My don't I look pretty?

This little guy's owner had him all decked out for the St. Paddy's Day Parade recently in Wilmington. He seemed comfortable with his tulle skirt. I thought he was adorable.

AAH -- nothing like SPRING!

This was a glancing shot with some heavy retouching . I spotted this red-bellied woodpecker from my kitchen window and rushed to the front door, cracking it slightly then trying to brace my elbow so as not to disturb him. No, I'm not a bird photographer but they fascinate the heck out of me.

Demise of Cedar Waxwing

Driving home last week, this beautiful creature couldn't seem to rise fast enough to clear the edge of my windshield. I turned around to rescue it though I knew there was not much I could do. But, it was too beautiful to allow a car to run over it. A local bird expert told me that it may have gotten drunk off eating berries. Cedar waxwing will be a part of an educational "show and tell" soon. At least its great beauty will be prolonged and be shared. Notice the orange tuffs at the edge of its wings.

GULL a la Jonathan

 

The fields have become playgrounds for the gulls.

We're talking, sometimes, hundreds of them. 

When I walk the dog, they will fly low, over Kinu

and I, and it is just a magnificent scene. 

I never tire of watching them. 

CHASING SUNRISES

Happy 2012! The Year of the Dragon. It feels nice to leave 2011 behind.

SHARING

Nothing like sharing. A cardinal graciously allows a dove to share his bowl of seeds. Sharing...the essence, I believe, of the spirit of this holiday season.

AFTER THE STORM

Hurricane Irene pounded in and out for a day and two nights. No one was prepared for the havoc she created or --- the flooding. I watched the power of the storm surge on my lawn quickly overcome the door height of part of our house (the "cottage"), sweep into the foyer, reaching the 3rd step at the sunroom and felt sure that its power would crumble the foundation of the entire house. The boarding at the windows held. Cars were moved during the storm to higher ground on the street as I packed bags pondered escape. Logic  overcame my fear. I knew the roads and bridges and would be impassable. Our only recourse would be to remain in the house and hope for the best. The day sky was black, angry and visibility low. The rising water reluctantly slowed its rise upwards as Irene's eye moved over us but didn't retreat for at least another hour or so, until the counter winds began from the west.

It was a storm no one will easily forget in Pamlico. Many homes in Pamlico have been destroyed while others like us are coping with repairing the damage which may take months. And many are assessing why they live here whether they want to stay.