Sorry Guys...

...bit poorly and have taken to my bed whenever possible.
In the meantime,

A Ruby Tuesday goodnight

A colourful way to end a Ruby Tuesday Day. Please click to enlarge for total viewing enrichment.

Red Leaves for Ruby Tuesday

I would like to write, "There is a hint of fall in the air but that wouldn't be true with our present high daily temperatures of 32, 33 degrees with 34 forecast for tomorrow. And who knows what the weekend will hold for us with Hurricane Earl headed up the Atlantic seaboard towards us. Hopefully cooler weather and much needed rain will result from all of the predicted possible weather forecast. But the red leaves, I spied them this morning whiledsriving by the local school ,whose parking lot was filled with cars belonging to I assume of teacher's preparing for the looming near opening of school. How well I remember those days!.. The organization and preparation for those opening days and the welcoming and getting acquainted with a new class I always compared to getting a ship underway., setting the sails, piloting a course to follow, making sure all new hands were familiar with the purpose of our year's journey. Focusing in their minds, and mine as well, on the treasure that awaits us with the gaining of our goals. Completing a successful year of studies. It reminds me somewhat of the title of a reader that we used in grade 3 or 4. "all Sails Set" I think the book had a blue cover?, or maybe it was red? Does anyone out there remember? But I havedrifited astray from myred leavesy focus and , I have lost my Ruby Tuesday anchor that I have set. Ahh ha, the red leaves and a flock of Canada Geese that I spied this morning op use for Outdoor Wednesday tomorrow.... but red leaves.They are beautiful and their approachingpresence , being a reminder of fall does not bother me at all. Summer has been and still is TOO HOT! Our fall season is one of such beauty. I welcome it!

Got photos with red? want to share them?To check out other postings on Ruby Tuesday just click on the Ruby logo on the side bar or here:http://workofthepoet.blogspot.com/. My appreciative thanks to Mary/the teach for hosting this meme

Ruby red Tuesday: Toilet in the west.

http://workofthepoet.blogspot.com

My friends laughed at me when I took this photo when we took a train out to the west at Swanson. Here in New Zealand, we just say toilet.

When I went to Canada, I thought it was quite strange to say bathroom. In Borneo, most houses have separate bathrooms and toilets. If you went to someone's house and asked to go to the bathroom, your hostess would wonder why you want to go to the bathroom.

In Borneo, Malaysia and Singapore, they also call it WC or water closet.

In another post, I will post a photo of a very elite toilet, where you don't need loo paper and it even massages you. LOL

Back to School on The Poetry Bus!

We're going back to school today on the Big Yellow Poetry Bus with Karen, at Keeping Secrets.
Bagsy the back row with the bad girls.
All the other pupils can be found here: http://keepingsecrets-karen.blogspot.com/2010/08/catch-big-yellow-poetry-bus.html
I'm chasing my tail today, so see you all tonight.

Now I have many school memories, virtually all pleasant, but one of the earliest still makes me smile.
I had one glorious year at St Mary's free from my younger brother, and prayed hard that some devastating illness would afflict him so that he could not start. It wasn't exactly what happened, but a miracle occurred, none the less.

Sibling Rivalry

Sister Aiden is black and white.
She drives a red car, I love her.
Sister Aiden is black and white,
and she hates my little brother.

That day he swallowed a marble
THEN TOLD HER
she turned him upside-down
and slapped, hard.
The marble did not manifest.
Though he cried all day
she simply said,
These things too, shall pass.

Sister Aiden is black and white.
Sister Aiden is not my mother.
Sister Aiden is black and white,
she drives a red car, I love her.

yellow daisy-like flowers for Mellow Yellow Monday

I don't know what these tall daisy-like flowers are called. Our neighbours gave them to us a few years ago. They are very vibrant in their yellow brilliance and beauty. Maybe you can identify them for us?

Happy Monday to all. To view a wonderful variety of yellow-themed photos from other bloggers around the world, just click on the link below
mellow yellow

A belted kingfisher for Blue Monday

A sweep across the water makes this photo twice as beautiful with its reflected image


.Blue Monday is a meme that hosts photos which highlights the colour of blue. Please click on the bluejay badge in the right sidebar to learn more of this interesting meme found at : http://smilingsally.blogspot.com/search/label/Blue%20Monday%20Instructionshttp://
. Have a great Monday, maybe even a blue on

Bird Alley for Scenic Sunday

I often refer to Bird Alley in my posts and yesterday I captured some of its beauty in this garden globe image. I had been hoping to catch the swarm of colourful male goldfinch that usually hang around the niger seed feeder. (see the shadow of the cylindrical feeder to the left of the picture. Ihave no fleeing goldfinch in my picture but I was pleasantly surprised at the lovely reflection I got of part of Bird Alley as seen above. The garden gate is an addition this year as part of our attempt at deer control. At he end of the alley is a pergola my husband built a few years ago. It is now covered, (roofed over with Virginia Creeper and an American Bittersweet vine, which has such wonderful colourful berries in the fall. Often I will see birds flitting about in this lush over growth pressed against my sunroom windows.

