This made me smile when I spotted it today...the same shoreline of Lake Erie with the feathers. There were altars too, and I'll share those later.
I'm posting Day 10 of the August Break just a bit early; we're heading back to PA tomorrow. Six hours or so in the car with lots and lots of trees. Trust me, there are really lots of trees to be seen!
So, what are you saying "yes" to today? I hope it's too you one big precious wonderful life!
June presented me with so many photo ops, and I seem to have taken advantage of every one possible. So many still await editing, and I'm happily playing here.
As I waded through the plethora (love this word!) of images, pictures kept murmuring, "Pick Me." But this one grabbed my heart.
I am a water baby - not in the sense that I'm in it, but that I need/want to be near it, to smell the salt air, and to feel the sand between my fingers and toes. I want to be searching for bits and pieces of shells with colors and patterns that catch my eye. They find their way into my pocket and eventually coming home to a space in my studio.
I played with this image just a bit...adding a little sepia to it, aging the colors a bit. It's just as gorgeous in its original form, but I wanted to give it a touch of timelessness. A man and his dog, walking the coastline, beach goers in the distance. And, those clouds...sheer gorgeousness! This is the scene that dances through my dreams; this is what I close my eyes and imagine in the dead of winter.
I've been hooked, plain and simple! Kim Klassen has packed her "Beyond Layers" class with so many goodies that I feel like a small child in a candy store with money to spend. If you ever get a chance to take any of Kim's classes, don't hesitate. I promise you you will get your money's worth and then some.
I'm getting caught up on some lessons, and a recent one encouraged us to play with framing our pictures.
Cape Hatteras' light house, take 1 - minimal editing involved.
Take 2: I've added a black feathered frame. Wow...packs a punch!
I also added a feathered frame using a color from the light house, but since it's rather gray, it would simply blend right into the blog's background.
Cape Hatteras sand dune, minimal editing.
Same dune, same shot, but some editing done to fade it out, along with a color block layer to give it a vintage/retro feel. I added the frame using one of the dune's colors.
Take 1, with a simple frame added, using one of the dune's colors.
So much fun to be had with a few clicks of a button or two.
Home again, and I'm missing this view!
Heading back north tomorrow morning, and none of us wants to go back to reality, especially since home equals massive power outages and triple digit temps...ugh!
But tonight was pure magic...a sunset on the sound and a walk on the Avon Pier. Earlier today, we munched on fried pickles, which were surprisingly good. Go figure!
Loving the Outer Banks, loving the water, loving the seafood! We took the ferry to Ocracoke today, which is one of my favorite spots. Lots of artists' shops with tons of color, texture, and just outright funky at times. I did far more looking than buying, but boy has the creative well been filled. These bikes caught my eye, as did so much else.
I've inhaled:
- fudge
- scallops
- absolutely delicious crab legs at "The Mad Crabber"
- crab cake
- and now we're on our way to get some ice cream
Guess I really should be riding these bikes, not photographing them!
Gotta love it when life plays an unexpected joke. A few weekends ago, Phil and I went exploring in Staunton, VA. I enjoyed an iced chai here and then went outside to grab a shot for posterity. Well, turns out there are two puns here! The first being, that when I snapped the pic, I didn't realize that my "mug" was nearly smack dab in the middle. Then, I just blissfully typed: went outside to grab a "shot." Oh, dear!
Currently:
...listening to sounds of folks getting up to be on their way
...drinking a cup of coffee perked in my mom's old coffeepot (Yeah, it's aluminum, but I grew up on coffee made in this pot.)
...wearing some comfortable gray capris with a funky grey and white top; thank you Chico's!
...feeling relaxed 'cause it's Saturday
...the weather is "almost" sunny, but the gray is peeking through, and they're calling for rain. Guess I'm appropriately dressed.
...wanting it to be summer vacation
...needing to declutter, destash, and create some serenity in this house
...thinking that I need to edit my photos, get them uploaded to Winkflash and Snapfish, so that I'm ready for those deals that pop up in my inbox
...enjoying the idea that I get to go bumming today
She really lives up to being a cutie-patootie, doesn't she?
Wanderlust struck today, and off we went in search of adventure.
Discovered that Staunton, Va, being part of the "Bible Belt" closed up on Sundays. While we didn't get a chance to poke around in antique shops or funky one of a kind craft shops, we explored some very cool architecture, and wandered through an old cemetary.
A bit farther down the road, we discovered this antique mall, where the friendly folks didn't bat an eye at my request to take some pics. (Snobby antique places most certainly do...bat their eyes, that is!)
Stopped for dinner at a mom and pop sort of Italian place. I devoured lobster ravioli in some sort of to die for shrimp sauce.
Took the long way home, and I saw far too many mountains and cows. You would not believe the amount of cows between Staunton and Sprinfield!
Details to follow!
P.S. With very little to say about those cows, other than there were a LOT OF THEM!
Wanderlust struck today, and I began the hunt.
My object of desire? Leading lines - the wonderful lines that lead you to the image or maybe across, or even out of the picture.
Wouldn't like to sit a bit? Maybe grab a cup of coffee and read the paper? The curved brick walkway guides you on your pathway; your feet just automatically follow your eyes.
Behind you a creek winds its way towards town, branches reaching out to frame it, and to grab your eyes. I have to admit though, I struggled with these shots. So much gray and brown, the sun fading it. Thank you, Mother Nature, for that shot of green.
All the lines in this image, pull you right to this friendly fellow, from the top of the display case, the meandering line created by the jar tops, and those beads and ribbon frame his face nicely, don't they? (Have to admit, this was one of my favorite stops!)
The diagonal fence line carries you down the hill and across the picture.
A bit of a close up...even the shadows invite you along the path!
I've realized that I really, really need to learn photoshop and the magic of layering. So many of the photos that garner the "oooohs" and "ahhhhhhs" seem to have some gorgeous post processing! They were awesome to begin with, mind you, but the layers seem to equal magic. Another challenge, a fun one to boot!
Cincinnati loves to eat, and, oh, the goodies to be found here! We spent Thanksgiving weekend with our oldest, Corey, and his lovely bride, Christina. Yesterday morning, we all got up early to visit this awesome spot, right before Phil and I hit the road. WOW!!! Even though we visited on one of the last days of November, we found plenty to do, buy, and most of all, eat.
The indoor portion remains open all year, and you can find everything from knowledgable butchers whom believer firmly in customer service, to bakery items, to plants and so much more.
Nicknamed "Porkopolis," the market held a fine collection of pigs.
Color, textures, aromas...I wanted it all! But, we had ourselves a mission to be accomplished, and that was to visit the colonel.
I am blessed with men who love to cook, and who do it extremely well. Needless to say, my husband and eldest son find paradise here! Spices, sugars, herbs, rubs and more can be located here, and you buy by the ounce.
This photo barely begins to cover the extent of the Colonel's goodies. Cases stretch in both directions from this focal point, and cares run below as well. We didn't know where to begin.
Along with an outstanding knowledge of spices and such, this guy possesses a wonderful sense of humor.
After leaving the colonel, I picked up a few choice pieces of chocolate here...yummy!
Much, much more to be found here, but I'll leave you with this little piece of advice found in a window shop:
P.S. I had sushi for the first time ever, and I promply fell in love with yet one more type of food! Thanks to my lovely daugher in law, Christina, for a wonderful afternoon together.