Thursday 29 December 2011

A Morning Jaunt

In recent weeks I have been going for walks in the parks, again. 

And it feels great! 

If I set out early in the morning, it is possible to get my dose of nature for a few hours.  By the time the crowd starts milling in, I would be ready to leave anyway.

It's been great to resume my rendezvous with the dragonflies!

Caught this pair of Orthetrum sabina in wheel on one of those mornings!




The sun had just come up behind these dragonflies..



Love them!
And I love mornings like these!




Saturday 24 December 2011

Mangrove Pit Viper

After all these years of kayaking in the mangroves and looking at these snakes hundreds of times, I have finally gotten a shot of the Mangrove Pit Viper, Trimeresurus purpureomaculatus.

And I have only this one photo.....



This viper grows to a length of about 105 cm only and it is actually a rather small snake, so don't be deceived by the perceived size of the snake in this photo, which had also been cropped a little.

On this particular morning, a total of three Mangrove Pit Vipers were spotted, two of which were within 2 meters of each other though the third viper was some distance away.

I had with me a camera with only 5.0x optical zoom and wishing I had 50x zoom!




Monday 12 December 2011

My Potted Plants


I am very well aware that the full moon affects me in many ways...

With the lunar eclipse this past Saturday, I could almost be going crazy with energy! 
And I have certainly been feeling restless for a few days with all the energetic vibes from the full moon.


This photo was taken on Saturday evening just before the full lunar eclipse.
It won't make "photo of the year" but at least I did manage to get one decent photo.


Anyway, there has been some major renovation works downstairs that's been going on like forever!  Since then, layer upon layer of fine dust have coated my car and my plants.  Then, the contractor started painting the walls this week.  When I got home on Friday afternoon after a kayak trip in the mangroves, I realised the doors have been whitewashed.  Out of nowhere, it clicked in my head that this could only mean one thing - no more dust!

Feeling energetic,  I got out a bucket and sponge and washed my car. 
When that was done, I scrubbed my front stoop and stairs. 

Early the next morning, out came another bucket and a smaller sponge.
Then I practically spent over an hour wiping the caked dust off almost every leave on all my potted plants. 


Here's looking at the lacklustre leaves with a layer of dust covering its surface.



After the sponge job, I even used a tissue to wipe the remaining residual dirt off the leaves.  Now you can see a nice sheen on these leaves.



Did the same for the Birds' Nest Ferns too....



These plants need to breathe as well. 
All those layers of dust on the leaves would have been choking the plants, reducing its efficiency at photosynthesis. 
Now that these leaves can breathe easy, I know that I will breathe better too! 

Thanks to the moon!

Call me crazy.
Maybe even peculiar or eccentric, for doing what I did spending hours cleaning those leaves. 
Or perhaps, more aptly, loony or a lunatic!
But..... who cares?  What matters is that I do think the plants appreciated it!

Anyway, have you ever wondered how the words 'loony' and 'lunatic' came about?




Saturday 10 December 2011

The Siamese Cat....

It's been quite a while since I started feeding this cat. 

Yet, till today, I do not have a name for him, except for the fact that I refer to him as the Siamese Cat.  After all, he does not exactly belong to me and I don't think he belongs to anyone else either.  He probably goes around to various houses in the neighbourhood according to his whims. 

At least, that is what I think!

Anyway, after he has had his brunch at my place this morning, he went about his own business as usual.  But this time, I chanced upon him playing in the gutters and managed to get a snapshot of him.




After that, he decided to stay nearby and slept just outside of my door the rest of the day...



It is always nice to hear his greetings when he meows at me as I walk up the steps when I get home in the afternoons! 



Wednesday 7 December 2011

In The Mangroves..........

It is already December.....  time really flies!

The last time I went out looking for dragonflies back in October had been rather disappointing.  Since then, I have been tied up with work and various other commitments such that dragonfly "hunting" trips have been pushed to the back seat.

It's been a few months.  And yet, there in the back seat it still sits!

Now that we are in the midst of the school holidays, I have put off going to any of these parks and ponds as I do realise that the last thing I will find during this busy period is peace of mind.  So why put myself up for more disappointments?

Fortunately for me, I can get close to nature at my work place and that has certainly kept me sane.  This is where I go on my kayak trips in the mangroves, several times a week, each week!




Yes, lucky me!