Our area has had  a mixture of rain, clouds and hints of sunshine today.   This is what I saw tonight a few miles north of our Taylor home.   Pastel skies are soothing.

So as I was leaving the wet Georgetown square early this afternoon, some rain-soaked plants near the library got my attention.   Delicate drops danced across their surface.   Not being a botanical wizard, I still wanted to snap some photos.  A few minutes into the session I asked a passerby if she knew the plant’s name.   Intrigued, she pulled out her phone to take a picture.  “It’s a yucca,” she said, showing me the information under her photo.  “Your iPhone can do this, too,” she explained.   My phone is an inexpensive Android, but I thanked her as she continued an outing with her kids.   Folks, beyond taking photos and a stab at  writing, my knowledge base is limited.   Maybe I’ll investigate that application for my cheap phone.   Yucca plants are elegant. Rain is, too. 

A few photographs from the second day at Georgetown’s Red Poppy Festival, the majority focusing on the parade, plus a bit of the car show, and just moments I like.  Included is a lady celebrating her 90th birthday wearing a wonderful tiara, Speedy, a tortoise cared for by All Things Wild Rehabilitation, a young lady admiring a sand sculpture she created in a children’s area for the festival, plus an 8-year-old doing quite well with his electric guitar.  This and that, friends.

There was quite a crowd around the Georgetown square for the opening night of the Red Poppy Festival.  The festival continues through Sunday, highlighted by a parade at 10a.m. on Saturday.

Today is National Arbor Day, a day to pay homage to the trees in our lives.   This is a simple post, just a few trees.   I open with two photos of a mesquite on the Circleville ranch of Carol Fox and her brother, John.   It’s not a large tree, but commands attention sitting at the crest of a hill not far from the San Gabriel River.   Others are just trees I enjoy seeing.

Cormorants are naturally good at many things, but their fishing skills might be among the avian world’s best.  They’ll be swimming along, then take a deep dive into the water, often coming up with a well-earned meal.   These are from a couple of daily walks in Taylor.  

For weeks I’ve been photographing wildflowers, but not posting everything.  Rather than let these go by the wayside, a few are posted tonight.   The time for bluebonnets is mostly past in Central Texas, but there are more wildflowers to enjoy in coming weeks.    

This is a new friend I met during a morning walk this week.   She had a good smile, great eyes  and  natural curiosity!

Bartlett, Texas, about 20 minutes north of our Taylor home, is a community I love to photograph.   Although I think the population is still just over 1600, a sign last week indicated it had grown to 2600!   That has to be a mistake.   The town resides in two counties, Williamson and Bell.  The 19th and early-20th Century architecture is wonderful.   As is the brick street coursing through the downtown corridor.  This is a collection of shots from two recent visits.   A fellow riding his John Deere lawnmower opens this post.   There was a movie some years back about a man who navigated his area on one of those, but the name of it escapes me.   All photographs were taken in late-day light.    A little of this and that, friends.

Tonight’s moon is just a few notches under 100% visibility, in a Waxing Gibbous phase.   A scene  east of Granger is offered tonight.   The full moon will come to fruition while most of us are asleep.   By Tuesday evening it will likely be less visible than it is tonight.   An Earth Day moon, friends.