Tag Archives: nature

Let’s Liebster….

 

I’d like to thank the Academy….

 

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The Liebster Award is an award that exists only on the internet and is given to bloggers by other bloggers. The earliest case of the award goes as far back as 2011. Liebster in German means sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, kind, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing, and welcome.

The award is a way to be discovered but also to connect and support the blogging community. A great idea in promoting your own blog and others. Originally it was given out to blogs with less than 2000 readers but this has slowly lowed as the reward has gained popularity. It is now only 200 readers or less. It’s really an arbitrary number. If you like helping other blogs out go ahead and do it regardless of its size.

 

With thanks to Rebecca Wallick at  wildsensibility for the nomination….. ( I’m not sure sweetest and endearing are the first words people think of when my blog comes to mind, but hey. I’ll take praise where and when I can. )

If you love dogs, natural splendor and stunning scenic photographs, check out Rebecca’s page. She’s got them all in spades.

Onward!

You know the rules… I have to answer questions. Which I shall do with the utmost amount of seriousness.

 

1. What typically is the closest object on your right when you’re writing (not including a computer mouse)?  

You’ll probably be sorry you asked that…  but it’s a poop drone.

 

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And yes, of course it flies.

 

 

 

2. What one-sentence bit of advice would you give to your 13-year-old self?

At 13… I was a shy little thing. Reticent to open my mouth or make my presence known. (Hard to believe, I know) So I would probably tell her…. Dance! Jump off that pier! Sing with the band! Say yes to all the adventures life lays before you and don’t worry so much about what other people think. By the time you’re sitting here blogging about it? It will be too late.

 

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3. Describe your ideal writing space and place (assuming money isn’t an issue).

For me… that would be a treehouse.

A glam treehouse, with a frozen margarita machine and a never ending supply of tequila and limes. Surrounded by nature and the songs of birds, that’s where I’d like to be.

 

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4. What is your most frequent photographic subject?

That changes depending on the season.. and my moods. Lately?

It’s a woodchuck who looks like Jabba the Hut.

 

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5. Favorite quote?

“I’d rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy.”

With….  “I like to have a martini, Two at the very most. After three I’m under the table, after four I’m under my host.”  coming in a close second.

Ole Dorothy Parker knew her stuff.

 

 

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6. What does blogging (writing, and reading) add to your life?

A sense of connection.  It’s like reaching my hand out across the globe and touching people I would never have otherwise met. (And by touching, I’m speaking metaphorically. Don’t call the vice squad.)

7. If you could choose to be any animal for a 24-hour period, which would you be and why?

A wombat.

And I have no idea why.

 

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8. Do you have other creative outlets besides writing?

I used to draw. I used to write poetry. I used to make dried flower wreaths. I used to cross stitch. I used to stamp. I used to paint. I used to dry brush ceramics. I used to do a lot of things. Now… I just take crazy pictures and blog.

And drink.

I drink very creatively.

 

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Amen, Tyrion. Amen.

Okay, now I’m supposed to nominate blogs I think you should discover and make them answer questions as well.

Of course, if you know me… you know my questions won’t be normal. Where’s the fun in that?

So…

 

liveandlethtai at Paul Dance Writer

Clever Girl at Clever Girl Writes

Kathy at KNJ Tales and Snippets

Traveling Drunk With History

Arionis at Just a Small Cog

 

You’re my chosen victims nominees.

 

 

Post these rules:

1. Acknowledge the blog which nominated you.
2. Answer the questions your nominator asked.
3. Nominate two to six other bloggers who might appreciate the boost.
4. Ask them several unique questions.
5. Let them know you have nominated them.

 

And answer these questions –

 

1.  You’re a pigeon newly arrived in Hollywood. Who do you poop on first?

2.  Donald Trump has been impeached. Mike Pence has been trampled to death at a gay pride parade. Nancy Pelosi has resigned her position and run off to Tahiti with a member of BTS. You’ve been chosen to be the next President of the United States. What’s your first executive order?

3.  The Brussels Sprout is a much maligned ( and extremely gassy ) cruciferous vegetable. You run a PR firm and have just been hired to tweak it’s image. Go!

4.  Your lifelong dream of being a stripper has come true. What’s your stage name?

5.  Your cruise ship is sinking and you’ve scrambled onto a life raft only to realize it’s overloaded. What… or who… do you push overboard?  A case of craft beer, your significant other, the oars, a beloved pet wombat, or the ship’s navigator ?

*Note – if you say beer or wombat, you are dead to me*

 

Yes, those really are the questions.

If you were expecting,  “Name the most influential person in your life” or  “What is your favorite memory of childhood”  you’re reading the wrong blog.

We do things differently here.

 

 

Yes, I realize you can’t unsee that.

But if you’re struggling for a stripper name… feel free to be inspired.

Things I like today… Part 7

 

I like…

This tee shirt I picked up at Goodwill the other day.

 

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If my husband would just follow this one simple rule, life would be so much more pleasant.

I like…

The new yellow kiwi fruit.

 

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Have you tried them?

 

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Yum!

I like….

The Annual Damariscotta PumpkinFest Regatta.

(And you thought we only raced zucchini in Maine. Pfft!)

 

 

 

But this year, I really like the pumpkin they’re using to advertise it.

 

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I like…

Finding multiple praying mantises (manti?) on the baby barn we’re remodeling.

Did you know the female praying mantis bites off her partner’s head after sex?

Clearly she’s a woman who doesn’t like to cuddle.

 

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I like…

Apple season.

 

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Our trees are loaded with juicy fruit…

And soon my belly will be full of juicy pie and fritters.

 

actual video of me after eating juicy pie and fritters

Things I don’t like today… Part 3

 

I don’t like….

