Pic Today 6/30/17

 

YOUR HEART

is in my hand!

Pic Today 6/29/17

 

HIGH ABOVE

THE MERAMEC

On a hilltop

overlooking the

Meramec River.

A perfect day 

for a float trip

along this spring-fed

Missouri river.

Summertime U.S.A. 

Pic Today 6/28/17

 

LOTUS LEAVES

Even before

their perfect blossoms

rise from still waters,

the Sacred Lotus

shades itself with

 perfect umbrella leaves.

Beautiful!

Pic Today 6/27/17

 

THE PROMISE OF WILDFLOWERS

The joy of finding a stand

of black eyed Susans,

perfectly planted, wild

and catching me by surprise.

Pic Today 6/26/17

 

RICHART SPRING

One of many springs

that feed into the Meramec River.

The source of Richart Spring

starts in the front yard of our

cabin and property.

Following our recent and tragic floods,

it's good to see the land and river

restored to its natural balance.

(This shot was taken yesterday

at 6:00am, dawn's first light.)

 

Pic Today 6/25/17

 

RIVER RETREAT

Recent floods on the Meramec

have removed our access road and drive,

but the cabin remains a peaceful sanctuary.

Always worth the hike in!

 

Pic Today 6/24/17

 

AMARYLLIS

offering her stamens

for pollination.

Irresistible.

Pic Today 6/23/17

 

 

FLAG IN THE ROTUNDA

Looking up at Old Glory

inside the rotunda

at the Old Court House

in St. Louis.

Built in 1839,

the old Court House

is full of history and

momentous decisions,

not the least of which 

was the Dred Scott case,

where the U.S. Supreme Court

ruled against Scott (a freed slave)

because he was not a U.S. Citizen.

That was in 1857 and only the

2nd time the Supreme Court ruled

that an Act of Congresss was

unconstitutional!

In these very halls!

Pic Today 6/22/17

 

BOTTLE BRUSH 

BUCKEYE

Any wonder how this bush

got its name?

Those flowers would do the job.

 

Pic Today 6/21/17

 

ROUND BALES

IN THE FIELD

Spring grasses have been

cut and baled.

Round bales drying and

dotting pastures,

ready to feed livestock

  when the weather turns. 

Pic Today 6/20/17

 

RED CADDY LOVE

Not many cars more luxurious

than Cadillac Eldorado convertibles

from the 1970s.

Or longer.

(You'll need two parking spots.)

And red, no less.

Made for summertime lovin'.

 

Pic Today 6/19/17

 

FUTURE LEMONS

 How exciting.

My new Meyer Lemon Tree

is flowering.

With care, and sun,

and pollination

there will be many 

sweet Meyer lemons

at summer's end.

Pic Today 6/18/17

 

 

FRESH PICKED BERRIES

There's nothing better.

Golden raspberries,

black raspberries,

and

  just picked blueberries. 

Can't get 'em

  in my mouth 

  fast enough! 

😋

 

Pic Today 1/17/17

 

LITTLE BOXES

Flying home yesterday evening,

while getting a birds eye view

      of the ever expanding suburbs . . . 

I remembered Pete Seger

singing that great song 

"Little Boxes"

"and they're all made out of

ticky tacky, and they

all look just the same."

OMG, and here they are!

How does anyone remember

where they live, and what

driveway to pull into?

(How sad.)

 

Pic Today 6/11/17

 

BLOG ON HOLD

On assignment.

Gone, no blog posts

for a while.

I'll be back.

(Resuming 6/17.)

Ciao.

Pic Today 6/10/17

 

 

LADY'S MAN

He must have been one cool dude.

Look who he nabbed.

She's a beauty.

1850s in America.

Portrait photographers

on every block.

Glass plates, flash powder,

props, backdrops,

camera, tripod.

Everyone one wanted

a picture postcard.

(Miss Ella must have 

loved that dress.

Nice birthday gift.)

Pic Today 6/9/17

 

BIG OL' BASSWOOD

In fact, this white basswood tree

is the "largest known" of

its species,

and merits the title of

National Champion Tree in the U.S. 

Currently living and growing

at Missouri Botanical Garden,

this white basswood stands at 

103-feet tall, and was one

of Henry Shaw's original plantings

before the Civil War in the 1850s.

The name basswood comes from

"bast-wood" which is the useful

inner bark, used to make ropes & mats.

The flowers can be made into tea

and linden oil syrup from the sap.

Big trees are always magnificent.

 

Pic Today 6/8/17

 

 

POND GRASS

 AND HORSETAILS

There are two water grasses

that do especially well

in or near ponds or still water.

Cattails emerge in early summer,

and are gorgeous all on their own.

But horsetails are ancient grasses

that do well near streams or lakes,

and manufacture natural silica.

(Strange for a plant to make

its own mineral.)

Beautiful grasses, aren't they?

 

Pic Today 6/7/17

 

 

FINDING BEACH GLASS

Whenever I get to the beach

  (which is NEVER enough), 

  search for beach glass . . . 

tiny pieces of glass

which have been discarded,

  tumbled by sand and surf. 

When I lived in San Francisco,

I had favorite beaches

that were great sources of

colored beach glass

(green, brown, white

  and sometimes blue.) 

Small jars filled with

  colored, frosty glass. 

(One beach I could always count on

was rugged Rodeo Beach,

   Marin Headlands, California.

   Shown above.)  

Pic Today 6/6/17

 

 

A BERRY GOOD SEASON

All this rain

and heat.

Wild blackberries

 are plump and red,

   ready to earn their name ...

Nothing better than picking

sweet blackberries,

one at a time.

And it's almost blueberry heaven.

It's a berry good season!

Pic Today 6/5/17

 

 

SHOOTING IN THE RAIN

Somehow,

lilies are more beautiful

in the rain.

Adding jewels to their

gorgeous petals.

Beauty in the rain.

 

Pic Today 6/4/17

 

 

 

 

 

 

FARMERS MARKET

FAVORITES

Saturday morning bounty

at the local Farmers Market.

Organic, fresh picked.

My personal favorites:

o  Micro greens with edible flowers

o  Hand-picked ripe strawberries 

o  Baby zucchinis and squash

o  Sweet colored beets

o  Fresh cauliflower

o  Tart cherries

Freshness you can taste!

 

Pic Today 6/3/17

 

3 GENERATIONS

 

Daughter, mother, grandmother

enjoying ice cream on a 

warm sunny day!

 

Must be a genetic thing.

 

🍦

 

Pic Today 6/2/17

 

POLKA DOT

DRESS

This time of the year

I'm asked to shoot

lots of portraits.

Families, couples, children.

Kids are the best.

Catching them off guard.

And sometimes it's

a polka dot dress!

Pic Today 6/1/17

 

GET THE CORN IN

BY JUNE 1ST 

It's a good rule

for a healthy corn crop.

But with all our Spring rains

and record floods,

it's been a tough call for farmers.

Now we need sunshine

and warm weather. 

Happy June, everyone!