Sunflower and worm love a summer day
See the green worm in the bottom left?

Nothing is more distracting on my walks with the dogs than the lovely flowers I see all around me. Even in my somewhat mundane neighborhood, many folks plant some wonderful flowers. Intent on walking a large number of steps, I have to STOP for several photo ops.

Naked Ladies
Amaryllis Belladonna (aka Naked Ladies) lose their leaves in summer, hence their nakedness!

The Weekly photo challenge theme is Ooh, Shiny! “Diversions, distractions, and delightful detours.”

Sometimes I take my Lumix camera with me, but lately, while walking two dogs, I end up just taking my mobile phone. I managed to capture a lovely bouquet of flowers in this post.

Ever in the pursuit of awesome photos, I have been known to actually be talking on my phone then tell the person I’ll call him or her back so I can get that photo!

All the flowers of all the tomorrows are in the seeds of today, Indian Proverb

August is the best time of year to see sunflowers—my favorite! August is also the best time to see the amaryllis belladonna in bloom (aka “Naked Ladies).

Enjoy the show!

Spring tulips
Amaryllis Belladonna (aka Naked Ladies) lose their leaves in summer, hence their nakedness!

Speaking of distractions, the looming total solar eclipse has done just that to the nightly news (thank goodness)! As they say, “stay tuned” for photos of the eclipse from Northern California next week!

To all my fellow US friends, while viewing the eclipse, please use proper eye-safety wear, and a solar filter on your camera!

My signature

Published by Terri Webster Schrandt

Now retired, I am former university adjunct faculty, self-published author, and retired recreation and parks practitioner living in Eastern Washington State near the Idaho border. Second Wind Leisure Perspectives is my blog about living a leisure lifestyle that includes fitness, photography, and fun.

56 thoughts on “I Stare at Naked Ladies… and Other Flowers!”

      1. I’m heading “down” a little to meet my brother for the full eclipse. About a 90 minute drive normally. I’m leaving the house at 3 AM – giving myself 6 hours. (With cooler, blankets, and a good book).

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  11. Beautiful flowers! I’m not sure what the percentage is of the eclipse that we will see here, but I’m ready. I don’t have special glasses so we’ll do that trick with the two pieces of white paper… then google the images other, better situated, photographers take.

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  12. The first photo you took of the ‘naked ladies’ looks like a little fairy house inside the flower. These are beautiful! Did you take them with your camera or your phone? I’m assuming your camera but the cameras in phones are amazing these days. Love your quotes too.

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    1. How observant of you and thank you so much! Now I gotta go look 🙂 I took the sunflowers with my camera and the naked ladies with my phone last year while we were in Morrow Bay in Central California. My new Samsung S7 Edge has an even better camera than tho older one I used.

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  13. It can be distracting walking dogs because sometimes they’d see something and run after it all of a suddenly – and you don’t usually see it coming 😀 Beautiful flowers on your walk. So many of them, and it looks like they came out to enjoy the summer sunshine. It’s winter here in Australia and we’re having dreary weather and don’t think we can see the eclipse 🙂

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      1. I hope your hand is getting better! The dogs did sound awfully excited from the sounds of it. Hope your fall has plenty of colourful leaves coming your way…and maybe your dogs will like them too 😉

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  14. Phew! That was a close call. I wondered if your blog at been hacked when I read that title. Beautiful flowers, Terri. I like sunflowers as well. However, my partner thinks they are quite creepy because of the way they turn and follow the sun across the sky. Enjoy the show next week.

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    1. Heehee, thanks Hugh! Don’t they teach us to use an attention-grabbing headline in Blogging 101? I admit I had a ton of views on this one, LOL! I wonder how the sunflowers will behave during our eclipse Monday? They will be very confused!

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  15. Beautiful flowers and impressions, Terri. And, a perfect title. 🙂

    I have stopped watching the news, but I did hear about the solar eclipse. 🙂 Hopefully, we get to see some of it here in New Mexico as well. The owners of the place we are currently taking care of are on a trip to see the eclipse in Portland, OR. It appears to be a big event. My best friend from Belgium is also in the country with her whole family to witness the very same thing.

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  16. Ah….SUNFLOWERS! I have a really strange one in the grove at the moment. A bud blooming WITHIN another bloom. May post some pixs after it is done. It appears to be a mix of a Great Russian and a Honey Bear. A product of the bees from last year? 🙂

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  17. Brilliant photos, Terri. And that little, green worm makes your feature shot even more remarkable! I’m impressed that you captured many of these shots with your iPhone!

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  22. Your photographs are beautiful. My neighborhood is full of naked ladies too. I wonder if the rain we got this year had anything to do with it. The eclispe is over, I look forward to your photos. We were fogged in so didn’t get to see it. But the change in light was awesome.

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    1. Thank you! I didn’t get the photos I hoped for, but I got a couple of the crescent shadows that played on the ground. Sorry to hear about the clouds. I’m slightly mad at myself for not making the 9 hour trip north to Salem oregon to see it in totality. Maybe in 2014 in Texas 🙂

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  24. Your title definitely caught my eye! I am drawn to flowers, too. This past weekend we visited a 9 acres sunflower farm. They were just a bit past prime, but it was awe inspiring to see thousands of beautiful faces facing east in the morning light!

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  27. Pingback: My Picks Of The Week #34 & #35 | A Momma's View

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