Wife Gone Wild

Last week was our grandson's Alex fourteen birthday and both his dad and his grandma are dang talented folks. Anyway my wife asked the boy what would he maybe would like for his birthday. At the time he was not sure but not too long later ma got a call.and it was Alex telling her that he would like his grandma to paint him a wild lion, and by the way could it be roaring?

Now if you don't think that didn't turn her into a frazzle, "a wild lion" she yelled out to me that , that is what he wanted. Having never even done a lion let alone a wild one she seemed to be beside herself a bit much. I did not see her for three days as she went into her studio trying to think this through. learned a long time ago to stay away from the wife when she was a thinking.

Finally she came out of her mad room and proclaimed she was ready to paint. here again it is best to stay out of the studio (mad room) when she has decided to put her deep thinking down on that there canvas. So for the next couple days old Taz and I just hung out together eating peanut butter sandwiches, Taz loves peanut butter.

As we waited like the Cardinals in Rome waiting to hear who the new pope is, it finally happened. She yelled out she was done and hoped the young one would liked it. Taz and I were just happy it was over because about now we both are running out of that peanut butter spread.

Timidly Taz and I approached the open door and stood in amazement for there ready to jump off the canvas was this beautiful wild lion. I assume it was beautiful having never seen a wild lion before. It certainly was different from her normal artt work like baskets of apples or subjects like that, you know what I mean.

Well it seems that once I posted it on Face Book for the whole dang world to see the phone would not stop ringing for request kept pouring in from as far away as the Louvre somewhere over there in France or Norway, not sure of where they hide that building I don't even know how to pronounce it.

I am afraid that this wild lion is going to be causing all kinds of problems for Taz and I. the grandson still home playing with his x-box, mother went shopping for a case there of that Skippy peanut butter and flew out of Bangor on a red-eye for France. Got to end now my mouth is starting to stick together from so much Skippy.

TAZ the Mouser

Couple photos of our buddy Taz, he is a little crazy so he blends right in with us.. He loves camp as well as the woods. He has a couple times walked upon a moose but all we have to do is give him a yell and he breaks off immediately. He is just a bark shy of being the perfect friend. Being a sheltie he barks at everything and everyone. You best have ear plugs when in the truck and he happens to see a horse, cow and even bales of hay and the music begins. Of course if he were perfect we would expect that all the time.

These photos were taken the other day when we hiked into camp, had not been up since November. Anyway on the way up he thought he would copy his wild relatives and catch a mouse or two, yea right, that could happen! He is beyond a doubt the biggest baby you can believe. He is so fierce that he is afraid to go down into the cellar, or into the bathroom or even go out in the dark alone. We even have to cut up the hot dog when we give him one at camp or home. I can say though that he does tremble whenever he hears those coyotes calling.

Anyway, just wanted to introduce you to Taz, He is an old Skowhegan  pup we picked up some years back from a fellow who went by the handle of the Cross-eyed Poacher. Nice enough fellow as long as there were no wardens around. Town mayor wanted to pay us for taking the barker off their hands but we didn't want to have to give the money back if things did not work out. He does do a good job of keeping them thar preaching people away that come around now and then, if you know what I mean.

I'm Back

I am in the process of reactivating my blog that I started a few years back. Over time and other pursuits I let this blog fall by the wayside but feel there is much to add and share. 

I hope you visit my blog often for my intent is to try and add new stories and tales along with my photos as time allows. You will notice some post contain dates that go back but the photos and write up are still relevant today. 

In the blog under my Favorite Links over in the sidebar is a list of shops that my wife and I have on Etsy. The shops contain all types of unique gifts of art, cards, bookmarks, and of course my photography. I am sure you will be pleasantly surprised to find such a neat array of unusual gifts of fine lasting quality all in one place.

I encourage you to send me feedback in the comment section located at the end of each post. Maybe you have a topic regarding our natural environment that you would like me to dedicate a post to.

You may also sign up to receive my blog by email every time I add something new. I am open for any ideas you may have. Any unusual stories you may have regarding nature please submit them and maybe we can share them with our readers in the side column Chips from the Beaver Tree.  I ask every one to be polite with any of their feed back.

This site is a work in progress so please keep checking in. Enjoy all the photos and the tales associated with many of them 

Thank you
Dave

February, wonderful time to catch up on my blog. It has been some time, in fact a couple years worth of time since I have decided to get back sharing with you through my photos some of Maine's stunning beauty. Like the four photos below of "Coop" the Coopers Hawk.

