Friday 15 May 2020

Waiting For the Moon

May 6 and 7.

Wednesday

We had been having perfect, clear blue, sky days and evenings. On this evening, that the moon was to be 98% full, dark clouds hid the horizon. It was nearly an hour after the moon rise time of 4.12pm, that it finally appeared. 
I spent the time playing with my camera settings, to snap various items of interest in my view. A clear image of the caterpillars devouring my lovely pink Pentas bush, was difficult to achieve, with my point and shoot Sony DSC-HX90V.

The weather, radar 'golf' ball, 5km from our home.

An ant trying to reach the clouds. Well so I thought. It was just a tiny scrap of grass.

Bouganvillea in the neighbour's yard.

A metal sculpture made of railway tools, created by my brother.

Potential beautiful butterflies.

Really looking for the moon!


An hour late! Can you spot it, plus the 'Old Man of the Moon' taking a rest?

It flitted in and out of the clouds.



Thursday

It had been another lovely clear day, until late afternoon. The moon was due to appear at 5.13pm, but again the horizon was filled with clouds. On this afternoon, as golfing had ceased, I was able to walk the short distance to the ponds. My spirits soared as the sky was filled with ever changing sunset colours. A wondrous, magical hour was spent turning from east to west and back again!












It didn't matter then, that the moon only briefly shared its light.

Friday 8 May.

Moonset was at 6.50 am. At 6 am, my friend Mary and I set off on our daily walk. Our pace quickened, when we realised that the moon was sinking rapidly behind the local hill, 40 minutes early. We just managed to reach this open view, to snap these few images, before it sank below the horizon.





Our walk continued west, but we looked east often, to catch the sunrise.

Our destination on this day, was to top of Brosnahan Court. A very steep climb, offering 180 degree views.

Halfway up, the sun's rays brightened the skyline.

At the top, one Granny posed for her Grandson in Canada.

Not puffed at all?

Retracing our steps.

Saturday 9 May

Friday evening the moon didn't show its face at all. Saturday morning saw Laurel and I walking early and we enjoyed watching it play games, as it dropped towards the horizon.









Goodbye 'Flower Moon'. You have been quite spectacular when I have been able to find you.

Corona restrictions are easing here in Australia. There have been 7 019 cases.   
6 337 have recovered with 98 deaths and 37 new cases in the past 24 hours.. We can now travel up to 150 km for day trips and recreational purposes. Five visitors to households. Ten in gatherings outside. Pools, parks, libraries, retail shops, restaurants can open but must meet social distancing and the maximum of ten.

We are warned that there will be a 2nd and 3rd wave of corona, especially if we don't observe social distancing and strict cleanliness guidelines. 'Stay at home if you are sick!'

For my husband and I, our daily life will change little at this point. Maybe I will manage to complete all my projects and find more time to enjoy the blogs of my many friends around the world. I can't believe how many days pass without me reading them.

Hardest for me is not being able to visit my Grandchildren in Canada. Last night's news suggested that it could be 2023 before international flights return to normal.

Take care and stay healthy.

I would love to read your comment. 


20 comments:

  1. WOW-- The moon on a wire! Some very fine pictures here. I suspect it could easily be 2023 before lots of other things return to normal.

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    1. Thank you Bill. I think 'normal' will have a new meaning as the word tries to beat this virus.

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  2. I too love the photo of the moon rolling down the wire!! :) Another favourite is the one where it (the moon) looks huge behind the tops of trees.
    My son plans to fly to Finland in June or July. I hope it's a good idea.
    Stay safe and well! xx

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    1. Sara, I hope that by now your son has safely returned to Finland.

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  3. Love all your moon pics. And I really like your one sunset image where the colors are reflected in the nearby pond. Glad the virus is settling down where you live. We are still getting cases, nearly the same number every day, in our state. Although we don't have a large number of total cases, it's not going down just yet. Hope you are able to travel next year....2023 is a long time to wait.

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    1. Thank you Linda. It really was a stunning sunset and the surface of the ponds calm to reflect the colours.

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  4. You are like me ... in love with the sky.

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  5. Amazing shots of the moon.

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    1. Thank you. I've just realised that the next full moon is only a few days away!

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  6. Keep playing with your camera, some superb photos there. Good to hear the Australia is coming out of the crisis, although we all need to stay vigilant to avoid a further wave

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    1. Thanks Andy. It's fun playing with the camera but I need to be more drastic in my culling.

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  7. I can never "capture" the moon. You accomplished some nice shots. I love the colors at sunset.

    I, too, have been doing some cleaning and sorting. I've lived in the same house for nearly 35 years now, and I can tell as I try to make my way through closets and drawers. Maybe I will eventually get more weeded out from the basement? It is slow going. I have a hard time throwing things away. But it is refreshing to look at a neat, well-organized closet and drawers. Now the goal is to keep them that way! We have made a couple of deliveries to Goodwill as well.

    Kansas is now on Phase 1.5 of reopening. Phase 2 got pushed back again. The hair salons are open this week for the first time in 2 months. I am looking forward to my appointment next week! Take care!

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    1. Thanks Kim. My 30X zoom on my point and shoot camera is excellent, so long as the light is right.
      I had thought I would be happy to let my hair grow during this time, but it was relief to finally be able to have it cut.

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  8. I wonder how you've been able to escape with so few deaths. Glad your restrictions are easing. Those shots are beautiful.

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    1. Thank you Mary. Our population is low and widely spread. Our government went into social distancing and isolation very quickly and are being very wary re relaxing the regulations.

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  9. Great sky shots, Helen, especially with the captures of the moon. My trip to Australia was canceled this year (I would have been leaving in six weeks) but I am sure hoping that I an do it next year. Stay well.

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  10. So disappointing for you David and for so many. Australia is being very strict with borders, so it could be sometime before flights resume to here.

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  11. Thank you for visiting my blog Helen. I am happy to follow yours.Such beautiful photos. Peaceful!

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  12. I hope that international flights are possible by next year. If not my visit to Australia, already postponed this year, will have to be postponed again, and the longer that continues to happen the less likely it is that it will ever take place. I am starting to wonder how many airlines will even survive to begin flying again.

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