This and That from the Woods and the Lake...

Today, I am posting a collection of photos I have taken in the woods and out on our lake over the last few weeks. Enjoy!:

While taking a hike on the secluded shores of Lake Superior, we spotted this green plant growing inside an old, dead log:

I returned to the pond where I took the lily pad pictures in the spring.

To my delight, there were lily pads that changed into fall colors now:

There are still wild asters growing along the roadsides, along with butterflies:

A late sunset with storm clouds rolling in over our lake:

On the same hike on the secluded shores of Lake Superior, we found this humungus fungus growing on an old log:

Color on our bay!

This shot is looking back at the street where I live on the lake from our pontoon. My house isn't visible, it is just out of sight way on the left side of this picture on another small bay:

The same butterfly on the asters, this time with spread wings:

Those lily pads, now in color.....loved the "carpet on water" they formed with all their fine, fall colors!:

Love those clouds reflecting on the water....right before the sun set:

I was surprised and delighted to be able to still see dragonflies about in the autumn foliage:

As the sun set further, I HAD to take one more photo of those clouds reflecting in the water on our lake:

I hope you have been able to go outside where you live and experience the autumn splendor that nature is providing now, too.

More Dumb State Laws: Connecticut!!!!

Yes, folks.

It is time again for more DUMB STATE LAWS.

As my regular readers know, I am doing a series of blogposts of dumb state laws from every great state in our union, alphabetically. I do them about once a month or so on my blog, along with in MY COMMENTS in bold italics.

Up next?

The great state of Connecticut!!!:






So here goes!:


1. Town records may not be kept where liquor is sold. Well, dognabbit! I suppose it makes sense though. Because you could have some bored tricksters doing some crazy altering of records if they did them at the bar. Let's see...let's put that the baby's father on this birth record as: oh, I don't know...how about Ozzy Osborne? And just for kicks, lets put that they got married a year later to spice it up. Bartender, what did you say your name was? (Heh, heh..let's put him as the mother).

2. You can be stopped by the police for biking over 65 miles per hour. Let's say it all together now: .......Only if they catch them.
Holy Shit...can you pedal 65 miles an hour??? Let's just hope they mean in a MOTOR bike.

3. In order for a pickle to officially be considered a pickle, it must bounce. You know, jobs are hard to find with the economy now. But damn...I want to be the pickle bouncer SO bad. And another thing....what do they do with all the pickles that DON'T bounce? Throw them out? Maybe you can buy the non-bouncy ones at the Dollar Store?
You know, when I was trying to decide what to be when I grew up, NONE of my counselors told me about being a pickle bouncer. Life is just not fair. Because I SO would have picked THAT for my career!

4. It is illegal to dispose of used razor blades. So, are the non-bouncy pickles and the used razor blades hanging out somewhere together??? Awww..THAT explains sliced pickles, now doesn't it?
So, where DO you get rid of used razor blades?
You know, the old medicine cabinets used to have a slit in them where you were supposed to slip the used razor blades into them so they would end up between the walls of your house. Did you know that?
Which is why I do NOT live in any state with tornadoes. Because man, if those walls come apart, you have flying, rusting razor blades whizzing through the air. Some vital part of your anatomy may end up being sliced off!!

5. You cannot buy any alcohol after 9pm or on Sundays after noon on Sunday. Man, those football watchers are going to be P.O'd in Connecticut. You better stock up BEFORE those Sunday games...or else no beer for you in Connecticut.

6. It is illegal to discharge a firearm from a public highway. What? I cannot be a highway sniper?
Does this include the police?
So I can do an O.J. Simpson and drive my white jeep on the freeway there and they can't shoot at me to get me to stop...not even if I commit a crime?

7. In Devon:
It is unlawful to walk backwards after sunset. Well, dang. I love doing that after a few drinks.
Wait a minute, does that mean that people all over Connecticut are walking backwards BEFORE sunset down the roads?
Well, it must be okay, because the police can't discharge a firearm at you if you are doing it down a highway.
Can you SKIP backwards after sunset? What about HOP? GALLOP???

8. In Gullford:
Only white Christmas lights are allowed for display. What? NO COLORED CHRISTMAS LIGHTS in Gullford???? Should be called DULL-FORD!!!
I bet baby Jesus would even protest this law!

9. In Hartford:

You aren’t allowed to cross a street while walking on your hands. And good Lord, if it is after sunset, I bet you can't cross backwards on your hands either.
What if you have no legs?
It must be because it is where Hartford INSURANCE company is from...too many mishaps walking on those hands, crossing the street.

10. You may not educate dogs. Poor, poor Connecticut. Home of dumb dogs.
Come to think of it, maybe that is where my last dog CAME from. Because he was dumber than sticks.

