We had a huge thunderstorm roll through central Texas night before last, with damaging winds and hail. The evidence was all over campus, and the only camera I had on my was my phone.

Windmill I took this picture a long time ago and it's a scan, so its not the best quality. And... A Candle

Some more flowers from my garden.

Yellow hibiscus (I know the focus is off, but I think I like the light...)

Before: Hibiscus

After: Hibiscus

Framed Morning glory

Blue

The flowers in my garden have been blooming for the last couple of weeks and they're really beautiful this year. I took a lot of pictures so I'll present them in segments

Yellow Daylily anthers

Hibiscus anthers

Morning Glory

Yellow hibiscus

 

 

The rainforests of Central America are a sight to behold indeed. They are home to a greater diversity of plant and animal life than any other region in the world. That in mind, I thought I'd share some of the beautiful sights from my trip last summer; we certainly don't see anything like it around here.

Nature Rules! (ROCK, I hope you don't mind if I borrow your signature for this one!)

The Volcano Arenal billowing smoke and gas

Thaos Swallow-Tail butterfly 

Silhouetted Spine-tailed Lizard or Black Iguana

The Pacific Coastline

Shrimp flower

 

 

 

As summer approaches, I'm finding it harder and harder to focus on my work. I wind up daydream about all the places I could be, so I thought I'd post pictures from some of the places I've been and would love to go back to.

A view of the Pacific from the Costa Rican Jungle.

Banana palm silhouette

Bell flower in the garden

A butterfly that decided to take a ride on my brother's shoulder.

Some more blue for the blue challenge...

This shot was actually taken with my iPhone as I was driving to Oklahoma over winter break through my very first iBlizzard

Flugtag is an absolutely awesome event put on every year by Red Bull. Last year it was held in Austin where participants plunged themselves into Town Lake. It was a blast.

Thanks for looking!

So I got come excellent criticism about my latest bluebonnet shot and I wanted to post a different shot that maybe captured the flower and the theme better. Let me know what you think. Thanks for looking!Bluebonnet

Blue is my favourite colour!!

Bluebonnets in the Spring.
At a bar called Treasure Island on 6th street in downtown Austin, they have a special drink called the Flaming Dr. Pepper. The bar tender places shots of tequila staggered on half-pints of beer and lights the whole thing on fire (including the bar) and the flames are put out when the shots are immersed in the beer and you drink the whole thing at once!

I was clearing an old memory card when I came across these pictures from last fall and winter and I thought I'd do a little before and after of the harvest. For those of you who aren't familiar with cotton farming, here's a short explanation... After the cotton has bloomed and boled out (which unfortunately I don't have any pictures of) it is harvested and poured into a module builder. A Module builder is a huge machine that packs the cotton down into large bails so it can be taken to the gin. These last 2 are other pictures from the fall. A very large garden Spider wrapping up her prey (a grasshopper).
And Pecans growing on the tree before they are ready to be picked.

Last summer my best friend and I were fortunate enough to get to go to Paris for graduation from college. Here are just a few shots from our trip.
The Eiffel Tower at dusk.
Part of the fence leading up to the Grand Trianon at the Palace at Versailles.
Bell Flowers in the garden at Versailles.
The gorgeous island village of Mont St Michel.
The lights of the Eiffel Tower.

Sunset after a storm.
Another Sunset view.
Dinner bell hitchhiker.
This isn't really related to spring, but I took it a couple of days ago and I thought the smoke  looked kind of cool.

Window in the Dauphin's Rooms at the Palace of Versailles.
Window at Le Mont St. Michel in Normandy.
Window of the mill house at the Versailles Farm.

 

Recently I was fortunate enough to get to visit this beautiful and vibrant country with surprises around every corner.

Monkeys on our hike through the rain forest.
Some of the most beautiful flora I've every seen:
Orange Paradise
Red and yellownectar pods emerging.
And a quiet kayaking trip  through the rainforest  

Spring in Texas is always a beautiful site. The wildflowers  are in full bloom with a spectacular spectrum of colors. The state flower, the Bluebonnet is the state flower of Texas, famous for it's vibrant blue, its unique shape and it's ability to consume entire fields. Spring is also the perfect time to visit Big Bend National Park. The Big Bend of The Rio Grande shapes the Southwest border of Texas. The desert flowers and cacti are in in bloom and in the evenings, the clouds roll in over the mountains. Texas has many beautiful sites, like fields of Miniature Horses, roadside park ponds with Tufted Duck families, or early morning fog listing in the pecan orchard.