Bird Alley is a lush green corridor which parallels the side of our house and is bordered on the right with a variety of trees. It is very colourful in the spring with blossoms from Lilac bushes, High Bush Cranberries,and Honeysuckle, both white and pink,Also an ornamental Flowering Crabappleand a wall of wild rose bushes. Also the seeds of a couple of Manitoba Maples attract birds as well. Just behind the row of trees and bushes is a very tall Silver Maple tree that is very spreading.

We have a line of bird feeders hanging in the branches of the bushes and trees which at the moment are attracting many sparrows (Song Sparrows and Chipping Sparrows) Chickadees, young Purple Finch and Goldfinch and a few Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers. Looking out my bay window looking over Bird Alley often offers much delightful viewing for me and my camera. Also our resident Chipmunks offer much amusement from watching their acrobatic antics in their feeding and play. Sometimes we have gray and red Squirrel visitors but we have not seen many recently.

Above is a view of bird Alley before the garden gate was added and there had been no growth of vines over the pergola as there is now. Also the small stature in the bird bath is no longer, It had been knocked over by deer and has been broken.

Scenic Sunday:a meme of beautiful scenery. To learn more about scenic Sunday please go to:http://scenicsunday.blogspot.com/ or to post your own contribution, please click on the link within this post

Slow News Week in Dumfries Shock!

Dogs Unchained

I posted this on my other blog and thought I'd post this here too for Camera Critters this week.

This woman is fighting to make it a law against chaining dogs up. She is chained at Harrisburg Capitol to Win Law for Abused Dogs. How would you like to be chained to a dog box all your life in all kinds of weather? Watch this video.

Last year I heard about a dog in our area who ended up with their paws frozen to the pavement and then died because someone left the poor dog out in the freezing cold. Let's help this lady get this law passed to Unchain the Dogs and give them all a better life.

Here's a quote that was sent to me in my email..."Dogs Need Change. Not Chains." is one of the taglines that drives Tamira Thayne's "Operation Fido Freedom." Thayne has made headlines by chaining herself to the PA State Capitol Building from 8:00 - 6:00 every day until SB 1435, a limiting chaining law, is passed in PA."

Even if you can't adopt a dog, please help pass this law by writing to your state Senator and urge others to contact their state Senator too and get this law passed to not chain dogs. Here's a website on Unchaining Dogs to find out more. Find out what you can do to help pass this law.

Also, check out this site Dogs Deserve Better


These photos on this website will shock you but you need to see them to help get this law passed. They are on the Dogs Deserve Better website or go directly to these photos Shocking photos of why dogs should be Unchained.

To see more participants of Camera Critters hosted by Misty, go here: http://camera-critters.blogspot.com/

frame for photo hunter

The frame of this old barn is exposed during the process of its dismantling. This old structure intrigued me when I chaned upon it one day and I knew its image would fit into some catagory or theme some day. I believe "frame" is the appropiate theme today for showing it.

Above the entrance to this covered bridge creates a frame to view the road or highway leading to or away from the bridge entrance,

This week's theme for photo hunter is frame and it is open to your own interptation. To see what others have contributed or to add your own please click on the photo huntcr badge on the top sidebar on the right. Have a great Saturday

Macro flowers: Daffodil

These daffodils grow every where in Auckland.
August is Daffodil month in New Zealand. August 27th is the 20th anniversary of Daffodil day. I tried to teach my ESOL students the concept of Cancer awareness.

Nowdays Daffodil Day is the Cancer Society's annual flagship event and one of the most important fundraising and awareness campaigns in the country. As well as providing an opportunity to raise awareness of cancer in New Zealand, Daffodil Day is a major funding source for the Cancer Society. We are proud to be regarded as one of the country's most trusted charities and this is reflected in our fundraising practices.

The daffodil is one of the first flowers of spring, whose bright yellow blooms remind us of the joys the new season will bring. It represents the hope there is for the 1 in 3 New Zealanders affected by cancer.

The donations we receive go towards vital scientific research into the causes and treatment of all types of cancer, as well as providing a wide range of support services, information, health promotion and education programmes to reduce cancer risk, awareness campaigns and programmes for people affected by cancer.

http://ann-mythoughtsandphotos.blogspot.com/2010/08/thursday-theme-song-daffodil-song.html Go to my other site to listen to The Daffodil song, a British artist devoted to cancer.

Thank you Maia.

I am joining this meme for the first time. First I love flowers. Second, the badge for this meme is the North Borneo Orchid. My Dad's favourite flower. It gives me warm fuzzy feeling every time I see this flower.

