Good Vibrations-Summer Tanager & Starry Rosinweed

 

Summer tanager and Starry Rosinweed! The bright red bird is the summer tanager, and starry rosinweed is the flower.  (We thought it was a whorled sunflower but a botanist friend identified it for me as a starry rosinweed, so I am happy with that.)  The flower is still blooming in our backyard but the Summer tanager visited our bird bath for water this morning.  We were THRILLED to see him! (And I say "him" because it is most certainly a male.  We think we have seen the female before, it is a solid yellow.)

Richard didn't have his camera with him at that exact moment, so I have gotten this photo for you off the internet.  Same thing for the starry rosinweed, but hopefully, R. will be able to get one of his great photos for you sometime in the future.

It has been a sad day to read all the tributes for Brian Wilson today. So many people loved him! He was a musical genius for sure but a very kind, gentle man who will be deeply missed.  I have spoken of my love for music and in particular, songwriters, so you know, this hits home for me.  Do you remember my post from 2023 when our son got married?  The Mother/Son song that we danced to was the music by Brian Wilson, he wrote "Surfer Girl", and it made for a great lullaby for my son, with "Surfer Girl" changed to "Chris-to-pher" and with the lyrics about loving my baby, with no mention about surfing!  Honestly, I think Brian Wilson would have approved. That's the great thing about music, it can be anything you want it to be! Many great melodies can be changed into lullabies, just don't try to make money off them!   Now, my son didn't tell me in advance this is what he wanted the DJ to do, wasn't that a sweet thing for him to think of doing? 

Hope you are all doing well, my friends! We continue to have stormy weather here, it seems that on our weather forecast we are shown a cloud every single day with the chance of rain. Remember I told you about the tornado that ripped a young man out of his house just in the next county over from us? He is recovering but it was very serious. I saw a video, let me see if I can get it on here for you...

There, I hope you can see that. What a nice family! Hope you all can either pray or send along positive vibes for him!  Oh, you know that makes me think of a great song.  Brian Wilson, may he rest in peace and music. 

"God Only Knows" - A great cover by Evan & James. Enjoy!

May Flowers/Ripening Blueberries

 May flowers! In between bouts of rain and storms, we have had some nice sunny days for our flowers. Our storms...we had 5 tornadoes in the past 7 days in Georgia. The most recent one was just one county over from us and it was so strong, it destroyed a home with an eighteen-year-old boy sustaining severe injuries. We all pray that he will fully recover. Tornadoes can pop up at any time during a severe thunderstorm! The weather forecasters do a great job at informing us of impending storms but still, that last one really did come up very quickly.

Depending upon the soil, the mophead hydrangeas are either blue or pink.  All of them in our area are blue but since these are in a pot, we have the pink ones! (Personally, I love them both. Never met a hydrangea I didn't love.) The blue ones require an acidic soil; the pink ones must be alkaline. Isn't there an Agatha Christie story with the floral wallpaper turning either blue or pink? I must look it up! (I love Agatha Christie! Have you read her autobiography? Please do, it's excellent.)

We have some blueberry plants in pots also and this year, they are producing quite nicely. Richard likes to watch them as they ripen. First, they turn a nice shade of pink, then- blue!

There, don't you just think that is beautiful? Why, they are good enough to eat! Ha!  (And I took that last photo, by the way!)

Hey, let's get close to the flowers in our garden. I am closer to Earth than Richard, he has to bend a bit further down to get shots like these....so, I took these too!

Guess you can see that I took this photo of the rose after one of our thunderstorms! And all the flower photos aren't the best because it was overcast and well, because Richard didn't take them! 

Recently, I was doing some necessary housework, and I put on a CD that my son made me for my birthday. (It is from years ago, he gave it to me in 2013!) There are 25 songs that he put on this CD and I love them all.  Here is one of them....

"I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire".  What a great song!

Hope you are all doing well these days, my friends! Richard and I have tried our best to get out and do our walks during this stormy month of May. It meant that sometimes we lugged around umbrellas with us and at times we were grateful that we had them with us! Even though we have had lots of rain, it truly has made everything lovely and green, not to mention the flowers!

Friends, Romans, Countrymen- Lend Me Your Ears

 

Hello, my friends! (And Romans and Countrymen, too, I even steal from Shakespeare!) How are you all doing? Richard and I went to a a Spring Fling here in Conyers, Georgia a few weeks ago. I love the new mural that was painted in the Botanical Garden there. Hmmm....according to a sign there, they have plans to take out most of the trees and plants and put in a wooden deck.  Sigh, I hope they save some of the nature here.

