Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween everyone. While I have mixed feelings about this holiday, I do small festivities more of a harvest celebration. I have heard and understand both sides of the argument. It's my fault because I can always look at both sides of a situation and know where each is coming from. Don't get me wrong though, just because I can see both sides does not mean that I sway in my beliefs, I know what I believe and there is little that one can do short of proving me completely wrong to convince me otherwise. Yeah I know I'm a complex person.

Over the next week I will be posting some of the photos that I wanted to post but they just didn't seem to make it at the time or something else came up. Okay I'll admit it most of them I just plain forgot to post. Also I will be pulling from both my recent archives and some of my older archives that well I just couldn't post because I didn't have a blog yet.

Have a great weekend.

Final Touches

As we were leaving the Augusta Covered Bridge area, well I had to use the bathroom. On my way over to the restrooms I noticed this log building. If you notice the sign says "Maple Manor". Judging by this sign and the smoke stack, I am assuming they have demonstrations, typically during the months of February and March in Michigan, on how maple syrup is made.

Also out on display was this wonderful logging wheel. The size of it is unbelievable. It is close to the size of the cabin. For other pictures to help put the size in perspective visit my other blog.

This image below is of a gnarly old tree. I highly suggest that you enlarge this image to truly see all of the bumps and such.

The following are some wood carvings done in some tree trunks. I was in awe of the tiny details that the put in the carving. I believe these are actually done with a chainsaw but I do not know this for sure so please don't quote me on that.

Details, Details, Details

Here is some of the details that might have been missed by many other passersby. The first image is some type of fungus growing on the tree trunk. And in the second image of the leaf, I just was instantly drawn into the beautiful colors this little leaf held in it. Although I'm sure they quickly faded as it lay there on the ground.

Berries near the Augusta Covered Bridge

Here are some of the berries that I saw along the short stretch of the trail that we walked that day out at the Augusta Covered Bridge.

Views around the Augusta Covered Bridge

Here are a few views from right around the bridge. The first image is through one of the windows looking to the south. The second image is just northeast of the bridge looking to the west. The third image is standing just west of the bridge looking to the north. And the last image is another image of the bridge looking to the south. I was unable to get any images of the bridge from the south side. I didn't have the right shoes and the ground was soft and muddy so I didn't attempt to go off of onto any unbeaten path. I did use a barely used trail for my images of the north side. You could tell that a path was there but it was seldom used. Next time I will be more prepared for this and hopefully get some other pictures that I can already see in my head.

The Beauty of Fall

The colors were all so beautiful, last week. There was still so much green, last week. Fall was clearly at its best, last week. Okay maybe I am a bit bitter here. But I just did not get to enjoy my fall color as much as I had hoped. In my area, most of the leaves have fallen off of the trees now. It is mostly bare stark branches in view now. There is still some color but not as much as I would still like to see. At least I have the birthdays of my boys to look forward here for the next two weeks. Then it is holiday fever, Thanksgiving and Christmas festivities and gatherings. I do enjoy this time of year. I just like for my color to stay around and linger.

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth.

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same.


And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

--Robert Frost

This is one of my favorite poems by one of my favorite poets. While I have my B.A. in English when I was in grade school, I was not fond of English and the Language Arts. I was and still am somewhat of a slow reader. I have never been a speed reader, I still actually read every word on the page. That is not to say I don't occasionally skim some items that I read but when it comes to my literature I read every word. I hated timed tests in school. Anyhow, Frost was one of the first poets that I read and was able to understand what he was actually saying. That is not to say that he is an easy read because you do have to read his work carefully. His writings are great in my opinion because they can hold dual meaning. Take this poem. One can read this context as someone looking back over their life and pondering how the choices made influenced the outcome of their life. Or it can be read as a poem of the moment. An introspect of the daily choices we make. And how inevitably we can not understand how those choices effect us until we live those choices.

Augusta Covered Bridge

The Augusta Covered Bridge is also known as the W K Kellogg Forrest Covered Bridge. It is the entrance to the Lemmien Loop. A two and a half mile trail around the Kellogg forest. This thriving forest land was once an area of abandoned agricultural land. The goal of the forest is to provide an understanding of the forest research as well as the forestry itself. While I did not walk the entire loop, I did walk a short distance and enjoyed the views and learning from the little signs posted along the way describing the research that is being done. I hope to go back when we have more time and actually walk the entire loop. The area is maintained by MSU. We actually drove past the entrance to the area because we were looking specifically for the Kellogg forest and the sign noted that it was part of Michigan State University with a small mention of Kellogg Forest at the bottom (which we really didn't notice until we were passed the sign). Luckily we didn't go to far out of the way because I knew once we reached a certain cross road we had gone to far so we only went about a half mile out of our way. The next few days will be filled with pictures from this resent trip. Hope you all enjoy my trip as much as I did, as you read my posts over the next few days.

My little trip across state

was wonderful. However I did not get to see both covered bridges. I did make it to the one and it was a very nice time there. I am hoping to get pictures uploaded to my computer and started working on them this evening. Hopefully, I will have a new picture posted by this evening. Have been slowly catching up on the blogs that I read and enjoying them all very much; now if everyone would take a break when I do, I wouldn't have to read so much.

Flowers at the Renaissance

I have done my best to identify the flowers. Some are not wildflowers. If I have wrongly identified anything please let me know I appreciate any help that I might receive with identification. Also if you happen to know what they are and would like to help please leave a comment with the flower name and which one of the pictures (1-5 from top to bottom) it is. Thanks.

Have a great weekend. I know I will. I get to see some covered bridges that I have not seen yet. Yeah!

