Happy 50th, Louise & Tom

Last evening, family and friends got together to celebrate the 50^th wedding anniversary of Louise and Tom Cini. This shot shows them entering the patio of their daughter’s home, not yet fully aware of all who were there to greet them.

Updraft

The actions of clouds fascinate me. Last evening, I could visualize the vertical force of the wind building this cloud into a possible thunderhead later in the evening.

Evening Storm Shielding Sunset

This evening, storm clouds brewing in the western sky are pierced by the rays of the setting sun.

Sailboat at Sunset

While we were touring Lake St. Louis last Saturday at sunset we spied this cabin sailboat off our starboard.

Lake St. Louis Sunset

This was the scene yesterday evening as we returned from a nautical tour of Lake St. Louis hosted by our good friends, Dan and Jean O’Connell.

Sweet Sign of Spring

These beautiful Rambling Roses greet all who come to our front door.

Canopy of Trees

On warm, sunny days, it’s pleasant to walk in the shade of the trees covering West Aspen Circle Drive. This is the view on our return from Geneva Cove.

Serene May Day

 Our balcony view of Lionshead Beach at Lake Aspen on a sunny afternoon in May.

Loo at the Lake

Discreetly hidden in the woods at the intersection of Lionshead Beach Drive and Lionshead Drive is this public convenience. On major summer holidays at Lake Aspen, it is joined by a number of others that are far more public.

Innsbrook Stonehenge

In the meadow in front of Innsbrook condo buildings four and five rests this semi-circular arrangement of monoliths, perhaps not as old as the Neolithic period.

Monday, Monday

Woke up this morning to another dreary, rainy day in Innsbrook. The rain gauge in our garden registers 4½ inches of rainfall for these past seven days. However, the weather bureau is forecasting two sunny days for this week.

Taps

Looking at this sunset, I could almost hear the sound of taps in the distance: the end of a perfect day.

The Rain Must Fall

Last evening, this big black pall covered Lake Aspen, presaging the deluge that would come late that night. By morning the downpour had filled two inches of our rain gauge.

One Fine Spring Afternoon

This is a shot taken yesterday of the meadow in front of our condo. An aged crop of rocks grows in the meadow, covered by the bright blue sky with soft white clouds and surrounded by the green of the lawn and trees which line either side of the ribbon of asphalt leading to the Geneva Center and on to Lake St. Galen beyond.

Aspen View

This is the view of the villas at Lake Aspen that greets us each time as we reach the crest of the hill on Lionshead Beach Drive.

Rainbow in the Morning

Awhile back, after seeing a rising golden sun in the east trying to pierce the heavy downpour early one May morning,  I looked out front to see this multi-colored rainbow arching across whole western horizon – so large that I was able to capture only one-half of the rainbow at a time.

  

Afternoon Moon

A branch of a large Northern Pine points to a first quarter moon in the bright afternoon sky to the west of our condo.

Boat on the Black River

We saw this colorful boat tied up along the shore of the Black River in South Haven, Michigan, during one of our vacations there.

Clouds’ Illusions 2

Look at these high, thin clouds. What do you see?

Lake Aspen Dawn

I awoke at 5:30 this morning to view this scene from our balcony.

Sunrise through the Rain

My photo of this scene, taken through the pouring rain at 6:30 this morning, doesn’t do it justice. The sky was a bright gold when I first saw it, and it painted a bright rainbow against the whole darkened, western sky in front of our condo.

Misty Sunrise

One of the pleasures of living on Lake Aspen is its beautiful sunrises created by the sun’s light rising from behind the trees and reflecting through the mist on the placid water.

Sunset Silhouettes

One recent April evening, I walked out our front door to see this serene scene of trees darkly silhouetted against  this beautiful sunset.