YAD SDRAWKCAB...

Nottingham Flea Market - London, England

You say you can't read the title of my blog post? Ummmm. Today is BACKWARDS DAY. Check out THIS LINK to learn more...

Yes, a day that is more appreciated by elementary school students. A chance to wear your clothes BACKWARDS, or eat dessert before your dinner, or write cryptic notes to friends.

Not sure what I plan to do? but here are a couple of pictures from my archives... the first showing our last name spelled BACKWARDS.

Of course, it's BACKWARDS for Americans to look to the left before crossing the street. Fortunately, England helps us by painting a reminder on major street crossings... LOOK to the Left.

Enjoy spending your day doing things in reverse or BACKWARDS... 

see you tomorrow... BTW, Monday is National FREEDOM Day! Did you know that?

PLUI = REGEN = LLUVIA = RAIN

 Sunday December 13, 2015

 chimes a' singing

a crossword puzzle word for MOM!

PLUVIOPHILE describes ME! 

G.R.A.T.I.T.U.D.E.

Skyline Drive, Shenandoah National Park, Virginia ~ 10.24.15

Our Thanksgiving Week has been AMAZING!
It wasn't just the food,
{which is always tasty}
B.U.T.
JPE & I spent quality time with Mom!

Monday - Cambria, Splash Cafe clam chowder, & the Palm Theater to see "SPOTLIGHT" {a thought-provoking movie}.

Tuesday - Massage w/Patricia {mom}, began House of Cards-Season 3 Marathon, & watched a PBS Special about the Mayflower & first settlers.

Wednesday - Another episode of House of Cards, saw "BROOKLYN" {sweet, love story} at Fair Oaks Theater, early dinner at Old Juan's Cantina, Oceano & a few more episodes of House of Cards.

Thursday - Started our morning with House of Cards & oatmeal, Thanksgiving with Lars & Kathryn's family/friends in Solvang {incredible food, company & wine}, & a nightcap of House of Cards.

Friday - JPE put our turkey in the oven, watched an episode of House of Cards w/am coffee, turkey dinner w/Mom, JPE & Lars {sorry, you missed it}, the thirteenth & final episode of House of Cards, followed by evening news w/Gwen Ifil, & Andre Botcelli {both on PBS, our favorite channel}

We chatted on the phone with our girls, texted other family members... and just R.E.L.A.X.E.D.

Unfortunately, Mom insists it's time to board Amtrak to head home tomorrow. Bummer! But, it's only a month until Christmas, so time will pass quickly.

There's SOOO much to be thankful for!

F.O.O.D.

F.I.L.M.S.

F.A.M.I.L.Y.

How was your holiday?

BUTTON, BUTTON... WHO'S GOT THE BUTTON?

TOMORROW is National Button Day!

I love the sound of running your hands through a bucket or dish of loose buttons!! if you don't know what I mean, find a fabric or hobby store that sells loose buttons by the scoop. Weave your hands through the bucket of buttons & you'll probably notice it sounds a bit like ocean waves moving shells along the sand.  I saw these buttons in a yarn shop in Cambria... they were organized in containers... and sold individually.

Have you ever washed (or hand-washed) a sweater, only to have it shrink to Barbie size proportions? Of course you have! Have to admit, I have too... but before I recycle the sweater, I cut off the buttons. The round-wheel looking buttons were removed from a green sweater that was much too itchy! (so I don't miss wearing it). And swirly buttons (there are four of them) were cut off a off-white fisherman knit sweater that belonged to my mother-in-law, Lana. I don't know how I ended up with the flat silver buttons, but I love the design on the face of them.

A flood of memories come to mind when I see these buttons. I sewed most of my daughter's clothes during their early years (6 mos-9 years). Allison loved purple! Stephanie liked unusual shapes --- so I sewed the telephones on the pockets of a corduroy jacket. Remember Hello Kitty? both girls had the pink kitty buttons on their blouses. 

Christmas is my favorite holiday! Even though I don't have plans to use these buttons, I bear to get rid of them. One year I sewed an army of gingerbread cookies on the girls bathrobes... Notice the bells! the two red metal ones actually make a noise. Oh... and the little reindeer. They're sweet, but I don't remember why I bought them?? Do you have to have a reason to buy cute-ness?

