From the Ground Up, Catch Up

I've been off-grid and unplugged so I've missed a few days of From the Ground-Up. Bummer. I've been looking around and catching up on some of the other participants project posts...they're great!
Today I was driving home and saw this avalanche chute...people were hiking up carrying snowboards and skis so they could ski or board down. What a lot of work for an icy, chunky, bumpy run. I love to ski...but give me a chairlift and a groomed run. Oh yeah....and ski patrols and avalanche safety crews. Call me a princess, I can take it.

I took this shot around the corner from the avalanche chute. It looks like another world, I know. It's exposed to the sun so the snow is melted off. If you click on the photo to enlarge it you can see a railing for a scenic look-out point at the top of the white rock area. It gives you some idea of the scale of the cliff.

I was going to tell you that I went rock climbing today and took this photo after I had finished rappelling down this rock face....you'd believe me....right? He he...

*Bloggers note: I just noticed that Anna Carson has announced Project Blue....guess this last shot qualifies for my first post. Prepare for Blue, Wahooo!

I can bearly believe it!

Today was nature day I tell ya! This morning I looked out the bathroom window at the cabin and right there...stretched out was a three foot rattlesnake (I think...not positive... it may have been a bull snake)...I'm not posting the picture because snakes are creeeepyyyyy. I opened the window and snapped some shots. If anybody wants to see them just ask and I'll post....ewwwww.
Then a golden eagle swooped down at the puppy when she was out in the yard! Yiiikes.
On my drive home I had to stop for a quail and five little chicks who were standing in the road...it took them quite a while to move, I hope they smarten up and stop playing in the street.

And thennnn....the grand finale. I was minding my own business driving home and lookey here who I saw! My oh my...I was so excited. I flipped a u-turn...pulled up alongside the bear to snap a photo and oooppppsss....the dog went crazy! The bear gave us that Pacino look "You talkin' to me?" I wanted to get a better shot but decided I had better move along, my car has a soft top and if that bear wanted to it could rip it open in one swipe.
What a fun nature day.

From the Ground Up, #3

The old silo...from the ground up. It's just such a

boring photo. I gotta go find a plant to lay under.

Ahhhhhh...much better! This is what a girl sees
when she lays on the ground under
her Solomon Seal plant. The play of the light on
the leaves is so pretty!

I'm trying to take my photo challenge shots here
at the farm, or if I'm out on an errand I'll try to
remember to take my camera with me.
Photo challenges are a great way for me to stop,
to focus...
to pay attention to the unique beauty that
surrounds me right here, every day. And then
launch it out into the blogosphere and share it.

From the Ground Up, #2

I'm dirty...but I got a shot! I didn't even

know the bee was there until I looked at this

one on the computer...

And to think I was whining about these little

stinging things a few days ago.

Quiet Riot & From the Ground Up

The poppies are out.

I promised to post a picture of them when they
were full blast...so here they are.
This whole thing started out as one transplant from
moms garden, see what happens when nature is
allowed to do her thing?


This next shot sorta qualifies for a little project hosted by
JFargo at My World in Pictures
called "From the Ground Up".
I laid on the ground to take this shot, it was overcast
today so the sky looks like a white backdrop for the shot.

Z is for Zantedeschia

Or Calla Lillies as they are more commonly known. I'm crazy about these flowers, they were the flowers that I used for my wedding...don't say they're funeral flowers - flowers are flowers..and I looove these.

What makes me really crazy is that I can't grow an impressive grouping of them like you see here in the photo. My callas are puny....I have about five leaves and a couple of pathetic looking flowers, definitely not worthy of a photo. I had to get in the car and drive over to moms to take this shot, when I told her that I had two lousy blooms she had the nerve to stand there and count how many blooms were in this stand...she did it out loud.....do you think she was doing that to bug me? I'm going to give her the benefit of the doubt and say it's because she is so proud of her green thumb.

Thanks for the Z photo mom!

A Huuuuge Thank You to Quilly for hosting the ABC Challenge. I'm so sad it's over ;(

It's been such fun to prowl the farm in search of the photo of the day. Some of my shots came from a building project I'm working on a few hours away from the farm....it kept me on my toes and mindful of having the camera handy. Thanks to all who commented, I can't deny that getting comments is a huge part of the joy of blogging...what a great community of kind hearted folks you all are.

See you at the next project!

Y is for Yellow Jackets

I used to be so nice. I was all about ignoring the wasps and the bees. I said "live and let live"...I told everyone that they wouldn't sting me because they knew that I planted a lot of flowers and they would leave me alone. If I did happen to get stung, it would hardly bother me...not so much anymore! Now I'm cranky and sore, it's all about ice and benadryl....what a drag.

Well...the party is officially over, for me...and for them. These little beasts have taken over the party barn! They're everywhere....and they're not very nice at all. Every time I go out there they dive-bomb me. As bad as I feel about this... desperate measures are called for.
Sorry Mr. MeanBug....it's party season and you're not paying the taxes on that barn...I am....consider yourself served with an eviction notice.

