The clouds to the east reflect the Sanibel sunset sometimes more gloriously than the sunset itself. Might not get to see the moon tonight due to these buggers, but this is decent compensation in my book!
Category Archives: Photo Friday
Photo Friday: Sharp Focus
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Some more “messing around” with the macro focus on my Nokia N97. Man, I LOVE this phone 🙂
These are TINY flowers on a plant found at Bowditch Point Regional Park on Fort Myers Beach, Florida. The people we saw photographing these identified them merely as “heliotropium” so I had a tough time isolating it even with a bazillion books at my disposal. Finally found it at this site: www.regionalconservation.org/beta/nfyn/plantdetail.asp?tx… – and found it interesting that on the east side of South Florida, they are yellow, but here on the west coast, they are white, as pictured. So it’s actually a Pineland Heliotrope but I’ve also seen googled pictures identify it as a “seaside” heliotrope.
Photo Friday:Wilderness at Bowditch Point
© Copyright 2011 Erin | http://MyMobileAdventures.com | CLICK any photo for a larger view
For our first field trip, my Florida Master Naturalist class (Coastal Systems Module) went on a botanical exploration of a small wilderness located at the northern tip of Estero Island in the town of Fort Myers Beach, Lee County, Florida. This is Bowditch Point Regional Park, part of the Lee County park system. The site had been used as a repository for channel-dredged sand, and is consequently the highest point on the island at 22 feet. The land changed hands several times over the years until the County had the opportunity to purchase it in December 1987 for $5.75mm. Since that time, much effort has gone into the creation of a natural coastal habitat where native Floridian plants can thrive and wildlife can find refuge.
Our guide for this trip was Roger Clark from Conservation 20/20 here in Lee County. He was patient and knowledgeable and had a unique way of conveying information about a plant or animal; he’d first tell you some facts and attributes and THEN tell you the name. It was kind of like Jeopardy – first you get the answer, and then you get the question.
Roger had a field guide with him which he recommended to the rest of us – Florida’s Living Beaches: A Guide for the Curious Beachcomber. I stopped at Barnes & Noble on the way home and they had ONE left, so I quickly purchased it. I also found it on Amazon. The other book I like to use is the National Audubon Society Field Guide to Florida. It’s the typical slim, easy-to-pack-and-carry Audubon volume, and it’s great for just general identification while you’re out and about. I’ve got the paperback, which seems to be in short supply these days, so that’s a link to the hardcover edition.
I took quite a few photos, so I’ll be splitting it up into several posts. Here is the first installment – enjoy 🙂
Notice how specific this sign is – couldn’t be plainer. I’ve seen similar signs at all beaches in Lee County, yet I’ve also seen people violating this law 🙁 Most folks, however, are conscientious about it.
At the bottom of the “mound”, just where it meets the parking lot, there’s a nice little shady spot to sit and enjoy the view of Matanzas Pass. The word “matanzas” is Spanish for “killings”. History tells us that the indigenous people who once lived here, the Calusa, had a habit of paddling out to meet Spanish explorer’s ships while extending a special kind of welcome with the business-end of their spears. Indeed, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon met his fate from a mortal wound received at the hands of the Calusa. There’s speculation that Matanzas Pass is the place where a lot of these “welcome”-type activities occurred.
What do the gumbo limbo tree and the Florida tourist have in common? They are both red and peeling… ha ha ha ha ha 😉 Migratory birds like the fruit of the gumbo limbo tree. We’ve got lots of these trees here in Southwest Florida.
I was surprised to find out that palms aren’t really “trees”; they lack a vascular system. The smaller trees in the swale are pond apples. They were planted there because they can well tolerate having their feet wet.
Pond apples have compound leaves – more than one leaf attached to the same leaf stalk. The apples are edible by animals and humans but they don’t taste very good, I’m told.
The sea grape wants to be a tree! However, many people chop at them to keep them shrub-like. They are used in landscaping as hedgerows and borders. This one was allowed to be a tree. During this field trip, we found out that there are ANSI standards for pruning trees and that one should NEVER “top” a tree. ANSI standards? Who knew?!?!!
ANSI = American National Standards Institute
This Jamaica Dogwood is otherwise known as the Florida Fish Poison tree. Powder made from the tree can be used to stun fish, making them more easily captured.
We’re about to continue up the hill and catch a glimpse of some of the residents. OK, WAY more than a glimpse! Stay tuned – PART TWO of this field trip will be posted in a few days!
