Trees

Well, I have found out that my office computer does not like to blog. And with still not having set up a new internet at home, I have had to bring my laptop to the office. Let us hope that it will cooperate.

We have a new headbanger theme of "Trees" presented to us by Christine. I had originally thought the theme was "Tree"--which does not seem like it would be much of a difference, but as I have a number of favorite photos depicting ONE tree, I was looking specifically for those and not images with a number of trees.

We will miss this tree this year as we will not be taking our usual Thanksgiving trip to Arizona.

That is not my favorite tree anyway.

My favorite tree photos--both tree and trees--come from travels far and wide and some time ago. The first is this picture of the Taiga Forest of Siberia--well, a bit of it close to Academgorodok in Krasnoyarsk--the University District, so to speak. The picture was taken quite near the apartment of our hosts while we were visiting our son and future (and now actual) daughter-in-law there. We had planned the trip for their wedding, but because of some bureaucratic details the timing of the ceremony had to be changed. We would not have been able to attend and our tickets were non-refundable, so there we were ahead of time. Quite a trip. The birch forest was right out the door of the building as I recall. A large version of this photo hangs above my desk at home.

That was in 1998. A year later we did our first Alaska cruise and while visiting Tracy Arm spotted this lone tree in the fog high above the cliffs. This remains one of my favorite tree pictures.

 

In 2000 I visited India as part of a month long mission. On one of our touristy excursions, we visited this garden at ----well, maybe the name of the park will return to me. I posed under Buddha's tree and saw my first elephant.

 

Isn't he cute? We saw some elephants in the distance when we visited the National Park and Tiger Preserve whose name is also eluding me. And I was "blessed" by a temple elephant in Chennai.

 

 

This coconut nursery was a source of income for the boys' home where we volunteered. These baby trees would grow to be very tall.



 

 

Here at home, this display near the visitor center at Ohanepecosh (Mt. Rainier National Park) gives us a clue as to the age of the surrounding trees.

 Around seven hundred years.

 

They grow very tall. I always like to look up at the tops of the trees.

 

 



By far my favorite tree picture--well, it has to compete--is one from our hike along Hadrian's Wall when we visited the UK. Looking down you see the well that stands by the tree. I don't know that this very tree stood there when Emperor Hadrian had the fortified wall constructed to keep  those barbaric Scots (my husband's people) out of the Empire, but I am sure that there were others.

 

See what the other headbanger challengers have come up with from links in my sidebar, and let me know if you would like to join us. We are looking for a few good headbangers--errr, that is to say bloggers who would like to join our weekly madness.

 

 

 





Selfie

Obviously I have lost it.  Today's theme is TODAY and I am totally unprepared because I worked so very hardly on the theme I thought it was which was next week's theme of SELFIE. I am not in position to change. So there you have it. Today I posted a selfie and that is the way it is.

This is my favorite selfie. (I don't take pictures of myself. I don't have the knack, I don't take a good picture in the best of times, and I am embarrassed.)

 

See--we are both there in the reflection in the wet sand. (TODAY I am wishing for another trip to the beach!)

 

Does a picture taken by someone else with my camera count? Here I am the other evening with Bishop Tyson when I received an award.

I told you I take a terrible picture. (Well, it isn't TODAY, but TODAY I am trying to figure out where to hang the plaque!)

 

Yesterday (as opposed to TODAY!) afternoon we went for a drive. It was an adventure into the Horse Heaven Hills and onto primitive roads with no warning signs and narrow sharp hairpin turns to get back down to the valley. I made a stop to take a selfie, with the valley as my backdrop. At least there is something worth a picture.

 

The weirdest thing was, at that point we met TRAFFIC.

 

Our headbanger theme this week is NOT selfies. I've done my best. You can find the others in the links on my sidebar.

What is that?

What is that?

Looks like a strange alien landscape but viewed through a frame of pine branches. It is a bit of the lakebed at Rimrock Lake after the water has been drawn down for irrigation. I believe I took this one in January, when there was a bit of snow covering.

 

Faces?

The erosion of these rock faces at Capitol Reef National Park look like monster faces. The one on the right a bit like a chimpanzee.

Close and sharp?

Thorns on a cactus on one of our Arizona hikes.

 

Twins?

 What's this now? What is this cutie from the pet blessing last year here in Grandview, Washington, doing on a billboard in Arizona?

 

But what is this?

 

Something she has on that tablet certainly has all the brothers and sister enthralled!

 

 

Headbangers are busy today with the them of "What is that?" I think this may be a little different take on the theme, but when I was looking back for a mystery picture I found this and thought it perfect for the day.

 

Did the others in our header challenge find an off the wall take on the theme? or did they find some mysterious object or critter to snap? Their links are near the top of my sidebar.