Occasionally, some cute little green-black snakes down by the rivers and rattlers up in the rocky hills 'round here--Yikes--

Here is the bee pic that I painted for Asa, for xmas, bit late, I know...


been trying to do do watercolor with my mom and it's not as easy as she makes it look

Here's the original.


And I'm SO excited to have it come back from getting framed. What a fantastic present.

Thanks, Dirt!!

WOW! I have zero artistic ability. That is so gorgeous! Maybe one day you can put a painting in the not-a-raffle! But I'd understand wanting to keep that all to yourself and your friends and family.

Fantastic job Dirt

I am a painter by trade, I paint houses with no artistic talent. Asa, wonderful job.

I come across snakes here frequently. After a cold night, the black racers will come out and sun themselves (not all at once though) and although I am not afraid of them, they will startle me after I approach and startle them. The other day a rat snake crossed my path. Although they say the snakes will keep the rodent population down, I live in the woods and there isn't a shortage of mice. Those like to come in the house when it gets cold outside. But I will not invite the snakes in to act as mousers.

MollyMc said:I am a painter by trade, I paint houses with no artistic talent. Asa, wonderful job.

It was Dirt who painted the watercolor...tho I'll admit to being proud of being the photographer of the original bee pic ;).

It's a very pretty painting, Dirt. Inspiring.

Thanks!
Yes, last year I asked my mom to do some plants and flowers for the raffles--she has some seriously legit talent!
Of course we did not know at that time that her time was up, and, now, of course, the family will inherit all of her paintings that she has not sold and I doubt there will be anyone who wants to give theirs up...

I'll try to keep practicing and get better...maybe someday...

We've never had any snakes (or gators) in the house or yard and often jokingly credit the patrol dog, who needs to be the first to enter, search, and 'clear' the area in fact, it's become fairly standard to open a door and mutter something about about clearing the snakes as he gets to work and then thank him for doing such a stellar job of making sure there are no surprises for us when he's finished

even the deep snow, certified: free of snakes
seriously though, the cats are the mousers

Wow that is so much snow y'all are having this year. But it is that nice fluffy snow that is fun to play in.

Nice snow pic and a very nice painted pic; nice photo too Asa!

I'm back after a nice winter break. While the weather was relatively mild here, we did have one night when the temps dropped to 18 degrees. That was low enough to turn much of the garden into black mush. I've been playing the Dead or Dormant? game and doing a lot of pruning and clean-up. There are now plenty of signs that spring is just around the corner. The Mexican Plum trees are blooming, much to the bee's delight.



And the butterflies are arriving daily. I put out a dish of watermelon which the Red Admirals enjoy along with what I *think* is a Goatweed Leafwing.



My sweet son-in-law built and installed several screech owl houses for me. This, however, is not a screech owl.



Wishing everyone an end to winter and a happy spring.

so nice to 'see' you and your guests again Char!!!

Yes indeed, very nice
Red Admirals are mostly a late summer butterfly here, so your spring looks like summer to me!!!

Glad you're back, your pics are all so awesome!

just a couple from last fall --
the snow is finally melting a bit here before we get some more

Some of the fruit trees think its spring already around here. It's kind of early so I hope it's true ~ otherwise a cold snap can stifle the chance of fruit.

I saw a moth on the lanai screen and went out to take photos. But it flew away. Saw this native green anole, though! I was making sure he hadn't eaten the moth; I didn't see any evidence.

Melanie, believe it or not: my best/dearest friend and her daughter will be on the same cruise as you!

The Ponant cruise line next year? Or are they going this year? I'll be gone mid-March through mid-April 2018. Already promised a friend of mine I'd pick something up from Pablo Neruda's house. She's a huge fan. And I mean something from the gift shop; I don't want to end up in a Chilean prison!

This year, on March. This cruise is a present from her daughter They have a great mother-daughter bond.

Which of Neruda's houses will you visit? Monica and I (the friend I mentioned) visited Neruda's house in Valparaiso many years ago. There is another one on Isla Negra (also at the coast), not far from Santiago and some years ago the house he had in Santiago (vandalized during Pinochet's regime) was opened to public. He was a great poet, but .... when he spoke, with almost no inflection in his voice, you could fall asleep (my personal opinion).