Working with a new model

 

 

Hi, nice to meet you snail, I’m Jen and I will be working with you today, have you done any modeling before? 

Oh you were just picked for this job….fine, no problem, we can work around that.

 

This is “Next Door Kitty,”  Allie, he’s my assistant today,  Bootsie my regular assistant is sleeping right now.

 

Now um Snail, could you just turn to the right a little, and put your chin up ? 

No please don’t eat the props, ….ah snail, don’t eat the …

Oh well, different location please, Allie can you set that up?

Allie? Where are you going?  No, don’t eat Bootsie’s food, he won’t be happy.  Yes it’s wet out here, now can you focus please?

Snail, you need a water break,  how about this Hosta?

Allie, no sweetie don’t bat the snail around darling, be nice to the model.  Oh Allie, the snail has fallen into the Hosta….

Snail?  Snail, where are you?

Ok this shoot is cancelled.

 

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

 

Disclaimer:

No snails were hurt in the making of this blog post.

Facing the dragon

 

Not many of us relish confrontation, arguments, and in your face events.  Gardeners tend to be a peaceful sort of sharing person, so I was rather shocked to have the Dragon turn on me last year at our local community gardens, and I have not returned until lately.

You can read about it here if you like, The good the bad and the wormy.

Last year a friend and I had been strolling through the public community gardens quietly taking a few macro shots with our cameras.  It was a beautiful sunny day, and we had stopped to talk to a few gardeners who welcomed us with open hearts. 

We had a nice conversation with the gardener whom we will call the Dragon, before she abruptly turned on us.  Suddenly accusing us of taking photos in order to help out those who were vandalizing and stealing plants.  Nothing could be further from the truth, and her yelling certainly ruined our visit.

It’s a almost pastoral setting, near the water, with so many blooms a photographer’s heart is overflowing.  But I had avoided returning in case I ran into her spitting and screaming voice again.

Taking my heart in my hands,  my courage on my sleeve, along with a trusty sword [camera] and the knowledge that she did not have the authority to insist we leave, we returned.

All along the outskirts I nervously shot flowers carefully and quietly, worried about that domineering voice that would carry forth.  As we got closer to the Dragons Den, [her garden plot] I finally breathed a sigh of relief.  The lair was empty!  No Dragon. We were safe, and could enjoy the rest of our visit.

And her famous plant that caused all the trouble, the “Maggi” plant was missing.  Maybe someone had come and stolen it as she claimed we were going to do, or maybe it had just succumbed to winter kill….who knows. 

The Dragon was nothing but a bad worm, and had gone away.

 

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Sometimes we don’t need words.

 

 

 

 

Some days the quiet speaks louder than the words.

 

 

 

 

 

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Cat walk

 

 

 

No I haven’t been modeling lately on the catwalk, I am sure that I would tip off, and do a spectacular fall into the audience if I did. Trust me the chances are high that it would happen.

It’s just that we have been encountering so many new cats when we walk, and they always seem friendly, and happy to greet us.  We [me] tries to organize our path to make sure that we do encounter one or more if possible each time.

It makes for a nice mini social moment, and a chance to catch my breath. It also makes me wonder if they will come up with a Google map system for both cat lovers, and gardeners.  Kind of like the way it works for businesses.  Every great garden, or feline could be a little red button on a local map, personalized for each gardener.  I am going to have to check that out. What do you think?

When we walk I make sure to mentally mark in my mind the location of really nice gardens that we can see from the street.  If a plant is not quite ready to bloom, then it’s sure to be on our route in the next few days.  This has resulted in lots of new photos, so it’s a good incentive to go. 

I know the location of the special white peonies, and the black kitty with the friendly purr.  The orange cat that is the star in one of my best selling cards lives next to the orange azalea…..

There is the giant oak tree with the perfect fall acorns, and the chestnut tree with those russet colored conkers are great for deterring spiders from coming indoors.  The blush colored roses that cascade over the black trellis, that look so spectacular in the evening sun at the local Catholic church.

Google, do you have this kind of a map for me?

 

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

 

Now for those who have noticed a similarity to the Boo, this is Allie, the next door kitty, not Bootsie. 

 

Duck, duck, goosed

 

 

 

I’ve been walking a lot lately with a friend, whom I am going to call TQ.  And to help us keep up our enthusiasm we are hitting a different route each time. Yesterdays route was a good hour long,  and included some larger, slowly inclined hills.  I am feeling very virtuous, but that could just be from the sweat.

