The Retirement Chronicles

Still Revisiting Autumn's Splendor

2012-02-03T06:00:00.005-05:00

As I am still going through several months

of photography that I feverishly took

during our last, gorgeous

autumn season here....

You will just have to suffer.

A bee's nest or hornet's nest!:

Our Lake Michigamme.

We just live up the shoreline to the left of this photo....

This is an old highway that I always return to....

every fall....

because I love the canopy of leaves there.

We own 40 acres of land a little ways down this road on the right....

But my favorite roads to take in the autumn are those

little two-rut roads....

you never know what animal might be just around the next corner.

Another shot of our Lake:

I have loved this little boathouse on our lake ever since I discovered it

about 9 or 10 years ago. It is in a little cove of our lake:

I hope you can find a little "cove" of shelter,( full of serenity

like this place)

in your life today.......................

REPOST: Here they Are! January 2012's Entries to the FREE PHOTO CONTEST: theme: WHITE!!!

2012-02-01T06:00:00.089-05:00

Today, we have all the entries

the January 2012 FREE PHOTO CONTEST~!

Theme: WHITE !!!

**We had a bunch of entries this month--
(THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYONE!!)

(*This is a REPOST...I had forgotten ONE photo...so if you
looked at the entries before, look again!! Thanks!)

So,

let's get to it!!!:

This is by Country Gal. She has two blogs. One is called: "Our Country Cove Life" and the other one is called: "Country Cove Photography".

This is from Sharon W. Her blog is called: "Sharon's Paws Create"

This is from Marge F. She does not have a blog.

This one is from Susan K. Her blog is called: "Along for the Ride".

This one is from Nat. Her blog is called: "Just Nat".

This is from Bilsot. His blog is called: "Amateur Photography".

This one is from Muffy. Her blog is called: "Muffy's Marks".

This is from Jacob Mc. His blog is called: "Bland and Boring to Extraordinary".

This is from Linda R. Her blog is called: "Linda Letters".

This is from Arti. Her blog is called: "My Yatra Diary".

This one was from Cheryl. Her blog is called: "Cher Shots".

This one is from Lynn. Her blog is called: "For Love or Funny".

This is from Larry B. He has two blogs. One is called: "Larry's Creative Zone" and the other one is called: "Larry's Photo a Day".

This is from Glenda B. She has two blogs. One is called: "Profiles and Pedigrees" and the other one is called:"Writers Circle Around the Table".

This is from Gary W. His blog is called: "The On Going Adventures at Fox Paw Lodge".

This is from Pat H. Her blog is called: "A View from the Edge".

This is from Nancy P. Her blog is called: "Blissed out Grandma".

This is from Judy W. She has two blogs. One is called: "The Road to Here" and the other one is called: "Through Squirrel Eyes".

This is from D Jan. Her blog is called: "D-Janity".

************************************************************************

One of the things I love the MOST about hosting this photo contest

the creativity of everyone that enters.

Look how different many of the shots taken are for the theme of white!!!!

Thank you, everyone for entering and entertaining us.

The Judges are going to tear their hair out over THIS month's chore...

how on earth will they decide on only ONE winner???

*************************************

If I forgot ANYONE's photo who entered,

PLEASE notify me no later than this SUNDAY....

If I don't hear from anyone by then the pictures will be sent off to the Judges.

If I have forgotten someone, I will REPOST this post to include the forgotten ones and THEN send it on to the judges.

(I try very hard not to miss someone, but it does occasionally happen!)

****************************

And now the announcement of

FEBRUARY 2012's

FREE PHOTO CONTEST's

THEME!!!:

FOOD!!!

(Ha! I bet you thought it would be red, or hearts, or love, didn't you???)

Well, those may be for another time....I just wanted to be unpredictable! LOL

Send in your "food" picture no later than midnight

on Feb. 29th, 2012

following

THESE RULES.

You don't have to be a blogger to enter!

HERE is your 2011's FREE PHOTO CONTEST's WINNING PHOTO OF THE ENTIRE YEAR!!!!!

2012-01-30T06:00:00.000-05:00

You've been wondering, haven't you????

You have been anxious to see....

haven't you???

Well, you SHOULD!!

We had fantastic winning photos every month during 2011

of shots submitted into the contest.

Each one is extra special.

Every single one of you that submitted pictures should be very , very proud.

Every single one of you that submitted pictures that won for that month

should be even more proud!

And now?

THIS person should be the proudest of ALL:

HERE IS OUR 2011 WINNING PHOTO!!!!:

Congratulations to

Gail

from

"Our Life Adventures".

A fantastic shot!!

If you haven't stopped by her blog yet, please stop by and congratulate her

and take a look at her fantastic other photography shots there.

Oh, and add her to your FAVORITES on your blog!

*******************************************

We had a total of 19 "judges" (You all that commented/voted).

******

Second Place goes to: Pat for her Reflections shot from April

and

Third Place goes to: Muffy for her Autumn shot from October

so please congratulate them too!

ALL of you should be very, very proud of your wonderful art.

Keep entering 2012's contests everyone!!!!!

Thank you for giving us such joy from your talents.

Lighthouse waves!

2012-01-28T06:00:00.002-05:00

Still more photos

out at "the cove"

at Lake Superior today, along with some of the wind breaking waves

at the lighthouse there.

These were taken in late September/early October 2011.

Over the next few weeks,,

I will go out and take some shots at the same place for you

so you can see all the ice on the breakwater

now that it is the dead of winter!

