive and more richly colored than the day." ~Vincent Van Gogh

Ice Storm

2009-01-05T23:27:00.000-06:00

Fire and Ice

Some say the world will end in fire,

Some say in ice.

From what I've tasted of desire

I hold with those who favor fire.

But if it had to perish twice,

I think I know enough of hate

To say that for destruction ice

Is also great

And would suffice.

Robert Frost

"It isn't necessary to imagine the world ending in fire or ice. There are two other possibilities: one is paperwork, and the other is nostalgia." Frank Zappa

On Boxing Day

2008-12-26T13:29:00.000-06:00

"The temple bell stops but I still hear the sound coming out of the flowers." ~Basho

Another Gulf of Mexico Sunset

2008-11-30T15:40:00.005-06:00

"When I admire the wonders of a sunset or the beauty of the moon, my soul expands in the worship of the creator." - Mohandas Gandhi

"Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky." - Rabindranath Tagore

"There is nothing more musical than a sunset. He who feels what he sees will find no more beautiful example of development in all that book which, alas, musicians read but too little - the book of Nature." - Claude Debussy

Thanksgiving

2008-11-27T00:10:00.000-06:00

Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving. - W.T. Purkiser

O Lord that lends me life,Lend me a heart replete with thankfulness.~William Shakespeare

The year has turned its circle, the seasons come and go.

The harvest all is gathered in and chilly north winds blow.
Orchards have shared their treasures, the fields, their yellow grain,

So open wide the doorway, Thanksgiving comes again!

Waiting For His Ship to Come In

2008-11-23T23:01:00.000-06:00

November in Cozumel.

Why do we love the sea? It is because it has some potent power to make us think things we like to think. ~Robert Henri

Cattails

2008-11-13T16:07:00.000-06:00

Reflected here, where no one sees,

The fallen petals find their ease

And lay in tremulous rest among

The cattails and the rippling trees.

-Full Recall by Michael Rudasill

Two Out of Three Ain't Bad

2008-11-12T00:49:00.000-06:00

How old do you think I am he said

I said well I didn't know

He said I turned sixty five about eleven months ago

I was sittin' in Miami pourin' blended whiskey down

When this old grey black gentleman was cleanin' up the lounge

There wasn't anyone around 'cept this old man and me

The guy who ran the bar was watching Ironsides on TV

Uninvited he sat down and opened up his mind

On old dogs and children and watermelon wine

Ever had a drink of watermelon wine he asked

He told me all about it though I didn't answer back

Ain't but three things in this world that's worth a solitary dime

But old dogs and children and watermelon wine

He said women think about theyselves when menfolk ain't around

And friends are hard to find when they discover that you're down

He said I tried it all when I was young and in my natural prime

Now it's old dogs and children and watermelon wine

Old dogs care about you even when you make mistakes

God bless little children while they're still too young to hate

When he moved away I found my pen and copied down that line

'Bout old dogs and children and watermelon wine

I had to catch a plane up to Atlanta that next day

As I left for my room I saw him pickin' up my change

That night I dreamed in peaceful sleep of shady summertime

Of old dogs and children and watermelon wine - Tom T Hall

Quilt by Ruth Powers

http://www.ruthpowersartquilts.com/gallery.php

The Leaves

2008-11-11T18:17:00.000-06:00

"The leaves of memory seemed to make
A mournful rustling in the dark."

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Autumn

2008-11-10T00:32:00.002-06:00

Red leaves blow in the wind

Leaving home and everything it's known behind

Barren branches wave goodbye

As the red leaves slowly die

Every flower stares and watches

As the wind takes me away

Before the sun shone upon me

Now the wind takes me away

Red leaves fallingthrough the branches

Making their way to the ground

Blowing by the flowers sleeping

No one knows the leaves are leaving

by Haste the Day

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3B3VV2QWCI&feature=related

Green and Golden

2008-11-05T15:40:00.011-06:00

"And as I was green and carefree, famous among the barns
About the happy yard and singing as the farm was home,
In the sun that is young once only,
Time let me play and be
Golden in the mercy of his means,
And green and golden
I was huntsman and herdsman, the calves
Sang to my horn, the foxes on the hills barked clear and cold,
And the sabbath rang slowly
In the pebbles of the holy streams."
- Dylan Thomas

A Thing with Wings Running Late

2008-11-03T16:33:00.000-06:00

"Monarch butterflies fly from Canada and the U.S. southward for up to 3,500 km and overwinter in Mexico for approximately five months without breeding. Then, at the end of March, they reach sexual maturity and survivors remigrate northward for an additional 1,500 km to the U.S. Gulf Coast states where they lay their eggs and die. The ensuing generation of adults continues the migration northwards into southern Canada and, over the summer, as many as three more generations are born. The annual migration cycle is completed when the adults born in the last summer generation begin the fall migration in late August and early September." Monica Missrie, World Wildlife Foundation/Mexico

November Comes to Lady Lane

2008-11-01T10:00:00.004-05:00

"Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns." -George Eliot

"Winter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting and autumn a mosaic of them all." -Stanley Horowitz

Halloween Thoughts

2008-10-31T23:09:00.010-05:00

When black cats prowl and pumpkins gleam,
May luck be yours on Halloween.

