Robins robins robins

Swarming the trees, chirping and singing, a plethora of robins appeared.  

They were eating holly berries

And decorating bare branches.

Waiting for Spring

No one is lounging by the lake now.

The picnic tables are empty.  Waiting for spring and people to return to the outdoors.

Actually this is the best time of year in North Carolina.  No heat, no bugs!

Water level

This sign in the pond at Prairie Ridge Ecostation says to text the current water level.  I did, and found out that the last time it was reported was last May.  Maybe they need more citizen scientists.

Brown Thrasher

With his yellow eye and long sharp beak, this brown thrasher looks dangerous.  Well, he's probably very dangerous to insects.

Buffleheads

We are seeing more different types of ducks in our lakes.  These buffleheads were diving and swimming together.

long leaf

A longleaf pine could never be used as a Christmas tree.  The needles can be a foot and a half in length!

They look more like Truffula trees than Christmas trees.

Merry Christmas!

Every year the neighbors decorate for Christmas, and every year the display gets bigger.  I think they've run out of room on their front lawn.

Merry Christmas trees

Happy Christmas Eve

These trees are sculpted by Meleah Gabhart. They're made of individual pieces of wood.  They hang on a wall at the Midtown East Shopping center.

Suburbia

Driving on country roads, past old barns and farmhouses, I turned a corner into suburbia.

Garner, NC is falling victim to Raleigh's sprawl.

Cooper's swamp?

There are Cypress trees growing in Cooper's pond at Eastgate park.  You can see the tree's knees sticking up out of the water.

Cooper's Pond

The pond at Eastgate Park was created by J. Cooper Young in 1915.  It was acquired by the city of Raleigh and is now a park.  

It's a great place to feed the geese.

Cemetary in the park

Scattered around Raleigh you will find small family cemeteries.  This one, for the Buffaloe family is near the picnic area at North Hills park.

The cemeteries are remnants of family farms in the area.  This one has graves from the 1850-1900's.  

And finally the artist!

In the final shadow mural, the artist added herself.

Under construction

Was the artist inspired by the construction of the building?

Is there a nearby dance studio?

Fly away

The baby flies away,

At the edge of the building, the balloon seller watches.

Shadow people

These shadow people are scattered around the Midtown East shopping center.  These people are climbing the stairs to the parking structure. Mural by Lisa Gaither.

These people are next to a pet store.  Another by Lisa Gaither.

This rock concert is beside the parking lot.

The artist for this one is Autumn Cobeland.

Sunflowers on the wall

A welcome sight in the winter.

This mural, by Denise Hughes, overlooks a new shopping area, Midtown East.  

The other half.

The full building.

Clouds over the lake

Before we walked to the end of the lake, these clouds gathered and it began to rain.  

Nessie?

A fuzzy picture of a cormorant begins to look like the Loch Ness Monster...

Christmas in the forest

I guess everyone is in the Christmas spirit.

Wintertime regatta

This small regatta of canoes and kayaks sit beside Lynn Lake.  Fittingly, they sit right below the Regatta Apartments.

French imports

There is a small gaggle of French Toulouse Geese in Lynn Lake.  According to local lore, a man in the area introduced them years ago, and they've been happily swimming around the lake ever since.

cloudy day

The sun tried to peek out under the clouds.

Long Tail

His tail was too long to get in the picture.

Amazing Leaf Sucker

Every fall, after most of the leaves are down, the city sends out the Amazing Leaf Sucker.  You can rake the leaves to the curb, and the truck takes them away.

Off he goes trailing a cloud of leaf dust.

Heron in the rain

The rain didn't bother Mr. Heron, he just kept on fishing.

Walk between rains

If you time it just right, you can get all the way around Shelly Lake after the rain, and before it rains again.  A few people were trying.

Pricing transparency

Stuck in traffic, I read this notice on the back window of a cab.  They think of everything.

There is a bill in Congress to make hospitals post their fees.  Will their list look something like this?

Look up

Sky and trees.

Theme Day: Rainbow

The theme for December is rainbow.

After seeing a different color each month, now here they all are!

Red sky at night

No storm in sight.

Trash

Old tires...

Chicken bucket....

Trashcan lid...

Broken plastic jug...

And the ubiquitous pop top.