§ Walking the Mudflats of Packery Channel....

On this morning, I decided to walk along the mudflats behind Packery Channel Park. I had read that the tide was going to be low at that hour, and thought maybe I could spot some shorebirds. Very little activity witnessed, except for the usual suspects of gulls and herons. Several boats and fishermen were out trying their luck on the still waters. So, to keep this mudflat saga a short narration, I will just show some photos from walking.

§ More Framed Photos Converted to Paintings...

Well, it's another morning of not getting out early. So, again, I sit at the computer to play. I had five other images that were 'painted' in the watercolor effect from an online app, and I figured I'd do one more to even out the number to upload to this post. As I sit here, waiting to have the weather clear out a bit so I can drive to Pet Smart after my walking, etc. for cat food and litter box filler, I again play. And, as I did previously with the gold frame I made in Paintshop Pro, I changed the color of the frame for each image. Here are the other images I said I had ready to post...

Butterfly at Oso Bay Wetlands

Hibiscus in our yard

Spring Larkspur at Packery Channel Park

Hooded Merganser [male] at Bazemore Park in Calallen, Texas

Water lily on Pond

Green Jay

§ Just Call Me "Crafty"...

I borrowed this idea from fellow blogger, Ms. G, aka nookworm from one of her crafting posts a few weeks ago. Of course, I am not lucky enough to find any maple leaves around here [at least nearby], so I opted for the artificial ones found at Hobby Lobby. I took the liberty of adding a bit of purple and dark blue acrylic paint to the darker leaves to give them a bit more depth, and sprinkle on a bit of 'fairy dust' while the paint was still wet. I then, took a piece of wooden dowel and did the twine thing...the same technique to use to secure witch broom bristles to the broom shaft....used two black tipped straight pins for its feelers and glued on two green [also from straight pins] for its eyes. Altho, I think her REAL leaf butterfly is much more tastefully and artfully finished, I decided to keep what I made and call it done!!

§ To the Tune of Jamaica Farewell

chorus...

I'm glad to say I'm on my way
South of home to the town, Port A
My heart is glad
And my car's in gear
I'm primed for all the beautiful birds I hear!



Oh, I'm glad to say, along the bay
I drove some miles,
Seeing beauty that wowed...
Then mid-morn - a cotton-filled, heart-shaped cloud!!

Jamaica Farewell by the Kingston Trio
(Song)

§ Nature's Glory...

It's been glorious these past few days.  Much cooler and much drier than this past few months of summer.  Ya, only 3 months of summer, I know, but living in the sub-tropics it seems like an eternity of heat and humidity.  I'm glad to say...it is much improved.  I can breathe, I can walk without sweating the minute I step outside.  I thought I'd share some of the beauty that surrounded me the last few weeks. 

One day, the sun peeking through the clouds as I walked the trail...

I search for anything that has hearts. I was going to save this photo for my birding blog, but since it also has a heart shape in the image, I'd share it with both of my blogs. Do you see it* in the image below? This is a photo of an Inca Dove perched in a tree near a drip fountain in a park about a 20 minute drive from Corpus.

*hint: look top left corner

§ Strollin' down the Avenue...

The other day, when I said there were very few photos on the SD card out of my camera, keep in mind on any given day, on my walks, I can take over 100 photos at a time. Easily. Of course, some are no good, the head of a bird is chopped off, the image is blurred [Or a bird flew off as I pushed the shutter button and have only a tree branch], or simply "I don't like it". Anyway, since I was cut short on my computer time because of Windows 10 update, I will just share the pics I have of my early morning outing. Firstly, again, it was warm and very humid at 7a.m. when I started my walking. And when I saw the flag in the far distance at the golf course club house, I thought "Limp! Hot! That's how I feel".

When I entered the park grounds, the sun had just risen, and the deer were out and about. Some had those darling, curious, little ones with them...the mamas of course, were very protective, so I took the photos from the open car window:

“Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.”
– Ralph Waldo Emerson

§ Butterflies are Free...

Just a bit of eye candy today, nothing special. I've been cleaning out the folders on my computer, and noticed I had many butterfly images. So...you're gonna get a dozen pictures of butterflies! I'm not even gonna take the time to ID them this time around...not only too lazy, but I wanna get back to cleaning up this set of archive folders.  I have an overload of many photos that are useless...