Washed up beside the creek this morning.

Four inches of February snow on a Japanese maple.

Two ladies I met on my morning walk.

I walk nearly every morning, leaving home before sunrise so I will have the walk to myself and can experience scenes like this in peace. I'm not selfish, mind you, but I need to savor things like this, and that's hard to do when someone is there talking to you.

After the summer long drought here in Kentucky, the rains have finally brought various mushrooms to life.

Sourdough sausage calzones. Most are just oozing delicious cheese, but one appears to be a veritable Mount St. Helens. Whatever. It will still taste as good.

From my my morning walk.... This redtail hawk flew straight in over me to settle in on a limb. Very unconcerned, it let me walk beneath it and get the video from the other side. It flew, darn, just as I stopped shooting.

Now that the snow is gone, things are more interesting on my walks.

I need to introduce another member of our household. This is garden cat (no caps) or CatCat or Big Cat. He answers to none of them, which is to be expected, after all, since he is a cat.

From my morning walk.... Three does that were wary enough to stay inside the city limits during hunting season. (Best I could do with the phone and I couldn't get closer.)

Met this fellow who wasn't too pleased about meeting me.

Dare we hope? No. Remember, it's February. Expect the sucker punch.