HAPPY SUNDAY EVERYONE - ON A DRIVE IN THE COUNTRYSIDE...

 we were on one of those lovely, shady country lanes when I spotted something among the trees. I asked Gregg to slow down and as we approached this particular spot, I saw the deer.

I wasn't expecting to see any today. It has been a long time since my last sighting, but there she was, a total surprise.

She certainly didn't seem to mind that we stopped. She was alert but not skittish. We were close as I used my cell phone for these photos. I took them with Gregg leaning back so that I could get a decent shot through the driver's side window. Sometimes I think in these situations, being in a car is an advantage.

I was able to take a few photos, but we could see a car coming up behind us and we moved on.

Only a few seconds keeping company with this little darling, but it seemed longer. 

HAPPY SUNDAY EVERYONE - SCOTTISH ANGELS AND RED DEER

 Having shared Autumn Angels last month, in December I am sharing ones with an international vibe. 

Today I went to Scotland but only online. I wanted an animal to accompany our angel, so I did a search on finding ones that could be found in Scotland. They mentioned the Red Deer, so here they are. 

I also asked for information on this beautiful animal, and the information said in the UK it is their largest deer. With its massive antlers it is an unmistakable icon of the Scottish Highlands but can be seen in northwest and southern England too.

In the Autumn males produce large, branching, rather magnificent antlers in the rutting season. They live on moorland and mountainsides, as well as grasslands near to woodland. 

They can be seen in deer parks throughout the country. They mainly eat grasses, sedges, rushes and dwarf shrubs like heather.

The Red Deer has a dark, russet-brown fur, with a paler buff rump patch and a pale tail. They are common in Scotland, particularly the Highlands and Islands. Also found in the Lake District, Exmoor, the New Forest and Thetford Forest. 

A male red deer is called a 'stag', a female deer is called a 'hind'. The most characteristic of a male is the impressive, branched antlers, which can measure up to 45 inches in length (115 centimeters) and weigh as much as 11 lbs. (15 kg), though the average weight is closer to 2.2 lbs. (1 kilogram).

 Within a few weeks of shedding old antlers, new ones will begin to grow. They are covered in a soft skin called 'velvet', which nourishes them with blood vessels. Antler-growing is an energy-intensive activity and stags often lose weight during this process. They shed them annually, usually at the end of winter and new ones will grow in the spring, up to 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) a day. 

The size and number of points on a stag's antlers may not be a reliable way to determine their age. A fully mature UK red stag (male red deer) typically weighs between 200 to 570 pounds (90 to 260 kilograms), depending on the habitat and season, with the largest individuals reaching up to 750 pounds (340 kilograms) in prime condition. 

Stags from English woodlands are generally larger than those found on Scottish hillsides. On the other hand, a female red deer (hind) is significantly smaller, usually weighing less than 330 pounds (150 kilograms). 

So, even though I have no real pictures of these beautiful animals, it was very enjoyable finding out about them. There are a number of websites online you can browse through if you put "Red Deer Scotland" in your search engine, with great photos. 

I spent a week camping in Scotland with friends when I was 23. I am not sure I will ever get back there but remember Scotland for the beautiful scenery and the hospitable people.

Thanks for looking and I hope your day is a great one.

DEER PHOTOS

 I haven't seen any deer in quite a while.  These are old photos from my archives. 

We were at Big Meadows on Skyline Drive, and I was looking to take photos of wildflowers. I came across her in a secluded thicket. 

We saw each other at the same time. (I am not as close as it looks as I had my camera with a zoom lens.) 

My day was made! I had not thought I would see such a sweet animal, it was so unexpected. I held my breath thinking she would take flight but no, her ears twitched a little and happily she didn't make a move. I quickly snapped these photos at the same time backing out ever so slowly, with my very special gift of the day, not just for the photos but for the very sight of her. About an hour later on the other side of the meadow I came across another much younger one, a fawn. She still had a few spots. I wasn't looking for either and yet there they were.

These old photos brought back a very special day.

