DawnTreader's Picture Book

Follow the Rabbit!

2011-01-17T18:58:00.000+01:00

Just a reminder for those who haven’t already found their way:
DawnTreader’s Picture Book moved to a new place about a month ago!

Please follow the Rabbit and hop along to
♥ DawnTreader’s NEW Picture Book ♥

Follow The Rabbit

2010-12-11T00:21:00.003+01:00

Please follow the Christmas Bunny and hop along to
♥ DawnTreader’s NEW Picture Book ♥

I’ll soon be running out of storage space in my present blog account. After weighing some pros and cons I decided to take the leap and see what happens if I try to move this blog into a new account (http://dawntreader-picturebook2.blogspot.com).

I’m sorry for any inconvenience this might cause – I can only hope that you will find it worth the trouble. Old posts will remain where they are so as not to mess up any existing cross-references. I hope I’ll see you soon!!!

Watery Wednesday: Freezing River

2010-12-08T18:32:00.001+01:00

Winter came early this year, with lasting cold weather. It’s hard on the birds:
Much of the river is already getting covered by ice.

Visit Watery Wednesday for more watery pictures.

Winter Wonderland

2010-12-07T19:24:00.001+01:00

Going into town today with the purpose of shopping groceries, I found myself enchanted and “sidetracked” into the snowy landscape of the town park… All the snowy trees and lampposts and statues rather reminded me of Narnia!

Mosaic Monday: More Snow

2010-12-06T06:00:00.000+01:00

*** … and it just keeps snowing … ***

See more Monday Mosaics at Mary’s Little Red House.

Thankful Friday

2010-12-03T10:53:00.001+01:00

Friday My Town Shoot Out – Thankful

The theme for December 3rd is, in general, what are people most thankful for in your town?

This can be a variety of meanings to everyone. This could be a person, an event, a building, what a group of people are doing in the town, gifts to the town, etc. Or personally, what are you most thankful for in your town.

Definitions of Thankful ........

a positive emotion or attitude in acknowledgment of a benefit that one has received or will receive

feeling or expressing gratitude; appreciative

There are a lot of things in my town to be thankful for. For me, I think it is a combination of a lot of different things for which I am most thankful. So for this post, I made some collages. (For the location of the town, see map at the bottom of the post.)

We’re thankful for the river. Without it, the town would not be what it is.

We’re thankful for the textile/fashion industry heritage, and the textile museum.

We’re thankful for the art museum, the theatre and the library.

We’re thankful for the open air museum, and other buildings with interesting architecture.

We’re thankful for some beautiful parks.

We’re thankful for recent sculptures by world famous artists; and for musical events.

When we’re not busy complaining about them, we’re thankful we have a hospital
(also including a hospital museum, and quite a few pieces of contemporary art);
and a choice of means of public transport: railway and busses and roads.
We’re also only about an hour away from an airport, and the coast,
and the second largest city in the country (Gothenburg).

We’re thankful that the town is surrounded by beautiful nature and places of historical interest.

Bird Snack Bar In The Park

2010-12-02T20:03:00.001+01:00

The yellow bird is a Great Tit. The other one I’m not sure of… Possibly a Willow-Tit?

PS. We’ve been having broadband problems here lately.
Internet contact has been on and off irregularly for several days in a row now.
Not only does it affect my own posting, but also how much
I’m able to catch up with my blogging friends!

Early Winter

2010-11-30T15:54:00.001+01:00

It looks like January. It feels like January. And we haven’t even entered December yet.

Mosaic Monday: Christmas Market Collages

2010-11-29T06:00:00.000+01:00

A “Santaland” is built up in the town square for December. Santa himself is still sleeping, but activity might increase as we get closer to Christmas. In the tent, reminding of a Lapp cot, hot drinks are served.

In front of the old town hall, big Advent candles are lighted (one for each Sunday, or in this case Saturday, before Christmas). Advent hymns are sung by choirs from the different churches. To the fountain in the middle of the square, a special winter decoration has been added to replace the usual running water.

