ONE DAY I WILL...

In RECOGNITION of WOMEN

throughout the world!!!

MARCH 8th

was

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY!

turn up the sound

touch the close captioned button [cc] 

tap the brackets [ ] on far right to watch w/full screen

I hope you enjoy this video as much as I did!

GOOD. RANDOM. FUN. V.10 {2016}

taken 3.5.16

Mom & I flew to Portland, Oregon last week! We got an inexpensive flight from Long Beach to Portland, rented a car (although you can use public transportation) and stayed at the historic BENSON HOTEL. Here are a few GOOD - RANDOM - FUN pictures that I captured. Check out the LINKS in this post for more detailed information about Portland.

Thursday, March 3rd

After visiting with Mom's friend in the historic Hollywood District, we drove over to the ALBERTA ARTS DISTRICT to check out a few fabric stores, BOLT FABRIC BOUTIQUE & MODERN DOMESTIC. What a colorful, fun, creative place to stroll... and capture some pictures... I plan to post some of my favorite shots later this week. After an hour browsing (& buying) at Modern Domestic, we asked the staff where they would recommend eating... she suggested SWISS HIBISCUS just behind their store. What an incredible dining experience! small, intimate... Mom enjoyed pork schnitzel & spätzle, while I had a mouth-watering brat & creamy potato salat. Heavenly food! the owner-chef came out to speak to all the tables asking how they liked the food. Oh yum! will visit this spot again to try another dish! absolutely GOOD!

Friday, March 4th

Portland is a city for walking OR riding bikes. YES, they ride their bikes in the drizzle & pelting rain! Perhaps they are immune to the chill and dampness?? Mom & I took the Portland Walking Tour which met at Portland's historic "living room," also called the Pioneer Courthouse Square. More about the sights near this landmark will be coming in another post, but for now, two RANDOM pictures.

A dog carrying a basket... he wasn't homeless, but on closer examination of the basket, it said SMILE... and you could drop a donation in his basket. He was crossing the square and didn't approach us for spare change. Perhaps he met his $$ quota?

And, finally, the Portland BLUE MAN pontificating from notes he had written... objecting to government regulations... or lack of action on the part of the city council. Apparently he is a regular & his name is Mike! he keeps his face covered! And loves to SHOUT OUT his opinions via an electric megaphone. His ranting was a bit annoying!

Saturday, March 5th

FUN... of course eating donuts is FUN! We walked by Voo-Doo Donuts several times, but the line was so long (no surprise!! as you can see the donuts are legendary) we missed carrying around our own PINK BOX. But, any number of people eating a donut were willing to share their "puffy selection" for this photo op! What we were surprised to learn, Jet Blue allowed passengers to carry on their PINK BOXES to share their donuts with the people back home. Mom & I think Voo-Doo Donuts should open a shop in the Portland Airport!!

posting with Tamar at RANDOM-OSITY

more of Portland coming!!

GOOD. RANDOM. FUN. V.9 {2016}

taken outside the Container Store, San Jose
flowers & vegies
reds & purples
GOOD color & texture!

Mission San Miguel, San Miguel, CA

During my drive from Allie's, I took 20 minutes to stretch my legs & take a few RANDOM pictures.

Located 51 miles north of my home,

Mission San Miguel has the only surviving original church altar found in ANY of

the 21 California missions.

This EYE of GOD is located at the center of the church altar... and reminded the mission Indians they had a God who watched over them. My iPad picture doesn't capture the beauty of the colors or details of the design. 

A "baker's dozen" = the number of days spent with Ms.Lola... she's simply FUN, FUN, FUN.

Her expressions tug at your heart!

As much as we wanted her to stay,

her LOVE was needed at home - Allie & Brian were anxious to have their furry baby back.

JPE & I miss our Lola-Bug.

posting with Tamar at Random-osity

Our World Tuesday

and Life Thru the Lens

My question for today?

How are you spending your L.E.A.P. DAY?

RED SORT-OF-DAY...

In honor of the upcoming

RED HOLIDAY - VALENTINE'S DAY...

here's a collage of some RED items from my photo archives.

RED wooden airplane - Open House in SLO

RED bowl - White House tour 

(state service selected by Abraham Lincoln)

RED accordion - Winchester, VA

RED buttons - personal button collection

RED

:: is an emotionally intense color ::

RED evokes feelings of passion, desire, love

Brides in Nepal & India wear RED saris.