Of course I could go on & on about the VALUE of a button jar, but I'll leave you with this link to my Instagram post about National Button Day. 

If you have any buttons that you're ready to get rid of ~ I'm here! ready to take them off your hands.

Don't forget to post your button pictures tomorrow on your blog.

GOOD. RANDOM. FUN. {WEEK 22}

 posting with Tamar at RANDOM-OSITY... 

a sampling of the GOOD food at AN AFTERNOON OF EPICUREAN DELIGHTS... we joined 600+ people for an afternoon of wine, food, music & easily, the most majestic location on the cliffs of Shell Beach, the CHAPMAN ESTATE.

a RANDOM ceramic bird - watching over the gazebo

on the CHAPMAN ESTATE.

the event featured two areas for listening to some FUN 80's music.

The band, "Booker Tease" played by the swimming pool.

The windmill is the landmark symbol for the estate.

the weather was incredibly beauty!

slight breeze!

tasty wine & food samplings!

The first Sunday in June, is the date for the annual fundraiser for our local Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo. 

We're rounding up friends to join us next year!!! 

WHAT'S RED, JUICY & SWEET?

it's STRAWBERRY time...

first basket of strawberries from Okui's

oh my goodness!

sweetness, juicy & addicting!

this is a watercolor of the same strawberries

NO, I haven't taken watercolor classes YET!

{on my bucket list for retirement}

My blog friend, Deanna @ Snippets from Springdale

had posted several watercolors of her photos
using a new i-Pad / i-Phone app called Waterlogue.

Oh my gosh! it's so much fun. 
you can watch a picture change from the photo to a watercolor.
Amazing!

worth the $2.99 price tag!!

{I wasn't compensated for this review of the strawberries nor the app}

PB&J + LATTE...

TODAY is INTERNATIONAL CHOCOLATE DAY!

:: SMELL ::

The smell of chocolate increases theta brain waves, which trigger relaxation.

:: SIGHT :: 

In the film Psycho, Alfred Hitchcock used Bosco chocolate syrup

for blood in the famous shower scene.

:: TASTE ::

The country whose people eat the most chocolate is Switzerland,

with 22 pounds eaten per person each year.

Americans consume approximately 12 pounds of chocolate,

putting them at 11th place.

:: BRAIN FOOD ::

Research suggests that dark chocolate boosts memory, attention span, reaction time, & problem-solving skills by increasing blood flow to the brain.

:: INCREASES PHYSICAL ACTIVITY ::

One chocolate chip can give a person enough energy to walk 150 feet.

:: AH! HA! ::

Hershey’s Kisses were first produced in 1907 & were shaped like a square.

A new machine in 1921 gave them their current shape.

So, have you had your CHOCOLATE today?

P52 {WEEK 20}

SLO County Writing Celebration 5.20.13

Celebrating & recognizing

first-twelfth grade authors!

Last evening, our office (San Luis Obispo Co Office of Education) hosted an awards ceremony to recognize 126 selected authors for this year's academic writing event. ArtsObispo, our local arts council, assisted with the expenses of the event & designed the programs, plus an anthology of winning entries. 

As much as I LOVED formatting, creating and editing this ANNUAL PUBLICATION, it was a great relief to have someone else produce an anthology! Kristi (support staff for this project) & I would spend at least 4-5 weeks putting the SLOCOE publication together. With budget cuts to education, those days are gone, so having agency support was crucial to keep this academic venue preserved.

POETRY OUTLOUD flags

ArtsObispo also coordinates the local Poetry Out Loud Competition (for high schoolers), a national poetry recitation competition sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation. 

One event completed, another to go! Tomorrow evening, our local ADL (Anti-Defamation League) advisory board will recognize all the schools & after-school programs who participated in three student-identified projects.

Other than painting & putting our condo back together, I haven't had my camera out...

master bedroom & this bathroom were both painted last weekend... 

Ecru... a nice color to tone down the previous "sage green" tones in these rooms.

the "Creole Cottage" color really warmed up the guest bedroom...

still need to bring in books, hang pictures, etc...

but, the bed is made! 

OKAY Mom... book your visit for June!

I'm participating in Tamar's P52 Project... posting pictures from the previous week (similar to Scavenger Hunt Sunday)... You can see the other participants HERE!

