Tag Archives: life

November Retrospective

We’ve passed through November (can you believe that?) so here’s a look back at some of the beauties I saw.

November began with some spectacular sugar maple colours …

… and some beautifully blue skies, too.

An abundance of Japanese garden autumn foliage …

… like lemony yellow gingko biloba leaves …

… and fire engine red lace leaf maples.

There were some lovely sunsets …

… and very dramatic clouds …

… while the barberries …

… assembled a stunning autumn wardrobe …

… and cotoneaster shrubs did the same.

An assortment of leaves covered the ground …

… in multi-hued abandon.

The lace leaf maples gradually turned the most glorious shade of red …

… but in the end it all passed too quickly.

If I could I would slow it down, savour it a bit more, but then again, I’m looking forward to spring.

Happy December.

Sunny Skaha Lake

After 25 cm (9.8 inches) of rain recently fell on us, we had a beautifully sunny day.

For a change of scene I had a ramble at Skaha Lake, which is at the south end of the city.

It was 10C (50F) and windless, so walking conditions were pretty nice.

I encountered a group a students with their teacher who were happily enjoying a weenie roast on the beach after they had completed a hike. They were having a great time.

It was wonderful to have a break from the rain and I enjoyed every second.

Happy Saturday.

November 28’s Friday Fleurday

Last Friday Fleurday I posted flower pictures from March, April and May; today I’m posting pictures from June, July and August. And I’m really happy about that, because right now we have cloud down to the valley floor and a lot of rain! In the mountains it came down as snow, so if you’re planning a ski trip, I know where there’s plenty of the fresh stuff! But on to more colourful things …

… like a lovely June iris …

… a very fresh daisy …

… and some lovely variegated hydrangeas.

July brought pond lilies …

… impatiens …

… many more hydrangeas …

… and lots of pond lilies, too.

While in August we had anemones …

… sunflowers …

… black-eyed susans …

… penny macs …

… and last but not least, tea roses.

I really enjoyed my little trip through the summer archive! After going for a very soggy and grey ramble today, it was lovely knowing that all these lovelies will be back.

Happy Friday, happy weekend.

Lovely Black Maple Trees

One of the maple species that tends to be overshadowed by the red and sugar maples is the black maple (acer nigrum). So-called because of its dark brown trunk, the black maple is a lovely shade tree.

They have a beautiful shape and in autumn, their large green leaves turn a combination of orange, red and yellow.

They are related to the sugar maples to the extent that some botanists consider them to be a subspecies and they can also be tapped for syrup.

They can grow up to 34 metres (112 ft) and will develop a dense crown which encourages people on a hot day to sit underneath with a cool drink.

Happy Wednesday.

Snow on the Mountains

First we had this …

… which gave us a very early start to evening darkness. With this sort of weather, it was good to be at home with a hot chocolate!

These very dark clouds dropped a terrific amount of rain which in the mountains fell as snow.

But then we got some of this …

… which lead to being able to see the snow on the mountains. And that’s exactly where it belongs. The skiers are happy but we’re equally happy with 10C (50F) and snowless environs!

Happy Tuesday.

November 21’s Friday Fleurday

Well, it’s that time of year when outdoor flowers have become very hard to find. So as a seasonal goodbye, I’m going to do a couple of retrospective posts showcasing some of my favourites from this year’s bloomers.

First up is March, April and May. These are wonderful months for many reasons but not least of which is that the blooms are everywhere and quickly bring us out of our winter blahs.

Lovely March daffodils, always a classic …

… were closely followed by another classic, April tulips, and so many, many other beautiful bloomers.

Cherry blossoms …

… plums …

… and apples … with us and then gone again so quickly.

Magnolias thriving in the April sun …

… a flower feast.

And then there was the heady scent of the lilacs, an old-fashioned flower that’s never really gone out of style.

Early May brought the rhododendrons …

… and dogwoods, British Columbia’s provincial flower.

Irises …

… and peonies …

… and hydrangeas completed a smorgasbord of gorgeous sights and scents.

And, no snow here, just lots of petals!

Although the southern hemisphere is heading into spring right now, for us northerners, I think that a little glimpse of what will be arriving again in March is a good thing.

Happy Friday.

Photo Medley

Here are photos from the last few weeks that I love but that don’t really fit into a particular theme or were left over from a specific post.

A November Japanese garden …

… Okanagan Lake at night. I think it’s very photogenic at any time …

… a collection of raindrop leaves and pine needles at the edge of a pond …

… a Japanese maple …

… yellowing cottonwood trees at Penticton Creek …

… and a canopy of big leaf maple leaves.

Happy Wednesday.

Monochrome Madness

Today – for the first time – I’m participating in Leanne Cole’s Monochrome Madness. If you’re interested in participating as well, please go to Leanne’s site to see what’s coming up. This week doesn’t have a theme so you can post whatever you would like.

I’ve done a bit of experimentation with monochrome by converting colour photos through Lightroom; others in my collection are naturally monochromatic winter photos and are three of the ones I’m posting here.

Winter eagle

An eagle pair lives near our home and has a couple of favoured perching trees that aren’t far from our deck. In January of 2024 I saw one of them doing some territorial surveying during a very wet snow fall that later turned to rain.

Okanagan Lake

This blue hour photo was taken just after nightfall in early February, 2024. I particularly like the almost perfect reflection in the lake’s surface.

Photo by permission from Dana Coates

The above photo isn’t mine but I’m including it because it’s such an unusual example of a naturally pink monochromatic photo. This is a rare pink fog – there were no filters applied to this picture.

Heavy moisture content in the air caused the blue wavelengths of the rising sun to be scattered out, resulting in a pink fog. Further up the Okanagan valley, the fog was actually red. This incredibly rare phenomenon didn’t last long; only about 10 minutes.

A small flock of coots swim through a monotone December day from 2024.

It was fun looking through my archive for appropriate monotone photos. I hope you enjoy them.