WHEW! T-G-I-F...

a 3-day weekend!

looking forward to some

reading, rest & relaxation...

{and a few de-cluttering projects}

How about you?

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 10.13.13 + SONG-OGRAPHY

10.13.13

TIME FOR SONG-OGRAPHY...

Drop by the blog, DON'T SHOOT YOUR EYE OUT & 

thank KATHY for hosting!

Looking out our bedroom slider... 

JPE was the working man

(washed & waxed his car yesterday)

in the driveway...

NO rain and nothing burning...

HE wasn't saying anything...

BUT, I noticed the trees are turning colors

(see the reflection of his car roof)...

this definitely s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d my imagination!

and now, this week's 

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY

words:

M is FOR..., WHAT I SAW TODAY, CORNER, PINK and HANDS.

what more can I say... ghouls & goblins everywhere!

M IS FOR... MANIAC MUGS!

you'd think I liked Halloween? N-O!!

actually, it's my least favorite holiday...
But, WHAT I SAW (last night) were all these colorful photo ops!

the old Wineman HOTEL has been restored...
it really brightened one of the main intersections downtown SLO. 
the CORNER rooms are rented to low-income, disabled seniors!

a PINK tutu - in the SOCK Shop window!

the HANDS of my hard-working JPE!

he made raspberry jam yesterday...

(& washed & waxed his car)

You can check out the SHS bloggers at RAMBLING & PHOTOS.

See ya tomorrow!

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 7.14.13

SHS 7.14.13

Oh my! I'm beginning to feel like I've been touched with the summer bug!

I've been moving slow-as-molasses the past few days.

This time last summer, JPE & I were exploring PERU ~ an amazing trip! 

(well, with the exception of the humidity in the Amazon River)...
we just ENJOY traveling!

This week's SHS words

are: RELAXING, INSPIRING PERSON, WRITTEN WORD,
MEMORIES & BEST FRIENDS

& were pulled from my PERU archive.

Other SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY bloggers can be viewed at RAMBLING & PHOTOS.

RELAXING

In the Sacred Valley, we RELAXED with a glass of "chicha" & played a few rounds of "sapo"... Chicha looks like a blender drink - but don't let the peachy, strawberry color fool you! Made from fermented corn or yucca root, chicha has a "kick" to it.

As we finished off our glasses of chicha, we played sapo - a coin toss game. Sapo is actually the Spanish word for "toad" which is found in the middle of the game board. 

INSPIRING PERSON

Lucio & Pepe were tour-guides extraordinaire! tour guides can make a country come alive! & these two were remarkable, INSPIRATIONAL PEOPLE.

Lucio showed us the amazing sights along the Amazon River... the Amazon Rainforest, different modes of transportation (the tut-tut), exposed us to Peruvian color and colors of Monkey Island...  we especially curious about seeing how people live along the Amazon River! Lucio took JPE birding one morning (at the crack of dawn) - talented at identifying birds by sight & sound, Lucia could mimic the bird calls back to the birds. He taught himself the scientific & English words for thousands of birds living in the Amazon River.

Pepe, our tour guide for Lima & the Sacred Valley lives in Cusco, but was raised  in the Sacred Valley (his parents were missionaries). A fabulous story-teller, he made the history of Peru come alive. Tall & long legged, it was not difficult to find him in a crowd, but following him up all the terraced steps of Machu Picchu & the Sacred Valley was a bit challenging (especially with the altitude change). He continually reminded us to "hydrate"... 

WRITTEN WORD

Don't you love the hand-written signs? these WRITTEN WORDS were found along the Amazon River... the precise penmanship of a teacher (private school); a sign advertising foods & drinks; & a weathered, hand-painted sign for the wild-life preserve at Monkey Island.

MEMORIES

There are so many MEMORIES from this trip... What I most want to remember is: the vibrant colors of the clothing & home decor items created in the Sacred Valley. Visiting children at their school. Seeing the corner marketplaces. AND catching a piranha on the Amazon River. 

BEST FRIEND(S)

Peruvian people are used to visitors...  Seemingly reserved, they didn't hesitate to connect with us by smiling or checking us out. As in the states, man's BEST FRIEND is a dog! JPE & I participated in a spiritual ceremony & were blessed by this Peruvian shaman... it was obvious these adorable little girls were BEST FRIENDS. They had their arms wrapped around each other as we walked up to the door of the soup kitchen.

Hope you loved digging into my photo archives as much as I did sharing these memories with you...  

Next week's SHS words are: CAMOUFLAGED, NUTTY, ALIKE, IDENTICAL & JAUNT. Ummm... looks like I have my work cut out for me!

A SUNSHINE DAY!

SLE has a collection of 

SUNS

in her guest room!

a couple are from her international travels,

but she's also the recipient of artwork

by ACE (Allie).

Here's another 

SUNSHINE!

by Allie!

