GIFTS...

Every Sunday, just after dinner, JPE & I begin to fret about our weekend coming to an end!


Instead of beating myself up over the tasks I didn't accomplish, I decided to put a positive spin on the GIFT of a WEEKEND...
having said that... here are some GIFTS I want to remember...

laughed, critiqued & enjoyed
a "scrumptious" pasta dinner...

{with a dear friend from Oakland}

enjoyed our Central Coast weather...

{a cool breeze with a touch of warm sun}

paid a visit to Patricia's

{a full-body massage does wonders

for the knots in my back}

spent 90+ minutes on the phone w/Myra...

{getting caught up on family, work

& how she broke her arm on Friday the 13th}

JPE & I snuck burritos into the theater...

{& munched while watching "Hunger Games"}

wrote & posted several blog entries...

{extremely busy work schedule prevented me

from posting this week}

downloaded the itinerary for our July trip to Peru...

{MUST schedule an appt for Yellow Fever immunizations
 + a tetanus shot, for me}

laundry... 1/2 completed

{have gotten into the bad habit of putting folded laundry
on the bench, in our bedroom}


walked SLE through the steps for removing
a catsup stain from her silk scarf...
{small stain-on the tassels}


texted with brother...
{he & my SIL had taken my mom to OREGON
~ for a birthday celebration}


coordinated work & summer calendars...
{yep, JPE & I are planners}


texted with sister...
{how did I manage to stay in touch, before texting?}


read blogs & pinned...
{ahhh! Pinterest, how I've missed you!}


SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY will resume next week!!
the hunt is on... for SHADOW, KEYS, SMILE, UNEDITED (SOOC), & FISH

WHAT A DIFFERENCE...

A WEEK MAKES!!!

 Last Saturday, our roses 

were progressing nicely...

JPE fertilized, watered & trimmed...

Only, to discover, a...

we've done everything to keep 

the critters away from the

delicate new buds & tender leaves...

it's discouraging every time this happens...

perhaps we'll remove the netting

& let the critters have their

night-time party??

the critters haven't ventured

over. under. around.

 the white fence

to find the

strawberries...

Y.E.T.

{well, a bird has taken a nibble}

FRIDAY FUN-NIES!!!

A FRI-DAY...

"FUN-NIE"

CAPTURED...

AT WORK!

WILD TURKEYS
@ SLOCOE!!
{psst! SLOCOE=work}


I'm. sure. I. looked. pretty. silly. stalking. and. lurking.
@ work
on Friday??!?

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 4.22.12

Treadle Sewing Machine ~ pic taken 4.22.12

This week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY is hosted at RAMBLING & PHOTOS... although Ashley is not posting today, she has generously opened the link for others to post their "FINDS"...

The words this week are: YELLOW, SOMETHING THAT MAKES/MADE YOU SMILE, ANTIQUE/ANCIENT, SPLASH, IN THE SUN.

YELLOW

After being away for several weeks... and no rain in the forecast... JPE spent a couple of hours yesterday watering & tidying the flowers! JPE pointed out the vibrant shades of YELLOW in this iris!

SOMETHING THAT MADE ME SMILE

My brother {a horticulturalist} has a GREEN THUMB. Of course, his profession demands that, but he's the family's "GO-TO-EXPERT" for anything related to fertilizers, plant selection, plant diseases, etc. During my last visit to Mom's, I noticed her plants were thriving... most likely due to the fertilizer that had been applied.

I "texted" my brother & he shared the info, only to tell me, I probably wouldn't be able to find it at my local hardware or nursery.

Tuesday, I received a package from my brother! After opening his package, I had TO LAUGH!!

My bro & wife had just returned from a visit to Hawaii & I thought he MIGHT be sending us some chocolate-covered macadamia nuts {from Hawaii}. INSIDE the box, I found this note & these packets... FERTILIZER PACKETS!

He's a man of "few words" but has a "heart of gold"... my question... how do I use these? break them open? dissolve the granules in water? 

ANTIQUE/ANCIENT

JPE & I aren't antique collectors, but we have several pieces of memorabilia that would be considered ANTIQUE or ANCIENT. Just inside the front door, there's an ANTIQUE sewing machine case for a treadle sewing machine. {Truth be known - we leave our shoes on the treadle --- we don't wear shoes in the house}.  

SPLASH

Not the best example of SPLASH... but that's all I have for this week! JPE gaves the roses a SPLASH of water yesterday.

IN THE SUN

We "constantly battle" with deer, gophers, rabbits & other critters who LOVE the rose buds & young leaves. Following two "nibbling attacks" we covered everything with netting... 

