Evening Shadows

I wish this shot was clearer. In "real life" the silhouette looked sharp and elegant against the fading shades of twilight. Unfortunately, my camera isn't up to the task of dusk photos, so you get a somewhat fuzzy version of what was actually an intensely inspiring view. This is St. Patrick's Catholic Church, my favourite church in the Walla Walla Valley, and one I've showed you a couple of times before. Earlier this week I showed you a distant shot, and prior to that I gave you a nice close-up of the front of the beautiful building. Maybe one of these days I'll get inside to show you a shot of the interior...however I warn you it's not nearly as attractive and awe-inspiring as the outside.

Looking Up

A while ago I showed you a phone booth in the lobby of the Marcus Whitman Hotel (click the link to see the picture and read more about the hotel). This chandelier is also in that lobby, just outside the phone booth. The lobby of this historic hotel is simply gorgeous. It has an elegant ambiance that is inviting and speaks of quality and richness of life. Though the chandelier looks quite old (anyone an antiques buff?), the light bulbs are a dead giveaway to the light's modernity.

Skywatch Friday

Credit for this photo goes to my amazing husband. We were on our way back from a trip to Tri-Cities and were given the opportunity to enjoy this amazing sunset. I was driving, so I told Hubby to grab my camera and take a shot. He did a great job, and captured the beautiful sky perfectly. Hello, Spring!

Funny of the Week

I saw this sign on Highway 11 in Milton-Freewater on Saturday. I love signs, and I read them often. My husband commented recently that I read billboards way more than he does. Perhaps that has to do with my affinity for words, and perhaps it has to do with my job in public relations. Or maybe I'm just highly distractable. Whatever it is, I notice signs. And this one caught my eye. Poor Pastor Olesen! Enjoy the laugh for this week!

A Spring Evening

This is what a beautiful spring evening in the Walla Walla Valley looks like. The sky turns all sorts of shades of oranges, purples, pinks, and golds as the sun sinks lower and lower. It casts a bronze hue over the entire valley, and fields look that much greener, and the breeze feels that much sweeter. The valley seems more relaxed and content somehow...

Thunderheads

These beautiful stormclouds were looming over the mountains yesterday afternoon. I had high hopes for a lovely thunderstorm (I love warm-weather storms!), but alas, the clear skies over the valley held strong, and nothing exciting happened. It was a beautiful evening, with a lovely spring breeze all night long, but my wishful thinking was only that...no storms for us last night! Perhaps soon...

The Last of Them

Well, the blooms and blossoms on trees are just about completely gone. The lilacs are all brown and the bushes are just plain green leaves again. It makes me sad to see the colour leave so quickly. Fortunately, some flowers are still around, such as irises. The roses should all start blooming sometime in the next few weeks, too. For now...here are the last of the tree blossoms, captured a few weeks ago when the trees were all still in bloom.

A Distant View

When I was done at an appointment at the hospital on Friday morning, I noticed the view of St. Patrick's Catholic Church from the parking lot. This is my favourite church in the valley, and any glimpse of it, to me, is enjoyable. From this spot in the parking lot at the hospital, you can see two churches. The other is the Berean Baptist Church I showed you just a few days ago.

Skywatch Friday

A storm was hovering over the Blue Mountains on Tuesday evening, and as the sun went down and the clouds moved closer to the western horizon, the last rays of evening sunlight lit the sky with beautiful shades of purple, blue, and pink. (It almost matches the house there on the corner!) I wish my camera could capture exactly how amazing this sky really was. Imagine it 10x as beautiful, and you'll have it almost there!

That Time of Year

Well, it's certainly springtime, and that means more sun, more heat, and more bugs. Like this one. I have no idea what it is, but it was enjoying a rest on our front deck, and its size caught my eye. It was almost as long as my pinky finger (not including antennae). I don't do well with flying insects, but at least this one, as far as I could tell, didn't have a stinger. Anyone know what this is?

Naptime

This adorable squirrel was napping just outside the window where my husband and I ate lunch yesterday. The tree in itself was beautiful, full of little bunches of pink blossoms, as you see here. It's some type of Hawthorn tree...anyone know which specific kind? Squirrels are quite prolific around the WW Valley. As opposed to the midwestern United States and the Eastern states, and definitely different than Europe, our squirrels are brown. This one just made me want to cuddle it. Isn't he cute?!?

Enjoying the Evening

Spring evenings in Walla Walla are amazing. Saturday night was no exception, and as I watched the sun go down from my friend's kitchen window, Molly, her cat, decided to pose for me. I loved the background, the plants and bottle in the window, and the way her black fur made her look like a sillhouette. She really was enjoying the evening and came and went freely even long after the sun had completely sunk and we were enjoying a movie in the next room.

A Puzzle

Another photo credit belongs to my sister for today's shot. It was taken from the sidewalk on Main Street, looking up at the facade of the Bank of America building. Where do all the lines go? And which line is connected to which other line? Or are they connected at all?

