THE LADY BUG AND THE BUTTERFLY

Lady bugs all dressed in red

Wafting through the flower beds

If I were little just like you

I'd dance among the flowers too.

--English Nursery Rhyme

Beautiful and graceful, varied and enchanting, small but approachable,

Butterflies lead you to the sunny side of life. And everyone deserves a little sunshine.

~Jeffrey Glassberg

BEACON

"Lighthouses are more helpful than churches." — Benjamin Franklin

Pensacola Light House

In 1858 a new lighthouse was built on the north side of the bay entrance, and the lamp in the tower’s first-order Fresnel lens was first lit on New Year’s Day, 1859 by Keeper Palmes. Located on NAS Pensacola, the tower stood 160-feet-tall. The base of the tower had a diameter of 30 feet, tapering to a diameter of 15 feet at the top. One of my favorite views of this lighthouse is from Ft. McRee.

WILDFLOWERS

For myself I hold no preferences among flowers, so long as they are wild, free, spontaneous. Bricks to all greenhouses! Black thumb and cutworm to the potted plant! ~Edward Abbey

Wildflowers along the road from Ft. Pickens.

I spent another afternoon wandering around Ft. Pickens taking pictures. Unfortunately, out of 87 pictures only 5 were worth saving. Something went wrong with my focus. This is one of the five, and even this one is not focused properly.

GLADIOLI

Flowers seem intended for the solace of ordinary humanity ~John Ruskin

No words needed

CLOUDS AND FLOWERS

Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under the trees on a summer`s day, listening to the murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time  ~John Lubbock

The cloud formations this past week have been lovely. Blue skies, fluffy clouds and a glow from the setting sun.

YUCCA ALOIFOLIA,
Spanish bayonet, or dagger plant
Taken at Ft. Pickens

BIRDS OF A FEATHER

"I arise in the morning torn between a desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day." ~ E.B. White

This morning I took my coffee and headed down to the dock and had to turn right around and rush to get my camera.

Waiting to share my morning was a Great Blue Heron and three immature Little Blue Herons.

What a wonderful way to start the day!

A FT. PICKENS EVENING - PART 2

"I was always a lover of soft-winged things." ~ Victor Hugo

While waiting for the sun to set, I came across two blue herons quietly strolling along the shore. I've wanted to photograph these lovely birdes in flight, but they seemed to be determined to stay on the beach no matter how close I came.

As I was following these two herons, a third flew by giving me little time to react.

Luckily I was somewhat prepared and finally caught one of these wonderful birds in flight.

It must have been my lucky evening, because soon after I took the picture of the flying heron, the two I had been following suddenly let loose a loud cry and flew out over the water. The lighting put their forms in silhouette.

Then I spotted a third heron flying towards me. I was feeling very lucky indeed.

As the sun was setting, one of the herons flew past my view finder and I clicked. Not a great picture, but I like the black silhouette against the gold cast of the water.

Then as we were leaving for the evening, my son almost stepped on this little ghost crab! This is from behind him. Don't you love the eyes?

And here he is from the front. A little less strange looking.

A FT. PICKENS EVENING-PART 1

"The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever." ~Jacques Cousteau

My son is visiting from Annapolis, MD and Friday evening we drove out to the very end of Ft. Pickens to watch the sunset. He asked to borrow my camera and took this lovely shot.

When I got my camera back, I noticed how beautifully the clouds were lit by the setting sun and how lovely it was to see them through the sea oats.

Well worth the wait. The sunset was glorious.

AHHH

"Everyone chases after happiness, not noticing that happiness is right at their heels." ~Bertolt Brecht


Sitting here makes me happy.

FLIGHT

"For most gulls, it is not flying that matters, but eating. For this gull though, it was not eating that mattered, but flight." ~Richard Bach-Jonathan Livingston Seagull.

REFLECTING SKY

The sky broke like and egg into full sunset and the water caught fire.

~ Pamela Hansford Johnson

I love how the water has taken on the colors of the sky.

MY BUDDY

"If you think Labs can't count, try putting three dog biscuits in your pocket and then give her only two!" ~Anonymous

The Sentinal

The chewer

The poser (But I am smiling!)

Best Friend

VERBENA

If you pass the color purple in a field and don't notice it, God gets real pissed off. ~ Alice Walker

GULF ISLANDS NATIONAL SEASHORE

The loneliness you get by the sea is personal and alive. It doesn't subdue you and make you feel abject. It's stimulating loneliness. ~Anne Morrow Lindbergh

We spent another day at GINS along the Ft. Pickens road. This has to be my favorite stretch of beach. Today we saw dolphins slowly swimming towards the pass. The water was clear, blue and warm. And we did nothing more than read a little and watch the sea.

CONTENTMENT

"A contented heart is an even sea in the midst of all storms." - Unknown

This gentleman watching his fishing pole, listening to music and enjoying the sun struck me as the epitome of contentment.

GARDEN ART

"Nothing is more the child of art than a garden." ~Sir Walter Scott

A Friend's Garden

SUNSET ANGLER

"There is certainly something in angling that tends to produce a serenity of the mind." ~Washington Irving