Wildflower garden

Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata)


Wild ginger leaves (Hexastylis sp.)


Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa)


Smooth hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens)


Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) and little friend


Oak-leaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia)


Carolina Lily (Lilium michauxii)


Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium purpureum)


New bridge


Celandine poppy leaf (Stylophorum diphyllum)


Brown-eyed Susans and little friend (Rudbeckia sp.)


I would never have believed that moss could capture a leaf


But it can


Thanks for visiting...

Rutland Water clockwise on foot

With Barry, Maureen, Gordon and Eddie. Harry in the afternoon. Cloudy, then one shower, then clear and even sunny. Pretty good underfoot. Lunch at Horse and Jockey, Manton.

Dramatic lighting over the Water

We started from Barnsdale car park and walked clockwise, via Whitwell, Sykes Lane, the dam, Normanton church, Normanton car park, Lyndon Nature reserve, Manton, and Egleton.

A very welcome pause for tea at the Egleton village hall.



We easily reached the pub by 1pm. Starting from Barnsdale at 9.40 am. We could have had a coffee stop!











Lots of martins and swifts, birdsong which I couldn't identify near Lyndon nature reserve.

First Papaver

The first bloom on my Papaver commutatum 'Ladybird' from Annie's Annuals.

Upskill Style.

The very stylish Upskill Climbing team landed in Hong Kong earlier this year to streettest their new range of climbing clothing in the tough urban environment.



jjobrienclimbing was there to bring back the look.



LeeCujes momentarily considers this black on yellow knit sweater.

Co-Director Sam Cujes vetoes: No.





















Brown bomber? Again: No.



After a few false starts Lee hits the gritty streets of Hong Kong in Boulders + Nuts T-Shirt from theUpskill Store. Good choice.

Get Lee's look here.

Boulders + Nuts T-Shirt protects and enhances in the dark canyons of Mong Kok

Upskill Director Lee Cujesactions an importantstyle decision in the Hong Kong officeand comes out on top in Slo PonyT-Shirt and G Star Jeans. Did you know the enigmatic Slo used to be a fashion designer?

The Upskill directors meet with principle style editors from jjobrienclimbing at Hong Kong's fabulous "Aqua"

Climbers, if yourtechnique or wardrobe need upskilling look no further.

And if you areseeking stylish traveling companions jjobrienclimbing recommends the Upskill Camp in Kalymnos this October . Travel with complete confidence that your companions won't roll out of the hotel looking shabby on you, every stylish travelers worst nightmare.

This will be the fourth in the highly successful series ofKalymnos climbing training camps for Upskill.



Have you been to Kalymnos with Upskill? Tell us about it.

Wordless Wednesday :: Nearly Ready for Liftoff

The Great Forest Park Balloon RaceSt. Louis, Missouri September 1994Copyright © 1994/.. by Rebeckah R. Wiseman

Our dog, the comedian

Jasmine loves sticks. Chewing them, chasing them, playing keep-away.

One of her favorite things, while out walking, is to find a really long stick.

The beavers are her associates in this game. They cut down a lot of saplings and leave them in the path.

Once Jasmine finds the big stick, she nonchalantly picks it up to chew on a bit.

Then, after you walk past her, she'll run ahead with her big stick and hit you on the back of the legs with it.

The first several times this happened, we chalked it up to an accident. An exuberant young dog not watching where she's going, and not realizing the breadth of such a long stick.

At length, when it kept happening, it finally dawned on us - she's doing it on purpose.

Beach

Here is a photo my sister took when she and her hubby and dog went to the Oregon beach near Astoria, OR for their 30 Anniversary.
Happy Anniversary!!!!