tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32944129839729855492024-03-13T07:17:32.437-07:00My Cottage YearThe many photos, musings, and adventures of RL Perdue & friendsRhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.comBlogger195125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-27583767560369913482012-07-05T20:10:00.001-07:002012-07-05T20:10:39.142-07:00Blue Bottles and Ladybugs<p> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="bottles_sky.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-dXT-I8mpD_o/T_ZXA4D0lhI/AAAAAAAADQ8/gw6nKIi_TMc/bottles_sky.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Bottles sky" width="600" height="448" border="0" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 12px;">Bottles in the window</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">Summer weather has arrived. We at last had a marvelous fourth with just right temperatures. The kids came over and Miss Madee brought a little friend with her...</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="ladybug.jpg" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-H46ClUBYFzo/T_ZXD1HPdJI/AAAAAAAADRE/NxSFSCjznEo/ladybug.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Ladybug" width="600" height="403" border="0" /></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">We had a fine picnic of hotdogs, potato salad, baked beans doctored up with dijon mustard, and a fruity yogurt salad. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">The juncos have finally left their geranium nest so I now have my bistro table back. Here is one of the little guys just before vacating. Doesn't even resemble a junco yet.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="baby junco.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-9qJDT9XIA6g/T_ZXGtjmVpI/AAAAAAAADRM/gJ5k0iRKxyo/baby%252520junco.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Baby junco" width="600" height="446" border="0" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 14px;">Baby Junco</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">Tomorrow is Friday and that's a good thing. It was nice having the fourth off but it threw me off a bit today with my "inner calendar. It felt like it should've been Sunday. I am certainly glad that my working hours are fairly early so that I get off before it really gets warm although tomorrow might test that theory. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">I have several sweet pea blossoms so far and am looking forward to having their sweet scent waft through the dining room window and maybe even reach the upstairs bedroom. So far growing them in a large pot with a tomato cage seems to be a success. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;"><span class="img" style="background-image: url('http://distilleryimage5.instagram.com/44cc6e12c5fc11e1bef722000a1e8bb5_7.jpg');"> <img class="photo" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="http://distilleryimage5.instagram.com/44cc6e12c5fc11e1bef722000a1e8bb5_7.jpg" alt="" /> </span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">Lena came by the other day bringing gifts and treasures and among them was this little "English Toby"jug.</span></p>
<blockquote>
<p><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 18px;"><em>Toby Jugs have been around since the early 18th century.<br /> They were brought back by Doulton in the 19th century, who developed the idea into a range of character jugs.<br /> Today, their popularity shows no signs of declining and they have held their value at auction sales.<br /> Their appeal is wide reaching because Doulton jugs are quite different both in their craftsmanship and their subject matter.</em></span></p>
</blockquote>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">He's a little bit like an english gnome and I am planning to feature him from time to time in a shot or two. <span style="color: #940e0a;">Thanks Lena!</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: x-large;"><span class="img" style="background-image: url('http://distilleryimage4.s3.amazonaws.com/28ff702ac3dc11e1a23c22000a1c9e05_7.jpg');"> <img class="photo" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="http://distilleryimage4.s3.amazonaws.com/28ff702ac3dc11e1a23c22000a1c9e05_7.jpg" alt="" /> </span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 14px;">The toby amongst the geraniums</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">This post has been a little disjointed but it is a post none the less… :-)</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">An update on our wolberts lawn</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;"><span class="img" style="background-image: url('http://distilleryimage0.instagram.com/e64da282c71511e1b10e123138105d6b_7.jpg');"> <img class="photo" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="http://distilleryimage0.instagram.com/e64da282c71511e1b10e123138105d6b_7.jpg" alt="" /> </span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 14px;">The "Bearded One" sprinkling the lawn.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">What a difference having our company treating our yard has made! Thanks boss.</span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-84042174280409104492012-07-01T00:28:00.001-07:002012-07-01T00:32:31.424-07:00Summer is here… sort of<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="sweetpea.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-2wPm0jc38yo/T-_8A4MknkI/AAAAAAAADQA/okURRX8WVIw/sweetpea.