It’s fun, and healthy I am sure…but the best part is showing off all of my favourite haunts, tucked away little parks, cute ponds, and great flowers.  We went to a park that most likely is a water reserve, right in the middle of the city. Gorgeous rolling hills, and piles of goose droppings everywhere.

We didn’t find too many ducklings, or goslings,  the ones we did see were adorably gangly.  What a great park to have your yard back onto, a full grown trees, birds chirping, sun shining, life is good kind of park.  Seemed like a lot of people thought the same thing. 

The geese loved it to, did I mention that there were piles of goose droppings everywhere?  Yes, it was a lot of duck, duck, ohhhhh I stepped in it.  Goose stepping everywhere, funny to see all of us with our winter white legs in shorts, doing the goose step.

The birds chirped, the geese did their yoga stretches, and the ducks swam in the water.

And we goose stepped.

 

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

 

 

.

 

 

Make your own quick change art gallery

 

A quick change on the cheap:

I was looking for some simple, quick, and cheap art to hang on a bare wall, maybe a way to have some of my own photographs displayed while I was at it.  Enlargements are gorgeous but a bit pricy for this temporary solution I was looking for.  Along with that was the need to change it up every so often without either breaking the bank, or my back hanging them.

Color copies:

So I checked online color photocopy sites in order to find one that was both inexpensive, and close by.  Staples was the one I ended up choosing because they did a very large, 11 x 17, great quality, heavy paper color photocopy for .99 cents. Can you get any better than that?  I simply download my chosen shots to their site, and pick them up the next day.

Now to find some frames….11 x 17 is a odd size to find, but I lucked out at Michaels, which is our version here in Canada of a Hobby Lobby.

Whoops":

Two frames in the 11 x 17 size were only $9.99, and with the online coupon they were 40% off, that equals cheap!  But I accidentally broke one on the way home, and had to go back and get another set.  Oh well, I guess three will work as well as four.

It’s now easy and fast to change out the prints to anything that my heart desires.  One week it’s going to be flowers, the next landscapes, the one after that it’s the Boo….

My own art gallery:

And now I have my very own art gallery on what once was a boring plain wall.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Then it’s creativity for dinner

 

If it is Blogs for Breakfast, then it’s definitely creativity for dinner.  Nothing makes me want to  create something, go out and take pictures, or brainstorm new ideas more then a deadline  heading straight towards me.

On a day where I am due at work, the ideas flow. They even go so far as to follow me out the door, and whispering to me while I am at there.  Frustrating, and interesting at the same time.  Because I certainly don’t consider myself the kind of personality that does well on a time budget. But apparently it is the wake up call that I require. 

On a unlimited day, one that involves more then just a few spare moments here and there, the creative seed lays dormant.  Nothing comes to mine, no inspirations pop out of the computerized wood work.  Half finished projects remain, just half finished.  New ideas stay put, deeply hidden in my brain. But on the day, when I need to go to work, or a appointment, everything bursts from the soil like a sunflower headed towards the light.

What’s with that?  Does creativity need a rest from the real world to decide to germinate?  Or does the fact that there won’t be enough time make it more challenging to the creative spirit?

What process does your brain go through to get to the final completion of the creative ideas that you have? 

Share!

I have just put a small poll on the sidebar if your are interested in taking part…all about creativity.

 

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

Blogs for Breakfast

 

 

Funny how things stick in your mind, and perch there like a small chirping bird.  At least until you make them fly to another branch to stop the constant noise.  Sometimes a idea for a blog post will just hop right into my mind, and it won’t budge until I do something about it.

This was one of those ideas, so to keep it quiet, I wrote it into a blog post title.  Unfortunately I didn’t bother to expand it as far as the story line goes…

So now we have “Blogs for Breakfast” a title of a post, and no story.

I was looking at the title, trying to remember why I would write anything like that, and came up blank for a little while.

But then I remembered a few weeks ago when it seemed that each and every person I spoke with was the inspiration for another blog post.  Love those times, when something triggers creativity, and it just flows like water from a hose.  The water spreads to the garden, and flowers bloom, grass grows, and it all just seems never ending.

Until the hose gets turned off, then there is a drought, and everything dies…including all of the original ideas.  I don’t like it when that happens.  No one does. 