Photo Friday: SHADE in Orlando
© Copyright 2010 Tink *~*~*
http://MyMobileAdventures.com
The prompt for Photo Friday today is “shade”. There’s LOTS of shade in and around the theme parks in Orlando. Here’s just a taste… Continue reading Photo Friday: SHADE in Orlando
Looking very GQ
Mr. Henry Ford vogues for us
ADDED FOR PHOTO FRIDAY: Great timing – I just finished touring the Edison-Ford Winter Estates here in Fort Myers, Florida. Henry Ford is generally acknowledged as the father of modern manufacturing, having pioneered use of the assembly line for the making of his automobiles. This statue lives on the Ford winter estate in Fort Myers, Florida, where he lived next door to other luminaries of his time (no pun intended… well maybe just a little) such as Thomas Edison and Harvey Firestone.
For more pictures from this week’s tour of the Edison-Ford Estates here in Fort Myers, Florida, CLICK HERE
Photo Friday: Baloo Is A Primary Color
© Copyright 2011 Tink *~*~* | http://MyMobileAdventures.com
Baloo is a primary color… as are red and yellow 😉
Photo Friday: Breathtaking
© Copyright 2010 Tink *~*~*
http://MyMobileAdventures.com
For today’s “Breathtaking” Photo Friday, I’d like to share some sunsets I have known.
Above: EPCOT, Walt Disney World – October 2010
Above: “Two Ladies In The Harbor”, New York City – September 2006
Above: Sanibel Island, Florida – May 2009
Above: My backyard – January 2009
Photo Friday: Self-Portrait
© Copyright 2010 Tink *~*~*
http://MyMobileAdventures.com
This “self-portrait” was taken in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, while attending the Gartner Symposium in October of 2008. Love the red cement they use for the pathways in that park.
Here’s another, taken more recently – this time in the parking lot at EPCOT. Notice the big, floppy hat. A hat is a must-have for those of us with fair skin. So, why am I wearing it after dark? Why, to hide the “hat hair”, of course! April, 2010
Photo Friday: Trees
© Copyright 2010 Tink *~*~*
http://MyMobileAdventures.com
There are some wonderful flowering trees that bloom in the spring, just in time for Disney’s annual International Flower & Garden Festival at EPCOT. They bloom at varying times during the spring season. Here’s a sample from the front entrance of the park.
In May, you can see the jacaranda trees in bloom. Planted in clusters near the geosphere, their misty lilac color melts into the steely gray of Spaceship Earth. They smell heavenly 🙂 The bees like them even more than I do, so there’s an opportunity to observe them in the act of collecting pollen.
Here’s a closer view of the jacaranda blooms with the geosphere and the sky as a backdrop.
Just one month later in June, the jacaranda have already stopped blooming – but the crepe myrtles are now in full force. These vines have been expertly woven over time into beautifully shaped trees. These bright pink ones stand in stately rows alongside the Leave A Legacy monuments near the geosphere. I’ve seen white ones scattered throughout the park too, most notably by the French pavilion.
A closer view of the crepe myrtle blooms against Spaceship Earth.
Photo Friday: Human Form
© Copyright 2010 Tink *~*~*
http://MyMobileAdventures.com
Disney characters are always shape-shifting and morphing into and out of the human form. Take Prince Naveen, for instance. He’s a frog trying to get back into his prince’s body by kissing a girl, but ends up turning her into a frog, too. They have a terrible time trying to get back to their old selves. Then there’s Prince Adam, aka “The Beast” – he angered a beggar woman who was really a witch and she turned him into the beast he behaved like. Only true love would transform him back. And we cannot forget Pinocchio – poor kid, all he wanted was to be a “real boy”, and for a time it seemed like he’d have to settle for merely having no strings.
One of the best transformation-to-human-form stories in the Disney repertoire is that of Ariel, The Little Mermaid. There she is, minding her own business, and along comes a handsome prince to tempt her into wanting to be someone other than who and what she is. She wants FEET, she wants LEGS – and she trades her beautiful, precious voice to get them, just so that she can get to HIM. It’s kind of disappointing, in this day and age, to be faced with a beautiful, animated story filled with great tunes – and a princess who is SO willing to physically alter herself in order to get her man.
And so it was with a bit of trepidation that I purchased tickets for myself and my passel of nieces to see Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” on Broadway during the Christmas season in 2007. They adored the Disney film, especially the oldest, who’d had an Ariel fish tank when she was a toddler. It seemed like something that would please them all, so I took the plunge and ordered the tickets. Soon the day was approaching and I flew to NY for Christmas.