Calico Aster

Petunia


Chrysanthemums



Hardy Hibiscus

Faces at the Renaissance

Being out at the Renaissance there are friendly faces everywhere. Here are a few of my favorites that I captured that day.


Here is my favorite dancer in the Middle Eastern Dance Ensemble. There is something about her that draws me in. I think that she is a very beautiful lady and on the few occasions that I have talked to her that beauty is on the inside as well.


Her majesty, Queen Elizabeth.

Tartanic

Another reason I enjoy the Renaissance Festival is because of the music. I enjoy listening to the celtic sounds especially. One of the new acts this year was Tartanic.

This drum was literally two rows in front of us. The poor guy holding it up couldn't get over how numb his arms felt after being volunteered to hold it. The funny thing about the drum being so close is that my Eli fell asleep with this going on right in front of us.

Here they did a parody of an angel painting, I believe it was a painting. Anyway I was focused on something else as they were doing this and I didn't get the picture quite fast enough but I think the effect is still there just not as strong as it was with the drum over his head as a halo.

I included this last picture to show where we were sitting in relation to the stage. The empty space behind my oldest's head is where they were playing the drum from the previous photo. That and I just think my baby is adorable no matter what he is doing.

"It's Time for Danger Theater"

My favorite show at the Michigan Renaissance Festival. The Zucchini Brothers have become just that, my favorite. I used to have another favorite but they have not been back, due to politics with management, for several years. I truly enjoy watching the juggling and I love their corniness. I have to admit that I have their performance close to memorized so I definitely know when they have added new material and that is always a thrill. I look forward to when my boys get a real kick out of watching the show. I thought Asa would enjoy it this year but by the time we got to go to the show he had completely zonked out and slept through the whole show. I'll have to try and plan next year so that the boys will be awake. Eli was awake but being a few months shy of one year old he really wasn't all that interested with what was going on around him well at least not on stage.

The Enchanted Statue

The above pictures are of one of my favorite displays at the faire. I guess you would call her a display although she is listed under entertainment on the Michigan Renaissance Festival website. I had to include the last picture because my son Asa was so leery of the statue. He did take the little scroll that she was handing out. He held onto until time for lunch. The thing I haven't been able to figure out is how she actually sees. I can not find where the eye hole feature would be. My all time favorite display/performance was the Green Man. This was a man on stilts disguised as a tree. I loved this guy but sadly he has not been around the last couple of years.

Dragon Scales and Faerie Tales

Dragon Scales and Faerie Tales is a very cute show for the kids and the adults as well. Both of my boys seemed to like it very much. We watched last year as well as this year. It was nice though because it was on the stage in the children's dell this year. Not that my boys were really old enough to do much of the other kid oriented things this year. I love that they have a space designated for the kids. Now if only they would have a designated drinking area for the alcohol... I won't jump on that soapbox. I just have a hard time dealing with the alcohol being carried around all over the place out there. I liked how at the Silver Leaf Ren Fest it was contained to a particular area at least it was the year that I went to that particular festival.

The Animals out at the Renaissance

Here is a Lorikeet. They are beautiful birds. There was a display set up, in which you could pay a small fee (I think a dollar or two) you could go in and feed the birds. We went by while they were on a break. I learned that the reason they take a break is to allow the birds to digest the food that they have already been fed before they feed more. Why I didn't think of this on my own, I'll never know. I just thought it odd in years past that they would take a break. The nice thing about going by on the break was that I could take pictures of the birds without people I did not know being in the pictures.


Here is a beautiful donkey. I honestly think they are one of my favorite animals. I heard this story once that all donkeys bare a cross on their backs. So since hearing this I have always paid close attention to the back of the donkey and sure enough every donkey that I have seen since hearing this has had a cross on its back. I can't say one hundred percent that all donkeys I have seen have this because it has only been in the past ten years or so that I was told this and so I don't know that all donkeys before this time hold true. But I am amazed that thus far it has held true.


Next we have a baby goat. He was so cute and acted a bit shy. He was just to adorable not to take a picture of him.


Last we have a pony. Now this fellow (I assume fellow) was rather feisty. He was chasing the others around in the petting area. He was definitely the dominant one of the pen. It was fun to watch him frolic around and play with the others in the pen.

To see more wonderful critters please click the camera critters link on my side bar.

The Alien's Have Landed

Here is a bug. I look at this thing and it definitely looks a lot like the pictures of aliens that many have drawn or even those portrayed in the movies. MIB comes to mind especially as I look at this little critter. I did not get a picture of the top of this guy so I am unable to identify him. He landed on our windshield before we left the Wild Wonders Wildlife Park. I just had to practice my macro shots. Also as a bonus I am including a picture of the petunias that were planted in planters along the path by the offices.



Tomorrow I start the pictures from the Renaissance Festival. Mind you these are not my typical images. They involve more people but I do have a few pics of flowers and some of the animals out there.

More Bee Stalking

Okay well I didn't actually stalk these bees. There were plenty of them on this little flower bush. So I took advantage of there being so many of them, I thought for sure I should get some good images. Well I have to say I was right. I am very pleased with these two images. I especially like the first one and I loved the sheen of the wings in the second photo.

Howell Nature Center

They have a wildlife rescue out there with many wonderful critters.
The critters that are on display are the animals that have been injured and are now unable to survive on their own out in the wild. They have a bobcat that someone decided to try and tame so they had it completely declawed. He looked so cute but I know that I would not want to be face to face with a wild one. He was lounging on a platform snoozing and occasionally he would look at us as if to say, "so what are you looking at me for?"
A very nice experience. I am looking forward to visiting this place again.