leaves changing

A week into the autumnal equinox, leaves here are still predominantly green. The cooler air is working on the leaves though; autumn color is beginning to pop on some of the trees.

POW! WOW! Worcester

I found out about POW! WOW! Worcester after it was over; luckily the murals that were created for the festival remain in place.

Yesterday I wandered through the downtown area of Worcester seeking murals. I think I missed a few, but the murals I found were glorious!

I love that the artist used a vent (easily seen in the second photo) as the setting for a diamond ring.

More murals are captured in the gallery urban art :: Worcester.

a Chanticleer visit

A few days of visiting provided time to return to Chanticleer, time to wander through beautiful gardens. Some of the plants still wear bright colors, some have faded. Most of the trees still show in bright green although some leaves are now brown.

It's always a good day for a walk in a garden.

More photos are in the gallery a Chanticleer visit :: 2016.

delicate

Even as the temperature drops to autumn levels, delicate flowers continue to decorate gardens.

late season flowers

A pop of color from late season flowers creates a sense of magic.

in Jenkins Arboretum, Devon, PA

hiding in plain sight

As I walked through a garden this afternoon I saw something out of the corner of my eye. Then I didn't see it. I looked again, and found a praying mantis hiding in plain sight.

I find it amazing how much these big insects blend in with their surroundings.

autumn crocus

Clumps of pink were scattered across the grass, a show of autumn crocus. It was a delight to see these autumn-blooming flowers that resemble the crocus we see in the spring.

Colchicum autumnale, commonly known as autumn crocus, meadow saffron or naked lady, is an autumn-blooming flower that resembles the true crocuses, but is a member of the Colchicaceae plant family, unlike the true crocuses which belong to the Iridaceae family. The name "naked lady" comes from the fact that the flowers emerge from the ground long after the leaves have died back. from the Colchicum autumnale page on Wikipedia

posed

As I walked the gardens at the Stevens-Coolidge Place I followed a butterfly that was enjoying the flowers. I'd like to think this beautiful creature posed for me but it was pure luck that the butterfly stayed still long enough for me to capture a picture.

over the dunes

The dunes trail at Parker River National Wildlife Refuge is a short boardwalk loop that overlooks the ocean as you look across the dunes. The scrub and tree-covered dunes provide a sandy and green contrast to the ocean waters in the distance.

butterfly

This is a time of year when butterflies are happily wandering among flowers, challenging me to capture them with my camera.

monarch butterfly perched on a tithonia rotundifolia

art at Maudslay

September brings a several weeks long outdoor sculpture exhibit to Maudslay State Park. It's fun to walk through spaces where there is usually only naturally occurring color to find things that don't belong.

This morning was a perfect time to wander through the sculptures.

The theme of this year's exhibit is "blue".

More sculptures can be seen in the gallery starting with this photo and ending here.

wishing for rain

Weather wizard, are you listening?
We really need rain; can you send us some?

Over half of Massachusetts is in the midst of an extreme drought, with the area in danger of major crop losses and water restrictions more than doubling since last week, the US Drought Monitor said Thursday. ... The widespread drought comes as Greater Boston experiences one of its driest periods in recent years. Rainfall is down 9.5 inches this year, and 18.5 inches since the start of 2015, according to the National Weather Service. courtesy of the Boston Globe

It seems odd that this lack of water goes back to the beginning of 2015 given that was our year of never-ending snow.

I suspect that we all share a wish for rain.
Weather wizard, are you listening?

source: U.S. Drought Monitor




source: Boston Globe, Drought continues to spread across Mass., unabated

sunflowers!

It was a delightful afternoon.

Yesterday was my garden volunteer morning. As we were weeding, pruning, and working to restore the garden's shine one, of my co-volunteers told me about a sunflower field in Newbury. It was clear to me that it was a "must see" place for me.

After returning home I checked the location of Colby Farms, grabbed my camera, and headed to the farmstand. I arrived to find a field of sunflowers that was planted for people to wander through. The wind was howling and the flowers were dancing, decorating the field with a splash of yellow.

I will happily return to walk among the flowers again.

More photos can be seen in the gallery sunflowers!