There was a car show, and you know Richard managed to get a few photos for you.  Lots of folks there but somehow, he can get pictures as soon as people move away!

These cars were spic and span! The owners were so proud of them and would happily speak to whoever came up to them.  

Hey! We also went to the Zoo!  Yes indeed, we have good friends to treated us both to a trip there as a birthday present.  I love pink flamingoes. Chatty Crone had these on her blog recently!

The silverback gorillas have a very nice enclosure.  They have always amazed me. They look so human. I like the shot that Richard got of one from behind.

As you see, I haven't traveled too far recently but I watched every minute of the memorial service when Pope Francis died. I felt as if I had been in Vatican City and Rome! The architecture! I kept pausing the TV for my eyes to linger on the buildings.  It was all incredibly moving, was it not? I can't begin to tell you how much I appreciated the beauty of it all.   I even took a photo of the Tiber River on my phone from the TV.  The service was translated into English, and I even loved the station that I watched, the soft voice translating the wonderful words but at the same time hearing the beautiful Italian language. It was all in honor of the dear pope who had just passed away, but I hope that I can be forgiven for appreciating the majesty of the surroundings. 

Pope Francis! I will miss him.  Here are just a few quotes from him that are especially meaningful for me...

"We were not meant to be inundated by cement, asphalt, glass and metal, and deprived of physical contact with nature".

"I appeal to communicators around the world to tell stories of hope. Seek out the hidden crumbs of good even when all seems lost and allow people to hope against all hope".

HERSHEY

 How I wish I lived in Pennsylvania! Recently, there was a casting call (of all ages) for extras for the filming of the movie "Hershey" about Milton S. Hershey.  If you are reading this from a country other than the USA, you might know about Hershey chocolate, but do you know the story behind The Hershey Company?  It is fascinating and inspiring...

Milton Snavely Hershey was born on September 13, 1857, in Derry Township, Pennsylvania. His education only extended to 4th grade. Apprenticed to a confectioner at the age of 14, he spent four years learning the trade. He started several businesses that were not successful. Did that stop him? No! He kept at it, and he developed caramels using fresh milk.  This company, The Lancaster Caramel Company was a success! In 1900, he sold this company to found The Hershey Company and went about making chocolate. He purchased land near the place of his birth in Pennsylvania and developed the company town of Hershey.  (A side note here, when I was a little girl, my Daddy loved telling me that when he drove through the town of Hershey, he was thrilled to smell the chocolate. I have had others tell me that this is true and it is still true today!) 

Milton Hershey developed milk chocolate that Americans could afford.  He created the Hershey Kiss in 1907.  (And I have read that he named it himself.  Is that not just the sweetest thing to learn?) He was very happily married to Catherine (Kitty) and what a wonderful love story they have for us to know! You may read more just here.

Sadly, the couple were unable to have children. Since they both had a great love for children, they founded a school in 1909, The Hershey Industrial School.  In 1915, his beloved Kitty died. (I have read that he kept a photo of her in his wallet for his entire life.) In 1918, Milton Hershey transferred the majority of his assets to The Milton Hershey School Trust.  

"One is only happy in proportion as he makes others feel happy and only useful as he contributes his influences for the finer callings in life".  

 Milton Hershey

The film about Milton Hershey and his wife, Kitty should be released in 2026.  You know I am looking forward to it! A movie about an inspiring couple! Of course, we will all learn much more about all that Milton Hershey did from the film. I think the whole world could use that.

And I think I will have some chocolate!  Thank you, Milton Hershey!

"His deeds are his monument. His life is our inspiration".  (On plaque beside his monument at The Hershey School.)

AND he opened the Hershey Gardens in 1937, so I think some nice views of gardens and flowers will be my way to honor him. 

 Home - Hershey Gardens

 

Panola Mountain (With A French Accent)

 

Panola Mountain photos for you, as promised!  Panola Mountain State Park has several trails. The Outcrop Trail is one that obviously goes beside the rock outcrop, but it also goes through a forested area and beside the trail one can enjoy blooming trees and wildflowers.

At one part of it, you can see Stone Mountain! (That is the photo above.). Now, Stone Mountain is close to 15 miles away, so it was a clear day that we were there! 

  There is the rock outcrop with some of the bright red diamorpha!

Can you see the fringe tree with the pretty white blooms? It was very shady under these trees but there were quite a few of them.  This tree is Chionanthus virginicus. It is a native tree.

