Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

Live so that if you miss a day of work people aren’t hoping you’re dead.

There are some who say that there are too many strawmen arguments on this blog.

Compromise? There is no middle ground between a firefighter and an arsonist.

Hey Washington Post, “Democracy Dies in Darkness” was supposed to be a warning, not a mission statement.

Since we are repeating ourselves, let me just say fuck that.

🎶 Those boots were made for mockin’ 🎵

Historically it was a little unusual for the president to be an incoherent babbling moron.

“A king is only a king if we bow down.” – Rev. William Barber

Trumpflation is an intolerable hardship for every American, and it’s Trump’s fault.

Books are my comfort food!

There are consequences to being an arrogant, sullen prick.

Democracy cannot function without a free press.

Within six months Twitter will be fully self-driving.

This fight is for everything.

You can’t attract Republican voters. You can only out organize them.

America is going up in flames. The NYTimes fawns over MAGA celebrities. No longer a real newspaper.

My right to basic bodily autonomy is not on the table. that’s the new deal.

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

Nothing worth doing is easy.

It’s easy to sit in safety and prescribe what other people should be doing.

Someone should tell Republicans that violence is the last refuge of the incompetent, or possibly the first.

Also, are you sure you want people to rate your comments?

Well, whatever it is, it’s better than being a Republican.

You are here: Home / Nature & Respite / Respite / Serenity Pics / Taking a Break from the News

Taking a Break from the News

by | 43 Comments

This post is in: ,

In case anyone wants to take a break from the news, here are all the sidebar images from May.

In no particular order.  Click on any image below to see the full-size.

Just enjoy the beauty, or also chime in with thoughts about a daily image in the sidebar.

How can it be June already?

Image by GB in the HC (5/10)

 

Image by GB in the HC (5/23)

 

Salmon-pink sky edged in blue at the top. There's a tree line in the distance, and it and the sky above are reflected in the water.
Image by Betty Cracker (5/4/25)

 

On The Road - Winter Wren - North of Quebec City (part 3 - Tadoussac) 3
Image by Winter Wren (5/7/25)

 

On The Road - Winter Wren - North of Quebec City (part 3 - Tadoussac) 5
Image by Winter Wren (5/8/25)

 

On The Road - Winter Wren - North of Quebec City (part 2 of 3) - Cap Tourmente and on the way to Tadoussac 2
Image by Winter Wren (5/13/25)

 

On The Road - Winter Wren - North of Quebec City (part 2 of 3) - Cap Tourmente and on the way to Tadoussac 4
Image by Winter Wren (5/16/25)

 

On The Road - PaulB - The Cascade Loop, Part 12a 7
Image by PaulB (5/5/25)

 

On The Road - PaulB - The Cascade Loop, Part 10 3
Image by PaulB (5/10.25)

 

On The Road - PaulB - The Cascade Loop, Part 9 9
Image by PaulB (5/10.25)

 

On The Road - PaulB - The Cascade Loop, Part 1 1
Image by PaulB (5/9/25)

 

Image by MomSense (5/27.25)

 

Image by MomSense (5/12.25)

 

Image by MomSense (5/21.25)

 

Image by MomSense (5/11/25)

 

On The Road - Albatrossity - Flyover Country Spring 2
Image by Albatrossity (5/18/25)

 

Happy Mother's Day, BJ Peeps! 3
Image by WaterGirl (5/25/25)

 

On The Road - PaulB - Olympic Peninsula: Lake Quinault Loop Drive 5
Image by PaulB (5/19/25)

 

On The Road - PaulB - Olympic National Park: Lake Quinault 1
Image by PaulB (5/17/25)

 

On The Road - PaulB - Olympic Peninsula: Salt Creek Recreation Area & Kalaloch Beach
Image by PaulB (5/15/25)

 

Respite Open Thread: Ducks and Danes
Image by TaMara (5/10/25)

 

What we should do right now
Image by Tim F. (5/12/25)

z

Mistakes Were Made and Advice Was Ignored
Image by John Cole (5/6/25)

 

Image by HinTN (5/22/25)

 

On The Road - PAM Dirac - Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge 1
Image by PAM Dirac (5/28/25)

 

On The Road - PAM Dirac - Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge 3
Image by PAM Dirac (5/29/25)

 

On The Road - Mike in Oly - Woodard Bay Natural Resources Conservation Area
Image by Mike in Oly (5/24/25)

 

On The Road - Mike in Oly - Woodard Bay Natural Resources Conservation Area 1
Image by Mike in Oly (5/30/25)

 

On The Road - Mike in Oly - Woodard Bay Natural Resources Conservation Area 5
Image by Mike in Oly (5/31/25)

 

On The Road - Catherine D. - Just in my backyard 2
Image by WaterGirl (5/2/25)

 

On The Road - Hidalgo de Arizona - The Grand Canyon in Winter 2
Image by Hidalgo de Arizona (5/3/25)

 

On The Road - For Alain - Fly Away Home 7
Image by Mike in Oli (5/1/25)

 

 

Reader Interactions

43Comments

  3. 3.

    NotMax

    Time out for a recipe respite.

    Time consuming effort but looks so yummylicious: karaage chicken.

    Fair warning: Should you and you buds for some reason decide to play a drinking game while watching, do not choose the word “please,” otherwise you’ll be completely sloshed about a third of the way though.   ;)

  4. 4.

    gene108

    My niece graduated from high school yesterday. Graduations make for a long day. Hit me when I got home yesterday night.  I fell asleep almost immediately.

  6. 6.

    trollhattan

    @gene108:

    Relatable, and congratulations!