Weed wacking around one of our stone walls and having a frog jump out in front of me.

I swear I didn’t see him…

 

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And literally cut him in half.

*Gulp*

 

I don’t like…..

Sitting at a bar and having a creepy disembodied head on a stick tied to a doll stare at me all night.

 

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Like I need another reason to drink?

Ack!

 

I don’t like….

Being disappointed.

Remember when I posted about the miracle of my husband cleaning out the garage, and how the old sink he brought home from the dump was gone?

 

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Yeah. I found it in the barn.

Very disappointing.

And finally,

 

I don’t like….

Pressure.

 

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Since my husband can’t decide when he’s going to retire, he’s forbidden any travel this year so he can sell back his leave.

Doesn’t he realize I’m duty bound to blog our adventures?

Damn it…

Now someone will beat to me to it!

 

I’m in love…. with a moth.

 

I know, it’s a little odd.

But if he was visiting your flowers? You’d love him too.

 

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Meet Herman.

 

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My hummingbird moth.

 

 

 

He’s been visiting everyday and I’m smitten.

 

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Herman is special, and not often seen in these parts.

 

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I know our love is doomed.

Interspecies relationships rarely work out….

 

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But for now, I’ll enjoy every moment we share.

 

 

 

 

 

Time to fess up….

 

Which one of you boneheads is peeing in my birdbath every night?

Because this is getting old.

Every afternoon I clean out the birdbath.

 

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Filling it with sparkling clean, cool water for our birds to drink and take a bath.

And then every morning I wake up to this:

 

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Every single morning.

So…

Fun’s over. Admit your crime.

The midnight madness must stop.

 

Mystery solved.

 

Remember a while ago I posted a picture of the sunflower seeds the chipmunk from Hell had planted in my petunias… and how they were growing?

 

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Well over the past few weeks they grew tall and budded, and then started disappearing. One by one… shredded, stripped of leaves, and gone.

I’ve seen a few grasshoppers, so I thought maybe that was the reason.

 

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How pathetic is that?

One lone stalk remained.

Then I woke up this morning and saw….

 

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A woodchuck…

 

 

 

On the table.

 

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That’s something I hadn’t seen before.

 

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First there was a little pole dancing….

 

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Then he got down to business.

 

 

 

So now I know why there won’t be any blooming sunflowers this season.

 

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He made short work of it and left me this…

 

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As well as this…

 

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Yes, I could have yelled and scared him off, but I admit … I laughed instead.

We’ve had woodchucks all year and they haven’t touched a single plant, shrub or flower. Which if you’ve ever had woodchucks, you know is highly unusual.

So I let the little devil have the sunflower.

The fact that he can even get his fat butt up on the table to begin with is comical and worth the price of a sunflower to view.

 

 

Because you never know what you’ll see…

 

I woke up this morning to fog.

 

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Hanging over everything like a gentle blanket of white…

 

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In some places there was a sharp delineation.

 

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As if it cut by a knife.

 

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But as it started to lift…

 

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I looked way out into the back yard by the woods and saw…

 

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A piner!!

 

 

I did!

 

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And in the 17 years we’ve lived here?

Not one single porcupine sighting… until now.

There’s elusive creatures, solitary by nature. Shy, quiet and slow… but apparently willing to high five in Philly.

 

 

 

 

(I totally need to visit Philly now, damn it.)

Sadly, while we see plenty of them dead on the side of the road…. we’ve never seen one at our house since the majority of our property is open lawn or field and they prefer the wooded areas.

So… a piner!!

 

 

I was thrilled… and attempted to creep across the back lawn to get a better picture. Naturally, I don’t creep well and he spotted me….. and shimmied down the tree before I could get close.

 

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But I saw a piner on our property and have blurry photos to prove it.

Yay me!

 

 

Here’s a piner eating corn on the cob.

 

 

Note to self – buy corn on the cob.

 

 

A critter filled post.

 

Because my photo files are filled with critter pics.

 

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A wet fox.

 

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Two wet foxes.

 

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Okay, okay… moving on.

 

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Baby woodchuck.

 

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These pics are a month or two old, they’re not babies anymore.

 

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I can’t tell you exactly how old because my stupid camera’s date and time setting is broken and everything registers 1/1/1980.

Why? I have no frickin’ clue.

 

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Buck, on the field line.

 

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Doe, in the field.

 

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Wet skunk.

 

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Wet skunk and deer.

This next one is blurry, but how often do you get a shot of  a deer sticking her tongue out at a skunk?

 

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Skunk Rule #1?

Do not be rude to skunks.

They will make you pay… and the photographer’s house will stink for a week.

 

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More woodchucks….

 

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Eating apples.

 

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And woodchucks eating deer grain.

 

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More deer.

 

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And deer eating deer grain.

 

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More skunks.

 

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More foxes.

 

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Skunk and fox.

 

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Please remember Skunk Rule #1.

There is no Skunk Rule #2…. when the  tail goes up?

Run.

 

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More woodchucks.

I’d like to tell you that’s all the photos…. but it’s not even close.

That’s all for now though.

 

 

As my garden grows…

 

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Day lilies.

 

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They’re vibrant…

 

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And colorful…

 

 

(Is it me… or is that mildly disturbing?)

 

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They’re prolific…

 

 

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Long lasting…

 

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(Well that explains why my refrigerator died. They wanted it to.)

 

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And easy to care for.

Plant… forget… and enjoy.

 

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The same goes for Hostas, although they prefer some shade.

Everything is in marvelous bloom right now.

 

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Except the sunflowers the chipmunk from Hell planted in my petunias.

 

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They may take a while.

 

 

Happy gardening!