11. It is illegal for a man to kiss his wife on Sunday. Good God...Connecticut: Home of dumb dogs and unkissed wives.
They probably just made that law since they can't buy beer after noon on Sunday and watch football while drunk. No drunk football watching=well then, no kissing the little woman, either.
What if SHE kisses HIM??
Who proves this in court? No, no Judge...SHE kissed me. I did NOT kiss her.

12. In New Britian:
It is illegal for fire trucks to exceed 25mph, even when going to a fire. Wow...you'd think in the state where HARTFORD insurance company came from, they would've thought this out a little more. Because my house would burn down by the time the 25 mph firetrucks finally pulled up....
Maybe they don't OFFER fire insurance in Connecticut? I sure wouldn't want to insure any houses where this was the law where they were located. I bet you have a 99.9% chance that EVERY fire would result in a total loss there.

12. In Rocky Hill:
An arcade may not have more than a total of four amusement devices such as ping-pong tables, pinball machines, or shuffleboard tables. Let's say it all together now: BORING!!!! What, no attention span in Connecticut? Can't multitask in Connecticut? Maybe they think more than four would start a fire...and the closest fire trucks are housed in New Britian??

13. In Southington:
Silly string is banned. Well, they just aren't ANY fun, are they? Maybe you can save your silly string to aim at the fires in New Britian. Or the wives in Connecticut can use it only as a last ditch self-defense mechanism if their husbands DARE to try to kiss them on a Sunday.

14. In Waterbury:
It is illegal for any beautician to hum, whistle, or sing while working on a customer. Ok, FINALLY a Connecticut law I can agree with.
Because I had to almost kill the last beautician who did my hair...if she hummed: "My heart's bleeding" ONE more time in my ear while doing my hair, I would have had to silly string her!!!! Whoops, I guess NOT if I lived in Connecticut!
I may just have to write the Connecticut legislature and ask them to make an amendment to add: "no chewing gum or wearing excess perfume" to that law, too while I am at it.
****************************************************************************************
That's it for Connecticut Dumb Laws, folks!!
Stay tuned for the next set of Dumb State Laws. You never know if you might be breaking the law!

The U.P. is on FIRE!!!

Our Upper Peninsula (U.P.) of Michigan is coming alive with glorious autumn colors.

We took our last ride (before storing our pontoon away for the winter) on our lake on Friday night, and it couldn' t have been a more perfect evening out on the lake.

There was barely any wind and the sun was setting and lighting up the shoreline of autumn colors like fire!

Here is a shot of the far shore as we headed out on the lake in our pontoon:

We are about 55% color now. Some of the trees are still green, and others are red or orange:

But, in the setting sun, the reds and oranges become brilliant, like they are on fire!:

It was about 7:30pm and about 70 degrees. A perfect night!:

Everywhere you looked, nature was putting on an art show!:

We couldn't believe how beautiful the shores looked:

I didn't want the evening ride to end:

But the sun was setting rapidly, making shadows..telling us this Heaven had to go to sleep for the night:

So, we headed towards home.

But I had to take ONE more shot before we headed in.

I am SO glad I did.

I think it might be my favorite:

I have been going out into the woods and trying to capture autumn pictures before all the leaves fall off.

Here, it can happen very quickly.

Some falls, the leaves are glorious for about a month.

Some autumns, we get wind and rain after a week or two of color and it blows them all off, quickly.

Not being a gambler, I am outside now everyday trying to capture colored leaves before Mother Nature asserts herself and brings on bare limbs and cold winds.

Wish me luck with the race.

I only want two more weeks...

just two more weeks.....

Useless Facts and Trivia: Volume 13

Yes, it is time again for more Useless Facts and Trivia, along with MY COMMENTS in bold italics.

1. Mr. Rogers was an ordained minister.(Won't you be my neighbor?...umm..I don't think so. Because if I swore at my lawn mower that didn't start, then I would have to have him praying for forgiveness, and well, lets just say I would be keeping the poor guy really busy.)



2. The average person falls asleep in seven minutes. That settles it. As suspected, I am NOT average. And, who measures this stuff? I would never fall asleep in seven minutes if I was in some lab knowing that someone was measuring when I fell asleep.






3. There are 336 dimples on a regulation golf ball. Seriously, who counted them? And why not 337 or 335? And why are there dimples anyway? Why didn't they make them round, without any dimples? Inquiring minds want to know!! And do the little golf ball get their dimples from their mama or daddy's side of the family? Do they get more dates?





4. "Stewardesses" is the longest word that is typed with only the left hand. You are going to type this word now, aren't you? Or look for longer words with the left hand of the keyboard. Go ahead. I'll wait....if you come up with a longer one, let us know.




5. The data track on a CD is a very long spiral. If it were unwound and laid out in a straight line, it would be over 3.5 miles long. Since there is no way to really unwind the data track on a CD, there is no way to dispute this, now is there? Don't you just hate this crap?





6. It is impossible to lick your elbow or stick your elbow in your ear. Puh-leeze do NOT try this after reading this. I don't want to be responsible for you having to go to your Chiropractor. I don't think you can kiss your own butt, either, and I don't want to even PICTURE that move!





