Tiny Rose

A couple of years ago I was given a miniature rose in a pot.  After it had bloomed nicely indoors I tried to figure out what to do with it.  My indoor space for plants is limited, so I tried it outdoors.  It has been uprooted and replanted a couple of times in trying for just the right space, but this year it has seemed happier and has produced several pretty little roses.  I thought the season was over, but Monday morning I went out to get the paper and found another one.  It had been raining and the rose still had raindrops, so I took a picture to share.  Here is a rose for you.

It's a cute little thing--only about two inches across, fully opened.

Back to the Renaissance Festival

How can you resist "seniors-get-in-free" day at the Renaissance Festival if you are a senior, live close to the happenings, and the day is glorious and pleasantly cool?  You'd have to be a stronger person than I to resist, and I didn't!

Each festival day begins with the entrance of Henry VIII and his entourage:

He is followed closely by the necessary clean-up crew.

Once he has gone inside the gates, the merriment begins.  This year one of the characters dons a variety of costumes representing animals (and in some cases the rider).  This one is is a dragon named Wasabi, I suppose because of his color.  Some kids loved it and would come up to pet it.  Some little ones had a screaming fit to get away.  It just didn't compute in their memory banks of acceptable creatures.

Later s/he changed into a caterpillar with a butterfly floating above his head.  Talk about something difficult to photograph!  Again some children came up to shake one of its "hands" and some wanted NOTHING to do with it!  The butterfly was referred to as "Mother" by the caterpillar.  Three photos--complete outfit, top, and bottom of the costume.

The willingness of the royalty to associate with and engage children is impressive.  I seriously doubt the real Henry VIII would have gotten down to this level to talk to a child.

Mimi and her children are most often found parading around in white costumes, walking on stilts and connected to one another by long white strands of cloth or ribbons, but occasionally they come down to earth.  Here she and what I presume is her eldest, Zizi, are blowing soap bubbles using their hands to form the soapy globes.
















Obviously I was having WAY too much fun with taking way too many pictures, so I'll stop here, and if you are interested in more of the photos, go to: http://picasaweb.google.com/ejoyce2/RenaissanceFestivalSeptember6#

EOS--End of Summer

Summer may not end on the calendar until later this month, but Labor Day weekend is, for all intents and purposes, the end of summer around here.  After a year when we have broken the record for the most 90+ degree days, this past weekend cruised in comfortably in the 70s and low 80s.  Perfect weather for outdoor fun.

On Sunday the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra gave a free concert in Quiet Waters Park in Annapolis.  It's a beautiful setting, with a bandshell at the bottom of a nice slope, making viewing easy. The ASO is a top-notch regional orchestra and gets better and better each year under the firm hand of music director Jose-Luis Novo.

I love those concerts. Kids get up and dance to the music, adults kick back with blankets or chairs and enjoy picnics and great music.

One really cute number featured percussionist Donald Spinelli as "soloist" playing cellphone ringtones on cue, which means he had to be ringing at just the right time to come in perfectly in the piece (which incorporated old familiar ringtones as part of the music).  Donald is quite the showman and obviously enjoyed himself.

It was a lovely way to end the summer.

Bombay Hook in Late August

Traditionally I make a one-day trek to Bombay Hook NWR in August to see migrating shorebirds.  It occurred to me the other day that August was essentially gone, and I hadn't yet made that jaunt, so I closed out the month with a trip to see the shorebirds.  The birds were there, and I saw most of what I hoped to see, but the birds were out of range for my camera.  For closer photos of birds I have to go to Chincoteague, and even there most of the little stuff is just beyond camera range.  Some of the wildflowers, however, were showing off for me.

Even if I didn't have a calendar, I would know fall was on the way when certain wildflowers show up.  The goldenrod is a prime example.

Thistle is another one.  There are a number of thistle species, some native and others not, and they are the curse of some naturalists, but the goldfinches love them when they go to seed.  The seeds feed their young, and the down from the seeds line their nests.  Butterflies seem to like them, too.

When milkweed goes to seed, it has wonderful seed pods.

I must confess that all these were taken from the car window.  I'd focus, lower the window, take the shots, and quickly raise the window again.  The mosquitoes and "bitey" flies (horseflies?) were rampant, and the temperature was around 95.  I saw what I wanted to see and left for home!