Is it Spring Yet?

I love all the seasons, but Spring is by far the most anticipated. By the end of January, I am worn out with winter. So you can see from the above photo of the "man cave" that I am getting ready for Spring. In the foreground are broccoli plants started by the stove. I already have early girl tomato and pepper plants growing in the window sill in the south end of the "man cave". In the middle of the photo some kite decorating has been started for the March winds. In the back are ferns that have wintered on top of the microwave and in the upper right hand corner are boots and snowsuit that will be worn a few more time before Spring. In another room of the man cave shown below we also have started working on taxes.Perhaps we will finish by April 15th. At any rate maybe next week the groundhog will give us some good news about Spring. Although we know we have at least two and half months of frost left.

Wolf Moon

I was finally able to catch a good photo of the full moon. It was 10 degrees this morning and very clear. I was also able to catch some good moon shadows. The last photo also capture venus rising over the horizon. It was a pretty morning to be out, but rather crisp.

January Wolf Moon

My first photo of the moon in 2011. It's not a very good photo, but I wasn't expecting to take any this morning. First, the Wolf moon is not full until Wednesday, and secondly the weather forecast was for cloudy skies. However when I was woken this morning by the bright moon shining through the window at 3:30am, I though I had better try to catch a photo while I could. The sky was a little hazy and the moon was low in the trees, so this is the best I could catch. Given the dreary weather forecast, this may be the best I can get of the near full Wolf moon.

Vedic Winter Solstice

I don't know much about India or it's religious beliefs, but today is when the sun moves north into the sign of Capricorn and many people celebrate the Winter Solstice as part of the Harvest Festival "Pongal". I thought this video was very entertaining and colorful even though I don't understand the words or rituals of Pongal.

Crowd at the Feeder

You can see 5 doves, 3 cardinals and a few sparrows, etc. crowded around the bird feeder this morning. While you can see an occasional spat, they seem to get along with their diversity better than humans do. Of course there does appear a pecking order in which size does matter.

Seven Degrees

A typically cold January morning as the weak sun rises through the frost and snow covered trees. Mrs squirrel will probably not venture far from the nest this morning, but she gets to view a golden sunsrise.

Chicken Hawk

Mr Chicken Hawk is perched up in the cottonwood tree next to the garage waiting out the snow shower. He has been perching in the same spot off and on for several days. I don't know if the weather has altered his hunting or he just found a good place to rest.

Waxing Crescent Cold Moon

This is my first moon photo of 2011. It sure is a beauty and sets a high standard for the rest of the year. I caught most of the light and ambiance of the rising "toenail" moon.