Wet and Aggressive Corella challenges Magpie

Wet and Aggressive Corella challenges Magpie

Sunday 9 July 2017

Sunday Selections #335

Sunday Selections was originally brought to us by Kim, of Frogpondsrock, as an ongoing meme where participants could post previously unused photos languishing in their files.
 
The meme is now continued by River at Drifting through life.  The rules are so simple as to be almost non-existent.  Post some photos under the title Sunday Selections and link back to River.  Clicking on any of the photos will make them embiggen.
 


Like River I usually run with a theme.  This week?  Early morning.  And I think the early morning is beautiful.  Dawn is a gentle time of the day here and there is frequently a layer of cloud lying in the valley beneath us.















Much as I appreciate the soft pinks, and greys I do think they are a bit incongrous.  Our mornings are chilly at the moment - always in the negative and the colours somehow seem too soft for the temperature.    Which might just be me.

163 comments:

  1. Your pictures are beautiful. The hour exceeds me. Too fond of a warm bed! :-)

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    1. Joanne Noragon: My eyes roll back early. And the beauty of the dawn in a bonus.

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  2. It looks like frost in the valley, EC. Beautiful!

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    1. Marie Smith: At the moment, there almost certainly is frost in the valley. Not this morning. An exception. At seven we are already in positive temperatures.

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  3. Is it Sunday already? time flies, lovely photos the winter sky is so sublime

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    1. Linda Starr: It certainly is Sunday. Early(ish) but Sunday just the same. Enjoy your weekend.

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  4. I love this sweet essay by your eye!

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    1. Cloudia: What a lovely way to put it. A photographic essay...

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  5. You're in the perfect spot to capture the blanket of clouds below. Very mysterious looking, not being able to see what's beneath. I love your dawn photos... since I'm not a dawn person and will rarely witness it firsthand!

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    1. River Fairchild: I love the dawn - which is just as well because I seem to have no choice but to see it. And I am a fan of mystery as well.

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  6. I love early mornings. Of course it is summer here but I am out very early to avoid the heat and usually am bathed in pinks

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    1. Sue in Italia/In the Land of Cancer: It is a lovely time of day isn't it? Quiet and often beautiful. And in our summer a relief from the later bake.

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  7. and I love your themes. Wonderful photos

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    1. Author R. Mac Wheeler: Thank you. Skies and cloud are always a joy.

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  8. They are very soft colours and as I look out our windows this morning, so are ours, with grey clouds and a little clear sky in soft pinks. I feel sorry for people who never see the day dawn.

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    1. Andrew: Have you noticed how often day dawns in galah colours? The soft pinks and greys of that ubiquitous bird. And yes, dawn is a treat. It might originally have been forced on me, but I have grown to love it.

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  9. Driving along the top of this plateau a couple of times during the week when paying a visit to the supermarket the view across the valley below was beautiful. The area was shrouded in low hanging cloud. It was like a sea of cotton wool.

    I hope the week ahead treats you and yours kindly, EC. Cuddles to Jazz. :)

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    1. Lee: I can just imagine the view from the plateau. Blissful.
      A wonderful week to you and your furry overlords too.

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  10. A delight! The sky is speaking to us...it's saying, "Look, I brought cotton candy!"

    :)

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    1. Sandi: The sky often speaks to me. Fortunately, not usually about cotton candy, which I think is our fairy floss (something which makes my teeth ache just thinking about).

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  11. Definitely the best time of the day - dusk is lovely too, but early mornings are better, especially when they look as beautiful as they do here. The greys and pinks are gorgeous colours (yes, galah colours!) but they do look cold.

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    1. Alexia: I am a total convert to dawn. I love the quiet, the emerging birds, and the light. But dusk has its charms too.

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  12. I slept in this morning...light was beginning to show through palm fronds at 6am when I left my bed...

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    1. dinahmow: A rarity. I suspect you were v busy in the small hours to sleep that late.

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  13. Beautiful sky to distract us from the frosty mornings.
    Ditto from me on what everyone above said.

