Night-blooming Cereus

The cactus blooms posted for Cactus Monday by Margaret Ann at Water Blossoms reminded me of the night-blooming cereus, so I had to hunt down the photo I took of one several years ago. They are absolutely beautiful and amazing to witness. As DesertUSA so eloquently explains, "for one midsummer's night each year, its exqusitely scented flower opens as night falls, then closes forever with the first rays of the morning sun."

Guest Photographer

It's my most special one-and-only niece Cintya's fourth birthday! She is officially the grand old age of four. In order to properly commmemorate the day and honor her artistic endeavors, I thought I would share a few of the photos she has taken recently with her daddy's camera.

My brother is of course American, but his wife is Balinese and Cintya seems to have ended up with plenty of those artistic Balinese genes. I hope you enjoy her vision of Bali.

Powdered Sugar

One of the magical elements of photography is that it captures and records moments in our ongoing histories, so it helps us comprehend the passage of time much more clearly than we can by relying only our memories. It's a wonderful tool for verifying our very personal perception of reality. Case in point...

My sweetheart dog Rusty has bladder cancer, diagnosed in January. Naturally, there's a whole story there. But my point is about visual changes that we can sense, but cannot fully appreciate until we see them on "film" (on screen), side by side.

Some combination of Rusty's cancer and associated changes and additions in medications caused him to lose a lot of his hair; much of his outer coat of longer, coarser, red hair, and most of his undercoat of soft, downy, cream-colored hair. But in the past month, he's been regaining his undercoat. It's thick and creamy, tinged with light cinnamon. I've been calling him my little teddy bear because he's so abnormally soft and fuzzy. And I've been thinking that he looks very different, but feeling unsure of that perception (true to form, my husband hasn't noticed much change).

On Friday our veterinarian giggled the minute we walked in, delighted by Rusty's new coat. She said, "It looks like he's been dusted with powdered sugar!" So, I now have a sugar-coated teddy bear!

What's marvelous is that this afternoon I was able to compare photographs to confirm that our perceptions are accurate. It's not just a mom's imagination that her beloved child has changed. You can see the metamorphosis... red dog at the end of February... sugar-coated teddy bear today (fresh out of the bath just hours ago, no less). Magic!





Note: I realize this may appear to simply be a difference in the lighting and saturation of colors in the photos themselves, but that actually has much more to do with two very different patios—pigmented earth-tone cement vs. old grey cement.

Easter Bunny Wisdom

"Bunny on Blue" is a favorite of mine, borrowed from artist Nicole Leigh Smith's wonderful cast of whimsical characters at A Bunny a Day.

All I Really Need To Know I Learned From The Easter Bunny

Don't put all your eggs in one basket.
Walk softly and carry a big carrot.
Everyone needs a friend who is all ears.
There's no such thing as too much candy.
All work and no play can make you a basket case.
A cute tail attracts a lot of attention.
Everyone is entitled to a bad hare day.
Let happy thoughts multiply like rabbits.
Some body parts should be floppy.
Keep your paws off of other people's jelly beans.
Good things come in small, sugar-coated packages.
The grass is always greener in someone else's basket.
An Easter bonnet can tame even the wildest hare.
To show your true colors, you have to come out of your shell.
The best things in life are still sweet and gooey.

Happy Easter!

(Author Unknown)

Easter Bunny

In honor of the Easter Bunny's impending visit, I thought I would post this photo of his cousin, Jack Rabbit. He posed so very patiently for this portrait two years ago, about this time of year. Such a handsome creature he is. Good luck on your rounds, Easter Bunny — may you not break any of those precious eggs!

The Desert in Bloom

Last week my husband and I spent a few days in the East Mojave desert. We wanted to do a bit of debris removal from a property we bought a couple years ago—taking advantage of the mild weather this time of year. A highlight on Friday was our first sighting of the Western Screech Owl that lives in a box the previous owners put on the outside of the cabin. He (or she?) sat and watched us through half-open eyes as we worked.

We also had an opportunity to wander a bit on Saturday afternoon. Just a couple miles outside Goffs, California, we discovered a lush area that obviously benefitted from the rains. It's always fun to see the desert so decorated this time of year.

You can click on the slideshow to open it full-screen (and click "slideshow" to auto-advance or simply click through the photos manually).

In Celebration of the Vernal Equinox

Just to Be Out of Doors

Just To Be Out of Doors! So still! So green!
With unbreathed air, illimitable, clean,
With soft, sweet scent of happy growing things,
The leaves' soft flutter, sound of sudden wings,
The far faint hills, the water wide between.

Breast of the great earth-mother! Here we lean
With no conventions hard to intervene,
Content, with the contentment nature brings,
Just to be out of doors.

And under all the feeling half foreseen
Of what this lovely world will come to mean
To all of us when the uncounted strings
Are keyed aright, and one clear music rings
In all our hearts. Joy universal, keen,
Just to be out of doors.

Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Wind and Sky

My husband and I took a day trip through parts of San Bernardino County yesterday, on multiple errands. At the end of the day we headed to an art show in Palm Desert to meet desert artist Carl Bray and see some of his recent paintings (we acquired one of his early ones last year). Anyway, as we were driving along I-10, the wind turbines were all a-twirl in the high winds. In the distance, a mass of storm clouds was making its way over the top of the San Jacinto Mountains. The blues and whites in the waning light were absolutely beautiful, so I had to snap some "freeway photos" as we flew by. This one captured the scene. Sometimes the machines we humans build do have a certain kind of magnificence.

Speaking of Spring

I found out that my friend Sharon submitted a few photos to "First Person" on the MSNBC Web site and they were posted in a slideshow called Spring Blooms. Two of them were selected as Editors' Picks. Other people submitted some great shots as well, so if you like spring and flowers, you might want to take a look.

I have to admit to having Spring Fever. Seeing all the flowers blooming and grass greening the hills is making me want to go outside and play. But, since it's been cloudy and rainy, I've been having fun playing inside instead. Yes, I am trying to be creative. Scary. Anyway, I just finished adding this card to my Zazzle store. These snowdrops are always the first thing that makes me realize spring is coming when they voluntarily appear in my yard every year — a special surprise. I poked around online for a quote to match my delight. Maybe someone will be inspired to pass along some springtime joy to her friends.

Sitting quietly, doing nothing... by dragonflyseye

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