Two shots for the motion challenge. The first is a good shot of fireworks at a local festival and the other is of a pair of rooster pheasants having a major dispute over territry. Fireworks  pheasants_043 

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While out and about on Saturday afternoon I spotted this spiny soft shell turtle on the edge of the highway laying eggs in the soft sand. I had never seen this type of turtle before so I snapped a lot of photos so that I would be able to identify it. Its nose is especially different and so are the eyes with the line continuing through it from its neck. It also seems to have a tear in the one eye. Maybe laying eggs is a particularly difficult task for a turtle.

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I was out for a drive burning up some of my $4.00 per gallon gas late yesterday afternoon when I spotted this fungi growing on a maple tree in a pasture. The color was really bright so I crawled under the electric fence that was around the pasture and took some photos of it. Hope you like it too. It is called Chicken of the Woods I guess.

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Children can do some knotty things with rope.

On a recent trip to a horse show our grandson learned how to make his own rope and was very proud of the job that he did.

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In an answer to the current challenge I will make an attempt at being "punny". In ancient times, seagoing vessels were far more fuel efficient. They could get thousands of miles to the galleon.

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We had a nice variety of birds at the backyard feeder this past weekend. Here are just a few of the many photos that I managed to get. Hope you enjoy them. I really enjoy seeing all the birds come back in the spring and hearing all of their cheery songs once again.

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I stopped by this barn again on Sunday evening and took a few more photos using a different lens. I was able to capture more of the barn and its reflection along with a horse that was near the pond. Hope you enjoy this set.

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There is a small pond not too far from my home that usually has 6 or 8  turtles sunning themselves on a log. Turtles must have amazing eyesight though because when I try to get a photo of them they usually spot me right away and slip off the log into the water. I did manage to take a couple other photos so it wasn't a complete blowout.

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Some sure signs that Spring has finally arrived here in Minnesota. With warmer temps here at last we can venture outdoors without jackets once again. Next will come the bugs!!!

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Last Saturday I attended a Raptor Release event at Hyland Park Reserve in Bloomington with my 2 young grandsons. In addition to releasing some hawks they had on display many birds that could not be rehabilitated for release. Here are a couple of photos of the beautiful eagles that were there.

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Last Friday we had an eagle perched outside our patio door here at the Chaska site. It was a misty day with showers off and on. I took some photos of the bird in one of the trees and then he flew off to another location. As he flew away I managed to get a few more shots of him and was pleasantly surprised when I viewed them later. I think you will like this shot also.

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Chilly Robin April flowers bring.... April snow showers
Our only day of 70 degree weather in April last Thursday turned into snow by last Saturday morning with about 2 inches in our area and up to 18 inches not too far north of us. We are having a late start to spring with ice still covering many of the northern lakes and the robins, ducks, geese, and swans thorughly confused as to the time of year that it is suppose to be. As are the humans around here!!!

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Spotted this newborn lamb on my way to work and thought he might work really good for the current challenge.

Do you hear me now.....no? Must be Silence of the Lamb(s)

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With a little help (actually a lot of help!) from a friend, I think I have successfully re-entered the world of BCI photos and will attempt to join in this Challenge for Academy Award Best Picure titles. The first picture I have is for the movie Wings and I managed to capture this nice hawk circling above me this past weekend. The second photo of a pretty rose that I took at the Rose Garden in Duluth last summer goes to the movie American Beauty. And the third photo I've titled "Not Me!!!" goes to the movie Deer Hunter. Now that I have done this again I will try to do it more often so that I don't need to ask for help to figure out how to upload my photos.

Buck Lake Hawk Duluth Rose Garden Not Me!!!

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