Wild Egg Shells

These egg shells were lying in the street some distance from each other.  It is impossible to tell whether they were stolen from the nest and the eggs eaten by a predator or the chicks hatched and the shells were kicked out of the nest.

In either case, there are bazillions of doves in the park that begin their "coo, coo, ka, coo" well before sun-up every morning.  It makes me wish for the "boom, boom, ba, boom" of 20 gauge shotguns.  There are Mourning Doves, White Tip Doves, Inca Doves and pigeons everywhere you look.  A blind man could put dinner on the table with only a couple shots and then sleep well the following morning.

Blossoms After the Storm

Ginger blossoms on the boulevard at Sleepy Valley RV Resort after yesterday's storm.


The sudden storm came and went in about a half hour.  20-30 m.p.h. winds, marble-sized hail and torrents of rain blasted through the area in a manner that made me sure the end was near.


After it was over, there were sirens screaming from every direction, but so far as I could tell, there was no damage to speak of.  All is well and the spring blossoms continue to flourish.

Bentsen Rio Grande State Park

Mating Dragonflies

Unidentified Lizard

There wasn't much wildlife out and about during our  recent visit to the park.  According to the park ranger, this is breeding time; the birds are in hiding and protecting their nests.

In addition to the dragonflies and lizard, I got photos of a couple butterflies, Retama blossoms, Turks Cap and a few other shots, but I've already posted similar images either here in the blog or on the web site.

This is part of a recent initiative to post something new everyday.  It's not easy getting motivated to find interesting shots every single day.  Already I'm cheating by posting photos taken a couple weeks ago.

Looking forward to the next couple weeks, I will be on the highway driving back to Michigan for the summer, beginning next Wednesday, so there will be a few days when I probably won't have access to the Internet.

In the meantime, stay tuned.  Also, if you are a photographer, blogs such as this are free, easy to set up and maintain.  Establish your own account with Google and begin posting your own images for all the world to admire.

Unidentified Leaf

This leaf blew onto our driveway a couple days ago.  The interesting tonal values, intricate patterns and textures drew may attention.  I'm still undecided whether I prefer this B&W conversion or the natural monochromatic brown tones in the leaf.

Heather's tomatoes

They were my Friends

Sherwood (Moon) Mullen

Moon posed for this portrait March 5, 2011.  At that  time his cancer was in remission, he had lost more than 100 pounds, but he said he was feeling better than ever.  He liked to talk and was very proud of his service as a police officer and his career with the railroad.  

He told me the most interesting things he had done were jumping out of airplanes and working narcotics with the Detroit Police Department.  The one thing he would most like to do again was take one more jump with the C-47 club.

Moon died January 14, 2012

Gary Larson

Gary posed for me the same afternoon Moon did.

He was suffering with chronic back pain and thought it  was a spinal alignment problem.  In January, this winter, he was informed that the problem was cancer. 

Gary served with the U.S. Army's occupational forces in China and Korea.  He told me the most dangerous thing he ever did was serving with the U.S. Army in Korea where he was a weapons and supply specialist.

The most exciting thing he ever did was to take flying lessons, although he never completed the training.  The thing he would most like to have accomplished was shooting par golf.

Gary and his wife Joanne served as King and Queen at the Sleepy Valley RV Resort for the 2009 season.

Gary died February 12, 2012

This magnificent horse was dancing at the staging ground for the Citrus Parade in Mission, TX this afternoon, January 28, 2012.  It seems a shame that such fierce, proud, beautiful animal is enslaved in a bridle and forced to perform unnatural acts, such as dancing to a marching band.  On the other hand, I am too far removed from horsemanship to truly know the nature of the beasts.

Christmas in Mexico.  A bartender at the Old Town Restaurant in Nuevo Progreso, coming to terms with the concept of a Martini that has no Vermouth and no ice.  He learned to make a very dirty Absolute martini with 5 huge olives.  It was delicioso.

Boned out Virago wasting away down in Old Mexico.

Johnny Comes Marching Home