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Sweetpea" width="600" height="461" border="0" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 12px;">The "Bearded One" Smelling the Sweet Peas</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 36px;"><strong><span style="color: #940e0a;">The Life of a "Townie"</span></strong></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';">It's been a long time since I've posted and Jerri has been wanting an update. Life has been going well albeit a little busy. Living in town has a lot more to offer as far as distractions go, the main one being an unlimited fast internet connection which means that I am now watching every available photoshop tutorial that I can find. Work has been keeping me busy and the grandkids are growing up way too fast. We have two weddings coming up in July and August. Congrats to my oldest grandson Tucker and his fiancé Nicole, and to my nephew Jon and his "wife to be", Danielle. </span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">Notice that I'm using a more casual font in this post. I'm not taking myself too seriously at this stage of the game so I thought that it might be an appropriate means of conveying the notion, and besides I like to change things up a bit.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS';">We went to the zoo the other night with the kids. The weather was perfect for me. A little drizzly with a nice little breeze. I hadn't been to the zoo since I'd gone to see the christmas lights a few years back. I had my camera with me of course and had decided to use my 100mm 2.8 lens which is a great sharp lens but there is no zooming with it. My feet are my zoom so my shots were a little limited in the very crowded "members only" night. I was able to get a few shots though, including this elephant. I, of course am playing with some new software so I will give you two versions. the first a regular take the second done with an application called perfect photo.</span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="elephant_1Blog.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-6RjaWjTToYo/T-_8CaBitkI/AAAAAAAADQI/fhs3ZZ4EGfM/elephant_1Blog.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Elephant 1Blog" width="600" height="461" border="0" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 14px;">This is the original with some very large cables removed (thank you photo shop!)</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="elephant.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-GhmwXiALtHo/T-_8Dei7uWI/AAAAAAAADQQ/eIHFokLINuE/elephant.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Elephant" width="600" height="461" border="0" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 12px;">using perfect photo for a quick frame and saturation adjustment </span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"> </p>
<p style="text-align: left;"> </p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">Still playing...</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="junco textured.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-JmIChou3ms8/T-_8EJoANWI/AAAAAAAADQY/EU8kstL8TE4/junco%252520textured.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Junco textured" width="600" height="461" border="0" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 14px;">The mother of the babies now living in my ivy geranium</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">I am patiently waiting for the junco family to vacate my geranium pot which is sitting on top of our bistro table. they have chosen well. The umbrella keeps most of the weather out of their nest and their nest keeps me from using the table. It is right off the back porch so we do get to enjoy the whole process up close, still I am longing to sit at the table with my lemonade and enjoy the shade.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">Here is an update photo of our backyard. the grass is filling in nicely and the strawberries along the fence are beginning to ripen. We are continuing to battle the weeds in the lawn. They die off when we treat them but are then replaced by "new ones"….</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0178.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-2eKohILKvdA/T-_8E7VN1UI/AAAAAAAADQg/wgfaQbPoQR0/IMG_0178.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0178" width="600" height="450" border="0" /></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">Hmmm… I wonder why</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0182.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-K917KHa-sj8/T-_8GDhWiPI/AAAAAAAADQo/kqgYXV02AUU/IMG_0182.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0182" width="600" height="450" border="0" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">Of course it could be the yard next door providing us with an endless supply of seeds. :-)</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">Well The "bearded one" has toddled off to bed and I'm fix-in' to follow shortly.</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">Until next time...</span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="daisy.jpg" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-1r2xINkrDhE/T-_8IK9tj8I/AAAAAAAADQw/uvkggyQKEPo/daisy.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Daisy" width="600" height="464" border="0" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 18px;">Take time to stop and smell the flowers.</span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-43199824468497365252012-06-14T11:10:00.000-07:002012-06-14T11:12:22.598-07:00Bread man walking<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GEGHvmATQi0/T9okE8piGuI/AAAAAAAADPk/f3g8v0k13_g/s1600/IMG_0004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GEGHvmATQi0/T9okE8piGuI/AAAAAAAADPk/f3g8v0k13_g/s400/IMG_0004.jpg" width="326" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Begonia Basket on the Gate</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;">I have the day off today so I decided I would start the morning out making a nice hot fresh loaf of whole wheat bread in my bread machine. Everything was going fine until my bread machine decided to wobble itself off the counter onto the floor. Subsequently there was a loud clang my dough went flying and the Breadman lid detached itself. After much wailing and gnashing of teeth (my own) the "bearded one" came down and helped me assess the damage. We gathered up the runaway dough ball, plopped it back into the kneading chamber, and hammered the lid back on top of the machine. We are left with a small dent in the floor, and a slightly disheveled machine, but it seems to be working fine since I can smell fresh bread baking as I dictate this post.