d7000

Blue Ducky Wants To Quacky!

May 18, 2016 — 20 Comments

Swedish Blue

F/5.6, 125, ISO 125.

Swedish Blue

Why was the computer tired when he got home?

Because he had a hard drive.

Interesting Fact: The Swedish Blue (Swedish: Svensk blå anka)[4] or Blue Swedish is a breed of domesticated duck which emerged during the 19th century in Swedish Pomerania, near the Baltic shores of the what is now modern Germany and Poland.[5] Within the American Standard of Perfection, the “blue” is the only variety of the breed “Swedish”. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swedish_Blue#Description )

 

Let’s Get In Formation!

May 17, 2016 — 16 Comments

Mute Swan & Babies

F/ 7.1, 1/800, ISO 200.

Mute Swan and Cygnets

A three year old walked over to a pregnant lady while waiting with his mother in the doctors office.
He inquisitively ask the lady, “Why is your stomach so big?”
She replied, “I’m having a baby.”
With big eyes, he asked, “Is the baby in your stomach?”
She said, “He sure is.”
Then the little boy, with a puzzled look, asked, “Is it a good baby?”
She said, “Oh, yes. It’s a real good baby.”
With an even more surprised and shocked look, he asked…
“Then why did you eat him?”

Interesting Fact: Hans Christian Andersen’s fairly tale The Ugly Duckling chronicles the woes and triumphs of a young, Mute Swan that hatches in a clutch of duck eggs but goes on to become a beautiful swan. Some speculate that the book was based on Andersen’s own less-than-handsome looks as a youngster. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/mute_swan/lifehistory )

I Don’t Think We Can Make It Up There?! 

May 13, 2016 — 14 Comments

niagara falls

F/10.0, 1/400, ISO 100.

Niagara Falls

Two young boys were at a waterfall. They saw a naked women underneath the water. One of the boys ran away and the other one followed him saying, why are you running? The first boy said, my mother said that if you look at a naked woman, you turn to stone… And I am already becoming hard !

Interesting Fact: There are differing theories as to the origin of the name of the falls. According to Iroquoian scholar Bruce Trigger, “Niagara” is derived from the name given to a branch of the local native Neutral Confederacy, who are described as being called the “Niagagarega” people on several late-17th-century French maps of the area.[13] According to George R. Stewart, it comes from the name of an Iroquois town called “Ongniaahra”, meaning “point of land cut in two”. ( https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niagara_Falls ) 

Bigger Is Better! 

May 12, 2016 — 6 Comments

 

Toronto

F/8.0, 1/250, ISO 100.

A Police officer pulled over a vehicle for speeding.

 Police officer: “Can you identify yourself, sir?”

 Driver pulls out his mirror and says: “Yes, it’s me.”

Interesting Fact: When Europeans first arrived at the site of present-day Toronto, the vicinity was inhabited by the Iroquois,[54] who by then had displaced the Wyandot people that had occupied the region for centuries before c. 1500.[55] The name Toronto is likely derived from the Iroquois word tkaronto, meaning “place where trees stand in the water”.[56] This refers to the northern end of what is now Lake Simcoe, where the Huron had planted tree saplings to corral fish. A portage route from Lake Ontario to Lake Huron running through this point, the Toronto Carrying-Place Trail, led to widespread use of the name. In the 1660s, the Iroquois established two villages within what is today Toronto, Ganatsekwyagon on the banks of the Rouge River and Teiaiagonon the banks of the Humber River. By 1701, the Mississauga had displaced the Iroquois, who abandoned the Toronto area at the end of the Beaver Wars. ( https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toronto ) 

Now That Is What I Call Braking News ! 

May 11, 2016 — 4 Comments

 

Breaking News

F/5.0, 1/125, ISO 100.

Toronto, Canada CP 24 News 

 A woman telephoned her local newspaper to let them know that she had just given birth to eighteen children. 

The reporter didn’t quite hear the message and said, “Would you repeat that?” 

“Not if I can help it,” replied the woman.

