Photography | Change Is Hard

February 24, 2022
by dawnkinster 17 Comments

A long drive for a little walk

Earlier this week I decided to visit Chippewa Nature Center up in Midland. That’s about a two hour drive for me, but I kept seeing beautiful photos on a Facebook group of birds and animals that were taken there, and I’d never been. So, since I had one day free and the weather wasn’t too horrible, I decided to buzz up there and see what I could see.

I almost didn’t put tights on under my jeans before I left, and I’m so glad I did because it was much colder up there and the wind was blowing. Great. Once I arrived I studied the map at the parking lot trying to figure out where the trailhead was. It wasn’t very clear, so I wandered a bit and ended up on a paved path designed for preschoolers. The little trail looped around a school. This was the only picture I took.

Then I went and figured out where the adult trails were, but they were covered in ice and even though I had my Yax grippers with me I didn’t think it looked very fun to creep along the ice on a trail that I had never been on before. Alone.

So I decided to come back another day, after things thawed out a bit. But because I was very near the Midland Park where I had once seen eagles, I stopped by on my way home. No eagles were flying, but I did see two eagles on their nest. Unfortunately the nest isn’t anywhere close to parking, so no pictures. But still cool.

And then, on the way home, having taken only one picture (unheard of for me!) I decided since I was driving right past, I’d stop at the Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge, a favorite place of mine. I was hoping I would find eagles on the nest I’d seen last time I was there.

On the road out to the refuge I had to stop to shoot this barn. I’ve loved it before, but it was especially pretty with the light that morning.

*It’s the tree that makes this barn beautiful.*

And this one, too, a little further down the road. Now, even if I saw nothing else, I’d at least have shot three things on this adventure. Some kids and a couple barns.

*I’m a sucker for a barn and a row of trees.*

There was no one at the refuge when I got there. I was arriving later in the day than normal, but I was still hoping to see those eagles…

*So far so good, easy walking and no ice!*

…until I got to the T in the trail and to the right, the way I needed to go, looked like this.

*That’s a bench up there on the left, but I’m not going to sit on it.*

Hmmmm…I could put on the cleats. But still, I was alone out there — if I fell it would be a long time before someone came to help. It didnt seem worth the risk.

Turning left there was a ‘nature viewing’ shack. I’d never investigated it before, and the trail was clear that way so I figured why not.

This is the view. Uninspiring.

I took the heavy long lens off the camera and put my regular lens back on and decided I’d just go for artsy fartsy pictures on the mile long walk back to the car. So that’s what you’r going to get for the rest of this post. I don’t imagine you’ll mind too much.

There was some beaver damage on downed trees. Not really artsy fartsy, but interesting.

And a huge tree limb that had fallen across the trail with beautiful insect tracks.

I originally thought it was a limb from an ash tree because of the bug trails…but the tree this limb fell from looked like a hickory tree, so I don’t know what caused the damage. I spent a long time taking pictures of the naked limbs with the beautiful but sad markings.

*These marks aren’t the same as what I’ve seen made by the ash beetle.*

And closer to the car the ice, as long as I wasn’t walking on it, was beautiful too.

*In a black and white winter world there was still plenty of color.*

Even a bit of frozen grass could be seen as art.

*I thought the colors were a perfect representation of winter in Michigan.*

And fungus on a stick was certainly beautiful too.

*Up close, the better to appreciate the wonder of it.*

Back at the parking lot I shot the farm that was way off across a field, and that was the end of the photographic adventure for the day.

Oh! I did see a couple cardinals. Not that I can’t see those at home, but still…it was wildlife.

The grand total was some kids, some ice, some dead tree limbs and a bird or two. Not what I went looking for. But it was still fun. I got out of the house, in the fresh (cold) air with my camera. You can’t always choose what you get to shoot, but you can always turn it into something worthwhile.

Guaranteed.

Wordless Wednesday

February 23, 2022 by dawnkinster 8 Comments

February 15, 2022
by dawnkinster 29 Comments

Owl….no barn…no owl…hunt

Sunday morning, in preparation for the Super Bowl, I left home with my camera.

*Multiple barns make for an efficient shot.*

OK. So maybe it didn’t have anything to do with the Super Bowl, maybe it was just me wanting to get out of the house for a little bit. With a camera and nowhere specific to go.

A friend had told me about a snowy owl that she’s seen a few times over near Katie’s vet. Lots of open fields and telephone poles out that way so I figured maybe I would finally see a snowy owl if I headed in that direction.

So I did.

