A Simple Bouquet

In the late afternoon, before the sun set, I took a walk by myself around the farm. The weather was hot and balmy, but I enjoyed the solitude. As I walked I clipped bits of this and that to make an arrangement. Cyprus, night musk, and leaves from a loquat tree. I don't know what the salmon-coloured flower is. The blooms droop as though they are sleepy.

 

The finished bouquet. Not especially pretty... but it's what was on my walk today. Tonight the heady scent of night musk will permeate all the corners of my house. 

Pears in a Wooden Bowl - still life

In a basket

The plants on the ledge of the window next to my desk give me so much joy, especially in the soft light of the morning.

Sizzling

The weather has been hot lately... sizzling hot. This is a flower from my garden - it looks as bright as fire and is very happy in the sunniest part of the garden. It's the weekend... too hot to venture out until the sun begins to set, except to dash outside to take this photo!

In Full Bloom

I stopped in at a plant nursery the other day and  saw that they had the most beautiful bromeliads. They just reminded me so much of Florida - I couldn't resist. I bought a huge pot in full bloom. Three gorgeous flowers. I love pink and green together. Now the job is to keep them moist and in the shade.

The last of the morning light

The best time to take pictures in most places, and in Libya especially, is either in the early morning or early evening just before sunset. During the day the light is too strong and pictures often turn out hazy because of the dust in the north African air. I was out with my camera this morning. This is the last picture I took before stopping because the light was changing. Time to take a break until later this evening.

Clay pot

We're doing some xeriscaping  in one part of our garden and we're decorating it with rocks and bits of pottery. I took this picture this morning and made a few adjustments to the saturation and focus. I like the way it turned out.

Taking Root

I popped a few cuttings into a vase of water... watch this space... and a few days later... ta da!

Day or night... hard at work

I took a walk tonight with my camera to see if I could shoot some interesting pictures of some of the cacti in my garden at night. This particular plant was interesting because it had ants hard at work gathering something.. .. I couldn't figure out what from the bases of the spines. There are small round yellowish looking spheres. The plant has already flowered and the flowers have dropped off, so it couldn't have been pollen. The spheres almost look like eggs - but ants don't lay their eggs in cacti. Maybe something else does. It was fascinating to watch what ever it was. 

I'm always so surprised when someone tells me they are bored. Open your eyes - there are interesting things going on all around us!

Weeds

I took a walk and waded through the weeds.

Sunflower at night

A few weeks before my father-in-law passed away we sat down and had a nice chat. He told me that one of the things he wanted to do in his life was to plant an entire hectare of sunflowers - just for fun. He said sunflowers were his favourite flowers and that they made him feel so happy.

Last summer when I was in America, I bought a packet of sunflower seeds and this spring I planted them next to our gate. This is the first flower to open. I hope to save the seeds so I can plant more. Who knows, maybe I'll fulfill my father-in-laws dream one day and plant an entire hectare. Wouldn't that be awesome?

Thistle

Not many wildflowers this year due to the lack of rain. Seems to be mostly thistles.

The Nest

While I was out walking this morning I came across a tree in blossom with an abandoned nest resting in the branches. I wonder if the birds who lived in it before will return here again. I'll have to wait and see. The recent rains are bringing out the green grasses and wildflowers. The cool air feels fresh and crisp - perfect weather for taking walks.

Dreaming of Spring

Just one lone blossom on this tree. I think it's dreaming of spring.

One

Our scarecrow... waiting to be put to work.

By candlelight

It's been raining today and I've been relaxing in the house, enjoying the sound of the wind outside the windows and rain on the rooftop. I filled terracotta dish full of candles, lit them, and put them on the glass topped coffee table in the entrance sitting area of my house. Then I decided to photograph them - still with my light / dark theme. I like the way it turned out. You can see the silver plate and crescent pin, both with traditional Libyan designs, on the table below the glass. There's only a slight reflection on the tabletop.

A Column and Light

Still working with differences of light and dark. I'm improving.... slightly...

Make a wish!

My son Yusef turned sixteen today. He's invited 6 of his cousins to have a slumber party. We had cake and junk food and now the boys have all retreated to the marbowah (traditional Libyan sitting room) and are watching scary movies. Lucky Yusef - his birthday has come this year during school winter holidays. And lucky me that we built the house with a marbowah that has the an entrance from outside. Yusef and the boys can stay up all night long, laughing and joking and watching movies, and I wont have to hear a thing.

We ran out of birthday candles and used seven big ones instead. 1 representing a decade and 6 for the years = 16.

The party gave me another opportunity to play with light and dark too. Still needs work though.

The Party's Over

Playing with light and dark. Still needs work.

Fuzzy

Fuzzy little kittens on a fuzzy, warm blanket. Their eyes are not open yet but they are as sweet as can be.

From Long Ago

Took a nice walk today. Everything should be green by now but isn't because of the lack of rain. A few ground hugging plants are green but everything else is dry, brown and crunchy underfoot. The lack of undergrowth reveals other things, like this pottery shard. Long ago someone was here - right here where I was standing.

Light and dark

I played a bit with my camera at night. Adjusting everything for night pictures is challenging. I need to work on it some more.

The only one left

One of my favorite fruits are tangerines, called leem kinnie in Libya. When I'm driving the kids back and forth to school I often stop along the way and buy a bag full of them for us to snack on. There are seldom any left by the time we arrive home.

High Five

The hand with it's five fingers spread is used in many cultures. In ancient Native American culture it was perhaps used in rituals for preparing for war. In Arabic and Jewish cultures it is said to ward of the 'evil eye' and is often found with an eye in the middle of the palm. It's sometimes called 'the hand of Fatima' after prophet Muhamed's daughter, or 'Khamsa' meaning five.

Evidence of it's use as a symbol to ward of evil can be found all over Libya. As a simple palm print on a wall like the one in the photo, or in more elaborate, stylized charms and emblems. On houses, vehicles, and in businesses as well as on keychains and jewelry, khamsa abound in Libya and north Africa and the Middle East.

In modern times the palm has meaning too. People often greet one another by slapping an upraised palm against that of another person, called 'high five'. It's also used as a gesture of congratulations, elation or victory. A modern gesture that has spread throughout the world.

I greet you... High Five!