IN THE SUN

Couldn't pass up an opportunity to share our state flower, the California POPPY. They grow wild... these are in our back garden!

Well, don't forget to stop by Ashley's & check out all the "SHS FINDINGS" this week.

Enjoy the remaining hours of your Sunday!

EXPERIMENTING!!

ORIGINAL PHOTO ~ Oxford, England

Have you tried PicMonkey?

it's a new "free" photo-editing program...

Check it out HERE!

this is a rather long post! just warning yah!

I've been experimenting, today!

:: FRAMES ::

This looks sort-of "EDGY"

{no pun intended!}

Photo corners looks sorta fun?!?

{in an old-fashioned way}

pretty dark, dreary but effective!

:: EFFECTS ::

OWWW! Ummm?? 

{not suited to this pic}

Will be trying this effect again!!

you leave most of the photo in B&W

& insert a circle of color wherever you want!

HDR --- this is pretty cool!

:: TEXTURES :: 

l.o.v.e ~ the paint splotch

{on the left hand side} 

AH-HA!!! love this!

{also, check out the "writing" overlay under TEXTURE}

smudgy edges ~ like? not sure!

{sort of like distressed wood}

INTERESTING...

looks almost like a canvas painting

{OR looking through a screen door}

& finally...

:: OVERLAYS :: 

I'm not FUN-NY...

(I can't tell jokes}

BUT ---

sometimes I CAN make people laugh!!

...by adding a mustache!!

{see the arrow directing your attention?}

BUT, this is probably my BEST work today!

"bugs, critters & scary guys"

I warned you --- this was a long post!

I L.O.V.E PicMonkey

worked on DE-CLUTTERING the garage

NOW I have some piles!

{free trash pick-up this Thurs & 

RAD is coming by Tues to take bags of clothes}

CONVERSATIONS...

Adirondack ~ Big Bear Lake

JPE has a subtle talent!!

he's a thoughtful

:: listener ::

:: conversationist ::

&

always provides

:: food for thought ::

EXPLORING DIAGONALS...

street along Buckingham Palace ~ London (2010)

I'm participating in Kat Sloma's EXPLORING WITH A CAMERA ~ and this month's theme looks at the use of diagonal lines to suggest motion. Kat explains how our eyes "naturally" follow diagonals, and goes on to explain the various powers of diagonal directions in photography. Her explanation is worth reading and is found HERE!


After looking through my trip files, I've was able to find only a few photos with a true diagonal (meaning - I didn't manipulate the photo by flipping it in another direction or crop it so the diagonal was more pronounced).


The London picture (above) is an example of a "secondary diagonal"... Our eye is reading "uphill" which is not natural, but in this case, the cars are headed downhill. To me, this creates more of a zigzag motion ~ if you think of our eyes following the street "uphill" & back "downhill" with the angle of the cars.

bike riding outside Amsterdam ~ July 2005

I believe this is another example of a "secondary diagonal" but headed in the opposite direction. One reason this photo captures your eye is due to the dynamic angle of the diagonal. I hope it solicits interest by making you wonder what is beyond that red blotch of color in the left-hand edge of the picture!??!

London streets don't run in straight lines!

Compare this photo (taken near the corner of Trafalgar Square) to the bicycling photo... Although cars have the ability to travel much faster than a bicycle, these taxis seem pretty motion-less!!! of course, they are stopped at a red light, but to me, the bike photo seems to imply a "greater sense of motion" ~ due to a more pronounced or dynamic angle in the diagonal line of the bikeway. 

sidewalk artwork ~ Budapest, Hungary (2009)

The diagonal that gives the "greatest sense of motion" is one which moves from the top left to the bottom right. This is called a "primary diagonal" with our eye moving in a downhill motion. You may have thought your eye was drawn to the marble sidewalk art, but it's more likely that your eye was following the direction of the diagonal! 

brick pathway along the Smithsonian Castle ~ Washington DC

Here's another example of a subtle diagonal... I feel the vibrant color of the flowers draw your attention deeper into the photograph! Don't you want to take a walk here?


My greatest ah-ha! Most of my pictures are taken with a "secondary diagonal" ~ I'm wondering if that is due to the fact that I'm right-handed???


This exercise certainly increased my awareness about the "impact" of diagonals to create motion, excitement and energy in photographs.


Fabulous lesson... I'll be taking more photos with a "primary diagonal" ~ I hope this post encouraged you to check out Kat's blog, KAT EYE STUDIO... she shares a wealth of information that can & will impact your photography.