And I might have seen one. Something kind of large flew directly over the car, while I was still on the freeway. I only caught a glimpse of the underside, the same color as the light grey sky, it blended into the nothingness above me and then disappeared. It might have been a hawk. But it felt more round than a hawk in flight would be.

Anyway, when I got to the town nearest the vet I entered a pretty heavy snow squall. It was hard to see anything, and I was trying to figure out if I should just turn around and go home. How in the world would I see a white owl in a blizzard?

*Hard to see a white barn in a blizzard too.*

I crept along, passed Katie’s vet and turned south on the next big road, looking for the small rural road she said the owl had been seen on. It seemed sort of far, and figuring I had missed it, I stopped looking at the street signs just about the time I passed the road.

Darn it all.

So I drove on to the next road and a place to turn around. But what was that over there? A very nice barn? Well, might be I should just go over there first and then go back and find that owl road.

And up there at the next, quite far away, corner, well that looks like a good barn too. And wait, over there, I need to see what’s over there for sure. Good thing the snow let up.

And that’s how it went. On my way back to the road that might or might not have an owl I kept finding more barns. And the snow came and went.

Sometimes on the left would be sunshine and blue sky while on the right a blizzard raged.

*Another version of red, white and blue.*

I eventually did wander down the road I had originally intended to explore. Never did see an owl of any color. Saw a couple turkeys cross the road, but they didn’t want their pictures taken.

And then I turned a corner and saw the sweetest little barn with a dormer. Something niggled at me and then I remembered. I’d been by this exact barn about a month ago. I had no idea where I was by then, but I knew if I was repeating barns it was time to head for home.

I have to say this adventure was mostly a barn hunt on which I might have seen a snowy owl float overhead for a moment. In fact I think I’ll just say that’s what it was.

Yep. I saw a snowy owl on Sunday, and I got home in time to watch the game too.

Win/win

February 14, 2022
by dawnkinster 22 Comments

Valentine girl

*Happy Valentine’s Day, everybody! From your Princess Katie.*

Wordless Wednesday

February 9, 2022 by dawnkinster 16 Comments

February 6, 2022
by dawnkinster 40 Comments

More snow?

Those of you living in warmer climates would probably like to see more snow photos, right? Since my retirement I can attest to the fact that snow is better viewed from behind windows than windshields.

*I always think that wet, clingy snow like this shows off patterns we never notice other times of the year.*

Similarly I bet snow is better viewed from a beach in, say, Alabama, than from the deck of a home here in Michigan. And since I didn’t want you to miss the exquisit beautify of life here after a snowstorm, I figured I better get to it and post a few more before springs drops on us.

*“Do you think they’ll pay us extra to pose for next year’s Christmas card?”*

Because this is the time of year that I am fooled, every single year, into believing that spring is right around the corner. Even when I look outside and there’s nothing but snow as far as my eye can see.

*“It’s hard to commute back to my nest when my freeway is snow covered.”*

We have had sunshine the past two days, which in itself fools a person into thinking winter is almost over. After weeks and weeks of grey skies I felt like I needed to take the camera and go somewhere, anywhere, just to get outside.

But I needed to feed Katie her lunch and then take her outside before I left her for a few hours. And of course on our walk I saw this.

*They blended right into the vines as they enjoyed lunch and the sun.*

And of course then I had to hurry her back to the house, grab the camera and go back to the robin tree (which is actually a dead tree covered in bittersweet vine) which was shining in early afternoon light.

And by the time I got done taking those it was getting sort of late to go on any big adventure, so I settled in to process the robin images, and that ended up being my big photo shoot for the day.

Next week I have meetings and appointments almost every day. And of course who knows if we’ll have sun again any time soon. It’s hard to say if I’ll have another opportunity in the near future to run away for a few hours with the camera.

But since I know it will be spring soon I’m not too worried.

*Sometimes there’s only time to run away down your own street.*

Yep. Next week or the week after I’m sure I’ll be seeing little green nubs pushing up in my gardens. Though at the moment I can’t actually see my gardens since they’re buried under the snow.

But it won’t be long. I just know it.

*“You better be right about spring, lady. I’ve about had it with this snow.”*

February 4, 2022
by dawnkinster 46 Comments

Reporting in

Katie here.

I’ve heard through the grapevine (OK, from mama) that some of you are wondering how I’m doing. I guess mama gets worried and writes stuff and then you guys get all worried too. Mama says it helps to share her worry, cause sometimes she gets overwhelmed by all the ‘what ifs.’

*My backyard during the ‘storm of the century!’*

Mama says sometimes she looks at me and wonders if I’m still happy, or if I’m hurting but not telling her. Or maybe she’s just too blind to see. But I have to ask you all….do I LOOK like there’s something wrong?

