1233. i’m not italian

a quiet dinner

thinking of my brother

eating spaghetti

 

Spaghetti, green salad, and bread. It’s Italian, but I’m not. Hardly. My mother was Czechoslovakian and my Pop Chinese, and at home they spoke German. How’s that for eclectic?  They both went out every day to work, they both gardened, and they both cooked. Mom’s cooking was heavy—potatoes and dumplings and bread, meats with gravy. Pop cooked delicate stir-fries—veggies and tofu and rice. I never had a green salad growing up. My cooking is all over the place.

 

Sitting here looking at this spaghetti with all that red sauce, it made me think of Yulin. When he was a kid, my brother loved to eat spaghetti sandwiches! I can see him now.♥️

1232. just sayin’

circle of trees

surrounding the stream

winter sun

Funny thing about this picture—it’s upside down! Just goes to show you, when in doubt—try turning things around. I was fiddling around, looking for an interesting picture to post and….voila!

1231. far away

a woman’s skirt

blowing in the noonday sun

all the way up

 

Far away from the woods, life sure looks different!

1230. treasure chest

in the bedroom

still life with shadows,

mornings after

Souvenirs:  name bands, wrist bands, lucky charm….headlights, night lights, Christmas lights….party beads, rosary beads.…headphones, earbuds, charger cords….doors opening and doors closing. So many stories, so many memories. 

1229. sing!

singing their song

just shrooming along….mushroom

 after mushroom

Every day is like a page turning over in a book. There’s so much to admire and weep over, to marvel and laugh and sing about. Try not to miss out!😘

1228. memory lane

winter footsteps—

snow geese marching on

waving goodby

* 

through the rusted fence

taking one last photograph—

the long farewell

 

Just around the corner, it soon will be Spring, with daytime temperatures rising and staying in the 40’s and 50’s. I enjoyed this Winter’s snows:  sledding, skiing, skating, shoveling….snow men, snow geese, snow bunnies….frosted windows and frosted trees.  Super duper! Though everything changes and comes to an end, memories can go on and on. I’m taking good care of my memories—not living them, just loving them—through pictures and poems.

1227. a slice of melon

bright as a sun

she stops to write a haiku—

irresistible

*

a slice of melon

tossed on the ground, looks good—

good enough to eat!

 

Bright as a sunny sun, she stops to write a haiku: a slice of melon. I couldn’t resist. Who else would want to write a poem about a yellow squash? 

Backstory:  Heading for my car after a walk in the woods, at the side of the road a bit of color caught my attention. Tucked in behind the trunk of an old fallen tree, two perfect melons—one orange, one green—were nestled together side-by-side like old companions. Hmmm. I turned back toward my car to go home, then remembered the Swiss Army knife in the glove box. I sliced both melons in half and placed them carefully for the animals to enjoy. 

 

1226. cat and bird

a red bird

keeps an eye on the birdfeeder

quiet…not moving

*

crouching down

licking ice from the pond below

a red cat

Sundown in Wissahickon Woods. The bird and the cat in the shadows. My camera was focused on the cat….and then I saw the bird. If you’ve heard about Tommy, the cat who lives in the woods—that’s Tommy!😻

 

1225. my fly on the wall

there’s the fly again

i swear, she winked at me—

hey mom!

 

She once said to me….”You know Mimmy, I won’t always be here for you so when I’m gone, I’ll come back and be a fly on the wall.”   Every once in a while there she is, my fly on the wall! ♥️

1224. next time around

becoming a cat

would be fine—sleeping all day,

gallivanting at night

 

Cats know how to settle down and relax….to hunt and pounce….to mouse and mooch….to muse and make merry….to mew and meow! Sounds like a good life to me. 😘

1223. thumbelina

dead of winter,

a yellow dandelion….

dares to bloom

I often enjoy a leisurely walk after dinner. It helps to settle the meal in my tummy, but yesterday‘s cold gusty winds were biting and I was hurrying to get home. My mind wasn’t on looking around to enjoy the scenery and I nearly stepped on something. A bit of yellow color. I reached down to brush away some debris and saw the flower—a pretty dandelion—all alone, no bigger than a tiny thumbnail. I thought of Thumbelina.

1222. training camp

in the story

everyone listens up….

and listens

 

That’s a Tulip Tree in Wissahickon Woods.  I don’t know how tall it measures, but in 1979, its age was measured to be 325 years! Now that’s something to look up to!

1221. my mind….

mesmerized… 

like a moth to a flame

drawn to the light

 

Colors and textures. Stucco and stone. Brick and mortar. Sashes and shingles. Venetian blinds. What’s going on there behind the lace curtains all the way up in the deep inky sky? 

1220. the picture

nothing to do now

until everyone leaves….

the manager

*

now

as the picture show is over—

another picture

After the movie everyone leaving the theater. Some heading to the bathrooms, the men’s room or the ladies’ room, some hurrying out toward the front door into the night, others lingering in the lobby discussing the merits of the film. One person sitting still.  Right away, I thought,  that’s a picture!

