None yet, but they're forecasting anywhere from 1 to 5 inches for here over the next few days. I just went out and pulled my garden cart up onto the porch just in case. Snow shovel is out of the shed.

Camera is ready.

Claire

Oops - yes we have snow, but no, the camera is not ready. Camera is malfunctioning. Probably not a good idea to put the batteries in wrong in the dark, trying to get a photo of Christmas lights in the snow.

Sorry,
Claire, who may need to get new camera

Oh, too bad, Claire. Instead, if you get your batteries rearranged, i'd love to see a photo of the total lunar eclipse (tonight, after 2:30 AM or so). But I think the skies in New England will be cloudy. What! You don't want to get up at 2:30 AM?? :)

Carol

I'm disappointed about no snow either, tho I have to say that I hope it holds off awhile longer as so many people will be traveling over the next two weeks.

My house and town usually look like a Christmas card this time of year but not this year.

Carol, the camera manual warned not to put the batteries in wrong because it could irreparably damage the camera. I think it did. Oh well, I've been wanting a newer, better camera so I guess now is the time.

We have about 3 to 4 inches here now; wet heavy snow that's weighing down evergreens (and the snow shovel).

The NWS is forecasting 4 to 6 inches total in a very limited area:

"* Accumulations... 4 to 6 inches... heaviest amounts on Marthas
Vineyard and near the Cape Cod canal in southeast Plymouth
County."

I happen to live "near the Cape Cod canal in southeast Plymouth County". I've been out shoveling and shaking snow off branches and, of course, making sure the birds can get to their food.

The snow has let up a bit for now and it does look pretty - you'll have to take my word for it.

Claire

Never mind, Claire; we finally have some snow here in the city. Only about 2 inches forecast but it's covering the shabby dirty tar-patched old streets and placing a confectioner's XXXX cap on the Squirrelbuster.

Sorry to hear about your camera damage.

Carol

Got 8 to 10 inches total here in Plymouth; way more than expected. My camera is functioning again for now, thanks to a tip on battery alignment from Jane (corunum).

Of course, the snow is now sagging and past the pretty stage since the temperatures have been above freezing all day. Maybe I'll get some good photos next storm.

The lunar eclipse was hidden by clouds.

Claire

This is what got me in trouble the last time; trying for a Christmas lights with snow shot, but I decided to try it again.

From the kitchen window: Wisteria with lights outside. Lighted deck prism inside.

Miscanthus Gracillimus plumes outside.

And from the deck: this morning the lights were almost covered with snow. Most of that has melted and the lights are more exposed now.

Claire

Excellent!! Anybody who has the setting, plants and wildlife to photograph that you have - on a daily basis - cannot, under any circumstance, be without a camera. Better keep the SX30 IS on a list somewhere! Geesh. How many people have Cape Cod Bay for a backyard? (rhetorical)Just lovely.

Jane

Thanks for the snowy show, Claire. What a view!

Carol

Snow.........well it IS a four-letter word after all! LOL! I admit it looks beautiful, clean and fresh. But my back is thankful when I don't have to deal with it! A week ago I was in San Diego, enjoying the gardens in Balboa Park, and I will say the it wasn't too difficult to enjoy the countless roses in perfect bloom, or to see the beautiful South African aloes in bloom on a hill overlooking the city! Admittedly, Christmas lights on palm trees look odd, but then I suppose for the millions who grew up in the warmer climates of the world as well as most of the southern hemisphere, warm weather at Christmas is their norm. Currier and Ives never made a card with palms or birds of paradise. Maybe they could increase sales! LOL!
Wishing all of you a Merry Christmas, and a white one for those who are waiting for one! Best wishes!

Bill's reference to Balboa Park made me think of the trip my wife and I made there in March 2009. Here are some pics from the gardens to which Bill referred:

The rose garden

Close-up of one of the best-looking roses (IMHO)

Iceplant in bloom

A rather cool blue succulent

A different colored iceplant bloom mixed with blue succulents

A few golden barrel cacti

And finally some really weird-looking succulent trees

The mind is boggled by the contrast between these pics and the view out my window! That second tree photo looks like it's a couple of trees about to dance off the stage.

Claire

Those last two are "Dragon Trees", Dracaena draco. In the next-to-last photo are the Boojum trees (Fouquieria columnaris) which are related to the ocotillo. In the third photo (after the single rose) are ice plants as you've identified. There are species of those that do very well here in New England. One of mine looks exactly like your photo all summer! In the fourth and fifth photo is the blue Senecio, and fifth one has another type of ice plant blooms mixed in. In the seventh photo, the "weird succulents" could either be Euphorbias or one of the Cereus family of cactus. Hard to tell those even in person.

Thanks for the great photos. Looking out my window I wish I were back there now!

Claire, your ocean view is to die for and your xmas lights photos are so pretty. I love the ship's prism indoors too.

I hope my digital camera cannot be adversely affected by the batteries being installed the wrong direction. I did this accidentally a couple weeks ago for the first time. That's what I get for trying to replace batteries in a semi-lit room without my glasses. Fortunately I discovered the mistake and rectified it immediately, and the camera seems unharmed. I'll have to be a lot more vigilent from now on because I don't want to replace my trusty olympus with its powerful zoom lens.

tree oracle, your tropical/desert garden photos are like a magical oasis in the midst of the current polar winter conditions outside my windows. We got about 18" here in Vermont and the daytime temp is 10 F.

Thanks for the various photos!

spedigrees: The problem with mis-installation of the batteries seems to be a Canon issue (thanks to corunum/Jane for a reference). It may be that the contacts in the battery compartment are very sensitive to being bent when the battery is upside down (the + and - terminals have a different configuration).

It's nice to know I'm not the only one trying to install the batteries when I couldn't really see what I was doing.

Claire

Thanks Claire! However Hubby warned me that installing batts backwards could fry the circuitry of any camera, so I appreciated your warning to the wise. He said it may be that some cameras have safety programming built in, but I figure: why take a chance? Forewarned is forearmed. yes, the older my eyes get, the more light I need to use when performing any tasks, to say nothing of reading glasses! Glad your camera also survived your temporary lapse. Your photography is wonderful to see.

You know, I bought a roll of film recently for my old 35 mm cam and discovered that my eyes are so bad now that I can't see to operate the manual focus anymore. It really sucks to get old!

Does your 35mm film camera have a diopter on the viewfinder? Most of them did. I have one on my digital camera (most of them have one) and it's absolutely necessary for me to see what's in focus, although I generally let it autofocus and it does a great job. Otherwise I'd have to wear my reading glasses to take photos, which is a pain because of reflection etc. and it would make it hard to see into the viewfinder.

Yes Bill, mine does, but my eyes are so bad that I can't see the diopter anymore in low light situations. In strong daylight I can still use the diopter, and you're right, without it I'd be doomed to all fuzzy pix now.

My digital camera may have a diopter too, but I just rely on the automatic focus. (The auto focus can be a royal pain though when it insists on focusing on an object in the foreground instead of the intended subject. Photographing through a window screen for instance is impossible.)

If your digital cam has a diopter, once you adjust it for your vision, you should be able to use manual focus when necessary. Most diopters go from around +/- 20, so they are comparable to strong reading glasses. I don't know how close to the window screen you are when trying to take a photo, but usually if you're right up to it, the camera "sees through" to something beyond, because it can't focus on something right up near the lens (unless you have macro or supermacro turned on). But no matter what, with a digital camera you can take all the photos you want, since they don't cost anything, and you're bound to get some good shots anyway. Keep shooting!