**********************************************************

Speaking of snow and ice....(they are WHITE, right???)

don't forget....

only THREE MORE DAYS

to send me your winning photo

for the

FREE PHOTO CONTEST for January.

The theme this month is:

WHITE!!!!!

Send in your photo before midnight on Jan. 31st, 2012

following

THESE RULES.

You don't have to be a blogger to enter!

Rocks, waves, Coves and a Lighthouse!!

2012-01-26T06:00:00.024-05:00

Today:

some more pictures of Lake Superior in

the late Autumn for you.

It was quite windy the day I headed out there to take photos:

The lighthouse at Presque Isle in Marquette, Michigan:

Can you hear the waves?:

I love going out to this place to take photos.

It changes with the weather, the wind, the light, the season....

and

it is one of the most photographed places in the area where I live....

I will be going out in the next few weeks to get some winter shots again of this place

to share with you soon....

Hope you have a great day!!

Ishpeming and Marquette Michigan Photos!

2012-01-24T06:00:00.036-05:00

Today?

More splashes pictures...

some were taken

around Ishpeming, Michigan

and

Baraga County

and

the others were taken

Presque Isle,

in Marquette, Michigan.

A splash of colorful leaves!:

Splashes of color on the pond's shores:

Beginning splashes of autumn showing up in early fall at Lake Angeline, near Ishpeming Michigan:

Splashes of autumn coming over the town of Ishpeming, Michigan:

A huge splash against the black rocks at Presque Isle, in Marquette, Michigan:

Another one there!:

One of the beautiful lighthouses on Presque Isle, in Marquette, Michigan:

More splashes on the Lake Superior black rocks:

One more of the lighthouse on a day with fiesty winds!:

I hope Nature shows you

her power and beauty today too....

Now it is YOUR turn.....YOU (My beloved READERS!!): Pick the WINNING 2011 FREE PHOTO CONTEST picture of the YEAR!!!

2012-01-22T06:00:00.001-05:00

O.K. People!!!

It is YOUR turn!!!

I am going to display the wonderful, talented photography

that

won my FREE PHOTO CONTEST

for

each month of 2011.

YOU get to vote on the ONE WINNER OF THE YEAR.

I know.

It is not an easy task.

My Judges are giggling right now.

Because THEY have had the awful job of picking

winning photos all year long...and now it is on YOUR SHOULDERS!!

After looking at all twelve of the winning photos below,

send me your vote for only ONE winner by leaving me a comment.

I will not publish your comments.

But at the end of the voting, I will publish how many votes the top three winning photos received....

So, are you READY???

Look below and pick your ONE favorite and send in your votes ASAP!!!

I will only take votes until February 27th at which time the voting will be CLOSED!!

I will show the pictures starting with the January 2011's winner, in order through the Dec. 2011's winner...below...here we go:

January 2011's winning photo. Theme was: BRIDGES

This was from Bilsot. His blog is called: "Amateur Photographer".

February 2011's winning photo: The theme was: OLD BARNS:

This was from Linda. Her blog is called: "Linda's Letters".

March 2011's winning photo. The theme was: RED

This was by Judy. She has two blogs. One is called: "The Road to Here", and the other blog is called: "Through Squirrel Eyes".

April 2011's winning photo: The theme was: REFLECTIONS:

This is from Pat H. Her blog is called: "A View from the Edge".

This is May 2011's winning photo. The theme was: "Something That Starts with an A":

(it was an Amarylis):

This is from Tes. Her blog is called: "Gardening with Soule".

This is June 2011's winning photo. The theme was: "CIRCLES":

This is by Valboy. Her blog is called: "My Girlz Got Paws".

This is July's winning photo. The theme was: BIRDS:

This was by DJan. She has two blogs. One is called: "D-Janity" and the other one is called: "Eye on the Edge".

This is August's winning photo. The theme was: "Lakes, Ponds, Rivers or Creeks":

This was by Paz. His blog is called: "Pictures of Ireland".

This is September 2011's winning photo. The theme was: SHADOWS:

This was by Gail. Her blog is called: "Our Life Adventures".

This is October 2011's winning photo: The theme was: THE EPITOMY OF AUTUMN:

This was by Muffy. Her blog is called: "Muffy's Marks".

This is the November 2011's winning photo. The theme was: DOGS &/OR CATS:

This was by Grandmother (Mary). Her blog is called: "Journey Into Elderhood".

This is December 2011's winning photo. The theme was: THE EPITOMY OF THE HOLIDAYS:

This was by Larry B. He has two blogs. One is called: "Larry's Creative Zone" and the other one is called: "Larry's Photo a Day".

********************************************************************************

WOW!!!!!

Every photographer that entered this year's contests should now bow to our applause for their hard work and wonderful creativity!

And these monthly winners should take an EXTRA bow for a job well done also!!!

So now, dear readers....

you are the Judges.

Leave a comment, even if you have never commented before on my blog....

PLEASE vote on your favorite photo of these twelve marvelous shots.

If you want, also leave a comment as to what you loved the most about your chosen winner also as I would love to tell our winning photographer your kind comments as to why you picked their photo.

Thanks so much!!!

*********************************************************************

And hopefully, these photos will inspire you to take one of your OWN

and enter it into one of our MONTHLY

FREE PHOTO CONTEST

themes.

