Autumn Is Coming

A wild wind is tossing the treetops tonight.  At dusk, the almost full moon appeared orange/pink.  I tried to capture it with my little digital camera, but then deleted all of the blurry pictures.  Later, the moon appeared even darker orange.  I sat on the deck swing enjoying the cool fresh air.  Here are the best (yet still blurry) shots, the second one showing the neighbor's window.

Bright September Paint Art

These postcards were made 

with just acrylic paint- brushed on, 

pushed through stencils, sponged,

painted onto rubber washers 

and eraser cavings, finger painted, 

plus some spattering:

 

 The designs on this next group 

of post cards incorporate 

collage as well as the above techniques:

And here are some little 

collages made from leftover scraps:

End of August Post Cards

The bottom layer of these three was 

Deli Waxed Paper used as a 

brayer wipe-off during painting sessions:

Magic Mesh, postal stamps

Fish stampings and embossing powder

Magic Mesh, postage stamp

Crayon Leaf Rubbing, paint chip circles, Gelli Plate printed strip

Rubber Stamped Leaf prints with Gold Embossing Powder over acrylic paints

Three simple collages:

On Shaving Cream Marbleized Background

On Dampened InkJet Print

On Jute Fiber Resist Background

Plus a simple ATC:

Acrylic paint,  sticker and collage

Southern Flora, Fauna and Local Art

This Hibiscus plant was at least 8 feet tall:

Backlit by sunlight, petals were almost translucent 

A different Hibiscus blossom, different time of day

Great Camouflage:  at first I thought this moth was dying leaves stuck to the screen door

A charming statuary group outside the local library

View of an older building seen as we drove through downtown

Total Eclipse 2017 - South Carolina

It almost seemed like a dream- the hours and hours on the road, the visiting of relatives, observing the Total Eclipse of the Sun, the terribly backed-up traffic upon our return.  It would appear that some of the southern expressways require perpetual construction. 

We used the proper ISO-approved filtering viewing glasses through which everything appeared black except for the sun. 

At the beginning of this event, the temperature in South Carolina was102' Fahrenheit and swiftly dropped twelve degrees within a half hour.  It actually felt cooler!  The black crescent of moon shadow crept slowly across the sun's image.  Comprehending its progress was impossible except by checking it every few minutes.  

The sky stayed bright until the Totality, but there was a metallic glint around us, or the effect of looking at everything through a very fine screen, for want of a better description.  I was amazed that when most of the sun was covered and just an orange thumbnail of light was visible, the sky above us was still blue.  It doesn't take much sun to light up the whole Earth!  

Just before Totality, the horizon turned orange like a sunset and a street light flickered, beginning to come on.  Chickens headed for their coop, then changed their minds. 

Someone saw the anticipated wavy shadows that look like black snakes slithering across the ground, but I missed that phenomenon. We could see planets overhead, but not stars.  I would say it was more like twilight or dusk, not a complete black-out.

My digital camera was unable to get good shots, but here are some pictures from one of our group who had an approved camera filter:

by JC 8/21/17

By JC 8/21/17

By JC 8/21/17

By JC 8/21/17

By JC 8/21/17

By JC 8/21/17

By JC 8/21/17

By JC 8/21/17 - TOTALITY - Ahhhhhhh... BEAUTIFUL!!!

Chickens Galore!

While visiting in South Carolina, I had fun watching hens scurry around the yard, clucking and pecking at bugs.  I also was able to frequently check in on the one hen who sat on her nest of eggs from all three breeds of chickens. Of the fifteen or so eggs, ten hatched, nine chicks survived.

Speckled Hens

Rhode Island Red Hen

Buff Hen, the only good "Brooder" in the bunch

The mother hen has to show them how to peck at the feed and drink water

This one was under-developed and weak

But so cute, I hated to put him down... happily, he did survive

Very few of the pictures I took were well-focused. But this one was really bad!  I call it "Chickens on The Run" as they never seemed to hold still.  I like the impressionistic effect.  

A Southern Adventure

In order to catch a glimpse of the Eclipse of the Sun within the band of Totality, many will be traveling with anticipation this weekend.  I am fortunate to have relatives along the optimal viewing line, which makes the adventure even more enjoyable and interesting.

The Blue Ridge Mountains in West Virginia were gorgeous, layer upon layer of blue rolling peaks. Black Angus cows grazed in green hollows and valleys.  Turkey vultures soared overhead.  Memories of my 6 months in the wilds along the Appalachian Trail in 1980 came flooding back.  Sometimes I really miss the woods, the mountain views, but it wasn't all fun and lofty vistas.

Traffic wasn't too bad except in the areas of highway construction.  It was good to have started out a day earlier than originally planned instead of waiting for the weekend.

The heat did not seem oppressive until I reached North Carolina.  And if I thought that was unbearable, it was even hotter in South Carolina, with a heat index of 105 on one of the days.  When considering a meal at a buffet chain I was advised to try the "baby back ribs," which I never quite found.  It must be a local favorite.  (Should I admit to getting side-tracked by the dessert bar?  Um....)

Other highlights included a stroll through an "outdoor flea market" with many vendors in long open buildings.   One booth featured hand-made soaps, some were the size of building bricks.  That's a lot of cleaning power!  I was side-tracked at the rocks shop:  polished semi-precious stones, geodes, crystals, and- FOSSILS!!!

A relative has raised several breeds of beautiful chickens:  Buff, a caramel brown; black and white Speckled, and coppery Rhode Island reds.  They like to eat fallen tomatoes from the garden.

One of the hens has been sitting on at least 15 eggs, brown, tan and white, not all her own.  She is the only good "brooder" of the group.  As the other hens lay their contributions in her nest, she has naturally assumed the responsibility. Yesterday two chicks appeared from underneath her fluffed-out feathers. Today there were six.

It amazed me to learn that, while a hen is laying many eggs, all of the eggs wait until she settles down to keep them warm,  Then they all begin to develop at the same time so that the chicks will be hatched within 12 hours of each other.  That way there are no scrawny chicks to be picked on by the older ones.  To raise "tame" chickens, they have to be handled while young.  I got to hold a new chick and it snuggled down into my hands for a nap.  Sweet!  (Pictures to follow)

The bugs here are so loud, they sound like someone is running a bandsaw.  (Locusts?)
Stay tuned for more tales, all true...