Tiling

There’s tiling going on in a nearby field today…

Next is a closer look at the tiling machine.  It digs a trench and threads in the tubular plastic tile…

On the right in this next photo is the spool which holds the roll of tile…

 

If only there was sound with this next photo.  The tiling machine rumbles and roars as it works to pull the trencher through the ground…

Tile is put into the ground for drainage purposes.  I remember watching a tiling machine lay clay tile on our farm when I was a kid.  What a noise it made!  We still have a few clay tiles sitting on a junk pile…

I used to put them around tomato plants in the spring.

Drive-by Landscapes

I keep telling myself to quit keeping the blurry drive-by shots, but its just too much fun to crop out some of the sky and see how the landscapes then look.

The fuzzy-focused scenes resemble paintings, I think.

And, I like the varied graphics of the farm fields.  This one has had some fall tillage done already:

Guess I’ll keep on keeping these shots.

Drive-by Trees

There was still much autumn color to see on my recent drive:

This next shot was taken along the grounds of the monastery:

There were many oaks displaying their burnished fall beauty:

And, here’s a field full of trees that made a good photo op:

Barn Charm

There’s a leaf motif on this barn!

Thanks for stopping by!

CLICK HERE to go to Bluff Area Daily find this week’s Barn Charm. 

Drive-by Buildings

Here’s some more shots from my drive on Saturday.  Independence boasts a patriotic water tower, backed up by the buildings of the Mental Health Institute:

It was raining as I detoured through Manchester to buy lunch and then drove past the Delaware County courthouse:

I was happy to find a theater marquee there, too.  I like getting pictures of those!

 

At Epworth is the Divine Word Seminary:

 

And, through the trees here is a glimpse of Iowa’s only monastery, New Melleray Abbey.  I’m sorry the signs aren’t in focus, but that’s the way it goes sometimes with drive-by shots:

Hurstville Historic Site

The purpose of my trip yesterday was to visit my married son and his family.  The route to where they live passes by the Hurstville Lime Kilns historic site near Maquoketa, Iowa.  When my husband is along we’re usually in too much of a hurry, but this time I was by myself and decided to stop and take a look around.  Its right along Highway 61 and very easy to get to. 

I went up the stairs that led to the top of the kilns:

This old stucture was in view from up there, too:

And, from there I zoomed the camera in on the old Hurstville water tower on a nearby hill.  It can be seen from Highway 61:

Weekly Top Shot

Just returned from a day trip during which I took many drive-by photos.  This is my favorite one.  Stare at it for a few seconds and you’ll see the motion captured in it.  I’ve always wanted to get a shot like this.      

Visit The View From Right Here to find Weekly Top Shot.

Guard Duty

The other day as I stood there guarding the fence while the heifers were out in the field I took random shots at whatever was in view.  Caught these sparrows:

And, this mystery bird, possibly that warbler I mentioned a few days ago.  Do warblers like to hang around barnyards, though? 

 

As for the heifer herd---they investigated the field for awhile and eventually came galloping back up to where I was.  They were in a hurry to get in a photo, I guess! 

Camera-Shy Cows

(Technically, most of these photos show heifers, but for sake of simplicity in this blogpost we will call them cows.) 

As I went through the photos from yesterday I found these that seem to have a common theme---camera shyness.  First we have Latte who agreed to be photographed but only if she could remain somewhat incognito.  She does hope you will notice her wavy do and also wants you to know that the stuff in her hair is not dandruff---it is flecks of silage.

 

Next we have these two who were more comfortable being photographed from behind the cover of some weeds:

Then there was this next one whose attitude demanded a profile shot.  I liked the way the brown fuzzy hair on her ears looked in the sunlight and her hide almost appears to have a design:

Lastly, there was Morticia here, who also was reluctant to have her whole face in a photo.  She did tell me she’d like an Addams Family DVD for Christmas so she can see what her namesake looks like.   

I’m trying to remember why we named her Morticia.  (Good grief---what I won’t do for the blog---its almost 10 p.m. and I just went out to the barn to check the record book to try and figure out how  we happened to come up with her name and Latte’s, too.  We often name calves after one of their parents.  It turns out that Latte’s mother’s name was Latour.  I recall that Latour’s mother was given the nickname Detour because she always took the long way to anywhere.  Morticia’s father’s name was Morty.)  

Skywatch

I stepped out of the house this morning---headed for the barn---and immediately had to go back and grab the camera to catch this beautiful sunrise sky!

Thanks for stopping by!

CLICK HERE to go to this week’s Skywatch Friday to find photos from around the world.

Ten Eleven Twelve

This morning my husband looked up from writing a check and said, “Today is ten eleven twelve.”  I hadn’t even realized that.  Later, he asked me to watch the fence again while the heifers were out in the field.  I was hoping the tractor and manure spreader wouldn’t spook them into a stampede.  They didn’t and they didn’t.

Spreading manure on the field as fertilizer for next year’s growing season is what takes place after the fall harvesting is done.

Yesterday

Yesterday my husband asked me to help him with something.  It involved some waiting around and to pass the time I zoomed in on the neighbor’s combine at work in the cornfield beyond the hill:

 

And, the wagon waiting to be filled with corn:

Here’s why I was out there…to keep an eye on this galloping group of galoots which my husband had  just turned out into the field to forage for ears of corn on the ground.  Newfound freedom always causes them to run around crazy for awhile, bucking and kicking up their heels.  My job was to stand by the fence to hopefully prevent them from running through it.  They settled down eventually.

Blogger on Board

Yesterday I decided to ride along when my husband took a cow to the sale barn.  (You’ve seen those “Baby on Board” signs on vehicles, haven’t you---well, as we drove along it occurred to me that someone should print up signs that say “Blogger on Board”, too.)  I kept busy taking drive-by shots, as usual.  Here are some cornstalk bales:

The sale barn is in Waverly, which is the Bremer County seat.  Here’s the courthouse:

Soon we crossed over the Cedar River.  Another section of that bike trail I blogged about a few days ago passes over the railroad bridge in the distance:

Then we passed by the Bremer County Historical Museum which sits at a busy intersection and is difficult to get a decent drive-by photo of, especially from a rough-riding farm pickup with dirty windows:

Next we drove by the Wartburg College campus:

After unloading the cow at the sale barn, we drove back through town and I snapped photos of things on the other side of Bremer Avenue, Waverly’s main thoroughfare.  The sign over this gate says “Lutheran Children’s Home”.  It was originally an orphanage in the 1800’s and is now a psychiatric treatment center/home for young people:

This is the third theater marquee I’ve photographed in the last week or so:

Lastly, these window reflections looked intriguing as we sat at a stop sign:

There, now you’ve had a whirlwind tour of Waverly, Iowa, compliments or complements (which is it?) of this “Blogger on Board”!

Two New Birds

When I’m at the computer, the birdbath is in view outside the window.  The other day I glanced up and saw this unfamiliar red-headed bird.  I had to look it up in the bird book as I’d never seen one before.  Turns out its name is Red-bellied Woodpecker which seems odd since there’s red on its head.  (The Red-headed Woodpecker has a completely red head, though.)  The Red-bellied Woodpecker does have red on its belly, but its very faint:

Here’s another bird that’s been around for the past several days:

Next is a closer look.  After consulting the bird book, I think its some type of warbler---maybe a Myrtle.  If you recognize it, please let me know.