Pictures and Possibilities......

Did you ever take a picture for no reason....
let it just sit there in your picture folder....
It has no story, just a picture.... but when you go
back and look at it... there's possibilities after all.
Here are a few pictures with some possibilities....

Dizzy? Is he? or has he broken his neck?

Not a he at all....
It's a female American Goldfinch and she looks up as
if to say.......What?

The blue of the Blue Jay looks good against the
brown of the brown fall leaves...

Two for the price of one.... I was shooting the deer
but got the groundhog too.

The keen eye of the Mockingbird hiding among the berries

click for a close up of this daddy long legs...

A pair of Ring necked Pheasants in a perfect setting...

Red Tail Hawk on a pole... hunting

when it flew away and an opportunity for a BIF opened
up ... I got it!!

A Bald Eagle takes flight...

If you click on this photo of the moon taken out my
living room window... you will see the colored leaves..
Possibilities... and a surprise to me. I was just admiring
the moon...didn't expect to get the fall reflected there.

And last but surely not least....I was on my home from work
when I saw this shot... I drove to a higher destination so I
could take it. This old hymn came to mind...

Heaven came down and glory filled my soul,

When at the cross the Savior made me whole;
My sins were washed away and my night was turned to day,
Heaven came down and glory filled my soul!

To God be The Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done

Happy Halloween

What is this "spirit' stuff they keep talking about?

Hey Joe! Read the sign..

Oh yea....Halloween... I'm glad we don't have to dress up
and go out looking for treats....

Happy Halloween to all my blogger buddies!!

To God be the Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done

Are you the Perfect Tree?

You would think that as many trees as there were to choose from

finding the Perfect Tree would have been easy.... NOT!

Click the sign to read... As I traveled in my search I found many things to shoot... Like
this bridge in Bedford County

The stream, blue sky, and farmland, but no Perfect Tree

Mr. Red Belly didn't want to help, he was too busy
eating and storing suet

The Cemetery next to me had some great possibilities
but none stood apart from the other

Looking up I asked... Are you the Perfect Tree?

It seems you have some beauty among your limbs

I like looking up at you and standing beneath your
towering arms...

Mr. Carolina Wren, is checking out my new house
I got for my birthday. He likes the deer horn for a perch...
no help from him

Looking down into the valley you would think one Perfect
Tree would just jump out... Where are those bright vibrant
colors from years past....

Well now that you ask.....
Perhaps you've noticed that in some years, the red fall colors seem brighter and more spectacular than in other years. The temperature and cloud cover can make a big difference in a tree's red colors from year to year.
When a number of warm, sunny autumn days and cool but not freezing nights come one after the other, it's going to be a good year for reds. In the daytime, the leaves can produce lots of sugar, but the cool night temperatures prevent the sugar sap from flowing through the leaf veins and down into the branches and trunk. Anthocyanins to the rescue! This helps make sure that the tree will be ready for the next growing season. Anthocyanins give leaves the bright, brilliant shades of red, purple and crimson.

Will you help me find the Perfect Tree Mr. Skunk?

Are you asking what is an anthocyanins?
They are not present until the leaf begins breaking
down the chlorophyll, and have been shown to act as a "sunscreen",
protecting cells from high-light damage by absorbing blue-green
and UV light, thereby protecting the tissues

The red squirrel, Henry, is at a loss for words.. no
help here

This could have been a Perfect Tree....

But it had already released all of it's yellow and orange
colors and they've become a blanket for the grass

Aha! If only the sky was blue...when I came across this
tree in a golf course in Bedford County... Almost perfect?

You would have thought one of these trees would
be the Perfect Tree... but not quite up to standard

The amount of rain in a year also affects autumn leaf color.
A warm, wet period during fall will lower the intensity,
or brightness, of autumn colors.

Even on a rainy dark day you can still see the fall colors
shine through....and you know...

I think I will stop looking
for the Perfect Tree...and just enjoy the fall God has given
me...


To God be The Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done

Hog Heaven

By the looks of this bad boy....I'd say he thinks he is in
'Hog Heaven'... He 's the only one left in the yard and
he continues to raid the bird feeder and pack on the
pounds in anticipation of hibernation

Is that a cough I see? Or are you just being impolite?

Heavens! I think that's a big ole' yawn!! It is soon time
to take the long nap in your hole

But not before you raid the bird feeder again!!
Move over chickadee dee... Hog's a comin!

Every time I see him up here, I just laugh out loud

What a fat butt you have!! Yes....uhh huh..... Hog Heaven.

To God be the Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done

Setting Records

The National Weather Service says between five and

six inches fell in State College, which set a record for
earliest snowfall on record. The previous earliest snow
there was one-tenth of an inch on Oct. 18, 1901.

State College, the home of Penn State Football is
about 40 minutes from me.
I awoke to light snow .... and seeing the fall
colors of the foliage through it was strange.

