Sunday's Psalm--Fourth Sunday of Easter

The stone rejected by the builders has become the cornerstone.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,

for his mercy endures forever.

It is better to take refuge in the LORD

than to trust in man.

It is better to take refuge in the LORD

than to trust in princes.

 

The stone rejected by the builders has become the cornerstone.

 I will give thanks to you, for you have answered me
and have been my savior.
The stone which the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
By the LORD has this been done;
it is wonderful in our eyes.

The stone rejected by the builders has become the cornerstone.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD;
 

we bless you from the house of the LORD.
 

I will give thanks to you, for you have answered me
 

and have been my savior.
 

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
 

for his kindness endures forever.

The stone rejected by the builders has become the cornerstone.

Do you say good-by?

I just said "Bye" to the voice mail.

It made me think about a conversation the other day. I had been talking to a certain person on my phone, and suddenly realized that I was talking to the air. He has been better about it. It used to be that he never, ever ever said good-by on the phone.

It is a little weird to continue talking to oneself, but I suppose it does not appear to others as weird as it would be if you did not have a phone to your ear.

I was in an office with someone at the time, and said, "Oh, are you there?" then sighed and closed my phone. She looked at me quizzically. I told her, "He doesn't always say good-by before hanging up." She said, "you know, I think I used to do that, too. I finally realized that I need to and I try to make sure I do now."

Now these are people of two totally different generations, so it is not just a changing of the times. Where did they get the habit? Do you say good-by? Do you know someone who doesn't?

Bye!

Today is World Penguin Day

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Here is a penguin from our visit to the San Francisco Zoo a couple of years ago. And here is Benjie not quite succeeding in being a penguin that day.

Penguin Facts

ABC O is for...

O is for Ocean Sunset

ABC Wednesday

Sunday's Psalm--Third Sunday of Easter

Lord, let your face shine on us.

When I call, answer me,
O my just God,
you who relieve me
when I am in distress;
have pity on me,
and hear my prayer!






 

 Lord, let your face shine on us.

 

 

 

 

 

 Know that the LORD 

does wonders for his faithful one;
the LORD will hear me 

when I call upon him.

 

 

Lord, let your face shine on us.

 

 

 

 

 O LORD, let the light of your countenance shine upon us!

You put gladness into my heart.

Lord, let your face shine on us.

As soon as I lie down, I fall peacefully asleep,
for you alone, O LORD,
bring security to my dwelling.

Lord, let your face shine on us.

ABC N is for...

New Moon

In this shot from last year the moon is nearly new, but if it were completely a new moon, as it will be day after tomorrow, then it would be difficult to capture without more sophisticated equipment than mine.

ABC Wednesday, halfway through Round Ten

Headbanger Hiatus

If you wondered why I do not have a new Header with a new theme provided by our headbangers crew, we are on a brief hiatus. Our numbers are down to four, and with one of the four on vacation (on "holidays" since he is a Brit) we are three and decided to hold off till he has returned as the competition is more fun that way.

Of course, we could have gone for the guarantee of at least not having to share third place.

We need you. If you enjoy photography and like a challenge and have a bit of time each week--it doesn't have to take long--we would love to add you to our ranks. The ideal number of headbangers is six. That means we need two of you.

Just contact me or one of the others listed in my headbangers list in the sidebar.

Sunday's Psalm--Second Sunday of Easter

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.

 Let the house of Israel say,
"His mercy endures forever."
Let the house of Aaron say,
"His mercy endures forever."
Let those who fear the LORD say,
"His mercy endures forever."

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.

I was hard pressed and was falling,
but the LORD helped me.
My strength and my courage is the LORD,
and he has been my savior.
The joyful shout of victory
in the tents of the just:

 

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.
 

The stone which the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.

By the LORD has this been done;
it is wonderful in our eyes.
This is the day the LORD has made;
let us be glad and rejoice in it.
 

 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, his love is everlasting.

Headbangers---Impressionist

IMac's lily pond last week reminded me of an impressionist painting--and well it might as it was taken in Monet's Garden. Well, DUH, Kats!!! I chose the theme of Impressionist for this week to see what we could make of it. I had a picture of mine in mind, but went looking, and did not see it exactly as I recalled it. I had fun in the gathering, though. Always fun to wander through the photo files and find something for a theme and remember the trip, occasion or event when they were taken, the people involved.

