Hammock Envy

Oh, to be able to rest peacefully in a hammock. That is a desire of mine, for I have long been bound by back pain, and not able to enjoy something like that.

The simple things, like hammocks, in life are usually what we seem to enjoy the most. I think that's what bothers me the most about hurting my back, somehow, when I was a younger man. It is to the point now that I get pretty upset when I think about it because you only get one back. You're only allotted one in your lifetime, and if it gets damaged, you just learn to live with pain and that certain activities off limits. For instance, I cannot sit on the floor for any length of time to speak of because my legs go to sleep. This is very uncomfortable and a condition of the back injury. If I happen to choose to "tough" it out and sit on the floor anyway, I will regret it in the coming days in the form of a pinched nerve in my lower back. This pinched nerve shoots sharp blasts of pain down through my legs, usually one at a time.

I think what angers me most about the injury is that my ability to play with my infant son is hindered by my now handicap. I am very thankful for all that I am able to do, but I do wish, sometimes, that I did not have these problems every few weeks.

Continuing Color

There are some things that you just expect to happen, especially after living a bit of life. For instance, if you step off of something, you expect to fall if nothing is beneath you. If you don't use an umbrella in the rain, you will get wet. Those are just a given. Then, there are some things that are not quite as certain, but they happen most year after year. For example, during the Fall, you expect to see colors of yellow and red, as they are old regulars around this time of year. However, you do not expect to see bright yellow, magenta and bright pink.

Surely, you say, I'm not implying that the trees are turning pink and bright yellow. You are totally right, I'm not saying that. I am saying, however, that if you look around, at least here in Mississippi, you will see many colors that are normally long gone by this time of year. We are having some warm weather, this last week in October, and the flowers in my yard are still blooming as if it's June. Don't get me wrong, I'm loving coming home to temperatures less than 100 degrees, while still enjoying the colors in the yard. It is just one of those things that I don't expect. The colors that surround me daily right now seem foreign, exotic.

Maybe, by Thanksgiving, it will be drab and dreary like usual. I'm not wishing for it, other than for the fact of normalcy.

Falling Colors

I've started to notice more and more Fall colors. There will be a bit of red in this Bradford pear tree or a touch of yellow in this majestic oak. I love looking around, as I'm driving home, and taking in all of the colors of each season that I can. The season, the reds and yellows seem to dominate.

1,000 Words Photography-Portfolio

 Fall is that aptly named season for which many things, ironically enough, fall; temperatures, leaves, colors from the tops of trees down and length of the days. I guess it only makes sense for this season to be named Fall. The symbolism is very touching, because you can almost feel the season being called into existence by its mere name. It seems to fulfill its destiny.

Just the other day, I noticed that some of the Bradford pear trees were turning shades of red. I love this, because they can really put on a show, depending on how quickly the cold temperatures arrive. This year, we had an early start with a couple of weeks being quite chilly. After that, however, we had a bit of a warm spell...almost reaching 100 for a few days, and in the 90's for a few weeks. Although it is still pretty hot during the day, middle of the way through October, the nights are often cool enough to sleep with the windows open.

I'm hoping that this more gradual cooling than we had last year will afford me the pleasure of seeing our Florida Flame maple tree turn bright colors; red, orange and yellow. In full flush, it is supposed to look like it is a tree on fire with flames of color, licking at every leaf.  At first, the dastardly draught we are having, would have deprived me of the privelege of seeing this beautiful tree's splendor, because its leaves began falling off rather quickly. However, I have been able to stave off the inevitable by constantly watering it. Hopefully, the hard work will pay off...in a color burst for my viewing. If I'm so lucky, photos of the ruddy beauty will surely follow.

Headshots

 I recently did some head shots of my nephew because his school ones didn't come out really great. I don't really know how that could happen, because he is just about the most photogenic kid in the world. Sometimes, he is a bit camera-squemish, but overall....he's just glad to be there.

 And I was there, at his house, for these shots. He was actually just out playing in his sandbox when I walked out there with my camera, and asked him if he'd smile for me. He gladly obliged, and as you can see, the photos came out great. I love that true kids smile that he sports. There is almost nothing more genuine than seeing a kid, in his element, and happy to be there. 

I have enjoyed watching this guy grow up over the past few years. I'm his barber and his photographer. Hopefully, I'll be his mentor at some point as well.

Good, Old Flowers

1,000 Words Photography

Often in the South, we will use the phrase "Good ole...." when referring to well, just about anything. This post is about something that sounds similar, but is meant a bit different. The flowers to which I refer are called "Spider Lilies" unofficially. Apparently, they are a very old variety of the lily family that dates back to the 1850's. It is unsure of the origin of them here in Mississippi, but if you look around from the end of September to the middle of October, you are sure to see some of the reddish/pink spider-looking flowers popping out of a hillside.....the base of a tree...or just out in the middle of nowhere. Their most spectacular showing is when there is an entire bunch set all together. This vibrant color is sure to grab your eye against the rapidly-waning color of summer.

The fact that they are old will be very apparent when you try to purchase some. They will set you back about $10 for 3 bulbs. Only one flower comes up from each bulb. The good thing about these mysterious little flowers is that they reproduce quite rapidly. Because they are perinneals, you will see them year after year. The good part: there will be more and more each year, as the bulbs replicate and help out your original investment.

Go to your local nursery or just go ask your grandma for some, but definitely get some of these for your yard. It's just the good, old Fall Surprise your yard needs.



**To see more photos, visit my site: http://bruceaulrich.zenfolio.com

Growing Like a Baby

You've heard of sleeping like a baby? Well, it would be better said to be growing like a baby. They are constantly changing. My son is now 17 weeks old (that's a little over 4 months, for the non-initiated) and just had his 4 month doctor checkup.

 A few weeks ago

Everything went well at the doctor. She checked his joints....fingers....toes....etc and said that he was perfectly healthy. That is just music to my ears. He is now in the 90th Percentile in his weight and the 75th Percentile in his height. Seems to be getting a pretty good amount of food these days, don't you think? He even took his shots well. He had to get 3 shots, and with the aide of some Tylenol before getting them, he was still happy when I arrived home at about 5:30. That's what I like to see....a happy baby!

Yesterday

I still wonder things like: Will he be taller than me? Will he be right-handed or left-handed? Will his hair turn darker as he grows older?

I guess we will just have to wait and find out.

I See........Pinestraw

You've heard of seeing dead people as a sixth sense? Well, I can see pinestraw as my sixth sense. This past weekend, I spent a good bit of time raking, bagging and distributing pinestraw in our flower beds. It is a painstaking task, but when you have had to pay for bales of pinestraw (at $15/ea., like we did last year), you're just grateful to even be able to rake some up.

It started with getting the beds naked....so that we could see what needed trimming and pull weeds. Then, we could fluff all of the old pinestraw, for added volume, before applying the new needles. Finally, after many scrapes and pokes....we had a nice, thick layer of pinestraw covering our flower beds. It was like the plants were being held snuggly in place by a brown see of discarded items.

The only problem now...everywhere I go, I see fresh piles of pinestraw.....or a freshly dropped carpet of it, and it makes me just want to grab a rake. Habit, I suppose at this point.