    One year ago the kiddo graduated college, her first technical walk because HS class of 2020 had that taken. I’d say long day but it was more of a long week, at the least, then immediately moving her out of that 3-year apartment with its 3 years of accumulated crapclutter, quickly followed by packing her up for grad school on the opposite coast

    Get tired just thinking about it.

  7. 7.

    Rusty

    I’m taking a few days to be with my third daughter who is home for a week between the end of her junior year of college and her summer job in DC.  We are at my in-laws place on an island in Lake Champlain, VT.  No one else on the island this weekend (cold and very rainy yesterday],  but enjoying the quiet and time with her.  As they get older it gets so tough to have time together.   We have agreed to not discuss current events so they won’t intrude on the peaceful feeling.

  8. 8.

    cope

    I’m breaking in my newly de-cataracted left eye.  What an amazing thing.

    We’re into the 90s now but cooling off (80s, maybe 70s) this coming week.  About 40 seeding Fresno pepper plants to deal with this week:  plant some (mmmm, sambal) and give some to my siblings who plant.  Planting and repotting some other things of beauty.  Tooth cleaning tomorrow, one week follow up on my left eye Wednesday, Friday mrs. cope starts PT for her locked ankle.  The fun never stops but, hey, alive and kicking and that’s good.

    Our daughter is bring her two kids for a visit from Vermont at the end of this month so that is the main focus for us at the moment.

  9. 9.

    Scout211

    Thank you, WaterGirl. I always look forward to seeing the beautiful in our world daily and then with your monthly post. And thank you, too, to all the commenters who sent in their beautiful pics.

    In our 47+ years together, we toured, hiked, backpacked, climbed and camped in so many beautiful parts of the country and Canada. Now that we can’t do any of that anymore, it’s nice to see commenters pics and remember the beautiful.

  14. 14.

    Ohio Mom

    I am enjoying the cicadas. They got off to a slow start this time but now they are ringing out and I just love that sound.

    I’m hoping Ohio Family can find time this week to drive to a park or cemetery or some similarly treed area in the next county east of here because tat is where they should be the most numerous.

    Still, I consider it quite a luxury to have them in my front yard (they may also be in the backyard but I rarely go into that overgrown mess).

  15. 15.

    Spanky

    Happy Prime Number Birthday to me. I’m celebrating by getting my hair cut in a bit while Mrs Spanky makes a cake.

  20. 20.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Spanky: ​
     

    Happy 71st birthday! Mine was back in March.

    The kiddo graduates from high school on Wednesday. Since we’re near the north end of the county, I bet you can guess which school he’s graduating from. Fortunately, not Morse Science High School.

  21. 21.

    kindness

    I know it’s June because here in central CA it’s become hot (mid 90’s).  Had to start using my ac two days ago.  I had hoped to make it to June but the indoor temps soared which left my quest for cheapness defeated.  Nice and (77°) cool defeated but none the less.

  22. 22.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Spanky: ​
     

    One of my favorite years, coincidentally.

    “When I was seventeen, it was a very good year” – Sinatra

  24. 24.

    trollhattan

    @kindness: Yesterday 102, today 88. Ahhhh. (Even as I hate this heat rollercoaster ride. Can I just do the parachute thing?)

  25. 25.

    MagdaInBlack

    Ruby the Giant Geranium has moved to her summer home on the balcony, and I had English crumpets with orange marmalade and creme fraiche for “brunch.”  That’s my so far successful Sunday.

    Also too: I survived a grocery run.

  26. 26.

    WaterGirl

    @the pollyanna from hell:

    I forgot to add the more command so all the photos in this post wouldn’t show on the front page.

    Did you mean “fewer on the front page” as in, don’t put up an image every day, or as in don’t have all the photos show on the front page in this post?

  28. 28.

    zhena gogolia

    @Baud: Are they MAGA? I don’t have any happy friends these days.

    Thank you for the niceness, WG. I am a human being, made of flesh and blood, and I can’t keep my attention on horror 24/7.

  31. 31.

    H.E.Wolf

    Wow! May was a month for gorgeous blues. Thank you for posting the whole batch.

  32. 32.

    WaterGirl

    @H.E.Wolf: I suspect that as long as I am the chooser, most months will be filled with gorgeous blues.  I don’t choose them on purpose, it’s just what I am drawn to.

  35. 35.

    lowtechcyclist

    @dnfree:

    When the Beatles sang “she was just seventeen”, I was just 17.

    Nice!

    I was 17 in ’71, and now that I’m 71, my son’s 17.  (I got to this parenting thing a bit on the late side, but better late than not at all. :-)

  36. 36.

    BlueGuitarist

    Love the serenity images!
    Thanks so much WG and contributors!

    The blues make me feel good, to adapt a line from Taj Mahal.

  37. 37.

    Joy in FL

    Thanks for assembling all these beautiful photos.

    Thanks to the photographers for sharing them.

  39. 39.

    Gloria DryGarden

    I love the path through the woods in dappled sunlight by mike in only. Thank you for these daily photos.

  40. 40.

    There go two miscreants

    I have not commented on the sidebar images before, but let me note that I really enjoy them!

  41. 41.

    lowtechcyclist

    @MagdaInBlack: ​
     

    I hope your parents were long-lived so that they were a part of your life for a fair number of your adult years. My parents both lived past 90 (and I’m more fit at my age than either of them was), and my wife is ten years younger than me, so I figure the kiddo will have us around for awhile.

  42. 42.

    UncleEbeneezer

    @Baud: It reminds me of Michael Myers’ house which is located in South Pasadena, right off the Gold Line Station.

  43. 43.

    Gloria DryGarden

    @Baud: being around people and finding happy normal things to chat about, can be such a mood brightener. Glad you did that.

Comments are closed.