Purity and Beauty

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Betsy and I usually manage to see the Conservatory every time we visit Biltmore in Asheville, North Carolina. We wandered into the Orchid Room of the Conservatory when we visited in late November. The simple beauty of this orchid caught my eye.

A Thanksgiving Rose

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We have many things for which to be thankful. Some are major -- such as family and good health. Others are minor in the total scheme of life, but nice just the same. This rose, Perfect Moment, decided to bloom on Thanksgiving Day, in spite of near-freezing temperatures the night before. The petals are more leathery than normal, but we think this rose picked a perfect moment to bloom.

November Roses: Love and Peace

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Another of our November-blooming roses is Love and Peace. This rose is one of several in the Peace family that we have in our yard. All of them are yellow-red bicolor roses with a light fragrance.

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On a personal note, Betsy and I are taking a few of days off for some much-needed R&R. We hope you all will have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. We'll see you after Thanksgiving.

Fairfield Moon

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I usually don't have much success trying to get photos of the moon, but I got this shot a couple of weeks and thought it came out pretty well.

November Roses: Peace

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We've had several nights with temperatures below freezing, but so far we haven't had a killing frost. As a result some of our roses are continuing to bloom -- they don't pay much attention to the calendar. This blossom on our Peace rose opened yesterday (Sunday). The colors are a little darker than they usually are, but I still think it's a beautiful rose.

From My Archives: Quarry Falls

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Quarry Falls is more of a cascade than a true waterfall. It is located in the Cullasaja River Gorge near Highlands, North Carolina, and gets its name from an old quarry on the other side of the road. We had this waterfall to ourselves when this picture was taken in December, but there are always many people around on a hot summer day.

Morning in the Smokies

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Sometimes we get rewarded for getting up before dawn. Betsy and I got up early one day last month to drive to the Smokies so we could see the autumn colors in the morning light. It was a cloudy day, but we were treated to this sight at an overlook on the Gatlinburg Bypass.

Autumn in the Glade

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On a clear autumn day it seems possible to see forever from some places here in the Glade. This picture was taken at an overlook on the fourteenth hole of the Druid Hills Golf Course. It's one of our favorite spots in the Glade.

Flowers From Our Yard: Perfume Delight Rose

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Although we had below-freezing temperatures last weekend, some of our roses are continuing to delight us with blossoms. Perfume Delight not only looks beautiful, it earned its name because of a delightful fragrance.

Touchdown!

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Betsy attended a high school football game one evening earlier this month to see Landon, Betsy's grandson, play in his high school band. When the home team scored a touchdown, these fireworks lit up the sky.