backyard fauna

"Oh my ears and whiskers!" said the White Rabbit. That's how delighted I feel to wake up to such a beautiful- and coolish- morning. A real treasure, the kind I'd hoped for when we moved out here almost 5 years ago. After some seriously hot summers (and who's to say that's still not coming), the temperature sits below 20C on this cloudless sunny morning.

Yesterday, was a temperate day that kept the house cool with the windows open til midday.

I woke to this wondrous sight, dodging the laundry line as I

surreptitiously took photos from behind the curtains.

Having to enlarge my shots gives a fuzzy impressionistic look which works out well

with this lovely subject

I'd obviously caught her hearing something and with a flash of her tail

she leans towards where it's coming from

ever intent

Her ears large receivers, receptors for pertinent information

such a beautiful, even regal, animal

I'm so blown away that I have this opportunity

These shots are in sequence; I could almost make a video of them

For all her stillness and decent light, my little camera can only capture so much,

making these pictures rather pixilated.

Still, there was enough  information that I was beginning to suspect from the unusual brightness of her body that she might be the young piebald fawn all grown up,

and sure enough, as she turns, chewing on something tender enough to call her into the middle

of the field, I can see, beyond the laundry line,

  that she is, indeed, the young Piebald fawn all grown up.

I have pictures of her from last year that you can see in the pink link.

It is amazing to think that only a short time ago I was taking pictures of the pheasants in this same spot where the grass and lupins are about 4 or more feet high now.

Such a magical moment

She poses as she breakfasts so well that I can see her mottling clearly now

I am thrilled to see the beautiful young piebald doe

all grown up, even more special for her rarity

She moves further away

preparing to leave

with tail raised

she may suspect reason to depart

The morning was fresh and cool and I came out onto the deck, now that "the coast was clear",

to listen to the chorus of different bird calls, and record this geranium beginning to bloom.

Suddenly I heard a thump behind me on the cabin window and there was that same fool bird doing battle with itself in the window that I had shown you about a month ago.

I was too slow to capture him so close,

but I did see this small yellow warbler flying away from the apple tree.

I mistook it for a female goldfinch, and am now amending this post after several of you have already been to visit

landing on a stray branch of the hydrangea

with apologies for mislabeling it, it is not a female goldfinch

but a small yellow warbler- with a truly delightful song

Overnight, the buds of the wild rose in our border hedge bloomed

I turn towards the Honeysuckle which is beginning to bloom very nicely

despite the dramatic haircut I gave it in April.

How amazing to see Mr. Slug, about 2.5 inches long

making his way out of the sunshine toward the shade of the cabin

There are some bricks to signify an old garden on that shady side of the cabin, but grasses

with a raggedy beauty of their own

Forget-me-nots grow there as well, as they do all over the property

which is a bit raggedy as we slowly address the bits and pieces

of our new life as town folk in Nova Scotia.

While preparing yesterday morning's pictures, I could hear the rumble of a large machine approaching. It took me a few moments to realize that it was the sound of the tractor mowing the field out back.

It took me a while to brace myself for the loss of the lupin field only an hour or so after I took the pictures of the deer in it. There is an odd bit of unmowed field towards the back there.

This morning, the tractor is back, baling the hay

He has made short work of the field, leaving odd unmown clumps though one or two I know hold young trees planted last fall by a young couple.

As I cleaned out the birdbath of debris, I caught this view of more bales beyond our raspberry bushes.

As much to comfort myself as to try out my new sticks of graphite,

I drew this monastic on kraft paper with 6B (soft and dark) graphite.

Always, always with gratitude,

we make our way in life,

a little raggedy sometimes,

but intact.

peace

deer one

Hello again dear readers. It's a gorge ous Monday morning and Summer has arrived! Too hot to leave the windows open, it's already 25C (78F) in the shade at 11:30 a.m. as I write this.

I stepped out the back door last night and saw this fabulous sunset glow in the southern sky

On the lower deck, Wally planted geraniums, lobelia and pale purple petunias for me,

placing my old dog sculpture that I made about 15 years ago at the foot of this fabulous hand thrown, reduction fired pot that we found at Walmart, a real coup, as one never sees hand thrown work at a big box store, so large and at such a price (my years as a potter paying off all these years later).

I walked down to capture the view where the old shed once stood,

a crazy rose/violet in the ESE sky, the wind blowing the lupins in the field.

The southern sky over our yard.

then, suddenly!

I spied a doe beyond the apple tree, 2 yards over

She wandered deeper into the yard

and found her way to the forget-me-nots

in the pale evening light, pink from the sunset glow, she stood like a statue

She steps in for a better vantage

a graceful deer in a forget-me-not "pointillist painting"

By now I've done a combat/bum crawl over to the berry bushes as I watch her turn back to where

I first saw her, the light getting low, and I'm being attacked by mosquitoes and blackflies

and then she sees me... and we have a staring contest.

Apparently she can take the mosquito bites better than I.

One false move and she turns, leaping out of the yard into the long grass of the hayfield,

bounding away to the far side and the safety of the ravine from bad old me.

Actually I'm glad she was frightened as she made all too easy a target.

She needs to have her wits about her.

I turn, relieved not to be a mosquito buffet, and see that the northeastern sky is also glowing over our house which looks so much grander somehow, looking up at it from the lower yard.

I wander out to the field, sure that the deer is gone by now

The honeysuckle is coming along, its perfume yet to come

I took more pictures, but by now the light was almost gone and this is the last that's worth sharing from last night, the yard facing SSW. It fills me with joy to have this sanctuary in our lives.

This morning I continued with this pencil crayon image that I've been working on over the weekend.

I'm sure I'm not the first to do this subject.

All my borders have been hand drawn, but this is the wonkiest. I'll be more careful next time.

And, as is often the case, I see some other flaws I'd like to fix. Artists often use a mirror, holding their picture upside down or, in this case, taking a picture to see their work more objectively in order to refine it. I'm delighted to see what I can do.

a lovely day

takes a mindset

that can be perfected

with practice.

peace on earth