Birds Do It, Bees Do It..........

Even Butterflies do it..............

I went to check out the butterfly garden in front of the beach house where I had smudgy pictures of the Monarchs on my last walk.  I only saw two there today, and they were a bit, ummm, busy.   I got a little too close at first, and she took off  flying while her mate kept doing his business.  She landed again moments later and I was able to get quite a few good shots. 

Was it wrong of me to intrude? 

This isn't the first time I've caught insects doing the dirty deed.  A couple of summers ago I was weeding my garden,  looked up at my dahlias and saw these two.....

They didn't seen thrilled with me.  Bet they never thought they'd end up on the Internet.  Of course, I never thought I'd be posting insect porn.

I love the large butterfly garden by Little Beach.  It's a busy place with all the bees buzzing and Goldfinches chirping, and a lot of other bugs flying around.  There's a bit of a path through it, but I really didn't feel like getting in with all those bees, so I walked around the edges. 

It wasn't all flora and fauna though. 

I saw this ball caught up in some branches.  I really don't need a new ball, so I didn't bother to try and retrieve it.

I'm a little distracted tonight with the Olympic opening ceremonies, and they're getting ready to light the torch, so I'm closing up shop for now.

For Jenny, Because She Misses My Posts

My friend Jenny got after me last night at our weekly Knit Night, because I haven't posted anything since the first of the month.  I haven't been out for a walk since then because it's been way too hot and humid for me.  My asthma flares when I exert myself in this kind of weather.  It's better if I just stay in the air conditioning and do yoga or knit.  I have very shapely wrists from all the knitting I do.  It's great exercise for the hands and forearms. 

Temps were back down to the low 80's today, though still pretty humid, but I grabbed my inhaler and headed to the lake. 

I don't know what to call this crater in a tree root.  There's probably a name for it.  I thought it was pretty with the water that collected in it from the rain we had yesterday.

I've been meaning to to take a picture of this for a long time.   WPA 1939.  There are many, many slabs of sidewalk that are stamped with this date, and many more that aren't stamped, but were obviously poured at the same time.  Hard to believe they've held up for 73 years.

 These coneflowers are in a butterfly garden by the Little Beach.

Here's another type of coneflower.  These are some wild growing highway cones.  Most of you probably thought these were made in a factory somewhere, but actually we grow them here in Minnesota.  Up North you'll see field after field of the cultivated variety, but it's rare to see them growing wild in the city like this. 

Motivational graffiti.

 Obviously, another favorite spot of mine.  Water level is down quite a bit.

I spent 15 minutes watching three Monarch butterflies fluttering around a garden in front of the beach house at the Big Beach, and shot about 30 pictures, only to discover when I got home that I had smudged my lens, so none of them turned out well.  I'm posting one anyway.  They were really fun to watch, chasing each other, coming together as a group and then separating, one flying off here, another landing there.  Hopefully, my luck with second chances will continue, and I'll get some better butterfly pictures.

Jenny, I hope you enjoyed today's post, and I'll try to post more often, just for you!

Reflections

Wow, I've been writing this blog for six months now.  When I first started, I really didn't know if I'd last for six months, let alone a full year, but here I am at the halfway point.  Will I continue?  Yes, I will.  I have gained so much from this experience, and am so glad that I started it. 

I am overcoming my shyness, though it's still a work in progress.  This writing part is still hard, but not as bad as it was in January.  I'm a little bolder now,  more apt to start a conversation with a stranger.

I'm getting outside and walking more.  Some days I'll walk with a friend, other days by myself.  It's lovely either way. 

I'm much more aware of my surroundings, and know that I am very lucky to live here with all the wonderful lakes and parks we have.  This beautiful lake has been in my backyard my whole life, and I have never really appreciated it like I should have.  

I'm making progress with the camera.  I can't wait to get home and plug my card into the computer and see what I've captured.  I have a few favorites that bring a smile to my face whenever I look at them, and sometimes I'm pretty amazed to realize that I was the one who took the picture!

Six more months of discovery awaits me.

It was so peaceful at 7:00 this morning, though it was already very humid.

 I think sailboats have replaced trees for now as my favorite things to photograph.

Yup, definitely the boats.

These ducks aren't afraid at all when someone stops to take a peek at them.

 

These make me smile.

I forgot to post this last week.  There was a run sponsored by Delta last Saturday morning.  It made our walk pretty difficult, but the car was interesting.