Photoshopped Tree Branches

Played with Photoshop a few minutes yesterday and used some of the filters to colorize and alter a photo I took of some of the uppermost tree branches in the woods behind the house here in North Carolina. Everywhere you look in either of the Carolinas I call home is filled with trees. The main characteristic of the area we are living now--which is on the outskirts of  a little town called Pittsboro, (near Chapel Hill), is winding tree lined country roads. They are gorgeous! I love walking and driving here.

This morning was a bit of a shock for me--I woke to see SNOW on the ground here! Its a somewhat unexpected thing, I guess I wasn't paying attention.

Last week my doctor informed me that I must cut my arthritis meds in half, too much heart risk.. so she has offered up a prescription for daily pool exercise. I located a YMCA about a half hour from here and today is my first day of daily morning water exercises. I'm to start very slow.. they have water workout classes 5 days a week, so I think I will skip weekends, as this is quite a lot. I'm supposed to begin by only walking around in the pool for about 10 minutes a day and work up to taking classes in about 2 weeks. Things have been 'flarey' since the holidays, so she doesn't want me to overdo and then have something flare up and discourage me. The idea is very gentle exercise, for a short time every day--no matter how I feel--until I can get over this hump and hopefully things will improve.

So I'll be donning the 'fargo coat' this morning to go dip into a pool I wish was a little warmer..but the best part is there is a nice big hot whirlpool and a sauna that I get to use after my chilly dip.

I am trying to think of ideas to decorate this place we are in now.. the walls are sort of aqua in the living room with teal carpet. It is a manufactured home--'doublewide' so it has an angled ceiling and the walls go up to a peak in the middle. You would think with all the artsy stuff I do that I'd have wall hangings and such like galore..but it seems all my art work usually goes out the door--either sold or given as gifts. I have just about nothing of  the handiwork of 40+ years. So.. since I don't know what is up--are we moving home again or not... I have decided to start to decorate here-inside and out. I thought I'd be working on the little flower beds this week--but then this snow came.. weird.

Anyhow yesterday I sprinkled some poppy seeds near some bulbs that are coming up, and I also placed my little cement bunny family in the bed there which is under a crape myrle tree... they probably won't flower this year.. maybe I will see them next spring, maybe not.  The dilemna of an often uprooted granny! How many places have I started and left gardens? I feel like Granny Appleseed, leaving poppies, and lamb's ears and all sorts of things across the country.

Yesterday my attention turned toward the living room walls and I began to stare them down & muse about what to do. I am thinking of maybe getting some big canvasses with my coupons, they are on sale at Michaels. I could paint them, but I don't know what design I would like. So.. that is my pondering right now.. we shall see....I'd sort of like to have tree photos enlarged and wrapped in canvas but that is very pricey for my budget.. perhaps I should just paint them? And maybe I should try to paint also a few deer, one should be white. We have a couple of little white deer in the neighborhood here.

I could use acrylic, or wool felting--or maybe do some watercolor on rice paper... hmmm... we shall see..
Have a lovely Poke-brry day, if there's snow in your neck of the woods, enjoy the beauty of the sunlight hitting it just right between the trees, as I am right now.