Well I'll be durned!!!

Thanksgiving is generally the 3rd week of November right??? The third Thursday of November.

Deer Gun season always starts on the Saturday before. 

So I was talking to the grand daughter last night and she informed me that I was wrong! What? WHUT?

Well I looked it up and indeed, Thanksgiving is on the 28th. Duh. I was wrong wrong wrong. However, I did get all of my outdoor work done for the gun season I thought was starting this weekend. It isn't, so hurray for me. I got everything done a week ahead of time. That includes most of the ingredients for our Thanksgiving dinner.

Maybe I was having a Miss Merry Moment! 💖

Well, that actually made me very happy in so many ways! I have another 7 days of being able to go out to the woods and play! [Um, hike...I mean. Hike. Yeah.]

The trail cams have really been capturing a lot of very cool bucks doing some fun things right in front of the trail cam. I'm glad I turned on the option for short videos. It really helps me study what the deer are doing.

Two different large bucks are walking right up to a little branch in front of the camera and rubbing their faces on it. Later in the night there is a doe that stands under the branch and smells it intently. 

Does that mean that the bucks are leaving a scent on that branch as a message to the ladies? Maybe. I am no deer expert. So I looked it up. Bucks do rub their faces on branches to mark their territory. They also lick the branches to leave markers for the ladies.

Until I had a camera that could take some video, I had no idea. I knew the 'marked' territory, but I thought it was just like dogs and coyotes did. By peeing on things. In a buck's case, maybe peeing and scraping his antlers on trees. 

I learn something every day!

So this buck does exactly that .. and later on, a doe comes up to check it out! 20 second video.

I think this is the way the way a white tail buck leaves an email on his dating app!

Well. I'll be durned!

Have a neat weekend.

A picture is worth a thousand....

 words?

Isn't that how the saying goes? Well I thought about that yesterday as I was doing my boring things. I was thinking about how it related to how I write my fun little stories.

I'd gone out and taken quite a few photos when I got Girry the Giraffe. I took the critters and walked around the woods taking shots of them in different scenarios.

I hadn't made anything up in my head yet, but just wanted to have fun using the light and the warm November weather to my advantage. In my mind, the story would start in November, but really get going in the winter months.

Somehow I don't plan. I admit, that is backwards. I write a bit, take some photos, and then the characters seem to find their way and write the story for me.

I had updated the adventure, but got stuck for a bit.

How would these photos fit? I don't have any clue. 

But at least the story went forward and now I have an idea of where the critters may go. I just need to follow them.

After the hunters are done in the woods I can safely follow the Teddy Bears and others as they create their stories.

I just need to follow them.

The art of play?

 A friend of mine just commented that I am Nuts, but in a good way. He is a retired IT Guy. He cannot quite understand my world of play. 

My father was a very creative and imaginative soul. My mother is also. Both were master story tellers. Dad's creativity is well known in the commercial world of the 60's and 70's. 

My husband shakes his head at me when he sees me 'messing' around with my toys. 

Some people distract themselves with other things. I like photography and I am a fan of that little strange niche of  Toy Photography. It is engaging and fun. It is similar to doing Still Life and Fine Art but with an imaginative twist.

Saturday was a play day. I painted my dollhouse furniture that came colored in Pink. Pink for mini wood creatures? Nah. 

I did keep some bright colors for my these pieces. These little wooden figures came to us in the mail from one of my childhood friends.
She sent me her childhood collection of wooden 'zoo' critters.

Of course the donkey would love that toilet!

This summer I complained about this big old trunk that I moved out of the living room and set in an unused spot in the kitchen/dining area. I put some boards on it so I could use it as a folding table, but somehow, it has morphed into a play area.

Oh wait. No, it is a decoration area. See? See the Fall sign and the leaves?

Even Groot had to get in on the things! I purchased the wooden mushrooms at the Farmer's Market. They just go along with my critters so nicely. 

Then I had a lightbulb moment. Last year BJ sent me some Halloween windup toys. Crazy and fun little things. I couldn't use some of the toys unless it was really near Halloween.

So...with a bit of help from Charlie, I set the toys up on the floor in the living room.

Charlie was fascinated by the little witch who walked and wobbled when wound up. He was startled by the teeth that clacked. Rich and Charlie were quite entertained.

I decided to try just a plain white board for the back round. Other wise you'd see the door to our bedroom and the concentrator.

That was a bleh photo and not interesting. 

So, I tried a composite using ON1's Sky Swap just for kicks.

This rocks! 

This was a fun experiment. 

I can add my own photos to Sky Swap. The possibilities then become 

boundless for doing some interesting composite Still Life work.

Just think if I'd added smoke and fog in the foreground!

Brewwww hahahahah.....