[v is for vain (diptych)]
#153 of 365

vain
veyn
–adjective, -er, -est.
1. excessively proud of or concerned about one's own appearance, qualities, achievements, etc.; conceited: a vain dandy.
2. proceeding from or showing personal vanity: vain remarks.
3. ineffectual or unsuccessful; futile: a vain effort.
4. without real significance, value, or importance; baseless or worthless: vain pageantry; vain display.
5. archaic. senseless or foolish.

[u is for up]
#152 of 365

up
uhp
- adverb
5. to or at any point that is considered higher.

[r is for random]
#149 of 365

ran⋅dom
ran-duhm
–adjective
proceeding, made, or occurring without definite aim, reason, or pattern: the random selection of numbers.

[m is for mantis]
#144 of 365

man⋅tis
mān'tĭs
–noun, plural -tis⋅es, -tes, -tiz, -teez
1. any of several predaceous insects of the order mantidae, having a long prothorax and typically holding the forelegs in an upraised position as if in prayer.
2. any of various predatory insects of the family mantidae, primarily tropical but including a few temperate zone species, usually pale green and having two pairs of walking legs and powerful grasping forelimbs. the mantis feeds on live insects, including others of its own kind.
also, mantid.
also called praying mantis.

i still think it is going to be a horrible movie...

[k is for kaleidoscope]
#142 of 365

ka⋅lei⋅do⋅scope
kuh-lahy-duh-skohp
–noun
1. an optical instrument in which bits of glass, held loosely at the end of a rotating tube, are shown in continually changing symmetrical forms by reflection in two or more mirrors set at angles to each other.
2. a continually changing pattern of shapes and colors.
3. a continually shifting pattern, scene, or the like: the 1920s were a kaleidoscope of fads and fashions.

[h is for huckleberry (diptych)]
#139 of 365

huck⋅le⋅ber⋅ry
huhk-uhl-ber-ee
–noun,
plural
-ries
1. the dark-blue or black edible berry of any of various shrubs belonging to the genus gaylussacia of the heath family.
2. a shrub bearing such fruit.

use food to burn calories.

[d is for decapitate]
#135 of 365

de⋅cap⋅i⋅tate
di-kap-i-teyt
–verb
(used with object), -tat⋅ed, -tat⋅ing.
1. to cut off the head of; behead
related forms:
de⋅cap⋅i⋅ta⋅tion, noun
de⋅cap⋅i⋅ta⋅tor, noun

[c is for _____]
#134 of 365

caf⋅feine
ka-feen, kaf-een, kaf-ee-in
–noun
chemistry, pharmacology
1. a white, crystalline, bitter alkaloid, c8h10n4o2, usually derived from coffee or tea: used in medicine chiefly as a nervous system stimulant.

coot⋅ie
kuti, koo-tee
–noun
informal
1. a louse, esp. one affecting humans, as the body louse, head louse, or pubic louse.
also, cooty.

cof⋅fee
kaw-fee, kof-ee
–noun
1. a beverage consisting of a decoction or infusion of the roasted ground or crushed seeds (coffee beans) of the two-seeded fruit (coffee berry) of certain coffee trees.
2. the seeds or fruit themselves.
3. any tropical tree or shrub of the genus coffea, of the madder family, esp. c. arabica and c. canephora, cultivated commercially. compare arabian coffee, robusta coffee.
4. a cup of coffee: we ordered four coffees and three doughnuts.
5. a social gathering at which coffee and other refreshments are served.
6. medium to dark brown.
–adjective
7. coffee-colored.

it's a beautiful thing.

devastation marks scene of california prison riot...

you can't touch this (sorry, i had to...it was begging to be done)...

[wisteria and bulbs]
#129 of 365

"wisteria is a genus of about ten species of woody climbing vines native to the eastern united states and the east asian states of china, korea, and japan. aquarists refer to the species hygrophila difformis, in the genus hygrophila, as water wisteria.

wisteria vines climb by twining their stems either clockwise or counter-clockwise round any available support. they can climb as high as 20 m above ground and spread out 10 m laterally. the world's largest known wisteria vine is located in sierra madre, california, measuring more than an acre in size and weighing 250 tons.

the leaves are alternate, 15 to 35 cm long, pinnate, with 9 to 19 leaflets. the flowers are produced in pendulous racemes 10 to 80 cm long, similar to those of the genus laburnum, but are purple, violet, pink or white, not yellow. flowering is in the spring (just before or as the leaves open) in some asian species, and in mid to late summer in the american species and w. japonica. the flowers of some species are fragrant, most notably chinese wisteria. the seeds are produced in pods similar to those of laburnum, and, like that genus, are poisonous."

we have 5 wisteria plants that are about to cover our pergola. three are of the purple flowering genus and the other two are of the white flowering genus. it normally takes about 10 years for a wisteria to reach maturity and bloom. our purple vines are only four years old and this is the second year that one has bloomed. last year, the bigger vine bloomed one massive pod and this year, nothing. but a different vine bloomed 3 pods. i just happened to notice it last night when we were waiting for the lightning to flash.

our white vines are only two years and i don't plan on seeing them bloom for a couple years yet. i am learning the art of propagation so hopefully i'll be able to successful get more plants next year. here's to hoping. . .

[feed the ducks]
#126 of 365

[hibiscus buds]
#125 of 365

[zero]
#124 of 365

[handful of luvin']
#123 of 365