OK, I just HAD to photograph another Chrysanthemum - you will all be getting a little bit tired of snowy scenery : ). Still have a few more winter shots to upload - don't want to be uploading them in the summer.

Tags:   Calgary Alberta Canada southern Alberta nature flora flower flowers garden Chrysanthemum pink mauve petals details on black beautiful beauty in nature DOF image colour image square square crop Panasonic DMC-FZ28 FZ28 Lumix point-and-shoot P1340026 FZ28 annkelliott beautiful_expression NaturesFinest Feels Good

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Lol, I think I know why I didn't post this before!! Rather too much out-of-focus part! Oh, well, guess I'll leave it here, especially as some of you have very kindly commented on it already. I think this was a plant that I bought from my grocery store.

In total comparison, have any of you read about the Corpse Plant that has just bloomed in Switzerland? On 23 April 2011, it was reported on the BBC News website that this rare plant that has the distinct smell of rotting flesh is attracting large crowds in Switzerland. Thousands of plant lovers are flocking to the Basel Botanical Garden in Switzerland to see a full bloom of a corpse flower. The 17-year-old plant is blooming for the first time. A truly incredible plant!

www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13179745

I was out on a walk all morning, from the Boat Launch to Bankside, Fish Creek Park. This afternoon, I went and got my Taxes done - yay, thank goodness that is out of the way for another year. Then I went to photograph a few Prairie Crocuses before heading home. They were very pale in colour, plus it was very windy, which made it difficult to keep my balance on the steep hillside, and of course the delicate petals were all a-flutter : )

A friend just sent me this link to a feel-good video about a dog and a dolphin:

www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_popout&v=Yfbchq0...

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This endless rain is getting very monotonous, to say the least : ) I can never summon up any energy or motivation to go out with my camera when the weather is like this. I'm definitely a blue sky and sunshine (but no hot temperatures) kind of person! Photographed this vibrant yellow flower at Reader Rock Garden on 11th August 2010 and today, I'm feeling very thankful for it.

Had a good day yesterday! Received an e-mail from the Solicitor letting me know that an offer has been made on my brother's house - two other offers had been made, but the people didn't provide proof of their financial ability to pay. This time, that has been done, so I'm really keeping my fingers crossed that it will go through. The house seller's market in England is so bad at the moment, so I would be very fortunate to sell, though the price had to come right down.

I also sent my six wonderful friends in England, who have now spent the last five months dealing with my brother's estate, out for a meal together, now that things are really winding down. They decided to go yesterday evening - which was my birthday, ha! They even sent me a couple of photos of them, raising their glasses to my brother and myself, which was so thoughtful. As for me, after my afternoon volunteer shift, I called in at a lovely little Greek restaurant and got take-out Chicken Souvlaki Wrap with Greek Salad (and a creme-broulee, seeing as it was my birthday!). Got home in time to relax in front of the TV and watch Oprah's final show : ) I've watched plenty of her shows over the last 25 years (though I don't in fact watch much TV at all) and I have a lot of respect for her as a human being. I wish her well in her new journey (her OWN Network). My lovely day ended with a phone call from my youngest daughter - always a treat ; ) Thanks, Rachel!

ALERT: RAINFALL WARNING FOR THE CITY OF CALGARY

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This is a day that everyone can celebrate - we all have Mothers, whether they are still alive or not, and many of us are Mothers ourselves. I never really like the idea of having just one day to celebrate such an important thing - every day should be Mother's Day. Hope you have a sunny, blue-skied day to acknowledge the most important - and toughest - job in the world : )

Here, I cancelled my plans for a day out, as it is grey and raining : (

By the way, I did something that I've only ever done once before - I changed the background to black. I always feel it's "cheating" to do this and I'm just fine at getting black backgrounds the "good" way. However, I just couldn't stand the pale beige background, especially on such a gloomy day as today, so I "cheated".

Jim (Garnite), this is to send bright and cheery thoughts your way this morning! If anyone else would like to send healing thoughts to Jim - he really needs all the thoughts and prayers he can get - please go to the For Garnite Group here: www.flickr.com/groups/1655195@N20/ and post your good wishes and beautiful images there.

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Just wanted to thank all of you for your wonderfully kind comments and words of support, especially during the last five weeks. It really has been an exceedingly hard time for me, unexpectedly losing my brother (from Ischaemic Heart Disease) in England, helping to plan the funeral, and dealing with his house and belongings. I would not have been able to do this without my amazing friends in England who have done and are still doing SO much, but I do want you to know how much difference the support of my Flickr friends/Contacts has made during this difficult time. John's funeral was just a few hours ago and I stayed up all night, worried that I might sleep through my alarm that I'd set for 4:30 a.m. : ) I knew the order of the songs/music and I had even been sent all the words that were going to be said through the Service, so at 4:30 a.m. this morning, I sat at my computer and played the music in turn and read the words, having my own little service at the same time as all John's friends and colleagues. Apparently, the morning went very well, just as I knew it would in the capable hands of my friends. Actually, thanks to friend, Tony, I have even just seen the first bit of video - already! Thanks so much, Tony! You're the best. Now, there is the legal stuff to see to, and going through the rest of my brother's belongings (via photos sent in e-mails) and then the house can be put up for sale. Lots of Thank You cards and notes to be written, too : ) Thank you, thank you, thank you for your support, and bearing with me during these few weeks!!!

Oh, and after more than a day of e-mail problems yesterday, it turned out that I had a corrupted file in there, which is what the Shaw technician suspected. Looked like I was going to have to back-up all 2,470 Inbox e-mails (ha!) , then delete Inbox and start from scratch, but thank goodness I happened to delete the culprit - whichever e-mail it was - and all seems OK now. Phew! This year, I have so many thousands of photos to back up and I definitely need to save all these very important e-mails, too. It really needs to be a year in which I make myself see to an awful lot of things, lol!

Tags:   Calgary Alberta Canada southern Alberta Reader Rock Garden nature flora garden flower flowers blue bell-shaped macro close-up single flower flower head on green petals texture beautiful beauty in nature square crop Panasonic DMC-FZ35 DMC-FZ35 FZ35 Lumix point-and-shoot P1120932 FZ35 annkelliott

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