The Dragon Slayer's Guide to Life

Anyone Know What This Guy Is?

I know I could go searching but thought someone might know.

 

Technocolor Buddha Garden, I Miss You Already

But I have to admit, the snow is awful pretty.

I'm just cleaning up some photo files and I thought I'd toss out some fun ones for you if you just want to hang out and work on projects with me while I have a couple free hours...

This garden is kind of crazy, but it grows on you. (No pun intended.)

There Were 15 of Them

Okay, the picture is really bad but I had to take it from my kitchen window sitting on my counter so I wouldn't scare them off. There are actually 11 cardinals in this shot (a couple faint ones). I couldn't get all 15 in the frame at once. Just kinda cool, yeah?

 

Pagans Live Here? No, You Must Be Mistaken. Oh, Thaaaat....Um...

Sometimes our yard cracks me up. 

 

Black Bear Viewing in Northern Minnesota

This Week's Number One Question: Just How Close Were Those Bears?!

For those of you who checked out my bear cub pics (here and here) we were very close. I took those pics from my car. They were in the grassy easement between Highway 53 and the tree line so just a few yards from us. (Think the distance from the road that you see most telephone poles. That's how far.) We normally spot a bear or two when we are out on Lake Kabetogama and Scott is no stranger to them. One even broke into their tiny farmhouse when he was little to get at some blueberry pies left to cool while they were at church. Blueberries were smeared all over the old piano and his mom's curtains! 

If you do head up to the Voyageur's National Park area and have a hankerin' to see some bears, one sure way to do so is to stop by Orr, MN in the early evening and go to the Vince Shute Bear Sanctuary. Vince was an avid hunter earlier in his life but eventually came around to a deep love of the bears that traversed his property and did exactly what I would have done. He fed them all the time.  Of course, we all know that is a major no-no but Vince started this activity long before anyone thought about things like that. Over the years, many generations of wild bears made this a stop and after Vince got too old to keep the place up, it became a sanctuary where the practice has continued for the viewing delight and education (including "don't do this at home, kids!" warnings) of visitors.  I've been a couple times, including last week. 

It wasn't a fun as seeing bear cubs spontaneously wandering around but you still get to see a pretty good show. And yes, these are wild bears. We saw about a dozen that night, including some yearlings like this guy up in the tree and some of this Spring's brood like the little guys at the side of the road. They were way up in the trees at a fair distance so no pics were possible. The bears get quite close, even walking right beneath the platform you view them from. In past years we would have to walk across the field to the observation deck but now thay have a ramp system from the bus that takes you out there so you don't risk any run-ins with them.

They Just Look Like They Are Up To Something, Don't They?

Looks to me like somebody is getting ready to call "Shenanigans" if you want my opinion...

Hey, Why Ain't We Been Gettin' No Calls?

Spotted these black bear cubs checking out the telephone box on the way up to Northern Minnesota last week...

This Just Makes Me Happy

This is one of my garden favorites. You just can't help but be happy when you see this can you?

Happy March, everybody. Spring is coming. Really, it is.

Someone Left the Cake Out in the Rain

I don't think that I can take it

'Cause it took so long to shovel it

And then we had a freaking thunderstorrrmmmmm.

Oh nooooooo....

Welcome to the end of times.

(Here's the cake before.)

It's Chicago Snow, Baby

Took these from my dining room just a moment ago.  Getting my shovelling fix in today!