Groundhog Day in Narnia

Dear Punxsutawney Phil,

You may have noticed the sounds of Dwarvish construction last night while you slept. Lots of shovels, axes, hammers ...

My Dwarves have hewn out a marvelously long staircase which you must climb in order to discover whether or not you can see your shadow to make your prediction about the six more weeks of winter or an early spring. Well as you know, it’s cold out there, and those stairs are snow-laden and treacherously slippery.

So if it were me, I simply wouldn’t bother. It’s not really worth the trouble, is it? Much better to enjoy a nice piece of Turkish Delight with a cup of tea, go back to bed, snuggle up under the covers, and carry on with hibernation.

Most sincerely and as ever with your own best interests at heart,

I remain,

Jadis

Queen of Narnia

In Search of the Perfect Redbud Tree

The name of this photo, taken in 2005, is "Turning Home." It looks very much like being on a road that might lead to Hobbiton in the Shire of Middle Earth.

Every spring since I first started going down to the Hocking Hills of Southern Ohio, I've gone in search of the perfect redbud tree. And every spring is different. Even the same trees look different from year to year. And the feel of the air, whether it be a misty pastel oil painting or a joyously crisp warm sunshine blue. And the touch of light or shadow.

Then you realize that you are actually on a quest to dream the impossible dream, because what you are after is the memory of a moment in time whose proof physically exists only in the photos you took back then. That the road goes ever on and on ... and not back, because even though you try to go back, you are going forward in time. Such that past memory clashes with future vision in the present to form a double exposure of things as they currently are against a backdrop of things as you wanted them to be.

Last year my search led me to a dogwood tree instead.

This year is leading so far to questions. Should I drive allll the way down to the Hocking Hills on a round trip hundreds of miles long just to return to my favorite haunts where I know the redbud trees will appear however unfamiliarly? Should I even return to my beloved bed and breakfast for the occasion? (In any case, I would love to go any time of year even without an occasion just to visit the innkeepers who really do treat me like family after all these years.) Should I return to the region but purposely avoid the beckoning "tried and true" for a random roll of the dice on unknown roads? Or travel somewhere I have yet to have an inkling of?

Questions for Readers: Do you prefer vacation trips to the same well-loved places every year, or to explore something completely new? Wherever you go, do you have traditions you like to keep or things you like to see? Where would you go again wishing to find it the same as you left it before?

Gothic Spring

Disclaimer: I am only a humble blogger. I only report the weather. I do not create it. Having observed bare branches in Northeast Ohio, I traveled to Southeast Ohio, all with the noble goal of seeking out and bringing to you the loveliness of flowering trees and the gentleness of spring green. Here follow the results of my quest based on what I found on April 21, 2009:

This photo is called “Haunting Stormy Ohio Day.” It depicts intensely-changeable weather conditions on a back road in Vinton County, Ohio. All day long scattered rain storms would alternate with small bursts of sunshine. No Photoshop was used on this image. I know it's very dark, but I wanted to keep it as is to preserve the mood.

This photo is called “Spring Gothic.” In it, a majestic stand of trees loom in an eerie stormy light at Lake Hope State Park in Vinton County, Ohio.



This photo is called “There is Beauty in a Dogwood Bush.” When skies are grey, trees are spooky, and that roof over your head doesn’t look entirely comforting, you can still count on the dogwood bush to provide beauty. So remember, when life hands you a dogwood bush, take a picture of it. Okay, so the dogwood bush is pretty spooky too. But in a good way, I think.


To end on a small note of hopeful color, at least the “Ghostly Pink Redbud” trees were in bloom!

A Spring Bird Walk in Northeast Ohio as Seen by a Landscape Photographer

The birds must’ve taken one look at the sun dramatically trying to burst its way through the haunting clouds and simply went back to bed. It was mighty quiet when we started out on the Sunday morning bird walk in Brecksville, Ohio. Ah yes, what a gorgeous spring morning ...

Every week you can choose a group to go with based on which direction they’re going. Today I chose the group going South on the tracks. You literally have to walk on the train tracks to cross a rocky stream ten feet below. If a train came, you’d have to jump off the train tracks to avoid being hit. This thought came to me while I was searching for Red-headed Woodpeckers one night after work. I was halfway over the water in the middle of the tracks and suddenly realized I had no idea what the train schedule was. So now my philosophy is that there’s safety in numbers.

Aha! Waterfowl! This being a bird walk, here’s the obligatory bird photo. Two Canada Geese, each with a watery mirror image.

The bird photo out of the way, I can get back to concentrating on landscapes. I had lots of fun with this marsh in Photoshop to give this image a surreal painterly look. The dark blue-black background helps bring out the detail of the golden marsh grasses.

And here’s a shot in which no Photoshop was used called "Bare Trees in a Foreboding Sky." Still waiting for the leaves … Wonderful spring mood, huh?

Another painterly version of the wetlands at the Brecksville Reservation in the Cleveland Metroparks.

Woohoo! Flowers at last. Okay, so the daffodils are set against a spooky Northeast Ohio April hillside. But they’re still flowers. Bright and cheerful, aren’t they?

And to end on a birdwatching-related note, here’s a tree with a lived-in look. I call it "Woodpecker Totem Pole." Many a woodpecker appears to have called this place home.

Please Note: I will be away until late Wednesday night or Thursday morning. I look forward to visiting your blogs on my return!

Borders

Between winter and spring, day and night, water and land, dead plants and new growth, shadows and light ... there are borders all along the edges of the Dreamkeeper Pond in Northeast Ohio.

Spring is here. What new adventures await?