Shopping is encouraged by extra Christmas markets held both indoors and outdoors. The yellow wooden building is one of few remaining wooden houses in town (most were destroyed in fires long ago). It is used for art classes and other study circles, and sometimes exhibitions and markets.

For more mosaics, visit Mary’s Little Red House.

The Star

2010-11-28T10:44:00.001+01:00

I’m not sure how widespread the tradition is in other countries, but here many people put up an Advent star in their windows this time of year. The origin is of course the star that according to the Gospel of Matthew (Ch.2) was seen by Magi (“wise men”) from the East at the birth of Jesus.

“… and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and or myrrh.”

For more reflection photography, visit Weekend Reflections at Newton Area Photo.

Favourite Shops

2010-11-26T16:34:00.001+01:00

Friday My Town Shoot Out

My favourite tea shop.
They also sell coffee; but I am a tea person...

Besides tea and coffee, they also offer other temptations
to go with it: Bread, biscuits, chocolate, candy…

.~.~.~.

Whether you’d like to buy someone a gift, or the materials to get busy yourself,
this arts & crafts shop is a good place to start looking for inspiration.

.~.~.~.

“HeartRoom” - a shop for interior design and garden decorations.
A place to go if you’re looking for that “little extra”.

.~.~.~.

My town does not really have a “main street”.
There are several streets lined with shops in the town centre.
Today the town square was all set up with extra Christmas market stalls.
(Old town hall/district court in the background. )

.~.~.~.

Light A Candle

2010-11-25T06:00:00.000+01:00

Snowstorm in November

2010-11-24T14:36:00.001+01:00

“Snow is nothing but annoyingly icy frozen water stuff
that falls out of the sky at inconvenient times.”

~ from Gilmore Girls, Season 5 ~

(Photoshop Filter Artistic/Sponge for enhanced effect)

It’s Snowing

2010-11-23T15:37:00.001+01:00

This was yesterday. Pretty much the same view today…

Frozen Fire

2010-11-21T20:24:00.001+01:00

Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up.
So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight -
why the bush does not burn up.” ~ Exodus 3:2-3

More Foggy River Reflections

2010-11-20T11:16:00.001+01:00

Some more foggy pictures from my Tuesday morning walk this week.

♥ ♥ ♥

For more reflection photography, visit Weekend Reflections #61 at Newton Area Photo.

Temptations

2010-11-19T08:56:00.001+01:00

My post for Friday My Town Shoot Out

Spring Temptation: Tulips

Summer Temptation: Strawberries and Ice Cream

Autumn Market Temptation: Sweets and Toys

Winter Temptation: All Kinds of Christmassy Things…

And Books! But they come into a special, more long-lasting category of temptations…

All Year Round Temptations: Spending and Hoarding…

Fog On The River

2010-11-18T11:44:00.001+01:00

Troubleshooting

2010-11-17T14:44:00.003+01:00

For some reason I'm having problems uploading photos to this blog today. So far I haven't been able to figure out why. This morning I thought the problem was with Windows Live Writer, but it seems to be the same when I try it directly in Blogger. It seems I can't upload photos neither from the computer nor from the Picasa Web Album.

I was able to upload a post from WLW without problems to my other blog, The Island of the Voices.

Now I'm going to post this without picture just to see if that works.

Mosaic Monday: November Beach

2010-11-15T11:59:00.001+01:00

Lake and beach near the place where my grandparents lived in my childhood;
and later on my parents.

See more Monday Mosaics at Mary’s Little Red House.

Earth, Wind, Water and Fire

2010-11-14T18:24:00.001+01:00

Sun and Sky, Water and Earth. All of the four elements together.

---

I’m entering this photo for Weekend Reflections at Newton Area Photo.

