Neighborhood June 2017

My walks around our neighborhood are short and later in the afternoon or early evening. The light is a bit softer, quieter, warmer, highly directional, and weaker in power. Therefore, the photographs are also a bit quieter and darker in tone as I prefer to convey this mood. But they all reflect the qualities of this neighborhood, which I like very much. Ours is a warm neighborhood with friendly people. We say hello to each other, help our neighbors and receive help if we need it.

In this collection are photographs from our backyard and the front yard, some wildlife (yes, I photographed wildlife and birds, one in flight and one perched) around, a few houses around us, and the jungle next door! Despite the orderly appearance of our lovely neighborhood, small areas break with this and present jungle corners covered with trees and bittersweet climber all over them. I really dislike bittersweet. It took us 30 years to get rid of them from our yard. Even then, an occasional sprout will show its nasty head. It spreads like wildfire and it killed a pine tree behind our back garden. Avoid it!

The quiet neighborhood is also home to wildlife, from the ubiquitous squirrels to occasionally seen coyotes roam freely. Of course, there are plenty of birds, you can see a red bird on top of a pole if you can find it in one of the photographs below. And one got I caught in a net of power and signal lines in the sky! The other day, I said hello to a couple of bunnies quietly sitting in one of the neighbor’s front yard. They were cautiously calm as I walked by, ready to scramble if I got too close. When I returned home from that walk, Jan and Karma were waiting for my return in the window which gave me a chance to take a picture of all three of us. Yes, I’m in there in an old-fashioned selfie!

The overgrown weeds are in front of an empty house. The owner passed away a while back. There is nobody there to cut the weeds. We wonder whether it will be sold or something else rebuilt in its place. It has a brook in its backyard and borders one of the local jungles, as you see in the collection below. We’ll see what happens to that property.

It is a genuinely nice neighborhood, quiet, clean, friendly, and close to many places. Come, let’s walk around the hood, a short walk that even I can do!