7. A crocodile can't stick its tongue out. Besides, are you going to stick around and ask him to do that? Nope. I didn't think so. Wonder how the doctor checks his tonsils out then? Besides, when the crocodile is pissed off at you, he will just flip you off, and then eat you....no need for him to stick his tongue out at you.





8. A shrimp's heart is in its head. Please do NOT check his pulse by holding his little head, it gives them a headache. And maybe that's where the song: "I left my shrimp in San Francisco" came about.

9. In a study of 200,000 ostriches over a period of 80 years, no one reported a single case where an ostrich buried its head in the sand (or attempted to do so). I want THAT job. Watching ostriches for years to see if they bury their heads in the sand. Cripes. If that is what you are looking for, just watch a Politician. He will do it before the end of his first term.

10. It is physically impossible for pigs to look up into the sky. Oh, no. I know exactly where you are headed. You are going to climb up on the barn roof and clap your hands and make oink noises just to see if those poor little critters will look up at you or not. Have you seen their necks? Exactly. They hardly HAVE any neck. That is probably why they can't look up. Don' t be asking them: "Say, see that cloud? What do you see? I see one the shape of a dog, what do YOU see? because if you do, you are going to make him mad. Nothing worse than a mad pig....I don't want my pork chops tough. So, please don't go there....

Only a Mother Could Love a Face Like That...

One day when we were taking a ride on our lake recently, we looked up in the sky and there were at least 20 huge birds circling and circling one of the islands.

My husband said there were probably vultures there circling something dead.

Of course, I wanted to investigate what kind of vultures they were and see if I could get their picture, because I am sick like that.

Sure enough, when we got closer, we saw they were huge turkey vultures.

Here he is in all his uglier than ugly splendor:

At one point, we rounded the island and found about seven on one rock. But the sun was at the wrong angle to show you the picture of the bunch of them. But, at least I got closeups of these uglier-than-sin beauties:

Just look at their red heads!:

A trio of trouble:

The one on the right is looking over his shoulder at me, saying: "Whatchu lookin' at?":

A group sunbathing on the rocks:

This one is about to take off. He didn't like me taking his photo, apparently:

But, the absolute neatest part of the day was when we noticed them doing something very peculiar.

It was very hot and humid the day we caught them out on the island.

As I said before, the sun wasn't helping me photograph where they were because it was close to sunset and the sun was on the wrong side of them.

But after many tries, at least I caught one picture of them doing it.

They would spread out their wings verrrrry wide, as if they were airing out their feathers and armpits and just sit in the tree with their wings spread.

It was bizarre.

But it made for a GREAT photo of them:

Wow, huh?

It gives you an idea of how big they really are when they have their wings spread.

Darn that sun! It was the wrong angle for pictures of it.

Did I mention that yet?...

More local Police Reports!...

Yes! It is time again for a short local Police Report from our neck of da' woods.



Here is a quick one I just had to share with you, along with MY COMMENTS in bold italics:

Ummmm....excuse ME??

Did it say false teeth on the beach???

Now that would BITE, wouldn't it?

And, how on EARTH did the person lose the false teeth on the beach in the first place? (That must have been one helluva big wave???!)

And, don't you THINK the person who lost their teeth would have noticed that their teeth were missing right away???

And wouldn't the first thing you would do (upon finding them there) would be to call the police?

I mean, there must be a crime involved here somewhere??....

Maybe this is where the concept/expression of "cash for clunkers" came about?

Ah, yes. It is exciting to live here. Beyond belief. You never know what hedious crime will occur.

More Mergansers!

As you can tell from previous posts of mine, I love birds, especially the water birds and ducks.

One of my favorite birds are the merganser ducks. I think it is their rusty feathered heads that stick out in spikes and their coloring. They look exotic to me.

We have been lucky enough to see them three or four times this summer.

Here are some shots I recently took of them on our autumn trips out on our own lake:

It looks like the one of the left is bending over to poke at the other one, saying: "Look up buddy, she's here taking photos of us again!:

This pair hadn't noticed me yet:

The two on the left are saying: "Why does he always have to swim ahead of us? What does he think it IS!....the Olympics?":

"There he goes again!":

I think the one in the middle of the rock is yawning:

Something has their attention, making them look to the left and they didn't even notice me:

Just LOOK at their heads' rusty feathers! I LOVE that about them!:

Five mergansers, just hanging out:

I love this couple. The head on the one on the right has that perfect plummage again! What a handsome couple!:

Our leaves are slowly changing...I hope to get out this week some to capture some woods shots for you all. I also went on a longgggg hike this weekend and got some photos of a remote section of Lake Superior shoreline, which I will be posting soon.

Have a great day!!! If you get the chance, get outside today and enjoy our beautiful autumn season yourself. Take time to smell the leaves.....I love the smell of fall.