High Over My Head – The Birch Trees And The Sky

2010-11-12T11:03:00.001+01:00

November afternoon sky in town (view from my balcony)

Left: Birch tree “block of apartments” for town birds! (picture taken about one month ago)

Right: Three weeks ago, the birches in a town cemetery still in their golden autumn glory.

Below: Last Sunday: Defoliated birch forest out in the countryside; and “country cottage” bird house.

Batik art by my mother’s father back in 1973.

Going out to my parents’ old house, I got off the bus a couple of stops early,
and took a roundabout walk through the woods to get there.
Just having viewed the birch trees through my camera lens outside,
as I entered the empty house I was struck by a very similar view
hanging there on the wall to greet me.

I’m entering this post for Friday My Town Shoot Out (‘Over Your Head’) and Skywatch Friday.

Over the Railroad, into the Woods… and Boo!

2010-11-11T06:00:00.000+01:00

Look left… Look right…

Okay. We can cross.

Now, prepare yourself for the scary part…

…

Are you ready?

…

I know we’re supposed to have left Halloween behind us…

…

but

…

you never know what might turn up…

…

Here it comes…

…

(I’ve given you enough warning, now, haven’t I?)

…

BOO!

Collage made from the two pictures below:

As for what kind of animal, I’m puzzled.
It seemed quite small to me, so rabbit or hare was what first came to mind.
But not at all sure about that; and even less so after comparing pictures on the web.
Any wildlife forensic experts out there in the cyberspace…?

The Old Bridge

2010-11-10T09:32:00.001+01:00

This bridge is in the vicinity of the stone circle in the previous post.
It was built in 1829, is 43 m long and 6 m wide.
Traffic nowadays goes over a more modern bridge close by.

I’m entering this post for Watery Wednesday

Stone Circle

2010-11-08T20:29:00.001+01:00

In “the middle of Nowhere” there is an old stone circle.
(“Nowhere” is a translation of the name of the place,
rather than an accurate description of the present-day surroundings)

.~.~.~.

I took several photos experimenting a bit with exposure because the best view was against the light.
The one above came out the best, not as the most realistic, but as the most magical… ;)

Here is a shot from the other direction… a bit “tampered with”… compare below…

.~.~.~.

And here are both photos again, in b&w/sepia:

The stone circles of the Iron Age (ca. 500 BC – ca. 400 AD) were a characteristic burial custom of southern Scandinavia, especially on Gotland and in Götaland during the Pre-Roman Iron Age and the Roman Iron Age. In Sweden, they are called Domarringar (judge circles). The circles are usually round, or elongated ellipses. The stones may be very large and they are usually between 9 and 12. Sometimes there are as few as 6–8. Excavations have shown burnt coal in the centre of the circles and they are nowadays considered to be incineration graves. There is also a widespread tradition that the circles were used for so-called “things”, or general assemblies.

(Source: Wikipedia)

Mirror Of Legend

2010-11-06T19:54:00.001+01:00

‘Do we walk in legends or on the green earth in the daylight?'
‘A man may do both,' said Aragorn. 'For not we but those who come after will make the legends of our time. The green earth, say you? That is a mighty matter of legend, though you tread it under the light of day!’
~ J.R.R. Tolkien ~

For more Weekend Reflections visit Newton Area Photo

Rush Hour In The Cemetery

2010-11-06T06:00:00.001+01:00

This weekend is our Halloween / All Saints Day.
A holiday which in Sweden is primarily “celebrated” by visiting family graves and lighting candles.

This is different cemetery from the one in yesterday’s post and much bigger. My visit there this “Halloween” Friday was before noon and I have to say I was a little taken aback as I entered the cemetery (on foot) and saw all the cars. I know it tends to get crowded towards dusk on these occasions, but I had not expected traffic jam at 11 am! In that first picture, none of the cars was getting anywhere, and someone even started honking their car horn! (That really helps in that kind of situation, doesn’t it? And so lifts everyone’s spirit on a day like this…)

While the traffic was lively, the lake was very still!

