Tonight, we mowed the yard for the first time this year.  I love the neat, orderly look of a freshly trimmed lawn.  I love the smell of grass.  I love the physical exertion required to push the mower, in sometimes playful, elaborate patterns, across the length or the width or the diagonal of our property’s dimensions.  (I opted to mow the length of the back yard this first time out.  A quick glance out the window, just now, tells me that Bill chose to do the same for the front.)

My contribution to finishing this task took just under thirty minutes.  Not quite enough to satisfy my self-imposed daily exercise requirements.  Perhaps I’ll have to tackle the whole thing next time around.  I will, however, let Bill do the more demanding chore of mowing along the fence line (his preference, anyway) so that I don’t chew up the wheels on our new mower – like I did sometimes with the last one – by getting too close to the screws along the bottom plate of our wrought iron fence.

For now, though, I’m pleased with the results and the energy expended to get the job done.  There will be plenty more opportunities in the weeks and months ahead to repeat what’s essentially, for me, a most enjoyable task.

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Husband and I stumbled across this beautiful old church tonight which I later discovered was the subject of a local newscast in 2014 to chronicle it being the last church in Churchville. Spare and lean, this tightly constructed house of worship looks to have been lovingly cared for over the years.

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge: Churches or Any Religious Building

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My husband and I extricated our bikes from a tangle of cobwebs and dusted them off over the weekend to enjoy some beautiful spring weather. The bike trail we traversed provided pastoral views and lots of cows and chickens. This barn along the path was a cheery display of patriotism that brought a smile to my face.

Cee’s Oddball Photo Challenge: 2015 Week #14

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It’s all about the students and student/athletes: young people with their enthusiasm, their exuberance, their creativity, their willingness to defy convention. There is nothing to compare with the atmosphere in a highly charged, highly anticipated matchup of college basketball rivals. And one of the best venues in the nation is that of my alma mater, Hilton Coliseum – Hilton MAGIC, BABY! -at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa.

This group of fans? They just want to get a little crazy, have a little fun, and support their Iowa State Cyclones!

Weekly Photo Challenge: Blur

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Bathed in the glow of a brilliant sunset, with our minds calm and serene after a brisk hike through the park, serenaded along the way by the low-pitch croaks of what sounded like a thousand bullfrogs, this was a perfect way to end the day.

Nature is like that. She soothes and delights, amazes and inspires. And precisely why we should embrace more of her every chance we get.

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Boys and girls: Beware!

Deep in the woods there lies a snake-like creature with deep-set, steely eyes and a long, pointed snout. It has a rapacious appetite and will devour anything in its path. While this vile predator prefers rodents such as mice, rats, beavers and even prairie dogs, it especially craves small children who don’t clean their rooms and disrespect their parents. When this type of game is out of season or otherwise unavailable, this loathsome monster is content to gobble up the leaves and brush it finds along the forest floor as it patiently seeks out more succulent fare.

Enter the woods at your own peril. I’d turn back if I were you…

Cee’s Oddball Photo Challenge: 2015 Week #13