"Bearly" Old

It's time for some "take away." Instead of adding years to my age, I think I'll begin subtracting them. That way I will eventually connect with my inner child. I know she's in there somewhere. When presented with this birthday gift this past week, I felt her begin to emerge. Meet Bear.

What do you do with a bear as big as a full-size bed? Wrestle it of course. Granddaughter Samantha was fearless as she and Bear tumbled about the living room floor. She punched, twisted, tossed and body-slammed poor Bear for a good twenty minutes. The final score, according to my granddaughter, was: Bear 2; Samantha 100.

Textures

Shadows are more defined as the sun sinks into the horizon. Nature's textures are intriguing and demand attention.

Here are a few images from this evening's walk.

Observing Nature's Palette

Far off in the distance yet right in front of me; directly overhead but still beneath my feet; to my left, yet to my right; well behind me but still in sight...

Yes, Green is everywhere. The trees, bushes, and plethora of plants show they are survivors—despite the harsh Wisconsin winters. "Welcome, welcome, welcome" is all I have to say. "I'm glad to see you made it!"

On my porch hangs a luscious Fuschia plant. It attracts the first hummingbird of the season. Seeing it changes the rhythm of my heartbeat for an instant.

I am been blessed with good fortune this past week as a rainbow of colorful finches line the circumference of the feeder...purples and golds. A pair of black and orange Baltimore Orioles, a bright blue Indigo Bunting and black and white Rose-breasted Grosbeak color the landscape. Mourning Doves, Downy Woodpeckers, White-breasted Nuthatches, Northern Cardinals, Blue Jays, Red-winged Blackbirds, Northern Flickers, and untold species of sparrows stop by to say "Hello" and "I'm back."

Mom's Day

Lorene Eleanor

Happy Mother's Day, Mom.

I love you.

Can You Say Doppelgänger?

If trees had faces they would look something like this. I feel as if I'm being watched when I walk in the woods now. Maybe I am.

Since I have a couple of these on the property, I wanted to know what they represent. All I can say is, "Yikes!"

Here is Wikipedia's explanation of a doppelgänger:
    
        A doppelgänger is a tangible double of a living person in fiction, folklore, and popular culture that typically represents evil. In the vernacular, the word doppelgänger has come to refer to any double or look-alike of a person.
        The word also is used to describe the sensation of having glimpsed oneself in peripheral vision, in a position where there is no chance that it could have been a reflection. Doppelgängers often are perceived as a sinister form of bilocation and generally regarded as harbingers of bad luck. In some traditions, a doppelgänger seen by a person's friends or relatives portends illness or danger, while seeing one's own doppelgänger is an omen of death.
        In Norse mythology, a vardøger is a ghostly double who precedes a living person and is seen performing their actions in advance. In Finnish mythology, this is called having an Etiäinen, ie. "a firstcomer". In Ancient Egyptian mythology, a "ka" was a tangible "spirit double" having the same memories and feeling as the original person. In one Egyptian myth titled "The Greek Princess," an Egyptian view of the Trojan War, a ka of Helen was used to mislead Paris of Troy, helping to stop the war. In some myths, the doppelgänger is a version of the Ankou, a personification of death; in a tradition of the Talmud, to meet oneself means to meet God.

Not So Novel But Catchy

On a recent trip to the hardware store, I caught sight of some colorful garden accessories that I had not seen in previous years—a rainbow of colored tomato cages. I am still undecided about whether they are something I would buy for my own garden but they are catchy. The tomato cages I use are quite substantial and these do not compare in size or strength. Glamos Wire Products (www.glamoswire.com) manufactures a variety of garden products and, although I haven't had great success with outdoor plastic-coated wire products, they do add a bit of whimsy to a garden. Let me know what you think.

Photos from www.glamoswire.com.