All Saints

2010-11-05T14:16:00.001+01:00

These photos were taken about a month ago, at the beginning of October, in an old cemetery close to where I live. Since then most of the trees have lost their leaves, and nature is not so colourful any more. The last summer flowers have been replaced with evergreen winter wreaths or heather. This weekend is our “Halloween” and All Saints Day, and there will also be candles or lanterns on most graves. Have some photos of that too, but they’re still in the camera. Meanwhile I thought I could take the opportunity to post this collage which I don’t think I got round to before.

The whole shot of the chapel, added on demand…

To see previous pictures of it you can also type in “chapel” in the search box at the top of the page.

I Could Have This On My Wall…

2010-11-03T10:07:00.002+01:00

… except, of course, that it is a Corel Paint Shop Pro X + Picasa 3 job …

River Reflections

2010-11-02T10:03:00.001+01:00

Our town has a lot of old factory buildings along the river. Many of them
are now being used for other purposes (like offices or schools or shops).

Pictures from 15 October.

Mosaic Monday: Frosty Gold

2010-11-01T06:00:00.000+01:00

See more Monday Mosaics at Mary’s Little Red House.

Speaker’s Corner

2010-10-30T19:55:00.001+02:00

November is not the most photogenic of months in our climate, and so a good time to go back through the year and see what photos I can find that I haven’t already shared. This sculpture has been around for over 50 years and was not included in the summer’s sculpture festival.

Almost November

2010-10-29T18:50:00.001+02:00

Back to mild and wet weather again, for as long as it lasts.
The birds who haven’t already left to go south were singing today, almost as if greeting spring. I wish!

High water level in the river.

Larch Tree in the Cemetery

2010-10-28T21:23:00.000+02:00

Cold News

2010-10-27T06:00:00.000+02:00

Monday was another frosty day…

Dramatic Skies

2010-10-26T06:00:00.000+02:00

Interesting clouds and light on Monday afternoon got me out on a walk…

Not long after I got home, the lawns outside my window were powdered with white again.

Mosaic Monday: Frozen Leaves Collage

2010-10-25T12:00:00.000+02:00

From the first snowfall of the year, 22 October.
It started snowing on Thursday night. By Saturday afternoon, it was all gone again.
The pictures taken on Friday by noon. A very short, slow and “careful” walk…

See more Monday Mosaics at Mary’s Little Red House.

Lake View

2010-10-24T17:19:00.001+02:00

The snow is gone and it’s raining, so I’m going back into my archives… Don’t think I’ve shared this photo, it’s another one from two weeks ago. See that silhouette of a chair, in the middle of the picture? If you go back to my post from 11 October there’s a picture of it in the collage.

I really should come up with some kind of system what pictures I have already shared. After 1½ years of photo frenzy and blogging and my memory is beginning to fail me ;) …

White Field

2010-10-23T11:43:00.001+02:00

The football field covered with a layer of freshly fallen snow (22 October, 11 am).
Some of the trees are still green, which makes it an odd sight.

Night Views: First Snow

2010-10-22T14:37:00.001+02:00

Water View

2010-10-20T09:23:00.001+02:00

Looking at the view above it is perhaps not quite easy to determine the perspective, so let’s step back a little bit:

We’re on top of a hill, and that stone wall surrounds the dam above an artificial waterfall:

Pictures from 1½ week ago (9 October).

Mosaic Monday: Frosty Ferns

2010-10-18T13:49:00.000+02:00

Still playing around with some First Frost pictures from last week…

For more Monday Mosaics, visit Mary’s Little Red House.

In Reflective Mood

2010-10-17T17:37:00.001+02:00

I know I’ve published photos of this sculpture before, but here he is again, in a particularly reflective mood on a still October day. His name is Bodhi and he was made in the image of his Creator; something which might be worth while to reflect upon every now and then.