I had to stop myself. So many gathered and I will have to choose one. These are presented with no Photoshopping. Only cropping and adjusting the brightness to highlight the image. So what might Monet have done with these:

Such a good place to find an impression! (Leavenworth, WA)

Hiking trail in Leavenworth

Heron reflected--Leavenworth

Ducks--Leavenworth hike

from the photo I first thought of for an Impressionist view

We must have a lilypond--Mt. St. Helens in the distance.

A Meadow scene is perfect--from Sunrise at Mt. Rainier.

Or the Ohanepecosh River  at Mt. Rainier.

Swan family at Hercules Garden in Scotland

Hercules Garden pond and wall

If Monet had visited a gold mine in Alaska in the fall.

More Alaska fall impressions

More ducks--these on a pond at Sun Lakes in Washington

And how about Deep Lake--also at Sun Lakes in Washington.

So which shall I use? I found too many possibilities and will need to ponder while I fix myself some lunch. You will see what I choose a little later if you are seeing this while the wondering gull is still trying to figure out the peanuts on the table in the header from last week's "What is this?" theme. If you missed the gull, you will find him on my headers 2012 page.

The Headbangers group is down to four with the departure of Dave to concentrate on his studies for the moment. For a good competition we would like to have two more join us. If you enjoy photography and would like to be challenged with some interesting themes each week, get in touch with any of us Headbangers. The others are linked in my sidebar, and I am here. And be sure to stop by to see the Impressions of the others this week.

ABC M is for...

mountains

 We have no shortage of them in Washington state. And during the winter especially, they can be a barrier. The passes from east to west were closed often during the recent winter--sometimes only for a short time, sometimes for entire afternoons. This one, by the way, is Mount Stewart, which we see north of Ellensburg when we travel to Seattle over Snoqualmie Pass.

 If you have visited this blog before, you have likely seen Mt. Rainier from more than one angle. This picture was taken from the home of our daughter's in-laws, and gives a totally different point of view than from our side. Mt. Rainier is fifth highest in the continental US, after Mt. McKinley in California and three others in Colorado. It stands out much more than the others because it rises 3000-4000 feet higher than most others in the state, while McKinley and those in Colorado are just a little higher than those surrounding them.

Mt. St. Helens lost about 1000 feet of its elevation on May 18, 1980 when it --well, blew its top, sending ash blowing for many miles. One small Eastern Washington town has a sign near its freeway exit inviting visitors to "Drop in. Mt. St. Helens did."

The snowpack in our mountains over the winter is important to the state's agricultural economy. Melting snow fills our reservoirs and provides irrigation water for the summer's crops. Here in the Yakima Valley that includes apples, cherries, peaches, prune plums, apricots, asparagus, wheat, grapes, hops, tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, corn, carrots, and many others. Washington has a reputation for being a rainy state, but that is west of the mountains. The Cascade Range, including Mt. Adams here, provides a barrier that stops oncoming clouds and lets them dump their remaining moisture, and as a result, here on the east side of the mountains it is literally a desert, having only about ten inches of precipitation a year. Irrigation makes the desert bloom. That snowfall which sometimes blocks our travel in the winter, is well appreciated in the summer. This winter has been a good one, and this summer there will not be a shortage of water for the crops.

ABC Wednesday---M is for Mountains

Sunday's Psalm--the Resurrection of the Lord

Headbangers "What is This?"

When Tom gave the headbangers the theme of "What is This?" I set out to find my oddest shot. But wait, I have been posting Odd Shots for years. I recently went on an Odd Shot hiatus, but looking back at 162 Odd Shot posts I would guess that quite a number of them would fit the "What is This?" theme.

Should I make the "What is This?" a puzzle?

Like "What is this?' of a cropped image.

And then reveal that it is a part of this odd sculpture in Seattle's Olympic Sculpture Garden.

Poking around in the Sculpture Garden pictures, I found one of Benjie whose question at the time would be "What is this?"

Like father like son as Jeff checks out Seattle's Fremont Troll.

 My final decision went to the same idea of curiosity.

"Hmmm. What is this?"
This gull is wondering it just as much as Jeff and Benjie were.

Check out what the other Headbangers have done. They are linked in my sidebar.

ABC Wednesday L

When we visited San Francisco last fall we drove down Lombard Street.

L is for Lombard Street

The crookedest street in the world.

ABC Wednesday