March 31 - The Drive to Work

Driving to work in the last few days has made me realize how beautiful it is here. This is just one of many scenic views on my drive. The castle in the foreground is Kronberg and the tower in the background is Frankfurt. This was taken on the way home in the early afternoon... the sun in the morning was even more amazing but, hey, I was running too late to get out and snap a pic. Maybe one of these mornings.

March 30 - Curly

No idea what this plant is... it grew up in the middle of our lawn (translation: mud pit) and doesn't appear to show any signs of spring. It sort of has a "Little Shop of Horrors" feel to it. Remind me to make sure the terrace door is locked before bed tonight.

March 28, 29

Today was a nice sunny day. Leif and I transplanted his bean and tomato plants to a larger outdoor container with some trellises to grow on. Yes, we WILL have tomatoes this season. You just have to believe. That is, if they survive the transplanting.

Today's shot is a macro of some tulips in a vase on the coffee table. I have been having a hard time getting the focus on macros right but the focus on this one looks good. This is pretty much straight off the camera.

Yesterday was a weird day for weather... rain, sun, cloud, clear sky... so Leif and I took a bike ride to get some shots of the weather. I got a few cool shots of the sky but this was my fave. I did some editing and like the kind of "old painting" look.

March 26 - The Dome in Frankfurt

I finally had a chance to get back into Frankfurt today... it was a cloudy, rainy day but I had a chance to wander around in the old city. You can see the Cathedral from anywhere in the old part of the city. It's gorgeous inside and out.

March 25 - Sir Leif the Pensive

After a long day of slaying dragons, Sir Leif the Pensive takes a break to reflect on a day of conquest. I guess the waterwings are in case he falls into the moat. Hey, safety first.

March 23 - Fields of Green

Our town is surrounded by farms. We can walk two blocks and be in the fields. It is delightful to see that bright, spring green again. Here, a horse is just heading for the barn. Good thing, because tonight it rained and hailed like crazy!

March 21, 22

March 22 - This sign is on the outside of a local art store. Kind of creepy, I must admit.



Yesterday, Leif and I made Oreo Chocolate Swirl Cheesecake... here he is multitasking... cleaning the mixer AND taste testing. This kid is going places!

March 19, 20

March 19 - What's your point?
I have been playing more with editing and also scrambling to find things to photograph. So, yes, this is a ballpoint pen. As this project goes on, I see that I am drawn to taking macro pics and have been enjoying taking everyday things and making them into something a little different.

March 20 - Twilight Daffodils - And yet another macro. Leif and I did a first run to the gardening center. As I have said, our yard is a huge mess and we have been working hard to get it ready for planting. These are the only flowers in the whole garden at this point... three little lonely miniature daffodils. Hopefully, the after pictures will be a little nicer!

March 18 - The Champagne Fountain

The town we live in is full of parks and every park has one or more fountain. It is a spa town and each fountain comes from a different natural source and boasts its own unique healing properties. I have tasted the water at some of them. And gagged. And then seen people filling up bottles at the fountains. Seemingly healthy, sane people. Makes you wonder.

This is the "Champagne Fountain". The water is actually down the steps about 2 metres behind the wide pillar. I really have no idea why it is called the champagne fountain. I mean, come on... all the signs are in German.

March 17 - Ha!

Nothing much today. Just a couple of goofballs and a camera. He thought I was taking a video so he was hamming it up supreme.

March 16 - The Island

Tonight, I took my camera to Leif's swimming class, hoping to get a nice shot of Falkenstein or some wildlife. When I went out the back door, there was loud splashing in the pond and what sounded like a poultry slaughterhouse. Turns out the ducks were mating. So, I took a nice little shot of the little house on the island in the middle of the pond. Who needs to see duck porn?

March 14 - This is not a hedgehog...

We spent a few hours cleaning up the garden this weekend... nice to see some signs of life. Leif found a couple of ladybugs and an earthworm (both of which I felt obligated to hold so as not to show him a fear of bugs). He was really excited for me to take some pics (and, yes, a video which I will save you the pain of seeing) of this little ladybug. I like the way the background works on this one and the depth of field works. Not perfectly focused but I found it difficult while he was moving.

And yes, he is not a hedgehog. But, we did see one today. I was trimming a huge, overgrown ivy that had taken over one small garden near the terrace when my hoe hit something hard. I thought it was another root that I needed to dig out so I pulled at it with my hoe. Here is what I turned up. Honestly, I had no idea what it was. Then, it moved slightly. Thorsten confirmed that it was a hibernating hedgehog.

I was so afraid that I had hurt it that I continued to work in the garden and check in on him every 5 minutes to make sure that he was still there and breathing. After a few hours, he started to stir, and slowly toddled off to find another spot to continue his nap. There appears to have been no damage... man, they are tough little critters!

