N is for Nasturtium

Mrs. Nesbitt's ABC Wednesday round 7 has reached N. Click on banner or link to see what fellow bloggers have been inspired to do.

Nasturtiums have long been favorites of mine, at least until invaded by aphids. Way back when my children were young and begging for a snack, I would slather a piece of bread with butter for them to take to the backyard; there they would harvest nasturtium leaves (pesticide and aphid free) to make a sandwich - a tasty treat in which I often would join them. Then the aphids found the "nasty urchins" (as my father used to call them).

This beauty is in a neighbor's yard, not mine

Please click on this picture for a full view of it.

Now that I have moved to Washington State, I can again have nasturtiums in my garden.

Kristin planted these as a border to my walk.
The blossoms are lovely, but so are the variegated leaves.

Some of my language-loving father's other favorite flowers included Christmas anthems. And Spitunias. I wish I could remember more of them!

M is for Merriment

Mrs. Nesbitt's ABC Wednesday, now in its seventh round, has reached the letter M. Thank you, Denise, for your original vision and continued involvement. To see how other participating blogs have been by the letter M, click on banner or link.




A little over a week ago my son Stan and his wife Dianne, visiting from Colorado, took me to the Port Townsend waterfront to see the kinetic race. "Kinetic" means that the entries must be human-powered both on land and in the water. It is an all-day race, ending when the last remaining participant reaches the fairgrounds. There is also a judging of the floats for cleverness and decor. These first few pictures are of the participants racing toward the launching spot for the water leg of the race.

Completely unaware!

Some entrants use bicycle type pedals. Others, like the man above, jump or teeter-totter. All of them must have adequate floating devices for the water leg of the race.

The fantastically costumed Kinetic Kops enforce the racing rules. The course is rigidly set. They also act as announcers.

Some Kops ar Kind to Kiddies.

The floats (literally!) must race around a distant marker, out of sight of the launching site. Here one of the leaders in the water leg of the race races toward shore.

Here come they come!

To add to the merriment, there are a variety of prizes, I understand. One for 1st place, of course, but also for last place, middle place and others equally ridiculous.

I can take no credit for the photos. My son Stanford is the photographer.

L is for Lazuli Bunting

ABC Wednesday Round 7 has pregressed to L. To see the many and varied entries of participating blogs, click on link or banner.








I snapped this picture last May when visiting my daughter Candace in Ontario, Oregon. She has a flat bird feeder outside her dining room window. These were shy little birds that flew at any perception of movement inside the room, so that I had to stay absolutely still with my camera set for the spot that they were apt to perch. They usually appear at Candace's house for about 5 days each spring before flying on to their summer destination.