</span></div>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Zs710g5dJsM/T9ob45xXS3I/AAAAAAAADPM/a_BuS4tPFVY/s1600/IMG_0001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Zs710g5dJsM/T9ob45xXS3I/AAAAAAAADPM/a_BuS4tPFVY/s320/IMG_0001.jpg" width="262" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Breadman just a little worse for wear..</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-b9uj9ffN0a0/T9ocB5IPoJI/AAAAAAAADPY/-3wdZLMDgHM/s1600/IMG_0006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-b9uj9ffN0a0/T9ocB5IPoJI/AAAAAAAADPY/-3wdZLMDgHM/s320/IMG_0006.jpg" width="282" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The resulting loaf of wholewheat bread</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">
This post is an experiment because I'm using my iPhone and just talking instead of typing. It sounds kind of of lazy I know, but isn't technology marvelous?</div>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--s-FUnkgBLI/T9onwUqXUHI/AAAAAAAADPw/sUPCAsTqx9w/s1600/IMG_0014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="227" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--s-FUnkgBLI/T9onwUqXUHI/AAAAAAAADPw/sUPCAsTqx9w/s320/IMG_0014.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A young bird on my "wolberts" lawn.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">
The Grass is really looking better. If you remember we started out with mostly weeds. I love walking around with my bare feet being tickled by the healthy green blades. We had our first radish today it was wonderful. I had it with breakfast which is a little odd but I couldn't help myself, I was giddy with anticipation to our garden bounty.</div>
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">
We have a pair of juncos who have decided to raise their little family in my ivy geranium planter. I will be glad when they're done so I can take care of again because it's looking a little neglected. Isn't spring wonderful?</div>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-28924515828935346822012-05-06T20:25:00.001-07:002012-05-06T20:25:49.325-07:00The Townie Report<p> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0009.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-NNeSo0XygXw/T6dAfTOuchI/AAAAAAAADNk/XGD4phaa0fY/IMG_0009.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0009" width="600" height="400" border="0" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: 12px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">The Boss's Apple blossoms in the rain</span></span></span></em></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><em><span style="color: #4d8f2a;"><strong><span style="font-size: 24px;">A lot of catching</span></strong></span></em></span> up to do... first we'll start with the garden bits. The bearded one's square foot garden. The Romaine lettuce is looking mighty tasty!</span></span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0002.jpg" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-jfWVs05OX1Y/T6dAhFgt7EI/AAAAAAAADNs/YZQWHiuI0tM/IMG_0002.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0002" width="600" height="400" border="0" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: 12px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">Romaine and red leaf lettuce</span></span></span></em></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;">Look! we have little broccoli florets beginning to form...</span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0010-2.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-YjnLr6pL-84/T6dAiXXPMqI/AAAAAAAADN0/Mri25MQp4wM/IMG_0010-2.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0010 2" width="600" height="400" border="0" /></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;">A view from the back of the yard...</span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="projects.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-Nne4BRexjho/T6dAmYvDTcI/AAAAAAAADOE/qplO6CRCmQU/projects.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Projects" width="600" height="402" border="0" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: 12px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">Projects</span></span></span></em></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">The weeds are beginning to die in the lawn so we will need to throw some grass seed down to cover the exposed dirt. I spent the afternoon digging out quack grass. Ay yi yi. The trouble with working around lovely "Wolbert's treated lawns" all week is that a plain ol' weedy dandelion strewn clover lawn just ain't good enough any more. Im' actually enjoying the transformation from neglected to perfected... well a close facsimile anyway :-)</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="color: #4d8f2a;"><em><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 24px;"><strong><span style="font-size: 24px;">The Art Walk</span></strong></span></span></span></em></span> <span style="font-size: 18px;">was last weekend. The kids dropped by and Sister Sandy came to town so we got to hang out a bit.</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0026.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-8zs4XzRZfS4/T6dAofZXb9I/AAAAAAAADOU/8MSsZt87otw/IMG_0026.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0026" width="400" height="266" border="0" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><em><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">A little magic at Olympia Supply (my art sponsors)</span></span></em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">Karl's new "monkey feet" in trendy blue...</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0025.