---

On the building behind him you can see a little windmill decoration. “Röda Kvarn” [Red Mill] is an old cinema building, which is still in use, now owned by the town. Their ambition is to show quality films; old classics or films which the commercial cinemas don’t find profitable enough.

There are and were “Röda Kvarn” cinemas in a lot of Swedish towns. I don’t know if they were originally one special chain of cinemas; they don’t seem to be now. I guess originally the name was borrowed from the famous Moulin Rouge cabaret in Paris.

Frosty Morning 3

2010-10-16T11:08:00.001+02:00

Frosty Morning 2

2010-10-15T17:35:00.001+02:00

Frosty Morning

2010-10-14T06:00:00.000+02:00

Frosty mornings two days in a row now.
Pictures taken around 8.50 in the morning (we’re still on summer daylight saving time).

It’s A Big World

2010-10-13T06:00:00.000+02:00

Spotted a little green alien struggling along up the trunk of a birch tree… He was about 5 mm, I think. The first picture is enlarged from the second. The third is the same tree – I liked the light and the shadows. The forth picture, below, is a different birch tree – included just to give you a better sense of what the little creature was up against…

Golden Light

2010-10-12T06:00:00.000+02:00

Even on a gray day, the autumn leaves sometimes seem to be self-luminous.

Have A Seat, Admire The View

2010-10-11T14:52:00.001+02:00

A walk up the rather steep hill to the Museum Park, Saturday.

For More Monday Mosaics, visit Mary’s Little Red House.

Museum Church

2010-10-10T06:00:00.000+02:00

The old church in the Museum Park, in all the glory of the surrounding autumn colours.
(Link goes to a previous post about it.)

“For you shall go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and the hills before you shall break forth into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.”
Isaiah 55:12

Red House

2010-10-09T06:00:00.000+02:00

For a while, during the early September rains, I was worried that perhaps the autumn colours were going to pass us by this year, just fading from wet to brown. But they did not. Nature is offering an awesome display of colour just now.

Decorations

2010-10-08T06:00:00.000+02:00

At the entrance of a home decor shop.

The Maple Tree

2010-10-07T12:42:00.001+02:00

This big maple is the dominant tree in the park that in the summer I call the “butterfly park”.
It is also the park with the croquet lawn which I’ve only rarely seen anyone use.
(The “butterfly flowerbeds” are at the other end of the park.)

Heather Collage

2010-10-06T06:00:00.000+02:00

A collage from my balcony. I was rather fascinated by how this one came out without borders.
Not quite easy to determine where the breaks between the photos go.

Compare the one below, which tells “the truth”:

If you haven’t already “been there”, you can read more about heather in a post from 4th October at my other blog, The Island of the Voices.

Light And Shadow

2010-10-05T12:00:00.000+02:00

These pictures were taken under a motorway bridge crossing the river. Really, one of the most boring sights in town! – until you start exploring it through the eye of the camera…

Mosaic Monday: Mallards

2010-10-04T13:34:00.001+02:00

Mallard or Wild duck - Anas platyrhynchos

See more Monday Mosaics at Mary’s Little Red House

The Two Towers

2010-10-03T06:00:00.000+02:00

Another view from the top of the Rock: The two dominant church towers.
(Both churches belong to the Church of Sweden, which until 2000 was state church.)
The two smaller green towers sticking up to the right belong to the Town Hall.

Waterfall

2010-10-02T06:00:00.000+02:00

From the same cemetery/park as in yesterday’s post.
These five photos are all straight-from-the-camera shots with my little Nikon Coolpix.

(With a nod to Adrian of Adrian’s Images… )

Autumn Light

2010-10-01T06:00:00.000+02:00

These two pictures were taken in late afternoon light within one minute of each other, in more or less the same spot. I can’t quite figure out why the light is so different in the two photos. I know I didn’t make any adjustments to the camera, so I suppose the sun came out from behind a cloud. The place is a pond in a big cemetery which is like a nature park with varied landscape.