Allie gave each of us a copy of this mosaic SUN.
:: made from tiny, little pieces of paper

each carefully glued to the cardboard background

with a pair of tweezers ::

I have another SUN created by Allie!

BUT... due to our remodel, it's still packed away!

a favorite SUNSHINE quote

"Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others
cannot keep it from themselves."

~ James M. Barrie

How did "SUNSHINE" fill your day? 

DREAMING...

"hand-made bowl" ~ OUTSIDE INN, Nevada City, CA

I'm dancing... excited...

we got our first estimate to get

the "cottage cheese" ceilings removed,

new flooring installed upstairs

& the bathroom shower redone

(the water is leaking under the linoleum)...

getting another estimate tomorrow morning...

my head is swirling with

the thoughts of rearranging furniture...
& selecting some new paint colors...

D.R.E.A.M.I.N.G!

QUAINT-NESS...

cute, restored motor inn
we're in Nevada City (off Hwy 49)
This is our second stay here --- all the rooms are themed, quaint and your wallet will love this place!

...it's an easy walk downtown.

COME ALONG...

there are quaint mailboxes & picketed fences...

window boxes filled with pansies...

spacious porches & doors adorned with wreaths...

a place to get a massage...

and a church decorated with twinkly lights...

whimsical art and

AND, someone having a "spot of tea"

   the delights of exploring with a camera...

Actually, the highlight was...

having a tasty brunch

with some dear friends + meeting their son, Alder, for the first time.

ahhhh... the pleasures of holding a sweet baby!!

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 11.25.12

PICTURE PERFECT!!!

We're back from our visit to Washington DC. Having a couple of days to get organized & laundry done before heading back to work tomorrow is soooo helpful. 

Of course, the excitement of travel is capturing new photographic memories, seeing places different than your usual surroundings, meeting new people, but having time to visit family, is most important. Thank you Sea-Bass (Sebastian), MB & SLE for sharing your home with us.

This week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY words are: HOME or THANKFUL, IN THE KITCHEN, COUPLE, BUBBLES & TREES. You really need to stop by RAMBLING & PHOTOS to see the adorable picture Ashley posted for the word, BUBBLES. 

HOME or THANKFUL

In addition to being THANKFUL for family, I'm THANKFUL that people who need assistance can get those services from a dog. Sebastian (alias Sea-Bass) has been MB's guidedog for a little over 5 years. He's soooo sweet... such a lover-boy (when not "working")... in addition to guiding MB, he also watches out for SLE (our daughter) & was continually peeking over his shoulder to make certain our party of four stayed together. If you want to know more about Guide Dogs of America, please CLICK HERE. 

IN THE KITCHEN

JPE loves to cook, bake & having an audience makes being IN THE KITCHEN that much more enjoyable. As a result, he orchestrated the Thanksgiving dinner cooking... which included putting the turkey in early, so we could eat at 1:30. MB shared his mother's secret to a beautifully tender, roasted turkey... Baste it with tomato paste! Oh my goodness... we'll be filing this away in our cooking binder. Our bird was perfection... crispy skin, moist meat, and tasty! Yummmy.

COUPLE

JPE & I visited the National Washington Cathedral... here are a COUPLE more pictures of baby Jesus from the Crèche Exhibition: And Heaven and Nature Sing. The baby wrapped in burlap is from South Africa (Zulu Tribe); the small beaded nacimiento, was created by members of the Huichol Indians (Mexico) - glass beads cover the terra cotta form of this baby Jesus; & the blue & white smiling baby Jesus is from Louisville, Kentucky - creation of HADLEY POTTERY. Next time JPE & I visit his family in Kentucky, I'm adding a tour of the Hadley Pottery Factory to our trip. 

BUBBLES

BUBBLES of lights... I know, sort of a stretch... ha! just ran out of time & didn't want to grab a photo from my archives when I had a cool picture from our tea date at the BUZZ BAKERY & LOUNGE (Arlington, VA).

TREES

As you may have seen, I posted pictures of the changing colors & of Arlington National Cemetery earlier this week! MB & SLE teased me about the number of TREE pictures I took during my week-long visit. Peeking at the photos, I can feel the crisp cool air, hear the crunch of leaves being walked on, and see the brilliance of the colors. 

Next week's SHS words are: MISSING, NUMBERS, PURPLE, MUSIC & BRACELET. Ohhh... I can't wait... don't forget to visit ASHLEY'S to see her post for BUBBLES. 

MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU...

WASHINGTON NATIONAL CATHEDRAL

Architecture students would benefit from a visit to see the Gothic architecture of this church. During the August 23, 2011 earthquake (yes, other states besides California have earthquakes), a number of spires toppled from the tallest points of the church. Scaffolding was installed to prevent additional crumbling, but also for the workers repairing the damage.

