John's Island: February 2013

Friday, February 22, 2013

Welcome Texans

Frequently we like to start our posts with a welcome to followers and visitors, and this time, a special welcome to the Texans. What? A special welcome for Texans? Why? Well, our followers will know that we're located in the Pacific Northwest's Emerald City, also known as Seattle. So, imagine our surprise when we spotted the car in our photos below right here in the neighborhood. Near the intersection of Broadway and Roy Streets -- about 1700 miles, plus or minus, from the nearest point in Texas. At first glance we noticed the license plate from Texas, but then ... wow, C-ATL? Put the dash in a different place and it could be "cattle" ... which seems a little more likely for a Texan. But this Texan apparently loves Seattle, got it on their personalized plate, and drove all the way up here. The least we can do is say we are honored and welcome to the Northwest!

Thoughts about going wireless ...

For today's sky watch photo we dug deep into the archives. Way back to the 1960s. Even back then John loved taking sunset pictures, and especially if he could incorporate another interest: trains. In this photo we have the tracks and sunset, out in the countryside, but it also gives us pause to think about going wireless. This photo was taken long ago when just about everything was "wired" ... look at all of those lines! Can you imagine how many wires would be out there if everything was still wired?

More sky watch photos at Skywatch Friday

Reflections ...

A couple of reflection photos ...

These ducks were sharing a bit of breakfast
early one morning at Green Lake
in the midst of many reflections.

Like the shoreline reflection in the water but the
big congregation of ducks was interesting too!

More reflection photos at Weekend Reflections

New Growth ...

Several followers commented on the new growth photo in last week's post. This is another one of those "stop to smell the roses" things ... stopping to enjoy the new buds on the shrubs and trees. The one below lets us know spring is on the way. Thank YOU for STOPPING by John's Island!

Friday, February 15, 2013

Skywatch and more

Skywatch

Recent skies in Seattle ...

Early morning at Green Lake

Sunshine reflecting off Two Union Tower
cuts through the morning fog

Wednesday, Feb 13, 2013 cityscape sunset

Enjoy more sky photos at Skywatch Friday

Reflections

We've featured this location before but this is a new photo
this week. Just so many reflections!

Enjoy more reflection photos at Weekend Reflections

Warmup

Getting ready for take-off?

Kubota Gardens

In the near future we will feature a visit to Seattle's Kubota Gardens. This is a wonderful and somewhat overlooked beauty spot in the Puget Sound area. Photos below were taken this past week when we stopped by to see if there were early signs of spring.

Near the entrance to the gardens on Feb 14

New growth through the decay of last year

First photo above, drawing style. How do you like it?

Thank you for stopping by John's Island. We appreciate your comments!

Friday, February 8, 2013

Early February Skies

Before we get into today's photos John just wants to say Thank You to all who follow us and especially those who leave us the kind comments. John reads each one and, although he does not always reply, he does appreciate each comment.

We are moving through winter rapidly and see that there is a big storm forecast for our friends back in the eastern part of the US. We wish you the best ... take care and stay warm! Here in Seattle, we had an unusually dry January and we have not yet experienced big snow. We have plenty of time left for that, however.

In early February, John has continued his daily walks around Green Lake, about 3 miles, and that provides many photo opportunities. Within the last few days, while on one of those walks, he stopped for a short break at a lakeside bench. The view is shown below. We like the way the light and clouds play on the water.

You can enjoy more reflection photos at Weekend Reflections

This morning, Friday, February 8th, we had a fairly typical sunrise in Seattle. Some photos below will show you the sky as seen from John's Island Headquarters.

Early dawn, looking to the southwest.

Looking more to the west, as Two Union Tower reflects the
brighter sky in the east.

Sunrise as seen in Two Union Tower.

A bit closer.

And yet closer.

You can enjoy more sky photos at Skywatch Friday.

A special hello and thank you to Alan, of Yogi's Den for taking over hosting of Skywatch Friday.

Thanks for stopping by John's Island and have a great weekend!

Friday, February 1, 2013

Dahlias! [Part 6] and more

Skywatch

From the archives ...

A Puget Sound Sunset

For more photos that celebrate a beautiful sky check out Skywatch Friday.

Reflections

We like the reflection photos and enjoy putting some here on the Island. A few days ago we were visiting family in Texas and had an opportunity to take some early morning walks. The temperatures were mild, the humidity was high, and the dew was plentiful. We happened to notice a spider's web between two vertical rails in a metal fence.

"The difference between utility and utility plus beauty is the difference between telephone wires and the spider web" --- Edwin Way Teale

Enjoy more reflection photos at Weekend Reflections

Dahlias! The 6th and last part for a while.

We started our January feature (dahlias from last summer) on January 3rd. This post will wrap up our dahlia feature for a while. Our earlier posts started with flowers blooming mid-August and the photos below are all "late season" ... during those months (September and October) we visited the Puget Sound Dahlia Association's garden (in Volunteer Park, Seattle, WA) frequently, always snapping a bunch of photos. Here are 37 more we hope you will enjoy. Thanks for stopping by John's Island. By the way, I numbered each of the pictures so that you may refer to them specifically if you wish to comment. And, I would love to know which one is your favorite! Thanks in advance!