Rose Hips

2010-09-30T12:00:00.000+02:00

Rose hips begin to form in spring, and ripen in late summer through autumn.

They are particularly rich in Vitamin C, and are used for herbal tea and soup etc.

The Rose

Gold Turning Silver

2010-09-29T12:00:00.000+02:00

Goldenrod – Lat. Solidago – Sw. Gullris

Goldenrod and Rosehips

City Rock

2010-09-28T20:07:00.001+02:00

A rock covered with ivy is among the first views to meet you when you arrive by railway or bus. This time of the year you get a particularly colourful greeting.

The name of the sculpture is Tornado; if you’re following my other blog The Island of the Voices you might have seen it before.

Mosaic Monday: September Leaves

2010-09-27T16:21:00.001+02:00

See more Monday Mosaics at Mary’s Little Red House.

Autumn Market

2010-09-25T06:00:00.000+02:00

PS. More Autumn Market pictures at my blog The Island of the Voices.

Skywatch Friday: Over The Roofs

2010-09-24T09:30:00.001+02:00

See more views of the sky from all over the world at Skywatch Friday.

Soft and Fluffy…

2010-09-22T18:50:00.001+02:00

… But what is it? Scroll down and the last picture will give the answer…

Four months ago (21 May) it looked like this:

My Clematis Alpina (growing in a pot on my balcony).

Unidentified

2010-09-21T13:52:00.001+02:00

I don’t know what kind of shrub this is. Could it be some kind of privet (ligustrum)?

Mosaic Monday: Mushrooms

2010-09-20T11:44:00.000+02:00

We had a very rainy week last week. One of the effects of the wet weather was mushrooms popping up in the most unexpected places. You might think I’d have to go out into the woods to find all these. As a matter of fact I found them all (except one) in a patch of grass along a town street - see the background photo in the collage below. I took all of these photos (and more) within five minutes or so.

The exception is the mushroom in the middle of the first mosaic.
That one I found growing out of the gravel on a grave in the cemetery
(on the other side of the hedge to the left in the picture above).

For more Monday Mosaics, visit Mary’s Little Red House.

Hydrangea

2010-09-19T18:29:00.001+02:00

Hydrangea paniculata (I think…)

We sometimes call these “autumn lilacs” because they remind
of lilacs, but they bloom in the autumn instead of in the spring.
They can be shrubs (like below) but also the size of trees.

Raining

2010-09-18T22:34:00.001+02:00

“The best thing one can do when it's raining is to let it rain.”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Skywatch Friday: Break

2010-09-17T14:45:00.001+02:00

For a while, the rain took a break.
For a while, the train took a break, too;
stopping just under the bridge.
For a while, all was still.

.~.~.~.

To watch the sky from around the world, visit Skywatch Friday.

Sunny In The Rain

2010-09-15T09:00:00.000+02:00

Shrubby Cinquefoil - Dasiphora fruticosa - Ölandstok

This flowery shrub, ~1 m tall, is one of the plants that still bring colour to this time of year, shining like little suns even in the rain. The flowers are small, but they are many.

The Swedish name is connected to the island Öland, off our East coast.

Looking For Colour

2010-09-14T12:00:00.000+02:00

Sometimes on a gray day, you have to really concentrate to see colour.

Mosaic Monday: Himalayan Balsam

2010-09-12T13:19:00.000+02:00

Compare my post from 20 August: Love Has Many Names.

For more Monday Mosaics, visit Mary’s Little Red House.

Bloggoversary

2010-09-12T10:00:00.000+02:00

It is one year today since my first post in this Picture Book, and this is the 360th post. Not quite one post per day… but more than one photo per day, since many posts have more than one picture.

Thanks to my Followers for all encouraging comments!

