SOGGY BUDS

If I can't beat 'em, I will join 'em!

Still raining; new buds still drenched.

I got wet while trying to see what I could see in our cherry tree budlettes, but if I waited...

This one looks like some sort of embryo, the way the rain drop encases it.  No refraction, but the bud casing is enclosed.  These buds are no larger than the head of a map pin:

Since the droplette is so small, it is hard to see that the refraction is actually of Mt. Si:

 Bell clapper  "under glass":

GRASPING AT STRAWS

March came in, not just like a lion, but a lion, a badger, and a crocodile! 

It went out like a whole pride of lions, a colony of badgers and a bask of crocs - all fighting!

Desperate to find a blooming thing amidst the soggy surroundings, I drove out and about, close to home.

No green buds, even next to a barn, which is where they usually first evidence themselves.

The river caught my attention with this pure aqua color.  It must have been something in the atmosphere because it was raining, and so dull everywhere else.  This color is unusual here; we have seen it only in the Canadian Rockies:

Daffodils are up!  No, wait. They are down...weighted by rain, their heads are all drooping:

To find color, I resorted to going inside!

WEARIN' 'O THE GREEN

 I am a day late, but I wasn't home to do this until now.

There are so many greens in our natural world, especially here in the northwest. 

I got carried away here, but I did actually restrain myself.

Some creatures wear green all the time:

 

Teasle, still in the green:

 Douglas Fir new growth:

In the end, no one wears it better!

SAME 'OLE / SAME 'OLE

As I sat at my computer to start downloading the puddle photos of the following blog, a brightness (not the sun, phooey!) burst through the window and back-lighted a bouquet of tulips on my desk.

It was only momentary, but just long enough for me to pick up my camera before the downloading had started.

Yes, every single year I photograph tulips on my desk!

But hey - they bring spring to my heart long before it has occurred outside!

I am so thrilled that the auto-turn glitch has been fixed and I can post my photos as I have taken them, and without distortion! 

I love that this one seems to be filling with the color of the yellow tulip underneath:

FINGERPAINTING, ANYONE?

Yesterday while D and I were on our early-morning bike ride, the temp was below freezing enough to put a thin layer of ice on the bike trail puddles.

Not a thing of beauty, a shallow mud puddle; I would much rather come across a nice backyard garden pool for ice photos.

Mud below, and no macro lens meant I shouldn't have even bothered.

However, it was fascinating that such varied patterns could occur on barely one-inch-deep water.

This one does indeed look like finger painting:

Fascinating how little pebbles could cause a rift in the freezing process:

 This one looks like it was tossed in at the very second of the freezing point, creating a "splash" of ice:

 And waves, in thin ice?

 Why straight lines here instead of curved like all the others?

MORE SNOW OVERNIGHT!

I was the first one "out there" this morning!  More snow fell overnight, it was 22 degrees, and I wanted a solo tromp more than I wanted breakfast!  I drove fairly close to home on back roads - pristine, and hub-cap deep in unbroken snow.

In the early light, the lamp posts of nearby farms and estates were charming:

Barn berm:

Brambles and barn and a peak of Mt. Si:

This would be a mighty cold seat!

 Natural "black and white" scenes are catching my eye lately:

And then, there's contrast!  This is actually one of my favorite North Bend barns, which is also featured in a barn book I have made.  I haven't ever seen it this way though:

 

I ended my outing discovering this serene farm, ermine-white in every aspect:

AND THEN ALONG CAME ANOTHER OFFER

After I got home and warmed up, photo buddy P called to suggest we check out the mill pond and Falls. Couldn't keep me in!

Here is the mostly-frozen mill pond with a less-than-perfect reflection because of a slight breeze and those low-slung clouds.

 Snoqualmie Falls was furiously creating an icy mist which stuck to the camera lens, but also, because of the sub-freezing temperature, clung to the flora, making frosty fingers.  These are reaching over the Falls, barely seen as a blur on the left:

 More patterns in "black and white" at the Falls:

 On the way home, we stopped at the Snoqualmie train station:

 Tangled tendrils encased in ice, hanging over the Falls: