The Purrrfect Home and the Cutest Owl, Ever!

Hi Everyone - Yes, more kitties for you lol!

Cat's and their owners would love this home, but as we all know:

only dogs have owners...

cats have staff!

Lastly, here's a short video of the cutest owl EVER!

Is it just me, or do owls and cats share a lot of similarities?

Hmmm.... :)

Late August now and summer begins it's gentle passage into autumn....

Everything is so lush; laden with the fullness of the season...

I came across this pretty display on a walk.

Love the textures and contrast between rustic, weathered wood and delicate flowers.

I wonder who lives here...

These are growing under trees by a pond.

What a gorgeous color!
Looks almost good enough to eat...

Do you see what I saw?

"I have always found thick woods a little intimidating, for they are so secret
and enclosed.  You may seem alone but you are not, for there are always
eyes watching you.  All the wildlife of the woods, the insects, birds, and
animals, are well aware of your presence no matter how softly you may tread,
and they follow your every move although you cannot see them."
-  Thalassa Cruso

I took a short-cut through a back alley one afternoon...
there is beauty in the most unexpected of places.

My latest Goodwill find :)
He is carved from a solid piece of stone.

Here's the real McCoy...

This was taken a couple of weeks ago at the Edmonton Zoo.
So gorgeous xx

I hope your summer has been a good one.

Mine has been wonderful.

"There shall be eternal summer in the grateful heart."
-  Celia Thaxter

Whooo loves ya baby?

I came across this story on the Mail Online website.

These ten tawny baby owls have either been orphaned or fell from their nests.

They are currently being cared for at the St. Tiggywinkles (hilarious ;) aviary,

and will be released back into the wild once they are fully grown.

They sure are adorable, 

until, (as one commenter noted under the story) 

you take a look at their talons!

Update: In my travels I see now that Leanne, one of the blogggers I follow (See Dorset Days under my profile) also has these cuties up today - great minds think alike I guess!

Stuff, stuff!
Glorious, wondrous stuff :) 

You know you need it!

Happy Monday! I trust you had a good weekend. I played hooky from blogging and I think I will continue this practice throughout the summer months. It gives one time to ruminate and I feel my creativity surged as a result. We had lovely weather - a huge storm which came on so suddenly late Friday night, shocking actually, but by Saturday morning we were once again looking at a beautiful day. Saturday afternoon I went to a community yard sale. I can scarcely begin to describe the sheer pleasure I get from snooping through other people's castoffs... it's a sickness haha!

I already own another of Julia's books The Artist's Way. The Sound of Paper is pretty much in the same vein: practical methods and musings to help discover and boost your creativity. These books are for anyone: writers, musicians, artists alike.  Throughout the winter months I was following one part of her program (outlined in both books) whereby you write three pages of whatever - essentially stream of consciousness - first thing in the morning before you read, listen to the radio or watch tv. You are free to be creative or complain bitterly - anything goes. She calls them The Morning Pages, and they are a way of tapping into your creativity and silencing The Censor - our inner critic who seeks to shut us down. I fell off the wagon this spring, but am happy to say I got back on yesterday morning. (We'll see how long I last this time...) This is only one part of her course. If interested, you'll easily find copies of her books in Value Village or Goodwill - just check back once in a while - I see them quite often.

Aren't these lovely?

I couldn't believe someone was selling them - practically giving them away.

I hung them on my fence, tucked in amongst the trees.

This trench is actually more green than grey, the material and condition are superb.
I love the lining and the gathers at shoulders, cuffs and belt :)

This vendor was Bethany, one of my daughter's friends.
Her handmade price tags are adorable.

This was also Bethany's - I love owls.

Almost forgot this jug - I'd already found a home for it!
I seem to collect odds and ends of pottery everywhere I go.

My last two treasures are the tin bird pill box (25 cents!) and the frog/mushroom glasses - which were actually my daughter's glasses she'd purchased from Ikea a few years ago. I was always sorry I hadn't purchased some for myself and now they are discontinued. Anyways, these are the only two left from her original set and she finally gave them to me (I've been dropping numerous not-too-subtle hints for quite some time now :)

Well, that was the highlight of my weekend - as they say they, one man's junk...

Greetings! I stumbled across this darling pic and accompanying story in the Daily Mail yesterday. The chipmunk, who has been named Eleanor by photographer Barbara Lynne, pounced on this tasty treat within minutes of her hanging it in her back garden for the birds. Gorging on as many kernels as possible, Eleanor returned to her den to empty her pouches and then dashed back for another mouthful until the entire cob had been stripped bare, all within half an hour! This is the fourth year this chipmunk has been visiting Barbara Lynne's garden in Ontario.

Our third and final chapter on our safari! I apologize for the heavy picture load, 

but I whittled it down to as few possible, considering how many I started with!

So gorgeous!

Owls are amazing creatures.

You can have an elephant ride at the park.

This was a great show.

Feats of strength!

Well, this concludes our tour folks, we hope you enjoyed the show. It's been our supreme pleasure - we hope to see you all again real soon!! As you go, please remember:

You can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals - Immanual Kant

In Honor of the Owl

Right about now you may be thinking "I knew I shoulda taken that left turn at Albuquerque; I seem to have stumbled onto the National Geographic children's website"... lol! 

No, you are right where you should be - learning 10 fun facts about the owl:

1. There are over 150 species of owls.

2. Owls have the best hearing of all birds. An owls ears are placed one higher than the other. The odd placement increases their sound reception.

3. Owls cannot move their eyes from side to side but they can turn their heads three quarters of the way around. Contrary to popular belief they cannot rotate their heads completely around.

4. Owls are found on all continents except Antarctica.

5. Owls mate for life.

6. Owls have 3 eyelids. The eyelid consists of an upper lid, lower lid and a thin layer of tissue that moves diagonally across the eye from the inside to outside cleaning the eye.

7. Barn owls are able to consume twice as much food as other owls in comparison to their weight. One barn owl offspring is able to consume 25.000 mice a year.

8. Most owls are solitary creatures but a group of owls would be referred to as a parliament (I like this one).

9. In Greek mythology the owl was often associated with the goddess Athena. Even in present day, some cultures still regard the owl as a symbol of wisdom.

10. The Elf owl is the smallest of the owl species and is about the size of a sparrow. It is found in the southwestern United States and Mexico.

Sorry, I couldn't resist!