1219. for lovers

after the movie

for gourmand appetites….

tasting the moon

 

“The Taste of Things,” a French film with subtitles starring Juliette Binoche, opened last night at the Ambler Theater. It was Valentine’s Day. This movie revolves around the love of food and the love of love. It is all together beautiful!

1218. loving

making time

to sit down and fall in love

again and again

Cranes are known to fly together for life. In China, the red-crowned crane is a symbol of longevity and immortality. The peony, thought of as the ‘king of flowers,’ represents prosperity and is a symbol of masculinity and feminine beauty. 

1217. nothing special

6 in the morning 

my neighbor’s leaving for work—

glad it’s not me 

It’s early. It’s dark. It’s quiet. I hear my neighbor closing his door. I pull up the shade and look out the window. His car lights up and waits….then slowly pulls away. I bid him farewell. There’s my haiku.
 

1216. rosie

windy day

holding on to my hat…

and my kites

“Rosie”— 12x9” — Origami Mixed Media

If I had a dog, I would name her Rosie.🐶 I always wanted a dog. With origami, I can make a dog and dream to my heart’s content. If you think about it, there’s always a way to have what you want.

1215. after the show….

keeping calm

high above the clamoring crowd

the cool cats

 

It was the greatest:  last night’s live performance of Popovich Comedy Pet Theater—cats, dogs, hamsters, three geese, three white doves, one green parrot, and a pink pig—all flying, spinning, jumping, climbing, tumbling their best! You can find them on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram. If you ever have a chance to see them live, be sure not to miss it!

 

1214. Mikey & me

warming her nose

up against the radiator

funky lights

Early in the morning, Mikey doesn’t like loud noise or bright lights. She hunkers down with her blankee close to the ground and gets as close as she can next to the heat until the sun comes up.  Me too!😻😘

1213. talking to the moon

bare branches

on a chilly night reaching

for the moon

*

winter moon,

are you coming or going?

holding my sneeze

*

softly, softly

talking to the moon

with heart-mind

Worshipping the moon, the trees and I. 

1212. the daily 60

at the stop sign

stopping to get down—

up and down

 

That’s Murphy patiently waiting, while his companion finishes the final round of 10 for his daily 60, pushups that is, around the park.  Meeting these two gents on our way around the walking trail at Ft. Washing State Park, we met Murphy and his walking partner.  On the second time around we saw them again, this time doing push-ups. Well, that was a first….never thought I’d see someone doing pushups on a walking trail!😆

Like I was saying just yesterday, you never know what you might see if you keep your eyes open and look around.😘

1211. imposter!

ahh-ha!

posing as a butterfly—

it’s a mushroom!

 

This is what the old woman told me….Every day, my dear, be on the lookout. Look, and look again! Go out into the world and look around. See what’s there to see. You never know what you might find. And at the end of the day, just ask yourself:  What did I see today?

1210. blue on blue

frost-covered grasses

and between each blade….

the blue of the sky

*

green grasses

turned blue before my eyes

do they feel the cold?

It was a sunny morning and pretty, but cold. Standing still, holding the camera in my bare hands and shivering in the morning air, I couldn’t take my eyes off the grasses in the field. Out there in the shadow of old oak, the green grasses were so blue, almost the color of the sky.

1209. a pretty picture

time passing on

a woman stands alone

gazing into the lake

*

pretty trees

with water for a mirror

admiring their faces

*

old woman

wanting not to intrude

takes their picture

Meeting my friend to go for a hike in the woods, she and her companions were not yet finished with their dong stick practice, so I ambled down to the creek just to pass the time. Those trees, leaning all together so gently over the water looking at their reflection, or so it seemed to me, made a pretty picture. 

Walking thru the woods, I can always find a pretty picture.

1208. plenty

no more snow….

hundreds of geese in the fields

celebrating

On the way home driving past the open field, I stopped to admire the view, zooming in for a closer look and taking a photo….

After the snows, plenty of grass and plenty of geese, thick on the ground. We’re all grateful to be surrounded by plentiful open land. 

1207. feast

happy as a lark 

feasting at the bird feeders—

a squirrel!

 

It’s like a smorgasbord. Watching them by the birdfeeders as the flit and flash, swooping in and out, pecking away at seeds and grains and groats, dried fruits and suet. And the many different shapes, sizes and colors of cardinals, doves, finches, woodpeckers, chickadees…. I could sit for hours feasting my eyes as they feast their bellies. I love watching birds, but sometimes all I get is a squirrel!😘

1206. just lookin’

wild turkeys—

some turkeys gobble,

and some don’t 

Nature’s offerings: turkey tail mushrooms. After all the recent rains, the woods now are bountiful in many different kinds of mushrooms. There’s much to be said about the many benefits and side effects of eating wild mushrooms. I think I’ll limit myself to admiring their beauty. 

1205. nature’s kindness

raindrops

lingering on some bamboo….

for thirsty travelers?

 

Three days after Sunday’s rain, things had dried enough for a walk in the woods, yet the ground remained muddy in many areas. Stepping our way carefully, these five bamboo leaves on the ground caught my attention, covered over with raindrops as though it were raining in the moment, though it wasn’t, and lingering there for any travelers crawling by….or even walking by.