Spring Nap Time

My Skepticism was Unfounded

It really does seem to be Spring -- this is the first year since records have been kept (the 1800's) that we have had ZERO snow in March

The Skunk Cabbage are emerging

and of course...

                      .... croci

Signs of Spring

Maybe the groundhog was right -- and the six more weeks of winter are now over...the Canada Geese have returned (birds never let me get a good photo of them...they're always trying to get away from me...)

...and the first Snowdrop has emerged in my yard

This is probably ridiculous talk -- winter can't be over -- we can't even plant for another 11 weeks (Memorial Day)...

Red Barn with Blue Hose and Blue Barn with Red Door

Carrying a camera definitely makes me more observant (and thus a bit slower) on my daily walk.

Although I walk past them frequently I hadn't noticed before today that both of these barns have cobblestone foundations -- or that the red one has a name: Nestledale Farm.

Tree Shadow

Bright Sunshine + White Snow = a shadow as pretty as the tree

Sunbeams in the Fog

I just returned from a lovely trip to the coast -- Mendocino, California.
Spring was springing in Mendocino -- it was a bit disappointing to return home to a foot and a half of unplowed snow in my driveway!

The combination of the fog and the sunlight made these sunbeams look so tangible -- as if I could reach out and grab something substantial.

Gotta love college towns

Took a little trip to watch the Syracuse-UConn men's basketball game

Otto the Orange

The Middle-Eastern restaurant is in the Valentine's Day spirit

? not sure what this place is...

The games are played in the Carrier Dome -- essentially a giant balloon (not helium -- it stays grounded).
Hold on to your hat -- when exiting The Dome the pressurized air literally pushes you out the door -- makes for a bad hair day -- but certainly clears out the crowd quickly!  This photo was taken from our hotel room window.

Sixteen five-foot diameter fans located in mechanical rooms on the north and south sides of the building are used to keep the Carrier Dome’s 220-ton roof inflated. Each fan has the capacity to generate 95,000 cubic feet of air movement per minute, giving the total operation a capacity of moving well over one million cubic feet of air per minute.
http://suathletics.syr.edu/sports/2009/2/3/GEN_0203090820.aspx

Sunrise

An interesting sunrise this morning

about 5 minutes after I took this photo there was a rainbow to the left of the sun (didn't get that photo)

Freddy-Sue

Today I went into the big city (Rochester, NY) -- there is a nice walking path along the river.  This is a photo of the "Frederick Douglass-Susan B. Anthony Memorial Bridge" (honoring Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony, both of whom had ties to Rochester during their lives) and downtown Rochester.  Of course the locals affectionate call the bridge "The Freddy-Sue".  The bridge spans the Genesee River, the river was very calm today -- nice reflections

Peep Line

An interesting peep line  (adapted from a peep hole) -- the snow on the deck almost reaches the snow hanging down from the deck railing -- leaving a horizontal window to peek through..

The Deer Missed One

I found a field of unharvested corn and inserted myself into it....the ears are still on the stalks -- but they are just cobs -- no kernels -- the deer have seen to that!

But I found one that the deer missed...

so I uncovered it..

I bet the kernels won't be there tomorrow!

Linear Views

After my walk in the linear park the other day I started thinking that linearity can provide some interesting photos.  Today's walk was along the Canandaigua City Pier -- it provides great views of Canandaigua Lake.                                               

A chorus line of gulls.

The Canandaigua Lady

I took this photo because I liked the contrast of the bright red and yellow on a grey day -- but when I looked at the photo I noticed the linear view of the dock and the windows.

The Canandaigua Lady is a 19th century replica of a double-decker paddlewheel steam boat. She is a successor to the steamboats that operated on the Finger Lakes between 1820 and 1930 -- during that time there were 19 steamboats that operated as the primary means of transportation -- there were no roads along the lake.

Warm Days

After several weeks of very cold snowy weather we have had a week of relative warmth (30's) I took the primrose in snow photo yesterday -- buds starting to open -- what a difference a day makes -- the photo without snow was at 8 am this morning and it was 56 degrees!

Yesterday

Today

I hope they know what they are doing -- the prediction is 9 DEGREES on Thursday.

Reflections

A swampy area has thawed enough to form a still pond of water capturing reflections of the trees.

I walked along the Lehigh Valley Trail today.  Towns in my area have developed unused railroad track beds into paths for walkers, bikers, horses...(no motorized vehicles) -- they're referred to as linear parks.

Linear View

The Snow Eases

After a long stretch of cold and snowy weather it was a pleasure to see this gorgeous sunrise from my front porch -- the sun does still exist!

Frosty and Snowflakes

Yesterday was too cold for an outdoor stroll (9 degrees) so I decided that a photo of Frosty would pretty much sum up the day: cold, snowy and blowing.  I'm new to photography so I was surprised to see the snowflake effects in this photo--so much to learn...

Yuccas in the Snow

These yuccas are in the "desert" section of my garden.  I'm always impressed that the yuccas and cacti (hidden under the snow) survive our harsh winters.