Thursday, June 26, 2008

A new home. Welcome!


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I like it. Changing templates all week was fun, draining, and irritating. Last night I finally learned how to add page elements. Always in a hurry in the evenings, I just couldn’t figure it out, swearing, “It…can’t…be…that…difficult.”. There’s more work to do, like browsing through a few thousand photos and choosing a few I’d like to add to my sidebar when I have a few minutes to spare.

My photos tell a week-long story, if you have a minute or two.



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We visited the vet today. If our little mighty wad of muscle, Bella, would slow down a bit, she might not have hurt her back or injured her knee months ago. Her decision was to stop running and playing on Tuesday evening. Gasp. Giving up chasing hula-hoops and balls is the equivalent of giving up food when you are speaking of Boston Terriers. Prescription: muscle relaxants and anti-inflammatory drugs for a week. No running or playing. Joke. After a dose of each, she’s on the mend.


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Best Bird Photo of the Week


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Honorable Mention


We had two inches of rain last Saturday night.

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Fire in the sky.


A much needed tropical depression for a few days would keep me inside. I'd tend to indoors or shave my legs, et al ;-) and allow time to read great blogs I’m missing. Perhaps I'd finish some novels on my nightstand that collect dust. The sun is relentless and clouds are rare.


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The two-hour storm didn’t help. When I notice the leaves of the birch trees drift downwards on a still evening, my conscience always takes me to Cedar Rapids. That’s when I feel helpless. God Bless them.


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I don’t care about the grass. If I were rich? I’d dig up the entire backyard and add more water features, garden paths, flowers, and trees. I can see it in my mind. Beautiful. But only with rain. A large swimming pool to float in for a while before preparing dinner would be nice, too. If I had acreage, I’d have a prairie like Susan’s. For now, we have room for the dogs to run and burn their soft pads on crusty soil.

Signing off for a few days,

Sun-baked in NC


26 comments:

thailandchani said...

I really like the new look.. and especially the larger pictures!

Rose said...

Mary, I definitely like this lighter background better than the black; it sets off your fantastic photos so much better.
Glad some of your old feathered friends have come back, but wishing you some rain for your grass.
(I thought my daughter was the only one who left the TV on to entertain the dogs when she was gone!)

Ruth said...

Your new template is fresh and clean. I cannot believe how dry and brown your lawn is. We had a dry summer last year, but this June has been very wet...lots of green grass, mushrooms and mosquitoes out there!

RuthieJ said...

Pool little Bella--I'm glad she's doing better already.

Ouch, your poor grass....I can almost hear it crunching! I hope you get some more rain soon, Mare!

KGMom said...

I like the new look -- and I can even read the text against the cream color background ;-)

WOW--you really have dry grass. I know what you mean about seeing a redesigned yard in your mind. I have already sort of hinted to my husband that when he retires, I would like to dig up our back yard and turn it into a wildlife certified zone--whatever that means.

dmmgmfm said...

Your new look is great, Mary!We've had a few days of heat, and last night we had a big storm. The lightning and thunder were so impressive, but I am very glad it isn't dry here or there would have been wildfires.

Big hugs,
Laurie

The Quacks of Life said...

dragonfly is really good.

oh btw I have a lay tab. GROWL!! pic just won't stay there

JeanMac said...

Love your pictures!

Robin's Nesting Place said...

I really like your new look! It is so sad to see how dry everything is.

beckie said...

Mary, A definite yes to the new home. I can read it and I love the pictures you are adding to the sidebar. Poor Bella, I know if she gave up playing she was really hurting. Glad she is on the mend. Of course your dragonfly is my favorite picture. You do have the touch when it comes to getting nature to pose for you. I sure hope you get some rain! Have fun shaving or reading or doing what ever!

Jayne said...

I love your new template look Mary! Great job! I'm like you in that I tweak, tweak, tweak and then tweak some more to find that "aha!" moment when I know it is just right. Hope Bella feels better really soon, and that you have a great weekend.

Lisa at Greenbow said...

Mary, I really like the your new blog home. It is easy to read and fresh looking.