Tomorrow, I'll share details about my next camera adventure! See you Wednesday!

THE LAST BOOKSTORE...

Spring St, Los Angeles, CA

On Thursday, we (JPE, Mom & I) took a "field trip" to THE LAST BOOKSTORE. You can read about it in the Los Angeles Times HERE. We had forgotten how many beautiful, old buildings were located in this section of Los Angeles. As expected, the artistic displays made up for the short walk from the parking structure through the crummy part of town.

"BEAUTIFUL GREETER"

In addition to a security guard at the door (umm... crummy part of town), this "BEAUTY" greeted us at the door. I think she's in need of new goldfish!

MAIN FLOOR VIEW

Formerly a bank, this building had incredible features, including a vault (loaded with shelves of paperback books)... on the main floor were hundreds of used & some new books sold at "below" bookstore prices. There was even a section for audio-books, children's books and "vinyls" {records}.

RECORD SECTION

Records were hung by fishing line from the ceiling... casting prism-like red & blue shadows across the floor, as they caught the sun!

"STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN"

We loved the staircase display --- with a comfy, overstuffed chair, some flying books & a trash, littered floor (there was also a flying typewriter) --- was the author experiencing writer's block? nightmares? perhaps a bad dream? (reminded me of Dorothy's experience in the Wizard of OZ). 

"COLOR-COORDINATED BOOKCASES"

Upstairs we walked the "bookcase" LABYRINTH & browsed through the thousands of paperback books, sheet music, textbooks, etc! ALL available for bargain deals --- everything was $1. 

"BOOK-ARCH"

Ummm. Wonder how these books would do in an earthquake? Don't think I want to find out.

I didn't take as many pictures as I wanted --- I used my point & shoot & i-Phone. {I've yet to get over my camera "phobia" of taking pictures in public places}. But, JPE can't visit a bookstore without finding something he wants to read... so, we walked out with our Trader Joe's bag of treasures!

On a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being the best), this field trip was a "7" --- worth battling some LA traffic, but may not plan a return trip!??

                     

PHOTO-HEART CONNECTION: NOVEMBER 2012

pic taken 11.17.12

I'm participating in Kat Sloma's PHOTO-HEART CONNECTION.

Click HERE to see the details for posting in this monthly "reflective" experience.

The basic concept is to "reflect on one photograph" --- photo bloggers look back over their folder of pictures from the prior month. Select ONE --- this is the most difficult part (especially when you're looking through a folder of 400+ photos). You post the photo that "tugs at your heart" for whatever reason, then explain what the photo meant to you.

My November reflection isn't about the skill or beauty of capturing what my eyes saw, but of feelings this photo brought from the depth of my heart.

When JPE & I visited MB & SLE over the Thanksgiving Break, we rode the Metro out to Arlington National Cemetery --- so I could take pictures of the "changing colors of the leaves" ---

Eighteen years have passed since I paid a trip to Arlington National Cemetery --- at the time, I was chaperoning 13 high school girls who were attending the National Camp Fire Conference in Washington DC. The girls were fabulous!!! but, our memories of that day were the overwhelming humidity & long lines to see JFK's gravesite. I remember nothing about the layout of the park or anything else about that morning.

Our recent visit to Arlington National Cemetery was amazingly beautiful --- the trees were gorgeous reds, oranges, yellows, browns & greens. Mazen was teasing me because I lagged behind our group of four (+ Sea-Bass) snapping picture after picture --- over 200 (later discarding ~165 photos). The sky was crystal clear blue with a smattering of wispy white clouds; the temperature had a slight chill; and I felt energized with each deep breath of fresh air... all the makings for a perfect "weather" day.

What I didn't expect was the QUIET, SERENITY, and CALMNESS I experienced in this historical resting place of  veterans. Glancing over the rolling hills, we saw groups of students, families, and individuals --- walking casually along the roads, stopping to find their location on the park map, some searching for a particular headstone, while others took advantage of concrete benches --- to rest their feet or wait to catch up with their group, listening to the chirping of the birds & water tumbling down the creek, or just sitting --- deep in reflection.

It was "WHISPER-QUIET" ---  no one raised their voice to get someone's attention, nor did we see a parent having to scold a child for misbehavior, and never did I see someone chatting on their cellphone (amazing, huh?) --- it was INDESCRIBABLE!

