Pretty Picture Monday

Sunday Stills, Nature's Frames

Wordless Wednesday

Pretty Picture Monday

Sunday Stills, Birds

January 2012

 Winter has finely made an appearance

and looks like it's going to settle in for a while.

More then half of the orchard is picked, 75 bins have been sold 

and I've lost track of how many bags.

A hard freeze came threw, it will take some time to know if the fruit

 is holding or damaged.  Farming is not for the tender hearted.

The first of the month, my ladies group hosted a dinner for 

our new state president.

Cattlewomen's, held they're Beef Ambassador Contest, 

where they will be sending two Contestants to state

and my "Not a Garden Club, Garden Club"  got together for a 

demonstration on pruning roses and fruit trees, with 

Barbara Battaglis, from  Mendon's Nursery

( the Mecca of nursery's in Butte county)

Running for JS, the every day stuff, 

projects around the house, "maintenance"

and taking pictures, fills the days and shot days they are.

Wordless Wednesday

Pretty Picture Monday

Sunday Stills, Corners

Sometimes the only thing that stands in our way is us

I was stumped on this challenge.  Corners, such a simple word

and yet I couldn't come up with anything.

I packed my camera around all week,  looking for the "perfect corner"

Then it accrued to me, that it's not always about coming up 

with something , but just using what you have.

A Secret Garden

Sunday, I spent the afternoon at my friend Mary Lake Thompson's.

Mary is our local famous artist, known through out the US.

Mary is featured in the February issue of "Romantic Home"

where she tells of how her family came to live in Oroville.

Her beautiful 1890 Victorian farmhouse, is a landmark in our area

 and one of my favorite places to visit.  I had met Mary many times

over the years and got to know her better when JS and crew remodeled

 her kitchen, pictured in the article.  This past summer JS built a beautiful 

garden room connected to the kitchen, where dinner plate size 

African Violets draw you to the table.

The story in the magazine only shows a small glimpse of Mary's 

beautiful garden, here's a bit more.

For more information on Mary Lake Thompson, 

visit    marylakethompson.com

Click on any picture to enlarge 

Pretty Picture Monday

Sunday Stills, Light Painting

This weeks challenge was to use a slower shutter speed or turn off the flash. 

 Then shoot either moving lights or move the camera while shooting at light.  

It is just pure dumb luck that I have these pictures at all.

When I was taking the shots of the fireworks on new years,

I was able to get two frames for each of the 

"Rockets Bursting in Air"...............LOL

"I digress"

The first frames (not shown, were of the blast) and the second frame shown

 here, were of the embers falling back to earth.  I only have these two pictures.

 I deleted all the others, before I saw the challenge !

"Patients Grasshopper"

To see more cool light painting go check out Sunday stills.

Wordless Wednesday

Old Wooden Bins

Looking at this stack of old bins, I was remembering when we 

first became "Citrus Growers".  How I wanted to buy bins and have

 our name and logo on them.  It only took a couple of seasons to 

realise that was not a profitable idea.

The buyers drop off bins with all different logos and names.

Many are painted over and reclaimed with someone else's logo
 and name and most likely, you'll never see that particular bin again.

I uses to mark the bins when they came in, so I would know

who's was who's.  I even quite doing that, they don't

even know which ones they've dropped off.

Imagine, following a bin of fruit, from the fields, on trucks to 

the packing house or fruit stand, up and down the state from

 season to season.  There's a lot of miles on some of these bins.

Their marks and names are from big outfits and small.

Names you would recognize from your grocery store shelf 

and other's if you follow the farmers markets. Then the countless 

growers like us who's fruit is only know by our buyers and locals

 and seen only in someone else's bins.

Lots of growers are going to the new white plastic bins,

lighter and easier to handle, they say.  Better then the old 

wooden ones, that have to be fixed and are heavy !

Well I like the wooden bins, they have character and history.

After all I'm "old", "need to be fixed" and "heavy"

and I'm a character. 

Pretty Picture Monday

Sunday Stills, Photographic Hopes for 2012

My photographic hopes for this year are in the works.

I've signed up for camera and photography classes.

But I'm a practical gal, I need a new tractor.