How hot is it?

It is so hot that the trees are fighting over the neighborhood dogs. We are expecting two warmer than normal days. When we got out of bed today, we saw that the temperature, at 6 a.m., was already 80 degrees. Today and tomorrow will be close to 100 degrees. So for today, I thought I would share with you photos of cool, refreshing water. Ready?

I would love to be on this beach just to enjoy the ocean water.

From the water

I can just imagine standing under this waterfall.

Another waterfall

Jumping into Lake Tahoe would really cool me down.

Lake Tahoe and Emerald Bay

This lake near where I live looks inviting.

Enjoying a local lake

I want to jump into this river.

A view of the river

One more. Imagine sticking your feet in the cool rippling waters of this stream.

Rippling waters

If you are in a hot zone, stay as cool as you can, drink and carry water with you. Have a great day and be well.

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Snow in July – Friday Fictioneers

Snow in July – Photo by Dee Lovering

Snow in July? I guess anything is possible. I put on some winter clothes and headed to the park.

I grabbed a hot chocolate and went inside the pavilion. Sitting on a bench, I looked at the happy faces of the children on the merry-go-round. They always make me smile.

After sitting for a good hour, I put my mittens back on and headed for home. I turned on the news. “Scientists today are giving us a bit of alarming news. Climatologist Dr. Radovich of NOAA reports that the earth is heading for an ice age.”

So much for global warming.

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Thank you Rochelle for hosting Friday Fictioneers and to Dee Lovering for the photo that inspired this story. And, thank you dear reader for taking the time to stop on by for a quick read. Have a fantastic day!

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Another Storm Blows Through

We have had very odd weather here. Yesterday we had 3 tenths of an inch of rain accompanied by a huge lightning storm! I am posting the stills today that I shot yesterday. I have lots of video footage to review to find all the lightning that I was able to film. I will take stills from those videos to share the lightning with you at a later date. This storm was indeed impressive! Click on the photos to see greater detail. Ready to take a look?

The storm is coming our way…

The approaching storm

Looking towards the west, you can see where the sky is clear with a few clouds heading that direction.

The leading edge heading west of us

There are many layers which look really cool.

Layers

The storm slides in.

Sliding in

It gets really dark. It is early evening, around 5:30 p.m. It should be very bright still as sunset is around 8:00.

It got really dark

From where I sit, I take a photo looking up.

Looking up from my chair

The clouds appear like a hand with fingers spreading out.

Fingers

A bolt of lightning as it starts..

One bolt

Then one more. This one spreads quite far.

Then another

Well, that is it for today. We are to have another storm come in this evening.

Thanks for stopping by today! Have an amazing Saturday and be well… ^..^

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Catching Lightning!

Recently we had a storm, it was on the 26th I believe, and there was a lot of thunder and lightning. Because lightning is quick to strike, it is very difficult to catch a bolt coming down. Deciding that the only way that I could catch it was to video it, this is what I did. It took about 15 minutes of filming and from that I was able to catch the split seconds of a bolt of lightning! 😀

Here is the single bolt captured in 3 frames of the video that I shot.  To get the full details of this photo and the others, I suggest that you click on the photo once, then with the photo isolated click on it again to bring it to full size.  The bolts actually go from side to side and if you look closely, you will see how amazing this bit of nature truly is!

Here it begins…

The bolt of lightning begins

Here is the second frame…

Second catch of the same bolt

The last bit as it retreats…

Third catch as it finishes

Pretty cool, huh? June is usually a month were we get the monsoonal flow from Arizona and with it comes more lightning. I am hoping that I can catch more when it comes again!

Thanks for stopping by today, and have one heck of a fine Saturday! Be well…. ^..^

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The Odyssey – Sunday Photo Fiction

Anchors – Photo by Alastair Forbes

The forty-foot swells came from out of nowhere. The captain, buckled in to his seat, held tight to the wheel, sweat dripped down his face. The crew battened down the hatches. Water swept across the decks taking with it anything not tied down.

Up and down, the ship rode the waves. The winds howled, making the crew believe that the Seven Sirens sang to them. Water slammed into the ship, tossing the crew to the left, then to the right. The captain was heading for the shore.

Suddenly, all heard the sound of ripping metal. Ice-cold water rushed in. Crewmen were swept out to sea. The captain felt the ship list to the left. Over the loud speaker he yelled, “Abandon ship! Abandon ship!”

He let go of the wheel heading outside. A huge wave rushed in pinning him to the door of the wheelhouse, then grabbed at his feet pulling him out to sea. He thanked God for his life and surrendered himself to a certain death.

The storm raged on and the Odyssey quickly sank. All that remained of this ship: A pair of anchors, now on display at Odyssey Park. None of the crew survived.

