Rainy Shrubs

Local fauna taken during evening dog walk.

Both pix taken with the iPhone.

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Walk in the Rain

Couldn't take the miniature pinscher on a walk tonight because it was too wet and too cold. She hates both, and suffered severely from hypothermia on one occassion a month or two ago.

Love how the rain pools on the leaves and flowers.

I see this type of berry-looking fruit a lot this time of year. Have no idea what it is. Have yet to find someone who knows what they are called. I wonder if they just spring up naturally like a weed?

There is an old house in the neighborhood with interested motifs imprinted onto the stone and cement wall surround the front part of the house. Like the choice of Navy blue for the trim on part of the gate.

My iPhone doesn't do her any justice. It was hard to get enough light this late in the evening to capture a good shot.

This home in the neighborhood has a so-so house, but they have got very fancy metal work of the fencing. I have walked by this house a hundred times when walking the dog and never noticed it before. I guess the rain made the metallic surfaces stand out more than usual. 

The object behind the leaf and flower is a huge stone vase full of water. I have seen some homes or businesses put this big 20-gallon or so vases out and fill them with water plants or even gold fish!

My next door neighbor has some red-leafed bush in front of their house that is lit up right under the street lamp. They've got a nice, modern-style home. I like the small touches of minimal plants and greenery the housewife has added to their home.

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Dinner Time Bed Time

Dale wants dinner. ご飯の時間？

Nikon D3100; AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-55; 1/60 sec.; f/5.6; ISO 3200

Still waiting for dinner. ご飯はまだ？

Nikon D3100; AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-55; 1/60 sec.; f/5.6; ISO 3200

Waiting for bedtime. まだ寝ないの？

Nikon D3100; AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-55; 1/60 sec.; f/5.6; ISO 3200

Waiting for bedtime. まだ寝ないの？

Nikon D3100; AF-S DX VR Zoom Nikkor 18-55; 1/60 sec.; f/5.6; ISO 3200

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Bamboo Shrine

Took Dale to the top of the hill in a local park at night. She can roam freely without a leash at this time of night.

There are two tiny Shinto Shrines at the top. Have yet met anyone who knows why or when they were put there. 

Dale is hoping I'll play fetch with her using that long bamboo stalk on the ground! 

Going down the hill, there is the huge earthenware pot or vase full of water. Wonder if it's for firefighting purposes?

A farmer's field on the way home is surrounded by a thicket of bamboo. Much more appealing than barbed wire!

My neighbor is growing this spring-like flowers in front of their house in the dead of winter!

Another neighbor had old bamboo overgrown with vines for the fence around their property.

I make sure that Dale is given the command "Up!" whenever we find a wall that she can scale. Good exercise for her and really cool to watch!

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Fruity Spikes Volcanic Bursts

Yellow bursts from a velvet volcano of color.

Tiny ecosystem at the mercy of a gardener.

Translucent mirrors of sunshine.

Siblings eagerly awaiting the warmth.

Tiger stripes.

Neighboring rose-like petals.

Built right into the wall for as long as the house stands.

Fruits calling out to the birds.

Touch me if you dare.

富士山

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Night Iijima Park Dog Walk

Took Dale to the Iijima Shimin Park in our neighborhood for her evening walk. 

Their is a man-made creek that runs along the edge of the park with these huge slabs of stone used for bridges. 

Dale loves to run across to the other side and sniff around the water’s edge.

As usual, she can’t resist to jump into the water.

This is a downstream view of the creek.

This is an upstream view.

This is the first bridge that is upstream.

Dale deciding where she should go to jump into the water — from the shore or just jump in from the bridge.

Some strange looking flowering plants can be seen in the park.

These leaves are quite colorful during the day, but slippery when wet!

Don’t know what kind of fruit this is, but all my neighbors have them growing in their yards.

Normally, this flower is red or pink. Was a bit surprised to find a white one growing in my neighbor’s yard.

Pix4Japan by R.D.S. is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.