One deer was exciting but two? Magical! So no, I haven't seen any deer for quite a while on our trips out, but I'm glad I have these to remind me of what a very special day that was. Maybe I should stop looking so hard for them, maybe they will just appear like that day at Big Meadows.

Thanks for looking and 

I hope your day is a great one!

AN OLD TRIP TO SEE THE KEY DEER - FLORIDA KEYS

My post today is another transfer from my old blog.  We are going back to January 2014.

These sweet looking deer are the endangered Key Deer.  They can be found in Pine Key, in the Florida Keys, and are tiny compared to the White-tailed Deer.  

At first you feel like you are looking at a youngster.  However, an adult's shoulder height is only between 24 to 32 inches. A doe can weigh 45 to 65 lbs. and a buck 55 to 80 lbs.  At birth fawns only weigh between 2 to 4 lbs.

The wire fencing shown is surrounding someone's yard.  This little one was on the edge of the road, but I am not as close as it looks as I am using my camera with a zoom lens.  

Next is the same photo as above.  I used it for a blog post, and you can find it at this link. I repeat what I have shared here, but there is also more at other links. I removed the chain link fence using Paint Shop Pro. I believe there are even easier functions now, which I am only just discovering.  For instance, moving the background entirely by using a feature on google.com.  That way you can put the subject on any background you choose.

We were in a quiet neighborhood with not a lot of heavy traffic, the roads were narrow and the rare car we came across drove very slowly. 

The miniature Key Deer are a subspecies of the White-tailed Deer.  No one really knows the origins of the deer in the Keys, but it is believed that they migrated from the mainland thousands of years ago, across a long land bridge.  

As the Wisconsin Glacier melted, the sea rose dividing the land bridge into small islands, now known as the Florida Keys.

The earliest known written reference to Key Deer comes from the writings of Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda, a Spanish sailor shipwrecked in the Florida Keys and captured by Native Americans in the 1550's.  If you want to find out more about him click on this link.  He had an interesting life.  This is another reason I love blogging, on researching a post I learn so much more.

And if you want to learn more about the Key Deer, you can click here.

Thanks for looking and enjoy your day!

THIS AND THAT - NOVEMBER

I really love some of these pictures I find at Pinterest.  The bear almost looks like he is thinking, "It's been one of those days!"

The Tufted Titmouse is looking as if it just asked us a question and is waiting for the answer.

I was trying to think of what I wanted for lunch.  Gregg was out of the house for most of the day and I decided to fix myself a pork sandwich - yes, from the accidentally bought 8 lb. piece of pork!  I put 2 ozs. on Italian bread, and a little coleslaw on the side.  The dear man made the coleslaw earlier. Neither of us have had much success buying it at the store lately.  It always seems too soupy, or maybe we are just super-picky.  This homemade version was excellent and suited our taste perfectly.  Another win for the dear man I told him.  The rest of the pork is now in the freezer. 

A couple of hours later I made this for a treat, a chocolate chip cookie for one, with a 1/4 cup of vanilla ice-cream on the top.  It's a recipe I have made maybe only once since that first one.  I added walnuts this time instead of pecans.

You can find it at this link if you think you would enjoy it.  I took more photos, dressing my plate up for Fall.  A little ‘busy’ perhaps but I liked it. This year I bought some decorative leaves for our Thanksgiving table, which I added to the plate.  The placemats we have had for a couple of years. I got carried away with all the colors and made a little art with my ArtCard app.

But here’s the finished product, and it really was delicious.

Love these!

I'm adding a little humor because I know we've all been there.

Sharing some of my favorite flowers.  I will be buying them next week. I can't believe Thanksgiving is almost here!

This is a lovely poem and describes my feelings exactly.  When we drove to the Shenandoah National Park the other day, we passed trees that were shedding their leaves in every neighborhood.  They decorated the gardens beautifully, and some of the grass showing was still green, not dormant, a real pretty contrast to the red and gold fallen leaves.  A lot of people will be busy raking over the next few days.

Wouldn’t this be a pretty table setting at Thanksgiving?

Interesting owl art.  I like this.  I love owls!

That's all for today's This and That.  I hope there is something in here that you like.