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    1. Ann ODyne: Lovely to see you here. I have been enjoying the frost - and the skies. I hope you are doing well.

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  14. It looks cool. As we are in the nineties today, cool looks really, really good right now.

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    1. Alex J. Cavanaugh: Cool is good. We have not reached double figures today, and may not. I hope you get some relief from the heat.

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  15. Such lovely photos of a frosty sky.

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  16. Like Joanne, I get up early, but rarely at the break of dawn. The weenies always wake me up. I wish I did get up early though. My husband is up at all hours. If he wakes up at 1 or 2 in the morning, he'll get up.

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    1. donna baker: I am usually up well before dawn. My partner is a late owl, and often gets up six hours or more after I do.

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  17. Hey Sue,

    You caught the gentle morning time very well in your wonderful photos. I often take Penny for works as the dawn of the new day beckons.

    Thank you for the photos.

    Gary

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    1. klahanie: It is a lovely time of day isn't it? I hope you and Penny find and keep that early morning gentleness.

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  18. Thank you for these lovely pictures and sharing your thoughts

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  19. It's summer here and the sun comes up really early.... so I don't often see colours of the dawn sky!

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    1. Shammickite: Our summer sun is up considerably earlier too. However chronic insomnia means I see it too.

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  20. I love early morning skies and yours are spectacular! Happy weekend and hugs.

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    1. e: I love them too. Our sunsets are often more spectacular but there is a charm to the gentle opening of a day. Hugs to you and Jacob too.

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  21. I like the pictures! Very much.
    :)

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  22. I love your early morning shots. I am never out of bed before 10am, I don't think I have seen an early morning more than a couple of times in my life.

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    1. Karen: I suspect you are up much later than I am. The early morning thing was forced on me by chronic insomnia, but I have grown to love it.

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  23. I always love to see the twin sisters (trees) and yet my favourite today is the sixth picture; there is something wonderful about the composition of that one! I love pink and grey skies, so all of these are beautiful to my eye. And I rarely see the sun rise, so it's good that someone is out there taking photos :)

    I do hope your cold weather has not already peaked ... will you have more below-zero temperatures?

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    1. jenny_o: The cold weather certainly hasn't peaked. We didn't get to double figures today and most of next week will start below zero, and some days well below. Which is fine. The early morning skies have been a delight too.

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  24. that little bit of down caught on a branch looks so very soft, some lucky bird will snaffle that for his nest.
    I love the photo where the soft pinks have brightened and a couple of the ones with the cloud lying in the valley could almost be snow.

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    1. River: The cloud lying in the valley often does look like snow - though when we do see it, it is usually higher up. And with luck there will be some snow on the hills next week. There is lots of down caught on trees and I do think of the birds which will line their nests with it.

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  25. EC The sky is great in my country this kind of sky is common in the winter, too. Love

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    1. Gosia k: How nice to hear that you get these beautiful skies too.

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  26. Beautiful photos! For forty years I left home before sunrise and went to work. Now, 8 years into retirement, I am charmed by these reminders that there is such a time of day. My admiration for those who photograph the dawn --you and my wife-- is sincere and heartfelt.

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    1. Geo.: Thank you. To be linked with your wife's photographic skills is an honour I appreciate.

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  27. it is usually the best time of the day. still quiet,not many moving yet, and the excitemenet of the sun rising to another day. Images are beautiful. Thanksso sharing

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    1. Margaret Adamson: I agree about it being the best time of the day - and usually the most peaceful.

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  28. How magnificent sunrise. You live high while you have beautiful views of the valley.
    That's where it's worth wake up "too" early. You see so extensively the landscape.
    Have a nice day.

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    1. orvokki: We aren't very high, but I do love looking down the valley. So much.

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  29. Hi EC - they are a cold pink aren't they ... looks chilly - the grey clouds ... whereas here in summer ours are apricoty pink with peachy clouds around - I am so glad I'm not cold! I know you love your cold days though ... cheers Hilary

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    1. Hilary Melton-Butcher: It is chilly, but lovely. And later in the day if there are no clouds the bright blue skies can be frigid. I do love it though - as you know.