FAVORITE PICS OF THE INTERIOR

The cathedral has been decorated for Thanksgiving & workers had begun putting up some of the holiday wreaths. The rest of the December decorations will be installed on Friday... I imagine it will look magnificent.

Explanation for the pics (l-r): In the crypt (lower floor) was one of the most beautiful altars of shimmery mosaic tiles. The stained glass windows shown has a chunk of moon rock the astronauts brought back from the Apollo XI space mission. This pulpit has been used by many famous people --- the Dali Lama & Martin Luther King Jr (right before his assassination) --- the stone comes from the Canterbury Cathedral in England. Being interested in architecture, JPE & I are always impressed by the construction of the ceilings. These ceilings are amazing in design.

SPECIAL EXHIBIT

We visited on the first day of this special exhibit...  The quilled paper Mary, Joseph & Baby Jesus were from an artist in North Carolina. The nativity set was donated by an artist living in Alabama... it is created entirely from driftwood she collected from the Gulf coast...

THE FORCE!!!

In the 1980's, National Geographic sponsored a contest for children to submit a design for additional sculptures to be added to the exterior of the cathedral. One of the winning designs was this head of Darth Vader... It was difficult to see & my zoom lens was not strong enough to take a clear picture... but, here's the grotesque of this Star Wars creature.

The other gargoyles are amazing... I've added some additional gargoyle pictures to my growing collection. Perhaps that will be another post?

Today we're off the the National Museum of the American Indian.

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 8.12.12

CERAMIC BULL - SACRED VALLEY, PERU

Digging into my photos from PERU for this week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY! 

This week's words are: MOBILE, HANGING BY A THREAD, COLLAGE, ALWAYS LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE & HOME.

MOBILE

In Lima, the more affluent Peruvians have MOBILE (cell) phones. For those who don't, they can use the pay phones found on the main streets of town.

HANGING BY A THREAD

You may recognize Rosita from this post! She's the 14 year-old weaver we met at the "weaver's cooperative" in Moray, Peru. In addition to showing how sheep's wool is cleaned... she also demonstrated "spinning" wool onto a spindle. Wool ready for dying is HANGING BY A THREAD.

COLLAGE

I played it "safe" (meaning, I selected an item that doesn't move or frown just before I click the shutter)... by creating a COLLAGE of flowers captured in the garden of our hotel, Villa Urubamba. It's amazing that I've seen ALL these flowers in my area of California.

ALWAYS LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE

Children in the Sacred Valley were eager to have their pictures taken; especially when you showed them the digital results. Walking barefoot down the dusty road, this ten-year-old girl was walking to work... Pepe, our Peruvian tour guide, asked her to show us the contents of her pack... a LUNCH! about two handfuls of dried beans, corn & seeds. In spite of her poor living conditions, she broke into a brillant smile... gosh, what a glorious demonstration of ALWAYS LOOKING ON THE BRIGHT SIDE. 

HOME

Most HOMES in the Sacred Valley (Cusco, Pisac, Ollantaytambo & Chinchero) have a pair of ceramic bulls on their roof. Peruvians believe that placing two bulls will bring happiness, wealth & fertility to their HOMES. Generally, the bulls are attached to a cross, which is thought to keep the bad spirits away.

To see other interpretations of this week's SHS words, hop over to Ashley's blog, Rambling & Photos. 

LEAVING A COLORFUL MARK!

Iquitos, Peru

"COLORS speak all languages."

~ Joseph Addison

Iquitos, Peru

Please note: Many of my pictures were taken from the tour bus windows, hence, a blurry look in some photos!

This wall was photographed near the airport in Iquitos! It wasn't clear to me what was being advertised ~ but I was drawn to the rich red color, the multiple layers of paint & the sections of paint that were slowly peeling away the message(s).

Lima, Peru

Murals can educate! in Peru, everyone drinks bottled water or Inka Kola (brillant yellow soda in a bottle... tastes like cough syrup with a bubble-gum flavor). As I mentioned in another post, tap water is not safe to drink, hence, the number of people carrying water bottles. For a large city, it's unfortunate that Lima doesn't have an formalized recycling program for disposal of all these bottles. This mural (on the side of a youth hostel) was a social statement about the waste that contributes to the Lima trash problem.

Lima, Peru

Although this mural was located in another part of town... perhaps one might consider this as the public attitude (closing their eyes) to the recycling of water bottles. Ha! just a thought? I don't know why or what statement the artist was hoping to portray...

Iquitos, Peru

Murals also advertised what the buildings were used for. This mural denotes a preschool... check out the colorful fence that divides the school from the roadway. Disney-like characters are used to attract children's attention... similar to advertising in the US. 

Cusco, Peru

Some murals teach. This is a small section of the mural located across the street from our hotel in Cusco... the pictures portray the history of the Incan civilization. 

Iquitos, Peru

Some murals provide whimsy & color to a brighten a neighborhood or corner of a village / town. One observation about Peru... this country loves COLOR!