BACK TO WORK....

Spring Break is over... we've returned to work. My job is never boring! always changing! the people are fabulous! but the work can make for some hectic, tummy-churning moments.


AND... even though most school districts were off on break, many agencies & businesses were NOT! knowing this, I decided to post this love-ly picture (taken as JPE & I were packing the car last Thursday) as a reminder of our "relaxing times" at the cabin.


AND... as a reminder that "affairs of the world" continue... AND I would have phone messages, some unaddressed emails (most of them I had already read, answered & deleted), a bit of mail (a couple of catalogs & an package from CA Dept of Education), and a list of tasks I hope to complete this work week.


I'm happy to report... today was great! not as overwhelming as I expected! I took plenty of "cleansing breaths" and meditated on this beautiful scene from our visit to Big Bear...


I'd say that's exactly the way to return to work... after a two week break... 

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 4.15.12

Lauren's BABY SHOWER 4.14.12

ASHLEY posted some absolutely "FUN" words this week, so let's get right to this week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY...

the words were: SIMPLE, GRAIN, TRANSPORTATION, STITCH & BUBBLE.

SIMPLE

ACE & I went to a BABY SHOWER on Saturday... in addition to SIMPLE finger foods, one of the desserts were these adorable "BABY CAKE POPS" - they were displayed in a lime green plastic bucket, nestled in sparkling pink Easter grass! such a SIMPLE idea & best of all, didn't require a plate! how SIMPLE is that?

GRAIN

Ummm... this is my favorite, homemade GRAIN... granola from Splash Cafe (San Luis Obispo). My mom's granola is fabulous too, but I don't happen to have any left to photograph. My weekday breakfast = 1 c non-fat cottage cheese (or plain yoghurt) + 3/4 c sliced, purple grapes & 2 TBSP of granola. YuMMy!!!

TRANSPORTATION

This picture is from last week in Arlington, VA. I ran a couple of errands for SLE & this adorable bike decorated the exterior of a boutique-style dress shop. This is no longer a "use-able" mode of TRANSPORTATION, but it sure caught people's attention!

STITCH

Lauren's new baby will be 'styling' with this adorable, hand-knit hat. ACE suggested I photograph this cute, tiny hat to represent the word STITCH. Looking forward to seeing baby Serena wearing this hat in another month!!

BUBBLE

I enjoy spending time with ACE - she's adorable, creative, fashionable (cute scarf), & accommodating. She offered to blow a large BUBBLE for this photo.

OOPS!!!

Actually, she blew more than one BUBBLE... Thanks Allie-Bug! (also known as, ACE)...

I think you'll agree this week's words were "FUN"...

But wait... get ready for another week of "FUN"... next weeks words are: YELLOW, SOMETHING THAT MAKES OR MADE YOU SMILE, ANCIENT or ANTIQUE, SPLASH, & IN THE SUN.

A VISITOR...

GUESS WHO CAME LAST NIGHT?

ACE + LOLA

:: TODAY'S AGENDA ::

laundry

taking a walk w/Lola

laundry

doing taxes (ACE)

laundry

going to a baby shower

playing w/Lola

R.E.L.A.X.I.N.G

this weekend

before heading back to work!

ACE just started her Spring Break

{lucky girl}

A DAY IN THE LIFE...

Big Bear Lake ~ Weds April 11th @ 3:30pm

JPE's car covered with the Weds night snow!

LYDIA is a story-writer...

AND...
I've created several books of our adventures...


but today's post is a reflection of our THURSDAY or a 
DAY in the LIFE of this energetic 8 year old!


We packed up to leave for Santa Monica... early!

Shutting off the water & heat takes some time!

Lydia "passing some time" while we
"closed up the cabin"

OOOHHH! we couldn't forget PEANUT!

Good-bye SNOWY flag!

looking for BLOSSOMS on our next visit!

There was a MAD DASH for the bathroom
when we arrived in Santa Monica!
This is a UNI-SEX bathroom
(sign courtesy of Lydia)!!

PEANUT has a state-of-art dog house!

When you life the yellow handle, you'll find

dogfood, biscuits, pooper scooper, hose, leash

& extra PEANUT supplies.

WE spent time playing games...

...had to include a visit to STARBUCKS's

...JPE learns the "finer points" of playing
"Pirates of the Caribbean"
(LEGO-version)

then OFF to meet her POPI (dad)
for dinner!!!

JPE & I DROVE the last 3 hours home
(our bed felt splendid!!)

WHAT A MARVELOUS DAY!!!

Thank you, LYDIA...