A Red Sunrise Lights an Old Crabapple Tree

The graceful branches of an elderly crabapple tree glow in early sunlight, silhouetted against a blue sky.



The photo below, shot facing south, captures the dawn's red light, warm on the old bark near the tree's cleft. The knothole crevice is about a foot deep, with a nest of old leaves and soft-looking hair or fur at the bottom, hidden in deep shadow. Perhaps a squirrel has slept here? But it's less than five feet above the ground, so not a likely home for squirrels, who usually build their nests in the topmost branches of trees. The material in the tree cavity is probably only windblown debris.

Hot Summer Colors

This little red pepper was half hidden in the plant's lush foliage, on a breezy morning before September's heat wave broke. Bees were buzzing around the tiny blossoms (below) and around the adjacent large yellow squash blooms. Just around the corner from this small urban garden, the wind was blowing the folds of a Tennessee state flag, hung near a cottage window.







The wind was gusting rather sharply at the time I was shooting this flag, but I could never capture it waving and outstretched, because the little gusts lasted such a short time. Tennessee's state flag has three white stars in a blue circle, centrally located in the rectangular red field.

Historic Farm Houses

Near the campus of David Lipscomb University stands this Tennessee historical marker, which describes the two farm houses under their historic oak tree shown in the picture above.

This is the bronze plaque at the foot of the towering old oak tree:

Here are two other views of Avalon and of the log cabin which was David Lipscomb's first farm home:

House on a Pie Slice

A huge brick house was built on a steeply sloping small, triangular corner lot a few blocks from where I live, last year. Neighbors all marveled at the clever siting of the two-story plus basement structure; and then, more construction added a long wing, the sunlit part in the photo above.

The place is still for sale, its asking price reportedly in the range of several million dollars.

The sloping ridge continues west along the street, which is part of my walking route. Several blocks further on is this interesting stone culvert, built to accommodate the side street above it and permit free flow of storm waters. This is karst country, and limestone blocks are frequently used as construction materials all across the area.

Stonework Culvert

At Home with a Prickly Pear

After many years away from South Texas, I still am astonished to find its native prickly pear naturalized all across Kentucky and Tennessee. This common cactus has even found its way into urban residential landscaping.

One of the streets on my morning walking route has a home with a prickly pear planting anchoring its southeast corner. After the recent rains, the little plants, so at home in a dry terrain, put forth a rosy show among their flat, spiny, grayish green leaves.

Daydream Cottage

All summer this little cottage has had a "for sale" sign in its front yard. At one point in July, the sign was changed to "sold," but after a couple of weeks the "for sale" sign returned. I surmised that the financing agreement had fallen through.

It's at the top of a gradual slope down to a little creek, the small valley lying between the back yards of the street of my morning walk and the parallel street to the north. The wild plants are lush on its banks, and a bridge about eight feet long connects to the opposite side.

There's a privacy fence on two sides of the back yard; however, because of the angle of the little ridge's slope, one can see the attractive lawn furniture under the trees.

If I needed a house, I think I would look into buying this one.

Tennessee White House

I'm deliberately being ambiguous with the title of this morning's post. There are certainly many white houses in Tennessee, and this just happens to be the one I photographed on my early morning walk today.

Interestingly enough, there is also a small town in northern Middle Tennessee, just off Interstate 65, named White House.

Unexpected Encounter

On my walk this morning, as I rounded the corner, I saw a neighbor who lives on the street that parallels mine to the west, out walking his Alaskan husky, whose name is Husky.

All summer we would happen, from time to time, to be walking at dawn's first light, and we could usually  chat for a second or two, though Husky would always be eager to get on with his exercise. I longed for a picture of the beautiful dog, but there was never time to ask for one, with Husky straining at the leash, longing to continue with his morning constitutional.

Today, just at sunrise, he paused to mark a bush, and I captured two shots of him. Only his flank in the first--but in the second, a slightly out of focus portrait.  

It was the best I could do. By the time the view screen had faded, 
he and his master 
were half a block away.

I walked on in the opposite direction and began the project I had in mind for my walk. I plan to photograph the old houses along the residential streets that are my usual route for my own morning exercise. Some of them have very beautiful architecture and lovely landscaped front yards.

Along with Husky, my picture for today is a stone-faced cottage.

Poke Berry Rainbow

On this overcast afternoon I've been scouting for responses to today's showers, and I found a tiny volunteer pokeweed about 12 inches tall in my  south-facing side yard, already sporting one brave little white raceme. In the tangle of growth at the southeast corner, I spotted its likely parent, shading with its large leaves on their red stems little curving bows of red and purple berries.

Poke has been very hardy through our summer's drought this year, growing luxuriantly near
every neglected roadside fence. Its early spring shoots are edible greens, much prized by Tennessee pioneers and enjoyed even 
today by their descendants who have kept to 
the old ways.

Poke (Phytolacca americana) is native to the Southeastern United States and is also known as pokeberry, poke salad, and poke sallet.

Toting a Starry Night

Yesterday I made this photo of my tote bag, hanging from a hall door knob, for easy access. This beautiful print on canvas of Vincent Van Gogh's painting, "Starry Night," is a conversation starter wherever I carry it.

In the line waiting to vote, fans of Van Gogh commented on it to me.  More than one clerk at a check-out counter when I'm grocery shopping has said to me, "Oh, I love Van Gogh's paintings."

And the last time I shipped a package, the post office worker helping me said, "Where did you get that? I love 'Starry Night.'"

I bought the tote in the gift shop at the Parthenon Museum, after viewing an exhibition of Impressionist paintings there several years ago.

"Starry Night" had been one of my favorites, ever since I took an art survey course while working on my master's degree in elementary education, in the winter of  1958.

Fall Project

After the record-breaking August heat in Tennessee--with its accompanying long string of days with no rain--September has brought refreshing little spots of green to this urban landscape. A few thundershowers were all that was needed to brighten the summer-seared view.

I captured this little clump of weedy grasses near a concrete-block wall early this Saturday morning.
First I took a close-up of a single blossom--the first picture above--and then of all the little volunteers under the overcast sky.

These are the first photos in a fall project that I have set for myself. I am going to take a photo with my Canon G2 digital camera every day, in order to improve my skills. I shall shoot numerous views of my chosen subject for the day, and then I'll publish the most interesting one or two here at Mary's Musings.