The weekend in black and white: Fixer Upper

The first shot is the one that I had in mind for this week of The Weekend in Black and White. I like the contrast in the bricks on the left and on the right.

I decided to include other shots that show more of the house and why I wish I could fix it up. I think the door below leads into the basement.

This house is beside a business parking lot in downtown Durham, NC. Realistically, even if it were for sale and I could afford to buy it and fix it up, I don't think I'd really want to live across the street from where I work which is where it's located. Especially since I've lived in the same house in Raleigh, NC since 1984 and the company I work for lets me work from home most of the time. Then again when I do have to drive to my office it's about a 45 minute drive from where I live and longer in rush hour.

I don't think anyone uses this house anymore and it definitely needs a lot of work. I've posted pictures of it before and when I park there I frequently photograph it. It's surrounded by office buildings and with the exception of one other old house which is used by a real estate company it's the only house in the immediate vicinity. On the plus side it's across the parking lot from Grace Garden in a city park and it's also a few yards from the Durham City Farmer's market.

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SkyWatch Friday: Head in the Clouds

We've had some wonderful clouds during the end of March.

I love the way the recent clouds have had so much depth.

They look like I could jump on them.

It amazes me how many forms clouds can take.

I don't think I will ever grow bored watching the sky as it changes.

We even got a day with a blue sky for part of the day.

Then the clouds rolled back in.

We've had a lot of rain for part of some days but also partial clearing.

I think there was only one day (over the past 7) where it rained almost all day.

Most nights have dropped well below freezing but the rain has stopped when the temperatures dropped.

When the sky has been solid clouds there was still variations and depth.

One night at the end of sunset, there was a sci-fi feel to the sky.

More and more trees are starting to flower.

It almost felt like the sky was dropping down in the next shot.

I took the last shot at a stop light shooting through my side window.

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ABC Wednesday: K is for kingfisher

I hear kingfishers a lot more often than I see them. But this was a rare case where it landed somewhere and posed for me.

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Our World Tuesday: Spring is in the air

Spring is definitely arriving where I live (Raleigh, NC, U.S.).

The birds are singing louder and louder.

There are still mornings when I have to get ice out of the bird baths when they freeze overnight.

But there's no stopping spring.

More and more American Robins are making their presence known.

They are starting to forage on the ground.

The male cardinal below was hanging out with the robins.

I've even spotted a few azalea buds but hopefully most of them will be slower about getting to this phase. These varieties of azaleas set their tiny buds in the fall but they are usually barely visible until much later in spring. Sometimes this bush blooms in mid to late April but most of my azaleas don't bloom until May.

The forsythia blooms is a welcome sign of spring.

Periwinkle blossoms are one of the early spring flowers that don't mind some frost, unlike azaleas which do better when they bloom after the last frost which is usually mid to late April here.

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The Weekend in Black and White: First tree to flower

The Japanese Magnolia is always the first tree to flower in my neighborhood in Raleigh, NC. The downside is that these blooms usually have freeze damage. It's supposed to get down to 25 F (-3.88 C) tonight which is common here since our last freeze date is usually in mid to later April.

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SkyWatch Friday: Views from my house

I like to catch the moon against a daytime blue sky.

In the next shot the moon (on the right) almost looks the same size as the flowers on the tree.

The bird was singing up a storm below.

Most of my sky shots lately have included the Japanese Magnolia tree.

The cherry tree below in my back yard is starting to show signs of new life.

I caught one recent sunset.

Another shot of the pink blossoms.

And another one much like the other one.

I love puffy clouds against a vivid blue sky.

I just can't seem to get enough of this tree.

It's my next door neighbor's tree and I can photograph it from my kitchen door and yard.

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ABC Wednesday: J is for Jasmine

Jubilant, Jazzy Jasmine

The Carolina Jasmine isn't blooming yet in my neck of the woods so I had to go back to a shot from another year. Click for the home of ABC Wednesday.