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  30. Thats the sun making its presence seen before its grand entrance. I guess it takes a while to warm up even when the sky is calm and awesome.

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    1. Spacer Guy: The sun comes up gently in winter, but in summer she roars in. And heats up fast.

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  31. Dear EC
    Nature always surprises and delights. More lovely photos for us to enjoy.
    Best wishes
    Ellie

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  32. I know what you mean about the sky not matching the temperatures. The skies are pretty but the cold is brutal.

    I see you are often out of bed six hours before the other half, I don't know how you do it, I itch for company and wake someone after a couple of hours (but only if I know they have had a decent sleep)

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    1. kylie: My introverted self loves the peace and the solitude. It also allows me to get my head in order for the coming day. More or less in order.

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  33. I love dawn. And dusk. My favourite two "Ds" of the day. :-) Beautiful photos.

    Greetings from London.

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    1. A Cuban in London: I am a big fan of both too. And also partial to another D - dinner.

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  34. Lovely images but I'm glad we rarely see a frost nearer the coast. I had more than enough of frosts in my younger days when I lived closer to the mountains.

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    1. Anna: I don't think I have ever lived anywhere which didn't get frosts. Sometimes brutal frosts. I think they have become part of me now.

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  35. I love your early morning photos, especially the 4th one from the bottom. I find the early morning so relaxing and peaceful. Such beauty.

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    1. Mason Canyon: I am so with you on the peaceful and relaxing front. I am frequently up before the rest of the street (and the house) and revel in the quiet time. And the beauty when the sun finally joins me.

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  36. Beautiful pics. I also love the dawn. Here in MN, in the winter, the clearest days are often the coldest.

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    1. Mary Aalgaard: Welcome and thank you. Clear and cold is almost a given in the winter months here. Do you have a blog where I can find you?

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  37. I love early morning pics too but can almost never seem to get up early enough to take them! It's lovely and summery here *sigh*

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    1. mshatch: Enjoy your summer, as I enjoy our winter. The seasons will turn for us both soon enough. Sigh.

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  38. Oooh~ Pretty. Even before I read your comments, the pictures made me think of a chilly dawn, frost on plants, and an all around brisk morning.

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    1. Robert Bennett: Definitely frost on plants. And lawns. Brisk and beautiful.

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  39. I like the delicate pink clouds in the photo before the one of the white puff caught on a branch. What is that anyhow?

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    1. Strayer: The white puff is a piece of down. A cockatoo or corella shed it - and there are pieces of it all through the garden.

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  40. The only way I'll ever see early mornings is in your photos!!

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    1. fishducky: The same is almost true of my partner too. Sometimes I wake him early (for ballooning), but mostly early mornings is a time he doesn't see.

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  41. Those pink and grey hues make the sky so beautiful. Glad I don't have to feel the cold. Have a great week!

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    1. Myrna R.: We had a similar beautiful (and chilly) dawn this morning. I hope your week is warm and lovely.

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  42. Perfect. Perfect. Perfect. Though, you're right. The sky doesn't suggest cold weather.
    Enjoy:)

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    1. Sandra Cox: Thank you. And I am glad to hear that someone else doesn't think of pink and grey as 'cold' colours.
      Treey Stynes: Nature is the best artist isn't she?

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    2. EC - you could say that.

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    3. Treey Stynes: I am awed by her each day.

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  43. Dusk and dawn seem to have the most interesting light and sky color. Lovely captures!

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    1. Jono: I love both of those times - and associate them with beauty and peace.

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  44. When I was able to take photographs I had 2 professional cameras to use. These were very expensive and took great pictures. EC would have been very much at home with them. She takes great photos already.

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    1. Treey Stynes: Thank you so much. My camera is essentially a point and shoot and deserves a lot of the credit. Some day I will branch out and explore photography more.

