4,015

That is 11 years of posting a photo a day.  Some days the photos have been good, some days great, some days meh.  And there have been times when I considered breaking my unbroken streak, days when it felt like it just might be too hard to take a photo.  But I kept going.  What I know about myself is that photography calms me, it makes me feel happier, its my drug of choice.

So as is usually the case when a "big one" comes along, I wanted to do something really special today.  I had ideas.  Big ideas.  But they all involved the cooperation of certain birds.  And as every one of you who photographs wild things knows, wild things don't care about your big milestones.  So the hummingbird didn't visit the bee balm patch in perfect light.  The bluebird family didn't perch under softly overcast skies.  But...this hard working House Wren and her brood provided me with some really fun shots.  

The babies are about 11 days old, partially feathered and extremely vocal.  When I last checked, I could only see 4 youngsters but there could be more.  I think a couple of the eggs of the original 7 didn't hatch.  Anyway, as many as three heads were filling up the nest hole, tulip mouths fully open, awaiting mom.  When she showed up with this unfortunate crane fly, the noise level reached full crescendo.  One lucky baby got a nice big meal, legs and all.  While the babies aren't in focus, I liked being able to see the details of mom and her prey.  It makes for an interesting shot and I think it tells a story - which is always a solid win for me.

This place...where do I even start?  I have made so many good friends here, both virtually and in the real world.  I've gone on some amazing trips with some of you, enjoyed shooting beside you, learning from you.  I truly think this is the nicest, kindest online community out there.  You've been with me on this journey called life, laughed with me, cried with me, consoled me, shared your wisdom with me.  And for that, I can't begin to thank you enough. To the Fab Four who took on the Herculean task of making Blipfoto viable, thank you.  To Joe Tree who had this whacky idea so many years ago, thank you.  And to everyone who stops by, thank you.

Join me in something dark if you feel the urge...

xo
Debbi

PS:  and this is yardbird 25 for the year, the House Wren