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-j7GVqVcH1vQ/T6dAozpUEmI/AAAAAAAADOc/rNT2drQbGTU/IMG_0025.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0025" width="400" height="266" border="0" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">Fine music...</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0038.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-jwp2PyILgG8/T6dApm-yDqI/AAAAAAAADOk/6JWKKwk4FYQ/IMG_0038.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0038" width="300" height="411" border="0" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">Fancy Automobiles...</span></span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0028.jpg" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-8pvNTy6oieM/T6dAr4o294I/AAAAAAAADO0/9x7AZqnzMDc/IMG_0028.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0028" width="400" height="266" border="0" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">And City chickens...</span></span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0042.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-yWDboWml45g/T6dAqZqhWWI/AAAAAAAADOs/LvyjQKw7BW4/IMG_0042.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="IMG 0042" width="600" height="400" border="0" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><br /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">Here's to better weather this week, and as always...wishing you well</span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">-rhondi</span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-FI-zYApNUHI/T6dAuNjtVcI/AAAAAAAADO8/4loku8w8EsY/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" alt="NewImage" width="600" height="320" border="0" /></span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-65417029695505028912012-04-22T09:48:00.001-07:002012-04-22T09:48:32.425-07:00Knock knock... anybody there?<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="ivy geranium.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-qzMTlKdXkrU/T5Q2RzyMvaI/AAAAAAAADMw/PkNbUOYbp04/ivy%252520geranium.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Ivy geranium" width="526" height="600" border="0" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em><span style="font-size: 12px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">Hooray the season of floral abundance begins!</span></span></span></em></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;">Where have I been? I have no idea. Life has been pretty good as far as lives go. I think I just needed a little time to catch up with myself. We are settling comfortably into the new digs, the "Bearded One" is working his magic around the yard, the farm paper project is finally done, next week's art walk is quickly approaching and i think I've figured out what pieces "de art" to feature. The plan thus far, is to have five matted pieces in the window display area and a framed piece featured on an easel inside the store. Olympia Supply (a hardware store) is sponsoring me which is great because I'm always taking photos of " bits and pieces". </span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;">We went to home depot yesterday and I found myself overwhelmed in the midst of all the annuals and perennials. It's the middle of April and yet here were all the summer pot stuffers out in full force making me feel like I was behind in the planting process. Is it me or do they just keep getting earlier and earlier? The trouble with full summer pots at this time of the season is that they will peter out before summer is in full swing. I will have to pace myself and not be afraid that there won't be any available plants later on in the season. Of course there <span style="font-size: 18px;"><em>won't be </em><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">any but that's beside the point... right? Arghhhhh. I need a greenhouse so I can be my own supplier. We picked up a few cool season veggie starts for the square foot garden which always feels like cheating... back to needing a greenhouse (sigh) and a lovely red geranium for me to gaze at through the sliding glass door.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="georgeplanting.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-MHSuIwvsRkY/T5Q2VSssI-I/AAAAAAAADNI/Y0Qt-_8gU8s/georgeplanting.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Georgeplanting" width="600" height="402" border="0" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="planting.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-CY1dTprshII/T5Q2XB-Re7I/AAAAAAAADNY/VyCBX3kRYLk/planting.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Planting" width="300" height="447" border="0" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 14px;">The Bearded One planting our "Square foot" crops while working on his spring tan</span></span></em></span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">The neighbor's are ahead of the game and already have their porch pots hanging. </span></span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="neighbor.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-44E5BKJPhFo/T5Q2WPzyESI/AAAAAAAADNQ/vex7CRT0hw8/neighbor.jpg?imgmax=800" alt="Neighbor" width="600" height="457" border="0" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em>Neighbor's porch with hanging baskets</em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;">I love my front porch and am looking forward to sitting on it in the evening as the summer progresses. It gets the morning sun until about noon and then is in shade whereas the neighbor's is the opposite. Their porch gets morning shade and then late afternoon sun. I had envisioned red geranium baskets with bacopa and lobelia but I'm not sure if early sun is enough.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;">Well I'm going to get out and enjoy this lovely spring day and maybe work on my "farmer tan".</span></p>
<p> </p>
<div class="standard_section">
<div class="article_content">
<blockquote>