By mid morning it was starting to lay on the
leaves and the grass

When I got home from work I stopped to snap
the poor little trumpet flowers

Some were filled with snow and the leaves
were sporting a nice white blanket of the white
stuff.

Arriving in front of the house, I saw my
Halloween flag....
Trick or Treat? Seemed like a Trick to me!

They are calling for some more snow today
but by next week we are back to a normal
autumn with temps in the 50's - 60's.

To God be the Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done

High School Reunion

Bedford High School.....my Alma Mater.... looks pretty much
the same as it did when I graduated in 1964. Today it houses
9th through 12th grade, when I attended it was 7th through 12.

I can remember how scared I was to leave elementary
school and come to Jr. High. No recesses, change of classes
with a different teacher for each , and lots and lots of
new and strange faces. And the one thing I will never
forget is the lockers. I had nightmares about forgetting
my combination and being locked out. How silly that all
sounds now that I am graduated and it is 45 years later.
Our Reunion was held at a very famous resort....
The Bedford Springs.

For many years it was closed and I feared it would meet
it's demise, but fortunately it was bought restored and
opened again in 2007.

Just in time for our 45h High School Reunion

I got there early so I could get some pictures of the
grounds and the beautiful restored historic golf course.

The course overlooks the breathtaking views of the
Allegheny Mountains and the Cumberland Valley.
.

You can walk to see the views

Or you can hitch a ride on a wagon drawn by
two white steads

The grounds are immaculate... with flowers overflowing
on the brick sidewalks

Like to Rock? You will find a chair just for you
among the many that line the long porches

Pumpkins and hay bales compliment the fall setting

An outdoor grill where food is prepared for those
who wait in their hickory rockers

at rustic wooden tables.

If you love the country....this is the place for you to visit

The Bedford Springs was noted for it's 'springs'

and as the sign states: visited by notables

I was excited to be back in Bedford and at the Springs...

The inside is just as beautiful. I'm greeted by a roaring fire
and inviting chairs.

I had not been to a reunion in 20 years so I did not
know if I would recognize my classmates. Thank God
we had name tags... I made use of that 'crutch' almost
every time I talked to someone We had a lot of catching
up to do....

Taking pictures of someone taking a picture of someone else

My friend Ivan, was having a good time... and
later we discussed a project for the next reunion.

We thought it would be fun to get pictures of everyone
'now' and compare them to 'then' sort of like I did
below with our senior pictures. Me and Ivan...

well Gee! Ivan looks a lot
happier now than he did
back in senior high...
A little less hair, but
still charming.











And, there I am..
no comment..you
will have to form
your own opinion
..







The Class of 1964.... who showed up for the 45th Class Reunion.... group portrait

If anyone wants to see all the photographs
.... please go here

To God be The Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done

FALLing softly into an October Autumn

"Bittersweet October. The mellow, messy, leaf-kicking, perfect pause
between the opposing miseries of summer and winter."
- Carol Bishop Hipps

Let me introduce my resident red squirrel
"Henry" Hi there, what say you?

I live in Jalynn's yard and see everything she does.
This time of year you will see as you approach
the porch all the fall colors.

A scarecrow lady watches over the pumpkin
on the hay bale. Click to see where I took a
bite and left my mark.

She still decorates that Playhouse even though
her granddaughter has out grown it.

She caught my friend, whitey, here eating his
way through her hosta leaves.

The oak tree is sporting some yellow and rust leaves for
the first time... Usually it just turns brown.

I can't believe the Nasturtiums are still going strong.
yellow with rust

and a beautiful orange..they seem to love the cooler
fall weather.
One lone morning glory shines through the dead walnut
leaves that cover the ground. . . such a pretty purple

OMG! There's that pesky cat who tries to catch me...
He will never ever be fast enough for that!

A lot of my bird friends are gone but one Rose Breasted
Grosbeak still comes to the feeder

On labor day Jalynn went out of the yard to
see what she could see along the country road.
The Cemetery was flying the flags to honor
our fallen soldiers

As she drove along, the Queen Anne's Lace danced above the
grass along the country roads

And more and more hawks are showing themselves...

in trees

On telephone polls

And flying through the air

Even a fawn still sporting a few spots was seen in the field

Mr. Groundhog will soon be heading off for a long
winters nap.. he looks tired already

Back in the yard again I see my old friend Carolina Wren

Time to say good bye for now... I gotta be going.. there's
nuts to be buried and acorns to shell.
Catch ya next time..maybe when the snow flies.

But I'll leave you with the turning leaves of October and
a verse to ponder...

"Listen! the wind is rising,
and the air is wild with leaves,
We have had our summer evenings,
now for October eves!"

- Humbert Wolfe

To God be the Glory ~~ Great Things He Hath Done