~ Monica a.k.a DawnTreader ~

Town Allotment

2010-09-11T19:20:00.001+02:00

First Autumn Colours

2010-09-11T12:00:00.000+02:00

One of the signs of autumn is the Berberis bushes changing. What fascinates me is the variation in colour. On some branches the berries have already turned red. On other branches the leaves have turned red but the berries are still yellow. Many branches are still green.

“The berries are edible, and rich in vitamin C, though with a very sharp flavour; the thorny shrubs make harvesting them difficult, so in most places they are not widely consumed. They are an important food for many small birds.” (So do birds not have problems with the thorns?)

Reading the Wikipedia article I was sort of amused by the comment that Berberis is a popular garden bush not only because of its colours, but also valued as crime prevention: “being very dense, viciously spiny shrubs, they make very effective barriers impenetrable to burglars. For this reason they are often planted below potentially vulnerable windows, and used as hedges and other barriers”. (True I suppose but goes a bit beyond the “usual” kind of facts one expects to find.)

We had a hedge of these bushes at one the houses we lived in when I grew up.

Skywatch Friday: Last Day of Summer

2010-09-09T22:07:00.000+02:00

31 August, 2010

http://skyley.blogspot.com/2010/09/skywatch-friday-season-4-episode-9.html

The Red Admiral Again

2010-09-09T12:26:00.001+02:00

I finally managed to get closer to the Red Admiral (Vanessa Atalanta). This is a butterfly I don’t think I ever saw (noticed) until last summer, and it has been difficult getting close enough to it to get a good macro picture of it with its wings spread.

The wing span is 45-50 mm. The species is resident only in warmer areas, but migrates north in spring, and sometimes again in autumn. The caterpillar feeds on nettles, and the adult drinks from flowering plants like the Buddleja and overripe fruit. In northern Europe, it is one of the last butterflies to be seen before winter sets in. (Wikipedia)

Following the link to Buddleja, I also learned the name of those flowers in the park. It includes roughly 100 species. The generic name honours Reverend Adam Buddle (1662–1715), who was a botanist and a rector in Essex, England. Several species are popular garden plants. They are commonly known as butterfly bush due to their attractiveness to butterflies; they are also attractive to bees and moths.

I think the white ones below must be Buddleja too.

Fountain in the River

2010-09-08T13:59:00.000+02:00

Apples

2010-09-06T19:50:00.001+02:00

Old apple trees in dad’s garden still bearing fruit.

Damaged Beauty

2010-09-04T20:32:00.001+02:00

This poor Peacock butterfly (top picture) was missing one of its wings, but still managed to flutter about and enjoy the flowers together with the other butterflies in the park. (I wonder if it feels pain, or just a slight imbalance?!)

Purple Cone Flowers

2010-09-02T19:25:00.001+02:00

Purple cone flowers - and Peacock butterfly.

The Admiral and the Painted Lady

2010-08-31T19:02:00.001+02:00

Red Admiral – Vanessa Atalanta – Amiralfjäril

Painted Lady - Cynthia Cardui – Tistelfjäril

I was out chasing butterflies in the park again the other day. The Admiral wasn’t very keen on having his photograph taken – he kept his distance. But his Painted Lady friend was quite willing to pose for me with wings spread.

Mosaic Monday: Pretty Pink

2010-08-30T17:36:00.001+02:00

For more Monday Mosaics, visit Mary’s Little Red House

More August Dahlias

2010-08-29T20:11:00.001+02:00

My mum used to grow dahlias in the garden, and there were always dahlias in bloom for my birthday. Now I’m lucky enough to be able to enjoy them (in all shapes and colours) in one of the parks within walking distance from where I live. (The same park as in the previous three posts.)

Orange August Dahlias

2010-08-28T09:22:00.001+02:00

All the individual photos in this collage are straight-from-the-camera shots,
taken in the same park as the pictures of the waterfall in Thursday’s post.

