A Perfect Rose?

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I don't know if there is such a thing as a perfect rose, but I think this comes pretty close. Veterans Honor is a rose in our new flower bed, and I got this picture yesterday morning just as the sunlight reached it. This seems a very appropriate rose for Memorial Day weekend.

Lee Chapel at Washington and Lee University

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The chapel at Washington and Lee University was designed by Robert E. Lee while he was president of Washington College as the university was then known. Lee attended daily chapel, sitting in the first row. He and his family are buried in the basement of the chapel.

Golden Koi

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Garvan Woodland Gardens near Hot Springs, Arkansas has more than beautiful flowers and plants. It also has a koi pond with some beautiful (and large) koi. I was able to get this picture as he swam past me.

Juney Whank Falls

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Yesterday I pictured an iris from our yard with a name I couldn't explain. But irises aren't the only things with unusual names. This little waterfall is on the North Carolina side of the Smokies at Deep Creek Campground.

Hell's Fire Iris

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I don't know how some of these plants get their names. This pretty iris is called Hell's Fire. In spite of the connotations of the name, we enjoying its blooms in our yard. Since this is a re-blooming iris, we hope to enjoy it again this fall.

Decoy Daffodil

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This is another of the daffodils we enjoyed in our yard this year. We've had this daffodil for a couple of years and like it's orange-red trumpet.

Honeybee at Work

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Earlier this spring I spotted this honey bee hard at work in one of our redbud trees. It gave me a good excuse to experiment with my macro lens.

Halley's Comet Tulip

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Our tulips put on quite a show this Spring. One of the new tulips for this year was Halley's Comet, a cheery red and yellow bicolor.

Double Delight Rose

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When we got home from the beach, Double Delight was the first rose we saw in our yard. It's in our new flower bed at the end of the driveway, so we saw it as we came down the street to the house. The nice thing about this rose is that it is as fragrant as it is beautiful.

Mon Cheri Daffodil

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Our daffodils are now long gone for this year, but not forgotten. Mon Cheri was a pretty, new daffodil in our yard this spring.

Electric Shock Iris

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When we got home from the beach last weekend, we were greeted by iris and roses in bloom. This Electric Shock Iris was at the end of the driveway as we drove in.

The Echo Wall

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This young Chinese girl is listening to a whisper along the Echo Wall in the Temple of Heaven in Beijing, China. The Echo Wall is a circular wall surrounding the Imperial Vault of Heaven. It is approximately 12 feet tall and has a diameter of about 200 feet. It gets its name from its accoustical properties -- a whisper spoken on one side can be clearly heard on the other.

The picture above was scanned from a slide.

Moon Over the Beach

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When Betsy and I were at the beach last year, we were treated to a night moonrise over the ocean from our room. We were able to see the moon over the ocean this year as well, but it was during the day from the beach. You have to look carefully, but the moon is visible in the upper part of the picture above.

Another View from the Beach

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I couldn't resist sharing another picture from Ocean Isle Beach. This picture was taken a couple of days after the picture I posted yesterday. As you can see, we had a perfect day for sitting on the beach and enjoying the beauty around us.

The Beach Was Beautiful

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This is the view Betsy and I enjoyed from the balcony of our room at the Islander Inn in Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina. Is it any wonder that we go back each year?

We're Off To The Beach

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The picture above was taken at Ocean Isle Beach, North Carolina, last year. We're heading down there again early today (Saturday).

The picture shows why we keep going back to the beach each year. There's the beautiful blue of the sky and ocean, the quiet beach and the shrimp boat, which represents some of the delicious seafood we hope to eat while we're down there.

This will be my last post until we get back. I'll have my iPod Touch with me and will try to visit as many of you as possible.