Now, can you see someone trying to camouflage behind this rock?

Ha ha, I am ONE with nature! There are massive boulders like this scattered all through this park.  Most of them don't have people posing with them, LOL!

 

Years ago, I told you in a post that they built a boardwalk where you can see Panola Mountain...

You can't really see it very well in a photo, but right there in the middle, where the trees are slightly higher, that is Panola Mountain! If there is a group on top of the mountain at the same time you are on this boardwalk, you can actually wave to the folks on top! Okay, I really wanted to see some lilies that bloom in this area in April...

Found them! This made me so happy! It is the atamasco lily, zephyranthes atamasco.  It is also a native.

This resurrection fern is on top of a rock boulder here and it also grows on trees or tree stumps.  It is a most amazing plant, the Pleopeltis polypodioides.

 This remarkable plant can lose about 75 percent of its water content during a typical dry period and possibly up to 97 percent in an extreme drought. During this time, it shrivels up to a grayish brown clump of leaves. When it is exposed to water again, it will “come back to life” and look green and healthy. The plant gets its name from this supposed “resurrection,” but it never actually dies during the process. By contrast, most other plants can lose only 10 percent of their water content before they die. Fronds are typically 4 to 12 inches (10 to 30 centimeters) in length.

Saying "goodbye" to our Panola Mountain State Park until next time. 

    Happy Trails!

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Hope you are all doing well, my friends!  When I wrote my last post, there was still light green leaves on all the trees. Now, our trees are fully leafed out and it looks like summer! (On some days, it has felt like it!)  

When I watch TV shows or sporting events, I spend a lot of time pausing and researching the background of the cities that I see on the screen. Bozouls is in the South of France. Have you ever been there? I have, IN MY MIND! I love beauty and beautiful places. 

Hey! We just had a thunderstorm. Might as well give you some "Summer Lightning"!  Richard plays this all the time!

Arabia Mountain- Bright and Beautiful

 

Our local wildflowers in this area have been beautifully blooming during this month of April.  We like to go on hikes at Panola Mountain State Park and also, Arabia Mountain.  And when I am walking, I am constantly on the lookout for blooms!

Look at the photo below, can you see my outline in the pond of water? I am taking a photo on my phone. Clever Richard! (He said he had me clearer than this, but I MOVED! Guess I was ready to go up Arabia Mountain!)

Here I am, marching up the 

mountain!

Hooray! I made it!  It was wonderfully windy and cool and from this point, you can see for miles.  (See the bright red diamorpha? Some have started blooming with the pretty white flowers on top, you will see.)

Arabia Mountain was quarried heavily at one time. How amazing it is to see nature making a comeback! And after the quarry was shut down, this area was used as dumping ground! Thankful for those who were behind this area becoming a park.

After a good rain, there will always be the vernal pools on top of Arabia. How lovely it is to see this water at the very top!

                                 Spiderwort (Tradescantia). 

             The tiny white flowers are called "sandwort". I called them "joyflowers" before I knew what they were called. JOY, it is to see them blooming.

Can you see the tiny fringe tree above? (It has the frilly white blooms.)  This was on top of Arabia Mountain and it was very windy! Richard did very well to get this shot! (I will show you more photos of this tree from Panola Mountain in my next post.)

I love the lichens and mosses too!

We are coming back down the mountain now and just at the base of the mountain, we smelled them before we saw them....

Campsis radicans, the Trumpet vine!  I wish you could smell this flower. Some say it smells like cinnamon, some say it is like coffee. It is SUCH a beautiful fragrance!  (I sent a text to a friend and told them I saw this, Campsis radicans and the phone changed it to "Campsite radical". Tee hee. I am glad I noticed!)

Just had to show you a photo of our columbine! We had some in a pot and it dropped seeds and we were rewarded with these lovely blooms.  Aren't they gorgeous! 

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Today is April 14th and yesterday was the Final in a little golf tournament in Augusta, Georgia, you may have heard about.  Rory McElroy won the Masters! (I'm not crying, you're crying!) 

Hope you are all well and enjoying April wherever you are! April is my birthday MONTH, so I celebrate it for weeks! Maybe I am biased because it is the month where I came into the world, but I think it is such a beautiful time of year.   

Wish you all could smell the blossoms on our lemon tree too! We have had some very cool nights, so Richard lugs this in and out of the garage almost every night!  Hope it will reward us with lemons!

Next post: Panola Mountain!