X is for Xeriscaping

Xeriscaping...it's my next project. Landscaping a really challenging site. It's incredibly hot and dry in the summer, watering is possible... but the whole point of a xeriscape is to use plantings that don't require a lot of water once established. We'll be using native plants like the photos below...these plants are currently growing at the site. It's a whole new world for me, a completely different zone, a water challenge, very low maintenance...oh yeah...and the deer...that will be snacking on everything that isn't caged.Balsam Root

Cute little blue flower..guess I need a reference book!

Bitterbrush...the deer will keep this pruned

Construction site clean-up crew.

W is for Winding Roads and Waterfalls

V is for Vandals

"all creatures great and small"

V is for vandals...garden vandals that is. A few days ago I was on this blog whining about the bunnies eating my arugula and nibbling on the peas. I take it back...

Yesterday, as I was out weeding in the veggie patch, naughty puppy was not too far away from me...sniffing, running, playing....doin' the stuff that puppies do.

The Husband came out back and called out to her to see if she wanted to go for a ride to town, Puppy Girl loooves to go for rides. She came-a-runnin', full blast...with a baby bunny in her mouth! Acckkkk! She dropped that bunny faster than a hot rock, "heck with the bunny mannn...I wanna go to town!"

I ran over to where she dropped the poor bunny and I picked it up. Those are my lovely blue garden gloves in the photo...surgical gloves....I swear by 'em.

Anywhoooo....I took bunny's picture, and then put bunny back where puppy was playing in the long grass. There was a fuzzy bunny nest over there, I sure hope she survives all that puppy/people trauma.

I'm off to plant some more arugula for her....I hear she and her family really like it. Hmmmm....I wonder if I should plant some more peas as well.

U is for Uppercase

My big purchase in NYC, yeah...always the biiiig spender....that's me. I found these old letters at a flea market in New York City, a souvenir from a trip with the girls... they are all different styles and sizes spelling out Party Barn.

T is for Teepee

The pea and bean teepees out in the garden. Grow peas, grow!
We're having a bit of a bunny problem, I sure hope I get to harvest something this year, so far they've chomped my arugula down to nothin' and it looks like they've been nibbling on the peas. Funny how they don't touch any of the stuff that could use some trimming, like the mint and the lemon balm....well...not really all that funny. Grrrr!

S is for Smoke

I try not to be too whiney on this blog, but sometimes a girl just has to speak up.

That ugly pink haze you see on the horizon of this photo is smoke. Not smoke from industrial pollution, or vehicle emissions...nope...this is all thanks to the U.S. Forest Service. I've read their articles about how "prescribed burns" are necessary. But last week when I was at the cabin all I could smell was smoke, my clothes reeked of smoke and my eyes were burning. I don't have bad allergies or athsma but I certainly am concerned for folks that live in this beautiful valley who stuggle with breathing issues...because this smokey nightmare must make their problems a whole lot worse.

What about the Greening of America?

A lot of us are reducing, reusing, recycling...more than ever before. We're consolidating our errands so that we drive less, we're shopping locally so that we use less fossil fuel. Solar panels are back-ordered with wait lists because people want to do their part and generate their own electricity in a more earth friendly fashion. Kids are coming home from school and telling their parents it's time to switch out all of the lightbulbs in the house to more eco-friendly bulbs.


I wonder, what is the carbon footprint for all of the "prescribed burns" going on right now.

Hey...Al Gore...what's your take on this one? Are we buyin' carbon credits for this one too?

My tax dollars at work....yippie ;-(

R is for...R & R

Rest and Relaxation.

The Party Barn is dangerously close to opening for the season.

I love summer in the northwest, hanging out at the farm, going to the islands, heading east of the mountains for some dry heat. If someone tries to talk me into a summer vacation where I have to get on a plane and fly to another state, I tend to get uptight. Any other time of the year I'm pretty much good to go...but summer ...I belong here...right here in this picture as a matter of fact.

Q is for Queen

Tulip, Queen of Night.

I went through a little phase where I was just plain crazy about black plants...or almost black plants. These tulips are a really dark purple and I'm still just as crazy about them as I was all those years ago when I first discovered them. There aren't too many of them left in my garden, but the ones that have survived are still incredibly lovely. I think I need to buy some more of these little dears this fall so I can have a few more to gaze at.

To see more ABC photo challenge participants check out Quilly's Pacific Paradise.

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day

This is the second time I've joined Garden Bloggers Bloom Day over at May Dreams. It's such a great way to get outside and focus on what's blooming once a month. I was supposed to post this on the May 15th but a few little issues got in my way...sketchy internet connection, issues with Blogger and even an avalanche! I love this crazy life I live.
I'm not going to name the plants, that would make this post even later than it already is. Hope you enjoy the photos as much as I did walking around the garden and taking them.