The sun decided to come out and play yesterday morning. I resisted the (strong) temptation to pull the covers over my head and snuggle deeper into my pillow, and got up. I threw on some sweats and my newly-completed Jayne Cobb hat, grabbed the camera, and ran out the door for a short field trip down the road.It was colder than it looked outside. We do have a thermometer outside, but on days like this, I try not to look. I'm native to Southern California; thirty-two degrees to us is really cold. If I'd seen the thermometer, I probably would have gone back to bed and snuggled with the dogs.
As it is, I'm glad I got out of the house.
My fingers were getting stiff with cold, as I'd forgotten my gloves. I saw the glittering of frost on the little wooden bridge that would take me to the trails, so I stepped carefully. I could see my breath and unsuccessfully tried to blow some smoke rings.
A few hardy souls were out already, walking their dogs or jogging. I admired their ambition, since my only purpose was a short ramble to take some 
pictures. I could hear the honking of the geese and the quacking of mallards as they started their day.
I ran across this little goose as I stopped at a bench to change lenses. I'm pretty sure he's a hybrid (although I suppose he could be a juvenile. I'm not that great at identifying birds.), which are sterile geese. Interesting how Nature takes care of her breeding program.
This pic was taken in my backyard. I love how the frost makes the little diamonds on the rose leaf. I'm letting my roses go right now so they'll form hips. Come February or March, I'll give them a good pruning.
That's my field trip for today. I think it's funny that my buddy SpookyBlue said in his post yesterday that artists need to get out once in awhile. He was probably writing that as I was hauling my lazy butt out of bed. I guess great minds do think alike.
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Spring has sprung officially here in California. The ducks and geese have been here for the winter, and over the weekend, I had my first sighting of a mama and her chicks. Last week, as I was taking pictures of my latest skull, I heard quacking. Serious quacking. (I think she was saying, "I'm an eagle! I'm an eagle!")
Later that week, Mr. ShellHawk and I took the dogs out for a walk. We saw this little character chillin' in the shade of an oak tree. One day, I'll get up early and get some pictures of that oak. It's one of my favorites in the area.
I do love the Spring.
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