::: a day of stunning beauty & quiet reflection :::
 

COMPROMISE!!!

Chihuly glass ~ Mountain View, CA Medical Building

The ELECTION is over!

we have an opportunity to CHANGE the way we treat each other!

and the way we look at the problems that divide us...

as the election results rolled in... 

I felt a variety of emotions!

excitement
at the percent of newer voters (18-30 year olds) who took time to learn about the issues, registered to vote & expressed their opinion by voting
   
 anxiety
at the difficult task to "close the gaps" that divide friends, families & neighbors
 
hopeful
that we accept the opportunity to become educated, speak thoughtfully about the issues & with respect instead of hatred
  
my 22 year old niece posted this on Facebook,

"I want to prompt any disappointed voters to remember that bashing the president is not a constructive use of time... we are one country and we will need to compromise if we are ever going to accomplish anything. I would have felt this way regardless of the results tonight, but personally I AM SO HAPPY"  

Thank you, Lauren!!

 

CELEBRATING!!!

cross-stitch by Stacy

A DAY TO CELEBRATE!!!

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE!!!

(signed July 4, 1776)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ~ NATASHA!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY ~ SUSAN & DAVID!!

Off to Stacy & Brett's for 

~ swimming ~

~ BBQ ~

~ fireworks ~

WEATHER UPDATE 4.11.12

We drove into Big Bear {town} to run some errands, get some lunch at the Teddy Bear Cafe & see the movie, "MIRROR, MIRROR" starring Julia Roberts {very cute... but also had some gnarly-looking monsters}... by evening, the water on Big Bear Lake had been "stirred up"...


Heavy wind all night long! WEDNESDAY MORNING, this was the view from our cabin...

NO SIGHT OF THE LAKE - ZERO VISABILITY!

Smattering of snow flurries + lots of wind!!

DUE to the rapidly changing weather - this was our view about 50 minutes later!!!


Today MAY be a....

LOVING IT!

{Mom, I wish you were here!}

SEASON TO LEARN...

tree outside condo front door

OH ME! OH MY!!

Do you use

PICNIK 

for photo editing?

Just logged on &

READ THIS MESSAGE!!!

So, what program

should I learn to use

 in the next few months?

Suggestions appreciated!

WORK ORDER COMPLETED!

Mom's atrium bird

Several weeks ago, the shade awning over MoM's atrium "caught a wind" and the heavy-duty cloth ripped in two pieces!


Being a "VERY THRIFTY" MoM (more about that later), she asked a member of her work team to assess the damage (secretly, she hoped they would be able to "stitch it" back together...)


Silly, huh?? but, I KNOW she didn't want to book the job... I also know how her mind works ~ like a "QUILTER"... give her a heavy-duty needle, some carpet thread, hold the ladder & she could solve her own problem...


BUT, (hear the cheering from afar?)... her work team had concerns about that (MoM + two story ladder? uh! huh!)


As SILLY as the visual seems, ALL options required renting a ladder + 2-3 workers scaling the ladder, balancing in precarious positions (quite like Michelangelo painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel), while wielding staple guns, hammers and lumber to secure the shade cloth between two edges of the atrium.


NOW, I wasn't present for the installation - but, I can imagine the "heroic actions" of the work team to get this heavy, cumbersome awning pulled taut and then fastened to the frame and fascia board...

:: TODAY'S FULL REPORT ::

ATRIUM AWNING HAS BEEN INSTALLED!!

a work team of 4 workers + 3 great-grandchildren + 2 observers + 1 HaPpY MoM were present for this task!

MoM has signed off on her work order!

She still has a "pending problem"...

what to do with the left-over food

she cooked as payment for the work team??

I'm sending my note of 

A-P-P-R-E-C-I-A-T-I-O-N

to the work team!!

JPE & I'll benefit from the completion of this work order when we visit MoM at the end of the month!

S-E-R-E-N-I-T-Y

Brunch in the atrium

without the ripped shade cloth

flinging dust on our eggs!

:: FYI ::

MoM was "SO THRIFTY" she would tear our paper napkins in half ~ she didn't want us to waste them!

(I'm not making this up!! ask any one of her 7 grandchildren)

:: MY TASK ::

I can handle dusting the

top of the candle!