French Old Wooden Treasures~

On October 30, 2017October 30, 2017 By cindy knokeIn Conservation, EXTERIOR & INTERIOR DESIGN, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, TRAVEL REVIEWS201 Comments

The Alsatian Museum in Strasbourg France is located in three adjoining homes built in the 1600’s.

All the homes have inner courtyards with multi-storied covered walkways.

We stayed in the Hotel Corbeau nearby that was similar in style and built in 1528.

The museum homes are filled with over 5000 artifacts depicting everyday life.

Hand carved and painted woodwork is especially charming as you see in this very cozy bed.

Flour mill spouts attest to the emphasis placed on artistry in everyday living.

Many homes of this era contained family businesses like this old pharmacy.

This typical traveling prayer case demonstrates both faithful devotion and an artistic sensibility.
Cheers to you from the old wooden treasures of France~

Dear Sierra~

On October 24, 2017October 27, 2017 By cindy knokeIn Conservation, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, TRAVEL REVIEWS, Wild Life227 Comments

This dear came up so close that I temporarily lost focus!

Deer clearly have the right of way in the High Sierra. The doggie seemed too stunned to bark!

Kind people, and dogs, yield to them, and they seemed to expect this from us, smart dears.

We could have easily touched them, but didn’t.

They fawns even nursed in front of us, but I spared you the photo because it was mostly fawn tushy!

They have such a pretty home,

and it is quite an honor to share it with them.

The photo below is Devil’s Postpile which was created about 100,000 years ago from lava flow and is made of basalt. Glaciers later carved and polished the stone towers which are up to 600 feet tall. Devil’s Postpile is a 798 acre National Monument established in 1911 that hopefully will remain a monument and protected. It is transected by both the Pacific Coast Trail and the John Muir Trail.

Cheers to you from the dear-deer in the Eastern Sierra~

Shy Guys~

On October 18, 2017October 22, 2017 By cindy knokeIn Birds, Conservation, HOLLER HAPPENINGS, MY PHOTOGRAPHS, REVERIES, Wild Life228 Comments

Check out some of The Holler’s shy guys like this very skittish Yellow Breasted Chat.

Black Phoebe’s are some of my favorite birds.

They sleep under our porch roof all year and will not budge from the perch in winter. It’s too cold to move!

They are avid people watchers.

Acorn Woodpeckers are extremely shy at The Holler, and hard to capture, because they have large oak groves to select acorns from and rarely bother to visit the feeders.

They always seem to know where I am before I do!

Mockingbirds only visit the bird baths on very hot days.

This Scrub Jay is worse for wear. It looks like something, probably the Roadrunner, grabbed him by the neck.

But he got away and recovered, helped by copious quantities of Holler seeds.

Spotted Towhees are very rare Holler visitors.

And then of course we have very shy Squirrely who thinks he’s a bird.
Cheers to you from The Holler shy guys~