Gone Backpacking

"That's not natural."
But dogs sniff butts
and bugs copulate with plants.
Wind pollinates the pines
and the garish flowers clash
against the sky.

Nothing's stranger
than the natural.
***

Bye Bye.

By this time tomorrow I'll be with my honey and sometime Sunday morning my boots will be on a dusty trail. Don't know when I'll be back but I'll have something to say then.

Take Care.

One Single Impression

And now a picture of Dad.

... Or rather, a picture of Corndog who allowed Dad to be included in the photo out of generosity. I've always thought Corndog should be named Prince because he's so regal.

Ruby Tuesday: That Red Pack Again

This is my Mom. She didn't just try on my pack. She threw it on, loaded with 55 pounds, and walked for at least a mile at a pace faster than I like to go without any kind of pack on. It was probably over 90 degrees out too... much warmer than I'm used to anyway.

I was going to do the selective color thing with this picture but I just liked all those bright Kansas summery colors too much. I couldn't decide which ones to keep and which ones to desaturate.

Visit Work of The Poet to see more Ruby Tuesday pictures.

Andy and Tuck

Here's a picture that I really like that I used the color technique Eyad taught me on. I don't have a Manic Monday post this week but I hope to have a Ruby Tuesday post. I'm busy getting ready for our backpacking trip.

Hope you had a great 4th of July!

Short and Tall: Truebloodhound

I'm leaving for a long weekend and won't be back till after Tuesday, so I leave you with this week's edition of Short & Tall, just a bit early.

Introducing Paxton

He was at a shelter, and not the no-kill kind, where he wasn't getting along very well when somebody suggested that he might do well at a foster home. His foster mom was positive that Andy would be the perfect human for him.

When Paxton gets excited he drags his legs behind like he's paralyzed. That's what he's doing in the bottom picture. He has some small dog issues, but they are mild and we can deal with them. We are so happy to be Paxton's new forever family.

IF: Drift

Illustration Friday is a page that gives a prompt every Friday and then gives you a whole week to come up with an illustration. I thought it might be good practice and also a lot of fun to participate. This week the prompt was "drift". (Clicking enbiggens, as always.)

***

In totally unrelated news, Andy has adopted Paxton, a seven-year-old chihuahua/terrier mix that is very well behaved and really needed a home. Yesterday was his gotcha day. Andy has promised me some pictures soon. Paxton better get training 'cause he gets to go backpacking with us!