SUNDAY STILLS: FUR/FINS/FEATHERS

The challenge this week is about capturing fins, fur and feathers.  Pretty tough for those of us without aquariums and crystal clear fish ponds.  I was going to haul a frozen salmon out of the freezer for my "fin" portion but came up with another idea last minute.....so here we go...

Red-breasted Nuthatch

This little guy doesn't know what to make of the dame with the camera...he was skittish but his peanut craving finally got the better of him.

Chickadee enjoying the seed pie.

A whole fish just for me?

Hey...wait a minute...that's not a real fish.

That's better...but I had to rely on summertime photos to meet the requirements.

Two of my girls doing what they do best...out fishing their father.

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SUNDAY STILLS: CURRENCY

LEST WE FORGET

On November 11 Canadians wear poppies and gather at war memorials across Canada to pay tribute to those who died in War.

At the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the time the Armistice of WWI was signed in 1918, we observe two minutes of silence to remember.

Our $10 bill is dedicated to those who served and who are currently serving our country.

The Sunday Stills Currency Challenge couldn't have come on a better week! 

In addition to the $10 I also happened to have a Remembrance Day 25 cent piece in my wallet.  (and to think I woke up this morning thinking I would have to forego this weeks challenge because I couldn't come up with anything better than dumping my purse onto the kitchen table and taking shots of coins and lint.)

I will leave you with the words of one of Canada's most famous sons...Doctor, Soldier, Poet...John McCrae.

IN FLANDERS FIELDS

by John McCrae 1915

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead.  Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

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Sempervivum spp.

To me, nothing in the garden is quite as quaint and old fashioned as a clump of Hens and Chicks.  Maybe it's because I get all sentimental (or just plain old mental) when I look at them.  You see my Nanny had them at her house and I can still remember exactly where they were and I can still see them in my head just like it was yesterday.  Nanny was my Dad's mother, and she had a large rectangular shaped flower garden where all sorts of interesting things grew, the strangest of all being a Jack-in-the-Pulpit.

Hens and Chicks in my front garden that are showing a tinge of red after a couple of heavy frosts.

This Plain Jane variety is the one I remember best.

Another childhood memory that comes to mind when I look at these plants, is of driving out to the country to my grandparents farm with my mom and a couple of her sisters.

They were on their own memory journeys.  They all recalled Grandma had Hens and Chicks growing on a rock near the farmhouse and they were determined to go back and see if they were still there.

I don't know whether they found what they were looking for or not, but the name Sempervivum means 'live forever' so maybe they are still there...somewhere.

Just One More Fall Foliage Post....Maybe

Photography credit for these shots goes to my husband who knows I'm obsessed about taking pics of fall leaves.  How sweet is that?  He took these about 2 weeks ago.   This is the countryside near Peterborough Ontario, very close to our friends farm. 

Homeward bound.

Looks like uninhabited wilderness as far as the eye can see.

...is that a house in a clearing???

Land o'lakes.

Shelter Valley Farms straight ahead.

(aka cows, cows and more cows)

I hope you have enjoyed the colours from a slightly different perspective than I am able to offer you from the ground up.

Cheers

Jackie