Waiting in line for the H1N1 Vaccine

The H1N1 vaccine is now available in London, Ontario, and children make up a large number of those in line for the H1N1 vaccine. These children amuse themselves, while waiting three hours in the chilly fall air, by watching a movie on a small portable player. So many people turned out for the clinic, open only to high risk individuals, that the more than two hours before the clinic opened the parking lot was filled.

A story on the H1N1 situation was filed on Digital Journal.

Hostas in the fall

My wife is not a fan of hostas. To her they are just a bunch of big leaves. She wants flowers. The little flowers blooming on tall stalks above the hosta foliage just don't cut it for her. Well, even my wife, after viewing my hosta pictures this year, is being pulled into the hosta camp. I didn't think London Daily Photo would feature hostas again this year but here they are - again. The shades of fall gold colour were just too beautiful not to shoot and share.

Cheers,
Rockinon

H1N1 fight begins

Londoners turned out in the thousands Tuesday to get inoculated against the swine flu, H1N1. There were two special clinics in London, Ontario, and there will be more in the coming days. 

The first clinics are reserved for high risk individuals. Next week the clinics will be open to all.

Photojournalist Derek Ruttan, of The London Free Press, interviews Alex Middel, of London, bringing her son Fynn, 2, to the south London H1N1 vaccination clinic Tuesday.

Blue and red mystery

I give up. While walking along Beaconsfield Avenue above Horton Street E., still called the Horton extension by some, I noticed these deep blue berries on bright red stems. What are they? Don't know, but they are neat.

Northern Walking Stick_Again

This is my second post featuring a Northern Walking Stick. This time I think I have the little critter facing the camera. I didn't realize it at the time but now I think I'm being rudely mooned in my first posted picture.


These are among the neatest insects in southwestern Ontario. Walking sticks are found around the world but mostly in tropical regions. Only one is native to Canada, the northern walking stick, and it occurs only in southern Ontario and Quebec.

Wednesday my wife spotted one on our garage door. Very agile, with both claws and sucker pads on their feet, it had no problem walking about the smooth, painted panels. I put out my hand, allowed it to climb on and then I carried it to a nearby shrub.


These insects are so well camouflaged, they look just like a short, thin twig. Kids capture them, put them in an aquarium filled with small branches and leaves, and then they promptly lose sight of their skinny pet.

It's best just to take the little insect's picture and leave them running free. Quite delicate, one can unintentionally injure a walking stick by handling them. Look but don't touch. (Note that I let it climb onto my hand. I didn't pick it up directly.)


Later, I'm going to write a little on Rockin' On: Photography about how this shot was done. It will be a little photography lesson.

Cheers,
Rockinon


To see my first walking stick post click on this link - LINK.

Sharon Creek Conservation Area (Friday Post)

The Sharon Creek Conservation Area is a small but very beautiful spot just minutes from my home in southwest London. To learn more click the link. I did and I learned that the pretty little pond is part of a larger than I expected conservation area. Taking a picture a day is a fine way to learn about the town that you thought you knew so well.

Cheers,
Rockinon.

p.s. I am away for a few days and so I am posting in advance. Enjoy!

Balloon Chasing Three

Hot-air balloons almost always come down outside the city. That said, there have been times when the wind has died and stranded the balloons over the city. Out of fuel the pilots have landed in football fields, open stretches of residential roadway and even in large back yards.

The other night the balloons easily made it into the farm country. The problem with farms is that there may still be a crop in the field waiting to be harvested. Landing in the wrong field results in an angry farmer and a big expense to the hot-air balloon flight company.

This balloon is skimming over a field of beans, I believe. The pilot brought the balloon out of the field and landed it beside the barn where the pick-up vehicle was already waiting. No damage, no expense, no angry farmer. We might of even had a quite happy farmer, if the pilot and his passengers shared their champagne. (Champagne to celebrate a successful landing is a ballooning tradition.)