Happy Eyes!

Happy eyes, you ask? Well, actually, it is more than my eyes that are happy - I got my beloved 18-200 dx lens back today! It has been at Nikon for repairs for almost 3 months (and my D90 camera body is STILL there) and I just got it back this morning. Although I do love the extra 100 mm on the lens I've been using, it doesn't have the glass that this one does. Also, with the 300 zoom, I can't get very close to things, so it's great for birds but not at all good for small things like bugs. With my 18-200 I can get within a foot which is great for all the hairy details. Of course, there aren't really any bugs now, but I did find a few things to occupy me, including the leaves on our weeping cherry.

The weeping cherries are the first to bloom each spring and are almost the last to lose their leaves in the fall. I love the oranges and reds that show up in the leaves. This photo is untouched - these are the brilliant colors just as nature made 'em. Hard to top nature sometimes.

I also found some feathers under the cedars and some fall berries.. I sat outside for a short while and a flock of house finches flittered around me feeding and singing - it was a nice little break.

Today is the "day-before-hump-day" - yay!