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To Alastair Forbes: Thank you for hosting Sunday Photo Fiction, and for the amazing photo that inspired my story!

Sunday Photo Fiction

Thanks go out to you too, dear reader, for taking the time to stop on by for a quick read. Have a splendid Sunday and be well… ^..^

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Stormy Skies and Little Rain

Today is another grey and cloudy day. The last storm gave us .12″ of rain. Not much. I must say, though, that we have had some pretty amazing clouds lately. So I thought that I would share some of the photos I took of these amazing clouds with you today…

Thunderheads forming

I see a face in the clouds

Looking to the east

Is there rain in these clouds?

Surely there has to be

Roiling clouds

Amazing clouds, aren’t they?

Thanks for dropping by today! Have a great weekend! And, be well… ^..^

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Snow in Spring?

Yes, snow in spring! It snowed a bit yesterday! I love watching snow come down and I have missed it! Our last snowfall here in the Sierra Foothills was February 19th, 2013 and on that day we had about three inches. Our typical average snowfall for a season is eleven inches. Yesterday we had just a trace. This will most likely be the only snow for the season, which is July 1st 2014 to June 30th, 2015. While it was not a lot, I thought I would share what photos I did take yesterday!

First of all, snow was not predicted for my elevation. When I glanced out the window as I was writing my blog post yesterday, I spotted a snowflake or two. So I went out front with the camera. If you click on the photo to enlarge it, you will see the streaks of white. These are the snowflakes coming down!

The snow begins…

Looking out the back window, I notice that it is now coming down a bit heavier than before…

It comes down a bit heavier

Then it comes down heavier still…

Heavier still

To me, there is nothing more peaceful or glorious as watching it snow!

Glorious snow!

Well, that is it for today! Thanks for dropping by and be well… ^..^

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Eye in the Sky!

We have been having a series of storms here in the Sierra Nevada foothills giving us much needed rain! I stepped out on Thursday night to see if it was still raining. The rain had stopped and as I stepped out from under the eaves of the house, I noticed that the clouds were transparent enough that I was able to see the moon. I wanted to share with you today the amazing sight that I was greeted with!

Now mind you, with everything in motion, the photos are a bit blurry, but you will see what I saw!

The eye in the sky!

Brilliant and colorful

Shifting clouds

Clouds and the full moon

A rainbow around the moon

What I was able to see that was hard to capture, was the fact that at one point there were three rings around the moon! Isn’t this cool?

I hope that you enjoyed the photos! Thanks for stopping by today, and remember, be well! ^..^

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Buried in Snow – Sunday Photo Fiction

I love a challenge, and I certainly enjoy the challenge that Alastair Forbes hosts: Sunday Photo Fiction! The challenge is to write a bit of flash fiction using no more than 200 words, and the story has to go with the photo prompt. Here is my entry for today!

After the Snow

He predicted snowfall measuring no more 6″. Forecast models indicated that the days to follow the storm would be sunny and bright. Would he be right?

Cody sat outside on the deck, wearing a down jacket, mittens, and sipped on hot chocolate. The snow was light at first. It started to get heavier with flakes as big as half dollars. He headed indoors early. He had to leave for work at 3:00 a.m.

He awoke to the shrieking alarm clock, wiped the sleep from his eyes, and crawling out of his nice warm bed, made his way to the kitchen. With the coffee just beginning to brew, he went off to shower and shave.

After enjoying his coffee and toast, he donned his jacket to head off to work. Opening the door, he found himself staring at 2′ of snow, and it was still coming down! This was much more than expected.

Heading back inside he realized that he would not make it in to work. Calling the station, he let them know. He loved his job as a weatherman. Why did he? Because it was the only job, where you could be wrong and not get fired!
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Thank you Al for hosting this challenge! And, thank you dear reader for taking the time to stop by for a quick read!
Be well! ^..^

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Coming Up!

Get a little bit of rain, mix it with a bit of leaf litter, and the mushrooms begin to pop! You can find them everywhere, even in the grass and mossy areas of the yard! Today I wanted to share some of these lovelies with you that I took after our recent rain!

Coming up from leaf litter

I discovered this mushroom which reminds me of…well tell me if you agree from the photo description!

The booby mushroom

Here is a newie! You can gauge the size of it by the blades of grass that surround it!

Teeny tiny

Here is one that has already shed its spores and is fading…

Curling

Wandering about, I discovered these flat tops!

Flat tops

And, one final shot of a lovely mix of mushrooms…

A lovely mix

I hope that you enjoyed these mushrooms! Thank you for taking the time to drop on by! Have a spectacular Saturday! Be well! ^..^

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