Farewell to Summer

Field of Queen Anne's Lace that became my obsession!

I became obsessed with my vision of the field of queen anne’s lace and decided to bring my camera on the next bike ride. Of course the towering blossoms were chopped down as I lamented in the previous post, but I still found plenty to photograph. I am enthralled with these images not so much because of their beauty. I do think they’re lovely, but they’re not really like an Ansel Adams photo or anything that great. I think however, I am clinging to them as I cling to the last days of summer before I return to teaching. These morning bike rides have been more than merely exercise and trying to get in shape. They have been meditative, a time to allow my mind to wonder and perhaps caress an idea or two, a dream about a queen anne’s lace holding court in midsummer perhaps or just an idea for the day. I never felt this imaginative stimulus when I was riding a stationary bike at an athletic club with the 4 TVs droning on about God-Knows-What! I am going to continue to try to ride the bike when I get home from work, but I know it won’t be the same. I will be stressed from the day and tired and who knows what else. The promise of a clear summer day ahead will be replaced by the worry that I need to get the ride in before the waning autumnal light gives way to darkness. There have been signs of fall the past few days on my ride…goldenrod is starting to replace the Queen and many of the Queen’s blossoms have curled up into skeletal formations that house the seeds that will spread the wonder for next year. Wild asters are popping up too, scruffy and short compared to their tamed cousins in the garden. I saw too, the newly formed chartreuse seed pods of the milkweed plant. These will dry and release a dreamy cloud of seeds in another month or two. So there are some lovely sights to look forward to as the cerulean sky and fresh greens of summer give way to the golden grasses and burnished leaves of autumn. Still I am a child of August and bidding adieu to my month is somewhat sad.

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Magnolia Finish

Magnolia Finish

Originally uploaded by bellafiore

Spring is slow in coming this year. There have been signs, but also a lot of cold weather. I just realized that I have never quite focused on the magnolia as flower subject. I was surprised on a recent nature hike in the woods to come upon a magnolia tree that had just finished blooming. They are so unusual in their finish as the flower gives way to the leaves, not a fruit. I am not a biologist so I’m not sure what this is called, but I found it to be fascinating visually.

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Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon

Originally uploaded by bellafiore

There is a reason they call it Grand! WOW!!! I was there once before, but this was more spectacular, perhaps because of the sheer perilous nature of pursuing the view. The area around Flagstaff had received a great deal of snow so the paths leading to the edge were snowy, icy and treacherous. It made the reward of a view that much more inspiring. Seeing this for the first time with my own children also was a thrill. They were unplugged from computers and ipods and all the other stuff that amuses them and instead were truly awestruck by nature for a change. By visiting we lost three hours of precious time on our cross country road trip, but we gained a lifetime of thrills.

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Changelings Knitting Podcast

Here is a podcast that I’ve enjoyed in the past on knitting and life. Lately there haven’t been any new posts but I’m hoping she’ll have more soon.

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On the Pier

On the Pier

Originally uploaded by bellafiore

This was a scene I grew up with. I really miss going to the cottage. This is the time of year that we would usually escape. It was a place that was rustic and filled with simple charm. If the weather was good we spent our days and nights swimming in the lake, which had crystal clear water and golden sand bottom. You could walk out to about 5 feet deep before it got mucky. We also spent a lot of time fishing and walking in the woods. As kids we learned to pick wild berries and marked the progress of the summer by what was ripe on the roadside. Blueberries came first, with raspberries to follow then blackberries around the time of my August birthday. If we were lucky enough to come back in the early fall we’d get to pick pin cherries and choke cherries and once we even found a gooseberry bush in the woods. Of course the highlight of all these berries were the jams and pies that my grandma would make with all of them. We passed the time later in evening playing 500 rummy and listening to the Brewer game on the fuzzy radio that barely came in. This was of course in between running down to the pier until midnight fishing for the big ones that came in late at night. Some nights we’d see the northern lights streaking across the sky. We als often had a fire going and marshmallows and s’mores. It was a great way to grow up. Wish I could got there again!

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Italian Landscape with Wheat

Italian Landscape with Wheat

Originally uploaded by bellafiore

Remembering Italy a lot today. Here is one of the countryside views that we enjoyed while traveling through Umbria and Tuscany. This was a field of wheat with distant views of green field and vineyards.  I believe we were driving from the small village of Corciano to Lago Trasimeno.  Along the way we encountered many things including almost being hit by a large truck.  The ride itself was thrilling.  At one point we visited an ancient ruin along the side of the road.  It said private and that we shouldn’t enter, but it was hard to resist and there was nobody around that is of course until we all disembarked from the 2 vans we were riding around in.  We shot as many photos as we could and then sped away as someone started to head towards us from the hill above.  We had lunch in a roadside place where you really did have to speak Italian to converse and order.  Luckily 3 weeks of total language immersion had given me enough language to be able to order.  The seafood salad was filled with huge pieces of fish, calamari and mussels.  It was all served in a sort of marinade.  Delicious.  It was a grand day, just one of many we had.  

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Bed with Shadows

Bed with Shadows

Originally uploaded by bellafiore

My bed is so appealing lately. Summer naps and moonlit dreams. All I want to do is sleep. I have been doing too much to enjoy a quiet, sleepy, drowsy nap. I shall have to take one soon. I think of Imogen’s Bed photo and only try to emulate, the sun and shadows that pour into my room each day. Closing the blinds only temporarily shuts out the intruding rays, a breeze caressing the blinds and flopping them about.

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Blue Dahlia

Blue Dahlia

Originally uploaded by bellafiore

I’ve got the blues. when will my summer garden return? I long for the light and the sunshine and the buzz of bees.

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Terry Andrae

Terry Andrae

Originally uploaded by bellafiore

This was the perfect golden day last fall, September… Now in the dreary gray of spring that is really winter still clinging I long for the golden days of September or perhaps even August. Will Spring ever come? The snow clings this morning to the shivering tulips and daffodils as they try to emerge, but still spring doesn’t come. Still the chill is too, much.

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Pipes in Photo Lab

Pipes in Photo Lab

Originally uploaded by bellafiore

Mundane objects inspire the most interest sometimes. It was all about the light on this day with shadows flitting across the wall from a window filled with late autumn light.

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