Picture of the Day for December 11, 2014

While not my typical barn picture, this barn-like building is called the Twine Shed, which is found on the site of the Hokenson Brothers Fishery on the shore of Lake Superior, north of Bayfield, Wisconsin.

Named for the twine used in fishing nets, nets were prepared, repaired, and stored in the building and a fishing net reel can be seen in the foreground. Fish boxes full of gill nets and floats were stacked inside the barn but it was more than just storage for fishing equipment as it was also the workshop, smithy, machine and carpenter shop. The Twine Shed embodies the necessary skills of a commercial fisherman.

The Twine Shed

The Twine Shed

Picture of the Day for December 8, 2014

As foggy as it is here this morning, I would almost expect to see gnomes sneaking through the woods and hiding under the toadstools. But the gnomes probably wouldn’t be able to move very fast through the woods since it is difficult to run in snow pants and heavy coats since no green grass to sit on but snow instead. And they might need a tarp around their toadstool so they don’t get icy since the fog is a freezing fog.

Hideout for the Gnomes

Hideout for the Gnomes

Picture of the Day for December 7, 2014

The sun setting by a waterfall is a peaceful experience, but many didn’t get to experience a sunset on a Sunday December 7 day in 1941 when Pearl Harbor was attacked and more than 2,400 people were killed in a day which President Franklin D. Roosevelt to proclaim “a date which will live in infamy”.

Some wars are said to be won but no one ever wins from wars. Fights and wars still continue today from major conflicts, with more lost of life, to smaller fights and arguments which tear friends and family apart. Maybe someday everyone in the world can enjoy peace.

Peaceful Sunset Waterfall

Peaceful Sunset Waterfall

Picture of the Day for December 6, 2014

This past summer and fall, I didn’t notice as many butterflies in the area and no big gathering of the Monarch butterflies in the fall like some years. There were some individual butterflies around, like this Giant Swallowtail, and no which I haven’t been able to identify yet. And while the sun is out today, if the butterfly hadn’t migrated south, its wings would be rather stiff since below freezing yet and no green grass for it to land on.

Giant Swallowtail Butterfly

Giant Swallowtail Butterfly

Picture of the Day for December 5, 2014

When traveling around the countryside, you often see similar barns in an area either in the foundation or shape or style. And a few miles away, another pocket of barn style will appear, including this style of having the extra pattern at the ends of the barn. The upper half does stand out farther than the lower boards so I don’t know if they just lapped the upper boards or if they are thicker boards on the top half. Most of the barn in this style have the half moon window at the peak and the other other windows but some have a more flowing curve pattern to make then different from their neighbors. Sometimes you don’t notice the extra pattern when the barn wall is painted the same color instead of the two-tone pattern.

Decorative Barn Wall

Decorative Barn Wall

Picture of the Day for December 3, 2014

Just like children, the batch of kittens at the farm were outside last night trying to catch the snowflakes coming down. But besides catching snowflakes, they were also chasing each other and running under my vehicle and when the majority of the kittens are black and it was dark out, that doesn’t make for the the best combination. It is much easier to spot black kittens in the daylight on the white snow.

Black on White

Black on White

Picture of the Day for December 2, 2014

In the middle of a very long barn wall, a barn door allowed its owner passage for years. Now the door and barn is feeling its age much like the weary farmer but I wonder what stories it could tell. Did it have a barn warming party after it was first built? Did it host a barn dance? How many critters did the barn shelter over the years.

Passage Through Old Barn Door

Passage Through Old Barn Door