A Fly With an Attitude

Dragon flies are sensitive about their names. This one definitely is. Actually, his given name is Horace. He responds to that too. Just don't call him Horace fly, for obvious reasons.

Bees Like Their Own Space

Bees can have an attitude if you enter their space. They are one insect that can take matters into their own hands--I know. I've felt their wrath.

Bee Decorates Flower

Bees like to show off. But they will let you know if you get too close. Just watch; don't touch.

Comparisons Can be Hurtful

Don't compare flowers to cartoon characters. You will hurt their feelings.

Dog Day Afternoon

A dog's feeling are easily hurt. Here is a prime example.

An Awsome Tree Image

This is one of my favorite images of Jesus. I am still looking for one on a potato chip. Potato chips are highly portable. Cutting down a tree and selling one of its logs on Ebay, is not easy to do--especially if that tree is in your neighbor's yard.

Ephemeral Memorial to Di

Due to an odd twist of fate, on August 31, 1997, we were flying into London when the pilot announced that Princess Di had just been killed in an auto accident. That week, in London, was a surreal experience. The flowers piled up outside of Buckingham Palace, and Herrod's department store had flowers stacked 5 feet high entirely around a building which occupies a city block. Grown men were crying in the streets. We came across the above sidewalk artist in Covent Gardens creating a beautiful image, which would only last until the first rainstorm-- a short lived creation, which Di herself was.

Volcanic Elf

Visiting the big island in Hawaii, one has to walk the lava fields. There are so many unique formations for a photographer, and this was one of them. He was really cool; I think I heard him ask for a glass of water.

Sharks in the Water

Scuba diving in Belize, we were introduced to a school of nurse sharks, and were assured they were harmless. The guide threw chum in the water on the right side of the boat, then suggested we enter the left side. I slipped into the water, fine. My wife straddled one of the sharks--a great picture which I unfortunately missed. Jane was not at all amused.

A Right of Passage at Summer Camp

If you ever walked the logs at summer camp, you can sympathize with these guys.

Photographer Looking for Subjects

Even flowers want to look their best when photographed.

Weed Emulating Wet Parrot

"So I look like a parrot, you say? Shiver my timbers, laddie; I'm just a common weed that got stuck in a rainstorm. I'm waiting for a prince who will give me a kiss, and turn me into a toad. That would be a lot more interesting than being a stationary, unpretentious weed."

Winter Fun in Erie, Colorado

Kids in Colorado go drag racing in a manner different from kids in California. Here is an example.

Inadvertent Swim in the Arkansas River

While rafting with his wife and two grand children through the Royal Gorge, in Colorado, the author of this blog went over the side of the raft, and then floated perilously down a boulder strewn field of rapids. The kids were screaming, "Grandpa's going to drown," and the novice guide tried frantically to catch up to me. All that was lost was my pride. It dries out fast, though. Two cameras miraculously survived undamaged, one that was waterproof, and a second that was in a platic baggie. My false teeth made it through, too, but they are use to being wet.

Tulips Can Have Fun, Too

Tulips have no problem getting worms for their hooks. They are right there under their roots.

Exhausted after Putting Child Through Medical School

Rotarian Wayne Curtis informs the club his daughter has just graduated from medical school, then promptly falls asleep. Fellow Rotarian, Elaine Malgieri wonders if she should wake him up as the luncheon speaker is approaching the podium.

The Misery of a Lost Contact Lens

Even flowers can be myopic--and we suspect most are. Therefore, having a group of close friends can be a real asset in finding the lost lens.

Boston Terrier who thinks she is a Great Female Hunter

Some animals hunt live game. This one searches out stuffed animals, and will proudly carry around her conquests for hours. We also have observed that she finishes up by performing a very ragged autopsy on them. Coincidently, her two masters, my son Todd, and his wife Judy, are both physicians.

Leaning "Flower" of Pisa

Again we see nature emulating architecture.

An Appeal to the Sun God?

Is this group of primitive people paying homage to their diety? Nope. Just a talented group of dancers in my grand daughter's dance class. They did capture the mood, though.

Mother Nature Mimics Mother Nature

Is this a breaking wave in the ocean? Nope. It is ordinary window frost on an ordinary storm door, in Redding, Connecticut.

Not a Great Day for Boaters

Fog is not a friend to the seafarer, but this South Carolina coastal fog bank was clearly a gift to this photographer.

Image of Cross in the Window

It was Christmas time (notice the decorative lights visible through the window of my daughter's house), when the sun suddenly hit the upper window crossbar in such a dramatic way that it had to be a sign from above. The message? A massive Christmas debt was about to become that fabled cross we all had to bare.

P 38 Moth

Some moths are better equiped for flight than others. This moth, with its twin stabilizers, is ready for combat.

Skier With a Problem

One of the rules of skiing is not to put yourself in a situation you can not ski out of. This novice skier has abviously done just that, on a mogul ski slope, at Beavercreek, Colorado.

Cherrie Pickers Lament

Even heavy equipment can have their feeling hurt. See the above.

Deer Rears

Deer love to show off. Here is an example, taken in our backyard in Redding, Connecticut.

Do Not Sniff a Rose Before Carefully Inspecting It

Roses not only smell great, they look great--but they occasionally contain surprises a rose sniffer is not ready for. This bee is laying in wait for the person who fails to heed the above warning.

Do Some Rotarians Doggy Bag the Luncheon Scraps?

Our assumption is that Rotarian Junior Avila is talking to his wife, Valeria, about dinner that night. Just a guess.

What's in a Name?

This Cherry blossom is confused, and we fully understand why. We should be careful what and how we name our horticultural friends. Maybe a name change is in order. Of course, something like "Pinkadilly Blossom time in Washington, D.C.," would not go over too well. Washington hates change. Just try to move all of those incumbents out of office.

An Acorn a Day, etc.

According to chipmunk lore, an acorn a day keeps the doctor away. More importantly, many acorns a day make a chipmunk healthy, wealthy and wise. This, of course, is not to demean the healthy value of apples. One has to respect chipmunk belief systems, however. Chipmunks have their own adages, and a rich history, shared with squirrels, revolving around the importance of acorns down through the ages.