Far from the end of my garden ... storage tanks appeared!

 Not really visible from my garden, but for the past few weeks I have watched, fascinated, the construction of a group of  enormous storage tanks on Port of Tacoma tideflats land. I see them as I drive from my home into the city of Tacoma.  It seems as though they appeared overnight! I am sure it was just that the construction of lower parts of the tanks were hidden behind other buildings ... but one day there they were! Giant grey cylinders!
Following the completion of the construction the painting began. That was the interesting part for me! Two men, perched on the end of a huge cherry picker, with very long handled paint rollers seemed to have nearly completed the task.  Today as I drove home (see the last photo) I watched fascinated as the man with the very long handle ... at the end of the cherry picker ... extended as far as it seemed it might go ... closed up the remaining grey spot!  Others remain to be painted but the one closest to the road gleams beautifully white ... the painter's work on display!  Good job guys!

Several of the storage tanks nearing completion

Two painters working feverishly when the sun shines!

Turning the last little grey space to white!

Two mornings ... different views!

Looking east from my garden each morning, across Commencement Bay at our end of Puget Sound, is a never the same experience. The two images taken at about the same time on two different mornings this past week are graphic examples. Watching the patterns of light across the water when the air is almost still is equally as mesmerizing as watching that same body of water changed by wind shifts which alter the light and the patterns created. Every minute is different. Every minute an "oh would you look at it now!" moment.

How does one choose?

Veins!

         

Proctor District, Tacoma, tree

Closer view of the above tree

Schuster Parkway, Tacoma, moment

Sun lighting the leaves a few minutes later

Approaching storm maybe downed all the leaves

I always carry a camera in whatever bag I am carrying: sometimes I think it would be better left at home as I wouldn't be driven to capture so many images!  This autumn has been, or so it seems to me, particularly brilliantly colorful. No doubt  our prolonged summer and lack of cold has something chemical to do with the sugar in the leaves and the color.  As I recall those three things are what direct the leaves autumnal color. The rapidity with which leaves fall was illustrated graphically when I returned, the next day,  to take more photos of the leaves with amazing veins. Not a one on the tree!
But when you have all these images the choice then becomes which ones do you wish to share?  After much sorting and resorting ... these are the ones I chose. I offer the beauty of these leaves as a possible balm for the divided sentiments roiling around in the country the day after the re-election of President Obama.

Autumn leaves ... Compost.

Driving to the pool to exercise early this morning I passed this overflowing can of maple leaves heading for the compost pile in our city's yard waste site.  I actually stopped my car, turned around and went back to take a photo. Not sure just what it was that I found so comical about the overflowing can - but I was amused. Walking up the road to take the photo I glanced across the street and exactly opposite there were a whole lot more leaves, of beautiful autumnal hues, probably destined for the next yard waste collection in two weeks. But for today those leaves were still holding on for the perfect climatic moment to drop.  It's always encouraging to realize that those leaves will become "food" for future new  leaves in another spring time burst ... of green.