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  45. Beautiful.
    How are you, dear?
    Kitty Kat?
    Life?
    hubby? xx

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    1. My Inner Chick: We are all muddling along quite well. How about you and yours? Hugs.

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    2. myinnerchick: Good. Very good.

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  46. Dear EC, for me that color has always reminded me of the blush of apricots--my favorite fruit. I can see though that it's not the chill of the weather and so seems strange. I think of it as the sky in August in Minnesota.

    Your pictures reminded me of a book I read long ago on the spires of Oxford. There was a photo on the cover of those spires and behind them were the apricot clouds. Peace.

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    1. Dee: I love apricots - and the sky. And have heard and read so much about the Oxford spires that I almost feel I have seen them for myself.

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  47. Yes beautiful photos - my favourite is the one that looks like a fluffy feather caught in a branch. Is that what it is or is that the plant itself? I like the pattern of the branches.

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    1. Angela: It is indeed a piece of down. Cockatoo or corella down. They are both here daily, and feathers and down decorate the lawns and the trees.
      I am fond of the intricate traceries that are tree branches - concealed in summer and in elegant display over winter.

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  48. Your skies are stunning EC. We are trying to get out more in the early light or when the sun sets, instead of taking photos in the glare of the day. Ones taken at those other times always seem so much clearer.

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    1. Denise inVA: I think the light at the start and the end of the day is sweeter - and makes for better photos and for me at any rate a better state of mind.

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  49. Your pink and blue sky reminds me of mine the other night. The difference is it is warm here, I don't usually associate cold weather with soft hues.

    How are the birds doing?

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    1. Truedessa: As I said, I think the soft skies are an odd juxataposition with cold weather, but they are repeated that was day after day.
      The birds are hungry and lovely. We have hand fed king parrots and a cockatoo today.

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  50. I learning to enjoy the early mornings in this house more and more, before everyone else wakes up. I love your pastel coloured shots.

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    1. LL Cool Joe: Time alone is essential isn't it? Quiet time. Peaceful time.

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  51. I love your early morning pictures. As a morning person myself, I appreciate it at any time of the year. That picture of a feather is especially lovely. I am always amazed when I get here (to your post) to find so many have been here already!! :-)

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    1. DJan: Mornings are lovely aren't they? As are the wonderful people (yourself included) who visit me here.

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  52. The early morning is one of my favorite times of day. Seeing the world start to show itself is beautiful. Your pictures are so pretty and the colors do make it look a bit warmer than it probably is. Maybe we'd feel a bit colder if the sky wasn't looking so warm. :)

    Have a lovely week!
    ~Jess

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    1. DMS ~Jess: Not warm at all at the moment. We had another soft dawn and now, an hour or so later, our temperatures are still firmly in the negative. Pretty though.

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  53. I always enjoy those early-morning hours when most of my neighbours are still sleeping. I make that the time to deadhead the roses and enjoy the cool temperature and the silence.
    Your photographs are stunning but looking at them I assumed they would be followed by a warm day, how strange.
    Have a happy week

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    1. Barbara Fisher: I am an early morning gardener too - particularly in summer. At the moment the ground is frozen and I can't do a lot till midday or so.

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  54. I hope you enjoyed another beautiful morning, my friend.

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    1. Sandra Cox: I did. I am. Crisp and cold and beautiful.

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  55. I'm such a morning person that these are perfect!

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    1. cleemckenzie: I became a morning person, and learned to love it.

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  56. In the negatives... brr The photos are great, as usual. I like early morning too. Even better because most everyone else is still sleeping. :)

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    1. mail4rosey: Definitely in the negatives. But pretty. And early morning peace is blissful.

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  57. Your dawn photos are lovely; is that a bit of feather fluff in one of them?

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    1. Terra Hangen: Welcome and thank you. It is indeed a piece of down caught in the trees.

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  58. I can see that. They are restful colors, yet they are warm and don't give me chills. Stay well and as warm as possible, friend.

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    1. Rawknrobyn: I am quite warm enough - and hope you are cool enough. Hugs.

