Tunnel, Week 40

Wow, Week 40, already.  Beautiful weather here lately, some of the leaves have already started turning.  It will be spectacular up on the Mountain in a few short weeks. 

Tunnel, Week 36

This past weekend was near perfect.  The weather was so nice, I think the high all weekend was around 85.  Beautiful skies, nice breezes, extra day off work.  I couldn't ask for much more.  The cooler days remind me that soon, the trees will begin to lose their green and start turning the wonderful colors of fall.  I can't wait for the fall tunnel!

Tunnel, Week 28

Tunnel, Week 26

Week 26 means we're half way through the year.  It seems like just a few weeks ago things were still gray and bare.

I love seeing this out of the corner of my eye....

Tunnel, Week 15

So, I forgot my camera...didn't realize it until I was about a mile outside the tunnel.  These are pano's I took with my cell phone.

Look at all this green!!!  What an explosion of green leaves!!  This is what I wait for every year and it really took me by surprise this year.

Tunnel, Week 14

Things are getting green!!  And if you look very close at the end of the road just above the car, there are some pink blooms!  It's getting very pretty around here.  A few days ago there was pollen everywhere like a pollen bomb went off.  Then it rained and all was mostly clean.  

Ah, Spring!

If only they loved us, too...

We're hoping that one day, maybe one day, they'll accept us as part of their family.

(!)

Tunnel, Week 8

What a beautiful weekend!!  The weather was perfect! Around 65 degrees and sunshine.  I stopped on the way out of the park and got a few more shots of the sunset over the lake.

 

  

 

Sunset on the Lake

One good thing about winter is that I can see the sunset over the lake as I'm leaving the Center.  Beautimus.

Tunnel, Week 2

 

 

No log trucks this week.  Just a couple of guys in a pick up with a chain saw.  And 30 degree weather.

I'm off next week, but may make the trek south anyway.

The Tunnel, Week 1

So, the 3 bulldozers from last week have turned into a full on logging operation with warning signs and everything.  Apparently, a lawyer owns the property and one of the other volunteers knows said lawyer, and rumor has it words will be exchanged. 

 

 

 

Cell Phone Pictures from Moab

This is only a small, pitiful excuse for a vacation blog, but I'm lazy and busy. Sorry. I haven't even looked at the real photos I took with my camera! I went out to Utah to see Jenny, the Man, and Munkey Belle. We spent the weekend at an amazing cabin outside of Moab and spent time at Arches NP and Canyonlands NP. More to come later {I hope :)}.

The Tunnel

Most Sundays, I drive south to Oak Mountain State Park. Before I even get there, I pass through one of my favorite places this close to home. Just turning off the main road and passing a service station, I enter the Tunnel. This time of year, everything is lush and green. Soon it will begin to turn with the season with several beautiful shades of brown, red, orange and gold. As we move into winter, the leaves disappear and the Tunnel becomes gray and still. Just when it seems that the world won't come out of the cold, the trees start squeezing out tiny green buds. Spring is beginning. Each week, I watch the forest here wake up from it's winter sleep. The trees get greener and greener, and the Tunnel becomes alive again. The trees almost seem to reach down to say hello. Greeting you as you enter a calmer, quieter place. As the heat of summer moves in, the leaf-full trees offer shade and a brief, cool respite from the heat. Even though I've been watching the Tunnel change for several years and know what comes next, each time I drive through I take a deeper breath and smile. As I leave the park a few hours later, the Tunnel amazes me again to carry me to the next trip.

What I've been up to

This is my new hobby. I love it. These pieces are for the Craft and Bake Sale happening at Wildlife on December 6, from 9 am until 2. If you live nearby, be sure to come see us. This is the 16th Annual Sale and all proceeds go to the Center. There are other crafts, too, all donated by volunteers and members. Usually lots of crochet/knit items, holiday items, pet treats, baked and canned goods, lots of good stuff. Park admission is $3 for adults, $1 for kids.

Natural Pest Control

I love these spiders. I never know when one will appear, and they always have prey caught in the web. I've seen several yellow jackets in her web, and glad for it. We're sure to have one next year, too, with her new egg sack.

Event Filled Day

Everybody knows today is Earth Day. Everyone is excited about recycling, reusing, renewing and hoping to save this planet for our future generations. I am as well, and we do our teeny part to help. We use the Green Bags for groceries, we plant a big garden, we use the lower energy bulbs. It is sad that our community doesn't have a recycling program, though. I called City Hall a few weeks ago and the woman I spoke to said, "I think there's a place out back here where you can bring your newspapers." That's all? I already recycle papers in the bird cage. We sorely need plastic and glass recycling. Maybe I'll work on that.

I'm also excited today because it is our 2 year anniversary. We sort of accidentally got married on Earth Day, but it seems appropriate for us. We also accidentally (but fortunately) got married on the weekend in between Easter and Talladega. Two very important and celebratory weekends here in the South.

However, I'm not excited about the paper due this afternoon that I really haven't started writing yet. I should be doing that now, instead of blogging.

SPAMALOT!!!

We went to THE SHOW this afternoon. It was so great. And freaking hilarious!!!

So worth the 5 month wait since we bought the tickets in November.

If this show comes anywhere near you, You. Must. Go.

More Garden Stuff

How does our garden grow? Better if the neighbors' dogs would stay out of it.


We have corn, garlic, onions, brussel sprouts, cabbage, peppers, tomatoes and squash. At the other end is more rosemary.

All that green fuzzy stuff.....collards. Lots and lots of collards. That big yellow blob, yep, collards. From two years ago. Hubby threw out a bunch of seed thinking only a few would come up. Apparently, ALL of them came up.