Japanese women wear RED kimonos for good luck & happiness.

RED is associated with war, energy, danger, power

Stop signs are RED to signify danger.

Countries include RED in their flags to signify power.

and, lastly...

Men love when women wear RED!

THE EMBROIDERED SLEEVE...

"A Must-Read!! 5 out of 5 stars"

Oh my! I don't know how I learned about this book, but I'm recommending it to all my bibliophiles/book lovers!

Two women... different centuries... their lives forever woven together by a single item... an embroidered silk sleeve.

What do you remember about the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882? I don't know that I ever learned about this, or if I did, the history lesson has escaped my memory. How about the Geary Act of 1892? Did you know about the ethnic cleansing of Chinese immigrants? I'm embarrassed that I don't remember learning any of this.

The title of the book, The Girl Who Wrote in Silk, caught my attention. The story takes place on Orcas Island, near Seattle, Washington and opens with Inara Erickson returning to the island to visit their family's summer home. Although the summer home has a tragedy attached to it, Inara feels a connection to the home she can't shake. A recent MBA graduate, she's getting ready to begin a new career, but her discovery of the embroidered silk sleeve and her love of the island peacefulness takes her life in a new direction.

In chapter 4, Mei Lien enters the story and the year is 1886. Her elderly grandmother, father and Mei Lien were dragged from their small family store in Seattle and taken aboard the Prince of the Pacific, which is bound for China. Although Mei Lien was a legal U.S. citizen, her family members had immigrated and ALL Chinese residents were being driven out of Seattle.

This story follows the lives of Inara (current day) and Mei Lien (1890's) as their lives unfold on Orcas Island. Their relationships with their fathers - connections with nature - struggles with their personal identity are key themes in this book.

The book includes a discussion guide, a conversation with the author, Kelli Estes, and peaked my interest in reading more about Chinese embroidery, the tragic purging of the Chinese people from Seattle. 

It was amazing to learn this was Kelli Estes' first published book, and that she had graduated from Arizona State with a degree in business management. 

Let me know what you think about this book by leaving a comment on this post. I'll keep checking back!

TOWARD THE SUN...

Q: which state grows the most sunflowers?

Young sunflower stems are supple... they face toward the east in the morning... and west at sunset.... as they mature, their stems harden and they stop moving.

The brown-black center of a sunflower is actually hundreds of tiny flowers all clustered together into one large center. The tiny flowers that make up the center go to seed after pollination.

TOURNESOL is the French word for sunflower. The Spanish word is EL GIRASOL, which means TURNS TOWARD THE SUN.

The tallest sunflower was 27 feet tall - about the size of a two-story building.

{these pictures were taken at the Avila Barn, in Nevada City and the Long Beach Quilt Show - YES, the second picture is a machine quilted sunflower}

Oh... the state that grows the most sunflowers?

K.A.N.S.A.S.

{they grow more than 11 species of sunflowers}

GOOD. RANDOM. FUN. {WEEK 15}

Lydia is spending a week of her Spring Break with us. As a almost 11 year old, she loves her technology... but, she indulged me by going to complete some errands in San Luis Obispo. Of course, we did some indulging for her! a bit of G.O.O.D. ice cream to give us energy to complete our tasks. 

JPE made Cincinnati Chili for dinner Sunday... Lydia & I determined leftovers (Monday lunch) were even better than our dinner feast. A R.A.N.D.O.M. fact: Lydia's mommy, popi (dad) and grandpa (JPE) were all born & raised in Cincinnati.

I'm having a blast playing with WATERLOGUE. JPE cut these yellow irises & so I was showing Natasha & Lydia how my watercolor lessons are progressing (really, they haven't been started yet --- but, watching a photo being changed to a watercolor gives you an idea how watercolorists paint). Oh, so much F.U.N. Do give it a try!

Sharing these pics with Tamar @ RANDOM-OSITY. 

Do give her blog a visit... loads of cute photos from other bloggers!

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 1.5.14 + SONG-OGRAPHY

all photos taken in Cambria, CA

Ashley continues to host

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY.

