November Mood

Where October is all about the last hurrah of nature - colorful garden harvests and foliage in vibrant oranges, reds and yellows, November to me is all about monochrome. The warm blankets of snow, the colorful holiday displays haven't arrived (well, mostly - someone down the street already have their house decked out in twinkling lights!), pushing away the winter dark and gloom yet. The landscape is stripped bare, simple, quiet and reflective.

Today I took some photos of an old, overgrown yard around the corner and down the block from our house. Although I know someone lives there, I've NEVER seen a person or a vehicle or a light at the place. It's more like a friendly little ghost lady house.

We had a big ol' flag flying today. This house put up a smaller, quieter, but equally heartfelt tribute to the veterans.

This is what caused me to stop to take the photos. I loved the golden apples clinging to the bare branches, like natural ornaments already decorating the tree.

You might see it better if you double click to open the photo, the yellow really stood out against the gray November sky.

Just under the apple tree, in a carpet of fallen apples, was this.... wood "burl" of some sort.

A little farther back, quail pattered about in search of dinner. I used a telephoto lens but before I could snap the picture they had noticed me. "If we stay completely still, she won't see us and she'll go away." It was as if we were playing Red Light Green Light. I turned the camera at them and they FROZE. They did a pretty good job of looking like scattered rocks.

Speaking of wildlife, last night when I was going out to my car, a car turning around the corner caught two deer who were standing in the road just a few yards away in it's headlights. As I got in my car, continuing to watch the scene, the car came to a halt and the driver honked his horn at the deer. Do you have much experience with neighborhood deer? Well, here's the thing. They don't really percieve cars as "beings". People, yes. They'll watch people or dogs and if you get too close, they'll move off. But cars are just moving rocks to them. Honking at a deer to make it move isn't much more helpful than honking at a tree and expecting it to move. Clearly this driver was either new to the area or completely non-observant. The honking continued all the while I got in my seat, put on my seat belt, and started my car. By the time I'd turned onto the road the driver in the other car finally decided to do what was the logical thing he should have done in the first place, he slowly eased his car around the deer, who watched the car go by without so much as a flip of a tail or a nervous twitch.

Last night was the kind of cold, clear, November night that makes the stars sparkle like holiday lights. I took Rosie out late so she could pee one more time before we went to bed and while staring up at a few diehard leaves that glowed like ghostly handprints stamped against the dark skies, an owl hooted so loudly I jumped and startled. Another owl answered the first and I realized they were across the street in a small copse of firs. We went back inside but even with the windows shut, the curtains drawn, and the sound of the wall furnace going off and on, the owls were loud enough to wake me up all night long. I don't know what was going on but it must have been some owl party!

I went window shopping today to get some decorating inspiration and some holiday ideas. If you'd like to see some of the lovely displays I photographed, check them out on Laume's Studio.