never-ending gallery

[LisaLCFan]

...yes, pictures/photos - all good!...

Here's another lovely creature that I saw and photographed this summer, a Canadian Tiger Swallowtail butterfly.

[Geoffrey]

LisaLCFan wrote:
>Here's another lovely creature that I saw and photographed this summer, a Canadian Tiger Swallowtail butterfly.
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how lucky you are to have such an abundance of nature’s beautiful creatures - far more than we have here. and it seems you have a wonderful camera, too! thank you for being so observant, for capturing and sharing your images with us. as you know, butterflies even inspired leonard cohen to write about them, with their “small dusty wings” (“the word butterfly is not a real butterfly; there is the word, and there is the butterfly.”). their wings are like tiny canvases, each one mirroring the other - so delicate and precious.

[LisaLCFan]

...how lucky you are to have such an abundance of nature’s beautiful creatures - far more than we have here. and it seems you have a wonderful camera, too! thank you for being so observant, for capturing and sharing your images with us...

I'm glad that you like my photos! Yes, I have a pretty good camera, and I am definitely observant!

You know, I also used to think that, where I lived, there wasn't much to see in nature, compared to other places I'd visited, such as tropical rainforests and virtually any more southerly climate with a wide diversity of birds, plants, insects, etc., but how wrong I was! While it is true that more northern climates (such as those in which we both live) tend to have fewer of the more colourful of nature's flora and fauna, there is actually no shortage of nature's beautiful creatures in all locations, be it the northern prairies of Canada or coastal Norway or anywhere else in the world: one just has to look for and be aware of the wonders that abound, and if one learns about and opens one's eyes to such things, it can often greatly increase one's appreciation of the natural beauty that surrounds one, wherever they are.

Of course, one has to actually go out in nature, spending quality time communing with nature and being in touch with it, paying attention to the flora and fauna all around, and I assure you that, no matter where you are, if you look carefully, you will see a vibrant and amazing ecosystem with an incredible diversity of life, some of which may appear small and insignificant or boring and dull at first glance, but just look closely, look everywhere, and actually see what is there -- and also, listen and smell for the sounds and scents of nature. If you can do that, you will notice so many details that you may have previously missed, so much beauty, so much diversity, so many intricacies: nature is an entire world of plants and creatures living together in an astonishing web of life, and the more one looks, the more one sees! (I speak from personal experience!)

If one is so inclined, seeking out books or websites that provide a list and images of the local birds, insects, and plants can be a good place to start, to become aware of the natural diversity that does exist wherever one happens to be, and then one simply has to go outside and look around, listen, and pay attention to nature itself, and prepare to be amazed, if one is open to it!

Anyway, busy day ahead, and so I must be off! Cheers all, and have a great weekend!

[Geoffrey]

LisaLCFan wrote:
>I'm glad that you like my photos! Yes, I have a pretty good camera, and I am definitely observant! . . .
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thank you, lisa - for a nice long message! in order to save space, only the beginning is included here. having said that, it is well worth reading in its entirety, so anyone wishing to see the complete message can quite easily scroll backwards.

in one week everything should be back to normal. in the meantime, most people will understand this cartoon

[Geoffrey]

leonard was liked very much

[LisaLCFan]

i will never understand why leonard liked me so much....

This isn't shameless self-promotion, is it? You even used "i". The Janteloven police will be coming for you, if you keep this up.

Let's talk movies! I have recently seen two movies that I very much enjoyed (both would be considered feel-good movies with happy endings, which is the kind of movie that I like the most!).

Yesterday (2019). As a lifelong fan of The Beatles, I loved this movie! Premise: a guy wakes up from a coma after being hit by a bus during a worldwide electrical blackout, and he discovers that The Beatles have never existed, and yet, he remembers them and their songs. He is a budding singer-songwriter, and so he starts to sing and perform The Beatles' songs, and everyone in the world is enthralled by the great tunes. A light-hearted "fantasy" (alternate reality) full of great Beatles songs (not to be taken too seriously!). Apparently both Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr saw the movie and loved it.

Yeh Ballet (2020). Premise: two gifted teenage boys from the slums of Mumbai enroll in a ballet class with a world-famous ballet dancer-teacher, and various struggles and successes ensue. "Inspired by a true story", it features one of the real-life dancers playing himself (the other real-life dancer was originally supposed to be in the film, but other commitments prevented his participation). A lovely film!

[Geoffrey]

>Let's talk movies! . . .

'yesterday' is great, as far as memory serves. it is some time since being viewed, so maybe it's time for a revisit. another enjoyable beatles movie (which you have surely seen) is 'across the universe'.

>Yeh Ballet . . .

that one hasn't been seen yet, though it sounds interesting and got really high marks on IMDb. 'yeh ballet' is definitely going on the list of movies to watch for. thank you for this!

[LisaLCFan]

yes, pictures/photos - all good! ...

A few more local birds that I photographed:

Pileated Woodpecker (this is a big bird!)

Northern Flicker

White Throated Sparrow

[LisaLCFan]

Some lovely cirrus clouds dancing in the sky:

And two cuties from a few weeks ago (the duckling will be fully grown now)

[Geoffrey]

beautiful photos, lisa - thank you! will comment later.

today, sister carolyn traveled home to england again. while visiting, she completely tidied the kitchen, prepared many delicious meals, gifted an exquisite hand-knitted jumper, and even repaired the car! the past two weeks were wonderful, and it was sad to see her leave. here in norway, everyone in my family loves her and hopes she will visit again soon. below a pic of the two of us.

a big thanks to the special lady who kept this gallery alive during the holiday

[dar]

What a wonderful visit from your sister. That's a woman with skills and a big heart! Lovely pic of the two of you. Thanks for sharing.

[LisaLCFan]

beautiful photos, lisa - thank you! will comment later...

a big thanks to the special lady who kept this gallery alive during the holiday

Cheers! Glad you enjoyed my photos -- I don't always see those kinds of birds (I was lucky to be in the right places at the right moments, with a camera), and so it was a treat for me, too!

It's great that you had such a nice visit with your sister -- nice photo of the two of you. You live in a very beautiful place!

[Geoffrey]

LisaLCFan wrote:
>It's great that you had such a nice visit with your sister . . .
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thank you. getting back on track creating portraits after a break is taking longer than planned - not as simple as imagined. if something doesn't happen soon the whole idea of continuing this gallery will have to depend on the contributions of others. let's see what happens.

UPDATE:

[LisaLCFan]

UPDATE:
[drawing of Jake Gyllenhaal]

Speaking of Jake Gyllenhaal, have you seen the movie "Donnie Darko" (2001)? It is very bizarre, but also captivating, in a dark and disturbing sort of way.

[Geoffrey]

LisaLCFan wrote:
>Speaking of Jake Gyllenhaal, have you seen the movie "Donnie Darko" (2001)?
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yes, so long ago that the details have now escaped - which is sometimes a good thing if one intends to see an enjoyable movie a second time. jake gyllenhaal is perfect in 'nightcrawler'!
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to paraphrase cohen: "if i were the only artist in the world, this would be great. unfortunately that is not the case."