Longhorns and Spring Flowers

Cavanaugh Flight Museum

Doug Graves at Abilene Regional Airport

Doug Graves thought about everything when he soldered the sculpture of three Longhorns. One holds a yellow rose -- and look at how cleverly he added the only color on the sculpture, other than oxidation -- in addition to a brand on its haunch of an capital A within a circle, plus his moniker on the other haunch. The sculpture shows dynamism and joy in the inanimate objects. Below, the sun's rays enhance the Longhorn's eyelashes by placing shadows beneath its eye. For an impressive photo of the whole sculpture (I ask you to go there because my own photo was dismal) visit the City of Abilene's web site at www.abilenetx.com. 

Herons and Baby Geese

Seabees Matt and Cory planned with BirdManBob the new aviary built specifically for Missi, Wild Bird Rescue's Avian Ambassador. Blind in one eye, Missi would die in the wild, so Lila requested the state to keep Missi alive at Wild Bird Rescue. See the link to Missi's blog at right for a glimpse into her every day life as an educational bird. 

Redwinged Blackbirds continue to visit the feeders at the center.

Female and male Cardinals, Redwinged and Yellow-headed Blackbirds share the seed with White-winged and Eurasian Collared Doves. 

The Great Blue Heron in the cove finally allowed me to walk close. I appreciated this because normally my photos of this heron look like the ones below.

After MyMrMallory cooked fish, chips, and Hush Puppies at the Kiowa Kooks cook-out for MSU's basketball supporters, I slipped away to watch the fledgling Canada Geese.

The sun had begun to set, but with strong rays.

Power Lines

MyrMrMallory came upon one of the parent Red-tailed Hawks this afternoon, lying dead underneath a power line, clutching a dead mouse. He looked upward toward the nest, and perceived no movement from the hatchling whose fuzzy white head we had seen peering over the edge a week ago. Power companies rectify this situation to prevent bird deaths.

Cloudy Skies and White Balance

Nice to have a morning sprinkle of rain. The clouds stayed overhead at 10,000 feet above ground level and looked beautiful enough to embellish some of the photographs I took yesterday. I set my white balance to 5000 K and then forgot about it until the sun began to shine in the late afternoon.

Bell tower of Midwestern State University framed by new foliage and awesome clouds.

Driving by Stevens' sculpture of the mustangs I had to grab this shot. The cloudy sky softened the lighting on the sculpture while the sprinkler system created a haziness that added interest to the landscaping.

May is Motorcycle Awareness Month. I wish every month was Motorcycle Awareness Month. Motorists, do look out for an increasing number of motorcycles sharing the roads with you. Motorcyclists, wear your helmets and ride safely.

Very difficult to see in this photo, but I know you'll believe me when I write that on the grass are two Yellow-headed Blackbirds. They are finally in town, and I was delighted to show MyMrMallory the beauty of their color. 

Speaking of color, Texas is still covered in great color. Several species of flowers grow and look gorgeous within a square foot. Here, Indian Blanket show off among Verbena and Coreopsis, among other species.

Plains Blackfoot -- the white bunch -- and is that a Bluebells plant standing behind it? 

Texas Bluebonnet, Indian Paintbrush, and the yellow flowers are Lemon Paintbrush.

Note the seed pods on the stem of the Texas Bluebonnet. 

The grass has grown tall and fast after a winter with abundant moisture, concealing cacti blooms. 

Josetta.

Piper Cub

iPhone image of a Cub in the hangar of Abilene Aero.

Cowtown Grab-shots

One of the things I like to do consists of "grabbing" images as we drive along the road. Here are some grab-shots along the way. . . of the old part of Fort Worth, Cowtown, the architecture of which remains a contrast to the city and its modern buildings.

Around two o'clock it became imperative to enjoy food at one of the many restaurants in the area. Texas Pit Bar-B-Q has some of the tastiest sandwiches I've had in a long time. Do stop there sometime soon.