Waterfall

2010-08-26T18:45:00.001+02:00

Clematis

2010-08-25T20:04:00.001+02:00

The Butterfly Park

2010-08-24T09:00:00.000+02:00

This is the park that attracts the butterflies. It is divided into different “rooms”.
The pink-blue-white room seemed to be the most popular this past weekend.

How many butterflies do you see in the last picture?

Mosaic Monday: More Butterflies

2010-08-23T14:03:00.001+02:00

Butterflies, flutterbyes… All of a sudden there were a lot of them in the park.
Common Brimstone, Small Tortoiseshell and Peacock Butterflies.

For bigger pictures of the butterflies, see my Sunday and Saturday posts.

For more Monday Mosaics, visit Mary’s Little Red House.

Peacock Butterfly

2010-08-22T14:46:00.001+02:00

Buzzzy Day

2010-08-21T14:22:00.001+02:00

Glad to be able to report the butterflies were “back” in the park yesterday.
The ones in these pictures are Small Tortoiseshell (Nässelfjäril) and Common Brimstone (Citronfjäril). Unfortunately the latter never settle with the wings spread. Hanging from the flowers they’re often hard to distinguish from surrounding leaves. Flying about the males are bright yellow (therefore in Swedish have a name that translates Lemon Butterfly).

Today it’s raining, and I’m playing with the butterflies on the computer instead of in the park.

Love Has Many Names

2010-08-20T06:00:00.000+02:00

Himalayan Balsam – Lat. Impatiens glandulifera – Swe. Jättebalsamin

Other English names I found for it:
Indian Balsam, Kiss-me-on-the-mountain… or Policeman’s helmet!
I guess whoever came up with the last one wasn’t really the romantic type… ;)

Although, as I write that down, I’m suddenly reminded of a Jeeves & Wooster novel by P.G. Wodehouse, in which the heroine wanted her fiancé to prove his love for her by stealing a policeman’s helmet…! (With no end of complications, of course.)

Bird Sanctuary

2010-08-19T06:00:00.000+02:00

In the lake below the museum park with the old buildings, there is a bird sanctuary.

The Garden, At Last

2010-08-18T06:09:00.000+02:00

The Garden in the Museum park, surrounded by a traditional wooden fence.

An artificial waterfall runs down the hill from the park to a lake below.
On the right a piece from last years open air exhibition – a “pool of tears”
(made from broken glass) hidden among the trees in the Garden.

“Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden, and there he put the man he had formed. --- A river watering the garden flowed from Eden, and from there it divided…”
~Genesis 2:8, 10~

“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse.”
~The Book of Revelation 22:1-3~

This ends my series from the outdoor exhibition Gates – The Dream of the Secret Garden.
The first post was published last Monday (9 August).

Gate to the Secret Garden - ‘Seed’

2010-08-17T06:00:00.001+02:00

The Dream of the Secret Garden - ‘Seed’

He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches."

Matthew 13:31-32

This post is the 9th in a series that started last Monday, 9 August.
Tomorrow, we enter the Garden.

Gate to the Secret Garden - ‘Live Rust’ (Mosaic Monday)

2010-08-16T06:00:00.000+02:00

The Dream of the Secret Garden - ‘Live Rust’

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
~ Matthew 6:19-21 ~

For Mosaic Monday visitors: This is the 8th post in i series from an exhibition.
For the introduction, go back to the first post from last Monday.

For more Monday Mosaics, go to Mary’s Little Red House.

Gate to the Secret Garden - ‘Vine’

2010-08-15T06:00:00.000+02:00

The Dream of the Secret Garden - ‘Vine’

“People grow through experience if they meet life honestly and courageously.
This is how character is built.”
Eleanor Roosevelt

For more information about the exhibition, see Monday’s post.

Gate to the Secret Garden - ‘Flowergate’

2010-08-14T06:00:00.000+02:00

The Dream of the Secret Garden - ‘Flowergate’

“The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad;
the desert shall rejoice and blossom like the crocus”

Isaiah 35:1

For more information about the exhibition, see Monday’s post.