Interesting Fact: The channel was licensed by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) in 1996 as Pulse 24,[1] and launched on March 30, 1998 as CablePulse 24, under the ownership of CHUM Limited and minority partner Sun Media, owner of the Toronto Sun daily newspaper. The channel was named as an extension of CITY-TV’s newscasts, which were then known as CityPulse. For the first 10 years after its inception, CP24’s programming was anchored and featured reports from Citytv personalities, live CityPulse news broadcasts were immediately repeated on CP24 after their initial broadcast on CITY-TV (except for breaking news coverage), and special coverage was simulcast between the channel and the television station. Select programming from other CHUM stations would also be featured on the channel including The NewMusic and Fashion Television. ( https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/CP24 )

Keep On Shining Bright! 

May 10, 2016 — 12 Comments

Fort Niagara Light

F/ 5.6, 1/400, ISO 100.

Fort Niagara Light

Did you hear about the lighthouse keeper’s daughter?

She never went out at night.

Interesting Fact: The lighthouse was established in 1782 atop the “French Castle”, a structure still located within Old Fort Niagara. The current tower was first lit in 1872, having been removed from the French Castle to allow for more room for officer’s quarters. The light was deactivated in 1996, having been replaced by a light beacon at the US Coast Guard Station Niagara. ( https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Niagara_Light )

Happy Mother’s Day To Every Mom Out There! 

May 8, 2016 — 12 Comments

Happy Mother’s Day!

Canada Goose 3
F/4.8, 1/800, ISO 100.

Canada Goose

Son asked his mom a question about computers

Son: Why is a computer so smart mom?

Mom: It listens to its motherboard.

Interesting Fact: The modern holiday of Mother’s Day was first celebrated in 1908, when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother at St Andrew’s Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia. Today St Andrew’s Methodist Church now holds the International Mother’s Day Shrine.[6] Her campaign to make “Mother’s Day” a recognized holiday in the United States began in 1905, the year her mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, died. Ann Jarvis had been a peace activist who cared for wounded soldiers on both sides of the American Civil War, and created Mother’s Day Work Clubs to address public health issues. Anna Jarvis wanted to honor her mother by continuing the work she started and to set aside a day to honor all mothers, because she believed that they were “the person who has done more for you than anyone in the world”. ( https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mother%27s_Day )

Quack Pack!

May 5, 2016 — 20 Comments

American Black Ducks

F/5.6, 1/320, ISO 100.

American Black Ducks

What’s the best way to ship duck eggs?

Put them in a quacker barrel.

Interesting Fact: As soon as their down feathers dry, newly hatched ducklings are able to leave the nest, a depression on the ground lined with plant materials. They follow their mother to rearing areas with a lot of invertebrates to eat and plenty of vegetation for cover. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Black_Duck/lifehistory )

Hope They Have All The Permits

May 4, 2016 — 14 Comments

Red-Necked Grebes

F/5.6, 1/320, ISO 100.

Red-Necked Grebe

The homeowner was delighted with the way the painter had done all the work on his house.

“You did a great job.” he said and handed the man a check.

“Also, in order to thank-you, here’s an extra $80 to take the missus out to dinner and a movie.”

Later that night, the doorbell rang and it was the painter.

Thinking the painter had forgotten something the man asked, “What’s the matter, did you forget something?”

“Nope.” replied the painter. “I’m just here to take your missus out to dinner and a movie like you asked.”

Interesting Fact: Like other grebes, the Red-necked Grebe ingests large quantities of its own feathers. Feathers remain in the bird’s stomach. The function of feathers in the stomach is unknown. One hypothesis suggests that the feathers help protect the lower digestive tract from bones and other hard, indigestible material. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-necked_Grebe/lifehistory )

 

 

Lifeguard Is On Duty!

May 4, 2016 — 17 Comments

Canada Goose And Goslings

F/5.6, 1/500, ISO 200.

Canada Goose And Goslings 

Why won’t they allow elephants in public swimming pools?

Because they might let down their trunks.

Interesting Fact: Individual Canada Geese from most populations make annual northward migrations after breeding. Nonbreeding geese, or those that lost nests early in the breeding season, may move anywhere from several kilometers to more than 1500 km northward. There they take advantage of vegetation in an earlier state of growth to fuel their molt. Even members of “resident” populations, which do not migrate southward in winter, will move north in late summer to molt.  ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Canada_Goose/lifehistory )