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens

Monday was a day of garden visits. The Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens in Boothbay, Maine offered flowers, sculptures, a meditation garden and a fairy village. It was a good place to wander.

I loved the sculpted scarecrow in the children's garden.

As we approach the end of the summer season, flowers continue to decorate the garden in bright colors. Some wore a tinge of brown, others showed pure bright color.

More photos from the gardens can be seen in the gallery Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens.

late season flower

A late afternoon visit to the gardens of Pineland Farms in New Gloucester, Maine (yesterday) was a good end to a day of wandering. While many flowers were fading, the garden still provided a feast of color.

A few more garden photos can be viewed in the gallery MidCoast Maine and south :: 2016 starting with this photo and ending here.

life transition

It's hard to believe that just over six months have gone by since the day I was told I was to be laid off. It was somewhat of a surprise but not totally unexpected given that the company had been going through rounds of terminations over the last several years.

I was given 3 months notice and told to use the time to figure out my next steps rather than continuing to work. I feel like I spent the first six weeks bouncing off of walls, trying to decide what to do. I created a new resume and a profile on linkedin, I took some online classes designed to help with the next steps, I thought and thought, and...

The first session I took was a seminar on retiring, perhaps a sign to me, an early series of thoughts. I had planned to work for another two years; my unexpected work termination gave me a chance to rethink the time.

Ultimately I decided the time was right for me to retire.

I am volunteering at two places where over the years I was often to be found with my camera. It feels good to give back to these treasured places. I am staying active, taking classes and swimming at the local YMCA plus heading out on my own too. And, no surprise, I am focusing on my photography.

Life is good.

ocean and sky

A pattern of diagonal lines flows from the waves in the ocean to the clouds in the sky.

at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge

birds on a wire

I was fascinated by cormorants sitting on wires as I crossed the bridge to Plum Island this afternoon. They often sit on rocks by the ocean; perching on wires seems different.

I stood and watched for a while. Occasionally a bird would switch wires, causing a bit of instability among the others on the wire.

late summer dahlia

Dahlias create a wonderful splash of bright color.

angled

Sunflowers are beautiful when viewed from any angle.

tomato colors

Freshly harvested tomatoes are a delightful taste treat.
The many colors feed our eyes with beauty too.

by the sea

It was a good afternoon for a walk by the sea, a time to listen to the sound of the ocean, to watch as the tide headed out.

in the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge

sunshine

Sunflowers bring simple beauty, adding light to the day.

stickwork

It was a day for walking through an interesting structure in the woods.

I headed to Tower Hill Botanic Garden this morning, arriving shortly after it opened. I wanted to see (and wander through) the new Stickwork installation titled "The Wild Rumpus".

THE WILD RUMPUS: A STICKWORK SCULPTURE BY PATRICK DOUGHERTY We are extremely grateful to internationally acclaimed artist Patrick Dougherty, and his team of volunteers, for creating his latest towering Stickwork installation at Tower Hill Botanic Garden: The Wild Rumpus. Patrick Dougherty bends, weaves, and flexes locally sourced saplings into architectural sculptures which are unique to the setting and dynamically relate to the landscape and built environment around them. Over the last 30 years, he has built more than 250 of these works. His award winning sculptures have been seen worldwide — from Scotland to Japan to Brussels, and all over the United States. “Here at Tower Hill we strive to show our visitors the value of plants and the impact nature can have on our lives,” said Tower Hill interim CEO Suzanne Maas. “We’re thrilled to experience Patrick Dougherty’s works up close and to see the power of plants through his unique perspective.” text from :: STICKWORK INSTALLATION AT TOWER HILL

It was fascinating to see the intricate weaving of natural materials that was used to build a larger than life sculpture. I was able to walk up to, around, and through parts of the sculpture.

A few more photos of this sculpture can be seen in the gallery Tower Hill Botanic Garden :: 2016 starting with this photo and ending here.

I highly recommend a visit to the artist's web site to see more of his wonderful sculptures. You can find Patrick Dougherty's work at www.stickwork.net.

a rose

A rose stands tall, both simple and complex, a thing of beauty.