New Arrival

The newest blooms are in full swing around the valley. This is an iris a coworker brought in for my office earlier this week. The delicate colours are perfect for the fragile petals. The most common colour around here is a deep purple - a royal velvet purple. The second most common is bright yellow. This appears to be a lovely combination of the two. And it still has some dewdrops on it, too!

Hope in the Gloom

It was a rainy morning yesterday when I took this shot. It's on a corner just behind Providence St. Mary's Medical Center on Poplar Street in Walla Walla. It's a beautiful church, and one I've only seen a couple of times (it's on a back road that isn't near anything I usually visit). It's the Berean Baptist Church, and I'd love to see the inside!

Rows of Pink

Yesterday I showed you a closeup of one of my favourite springtime beauties: a Dogwood blossom. Today I'll show you what they look like all together. This is a row of dogwood trees in front of some apartments in College Place. Aren't they beautiful?

The Next Blossoms

These are some of my favourite blooms of the season: Dogwood blossoms. They range from deep pink to bright white to this in-between mix seen here. The dew/rain from last night was still on the petals when I snapped this on my way to the office this morning. The entire tree turns into bright pink or bright white, and I love driving around town and seeing all of them. Fortunately, the dogwoods stay in bloom for a reasonable amount of time...unlike daffodils and tulips. Next on the agenda: Irises!

Storm's A-Brewin'

Today's weather has been interesting. Spring in Walla Walla is never boring - it's best to dress in layers because you never know what the rest of the day will bring - regardless of what the sky looks like when you get up in the morning. Today was no exception; sunny skies in the morning, then grey and overcast, then partly cloudy, then completely dark, then sunny again. And all of this with a constant breeze and bursts of strong winds. There's been a wind advisory in effect all day and it's scheduled to last until 8 p.m. We're used to that here, though...this is a windy valley. Hence the windmills that dot the hilly landscape to the west. Here's a shot of a Main Street corner earlier this afternoon. The wind was blowing, the temperature had dropped to something you'd want to wear a jacket in, and the threat of rain - actually, a downpour! - was intense. Surprisingly, hardly a raindrop fell. At least, so far. The sky was a beautiful grey, though. I just love stormy skies! The building, I believe, houses offices of some sort. I'm not really sure. It almost looks empty from the street. This photo is credited to my sister, who is a better photographer than I, and is my life-long photography buddy. We take driving trips just to take pictures. People probably think we're weird, but we get it from our mom. Mom likes to take trips to shoot photos of water features, churches, and old barns and houses. Thanks for the shutterbug, Mom!

The Last of Them

Well, these are the last of the 2009 tulips. They were slowly fading in an unused portion of our yard, so I clipped them and brought them inside to enjoy for as long as possible. They were a fantastic addition to the Sabbath table, that's for sure! The lilacs are even already dying, and they just finished blooming last week. Spring is way too short. And summer is entirely too long.

After the Rain

This morning I woke up to the sound of raindrops on the window and the roof. The sky was completely grey, and the mountains weren't visible. By the time I got to work, it was just about pouring, and the roads and sidewalks were covered with puddles. An hour later, the sky I could see from my window was completely blue - not one cloud visible - and the sun was blindingly bright. I hurried outside to take a picture of the beautiful lilacs I have outside my window, hoping I'd be able to get some good "raindrops on flowers" pictures. No such luck...but you can see at least one drop here, between the flower and the leaf. Yes, the lilacs have bloomed...and what a sweet scent they offer as a confirmation of springtime. I love these plants!

All In a Row

We visited one of the areas many parks today, in an attempt to get rid of some old bread. The ducks here are usually quite happy to accept handouts, but they must have been fed earlier in the day, because they couldn't have been less interested in the scraps we tossed them. These male mallards appeared to be an inseparable trio. Though I missed getting a photo of it, just before this, they were all standing the exact same way, just looking at the water, but eying us discreetly. Finally we got too close for comfort and they all three plopped into the water and quacked disapprovingly as they paddled away from the shore into the safety of the pond. Ducks are plentiful in this area, but the only kind we really ever see in the valley are mallards. The females aren't nearly as colourful - brown and black, for the most part. The only colourful part is a purple band under their wings that matches the bands shown on these males' wings. I think the only water bird more plentiful than these in this area are the Canada Geese.

Workspace Visitor

This morning as I was working at my desk, I kept hearing chirping and singing. It sounded quite close to my window, so I watched for a few minutes. I wasn't disappointed. Within moments, a small bird landed on the electric wires under the eaves. When it flew away I quickly turned the blinds so I had a better view, pulled out my camera, and waited. Shortly thereafter, another one landed. I managed to snap a few shots before it took off again. After consulting my bird-wise husband and the North American bird book we have, I determined it was either a Violet-Green or Tree Swallow. Can anyone identify it for sure from this photo?