I do feel sorry for your poor garden. Even though I don't crave a lawn I hate to see one all dried up and so early in the season. I do hope some more of those beautiful dark clouds come by to give you more rain. Your area certainly needs it. Beautiful sky picture.

I hope Bella is getting better. Poor little girl. She was just trying to have some fun.

Anonymous said...

The new layout is very nice - easy to read and clearly shows off your pictures. Sounds like there's a lot going on off-blog, too.

Take care!

NatureWoman said...

I like your new home, Mary! Wow, I can't believe your grass is dry, bummer.

Cheryl said...

Gosh you are sunbaked Mary....we are still having cool nights and warm days, around 66 degrees. This weather suits my celtic genes.....

The photo of the bird is stunning, she seems to be looking straight at you.....

Hope Bella is well soon....lots of pats from me....

Angie said...

You are priceless, girlfriend!! :D Your commentary, along with your photos, is just delightful. :) Poor Bella, having two wienies, one of which has suffered with serious back problems for the last 6 years, well, suffice it to say, I know what BOTH of you are going through. Hope she's feeling better soon. And oh that cowbird (?) picture...grrr....where's my gun??? Between the drought, the heat, the cowbirds and the deer, I've lost what few marbles I had left. :-[ Got the doves, too, but I would rather have them than the daggone cowbirds. :( Beautiful shot of the dragonfly!! And lovely brown lawn is running a close second with MY lovely brown lawn!!! ROFL

Angie said...

Ooops, meant to tell you your new background is most excellent!! :) Now, if you don't mind, I mean, I'm really not trying to be bossy...ROFL....but could ya, would ya, MAYBE increase the font size just a hair....and you will have the BEST blog in blogdom!!!! ;D

Sandpiper (Lin) said...

Hi Mary!!! I love your new look! It feels wonderful and sunny to come here in the morning. So cheerful!

I'm sorry about Bella, but glad she is on the mend. Your bird pictures are terrific, and that dragonfly- WOW! That's fantastic!!

The sky shot you posted is sooooooooo beautiful and DRAMATIC!! That's worthy of printing!!

I can't believe your brown grass!! I had no idea it was that dry there. Wow! I'll do a rain dance for you. We have more than we need. It seems like it rains every afternoon here now. It's so tropical that it worries me because we're overdue for a hurricane here!

Have a great day and congratulations on the great blog! It looks fantastic.

Q said...

Dear Mary,
The large pictures are very nice.
Dragonfly is beautiful!
Sweet little lady...hope she is mended soon.
So very dry for you. Climate change is upon us.
Stay cool. Thank goodness for the ac.
Sherry

Susie said...

Love your new look! The colors are just beautiful and it's so easy to read.
We're so dry here too. Seems like there's no "happy medium" anymore!!
(flood or drought!)
Enjoy your break.
xo

Richard said...

Great layout and colors on your new blog. Love it. Pictures jump out now.

Mary C said...

Well at least your cannas don't seem to be suffering. I'm wondering and thinking you keep them well watered when you allowed to water. Then again, they do well with little watering. My cannas are huge this year - I'll have to post a couple of photos. And your sky photo - wow! I had to chuckle at the "title" you gave it. I'm planning to post a sky watch of what our sky has been looking like the past few days because of all the fires around California. I like your new template, Mary. Your photos still stand out even with a yellow/buff background. Have a great weekend.

NCmountainwoman said...

Hope Bella heals soon. It's hard to keep them down when they begin to feel better.

We got none of the rain. It all went to our east. I feel sorry for the tourists who thought they were coming to the cool mountains.

Enjoy your indoors weekend.

Anonymous said...

Nice new layout! And your "grass" looks about as good as mine. We had a half-inch yesterday, which seemed like a miracle.

Love your cowbird shot. A few years back, when I worked at a fashion magazine, we debated the merits of mixing brown and black. I'm for it, and used the cowbird as an example of how chic it can look when the brown is really rich. Still, it's a tough sell to some folks.

Redzlan aka Tabib said...

Lovely, beautiful pictures!

Naturegirl said...

Mary the ~fire in the sky~ photo is simply amazing! Loved catching up on all your recent posts! Great prose and your humor always makes me laugh!