Stop by her blog, RAMBLING & PHOTOS

for a peek at the adorable pictures she's posted

for this week's words:

PHOTOGRAPHER'S CHOICE, LUNCH,

STARTS WITH THE LETTER "G", MY TOWN & WORDS TO LIVE BY

 adorable tin-man made with recycled parts

created by Cambria 4H

stopped at Linn's for a late lunch!

as yummy as it looks...

a "new" garden to explore

(adorable succulents)

took a drive to Cambria

Want to know more about NITT WITT RIDGE?

check HERE!

two signs

only ONE, would I actually LIVE BY!

Kathy has a darling photo for this week's SONG-OGRAPHY.

It appears she has been "out-of-town" and didn't tell us
where she was going! She was in LONDON!!! Lucky gal...

anyway, I pulled a few phrases from this week's song, UNDEFINED.
While other states are experiencing bone-chilling weather,
gusting winds, rain, sleet & snow...
California's hillsides are brown, dry & we'd LOVE it,
if another state would SHARE their weather with us!
We're getting close to having a drought!

We'll be heading back to work tomorrow, so once our Sunday projects
are completed, we're headed to see one more movie!

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 10.28.12

Bull's Tavern - SLO - 10.27.12

The one constant in my week (well, besides going to WORK) is participating in SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY (hosted by Ashley).

In looking at last week's post, it seems like those pictures were taken at least a month ago... instead of just 7-8 days. And... we're getting ready to start a new  month... Time flies!

Without further unnecessary chatting, here are the words for this week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY: PATTERN(S), MACHINE, SIGNS or LOGOS, ROCKS or STONES & SPARKLE.

PATTERN(S)

Don't you love the PATTERN a lawn mower makes in a yard? Of course, this lawn is perfection - it's the lawn at SYCAMORE MINERAL SPRINGS, Avila Beach. Gardners probably hand manicure it!?? The sidewalk is located outside HANDS GALLERY in SLO. It's a artsy gallery of "handmade" treasures (both local & from outside our area). The color of the tiles are certain to grab your attention... enticing you to enter & look around.

MACHINE

On our walk with Marcus, we saw this adorable little one person MACHINE at Sycamore Mineral Springs. Loved the deep navy blue color & the red leather satchel buckled behind the driver's seat. 

SIGNS or LOGOS

San Luis Obispo County has quite a diverse population of residents. You're probably wondering what that has to DO with this SIGN? Throughout the county are agricultural lands... strawberries, bok choy, broccoli, peas, grapes (wineries), and many of the ranches have men & women who still ride horses to monitor the farmlands. If you ask locals, they'll say BULL'S TAVERN is a cowboy bar... it also has the distinction of being the "oldest" bar in San Luis Obispo. I've lived in SLO for 40 years, I've never been inside BULL'S... but I do appreciate their interesting neon SIGN.

ROCKS or STONES

Several weeks ago, JPE & I rented a hot tub at Sycamore Mineral Springs... this past week, our house guest rented a tub... as you enter the path to the massage area & hot tubs, this concrete bird bath holds a series of stacked STONES. Have you ever taken some time to make a pile of stacked stones? There's something peaceful about finding the smoothest, roundest, flattest STONES for stacking. Ahhh... relaxing.

SPARKLE

Bet you can't guess what this is??? It's actually a lamp with a shade made from an old juice cans... it has plenty of old-world charm & bling. Unfortunately, I took this picture through a store window & the lamp was turned off... use your imagination & I'm certain you'll be able to see the SPARKLE. 

Next week's words are: WILD, WELCOME, ADVENTURE, VIBRANT & CLASSIC. Dare you to participate!!

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 1.22.12

another of my collections

How did this weekend pass so quickly? Oh my... I'm late to the party. At last glance there are almost 130 participants in this week's SCAVENGER HUNT.


Ashley, the hostess for this weekly hunt, shared some exciting buried in her post for this week's words.


The words this week are: SUNSET, BLACK & WHITE, FOUR, A DAY IN MY LIFE, & COLORFUL.


Don't forget to check Ashley's blog, RAMBLINGS & PHOTOS to see what she shared!

SUNSET

Due to the intermittent rain & overhead clouds, our SUNSET was short of being spectacular! Sort of ordinary...

BLACK & WHITE

Last week, I mentioned that I collect CHAIRS... several of my December posts showed "treasured members" of my Ho-Ho-Ho collection - you can spot several of my SANTAS HERE & HERE.