We had a nice day; we took the train from Long Island to Penn Station, walked up 7th Avenue, had lunch at Ruby Tuesday and then proceeded to the theater for our matinee performance. I was delighted with the additional songs, and the voices – especially that of Ariel’s wicked aunt Ursula, played by Sherie Rene Scott. But despite the added material, the story progressed much the same as it does in the film, with Ariel committing the Faustian equivalent of selling her soul for love by trading away her one true gift to the sea witch in exchange for a more human form.
During the last five minutes of the show, something remarkable happens. Disney diverges significantly from their original “Little Mermaid” film, delivering a happy ending that even a middle-aged feminist can get behind. In the film, Prince Eric destroys the enemy by running Ursula through with the prow of his ship. But in the Broadway show, Ariel saves herself. She finally gets angry enough at being manipulated, tricked and used by her aunt and decides to stand up for herself and her hapless father. This is no ordinary princess, waiting for the prince or Daddy or whomever to come to her aid. Back against the wall, she uses her brains, seizes control and destroys the enemy, saving EVERYONE, including her prince, her father, the kingdom – and herself.
Broadway Ariel rocks. I was glad I took the girls to see her 🙂
Photo Friday: Best Shots Of 2010
© Copyright 2010 Tink *~*~*
http://MyMobileAdventures.com
Photo Friday wants us to show our Best Shots of 2010. I think this shot of the moon is my best, but there were lots of others that made the also-ran list as I went through my Flickr account in search of treasures. So here they all are – bon appetite, and have a fabulous New Year! <3
Full Flower Moon
The Full Flower Moon rises over Gulfside City Park, aka “Algiers” beach on Sanibel Island. Thursday May 27th, 2010.
What are YOU lookin’ at?
Almost-grown osprey awaits the return of a parent with dinner. Lighthouse Beach, Sanibel Island, Lee County, Southwest Florida. May 2010.
The Fishing Dude
“The Fishing Dude” declares victory, June 13th 2010 (this is part of a series)
Sanibel Causeway Sunset
Some brilliant colors were seen on July 31st 2010
Sanibel Sunset Silhouette
A young tree silhouetted against the dramatic backdrop of a Sanibel sunset. September 12th, 2010
Heading Up The Rose Walk
Yellow rose in bloom, aken at EPCOT on October 25th, 2010 – WITH A CAMERA PHONE!
Dinner!
A great blue heron spears himself a meal from the pond in my back yard. October 10th 2010.
Frenzy On The Sanibel Causeway
Seagulls out of control on November 7th 2010. And I will give you the entire original rant that went with it:
“There’s a guy off-camera throwing gawd knows what at these beach birds. People, you should NOT feed wild animals! It makes them unafraid of people and they can become a nuisance or worse. Plus it makes them dependent on people for sustenance.
Don’t feed the animals unless it is dire circumstances (like, a blizzard, which is unlikely to happen here)
Sent from my Nokia N97”
All Aboard The Magnolia Blossom
Taken at Downtown Disney in Orlando, Florida on December 5th 2010. Love the drama of the darkening sky behind the cheerful blue and yellow boat docked in the sunshine.
The Big, Golden Ball
Big Golden Ball – December 1st, 2010. Really, it’s Spaceship Earth, the iconic geosphere at the entrance of Disney’s EPCOT theme park. Late-day sunlight glinting off the Big Silver Ball! (to quote an entry on Foursquare). Makes it look like The Big Golden Ball instead.
Healthy, Happy and Peaceful New Year To All 🙂
Photo Friday: Gathering
© Copyright 2010 Tink *~*~*
http://MyMobileAdventures.com
I quite forgot about “Photo Friday”, since I’m not really into the routine of it yet. This week’s prompt is GATHERING, and I’m offering a photo of folks “gathered” down by the lagoon in the World Showcase at EPCOT to view Illuminations, the nightly fireworks spectacular. Illuminations is all about GATHERING together and telling stories, about communicating the story of US, of humankind. As the narrator puts it each night –
“Good evening, on behalf of Walt Disney World, the place where dreams come true, we welcome all of you to Epcot and World Showcase. We’ve gathered here tonight, around the fire, as people of all lands have gathered for thousands and thousands of years before us; to share the light and to share a story. An amazing story, as old as time itself but still being written. And though each of us has our own individual stories to tell, a true adventure emerges when we bring them all together as one. We hope you enjoy our story tonight; Reflections of Earth.”
Photo Friday: Tranquil
© Copyright 2010 Tink *~*~*
http://MyMobileAdventures.com
I found a new (well, to me) weekly photo meme called “Photo Friday“, which gives a word prompt each week. This week is “tranquil” and since I’m a fan of Sanibel Island aka “paradise”, I figured I had lots of material from which to choose! So I’m playing along this week. Enjoy!