You can win for more than one month, so the more you enter, the more you have a chance to be in the PHOTO OF THE YEAR competition/contest too.

January 2012's theme is:

WHITE

Enter your photo no later than midnight, Jan. 31, 2012

following

THESE RULES.

You don't have to be a BlOGGER to enter!

Splashes of Waves and Color!

2012-01-20T06:00:00.066-05:00

A poupourri of splashes of autumn color

and water today for you

I go through

the many images

I haven't yet had the pleasure of sharing with you yet!"

This is at a place called "Jasper Knob" near Ishpeming Michigan, where we lived for 14 years.

It is about 25 miles from where we live now:

Look close! There are five large birds in their early autumn flight back south: (what do you think they are?):

Lichen on rocks!:

The old Mining Shafts in Ishpeming, Michigan:

River in color!:

Splashes on Lake Superior rocks!:

This was taken near Eagle Harbor, Michigan

in early, early fall

before the leaves changed. One windy day!:

I hope you make a splash today

and that you are colorful....

brighten those around you!!!

We have a WINNER: Dec. 2011 FREE Photo Contest: Theme: The Epitomy of the Holidays

2012-01-18T06:00:00.003-05:00

This one caused the Judges

to take some time....

They looked for interesting perspectives on the theme...

they looked for creativity,

they looked for uniqueness....

and they finally came up with

ONE winner....

In case you forgot,

the theme for December 2011's

FREE PHOTO CONTEST

was:

"The Epitiomy of the Holidays"....

Here

the

WINNER they chose:

Congratulations Larry B.!!!!!!

He has two blogs. One is called: "Larry's Creative Zone" and the other one is called: "Larry's Photo a Day"
Stop by his blogs to enjoy some neat, unique shots from his part of the world!

One Judge said it was chosen not so much for religious reasons,

but for the creativity of the shot

to put the picture and the tree together

as the Photographer's message of the "reason for" his season.

Honorable mentions also were given to:
--Sharon W.
--Lorac

*******************************************************************************
Thanks to all of our photographers that entered the contest!!!
Once again, you did a wonderful job and I thank you for entering the contest!!

***

Don't forget to enter your photo for the:

JANUARY 2012's
FREE PHOTO CONTEST!!!

Theme:

WHITE!!!!!

Send in your winning photo
no later than midnight on Jan. 31, 2012.

Just follow
THESE RULES!!!

You don't have to be a Blogger to enter!

Autumn This and That....

2012-01-16T10:11:00.000-05:00

No matter the season,

we always love going out in the woods to see what wildlife and scenery we can see.

This autumn was filled with opportunities.

Three Amigos on a log....

Colorful reflections beside the waterfalls:

"Leftover" Tree roots on a colorful pond:

Hidden, tiny rapids on the shore:

More of the waterfalls with the log that had a waterfall

all of its own!:

Frilly rows of lacy mushrooms!:

Looking down at a colorful pond:

Huge rocks of colorful Jasper:

Even rocks have beauty!

You just have to LOOK....

***************************************************************************

Speaking of finding beauty in things that you may not think of finding beauty in...

Don't forget the

"WHITE"

theme

for

January's

FREE PHOTO CONTEST

Send me your photo no later than Jan. 31st, 2012

following

THESE RULES!!

Autumn, how I MISS you!

2012-01-14T06:00:00.001-05:00

More today of our wonderful past autumn in the U.P. of Michigan:

Water reflections:

Dreamy water:

I SO want to be by this bridge on this warm day, right NOW!:

River flowing like silk:

Autumn river:

Another colorful autumn road:

I love, love, LOVE colorful leaves floating down a stream:

And,

when the river is low and reveals its secret rocks?

Heaven!:

I posted this cobweb earlier, but Mrs. Spider showed up that day

just for a MOMENT
and I got to get a snapshot of her!:

EEEEEK!!!!!!!

More Color on this Winter Day

2012-01-13T06:00:00.036-05:00

It is all white where I live now.

In the midst of winter.

Gorgeous in its own way, but I still like looking at my

autumn photos...and I still have some yet to show you that you haven't seen.

So, bare with me, and come re-visit

Upper Michigan's autumn 2011, will you?

I like looking at each individual, colorful leaf.

Which up here?: Means it is an impossible job!:

And, when the color is all around me, sometimes I like to switch my brain

to black and white...just to see how one's perspective can change things!:

Right after the rain.....we spied this huge mushroom

with

hanging drops!:

An abandoned farm house!:

(I always wonder what families lived there and about how alive the house once was!)

More colorful leaves!:

River of color!:

Relflective pond:

Did I not confess to you before that I am in LOVE with tree stumps??:

Oooooo!!

Red maple leaves!~:

Enjoy the beauty where you live today...

every "home" has its unique beauty!

Leaves, Water and Oh MY!

2012-01-11T06:00:00.000-05:00

Glimpses of this past autumn

from where I live.

(I know, I am a lucky lady.)

A bend in the colorful river:

Dripping with color!:

Gold leaves in the sun:

Raindrops on glorious leaves:

While looking at the leaves with my macro lens, I got a wonderful surprise!:

Water and rocks!:

Peeking through the grass at the pond:

Loved those trapped red leaves in the riverbed:

And now?

We are head over heels into winter...

we have about a foot of snow

and

cold, cold temperatures.

I hope to get out and get some shots for you of our winter, too.

As soon as my new long johns arrive in the mail......

