Snow fell on Pennsylvania

Somehow that's just not as romantic as "Stars Fell on Alabama."

We are getting our first significant snowfall of the season--on January 25.

I was thrilled to get home at 5:30ish and still have enough light to take some photos. Here's the snowy driveway and neighbor Ed's backyard, with his magnificent barn and Egg Hill in the background:


Speaking of magnificent barns, did I show you this barn from down the road? It's a local landmark:

Around here, they sell postcards with pictures of this barn. I had one, but I mailed it to my parents; otherwise, I'd post it so you could compare. I think their photo was probably taken in the spring; I took the photo above on January 13, the same day I posted that kestrel sighting; I'd originally stopped in that area to take a picture of the barn, and the kestrel was a special lifer bonus.

One more forgot-to-post photo from days past:

I ran outside the other morning (though I would eventually end up being late to work--again) and took this photo. It was just after sunrise, and there were little spots like this all over the lawn. Is it where underground water has evaporated up and then frozen? The rest of the grass, as you can see in the photo, was frosted in a uniform fashion. These spots, however, were like miniature spiky worlds rising up from the rest of the lawn.

Back to tonight's photos:
I love the way thistles and pinecones hold on to their little tufts of snow--each tuft looks like a tiny blanket.

I filled up the feeders a little while ago (before taking pictures) after leaving them empty for two days because I ran out of birdseed. I emptied the 20lb. bag of birdseed that Santa brought me for Christmas. Hmm--it's Jan. 25; I guess that's not really too bad. I had been trying to ration it out a little lately because I knew I wouldn't be able to get to Wiscoy's, but even if it only lasts 20 days, that's still less than 50 cents a day.

Given the number of birds coming to the feeders now, I imagine that if this snow sticks and we get even more (which is by no means assured during this crazy winter), I'll need to fill the feeders daily instead of every other day. I'm definitely replacing the suet blocks more often, as I now get at least four woodpeckers who make quick work of the blocks. It's exciting to see more and more of them at one time. I still need to go out and find a pileated woodpecker, but the downies, hairies, and red-bellies are always neat to watch.

I should tell you that I'm trying to save (secretly--don't tell Kat!) for a higher-end camera! I LOVE my Coolpix, and for my meager skills, it's a great fit. However, I feel like I'm getting better at photography, and I want to be able to adjust f-stop, ISO, etc. instead of just pointing and shooting on automatic.

I guess I should admit that I'm, well, dazzled by the idea of getting a big Canon like Lillian Stokes has, one that takes 10-megapixel photos, allows you to adjust f-stop and ISO and the rotation of the earth and all that. I would like to someday take the kind of photos you can blow up and frame. I must also admit that this dazzle-ment only started when Bill of the Birds and Julie Zickefoose started talking about their new higher-end cameras, and how great the cameras are, and other cool stuff like getting photography lessons from Lillian Stokes! The Lillian Stokes of book, CD, binocular, birdfeeder, and everything else birdy fame! On a side note, the Stokes field guide I have was designed by Barbara Werden, who was the art director at Taylor Trade Publishing in Dallas back in 200-2002, when I was the managing editor. It's so cool to look at the Library of Congress CIP page and see the name of someone I know. Not to get off on a tangent, but god, I loved that job. And I loved working with Barbara--she was incredibly talented, and I learned a lot from her.

Back to the present: so I'm trying to make some extra money to get a camera. As I'm not really much of a saver, I'll be lucky to make it to the $500 mark, but that should get me a good Canon, depending on what I can find on Amazon. There are just so many other things to spend money on, like house renovations, food and clothing, and other such essentials of my daily life. Still... I really want a higher-end camera. I guess I'm just never satisfied.