A Snowbird's Life Through the Lens
Life on my own, on the Nature Coast of Florida, and beyond…
No, not the store. Which I haven’t seen in a while come to think of it. I used to always go in, but now I can’t remember where I lived when I did that. Not that it matters because this Tuesday morning was all about the sky. Not that it was filled with color, but this color-deprived photographer was happy to see any at all. I loved the reflected color in the water as a backdrop for the reeds at the side of the pond this morning.
I should say the color was back, showing a pink glow through the nice transom over the front door. So I grabbed my phone and headed out the door, and there it was. Beautiful color after a few gray and gloomy days. It has me wondering if the sky will be as pretty for the sunrise also…
The wildlife at the Hillsborough River State Park chased me away from the photo walk I had been looking forward to attending today. The wildlife in this particular case were some very aggressive mosquitos. I tried to suck it up and be at least as tough as the two Mikes that did finally show up were, but eventually I cried uncle, apologized, and high tailed it back to the car. When I add hashtags to my posts I always include ‘perseverance’ and ‘photography.’ But the photo walk I attended today defeated me, at least as far as perseverance goes. I did get a couple of photos though, so it wasn’t a total bust. And the rapids, such as they are, were flowing better than usual so I’m happy that I got that far into the woods at least. I took a Benedryl as soon as I got home, but tried to resist taking another one or I’d have slept the rest of the day away.
I’ve learned my lesson. I will keep bug spray in my car, as well as in the basket of the trike, which is where it was today. Maybe even in my camera bag if I’m sure it won’t leak. Then I will do better at that perseverance thing. I’m afraid I may have promised myself that in the past, but this was the worst mosquito attack I’ve ever experienced. Or I’m getting wimpy in my old age.
Horse racing is back on the schedule for our photo group now that the weather is cooler. Saturday was our first photo walk to Tampa Bay Downs since last April. The weather was cloudy and cool, but eventually the sky cleared and the temperature began to rise. It’s always fun to shoot photos with friends, and make new friends also.
It’s so nice to see more and more photo shoots on the calendar with the nicer weather and the return to normalcy after covid. I used to go out for photos by myself, which meant that I never felt as trapped at home as most people did. But I’m enjoying being with friends, I’ll admit it.
I should be ashamed to be lamenting over every day that isn’t sunny. In the summer I tell myself that I’ll accomplish lots of stuff when the weather breaks. Then when it’s in the 60s I think it’s too cold to do anything. Yes, I’m spoiled, I’ll admit it. We will have to put out some bird feeders for the various fence sitters I’ve been seeing out back. This one posed in front of the dark shadow of the neighbor’s lanai, making the day look that much gloomier. He stayed put when I opened the door to our lanai so I didn’t have to shoot through the screening. Nice of him.
Happy Thanksgiving to friends and family near and far.
I had two goals today. First I hoped to see the eagles, but I missed them. It was chilly, did that get them up and out early, or were they still cuddled up in the nest? I thought I’d be able to shed the sweatshirt as the morning wore on, but not only did I keep it on, I kept it zipped up as I enjoyed a walk at John Chestnut Park.
In the heat of summer I long for cooler weather, sure that I’d spend as much time as possible outside if only it would get cooler. But it was 62 degrees in the house when I woke up this morning, time for fuzzy socks and cozy blankets. So I got out a little later than ‘usual’, but what a nice morning it was.
A Snowbird's Life Through the Lens 