This and That from an Autumn Day in the U.P. Woods

2012-01-09T06:00:00.006-05:00

I took a ton of autumn photos...and even when I did, whenever fall is over I always feel

like the time was too short and that I didn't take enough.

The wind and the rain did blow down our colorful leaves really fast this year, so I was

grateful for any I did get.

A lot of the waterfalls were very, very low in the fall due to no rain in our area.

But sometimes I like them better because you can see all the rocks under the falls

that you normally can't see when the water is high:

I love the texture that black and white photography

offers us....

especially with a mushroom thrown in, just for fun!:

Small rapids with colorful reflections:

A dried up pond full of glorious stumps! Art forms!!:

I loved the golds and oranges reflected in the water of this waterfall on a sunny day!:

A moment in time!:

I go to this exact spot every fall and spring and summer to take a picture of the bend in the river.

I must go there in winter and complete my "seasons" set!:

The passage of time is no more evident

than

in the changing seasons.

Come walk with me.....

2012-01-07T06:00:00.001-05:00

Let's step back in time.

Come with me, won't you?

Back to autumn 2011...

in the woods.

The birds are chirping.

There is a hint of chill in the air, and the forest smells sweet from the decaying leaves...

And we will walk down this road (together) to find what treasures we might chance upon.

I wonder what awaits us around this corner??

Perhaps a flowing river?:

Or a magical waterfall?:

Or dew on the grass?:

We'll walk downstream from the magical falls to gain another perspective:

We will find a mystical log that has a waterfall right through it!:

A private seclusion in the golden forest:

Where it's Residents have colorful freckles on a sunny day:

Stay with me...

we will go on yet another autumn trip next time too!

Earth, Water and Color!

2012-01-05T06:00:00.002-05:00

I am continuing today with more autumn pictures

taken in my "neck of the woods"

(the Upper Peninsula of Michigan).

Enjoy!

Autumn leaves after the rain:

River flowing:

Colorful reflections in the flowing water:

Freckled autumn leaves:

I thought those dried up little "sticks"

of mud in the evaporting pond

looked like gnome hats:

Colorful pond:

Loved this little fall mushroom poking out of the ground:

Hi. My name is Joan and I'm addicted to taking mushroom photography:

Reflections:

I hope you get a chance today to "reflect" on how wonderful Nature is

and

how she provides us with moments of pure joy.

*****************************

Don't forget to start thinking of getting your picture into

the

FREE PHOTO CONTEST!!

January 2011's theme is:

WHITE!!!

You don't have to be a blogger to enter.

Just follow the rules in the post below this one.

Get your photo in to me no later than midnight, Jan. 31st, 2012.

2012 FREE PHOTO CONTEST RULES: You can enter once a month!!!!

2012-01-03T06:00:00.003-05:00

2012

FREE Monthly PHOTO CONTEST
Rules*

(They are the same as 2011's rules, but wanted to post them again!)

If you didn't see Dec. 2011's entries, I posted them yesterday.

Just drop below this post to see them.

*Please copy #1 through #7 below and attach it to your e-mails when you enter a photograph to make sure you give me all the information needed. It REALLY helps!)

1. Send your entry photo as an attachment in an e-mail to: jhaara@sbcglobal.net along with ALL of the following information:
1. State your real name:
2. State your e-mail address:
3. State your mailing address:
4. If you have a blog, state the NAME of your blog:
5. If you have a blog, state your BLOGGER NAME:
6. If you have a blog, state the exact address of your blog:
7. If you do NOT have a blog, tell me what EXACT name you want used on my blog to identify your entry (either your real name or a code name):
8. Send a reasonably-sized file attachment of your entry photograph. Extra large files will endanger my computer, so PLEASE do not send huge electronic files via your submission.
9. When you send your picture, make SURE it is right-side UP, not sideways or upside down...send it EXACTLY as you want it published.
10. You must already be (or immediately become) a Follower of The Retirement Chronicles blog to enter the contest. If you have not already done so, please do this before sending your entry via an e-mail to the above address.
11. Please e-mail your photo before 12 pm on the last day of the month of the current contest.
12. If the month’s theme involves a photograph of a person, please make sure you obtain and keep in your files : written permission of the subject of your photograph. If the subject is less than 18 years of age, you must obtain their parent’s dated, written permission before submitting the photo to the contest. The Retirement Chronicles blog site will hold the person sending in the photo for the contest responsible for getting written permission for the photo before it appears on its blog.
13. Please only submit ONE photo entry per month.
14. Please do NOT submit the same photo for any two themes or for more than one month.
15. Please keep a copy of the e-mail you sent in with your photo file attached. If you do not hear from me within 7 days of sending in your entry (by getting an e-mail from me that says I received it), then your entry is considered incomplete/not received, and this will be your backup for your file. If I publish the month's entry and accidently forgot to list YOURS, it is YOUR responsiblity to notify me immediately via e-mail. If this occurs, I will do a re-post to include your forgotten photo before I contact the judges.
16. The photo must be of appropriate content. No nudity or pornographic content will be tolerated or published. The Retirement Chronicles has the right to reject any photo from the contest that is deemed inappropriate. Any one submitting inappropriate photos will be reported immediately to the blog host site and to authorities, if needed.
17. You must not be a professional photographer. We are counting on you to be honest as this is an honor system.
18. The photo taken must be your original work and no one else’s. We are counting on you to be honest as this is also an honor system. If found that you have copied someone else's picture with or without his/her permission, you will be reported immediately to the blog host site and to authorities, if needed.
19. Past winners ARE eligible to enter and win any/all future monthly contests per majority vote of my blog readers.