I thought not.

But of course you all know there is. I’m in stage 4 of kidney disease. I’m eating the special food and taking all my meds like a good girl, but you can’t change the fact that I’ve got an incurable disease.

*I got my toes trimmed and the nice groomer gave me a scarf!*

But let me remind you that I’m fifteen now, and that’s a good old age for any sheltie-girl, even a princess like me. Of course I’d love to live to be 17 or 18 like mama sees sometimes on Facebook, but honestly? Only if I still felt like a puppy, and I don’t think that’s possible.

*Yes mother, I know I’m not supposed to be eating the birdseed under the feeder.*

As it is I sleep a lot, and I have some trouble getting up and down because my hips are stiff. Mama and daddy have talked about this with the vet and I’ve got some meds for that, but the meds seem to make me unsteady and sometimes I can’t get up off the floor at all!

*Sometimes after a good walk a girl needs to take a nap.*

Mama says I look like a beached seal, flapping all my legs trying to get them under me. But she’s not laughing when she rushes to pick me up. Once I get my feet back under me I’m just fine and I usually ask her for some lunch. Or at least a snack.

They took me back off the meds and will discuss all of this at my vet appointment next week. Mama and Daddy are really hoping my numbers aren’t getting worse. I hope they’re getting better, but mama says that isn’t likely. Well. A girl can dream, right?

*Mama says she’s really happy that I’m getting to experience all this snow.*

Meanwhile I’m pretty happy most of the time, so don’t worry about me. Mama and daddy are taking real good care of me, and in return I’m being my normal annoying demanding self. I figure it’s my responsibility to uphold the princess job description.

Royalty always carries on, and I’m definitely the one most royal in my family. I’ll have my staff keep you up to date on my progress.

*Heading back to the house, following my own footprints home.*

And thank you all for the kind thoughts and notes that mama gets. They help a lot especially when she’s having a bad day. She should learn from me to take each day as it comes.

You’d think after fifteen years she’d know to follow my lead. Silly mama.

February 3, 2022
by dawnkinster 41 Comments

Musing Wordle words

I am terrible at Scrabble, I can never come up with words within my set of tiles. I can’t do crossword puzzles either, though my mother loved them.

And then along came Wordle.

*The latest storm of the century happened here this week.*

In case you’ve been living in total isolation (in which case you’re not reading this anyway) you’ve seen the game, or read articles about the phenomenon it’s become.

People around the world are figuring out the 5 letter word of the day, through a process of guesses and elimination. There are any number of ‘best’ strategies, most centered on how to choose your first word, from which you will, hopefully, discover the final word.

I haven’t read any of the articles; I think doing so would take the fun out of the experience. But I will tell you why playing Wordle is fun for me.

It’s fun because there’s no time pressure, nobody else is waiting for me to make my move. I can take my time and methodically work through all the available letters. I can consider different combinations at my leisure, ponder on it for half a day if I want to. Consider my next move. And when I am successful I get to share my success (but not the word) with all my friends. For me the sharing is the icing on the game.

And there’s something interesting about knowing that thousands of people are all looking for words along with you. All kinds of people are taking time off from their regular life to discover one word. Across this country and around the world people are focused, for a few minutes, on something as simple as a word

The same word. We’re all thinking about, stratigizing over, smiling or frowning over the same word. It kind of makes me feel connected, and in these lingering times of isolation, that’s a good thing.

*Not looking for words,lady, but I could use some lunch please.*

But I swear there’s a novel waiting to be written based on the way this game has spread, in the way someone is manipulating us all to find a single word each day. Somewhere, in the far reaches of my brain, I wonder how it could be used in a story of suspense, if the one word each day could begin to change people’s opinions, or thought processes, or even behaviors. Or maybe the daily words are a series of hints to some horrible event that will end the world unless someone figures it all out and saves us all.

The thing about this game that I like the most, that everybody’s headed for the same word, is the thing that makes me feel a little creepy once in awhile. Especially if it’s a weird word that might have several meanings or connotations. I imagine some guy in a dark lab somewhere chortling over his choice of words, anticipating a whole society gasping in shock when they figure it out.

Oh, but all this is ridiculous. People would have to be addicted to playing the game. The game would have to be run by some huge mastermind. There would have to be sinister intent not readily visible to the regular folks playing the harmless game.

*Waiting his turn at the breakfast bar.*

Since I’m not into conspiracy theories, I’m going to just enjoy finding the word each morning and cheering my friends on when they find it in fewer guesses than me. And when the New York Times starts charging for the game I’ll move on to the next craze.

But for now I think it’s kind of cool that people are focused on words.