All Comments Gone!

This is just to let my readers know that with the removal of Google+ from Google accounts, all the comments on my posts have also been removed.

Here's the statement from Google: "Support for Google+ comments will be turned down, and all blogs using Google+ comments will be reverted back to using Blogger comments. Unfortunately, comments posted as Google+ comments cannot be migrated to Blogger and will no longer appear on your blog."

So, dear readers, I'm so sorry that all your lovely and inspiring comments are gone. Terribly sorry! But I truly appreciated them.

With this short note, let me add a few photos to enliven this page.

Here's a scene that wowed me the moment I laid eyes on it. Three yellowhammers are chilling out on a fluffy couch high up in a spruce tree.

Last night's (Feb. 4) northern light was classified as weak, but it danced beautifully enough for a few minutes before it faded and the clouds rolled in.

This is one of my favorite winter scenes when the temperature is something like -22 degrees C, the sky is clear blue and the sun kisses the snow-rich trees.

Have a wonderful week!

Linking up with

Wordless Wednesday
Wild Bird Wednesday
Thankful Thursday
Skywatch Friday
Saturday's Critters
Our World Tuesday

"Moonstruck!" : the Blood Moon of 2019

This is a 24-hour celestial drama with the moon as the main character.

The story begins with the setting of the moon that was just hours away from becoming a Wolf Moon.

I watched from our balcony on this extremely cold morning of January 20, starting at around 8:00 a.m.

The moon augmented more and more as it neared the horizon.

As I watched and took pictures, I noticed that the lunar disk formed ridges around its edge, as opposed to a smooth disk while up in the sky, and it truly looked like a blazing ball.

I watched until the last glow faded away.

At noon, hubby and I drove to a nearby cape for our usual photowalk. Shortly thereafter, we saw the enormous moon rising behind the trees, almost transparent and yet enchanting.

We proceeded to the sea afterward. The moon had ascended higher by the time we got there.

It sailed smoothly across the pink layer of the sky....

....toward the airplane that was getting ready for the landing.

The sky shifted colors to deep blue and purple as the moon journeyed on.

For one last time before we left the place, I took a few up-close shots of this luminary that held me spellbound and which would soon be eclipsed as it would pass through the earth's shadow.

The night advanced and deepened. At home, the moon was not visible from our side of the building. After preparing some warm winter clothes in case I had to go out of our apartment to capture the blood moon and after setting my alarm clock at 4:30 a.m., I retired for the night.

January 21 arrived. I checked through our kitchen window for the moon. Yes, it was viewable from our kitchen and balcony! I didn't have to go out after all, only to our balcony where I could set up my tripod.

The total duration of the eclipse would be 5 hours and 12 minutes, but I started to shoot from the partial eclipse, skipping the penumbral phase. I planned to shoot every 15 minutes, taking a nap in between shots. In some instances, I overslept, thus missing some of the phases.

When the partial eclipse was ending, thin clouds gathered around the lunar disk. It was still a  beautiful sight though.

I went back to sleep in the sofa while waiting for the moonset just like the other day. When I awoke, the moon was gone and broad daylight greeted my searching, sleepy eyes.

That's okay. I was satisfied with the entire drama. It was an amazing 24-hour lunar show that got me "moonstruck"!

It's a one-of-a-kind drama that silently declares the glory of the One who created it.

"He has made the moon for appointed times."
(Psalm 104:19a, Psalm 19:1)

P.S. 

Sometimes, birds are also bedazzled by the moon. 😊😊

Linking up with

Our World Tuesday

Wordless Wednesday

Thankful Thursday

Skywatch Friday

Saturday's Critters

Through My Lens

Mosaic Monday

image-in-ing

Awww Mondays

Pictorial Tuesday

Friday Bliss

Popping Up!

I've been quiet for almost a year. It's not that I have nothing to write or photos to share. I have quite a lot of these things which have not been let into my cyber home. Exciting and meaningful events transpired over the year, which are worth treasuring in my blog. The trouble is that I just felt that my blogging juice had drained out, though I still love to read the interesting blogs of those that I follow.

always enjoying the frequent aurora shows seen from our balcony

Writing, nature and photography are still my passion that keeps burning inside me. I have been out in the natural world recently more than ever. Hubby and I have been actively birding, photo-walking in the wild in search of interesting things in nature. I share my pictures with my personal friends in other sites where I write the stories behind the photos.

photo-walking in the freezing winter wonderland

Arctic redpoll

Why I could not get myself to write here as I used to remains vague to me. Maybe it has to do with my overwhelming stockpile of photos. As many of my readers know, I use a LOT of pictures in my blog. The problem comes when I choose the images to include. I have so much to choose from, and it's exhausting just to go over all the pics and then pick what's best to represent my stories. Yes, I think that's the main block getting in my way. Another could be lack of time and fatigue after my jobs. I usually feel so exhausted at the end of the day that I can only manage to do the necessary things.

I still love being among the snow-laden trees

And then the itch to blog keeps annoying me, goading me to mull over the matter. It wouldn't go away, so I have to give myself a little push, though not so hard, having in mind my past resolve that I must do things in my stride.

still peering at the tiny ice crystals and taking macro shots

As you can see, I spurred myself to write this after a long time. I hope this is not the only time but there will be more coming up. And I hope that I can keep up my stride. Maybe one of these days I could verbally and visually stroll back in time through this blog.

early winter by the city river

And....I must restrain myself from using so many pictures!

the harbor where we frequent to watch the sunset, look for birds and broken ice bits

So this is all for now. Till next time.....

Linking up with

Our World Tuesday

Through My Lens

Wild Bird Wednesday

Thankful Thursday

Skywatch Friday

Friday Bliss

Saturday's Critters

Awww Mondays

Mosaic Monday

In Quest of a Scarce Bird

Words about a rare bird called white-backed woodpecker reached our ears. This is actually a hush-hush matter because of the governmental decree to protect it due to its declining population. I heard that only about 30 of them remain in the whole country. News about its existence in our city floated in secrecy, but we were fortunate to catch the words from a reliable source.

On March 8, we set out to a nature reserve where we hiked last summer and followed the snowy trail through the coniferous forest until we got to the local patch where some birds stop by to feed.

Total silence greeted us when we came to a halt and waited for our "quarry" bird.  Several minutes passed before I peripherally saw a silhouette of a bird flitting through the bare trees. And then we heard the familiar drumming of a woodpecker. It was a downy woodpecker.

A few minutes later, another winged creature flew by. And there it was, the white-backed woodpecker! I was so excited as I followed its flight from one tree to another until it stopped to feed.

As it kept appearing and disappearing, I kept waiting patiently and shooting frenziedly. It was so beautiful and luminous that I was utterly captivated!

When all the excitement abated, another bird showed up, a Eurasian jay, and perched still on a branch. I've seen one some months ago but I had difficulty capturing it as it was too afraid to sit still. This time, I had a good chance to take a lot of shots.

Satisfied at finding the white-backed woodpecker, we started back to our car while randomly shooting here and there.

As we exited the woods, my eyes were caught by an atmospheric optical phenomenon looming over us. It turned out to be a composite of 22° halo, parhelia or sundogs, upper tangent arc, supralateral arc and circumzenithal arc, each one heralding the presence of ice crystals in the atmosphere. This was an extra treat for us during that birding day!

Our quest was a success and my soul was fed, gratified and rejuvenated!

"Of the glorious splendor of your majesty they will speak

And on your wonderful works I will meditate."

(Psalm 145:5)

Linking up with
Mosaic Monday
Through My Lens
Our World Tuesday
image-in-ing
Thankful Thursday
Wednesday Around the World
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Saturday's Critters