Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Trees



This gorgeous tree is in my yard right next to the driveway. The leafless tree next to it is a wild cherry. If I wanted to act like I knew what I was doing, I'd tell you this spectacular tree with yellow leaves was a ________________ (fill in the blank with any tree, ranging from maple to sycamore to broccoli).

However, this is Chesapeake Bay Woman, and while she may know a little about a lot of things, that's still a little--and not a lot.


OK. Tonight (Monday night), in the freezing-cold fall evening, I braved the elements--after a day at The Paying Job--to take some pictures, where elements is equivalent to this:

- bitter cold

- freezing fingers

- fingers that do not move nearly as fast as the synapses (??) in my brain tell them to move. (Go ahead and laugh, those of you who know what a synapse really is, because I am confident they have something to do with something related to telling my fingers what to do. Can you guess whether I'm smarter than a fifth grader even though I have a college degree?)

- sand in my camera

- sand all over my clothes

- all this sand and the sheep burs referenced below due to CBW lying down in the sand to capture the perfect shot

- sheep burs (Yes. This is truly a Chesapeake Bay Woman Grasping-at-Straws Use of Words. If not a sheep bur, let's just say a bur. We don't have a whole lot of sheep around these parts, but we sure have some burs.) on my hind parts as I layed* down (is that even close to the proper past tense of lie? Actually, I believe it is "lay" or is it "laid" or is it, "Please don't call the grammar police") in the sand to snap just the perfect shot of the sun's last light casting out towards the crispy brown reeds, with the moon hovering ever so nicely in the background.

In short, I braved the elements just to get more shots of a sunset. And I did.

I'll be happy to share these pictures with you, right after I finish picking out the sheep burs from when I was around the shoreline and the splinters from that maple-leaf-oak-pecan-whatever tree in the yard with the beautiful yellow leaves.

Signed,
Chesapeake Bay Woman
aka CBW
aka Can't Be Worried
as in Can't Be Worried with Details

*I realize this is the incorrect use of the verb, whatever the verb may be, lay or lie. Details.

10 comments:

Unknown said...

You lay on the ground to take pictures? I'm going to try that tomorrow when I go to the Veterans Day parade. I'm getting too excited for my own good....

Big Hair Envy said...

I believe that tree is a maple - but don't hold me to it. I may not be smarter than a second-grader.

Sheeps bur in your behind? Now THERE'S a pleasant way to spend the evening!! I hope the fiddler crabs didn't hijack your tweezers.......or your wine:)

Mental P Mama said...

I think it's a maple. Sheep bur? Sounds awful. Go get some wine. It's time.

Anonymous said...

I'm forever fussing with the whole lay/lie/laid/ thing. Someone usually comes along and corrects me. But it takes about .05 seconds before I forget the lesson.

Beautiful shot of the tree. Does the cherry tree blossom in the spring? If so, I bet that's really a stunning sight.

BTW, "chugger" is my word verification word. I'll still get it wrong, because I NEVER get them right on the first try, but something about it made me giggle.

Bear Naked said...

My grade 10 English Grammar teacher, Sister Mary Catherine, used to look down her large, hooked nose at us whenever any girl used the lay-laid term.
"Only HENS lay-or-laid--NEVER people."
I'll always remember that look of disdain on her face.
Thanks for the memories CBW.
Bear((( )))

Annie said...

whew..finally that tree has loaded into your post for me...took a while...just after I did a "disc cleanup" to make my computer faster..mm..!

love those fall leaves..just stunning...!

sorry about the difficulties you went to forus, getting the photos...I am not sure that I am into lying down anywhere to get a photo ..just not doin' it!

or should that be "layin' down anywhere" ..haha

Annie

ps Now I need to go do a "desk cleanup" and find the spare camera batteries, while the others are charging. There should be a choice of three difft (older rechargeables and some lithiums) sets of batteries...and I can't find any of them...you can see what an organised and prepared person/photographer I am !

Karen Deborah said...

We musta been separated at birth. My grammer and spelling is always messed up. Debbie in CA can straighten you out. Your tree may be a maple or a liquid amber. Whatcha got around there? I just need to take some pictures. One of my car for Alaska, and some of the fall yard before we have a big freeze but I don't think I can sneeze, blow my nose, and shoot at the same time

Sharon Day said...

You live in heaven! You lucky person. I miss that area soooo much! Eat some crab for me.

Chesapeake Bay Woman said...

GJ-As soon as blogger.com stops misbehaving, I'm going to check out your pictures from the parade. (It's taking very long to load tonight.)

BHE-I think it's a maple too, but don't quote me on that. And with the brisk weather the fiddler crabs are thankfully nowhere to be seen. Of course now that I've said that I'll find one in my shower in the morning....

MPM- A bur of any sort is truly awful, but your suggestion today will help alleviate any associated pain.

Auds - That's a wild cherry tree that produces really tiny purple things that someone decided could be construed as a cherry. (It's very different from other cherry trees.) I honestly can't remember if it blooms in the spring, it probably does...most people consider it a wild tree (a weed of a tree if you will) with not a lot of value, but actually my kids eat the fruit off it and love climbing it. They're very sturdy.

BN - I wouldn't do so well in Sister Mary Catherine's class. I'd be too intimidated by the nose.

Annie - Oh, how I understand where you're coming from. One time I tried to "clear my cache" or toss my cookies or something on this dinosaur of a computer and the next thing I know I couldn't even log on. So now, no matter how many cookies are piling on the plate, I don't touch a single one. (Sorry the picture takes so long to load, I completely empathize.)


KD - I'm going with maple. I hope you're feeling well enough to take pictures in the near future. (Alaska? It's on my Bucket List. Except I never saw that movie and have no idea what I'm referencing. What I mean is I'd really like to see Alaska before I die.)

Autumnforest - If you're ever in need of a place to research, we have several interesting sites, such as Haven Beach, Churchill Plantation, and many others. So many people have experience with Haven Beach that it's hard to believe there isn't something going on there. Thanks for stopping by.

Unknown said...

Laying in the sand? In the cold? WITH SHEEP Burrs? Holy Canoli! You are a very dedicated picture taker!