Zoom zoom....

My neighbor had his stock car out in the driveway. The only camera I had with me was my cell phone. Using the digi-zoom made the picture a little pixelated, so I ran it through Topaz. I also cloned some extra grass over car parts sitting out in the yard. Oh, yeah....the theme is nine.

Better than Windex...duplicate and multiply!

I shot this sunset photo through my (in need of a wash) home office window. In an attempt to disguise the streaks on the glass, I opened the image in Photoshop and duplicated the photo, then set the blend mode on the duplicate to Multiply. It made the colors become very vivid, which is a good thing because I already used the theme of "through a window".

Raindrops keep falling

After last night's bonfire, we had a little morning rain to dampen things back up.

All aglow

My neighbors had a bonfire last night, and I saw it glowing through my office window.

Concrete

OK, the theme is really cement, but the name of this frosty treat is a Concrete Mixer. It's made with frozen custard - much more rich than ice cream. Maybe Lois lives near a custard stand? They seem to be Wisconsin businesses. Concrete or cement, it was delicious!

Aw, nuts!

Footwear

Everyday sights

On my drive to work, this alert of an upcoming toll plaza is an everyday sight. Like most commuters, I have a transponder that allows me to zip through toll collection points without slowing. I enjoyed the irony of this Jaguar, whose plate reads "PD CASH", headed for the cash lane.

Seven

(OK, so not all images are photographic works of art.....)

One

I don't know what this is, but I'm glad there was only one! Scale? I'm 5'7" tall and it was over my head.

The letter D

Pretty little daffodil.

Emotions

So sad....despite fighting a tough battle for 3.5 years, my dear friend Steve passed away yesterday from complications from brain cancer. He was loved by many and will be sorely missed. This is not a current photo, but a favorite. Please keep Steve's wife and family in your prayers.

"...where everybody knows your name..."

Met some friends for drinks and dinner. I liked how these bottles were arranged on a  translucent shelf behind the bar, which was lit from within to flash different colors.

Come on in!

A painted pony peeks out from the front doors of this storage shed.

Evolution

Just two trees away from yesterday's blossom candles stood a magnolia tree in full bloom.

Candles

These magnolia tree buds reminded me of candles.

Natural framing

A big knothole in this tree allowed me to peek at Jon, peeking at some of his bird photos.

Yoo hoo! Where are you??

Many folks might find the escape from this maze to be challenging.

Art in the Park

Came across this happy, painted dino on our stroll around the arboretum.

Remembering

Jon's daughter was married in this lovely courtyard at the arboretum. Seeing the spot again on our weekend visit brought back happy memories.

Not your typical gardener

With hat, boots, tools, and gloves at the ready, this gal is ready for yard work.

"I'm walking on sunshine..."

White

Pear tree photographed during a visit to a nearby arboretum. No pears, but pretty white blossoms!

What's black and white and red all over?

A red-breasted grosbeak, that's what!

Twolips

Yellow

Bloom

Playing around with one of Jerry Jones' textures, Topaz Adjust, and a pattern stamp brush with a photo of a daffodil.

Pasta

Made this for dinner last night. Turned out to be a great, light spring supper.

Here's how I did it:

I made it up, so there are no exact amounts. Just kind of eyeball it.

Small-size pasta, like small shells, small bowties, small elbows, etc. (I used about 8 oz for 2 people...planning for leftovers)

Fresh asparagus (amount to your liking, and depending on # of servings; I used 1 lb for 2 people….Jon and I love asparagus)

Olive oil

Butter

1-2 whole garlic cloves (to your liking)

Grape tomatoes

Diced grilled or store-bought rotisserie chicken (I used one good-sized breast for 2 people)

Black pepper and shredded Parmesan cheese, to taste

In a large pot, boil the pasta in salted water. In the meantime, cut the asparagus into pieces approximately the same size as your pasta. During the last 2-3 minutes of cooking time, toss the asparagus into the pasta pot to cook up to crisp-tender while the pasta finishes cooking

Peel the paper off the garlic, but don’t dice it up. In a large skillet add 3-4 TBS of olive oil, and 1-2 TBS of butter. Toss in the garlic and set to low-to medium heat; enough to melt the butter but not brown it. The garlic flavor will infuse through the oil/butter mixture.

Toss in a good handful of grape tomatoes and cook until the skin blisters – 3-4 minutes. Add diced, cooked chicken to heat through. Adjust the amounts of oil and butter if needed. You’ll lightly coat the pasta/asparagus mix with the butter/oil, so use that as a guide for quantity. You don’t want the pasta to be greasy, just flavorful.

Drain the pasta/asparagus, and add to the skillet. Toss gently to combine, and then transfer to a serving dish. Remove the garlic cloves. Serve hot, with a dash of fresh-ground black pepper and a sprinkle of shredded (better than grated) Parmesan cheese. This is also delicious cold.

Let me know if you whip this up some night. 

Afternoon light

Just before dusk  is a pretty time of day to visit a forest preserve.

One, two, three . . .

 . . . two hundred thirteen, two hundred fourteen, two hundred fifteen.

These steps, beside an old carriage house (with a being-restored carriage inside) led up to another street, 151 steps away, then, in two more tiers of steps, topped off high above the town of Galena, 215 steps from where we began our ascent.

Going down was much easier...

PS: If I type the labels as, one, two, three, Blogger alphabetizes them into one, three, two. Weird!

Lunchtime!

Two cedar waxwings enjoy a lunch  of brightly colored berries.