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  59. Early mornings are a blessing for sure, stunning pictures, the colors in the sky are amazing and the feather on a limb was really cool.

    Popped over from River, really enjoyed what I saw.

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    1. Jimmy: Welcome and thank you. Birds and the sky are often featured here.

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  60. I've been an early morning person since I was a kid, so it speaks to me, along with these lovely pics. So wonderful to look at. Hugs...RO

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    1. RO: Mornings are lovely aren't they? Particularly early mornings before the day gets busy and noisy. Hugs gratefully received and returned.

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  61. Beautiful trees in the morning, those skies, you can't beat them, cheers EC.

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    1. Bob Bushell: Thank you. I am very fond of both trees and the sky.

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  62. What a Wonderfull Pict...!!! :D
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  63. Some of those pictures are truly a contrast in skies.
    YOU, have a colourful day:)

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    1. Sandra Cox: Thank you. Still early(ish) here, and more soft pinks and greys. Chilly blues later. Have a wonderful day.

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  64. Hi, first time visiting your blog... Nice! :)

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  65. That's a good point about the soft colors of the sky not putting you in mind of colder weather. Your photos are lovely though!

    I love to go out in early morning and water my front porch plants when all is quiet. (5am hour.)

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    1. Lynn: The sun isn't up at 5 at the moment, and it is a touch too cold to be watering, but yes, those early mornings are a wonderful time to get things done.

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  66. I think the colours in these photographs are lovely, such delicate hues.

    All the best Jan

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    1. Lowcarb team member ~Jan: It is such a gentle way to welcome the day.

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  67. I appreciate those soft, billowy pinks and grays, too. So cooling. It feels like the friendliest sort of shade. Thanks for being a place where I can rest.
    -Jennifer

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    1. Jennifer Richardson: What a truly lovely thing to say. Rest here anytime you want/need.

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  68. Those are some delightful captures to see, Elephant's Child, thanks for displaying them, for I love what early morning's have to offer.

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    1. Lon Anderson: Thank you. I am also a big fan of the early morning.

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  69. My friend, if you'd like to visit my new place, you're welcome to click on my name in this comment of mine, a change has taken place.

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    1. Lon Anderson: I will be over to check out your new blog shortly.

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  70. Good morning, and thanks for such a lovely view, and the shades are so calming just seeing here I can imagine that in real life it was very blissful.

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    1. Karen S.: It was lovely - and has been repeated most mornings. Which is even better.

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  71. Enjoy the rest of your week, EC. May it be productive and pleasant.

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    1. Sandra Cox: Thank you. I hope your time away is lovely.

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    1. Spare Parts and Pics: Thank you. I am addicted to watching the sky.

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  73. Oh the fog is so pretty. It sure does look cold though. I hope it's better on your health ?

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    1. Kim Standard: Thank you. It was certainly 'cool' but I find winter much better on the health front. The sweaty season is not my friend.

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    1. J Cosmo Newbery: Thank you. I liked them. A lot.

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  75. Gorgeous pictures, but I agree with you about the incongruity of the sky's appearance with cold weather. It's kind of like going to a funeral on a picture-perfect sunny day with blue skies and puffy white clouds, when you think it should be gloomy and gray-skied with a cold drizzle. The disconnect feels surreal.

    I'm glad the cooler weather is helping you on the health-front.

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    1. Susan: And to add to the incongruity, our coldest days have bright blue skies (and a wind).

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  76. Just found you and your blog. love the soft pics of the dawn, unfortunately I rarely am up in time to appreciate this special time of the day, and the best light to take photos.

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    1. catmint: Welcome and thank you. There is no virtue in my early rising - it is a facet of insomnia, but does have some benefits.

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  77. Pretty sky shots- I could get used to that! Hope all is well with you- I am glad to be about over my summer cold. Speaking of cold- it looks chilly there.

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    1. Terri @ Coloring Outside the Lines: I am glad to hear you are nearly over the cold - summer colds are truly miserable. It is chilly here - and I am loving it.

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