Cutie Pie..

Ok.. so I am openly admitting that even at my advanced age (no comments please) that I think Karl Urban is just a cutie pie!

Just look at that face! I mean… reeeeally darhling!

..and he even looks cute as a blonde in Lord of the Rings!

…and as Dr. McCoy.. well.. what can I say?…..

 

ohh damn… woof!..

I want the photo below on a T-shirt sooooooooo bad I can’t stand it!

..oh gawd..

…help me! help me~….

…oh man the cowboy is “desert” if I ever saw one~…..

 ok.. done drooling for now.. guess I will have to watch Star Trek yet again!   I’m one of the few people that is “glad” Karl and the others from Trek have NOT started doing conventions!  I can’t afford to fly somewhere and stay at a hotel just to get the autographs!! (but I’d find a way even if I borrowed the money!!) and of course I hope they DO one day..*sigh*

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Bird-day at My Son & Daughter-in-laws

Pictures say it all..

(brother in law, Pat who was kind enough to pick me up and bring me home, and Crystal, dog #1 of my sons)

 

..dog #2 “Bubbie” who suckles his blankey..

.. my daughter in law Kathleen and their cat Smokey..

 

Sandy and Stan, Kath’s parents, who did ALL the cooking!

Chowing down… (my son is in the middle)

this isn’t everyone but it’s a fair portion of all those at the house

I think we all over ate… how about you??

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Happy Bird-day!

Well here comes Thanksgiving for those of us in the U.S… Canada already had their Turkey and now it’s time for ours.

I will be going down to my sons home for the day tomorrow and so today I baked a pumpkin pie and a cherry pie to take down for desert.

(Debi’s pumpkin was a happy camper that he wasn’t the one cooked!)

Cherry.. Cherry Pie….dum de dum.. ya have to be old to know the song lol.

cooling down on the counter…

I will still make a turkey of my own.. since I want the bones for soooooooooooooup!!! So items are sitting around waiting for Friday when I will bake my turkey.

and da boid (little NY accent there) awaits in the ‘fridge..

To all those who make a feast on Thanksgiving.. don’t eat toooo much leave some for sandwiches later!!  I tip my soda glass to rye bread and miracle whip turkey sandwiches!! here! here!..

Happy Bird-Day everyone.

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Morning at the Pond

I am always delighted to see the ducks when they drop by.  Unfortunately, it isn’t often enough to suit me!  But this morning four of them came by for a short visit and I managed to get a few shots of them.. 

 

 

I have to admit.. I like this last shot a lot!

I bet you were wondering if the Moorhens are still around.  The answer is yes the original pair seems to have taken up permanent residence here, while all the babies have left the pond.

The Anhinga came by for breakfast and I finally got a shot of her with her catch!

She swims out of the water and has to hit the fish on the ground a few times to get it off of her beak.. then the unpleasant part where she swallows it whole!   I sure hope the fish in this pond mate a lot because as many birds that come by here to fish it may need restocking!

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Fall at the Pond

Well now.. I got a better photo (but not yet GOOD )  of the KingFisher that now and then comes by!  He actually stayed in the tree long enough for me to run inside to get my camera and back out again.  Unfortunately it was quite early in the morning, and it was overcast, and he was far enough away that I had to use the zoom and so the photo is poor quality.  However, I am still pleased.. they are such fast moving birds that any photo of them pleases me!

The Anhinga has been around lately.  I still think this is a younger one because it’s a much smaller female then was here when I first moved in.

I found this twig with the empty acorn tops…

 

…and then a bit later the squirrel came around.  He too is fast!  But I got off two shots before he scampered away!

These shots make me laugh.. he is collecting the acorns… it’s like he thinks there is actually a winter down here! (yeah right!)

As the Bald Cypress Trees loose their leaves it is the closest to “fall colors” that I will get around here..  Maybe that’s why the squirrel thinks he should start collecting the acorns!

the photos below look “red” but that because the sky was pink before the sun came up.. so it looked more “fallish”.. actually they just look Rust color…

So that’s what “Fall” looks like around the Pond….

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Star Trek Reader II

Before my little post of a book I found I have to mention Dancing With the Stars! .. How cut is it that Donny Osmond at his age got to the Finals!! lol… and Kelly Osborn made it too!!! I have adored watching these two the whole time and glad they made it to the end.. (it is highly doubtful either will win but that’s ok… ! I am happy they made it to the final round next week!!).. ok.. now onto the book…

Look at what book I found for 50 cents at a thrift store!… It’s the Star Trek Reader II by James Blish !

I took a few photo’s of it because even though it’s not in great condition it deserves some Trek (McCoy) photo’s taken around it!

I believe there were 3 such books put out, but I’m not sure.. this one is a hardback, and like I said it’s not in the greatest of conditions.. the book contains 19 of the original Star Trek Stories (episodes)

But if anyone out there (who knows me) has these books and would like to get rid of them.. ummm.. would you let me know please?  Since I could never afford the trek episodes on dvd (nor vhs).. I’d like to have the books with all the episodes in them.

Speaking of Star Trek..  my dvd of the new Trek movie didn’t show up in the mail yesterday (grrrrrrrrr *upset) Hopefully today.. Since it was preordered instead of 17.98 I wound up getting it for only 9.99 !! Now.. if it would only get here!