I also collect HEARTS. This BLACK & WHITE HEART is actually turquoise-green (see the original color in the first post) & the top lifts off to hold my high school CHARM bracelet.

FOUR

FOUR of my favorite HEARTS... I love each of them for their unique-ness! Which one do you like?

TIME

My TIME seems to slip by "quicker than a wink" ~ how about yours? this little pin is smaller than a quarter ~ isn't that a cute HEART at the top of the clock?

COLORFUL

Dumped out my BUTTON jar... yes, I collect BUTTONS too, don't you? Here are some of my most COLORFUL buttons! I used to have a tin with my BUTTONS, but it was misplaced when I moved from my last house ~ I found these BUTTONS tossed in the bottom of a sewing basket. 

So ~ I almost passed on this week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY! but, it's pretty addicting... & it forces me to get my camera out, even if only for an afternoon.

Next week's words are: SMILE, STAND ALONE, RUSTY OR SOMETHING OLD, ARTIFICIAL, & REPEATING PATTERN.

Stop by Ashley's blog,

RAMBLINGS & PHOTOS,

& share your

C-O-N-G-R-A-T-S!!

PACKING 'EM UP...

All my SANTA'S are packed in tissue & put away! I took pictures of the NEW ones in my collection & thought I'd share them with you!

...got the "STEAL 'EM" Santa at a work party! Of course, because he's so adorable, I was the THIRD & final person to steal him ~ LUCKY ME!


He's got a great beard with a jingle bells on the points of his whiskers!


The other four ornaments were gifts: two from JPE (purchased in Big Bear this past summer) & two from ACE & her boyfriend.

Sleigh Santa & Bubble Santa from ACE & boyfriend!
Love Santa & Santa with a List from JPE...

I'll leave you with this quote from
:: John Greenleaf Whittier ::
an American Quaker poet &
advocate for the abolition of slavery!
(pssst! my hometown, Whittier, CA, was named after this poet;
& the town was started by a group of Quakers in 1887)

"A little smile, a word of cheer, a bit of LOVE from someone near, a little gift from one held dear, best wishes for the coming year... these make a MERRY CHRISTMAS." 

Have you packed up your holiday decorations yet?

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY!

SLO Little Theater ~ 10.13.11

For this week's Scavenger Hunt Sunday, I was able to capture most of the pictures during an errand in downtown San Luis Obispo... 

The words were: Abstract, Round, Fire, Seeing Faces in Strange Places and Stars 

ABSTRACT ~ SLO Little Theater

This piece of art probably isn't all that ABSTRACT, but, it is an portrayal of three actors who are emphasizing the "whimsical nature" of theatrical performances...

ROUND ~ sidewalk on Morro St

Have any sidewalk vault lights in your town? I'm not aware of the area underneath this sidewalk (former basement? crawl space?) but I did some research (always the educator!!) and found these ROUND glass lights were used as an inexpensive way to project light into dark areas, which created more work spaces or basement rentals. CLICK HERE to learn more about the history behind the cast iron vault lights, as invented by Thaddeus Hyatt in 1845.

Roasting marshmellows over a FIRE ~ Big Bear

Sorry... had to dig through my photo file to pull out this picture of our FIRE pit during our last trip to the cabin in Big Bear. We'll be spending Thanksgiving here with JPE's family!!! four generations of family!! I better brush up on my indoor photography skills!!!

FACES in UNEXPECTED PLACES ~ beauty salon in downtown SLO

Pumpkins are expensive!! I've noticed quite a few people using artificial pumpkins for decorations... while I understand wanting to save $$$ there is something about the smell of a burning candle in a pumpkin... and the "melt-down" of the pumpkin shell, the week after Halloween... These FACES had to share the glare of the building across the street!

STARS on exhibit ~ near the SLO Library

Hidden on the side of the parking structure (the corner of Morro & Palm St), there's a brillant outdoor exhibit of the history of the American flag. Done in ceramic tiles, the exhibit includes eight flags, along with plaques explaining the date and reason for additional STARS being added to our red / white & blue national wonder... if you visit SLO, be sure to check it out! I'm pretty sure most residents of SLO have never found this exhibit! it's one of the "hidden wonders" of our town.

Wanna join in the FuN?

check in with Ashley at SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY!