Life Through My Eyes: 05/01/2008

Your Daily Flower fix

The daylilies are just starting to open here. Below, the first 2 photos are of a newly opened daylily. The next 2 pictures are closeups of Clematis and the last picture is of an Ice plant.

My Garden Flower Pictures for the Day

Here we have Dahlia, then 2 more Malva with a bumblebee ( click on the pic to get a larger view of the bee) and finally the island in the backyard that has some huge Daylily plants and a Rose of Sharon bush/tree. Most of the daylilies will be in full bloom very soon along with several other different flowers. Right now we are kind of in between blooms. I hope you enjoy.

Even more flowers from my garden

Here you have another picture of a Malva, then a Daylily, then a Dahlia and finally some Mums.

More Flowers From My Garden

Here we have some more flowers from my garden. First we have Roses of course, then we have a Balloon Flower and then we have what they call Malva, which is part of the Hollyhock family. Look close and you will see a big ole bubble bee on the Malva. It looks even better when you click on the picture to get it larger.

Hard to find Food Favorites

I found this really cool web site called Old Town Favorites. They carry food and candy items that might have disappeared from your local grocery store shelves. I found candies that I haven't seen since the 50's. OK, no comments about me being an old codger. I remember having an item called Fizzies. I had my first Fizzy when I was no older the 5 years old and was living in Carmel, IN. A new candy store opened up in town and we were able to get these effervescent drink tablets. We would drop one or two tablets into water and voila we would have a bubbly refreshing drink. Back then they had all kinds of flavors. Of course the cola flavor was my favorite but the grape was good to. I had not seen Fizzies since those days but discovered them again at Old Town Favorites. This company has many food items including candy bars that you might have though were no longer available. You should check them out. They have a search engine too, so if you remember the name of your old time favorite candy bar, you know the one that you loved as a kid but haven't seen for years, just type it in and see if they carry it. Enjoy and have great time remembering those good ole days. http://www.hometownfavorites.com/

Thought for the day

I read online today about a Skydivers stunt that did not get off the ground...actually he didn't. At North Battleford, Saskatchewan, a guy by the name of Michel Fournier, 64, was planning on using a 650 foot helium balloon to soar up to 130,000 feet or 25 miles above the earth, at which time he was going to jump out of his capsule and free fall for approximately 15 minutes. Fournier would then open his parachute and return back to earth. He was planning on a wearing a pressurized suit. The temperature at that altitude is about -130 degrees celsius. During his free fall, he would reach speeds between 745mph and 1,000mph. The speed of sound is 770mph. He would break the sound barrier at the speed he would be going. This adventure would have broke several world records: Altitude record for a skydive (130,000 feet, 40 km), Altitude record for human balloon flight, Record for longest free-fall and Record for fastest skydive. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on who you ask, he never got off the ground. His large helium balloon broke free from his capsule, leaving Fournier and his capsule stranded on solid terra firma. I can only imagine what I would look like doing a free fall from such heights...more than 4 times the height of Mt. Everest. My floppy cheeks would be flapping in the wind 50 feet behind the rest of my body. Not that I would ever even consider doing such a thing. I get queezy and nervous just climbing up a 6 foot ladder. Heights are not my thing and based upon this type of adventure, that is a good thing. I just don't have cojones big enough to try to do something like this and I am man enough to admit this. Other than taking a flight somewhere or possibly a roller coaster, I think I will stay put, where I belong..2 feet firmly planted on earth.

My First Altered Art Creation

During this last Winter, I decided to give this Altered Art/Mixed Media thing a try. I call it "She Dreams of Paris". This was made specifically and personalized for my friend and a real talented person, Toni, who also has an artistic blog. You should visit her blog and check out her artistic creations. http://seaweedandgardenias.blogspot.com/

Hummingbird Sighting

Yesterday I spotted the first hummingbird of the season for me. It was flitting around the Louisiana Irises. From one to another and then on to the next. Unfortunately it was moving too quickly for me to take a photograph of, or maybe I am moving slower as I get older...naw it was moving too quickly. That's my story and I am sticking with it.

Thought for the day

Yesterday, after a 10 month journey and traveling 422 million miles, NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander softly landed on the North Pole of Mars. That event got me to thinking about a couple of things. One would be the vastness of space and the 2nd would be the possibilty of some type of life out there. Just think about it...422 million miles and this vehicle never reached the end of space as we know it. Is there an actual end to space or does it go on forever? Maybe there is a brick wall with a sign that says go back or dead end ahead. Or maybe a sign that says "last gas station" for the next trillion miles. Or with my luck, a brick wall with a sign attached that says "No U-Turns Allowed". Can generations and generations traveling on a non stop journey ever reach the end? What else could be out there beyond what even the strongest of telescopes have uncovered. Are we alone in the endless mass of space and time. Personally I don't think so. Somewhere out there, there must be something or someone and maybe that something or someone is thinking the same thing that I am....are we alone? Just gets a person to thinking a little bit. Our planet is just a small speck of sand on the biggest beach in the world. There has got to be more than what we see or know. Lastly, if NASA can build, send and land a vehicle 422 million miles away, then why can't the auto companies build a car that can get better gas mileage? I guess I will save that thought for another day.

MEMORIAL DAY

Today is Memorial Day. All politics aside, let us all take just a moment out of our lives to remember and give thanks and blessings to all of those who have sacraficed their lives, bodies, souls and spirits for us, so that we can enjoy the lives and lifestyles that we have. In memory of all....Thank you and God Bless.