“For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.”
Psalm 100:5 ESV
One of my late afternoons last week was spent only a few minutes from home around the shores of Weiss Lake. There are some beautiful autumn colors still hanging on around NE Alabama. I noticed several egrets were content to sit in a nearby pine while a single bird was in the water fishing. Maybe the tree sitters were well fed. Or, maybe they were content to allow their fellow egret to locate a good fishing spot for the group!
Happy spring to everyone. Well, perhaps it is premature to speak of spring except to wish our readers who live much to our south a wonderful spring! I told Pam maybe bluebirds are really good housekeepers and are doing their end of the season maintenance and house cleaning! I have witnessed one exiting the bird house.
Vinca has emerged in the cottage garden gravel path in an area that was beneath the old bicycle where vinca grew all summer. This is just another aspect of unusual fall weather. If future predictions hold true we will see some much cooler days and nights late this week.
We had a good laugh over a reader’s comment last week about her rain gauge being a collector of dust particles. Look at what happened last Wednesday night/Thursday morning to our previously unemployed rain gauge! This was the most at one time we have seen over the past few months. More coming this week proclaim the prognosticators!
Pam and the girls had their end of the season tea party in the garden. WL and I had planned to crash the party, but at the last minute we were invited to stop by. No fancy tea cups or hot tea for the guys. We had iced tea and chocolate milk in our man containers. As you can see however, WL had no trouble accepting the goodies. A good way to reduce calorie intake is to get more around your mouth than in your mouth. A great way to cut back!
I did venture back to the top of Lookout Mountain again. While I did not find it totally clear, the skies were clearing. It was definitely a different day than the one where I posted from this same spot in SSS 522!
Some pines up on the mountain are a different type than we normally see in the valley, or at least more common. Just a few hundred feet in altitude seems to matter. These 2-needle pines can literally grow from cracks in a rock. I believe this is a Virginia pine, but this was over the edge which was about 40 feet straight down, so I was determined to be content with no further investigation!
I was glad to see this new addition to local Christmas decorations in our city. I watched as the steel frame took on the shape of a tree, and thought they would just string lights all over the frame. What a surprise a few days later to find this work underway. Located high on a hill above the river, this should really be a joy to view. I hope to come back with some pics when all is completed and working. It is beginning to look a lot like Christmas, and we’ve not even had Thanksgiving!
This window at Alabama Gift Company caught my eye, and again, it appears Christmas is breaking out all over the place. The owner of this local shop features as many items as possible that are made or crafted in Alabama. I headed in to buy PJ and the grands some shortbread cookies. I was able to find cookies that were not only produced in Alabama, but they came from a bakery and farm that is in our county!
What I call the “cormorant invasion” is underway again this fall. These birds are a real nuisance and messy is an understatement. They gather in colonies, and as a result, a high build-up of waste kills vegetation as well as other negative aspects this activity can cause. These congregate in the same place every year.
Cormorants are fish eaters and can dive deep to catch fish. Their sheer numbers can have a very negative effect on fish populations where they gather in such numbers. I understand many places seek ways to manage the cormorant population when they arrive in their area.
Enough about nasty birds…it is time for sweet kisses. There is a story here. When I was still quite a little boy, my grandfather (“Papa”) discovered that I liked Hersey’s Kisses. Once discovered, he made sure that there was always a bowl filled with chocolate kisses at his house. For years he kept them there. I loved them (still do) and he did too. I have decided to do the same for the grands. I purchased an inexpensive plastic jar to keep our kisses in. EM gave Pam the precious Home Sweet Home vase for her birthday, and I thought these two things naturally belonged together. BTW, Pam ate the opened one!
I enjoy reflections. Some cypress trees have turned brown or even lost most of their needles, but this one at the edge of the lake is still in autumnal display mode!
I named this photo “Headed For The Finish Line”. I am gathering the pumpkins as they are now all on the home stretch. In spite of a very warm season, they have held out great this year…we’ve really only lost one. It’s time now for the next chapter of seasonal saga!
A waxing gibbous moon over Weiss Lake as the late evening sun casts an orange glow along the shoreline.
I happened to look down a few minutes later along the near shoreline where I had walked along the mud flats to see that the man in the moon was about the be the man in the mud. Fortunate for him this was only a reflection!
I had a name for this one before I even made a photo… “Alone At The End Of The Day”!
I love sunsets over the mountains, especially when I can gaze across the water with nothing blocking the view. Partly cloudy skies tend to offer the most stunning of all, but I could never complain about this almost completely clear evening!
This bald cypress has lost most of its foliage, but it does have a room with a view!
Thankful for you all. Have a most blessed of weeks!
“Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!”
Psalm 118:1 ESV
Linking with:
Pieced Pastimes, Between Naps on the Porch, Katherines Corner, Follow The Yellow Brick Home,
Imparting Grace,Life and Linda
Beautiful photos as always. The bald cypress in its fall glory is stunning! WL is such a cutie with those bright blue eyes.
Looking forward to see the finished Christmas tree. It being on a hill I guess it can be seen far away. Can you see it from your house? Boulder lights a huge star from m Flagstaff mountain and it can be seen for many miles. It is already lit and it’s a joy to see. Since Lowell graduated I now have to take my cavalier King Charles spaniel out at night and the blessing that comes with that is that I see the stars and the moon and it’s light as been a light unto my path. WL has the right idea, feed his face. May God bless you and your family this week and always,
Good morning! Spectacular photos of those red skies! I love your “new” tradition of the Hershey kisses. My grandpa always gave us butterscotch candies. Will looked quite pleased with the tea party goodies. The dogs wanted to go out just as I finished your story, and I realized I had not checked the rain gauge…4” here! The highlight of my week was I drove yesterday for the first time since my surgery (a wee bit scary but liberating!).