What do you get when you divide the diameter of a jack-o-lantern by it's circumference?
Pumpkin "Pi"

How do you mend a broken Jack-o-lantern?

With a pumpkin patch!

"I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself than be crowded on a velvet cushion." ~Henry David Thoreau

The Duke and the Llama Llama Ding Dongs

2008-10-27T16:51:00.000-05:00

Oh I got a girl named Rama Lama, Rama Lama Ding Dong
She's everything to me
Rama Lama, Rama Lama Ding Dong
I'll never set her free
For she's mine, all mine - The Edsels

Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, June 29 - November 2, 2008

2008-10-26T23:44:00.045-05:00

"Thanks to an unprecedented and exclusive loan from the Art Institute of Chicago, the Kimbell plays host to 92 of the most celebrated works of the great Impressionist painters. The Art Institute’s Impressionist collection has never before left Chicago in such a large group, and it will be shown only at the Kimbell.

The Impressionists: Master Paintings from the Art Institute of Chicago features signature works by the most beloved group of painters of all time, including Édouard Manet, Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Paul Cézanne, Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. The fact that this succession of geniuses worked largely in the same country and within the span of a single lifetime is one of the miracles of the history of art.

The exhibition is especially rich in the work of Monet. The 26 works by him form an exhibition-within-the-exhibition that shows every phase of his career, from his earliest Impressionist experiments to the great serial paintings, including 6 of wheatstacks, 4 of scenes on the Thames in London, and 3 of the water lily pond in his garden at Giverny. The exhibition also features 7 Manets, including The Races at Longchamp (1866) and Woman Reading (1879/80); the monumental Paris Street; Rainy Day (1877) by Gustave Caillebotte; 12 Renoirs, including Lunch at the Restaurant Fournaise (1875), Acrobats at the Cirque Fernando (1879), and Two Sisters (On the Terrace) (1881); 6 paintings and pastels by Degas, including Yellow Dancers (In the Wings) (1874/76) and The Millinery Shop (1879/86); 7 Cézannes, including Madame Cézanne in a Yellow Chair (1888–90) and The Bathers (1899/1904); 5 Van Goghs, including Self-Portrait (1887) and The Bedroom (1889); 7 Gauguins, including Arlésiennes (Mistral) (1888) and The Ancestors of Tehamana (1893); and 3 Toulouse-Lautrecs, including Moulin de la Galette (1889) and At the Moulin Rouge (1892/95)." -The Kimbell Art Museum

Three Weeks From Today, Going Back to the Yucatan

2008-10-25T21:45:00.005-05:00

"A ship in harbor is safe - but that is not what ships are for." ~John A. Shedd

Big Tex

2008-10-24T23:43:00.004-05:00

"Big Tex made his debut at the State Fair of Texas in 1952. Back then, he had a crooked nose, a lascivious wink and no ability whatsoever to speak. Today, the long tall Texan has a perfectly straight nose, wide-open eyes and a booming bass voice that periodically welcomes visitors to the State Fair of Texas. He also wears size 70 boots, sports a 75-gallon hat and towers 52 feet above the crowd. His shirt is a size 100 180/181 and his Dickies jeans come in size 284W/185L XXXXXL. All of Big Tex's announcements are performed "live" by Bill Bragg. His booming voice echoes over the entire 277-acre grounds of Fair Park for nine hours each day. During the State Fair of Texas, you’ll find Big Tex overlooking Fair Park from his station in front of the Tower Building, next to the northern entrance to the Texas Skyway." www.fairpark.org

Big Tex's Train Set

2008-10-23T23:35:00.028-05:00

If you miss the train I'm on,
You will know that I am gone,
You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles.
A hundred miles, a hundred miles, a hundred miles, a hundred miles,
You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles -sung by The Kingston Trio

Oh, listen to the jingle, the rumor and the roar
As she glides along the woodland, o'r hills and by the shore
She climbs the flowery mountain, hear the merry hobos squall
She glides along the woodland, the Wabash Cannonball. - sung by Roy Acuff