Monday, November 28, 2011

Gnomes and shapeshifters, oh my





Looked down in my garden and what should appear?


You tell me. Is is gnome, fairy of maybe the little hairy man from Neil Gaiman's STARDUST who serves Tristran a sumptuous plate of fried field-mushrumps?





But this is the mushrump itself!
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Peering in tiny faces in the fauna opened my eyes to all kinds of magical happenings.





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baby footprints


disappear in the sand,


gulls tracks appear,


and are gone

shapeshifters?


changling?


fairy transport?






what goes here?

What story comes to mind when you see faces where they shouldn't be and footsteps fading into what--thin air?

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Hope your long weekend was wonderful.




It was quite glorious--and as you can see, magical--here. At least inside my head. *meanders off in search of wonders*












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Secondly!!!! S. R. Johannes, who many of you will know from her blog Market My Words, is holding a book launch tomorrow, Tuesday, with a ton of fabulous prizes. Fill out the entry form and check in her blog or Twitter for all kinds of fun surrounding UNTRACEABLE, which earned a smashing review from Kirkus.


(sorry if the spacing is weird --I edited after pub and Blogger went wonky)

27 comments:

Rebecca Gomez said...

I am always seeing faces where they shouldn't be.

I'm glad you had such a magical weekend!

Bish Denham said...

I think the faces we think we see may help to keep us interested and alert to the world around us. In caveman days the faces we might have seen could well have been a dangerous animal. Even if it turned out to be merely shadows, better to be safe than sorrow.

It makes things quite magical.

Rick Daley said...

The mushrump looks like a reincarnated owl. Cool post, I likes me some magic during the holidays!

Donna said...

Owl was my first thought, too. Magic is where you find it ... The cover of Untraceable is irresistible. Can't wait.

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Rebecca: Isn't that a fascinating thing about the brain? That it makes those odd connections?

Bish: Ooooo, that's an intersting concept--that it's a survival skill long imprinted in our brains.

Rick: Ha! I like that take on it. I'm all for mushrumps however they incarnate. ;)

Donna: Magic is where you find it! It's up to us.
And isn't that a fabulous cover? She did a post on all that went into getting that as she wanted it to be.

Shannon O'Donnell said...

GREAT pictures! I love the feeling of magic and mystery you wove into this post! :-)

Tere Kirkland said...

There can never be enough wonder in my life...

Thanks for sharing these wonderful pictures, Tricia!

Yvonne Osborne said...

What have you there? A fat baby owl? You have a bigfoot for sure. Tracks always make me think....who/what was it? Where were they going, and where did they end up? Were they looking for something to eat, or just a place to rest? Thanks for the reminder of the book launch.

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Shannon: I had so much fun taking the shots and thinking about what I'd say. ;)

Tere: Ah, that's it exactly--the wonder.

Yvonne: I love finding tracks I can't immediately identify. Life is so fascinating when we look around, isn't it?

Liza said...

It's so important to notice these details...and I'm glad you shared them.

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Liza: I so love your shared details, too. Nothing beats taking time to observe and muse.

storyqueen said...

Mushroom gnome is awesome....and the footprints!!

Yes, gloriousness abounds.

Shelley

Ara Burklund said...

Amazing pix, Tricia! Thanks for posting them!!! : )

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Shelley: I about fell over when I saw that mushroom. :D

Ara: You're welcome! So glad you dropped by.

Anonymous said...

Baby footprints...so cute.

You transported me elsewhere with your words and pics. :)

mary.anne.gruen@gmail.com said...

You're so lucky to live in such a magical place!

We have a log house with pine paneling. There are always faces to be found on the walls and ceilings.

Susan R. Mills said...

The mushrump definitely looks like an owl. And are you so frustrated with blogger and the spacing????? I've about had it.

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Medeia: *happy grin* I love to do the transport thing. ;)

Mary Anne: When I was a child I lived in a house in the woods that had knotty pine panels. I always saw amazing things in the walls.

Susan: I just loved that little mushrump, although he's all shriveled now.
And, yes, yes, yes, Blogger is driving me crazy with the buggy spacing.

Faith Pray said...

Ha! It looks like you have been well-visited! When magic happens all in clumps, it reminds me of "Lost in a Good Book" by Jasper Fforde.

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

*waves, grinning, at Faith*

Unknown said...

What an extraordinary photo of a mushroom!

A bit of magic methinks :)

kah said...

I love how your imagination works! :)

Whenever I see mushrooms growing in my yard, I say it's the home(s) of fairies.

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Hi, Wendy! Magic, oh, yes.

Karen: Mushrooms are so Faerie, agreed. Imagination is our friend. :)

Sherrie Petersen said...

I LOVE finding things like this! Makes me believe :)

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Hi Sherrie. I believe! I believe! ;)

LisaAnn said...

So glad you found my blog through Lydia's tweet, and I'm excited to explore your some more!

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

Hi LisaAnn and welcome! I think your blog rocks, btw. :)