Thanks again to EACH and EVERY

one of you for participating in the past

and to you who will venture on this new journey in 2012.

Please enter a photo!!!

We do it to have FUN!!!

Here they Are!!: December 2011's Entries for the FREE PHOTO CONTEST: Theme: The Epitomy of the Holidays!!

2012-01-02T16:13:00.000-05:00

What I love MOST

about hosting my

FREE PHOTO CONTEST

once a month,

is the variety of entries I get.

From every culture, every part of the world, every religion, every creative talent.

This month did not disappoint in this regard.

December 2011's theme was:

The Epitomy of the Holidays

and

we got such a wide range of ideas on this one.

The number of entries are going down a bit....so I am going to put a plug in here to charge everyone up

to make sure

you enter a photo for the future contests!!!

Make your 2012 resolution that you will stretch your photography muscles a bit

and start entering a photo every month that you can, ok???

That being said,

here we go

for

a tour of the entries for December 2011:

This one was from Arti. Her blog is called: "My Yatra Diary"

This one is from Sharon W. Her blog is called: "Sharon's Paws Create"

This one was from Bilsot. He sent the photo to me as a Christmas greeting

and then I asked him if he meant to enter it as his December Photo Contest

entry and he said: :Why not?: His blog is called: "Amateur Photographer".

This one is from Linda R. Her blog is called: "Linda's Letters".

This one is from Larry B. He has two blogs. One is called: "Larry's Creative Zone" and the other one is called: "Larry's Photo a Day".

This one is from Lorac. Her blog is called: "The Cottage Life".

This one is from Muffy. Her blog is called: "Muffy's Marks".

This one is from Far Side. Her blog is called: "Far Side of Fifty"

*****************************************************************

Weren't they fantastic???! Don't you just love that no one had the same idea that entered

and that they are all so different???

Once again, if I forgot anyone's entry (I try, folks, I really do..but sometimes they get lost in my many, many e-mails!!)...

if I forgot you, please notify me IMMEDIATELY.

I will be sending these out to the judges by Friday, so if I forgot you, let me know so I can revise this post and send all of the wonderful entries to the judges all at once.

My special thanks to each and every one of you that entered your photos.

Being the masochist that I am, I will be hosting this contest once again in 2012!!!!!!

The rules are the same and can be found HERE.

After December's winner is picked, we will be posting all twelve monthly winning photos

and letting YOU

(yes YOU, my readers!!!) pick

the 2011 WINNING PHOTO OF THE YEAR!!!!!!!!

**********************************

And now?

The theme for

Jan. 2012's

FREE PHOTO CONTEST!!!!???:

WHITE

Yes, you read right.

Take a photo of anything WHITE.

(It is not as easy as it sounds...white composition in photography is one of the hardest to take).

Send me your photo

no later than

midnight on Jan. 31, 2012

Good luck!!

Ducks and Dusk and gorgeous colors!

2011-12-31T06:00:00.011-05:00

Today, some random photos from late summer

and early autumn!

Enjoy!

Merganser ducks!

Moon rising!:

Looking down the lake from us:

The moon above the shoreline and islands on our lake:

Lake Alberta, in autumn splendor! This lake is about 25 miles from our house.

Lake Alberta shoreline in color:

Red leaves of autumn:

I am finally "caught up" with most of my

late summer photos to share with you..

and

over the next few blogposts,

I will be sharing some of my autumn colors

photos too.

I know it is New Year's time and snow is with most people...

but I have to get caught up, people! LOL

Besides, we could all use some color in our lives this time of year, no???

*************************************************

Today is the LAST day to send in your

December 2011

FREE PHOTO CONTEST

photo!!!

The theme is:

The Epitomy of the Holidays!!!

Send me your photo by midnight tonight!!!!!

You can DO IT!!!!

Lake Splendor!

2011-12-29T06:00:00.000-05:00

Before the change of the leaves...

before the snow....

before Christmas....

there was late summer.

And it went out in splendor!

Sunset and the moon rising....

Dusk over a small lake near where we live....

A HUGE "plate" mushroom on a wood's tree:

Wagner Falls, in September:

A migrating duck on our lake near sunset:

Dusk on our Lake Michigamme:

That cool white house on the cliff is right directly across the lake from our house...

I have always loved it.

And with ducks in front of it?

Heaven!:

A lone goose in the water:

Heading home on the boat at dusk on our lake:

One of our lake's islands at sunset...

when the golden "civil twilight" brings out the beauty

in everything it washes:

Now..if I could just make or invent

makeup for our skin

to do what the setting sun does

for nature...

I'd be a millionaire!!!!

Let's talk Turkey!!!

2011-12-27T15:31:00.004-05:00

Now that Thanksgiving

and

Christmas

have passed...

I thought it was safe to post my photos

of the adorable turkey family

we ran across

when out for a drive one day.....

There were so many babies, I couldn't count them because they were running across the road so fast.

Just look at the babies!!:

The "crossing guards" checking the road to see if it was safe for

the "kids" to cross....

These two looked so different! I think they were both males? But maybe it was Mom and Dad?:

Taking "Junior" out on the road!:

Whew!!! MADE it to the other side!!:

Next group! Headem' up..roll 'em out!:

You can see by the color of the GREEN grass that this was late, late summer

even before the leaves changed colors:

"Ooooo, Awwwww, that pavement is HOOOOOOTTTT!":

"Hurry up, kids....and quit arguing whose turn it is to go first...we're talkin' possible

Semi-trucks here...let's MOVE IT!":

And, Junior...to answer your question...

No, I don't know what Stove Top dressing is....

but I don't have a good feeling about it......

and I heard those humans over there talking about having a

NEW YEAR's dinner....

not EVERYONE makes Prime Rib you know!!!

****************************************************************

Hurry up People!!

You only have a few more days to enter the monthly

FREE PHOTO CONTEST!!!!

December 2011's theme is:

The Epitomy of the Holidays!!!

Send me your winning photo no later than midnight, on Dec. 31st

following

THESE RULES!

You don't have to be a Blogger to enter!

And remember....in January...we choose the WINNER OF THE YEAR...

all the monthly winners for Jan. thru Dec. 2011 get posted

and ONE yearly winner for the BEST PHOTO of 2011

will be chosen.

You still have a chance to get in the yearly drawing if you haven't won yet and win December's photo contest....

(And you other monthly winners can have more than ONE chance if you win in December too!)

so get GOING

and send me your photo!!!!!!!

Don't you want the WINNING widget on YOUR BLOG

that you won December's contest???????....

or even better:

the 2011's BEST PICTURE OF THE YEAR??????

Merry Christmas from the U.P. !!!

2011-12-25T02:00:00.002-05:00

Merry Christmas!!!

from

the Upper Peninsula of

Michigan!

I wish you peace, love and happiness

today and always....

Please enjoy some pictures today

that I took in our little town

of Michigamme Michigan.....showing you

some free winter sleigh rides

that were provided

last week.

Enjoy your day

and a huge thank you is being sent to

every single person and to all the Blogger friends

that visit my blog

and make my life that much more enriched.

I hope your Christmas was all you hoped it would be.

I know that all the presents I need are family around me
and the gratefulness and love that I have with my family and friends.
(That means YOU too!)
xxoo

Lake, River and Falls!

2011-12-23T06:00:00.003-05:00

Continuing today with some more water pictures.

I know your days are full of hectic holiday things

and I thought

the viewing of water might help calm you today.

Take a steaming cup of coffee, put your feet up

and

listen to the water.

Can you hear it????

A windy Lake Superior day!:

A tiny drop in the river makes for a mini-waterfall!:

Waterfalls like liquid silver!:

Miner's Falls: A long, long way down!:

The bottom of Munising Falls, where there are colorful rock formations:

To show you how tall these Miner's falls are,

look at the bottom of these falls

where you can see

a fellow photographer

in a blue coat taking pictures:

A view of the top of the Munising falls!:

I hope these helped calm you down and make you feel relaxed today.

I hope that you are surrounded by loved ones, and if not, know that your fellow Bloggers

love you...me included!

Hoping your holidays give you refreshed spirit

and that the new, upcoming year is one of promise, good (or better) health

and continuing happiness.

Beautiful Falls and a Buck!!

2011-12-20T06:00:00.001-05:00

On Sept. 5th,

(which just so happened to be my birthday!)

I had the opportunity

to go to Munising, Michigan

along with a well-known photographer

for lessons on

how to photograph waterfalls.

He took us to 5 different waterfalls that day

and it was such fun!

I learned a LOT !

Although the weather was a bit chilly, it was overcast most of the day

(which makes for the BEST photos of waterfalls, as sun tends to "wash them out".)

Today, I will share some of the photos I captured on

my "lesson" with the group.

This is Alger Falls, which sits right beside a busy highway!:

Right beside Alger Falls!:

The path was extremely muddy as it had just rained before we got there!:

The falls (below) turned out to be my most successful shots.

When we first got there, the sun burst out and the main waterfall was too bright

to do many good shots.

But over in the corner of the falls, there was some water falling over

gorgeous rocks and it looked somewhat shaded, so me and my tripod

headed there instead.

I was so glad I did!:

This is part of Au Train Falls:

A buck that we happened to run across too!:

Later that week, we went out into the wilderness of Baraga county

and found

this little waterfall in the woods.

It was so quiet and beautiful out that day!:

So, now I am more in love with waterfalls

than ever before!!

I plan on getting out this winter to capture some of the winter falls for you...

but probably more near Spring

when they begin to melt down

so I have open water/falls along

with the snowbanks and ice formations....

So, stay tuned!!

**********************************************************************

Don't forget to enter my

FREE PHOTO CONTEST!!!!

December's theme is:

The Epitomy of the Holidays!

Be sure to get your photo in

no later than midnight on Dec. 31st, 2011

following

THESE RULES.

You don't have to be a Blogger to enter!

Lilies, tree roots and water scenes....

2011-12-18T06:00:00.001-05:00

I just love being out in the middle of nowhere

and

finding streams, rapids, and ponds...

especially ones with water lilies

or banks filled with rapids

and twisted tree roots.

All those white dots are water lilies!:

Rapids and rocks!:

Doesn't it look like these tree roots are reaching out to GRAB someone??:

Loved the azure water and all the changing lily pads to fall colors along with the flowers blooming!:

I hope your holidays are going well

and that you are blessed

with the warmth of family and friends in your life at this special time.

And, I hope, (no matter where you live)

you have been able to go out and marvel at the miracles of nature.

I am always amazed at Nature, during each and every season.

This and that from the Woods!

2011-12-16T06:00:00.001-05:00

Still sharing some of my late summer

and early fall photos with you

our trips out into the U.P. woods!

A bee on a flower, getting the last nectar of summer!:

A mysterious path into the woods:

At the top of the edge of Canyon Falls in Baraga County:

Canyon Falls!:

Down river from the falls in the "canyon":

Looking down a crevice in the rocks at the

river far below as we took our hike:

A friend we saw!:

Another friend! I wonder where he is NOW that the rivers are all frozen over?

I loved this tree on the riverbank:

Last year, we hiked to this spot in the winter on snowshoes to get some winter river shots...

I will put it on the agenda

to do again this year

so I can post some pictures of there for you!!!

We have a Winner!: Nov. 2011 FREE PHOTO CONTEST: Theme: Cats and/or Dogs!!!

2011-12-14T09:45:00.000-05:00

I don't know HOW

the

Judges did it,

but

they did come up with ONE winner

in the

FREE PHOTO CONTEST

for

NOVEMBER 2011 !!!

The theme was:

Cats and/or Dogs!!!

Here it is!!!!:

(meow, meow, woof, woof!!!):

Congratulations to:

Grandmother (Mary) from: "Journey into Elderhood"

for her marvelous photo!!!

The Judges loved the action in the photo and that the dog was looking straight into the camera with such joy!

Honorable mention also goes to:

--Country Gal

and

--Sharon W.

too!

Once again, thanks to everyone that entered their fantastic photos into November's contest...we loved seeing all of them!

(*I am still trying to track down the lady that made the widgets for the winners so that I can mail out this month's winning widget and last month's winning widget. She hasn't answered me yet. So hang in there winners, I am still working on that!) As soon as I get them, I will mail them out to you so you can post them on your blogs!

*******************************************************************************

Don't forget to enter DEC. 2011's

FREE PHOTO CONTEST!!!!

It is the last month of the year that you can enter and if you win, your picture gets put in the

2011 WINNER OF THE YEAR competition!

How great would that be?

The winning pictures for every month during 2011 gets put in the contest

and the bloggers that read my blog

get to VOTE on the winning photo of the YEAR.

If you win, you get bragging rights for the entire year of 2011!!

So, if you haven't won yet, or even if you have....make SURE you enter this month for the (additional) chance to

be the winner of the YEAR!!

The theme for December 2011 is:

The Epitomy of the Holidays!!!!!!

Enter your photo no later than midnight on Dec. 31st, 2011

following

these rules!!

You don't have to be a Blogger to enter!

King Lake Fishing trip!

2011-12-12T06:00:00.002-05:00

Back to some more summer

pictures.

We often take a ride to a little lake not far from where we live.

But we hadn't fished it before.

So we had some friends from Wisconsin that wanted to take a trip up

to do some fishing on their boat--so we packed up a picnic lunch,

hooked up our boats

and away we went.

Little did we know that we would have STRONG winds that day!

The wind blowed us all over the lake, and our anchor barely held us in one place.

So my hubby and I took refuge on one of the many islands on King Lake

and explored it, fished it and I did some photography off of it instead.

(My kind of fishing!)

Here are some of the images I captured that day:

Our friends in their boat, fishing away on KING LAKE:

I really liked this scraggly tree silloutte against the sky:

And amber waves of grain...........................

(And Lichen. Me likey lichen!)

Little rock island:

You can see, we had the whole lake to ourselves! (No one else was crazy enough to fish in THAT kind of wind!):

O.K. , I admit it. I am attracted to scraggly trees!:

Yes. I played with this a little bit in Photoshop to make it look like a painting.....

We came home without a fish.

We only had two bites all day.

But I loved being out there all the same.

Besides, we grilled steak for dinner, and my company didn't mind a bit!

Hidden Waterfalls; Part Two!

2011-12-10T06:00:00.053-05:00

Today,

I wanted to continue to show you just a few more

pictures of the hidden

waterfalls

that I visited in late August...

If you missed Part ONE of my blogpost

showing you these falls, just drop below this blogpost and

you can see those photos there.

Upper Silver River Falls #5

located near Herman, Michigan

in Baraga County, Michigan

Yikes!!

Is that a SNAKE SKIN???:

There is only one thing I love more than tree roots...

that

is?:

MOSSY tree roots!:

This is the TOP of the rocky bank that we had to climb down

to see the falls.

See all the boulders???

Covered with moss?

They looked fantastic for photos....

but

ummmm....

they are kind of slippery to try and climb down and up on.

(Just ask the bruise I got that was the size of a lumberjack's pancake (on my left thigh and butt!)

from slipping on one and landing on ROCK...

See the trickling water over the top of the bluff to the right?:

Well....

they gained momentum!:

Looking back down at the falls from the top of the bluff...

see them?

Wayyyyyy down there??:

I'll be back to capture these this spring when the rush of water

will be very different over those rocks....

I'll be praying that I can actually climb down there
again without injury....

Anybody know a virgin I can sacrifice to the Gods to assure my safety?

Anyone?

Bueller?

Bueller???

Hidden Waterfalls!

2011-12-08T06:00:00.005-05:00

Back at the end of August, I was missing visiting some waterfalls.

I found a website that has all of the waterfalls in our area, (listed by county!)

on the internet...along with directions on how to get to them.

But the directions in our rural area aren't always crystal clear....

and

the roads aren't always marked well.

This became apparent when one of the directions to find a waterfall

said to "follow the two rut road to the right until you see the old, rusted plow" and then take the left fork in the road....!!!

To top it off, the website mentioned that there are FIVE waterfalls

as you follow the river downstream...

following the riverbank.

Normally that wouldn't be a problem, but when we got there,

there was a HUGE rocky bluff we had to climb down to GET to the riverbank...

and

the riverbanks all the way upstream and downstream had huge boulders to climb up, around or over to find the waterfalls!!!

But we did manage to get down the steep hillside to capture ONE of them

and it was breathtaking.

Full of mossy, huge boulders.

If the water was high, I am sure the boulders would have been covered by the waterfalls flowing over them,

but since it was late summer, we got to see the boulders too.

The Upper Silver River Falls #5, located

in Baraga County, Michigan:

You can't tell from these photos,

but to the right and left of this picture there are steep cliffs going back up to where you drive to get to these waterfalls....down a two rut road or twelve....

I loved the swirling foam at the bottom of all the rocks from the falls:

I saw this mossy, twisted tree and had to snap a photo of it, too!:

I fell in love with the rocks there:

Mushrooms!:

The river was full of rocks, as the water was low...

I love when that happens....

And now, this same river is iced over and full of snow.

I hope to revisit them in the spring when the water is rushing and high from the meltdown

so I can capture some more pictures of this set of falls.

If I don't die trying to get down those cliffs again!

It was so hidden, we hadn't seen any signs of anyone else being there in a long, long time....
(or skeletons of those that tried and didn't make it).

*******************************************

Don't forget to start thinking of what picture you want to enter into

December 2011's

FREE PHOTO CONTEST!!!

The theme is:

The Epitomy of the Holidays!!

Get your photo in to me

no later than midnight on Dec. 31st, 2011 !!

Send me a photo that depicts what the holidays mean to you....be it Christmas, Hannukah, shopping, nature, anything...

Just follow these rules.

And please don't forget to include the name of your blog and your blog address...

even if you have entered several times before...

(it really helps me when I load them into my blogpost with your entries.)

(Yes, Just a Chick in a Chair...that means YOU.) LOL

This and that from the Late Summer Woods

2011-12-05T06:00:00.002-05:00

Back into my archives of my many summer and late summer

photos, so that I can still share them with you.

Right now, all is white outside of my U.P. windows,

but I took so many pictures last summer and fall

that I figured I didn't want them to go to waste, right???

Blue heron in flight:

A shot up a little closer:

Remember full, green canopies?

The leaves have all changed colors

and dropped off now....(sigh!):

And, sweet dragonflies are but memories now:

This shot reminds me that I have to strap on some snowshoes

and go and take some winter waterfall shots, SOON!:

Fireweed....its blossoms climbing to the top, to tell us summer is about over:

A hawk, hiding behind the leaves:

The Lily pads, changing into autumn colors on the pond:

It is hard to believe that all of this greenery

and wildlife

have all changed, now that winter is happening.

Nature is such a miracle on how it works, isn't it???

Here they are! =November's FREE PHOTO CONTEST entries: Theme: Dogs and Cats!!

2011-12-02T06:00:00.005-05:00

I just KNEW this category would be awesome!!!

I mean, who wouldn't like to see dogs and cats photos????

And, WHO won't go: "Awwwww" or "How precious!" or "How adorable!!"

when you see the photos???

( I know I did!!)

But how, oh how are the Judges EVER going to pick just ONE winner???

(Not our problem!) LOL

So, get ready to coo and smile and to want to pull right up next to your computer screen

to pet and kiss it as you see these wonderful entries.....

This one is from Cathy M. Her blog is called: "Mom's Musings".

This one is from Arti S. Her blog is called: "My Yatra Diary".

This one is from Mary W. Her blog is called: "Journey into Elderhood".

This is from Country Gal. Her blog is called: "Our Country Cove Life."

This one is from TexWisGirl. Her blog is called: "The Run a Round Ranch Report".

This one is from Jacob M. His blog is called: "Bland and Boring to Extraordinary"

This one is from Sharon W. Her blog is called: "Sharon's Paws Create".

This one is from Sara. Her blog is called: "Greyt Days".

This is from SoCalGal. Her blog is called: "Just a Chick in a Chair".

This one is by Muffy. Her blog is called: "Muffy's Marks".

*****************************************************************************

SEE????? I told you.

I had to tie myself to my chair not to run straight out of my house to the Humane Society to buy one of my own.....

Thank you to all of you that entered the contest....you are amazing!!! Love you all!!

Now, by any chance you submitted a photo into this contest and you don't see it above...please notify me RIGHT AWAY. Every month I try my darndest to make sure I didn't forget someone, and so often I have....

so let me know immediately if I forgot you and I will revise the post and repost it. I will wait to send these to my judges for 3 more days. If I haven't heard from anyone by then that I missed their entry in this blogpost, then the whole blogpost will be forwarded to this month's judges to have them chose one winner.

*******

Now!

What is December's theme (you ask???)

It is:

The Epitomy of the Holidays!

Send in one photo that symbolizes or shows the epitomy of the holidays to you...doesn't matter what your religion, (or lack of religion)...it can be a snow covered pine tree, a manger, a Menorah, a picture of a harried holiday shopper.....anything that you think fits the theme!!!

Don't just stand there...get busy!!

You don't have to be a Blogger to enter, just follow THESE RULES.