Join Macro Flowers Saturday, a photo meme for macro photos and close-ups of flowers, garden flowers, wildflowers, blossoms, flowers with insects and butterflies (no insects without flowers), flowers with raindrops and whatever beautiful plants, plant seeds or berries you have, in close-up.

First time visitors, please read the rules. They are simple but I do ask that you, please, use a MFS badge or link back to MFS in some way. Thank you.

Macro Flower Saturday

weekend bridges: Guangzhou, China

http://bayphoto.blogspot.com/

In the land of my roots, industrialization has a price. The haze covers the bridge and the rest of the city.

My great grand father left China for Borneo more than a hundred years ago.

The water engineer took this photo this year when he went to Guangzhou.

Some day, I will make my own trip, "daughter for the return home." and show you my own photos. I will be going to the country where you have to take a four hour rickety bus ride.

My New Manor...

Jasmine, at Nature's Whispers, has come up with this rather lovely idea.
"Sharing Treasures is a place where we can share the magic and wonders of our local history, folklore, ancestry, customs and nature with each other and rekindle the appreciation of our own environ."
You can read all about it at her blog, and see wonderful pictures of Cemlyn Nature Reserve, here; http://natureswhispers.blogspot.com

Now, as you all know, I live in a small village in Scotland called Penpont. It's not my home, that will ever be way down South, but bit by bit I have to come to appreciate what is on my doorstep. So I thought I'd join in.

Big skies

blurred bike rides

and shining slides

rough beasts slouch

to a Roman fort hill

and rock rivers idyll

for generations

of village sons.

Sky Watch - Woodpecker

Woodpecker


To see more participants of Sky Watch Friday go here: http://skyley.blogspot.com/

After you take a look around at Skywatch, please take a look at my other blog. A website is listed about Dogs Deserve Better and how to help keep these dogs from being chained up.

I have a video on there about how one woman is chained to a dog box to help change the laws to get dogs unchained. Also some shocking pictures about why these dogs should not be chained. Go to my blog here: Everyday Life's Issues

Getting Clever...

Especially for the Rachel F that is not Rachel Fox, the reading list for Semester (whatever happened to terms?) 1 of the MLitt. Remember, I'm doing it part-time over 2 years.

At least, I hope it's the reading list. Got a bit confused working out which seminar group I'm going to be in...


Any startling insights into/critiques of the above gratefully accepted. Let's all learn together!

Plum Harvest

Our Plum Treee is yielding a very good harvest this summer! Plum jam? maybe.

Pitcher plants and world's small frog

Pitcher plants where they found the small frogs. Some pitcher plants are illegal to take out from Sarawak, and people have been caught to smuggle them out. The natives call them monkey cups. These pitcher plants are found in the Winter Gardens of Auckland Domain.




courtesy: NZ Herald
I am excited, in the land of my birth, they found one of the world's smallest frogs. I was born and grew up in Borneo. I lived there until I was twenty when i went to Canada. I still have strong affinity with Borneo, and I visited last July.

One of the world's tiniest frogs - barely larger than a pea - has been found living in and around carnivorous plants on Borneo island, one of the scientists who made the accidental discovery said today.

Indraneil Das, a scientist at University Malaysia Sarawak, said he and another scientist from Germany were doing field research on frogs in Malaysia's Sarawak state on Borneo island when they chanced on the tiny species on the edge of a road leading to the summit of a mountain in the Kubah National Park in 2006.

"For biologists, this is a curiosity," Das told The Associated Press.

The frogs were named Microhyla nepenthicola after the pitcher plant species where they live, Das said. A Malaysian museum had listed the species but misidentified it as juveniles of another frog species, he said.

The tubular plants are carnivorous, killing insects such as ants, but do not harm the frogs. Tadpoles grow in the liquid inside the plants.

Adult males of the amphibians range in size between 10.6 millimetres to 12.8 millimetres, Das said.

Welcome back to two creature strangers returned to Bird Alley fot Outdoor Wednesday

Its been quite a while since I have seen a Red-breasted Nuthatch at our feeders in Bird Alley, So a big welcome to this little feathered stranger that showed up today .

Wow! Was its tail ever red! There was no problem id'ing this red squirrel. This species I used to consider a nuisance , but this summer I had beenwondering where they had gone,But today this one was back. But I haven't seen any gray squirrels for a long time. I assume that they'll probably show up any day now. I think our hummingbirds may have lrft as I didn't see any today. Usually they are so visual and busy. Changes are coming about . Nature is beginning to prepare for the seasonal change which is just around the corner..

Outdoor Wednesday found at http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/ is a delightful meme that invites you to share the outdoors with others. The theme encompasses the outdoors, a topic within the theme of your choosing. to learn more of this meme or to share your view of the outdoors please click on the 'outdoor Wednesday' logo on the right of this page. Happy Wednesday outoor gathering to all