We are always pleasantly surprised when he stops by for a visit. We know full well though that his purpose is to find something plump to eat. In fact the bottom two photos are of Coop being successful on his visit. The third photo is of a kill he made in my neighbors yard of a pigeon, that I realized later was actually banned. The bottom photo is coop on one of his winter visits finishing up a mourning dove on the garage roof, doves seem to be his favorite choice.

The two top photos are of Coop sitting in one of our spruce trees surveying the yard for something to eat. No luck that day for the birds were not around and he sort of got tired of me snapping photos of him and left. We really enjoy his visits very much to the neighborhood.

If you would like to leave a comment click on comment at the end of the post.   Sign up to receive my blog by email in the email sign up box in the sidebar...in the mean time, Enjoy!

Dave

Preview of the many rugged wood signs that I create for our little on line store. Be sure and check out all my many other signs in  The Rustic Woodshed  We offer custom made signs as well.

       

If you would like to leave a comment click on comment at the end of the post.   Sign up to receive my blog by email in the email sign up box in the sidebar...in the mean time, Enjoy!

 My wife, our sheltie, Taz, and I were taking a ride on our Yamaha side x side at camp last week. On a particular woods road we were on I had remembered a spot that had two or three mushrooms developing along the forest edge last year. This year as we passed that particular spot I looked over to see if maybe there were any new ones growing this year, knowing full well the old ones were long gone. Sure enough, the above little fairy umbrella caught my eye. Stopping the machine, and with camera in hand, I walked over to see what kind of photo I could capure. I took three or four different shots at different angles and returned to the four-wheeler and my partners. Of course Taz about now was barking up a storm because I had stopped and interrupted his four wheeler ride.

When we returned home and I brought the photos up on the computer I saw something that I had not noticed while taking the photo, that being an ant (Pismire) sitting upon the crown enjoying a snack of wild Maine mushroom, which I thought made the photo even more interesting. Once again one of those wonderful little surprises that was originally unnoticed shows up on the computer. It is those type of surprises that make photography so much fun for me.

Below are a few of the many photos I have taken of mushrooms over the years. Thought maybe you would enjoy looking at a few. Any questions or thoughts please comment.

Birds

 Adult wren with a snack for one of the chicks

Adult wren with big fat spider for one of the chicks

 One of the adults scoping out his new digs

Sorry that I have been away for those of you that enjoy my blog. Just one of those things with summer, our little on line shop, going to camp, etc.  I hope those excuses will exonerate me with you for being lax on this.

In all honesty, there has been a lot going on in my world. Have not gone to camp as much this year as we have in the past twenty or so years but have enjoyed it just as much. We have taken a couple side trips down along the Maine coast for something different and have spent a great deal of time right here in our own yard, which we enjoy very much.

Been doing a lot of my photography, I don't go anywhere unless I have my camera with me. Speaking of cameras, I just bought a new one that I will explain about in a later blog. I do have some really great photos (at least I think so) to share with you as well as some really neat wildlife videos from camp. I have deer, moose, bear and even another bob cat video that I took at camp. Those too I hope to be sharing with you all.

Summer is coming to an end soon, that is alright because I love September and October and of course deer hunting in November. This past summer we had three bird families raise their brood here in the yard. We had a tree swallow pair as well as two house wren broods raised. Not sure if the second pair of wrens was the original raising their second brood, which they often do. Wrens, like blue jays, are really hard to tell apart, seen one you seen them all.

They fledged yesterday morning and was able to get some neat photos of that as well. Very interesting to watch as one of the adult wrens almost took one by the wing to get him out of the house and on his first flight. All the while she was right next to him she kept making these very soft sounds, which I am sure were some type of instructions and that everything will be fine after the first crash landing. heheee!

This all happened in the AM, did not see them again until about dusk, they were all down in hedge of lilac I have at the end of our yard. I could see that the two adults where showing the young ones how to catch their own insects, parent welfare was over.

I could go on with other tales of this summer but do not want to bore you just yet. I will close with some wren photos to give you an idea of how they did.

We do have a lot of new products and signs in our on-line shop The Rustic Woodshed , we even carry a line of real moose poop and that is no bull.... I have also added more photos to The Photo Loft section in our shop. Check it out!

Well until the next blog enjoy what is left of the rapidly disappearing summer.