§ Playing With Oil

While waiting on the clock to tell me it's time to go to the bank [appointment only to get through the lobby], I dubbed a bit with some of my images...with, my online oil paint effect:

On the left, above, one of my pastels - hummingbird
On the right, above, my Don Juan Rose

These two above are from my walk on June 30th

A hybrid, pink, turk's cap [normally red blossoms]...and a lantana blossom

That walk...oh, what a walk it was!!  Five plus miles...but, what a walk it was.  I'll tell you all about it later.

§ I wish NOT on my Worst Enemy!

Still bored. Working on the puzzle from hell a few minutes at a time. I tellya, being that it is 5D, I wouldn't want this for my enemy!! What a pain. I see a piece, think it's fitting for the place I think would fit, pick it up, and the whole design changes in front of my eyes. It's like I want to pick up my puzzle table and toss the whole shebang out the window. Then, again, I will keep complaining about it, and finish it...but, never again. On any "D puzzle" from now on, I'll pass.

Bud finished one of his Texas whiskey bottles the other day. I loved the shape of it...glass, and shaped like a royal crown. I got the sticky label off, soaked it in soapy water, rinsed it out, and filled it to the brim with clear, clean water then, added blue food coloring.

I've been crocheting a bit here and there. I have done ten more new pansies for my afghan. I think that makes 34 left to do, then crochet them all together. Maybe by September or October if we are to remain in lockup, I'll have it done.

Speaking of September...I've been shopping online for gaiters. Do you know what gaiters are? Not gators, but gaiters. It's what Nancy Pelosi wears to match her outfit. A face mask [usually for skiers or hunters.] I found some really pretty ones [who said I couldn't make a fashion statement like so many others are these days?!!], but the delivery dates for the ones that are pretty were all way beyond September into October! I don't think so. So, I spent a couple hours on the phone, searching and found three --buy three at that price and no shipping charges. They're to be delivered within a week's time [as I type this up...I may have them already by the time this is prescheduled to post].

Went for another joy ride over the past week...to Joe Fulton Corridor. This is an area between the river and the ship channel. Behind most of the oil refineries. There is a lot of standing water in this area after heavy rains, so I thought I'd find some birds...hoping to see the Wood Storks that return to this part of Texas in June/July. I didn't see any birds but red winged blackbirds and a couple of stilts in this part of my drive.  And being a Sunday morning, early, I was very surprised to have such heavy semi-truck traffic on their way to or from the loading docks at the port o'call or at the refineries.  There is no place but one [at the river bank] to safely pull over and off the road.  Believe me, those trucks slow down for no-one.

I did see lots of cattle on the hill tho.


I drove on...back on Carbon Plant Road, and saw one caracara...a juvenile bird.



Juvenile Crested Caracara

I then hit Tule Lake...still only a stilt or two and some swallows. So, I ended up at West Guth Park and walked there a bit. Very humid and by the time I arrived it was getting hot too. I saw parakeets, curlews, ducks, seagulls and more. I watched some men playing a round of disc golf...

and then noticed as I climbed the hill back to the car a lot of people congregating with no masks and groups of more than ten. Time to get out of harm's way. I headed for home and made a pumpkin pie with crust from scratch.  While it was baking in the oven, the scent made the whole house smell delicious.  Besides Blackberry pie being my favorite, I think pumpkin is my 2nd choice.  But if given an ultimatum, I think I'd have to sample BOTH!

§ A walk in the Park...Stormy Weather

It was a morning, more or less, of keeping an eye on the sky! Tho the weather pattern promised a sultry day, the chance of rain was there. So, from the time I left home, and while walking the park road, I kept vigil on the cloud cover and listening to distant thunder and watching flashes of lightning to the west, toward Kingsville, Texas. I’ve been in downpours where along the highway I can’t see in front of the car…I didn’t particularly want to be caught outdoors in a situation like that. This post is mostly looking up….

From the morning sunrise in our subdivision just as I was leaving…

…to partly cloudy…





…and a front line of storm on the horizon…

…stopping on the way home at Tule Lake to see if I could find the Wood Stork reported in the vicinity, searched for it…one took off from behind the bushes and landed where I couldn’t see it with the camera lens. I waited, but it never did come out in the open, before I reluctantly thought I’d better leave and get home before the torrents of water fell from above. Tule Lake is behind the interstate highway, between all the oil refineries. Thunder, Lightning and dark, ominous clouds threatened a storm - this photo is looking northeast toward the Victoria, Texas area, the area of Kingsville, to the west of Corpus was hit with torrential rain on that day….

Oh, and while at the park, walking, I did look down at some point. Seeing these:

...just before turning off the access road into the city limits, I pulled over and snapped these photos from the car. Cotton, once again, is now being harvested here in south Texas...

§ The Left Side of My Blog Is Completely Missing...

...but it's all right now!!!

I find feathers all the time, and some I actually take photos of and wish I could take 'em home with me. Colors, markings such as stripes and polka dots in their patterns fascinate me....

Red Tailed Hawk


Rhode Island Red Rooster

Roseate Spoonbill - if I could've walked safely without sinking in the marsh/mudflats -it's like quicksand, you sink easily- I WOULDA got this one and taken it home!!!  Rare to see.

Mockingbird



- - -

Utilizing Lunapic:

...the Nebula Filter [one of my favorites; a Sci-Fi filter...eerie!]. The original photo is in the small insert of each...

Sea shell


Harlequin Flower Beetle [Insect in Texas] and Magnolia Blossom 'remnant'


Stepping Stones at Learning Center [Oso Bay]

...Then, of course I couldn't stop at just ONE filter, I chose these photos and picked the Landscape Filter...

Cut Boulder [notice the 'screw' threads within the inner circle - perhaps an old culvert was there?]  Torn up road debris that helps deter erosion along the shore near the Army/Navy Depot.


The old Line Camp along Padre Island National Seashore and a observation deck at Bazemore Park


Boardwalk at Paradise Pond and the Giant Live Oak Tree at Goose Island State Park

- - -

I see FIRE!

Near the Industrial area and Oil Refineries [big revenue in Texas!] sometimes on my phone app, there is an alert that comes thru about Flaring.  Periodically [sometimes continually] the refineries will have a flame coming up through the gas release stack.  Sometimes you see only a small flame at the opening with a lot of steam coming out in a form of a cloud.  Sunday morning, as I drove around looking for birds and driving to my walking trail, I noticed off the interstate at some distance a flame...a flare!  It was visible for miles. Taking the exit,  I used my cellphone to capture the fire and exhaust stacks.   Then, I continued on the off ramp and drove around and along the Nueces River to my left and the Ship Channel to my right...the back side of town.  Along the green hills in the background, between the dips and valleys of the hill country, the Flare was again visible.  I pulled off and took more photos.  It is some 15-20 [guesstimation] miles away from me at this point.

flares explained

Well, that was my Sunday Morning.  By the time I completed my walk and taking literally 197 photos on my camera card, I headed home...ate lunch, and then dubbed with resizing some of the photos off the camera and read some more in my book.  It was warm walking, but overcast and at one park, Indian Point Park that I frequent often, I hit the mother lode of birds!!  [that's why so many photos for one day.]

Oh, and one of the birds with the Nebula filter also...


Western Sandpiper