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The Shadow Dragons

The Shadow Dragons by James A Owen (author AND illustrator)

Hardcover: 432 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing (October 27, 2009)
ISBN-10: 1416958797

Product Description

World War II has been raging for three years, but a more terrible evil is just over the horizon. The last stones are falling from the Keep of Time, and the Imperial Cartological Society, led by Richard Burton, has collected doors and is building a new tower at the request of an old enemy: the Winter King’s shadow. He has a terrible weapon — the Spear of Destiny — that can be used to command the shadows of anyone it touches.

The Shadow King uses the Spear of Destiny to enlist an unstoppable army of Dragon shadows. And after the Archipelago falls, the Shadow King intends to use the turmoil of World War II to take over both worlds.

All the legendary Caretakers, past and present, come together to save two worlds, and their only hope lies with a small group of companions who are on the quest for the broken sword Caliburn: the Grail Child, Rose Dyson; her clockwork companion, the owl Archie; a dead professor of ancient literature; and the mythical knight Don Quixote.

About the Author

James A. Owen is the author and illustrator of the Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica. He is founder and executive director of Coppervale International, an art and design studio that also publishes the periodicals International Studio and Argosy Quarterly, develops television and film projects, and is redesigning an entire town, among other ventures. James has written and illustrated two dozen Starchild comics, the Mythworld series of novels (published in Germany and France), and more. He lives in Arizona.

            *************************************************

I’m not sure what it is I can tell you about this, the 4th book in the series of The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica:  The Shadow Dragons.

It’s the 4th adventure for the Caretakes and each book introduces more and more characters of history, myth and fantasy.  By now James has it down to a science. Who he will use, why and when.. and with each introduction you feel as if an old friend has found his way back into your life.

Page 245 ..

“The king and queen sat opposite  Edgar Allan Poe at one end of the table; Charys, the centaur, sat between Mark Twain and Charles Dickens; Rillian, the unicorn mouse, sat on the table in front of Washington Irving; and Stephen, in full Golden Fleece regalia, sat next to his mother across from Geoffrey Chaucer.  The Valkyrie Laura Glue, her wings discreetly folded behind her, was standing behind John and Daniel De foe, and the improbable young Neo stood next to her; while the Elf King Eleir, the Dwarf leader, Falladay Finn, and several surly fauns stood behind the rest of the Caretakers.  It was, to put it simply, a remarkable group.”

With the coming of this series James made himself one of those YA authors who’s books I will not part with.  There will always be space in my heart for books such as James has written.  Be it that child part of me that wants to be like Peter Pan and never grow up, or the adult part of me that says, I am anyone and anywhere I want to be just by opening a book such as this.

By now anyone who reads my “reviews” knows that I don’t actually review the book.. I leave that to others who are far better with words than I am and I defer to Amazons Product descriptions.. but I do let you know if I like a book and generally I think you know by what I write if I like it a lot or not.  And you also know it’s rare that I suggest anyone read a book just because I enjoyed it.  This is one of those rare occasions.  If you are one who can enjoy YA books I DO suggest you pick up James A Owens first of this series: Here There Be Dragons, and begin a series of books that I certainly hope you all enjoy as much as I have enjoyed these books.

That being said:  I just want to thank James once again, for writing such enjoyable books and I want to wish him continued success with this series and others he will endeavor in the future!

Thanks James!

(below) Two of the many illustrations from Shadow Dragons: by James A Owen

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Predator & Prey Together

My eyes being what they are (not very good) I got out my camera and zoomed over to what I thought might be 2 turtles across the pond.. instead it was this….

hard to believe they will sun next to each other now, but when the gator gets a big bigger my turtle will be on his menu!

That being said I took more photo’s of the turtle closer up.. by the time I walked around to where they were the Gator had gone into the water and the turtle remained to watch, but with little interest.

(I wouldn’t get too friendly if I were you!)

 

Later near evening the gator showed up in front of my apartment watching the birds.. DeadEye kept an eye on him…

so of course I took the opportunity to  take  more shots of DeadEye..

 

after a while he could care less about the alligator..as he went about cleaning his feathers…

Gads wouldn’t it be wonderful to be able to scratch your own back like this? ! …..

..I guess the armpit needed airing out lol…

On Sunday the Anhinga paid us a visit…. and sunned herself right in front of my apartment!  Unfortunately it was late afternoon so the sun was facing my apartment making the Anhinga a mere shadow of her beauty…

(below) almost as good as an Eagle huh? hehehe….

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Woody

 Goodness!  I opened my blinds and there was Woody!  I haven’t seen him in a while…

Off course there are many (MANY) Woody’s around here so I’m sure it’s not the same one, but still he took me by surprise being right in front of my apartment, generally I see him in the corner of the pond in search of his illusive food.

Here’s a closer look at Woody’s face from the picture above..

He looks like a “young Woody”…  He was a tad smaller then most and he didn’t seem to have the “woodiness” thickly around his neck yet.

It was good to see him.. there seems to be slim pickin’s so far around the pond as we enter “winter”..(excuse me while I choke on that word).

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Alike.. but not alike.

Another in the Heron Family…

I thought this was the same bird but it’s not (no orange around the one above’s eye or neck)

.. Evening is nigh. (actually this was sometime last week)

A “cold front ” is here!!!  My door is open!!!! It will only get in the mid to upper 70’s!!!!  Tonight will dip down to the low 60’s!!  I will dream of maybe being able to wear my sweats!!!! oh yeah! oh yeah!

Look at the photo below of all the gathering Ibis!… they look like a bunch of chickens!  Now if we could only teach them to lay eggs that we could gather and eat they’d help us all here at the old folks home alot!

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