March 14 - Petal Power

More tulips. And another macro. Not sure if it's a theme or a lack of creativity. But, I like the way the sun hit the flower in this one and made the leaves see-through, so I chose it.

March 13 - Keys

Leif was playing Pirate Treasure Hunt yesterday and decided that he needed a real key for his pretend treasure chest. So, he found all the keys for the interior doors in the house and collected them. Then, for a half hour, he ran around the house yelling, "Mommy, there is a treasure in here!" and unlocking all the doors. What a goombah!

Another macro shot.. perhaps that should have been my theme for March? I think it is a little overprocessed but I really wanted to emphasize the texture of the metal.

March 12 - The Victims

They were in the prime of their life. Fresh. Juicy. Sweet. And, now they are gone. Sad.

I am not happy with the focus (or lack of focus) on this one but it was the best of the worst shots I took today. It's pretty noisy, too. Again, I need to shoot when the daylight is better. And, I didn't have a chance to shoot them again because I ate them. Mmmmmm....

March 11 - Is it soup yet?

Ok, so we bought the seeds. We got our hands dirty planting them. We water them EVERY day. And, so far, not ONE tomato. I mean, it's been over TWO WEEKS!

I plan to wake up tomorrow and see a beautiful, shiny, red Beefsteak Tomato hanging on the vine. I did buy groceries just in case, though.

March 10 - Mayan Calendar

Well, my default pics seem to be macros. And black and white conversions. This one turned out well... it is a carved Mayan Calendar I bought in Mexico. For some reason, it just made its way onto the buffet this past weekend. We must be the slowest unpackers in the world! But hey, when you compare the time we have spent packing and unpacking to this ancient artifact, we are like Speedy Gonzales! Arriba!

March 9 - Sunset over Falkenstein

The last few Monday nights, I have noticed the scene outside Leif's swimming class. So, instead of standing around while he swam, I brought my camera. I was hoping to catch the crane that I saw once flying overhead.

If you click on it to see the whole picture, you can just see the Castle Ruins at Falkenstein in the bottom right of the pic. Honestly, the area we live in is so beautiful... every corner opens up an even more beautiful scene.

March 8 - Barbed Wire

Did you ever walk by something you have seen a hundred times and notice something new? Well, this barbed wire was on top of a fence we see all the time. Today was the first time I noticed the wire.

Barbed wire brings to my mind all kinds of horrific things. I wonder who they are trying to keep out. Or are they trying to keep someone in? There isn't really an interesting story behind this barbed wire... it is on the fence between the grocery store and the brewery. Hey, at least nobody was hurt in the making of this pic.

March 7 - Ivy

Today was a gorgeous day and I finally got around to picking up the stuff I had raked on the last gorgeous day... lol. The garden is coming to life! We have a cool arbor that is covered in ivy and I got a nice close-up shot of it while the light was good.

March 6 - The Constellation

Again, I was playing with metallic items. I am just enjoying trying different editing on them to see what I can get. I am really into the metal look with some high contrast.

March 5 - Petals

So, I have learned to take a default shot early in the day. Just in case the day gets away from me and I haven't taken anything yet. This is today's default shot. Technically impressive? No. Time-consuming? No. But, it sure is purdy!

March 4 - Spent

I was looking for something to do a little bit of a gritty edit on. Something metal. And, I have done a few shots lately (none made it for my 365) where the object is repeated and I wanted to combine all those things. So, I found a bunch of empty shell casings. Why they are in my house is beyond me. I'm a pacifist... a lover, not a fighter. Heck, I don't even fight gravity.

I like the shot but really wish I hadn't used the shell casings. But, it's too late now to shoot something else.

March 3 - Union Central

This sign is just around the corner from us. Thorsten says it is some kind of Union Centre for Handworkers. Honestly, I have no idea what it says... there is a letter missing AND it's in German. Could be a nightclub for all I know.

Anyway, the light was good today (finally a sunny day!) so Leif and I headed off with his bike to do some errands and I snapped some pics along the way. I really like the light in this one and the black and white just works with it.

March 2 - Sunset on the Hills

We bought Leif a new car seat today and he wanted to try it out. There are lots of days where we don't take the car out of the garage... we can walk to most places we need to go. But, he insisted that we try it out. So, we headed into the Taunus hills to Koenigstein, one of our favourite places. The sunset was gorgeous. And, apparantly, the car seat is good for sleeping.

March 1 - Castle Eppstein

Well, another weekend, another castle. We had visited Eppstein a few weeks ago but didn't venture near the castle. To our surprise, it was open and there was a great museum inside. The scenery was great and I took lots and lots of pics. Made it difficult to pick just one.

When we arrived, the sun was just behind the castle and the grey sky gave quite an ominous mood as the castle loomed above us. And, yes we climbed all the way to the top of the tower.