Photography, Life

Twilight Bike Rides, Kitties Lounging by the Fireplace, Misty Mornings, Mr. Squirrel’s Picnic, and a Bridal Shower

A week, or so, in photos

’Tis the time of year when the fireplace is lit each evening and Bisou can be found lounging in his little French bed, basking in the warmth, for hours on end. Freyja can usually be found in her matching bed on the other side of the fireplace. As you can see, Bisou has perfected the “sprawl.”

When they get a little toasty on one side, a leg might stretch over the edge, or some tummy fluff might appear as they go “belly-up,” or, if they have enough energy, they might manage a complete flip to other side.

If they get really overheated, they might make a move to the nearby chair or kitty cup for a while.

It brings me such great joy to have them with me in my little office. I have never “not” had a cat, and I can’t imagine a life without them. I truly think that they help bring creative energy into my life.

The days are getting shorter and I have found myself caught in the arms of twilight during my afternoon mountain bike rides a few times lately.

The top photo was taken as I was racing to get home before dark one evening. There’s a hill that I climb to get back to the top of Peter’s Canyon, and, when I crested that hill, the reservoir seemed to have a rippled “skin” of fire stretched across it, punctuated by the “V’s” left in the wake of the ducks paddling around.

Although I knew I was going to get home after dark, I turned around at the top of the hill and descended to the halfway point, where the view was the best, to pull put my iPhone and snap a couple of quick shots. I’m so glad that I did, because it was such a beautiful moment.

This photo of two crows was also captured on an evening when I left a bit too late for my ride.

Again, I stopped to watch them for a few moments. They seemed to be having a whole conversation up there in the bare branches of the treetop. I really wondered what they were talking about — maybe they were wondering about me watching them, who knows? After a couple of minutes, they dove into the chilling air and flapped off.

Although many of you already have snow where you live, here, in Southern California, fall is still blazing on, although the colors are actively leeching from the golden grasses and the leaves are falling from the few trees which do change colors.

If you read my “week in photos” posts regularly, you might recognize this overlook from the Horseshoe Loop Trail. I snap a shot with some regularity from this spot to track the change in seasons. You can see a little slice of yellow leaves edging through the valley.

Mr. Squirrel has been raiding the birdfeeders unabashedly. It makes me happy to see him because I had to take his peanut feeder down because the rats were getting into it. This set-up here, with the green tube hanging from the shepherd’s hook does seem to keep the rats from getting into the bird food, but Mr. Squirrel has figured out how to bypass the impediment, as I hoped that he would. I often see him lounging in the little baskets as if they were hammocks placed there just for him.

The falls here used to always be characterized by fog, but, in recent years, because of global warming, we just don’t get as much fog or rain. So, when I stepped out onto my balcony last week and saw what looked like a river of vapor pouring over the edge of my roof, I was absolutely delighted.

We had a few days of “thick as pea soup” fog, which is so good for the land. Even though it is not exactly rain, the plants seem to know how to make use of the mist and everything always looks a little more nourished for a few days.

When I woke up the next morning, the whole garden looked like it had been dusted with tiny crystal balls. This rose just seemed to glow through the moist morning. I wrote a little piece about that here — Portrait of a Rose.

And, speaking of roses, our good friends were getting married this past weekend, and we were asked to be the “Best Woman” and “Best Man.” I shot this photo at the bridal shower, where I was asked to be the “photographer,” which was pretty fun. I was also asked to write a poem for the ceremony and my husband wrote a little speech about love.

And our friends took us shopping for outfits for the wedding — they had a vision of what they wanted everything to look like. Part of my new attire was this little purse, which is, I think, the prettiest little purse I’ve ever owned. Isn’t it sparkly? It’s maybe not quite as pretty as the real rose, sprinkled with dewdrops, but I thought it was quite lovely too.

Erika Burkhalter is a yogi, neurophilosopher, cat-mom, photographer, and lover of travel and nature, spreading her love and amazement for Mother Earth’s glories, one photo, poem or story at a time. (MS Neuropsychology, MA Yoga Studies).

I hope you’ve all had lovely weeks. I have to say that I was a bit consumed with wedding activity and have not gotten much writing done, but I’m back at it again this week. I’m a bit behind in catching up with the other “week in photos” and other writer’s stories, but I look forward to reading your lovely words.

As always, I thank you Dennett for creating this “week in photos” challenge.

It’s so fun to share about the week and to read about so many other photographers’ weeks around the world.

You might want to check out a few of the others who participate:

Dennett /Anne Bonfert /Eileen Vorbach /Lisa Bolin /Tracy Aston /David Wade Chambers/ Mia Verita /Kim Zuch /Barbara Radisavljevic /LensAfield /Barbara Dalton /Sasha Meyer /Susan Alison /Diana Lotti /Barbara Dalton /K. Barrett /June Nguyen /Juan O. Aguilera /Ellie Jacobson /Shruthi Sundaram/ Pene Hodge /Tracy Aston/ Sandra Barrett and more… (if I’ve failed to mention your name, please let me know so that I can add it in future weeks).

I hope you enjoyed my photos and musings. You might also like:

Photos and story ©Erika Burkhalter. All rights reserved.