But the reason for the blog post title has come back to me.  I remember leaving a comment on a blogger’s post one morning.  I  like to spend some time during my breakfast,  looking through blogs, reading them, and leaving comments.  So I jokingly called it “blogs for breakfast.”  It was a reference to the fact that we are very much into routines, and one of mine is to turn the computer on first thing in the morning.

And I doubt that I am alone, it’s fun, and a great way to start your day.

So what’s your favourite blog reading time, after work, before work, during lunch?  Anytime?

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

.

Like hot buttered popcorn

 

A Treasure Trove

I have found a real hidden treasure trove of plants growing in a secret location.  Our White Rock City Hall, Library, Fire Department, and Police Department all share the same site.  It’s convenient, and most likely saves money that way. 

Well I know what they are doing with the cost savings, [I am joking here] buying very special plant varieties, and stuffing their gardens full of them.  They tend to tuck them out of sight, around the backs of the buildings.  But if you know where to look….

They have the best selection of iris that I have seen outside of a growers, or a specialty farm.  They have erythronium,  [pagoda lily] patches that are huge and lovely, deciduous azaleas, bleeding hearts, hakonechloa, which is a stunning golden tinged grass. Huge pink poppies, and double blooming cherry trees. It seems that each time I go there, another special plant has popped up to surprise me, and my camera.

Hot buttered popcorn.

I was returning some books to the library when I noticed all of the iris peeping through the shrubs.  White ones looking for all the world like bridal dresses on stems.  Purples tones in deep and dark, and light, and lush.  Peach colored ones that reminded me of  fruit smoothies made with yogurt.

I must have been hungry, the best ones, a pale yellow, and creamy white, looking like hot buttered popcorn.  Oh yum, and I can almost smell it.

Does this not remind you of hot buttered popcorn? Pass the salt.

I took tons of photos, and plan on visiting the iris again, to see if any more decide to pop open.  They may be behind the buildings, and tucked away, but I know where to look.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

.

P.S,  I have made a few changes to my blog, gone a little summer blonde,  [the background is lighter].  I also have darkened my roots, [the text is darker], and now it is left justified, which should be easier to read.

What do you think?   Let me know.

Jen.

Life through rose coloured glass

 

Pink I think!

I am bathed in a rose coloured glow.  It’s a lovely warm pinkish feeling, kind of like being in a child’s Barbie doll themed room, but better.

Reflections shimmer through my window, the glass is luminous from the huge rhododendron outside on my patio.  It’s over 14 feet tall, and most likely 35 years old.  It could use a good pruning,  but it’s blooms are so spectacular that I don’t notice it right now.

There is another huge Rhodie just to the left of “mine”, but it’s a deep red, not my favourite color at all. I am thrilled that “my” Rhododendron is this shade of pink, I feel like I won the lottery each spring when this blooms.

Stars, I see stars:

With the late spring weather, it’s even nicer this year, a burst of blooms, star like on the ends of the branches, and as they slightly fade off, another one spreads open.  There are still masses of blooms to come, and it’s been showing off for a few weeks already. 

Love this color

I have seen purples, light pinks, the everyday red, and many whites.  But few of this particular shade of pink.  I am loving my rhodo.

Because life through rose colored glass is just fine with me.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

.

One thing I’ve realized

 

 

Photos we have photos!

The other day I was writing about how many pictures I have taken over the last two months, with the total amounting to almost 5000.

There is a good reason for taking that many.  Spring is so late this year,  it seems that every bloom unfolding is in a gorgeous slow motion film,  I didn’t want to miss anything. 

Readers, I have great readers!

You, my readers have left such great complementary comments, and it’s really wonderful to know that all my hard work is appreciated. I love to share my images with you, and it sends a little thrill down my spine when someone says they like my work.  I love it!  We all blog for various reasons, I love to share what I see through my lens. 

And otherwise my poor long suffering friend’s email inboxes would be bombarded daily, if not hourly with images from me.

One comment made by Lucy from Loose and Leafy, [and yes, you will definitely want to drop by her blog, she’s great], made me sit up and really think.

Here is her paraphrased comment she left on my blog.

“One thing I’ve realized is that I am so busy photographing flowers, I’ve neglected to take photographs of people.  When I am old, I won’t care two hoots about the leaves, and stems, and rocks, and stones I pay so much attention to now.  It will be photos of family I’ll want to browse through.

