Yellow Beauty

WL spotted a beautiful yellow bird at the bath this morning. So far undoubtedly the showiest specimen that has taken the waters here.....

Weekend Dog

Rat!

It's not a young possum or a baby squirrel.... not with that tail. We saw a rat this evening munching on the berries of the Indian Hawthorne bush. Hopefully he doesn't have friends. And I've been worried about the grasshoppers!!!!! Oy!

Weekend Bone

Weekend Dog

Morning Parrot's Beak

It's in bloom again after a drastic pruning.

The Uninvited

We have a huge crow that's treating the birdbath like his personal hot tub. This morning Seven was objecting to his presence but the bird just hopped from fence to tree to fence again. I guess the dog's persistence paid off as the magpie eventually gave up and moved on to a less hassle filled locale.

Broom

Steely eyed sis in law Kim has positively ID-ed our stalky yellow plant as a Spanish broom. They are considered an invasive species in SoCal and local nativists loathe them. So we'll try to keep ours under control.

Lilac Pride

The Lilacs in the back and the Pride of Madeira in the front are looking nice in the morning light.

The Big Yawn

Manhunt

The neighborhood excitement this morning involved a car thief who made it as far as Mount Washington before someone at OnStar switched off the motor. He was hiding out nearby at a under construction house on Cleland Ave. I guess he made a run for it cause the helicopter came down to our corner and circled very low, about 100' off the ground. 20 minutes later and it seems to be over. Quiet returns to Terrace 49.

The Eastsider used one of my pics here

Sleeping Dog

It's a tiring job being Seven.

Pizza and Margaritas

Fab friends Sylvia and Val came over for some excellent afternoon pizza from Marios. A few batches of margaritas and the sun set on our little party.

Ice Plants

Although I'm supposed to despise these things, they are an invasive species, the colors are too enticing and the plants too easy to grow not to have a few sprinkled around to brighten things up.

Weekend Dog

Yellow

One of the few plants I haven't a name for.... it was given to us. The desert shrub is already 7' tall and the delicate fragrance of the flowers is truly head turning. Any ID?

Smart Crow

A giant crow was seen today bringing stale bread left on the back wall by WL over to the birdbath. He would drop it in or dunk to moisten it enough to eat. Clever bird. Messy birdbath.

Butterfly

All the butterfly bushes are in bloom. This front yard one looks great with a crimson salvia lurking behind.

Anatomy of a Bloom

The Pride of Madeira is coming to life and it's amazing to see the young pink buds open into mauve and then end in purple.

The Ladies Who Lunch

With the lavender exploding to life, the hum of bees out front has been getting louder. No fights or egos here, just a lot of hungry ladies.

Early Morning Empire

A Beautiful Empire State Building this morning as I emerged from the subway at 6:15 AM.

Aziz Stark

A Little Italy graffiti depiction of Aziz Ansari as Tony Stark.