The Weekend in Black and White: Little Junco

I don't know why the little junco was searching for food in my boot prints.

I guess the larger birds may have been monopolizing the places with fresh dry seed mixes.

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SkyWatch Friday: The Sky on Jaunuary 29, 2014

I spotted the handsome hawk in the first shot from my bedroom window on Wednesday morning.

I wanted a pretty snow and have enjoyed finally getting a ground cover.

 In spite of being very cold, I managed to go on a walk for the 22nd day in a row.

Monday was unusually warm but other than that the weather has been extremely cold lately.

I laugh every time I walk past the mailbox above.

 All day the sun couldn't make up its mind.

There would be some blue and then the sun would hide again.

 I walked to the park near my house.

 I followed the trail to the creek because I wanted to take some shots.

 I didn't try to go all the way to the lake on this walk.

 It takes more energy when I'm walking carefully because I don't want to slip and slide.

We had a pretty sunset which surprised me because prior to sunset the sky went grey again.

However, the sun came out long enough to put on a show at the end of the day.

I took a lot of sky shots on other days this week which I may use in the future but picking one day a week for Sky Watch has been working for me recently.

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ABC Wednesday: C is for Caution

Careful at the crossing cause the train is a coming . . . 

I'd hate to crash and be crunched cause I lacked caution.

Can you see in the shot above where it looks like something crashed on top of the train? Click for the home of ABC Wednesday.

Our World Tuesday: Moving into late January

I like to see grasses in downtown areas that are allowed to follow their natural life cycle and provide habitat for birds.

The first six photographs were taken Tuesday in downtown Durham, NC.

I caught a glimpse of the turtle out of the corner of my eye and was startled for the gazillionth time.

I got caught by a train on the way to work for the first time in 16 years.

I caught my reflection photographing the reflection below.

I love to capture clouds in buildings.

Back home in Raleigh, NC I played around photographing the evening snow.

 We didn't get much snow but it stayed bitter cold until the end of the weekend.

The little bit of snow had the sugar frosted look I associate more with frost.

 Keeping fresh water in the bird baths has been a challenge because they refreeze so fast. The female cardinal went straight to the fresh water.

 The chickadee below watched me putting out a mix of bird food.

 The female rufous-sided towhee below was enjoying breakfast.

 Although we only got a dusting of snow it was so cold that walking each step went snap crackle pop.

 The puppies below were very rambunctious.

 The junco below was enjoying a snack.

On Thursday I was surprised to see the Canadian Geese on the baseball field.

 Friday I walked at Shelley Lake and it was a lot colder than it looks.

It was 16 F (-8.8 C) with the wind chill at 8 F (-13.3 C) at noon when I started walking during the warmer part of the day in Raleigh, NC.

The great blue heron above was scouting food at the base of the dam while the cormorants and gulls were at the fish feeding station.

The mallards were pushing aside ice in a shallow place about a 1/2 mile from the dam and burrowed deep for food.

 I was surprised that most of the lake didn't freeze as long as it stayed cold.

Looks like the Canada Goose is losing a feather below.

 The creeks all have a lot of ice.

 I wish I knew what went into ice forming on the banks shown below. It looks like plastic but it's ice.

Click for the home of Our World Tuesday.

The weekend in black and white: Cactus and lirope

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SkyWatch Friday: Another Single Day

Last week I showed you the skies of a single day.

I decided to do the same thing this week.

The day I picked didn't have much of a sunrise but the moon setting at day break was lovely and so were the clouds.

I took a lot of sky shots during a lunch break walk in downtown Durham, NC.

The sky was changing fast during my walk.

I like photographing the sky and scenery in the winter when the trees are bare.

 I have a fascination with railroad tracks.

 I like the way the modern building peaks up through the older buildings.

 The weather vane in the shot below appealed to me even though I could barely see it.

The red benches pop out amidst the increasingly gray sky.

Although I like to work from home in Raleigh, NC I also enjoy having different photo opportunities during breaks when I go to the office in Durham.

I had a long break between meetings after I finished up some work on a computer in the office building.

 I like the mix of styles in the architecture.

The sky added to the drama of the Durham Auditorium below.

 I couldn't have asked for more from the sky.

 There's a new building going up in the shot below.

There wasn't much of a sunset that evening but we did get a little snow that night.

 I think it almost looks like a shower of stars.

Click for the home of SkyWatch Friday.