I’m trying to reform.”

Lucy, Loose and Leafy

Stop and think about that for a moment…..

Yes, see what I mean, she has hit the nail straight on the head.

All those pictures of flowers, all those landscape shots, all those macro images….

They will mean very little to me when I am old.  But family and friends, they will be the true treasures of a life lived.

Thank you!

Thank you Lucy for this wakeup call.

I do take lots of pictures of my family and friends, but for privacy reasons I don’t share them on this blog.  Your comment made me realize how important it is to document, and record our life. 

Maybe the next time I take that shot of that someone who is important to me, I will spend just a wee bit more time in setting it up. 

Because they are the true treasures of my life.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

.

 

What to do with all of those pictures…

 

There is something about this spring especially, it’s abundant overflow of color, texture, and scent that’s made me go into overdrive.  Or maybe it’s just the fact that I realize that a particular bloom will not reappear until a full year from now.

So it must be captured right this moment. 

Many times I have hauled my poor tired body out the door because the light is perfect, the time is right, and that “flower!!!” is blooming now.  And then I use the argument with my aching feet that it might rain the next day, so take advantage.

Maybe the cats are outside, and they are playfully skittish, and happy.  Shooting them is a joy, Boosie still doesn’t like the lens, and is shy.  But the next door kitty loves the camera.

Consequently I now have almost 5000 images taken just in the months of April, and May. 

With the spring like weather my friend, and I walk in the evenings, and I take my camera.  We always make sure to get in a few late sun downer shots through the leaves.  And our route goes past the best of the local gardens.

Then there are the flowers that bloom in my little patio, the ferns with tendrils reaching towards the light, and the hosta’s sprinkled with water jewels. All perfect camera subjects.

So what’s a girl to do with all those unseen pics on her computer?

Why share them of course.

I am sure if I add a few extra each post, we can get through the majority of them by August.  But then of course I will have added many more….

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

 

 

Herbs - grow them close to the kitchen

 

A theory:

I have this theory, the closer to the kitchen you grow your herbs, the more you are likely to use them.  If you need to run out into the garden you are less inclined to put on your garden shoes, grab your clippers and head out. 

Of course that doesn’t mean that you can’t grow your herbs in more than one place at a time.  Herbs add texture and fragrance to both vegetable and flower gardens.  Nothing like brushing up against the sweetly fragranced stems and releasing the scent into the air.

Okanagan Goats Milk Cheese!:

The other day I had a bit of Okanagan Goat Cheese, a sourdough baguette, and some organic garlic.  It sounded good, but I knew there would be something missing.  So I stepped out onto my patio, clipped some fresh chives, oregano, and lemon thyme, and mixed it all together.

Oh Yum!

They were easy to chop, and simple to mix into the goats cheese.  Delicious is a good word. I ate the entire thing.

And left myself yearning for some more. 

It was a mini baguette by the way, LOL.

Your best place?

Where’s the best place for you to grow your herbs,  nearby in the garden, on the windowsill, or in your flower borders.

And how creative do you get with growing them?

Jen  @  Muddy Boot Dreams

.

Is twitter the cat’s meow?

 

Like it or not, social media is here to stay, or conform to whatever society transforms it into in the future. 

Facebook, and twitter are two easy ways to reach each other, and they are growing in popularity day, by minute, by second. BTW I love Twitter, and FB, didn’t at first, but they grow on you.  Give them a try. 

Some think it’s information overload, but Bootsie seems to think it’s the cat’s meow.

He loves birds, and mistakenly thinks that’s what it is all about.  I don’t have the heart to disappoint him.

So I didn’t tell him that Twitter has just announced a new follow button that can easily be added to your website, or blog.

Here’s the link, and you can cut and paste the code right into a “Add Gadget” box on your Blogger blog.  It’s simple, and even I can do it.

http://blog.twitter.com/2011/05/introducing-follow-button.html

You will find that button on the top right hand corner of my blog.

If you are into tweeting be sure to check me out on twitter, and let me know that you are on it also, so I can follow you back.

And as for Bootsie?  Well he is distracted by the real birds tweets…for now.

And if you are into Facebook,  you can drop by

Muddy Boot Dreams page,

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Muddy-Boot-Dreams/145926472105260

and say hello. You can even read my blog on that page through Networked Blogs.

It’s certainly the cat’s meow to Bootsie.

Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams

.