Shadows on the Southwest Boulevard Pedestrian Bridge in Tulsa during a family walk.
Grabbed a shadow at Guthrie Green during at picnic at the Arts District in Tulsa.
Shadows at Oxley Nature Center during a family hike.
I’m linking with Shadow Shot Sunday 2 – come check it out.
Trees reflected on an oxbox pond at Oxley Nature Center here in Tulsa.
Reflections found on the Arkansas River bottoms on a cold, windy, rainy, day (my favorite kind of day).
So this is what our house looks like now. We have moved beyond floors and are deep into painting. You couple this with great sunny weather and it is time to get out and about.
So we made another trip to Oxley Nature Center. The main part of the park and during midweek so there was hardly anybody out, certainly no pot smokers stinking up the area.
We got about three miles in the sunny, cool weather. We saw all sorts of squirrels and birds but no deer.
I loved how this marsh was still green. Making that oxygen out of carbon dioxide.
Part of old US 169 goes through the park and has been converted to a very wide paved trail.
We had a great time and covered about three miles. The painters had let themselves out so hung out on the front porch for a while and then moved upstairs to watch Elf.
I’m linking with Skywatch Fridayhttps://skyley.blogspot.com/
Sunday the weather was great, sunny and kind of cool but not warm so the family decided to go hiking at Oxley Nature Center. We headed up there to their North Woods Unit and there was like eight or so cars parked there where usually there is none and no more than two in all the years we went there. We went hiking anyway! What are we going to do, go mall walking?
There was like three groups with dogs, on a trail where no dogs are allowed. One of those groups was smoking marijuana as they went along. And then they stopped about 100 yards ahead of us and all urinated together. What!!! Yes, you heard me.
So they got to a fork in the trail and went one way and we went the other. We still had a good time but all the dogs and barking and such meant no deer anywhere close. We had a good time though.
I found this tornado damaged tree that looked somewhat like a bird. Does that count as wildlife?
And at this nice idyllic scene about 30 seconds I took this photo with my phone there were a couple pelicans paddling around. I had brought my good camera with a long lens. I got it out and found out that the white balance, shutter speed, and iso was all wrong. I don’t do auto of stubborness any more and by the time I got all that squared away the pelicans left!!!
And now for your chance to laugh at me. (You might as well everybody else does.) Here is our family selfie from the trip. We were facing the sun to get the good light on our faces but I couldn’t see the screen so I wasn’t really sure what we had.
Well this we had. Talk about fail. Oh well, I smile at myself when I look at it.
Do you ever smile at yourself?
I am linking with Our World Tuesday
We are having some mild sunny days lately. That makes for great shadows. Even the snowman has a shadow.
And park benches…
And bridge railings
And fences…
I thought struck me. Where do shadows go when the sun is not out? They cannot just disappear, right? That would violate some scientific law it seems to me.
Be safe everybody!!
I am linking with Shadow Shot Sunday 2
I was out walking in Washington Irving Park Thursday and came across this squirrel noisily eating his lunch. He just sat there and watched me and when I finally got a little closer, he decided to move on.
The day or so before I was on Tulsa’s Turkey Mountain and heard kind of chittering noise and I looked around and saw this squirrel. Eating heartily. I apologize for the terrible quality of the video but I just had my cell phone.
The squirrels out in the woods seem more tolerant than those in our back yard. What’s is up with that? It might be our dogs. They love chasing after the squirrels.
I’m very thankful that I have my health and can take long walks in the woods.
I’m linking with Saturday’s Critters
I went on a late afternoon hike on Tulsa’s Turkey Mountain recently. Came across this lake. I don’t what it is but all the ponds on Turkey Mountain are called lakes. I don’t know what the official name of it is, doesn’t matter, does it?
I was a little annoyed the day before Thanksgiving. Our gym closed temporarily because of community spread of Covid-19. They are planning on evaluating again on the New Year. So I was going to get another gym but on further thought, I decided that I am going to ride this thing through without a gym. Covid-19 in Oklahoma is exploding and the governor doesn’t want to be outflanked on the right for re-election so he is doing a whole lot of nothing to control it. So I don’t have a gym so I’ll be spending more time outdoors.
The day after Thanksgiving, Black Friday, the weather was pretty decent and Post Oak Lodge, a resort northwest of Tulsa opened up their grounds including their trail system to the general public. I’ve been up there a bunch for Trail Races and so off we went.
The skies were clear, the air was crisp and cold, and so off we went. They didn’t have trail maps so we winged. Heather kept asking me, “you have been out here a lot and you don’t know the trails?” So I said it was only once a year and they change the routes some every year. We wanted to go to Holmes Peak, the highest point in Tulsa County. At least we could see where we wanted to go. We had a to double or loop back a few times though. Just adds to the fun, right?!
We passed some of the zip line towers. I used to want to do a zip line and now I don’t.
Here we are on Holmes Peak. You can see downtown Tulsa way off down there.
On the way back, I had to go check this oil well. Yep, it was pumping.
Here is a video of our adventure. I posted it on facebook and a friend of mine said it looked like one of PJ’s routes on Family Circus. I had to agree with him but we had a good time anyway.
A few days later we had a full moon. The Beaver Moon I think they call it.
I am thankful to be able to get outside. I am also thankful that we have a vaccine coming. I hope everybody is being careful.
I am linking with Skywatch Friday
This is our Tuxedo cat LJ in the shadows. LJ is a mess. He’s sweet but is old and diabetic (I give him insulin injections twice a day). He loves to eat and sleep. We are redoing our house and he loves the old sunny dining room that we have turned into a sitting room.
He even likes the floor as long as the sun is shining on it.
This is Lizzie our sweet little rescue kitten. I know that three year old cats are not kittens but that is what we call her. Somebody through her the window in a parking lot. She’s sweet but she doesn’t like to be held unless she is in the mood. And she is never in the mood.
During a yawn she goes into scary rattlesnake cat mode.
She’s not amused.