<p><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">The following are examples of a few currently well known farmer tans…</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><strong>Cyclist farmer’s tan</strong> – a nice, scintillating tan covering the arms and legs where a jersey top and bottom serve as the defining pattern line. All cyclists and triathletes should strive for this standard. <em>The darker the tan lines on your leg the more seasoned rider you are.</em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><strong>Sock farmer’s tan</strong> – a <em>bitchen</em> tan line created by socks that go above the ankles. This tan line is shown only when you don’t wear socks, but it still looks like you’re wearing socks because of the tan line. <em>A classic!</em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><strong>Raccoon eyes</strong> (also a member of the farmer’s tan family) – a cool tan line that develops when the sun is reflected off of the snow while you’re wearing goggles or sunglasses. <em>Note: special preventative actions need to be taken if you called in sick to work and are returning the next day.</em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><strong>Hat farmer’s tan</strong> – a great tan line that occurs when you wear your hat and the sun tans everything except for the top portion of your forehead. <em>A good example: Tiger Woods.</em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><strong>HR monitor strap farmer’s tan</strong> – another awesome tan line meticulously sculpted by your heart rate monitor chest strap and developed outside without your shirt on. <em>Note: this tan line takes some time to build up so be patient, but once you achieve it, it will serve you for a long time.</em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><strong>Watch farmer’s tan</strong> (or GPS farmer’s tan) – also a classic, occurs by being outside and always wearing your wrist watch/GPS. <em>A fun joke is to take off your watch and ask someone what time it is while looking at your watch tan! It is usually more funny to you than anyone else!</em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><strong>Race day farmer’s tan</strong> – a relatively new tan to the family but this one usually goes away after a few weeks because of its nature. It occurs during half and full Ironman events because of the time required out in the sun the day of your race. Whatever shape jersey you are wearing that day will be the outline of this pattern. <em>Sunscreen protection is difficult on race days because of how many elements breakdown its protection, so be prepared because this one comes whether you like it or not.</em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><strong>Sandal farmer’s tan</strong> – another <em>bitchen</em> shape that follows the direction your sandals take to connect to your toes. <em>A good Sandal tan takes longer to achieve because of the tender nature of the skin covering the top of your feet. However, when this tan is achieved and has a rugged, dark base its glory shines through for all to see!</em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;">If you have had any of the farmer tan styles above, you’ve experienced the personal satisfaction gained from your tanning achievements. Words cannot express nor describe the feeling of a solid farmer’s tan.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;">The next time you accidentally expose a portion of your arm or leg that has never seen the light of day, proudly look beyond that stunning brightness and find that crisp, defining line where the darkness begins. This is where two worlds collide, good vs evil. This is your farmer’s tan. <em>Fertilize</em>, g<em>row</em>, and <em>culture</em> this tan line, then proudly <em>harvest</em> it for everyone to see.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;">Written by Dave Platfoot</span></p>
</blockquote>
</div>
</div>
<div class="clear"><span style="font-size: 18px;"> </span></div>
<p> </p>
<div class="standard_section"> </div>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-59335989288027738782012-04-01T21:41:00.001-07:002012-04-01T21:41:14.654-07:00April fool's day and another weekend come and gone...<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="maple leaves rain.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-QdxwKeCxFbc/T3ktyB_NllI/AAAAAAAADME/HqXeaOaJkXs/maple%252520leaves%252520rain.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Maple leaves rain" width="600" height="503" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">The little maple's new leaves in the rain</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong><br /></strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I can't believe how fast the weekend has gone by. I am nervously waiting to hear that the map is being printed, no more edits. We've met the deadline and they will do a test run tomorrow and give it a final look see. What a project. Next up on my agenda is to get my "studio" organized so that I can work a little more efficiently. The extra bedrooms are very small. I had envisioned a grand space with plenty of room for craft projects and photo equipment living in harmony side by side. They are at this moment on top of each other. I did get a small fold up table to use for a desk I just need to organize the bits and pieces.</span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0017.JPG" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-SvG2IuGrXSs/T3kt1eUWdAI/AAAAAAAADMM/tCw9wQioBzQ/IMG_0017.JPG?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0017" width="600" height="400" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">These are shadows. They were caused by a large orb called the sun peeking out between the clouds this morning. It was glorious.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Today we saw our first humming bird visit the feeder in the back yard. You'll have to take my word for it though since it's visit wasn't actually recorded in the following picture. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="feeder.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-vy5KKonExDY/T3kt29ltOWI/AAAAAAAADMU/nb82Dh3YbKM/feeder.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Feeder" width="552" height="600" /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Sister Sandy is transporting a fine set of chairs that she has donated to our cause one by one in her Honda. She was afraid that I'd think that they were terribly ugly ( I was accepting them sight unseen) so I didn't know quite what to expect and was overjoyed when I saw them. The bearded one will be in charge of making sure they are tight and sturdy and then we will reupholster their wonderfully wide seat bottoms. There are 6 altogether 2 of them captain's chairs with arms. It will be perfect. I can't wait to show them to you. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I went shopping for groceries today. Not my usual one or two bags from Trader Joe's, but an actual cart full with enough eats to last us for a couple of weeks. We've been living with small fridges for quite a while and now that we have the room we decided to do it up right. I think it also works a little better "budget wise" to load up rather then stopping at the store every day or two. Now that we are ready for the new week I'm going to head up stairs and take a long hot soak, just because I can...</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Until next time...</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-_6VhDUko_7E/T3kt55-4nII/AAAAAAAADMk/vYW8tH9YWuI/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="520" height="346" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;">http://www.flickr.com/photos/serenah/5152946567/lightbox/</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-48993316789400900942012-03-26T20:42:00.001-07:002012-03-26T20:42:31.951-07:00Monday, A touch of spring and good to be home...<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="max and madee 3_24_12.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-PxIwiyKwUPg/T3E3HWYYouI/AAAAAAAADLw/AWGDTjmYS90/max%252520and%252520madee%2525203_24_12.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Max and madee 3 24 12" width="446" height="600" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Well the farm map has been turned over to the proof readers where it will be looked at very closely to weed out misplaced commas, faulty grammar and misspelled words. The map part itself will be scrutinized to see that each representative dot is in it's proper place. After this phase is done it will be handed back to me with errors circled and comments made at which point I will fix them one by one, hoping that I don't miss any. It then goes to the chronicle presses and they pop out a "proof". If that goes well then it's off to the races and thousands of copies on newsprint will make their way to the farmers market where they will be grabbed up by those looking for fresh and local produce, meats, and directions to the family farms. It's been quite the experience.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Now I can get on to other things like preparing for the upcoming "Art Walk". </span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Spring has definitely been in the air these last few days. Saturday I was able to go down to the waterfront with the kids and take some photos. Later I was blessed with a visit from friends Lena and Danika who brought "care" bags full of amazing and generous house gifts. Let me switch gears here for a moment... The Girl's got me hooked on this amazingly fun video series. Fun, Food, and history. Try it I think you will enjoy it.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/0_Coh8laAAk?fs=1" width="480" height="270" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">The girls had no way of knowing what was on our "must get" list but low and behold they pretty much brought it all. Living in a fully furnished cottage for two years meant that we had gotten rid of most of our stuff including kitchen stuff. It felt like a party. Thanks you two for your amazing generous hearts. They also were the means to get a tall bookcase home. (we are down to just the wrangler now) not only that but we were able to get it for half price ($20). I was feeling really good about that and then today I was able to get a wonderful dining table that will seat 8 when center leaf is added. I got that for 30% off the $14.95 asking price. Did I mention that it's solid wood and very sturdy? I feel like I walk around in a constant bubble of blessing.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0013-2.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-gJ4xOmzCTqo/T3E3CInELOI/AAAAAAAADLQ/xdU5kk_VUkk/IMG_0013-2.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0013 2" width="400" height="600" /></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Our new dining table</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0017-3.jpg" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-bSNM7G8aHxc/T3E3EFQrZDI/AAAAAAAADLY/ThZVP65Fxlk/IMG_0017-3.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0017 3" width="391" height="600" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Our new $20 bookcase as seen through our "goodwill" mirror</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0020.JPG" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-kVWp3Cnb0TE/T3E3FDT58QI/AAAAAAAADLg/4JspB7JnIxo/IMG_0020.JPG?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0020" width="300" height="200" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">A little tray found along the way for a buck</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"> I'm off to watch another episode. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I leave you with the "bearded One" doing what he loves...</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0003.JPG" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-OFPnLahtwB8/T3E3IZuP5ZI/AAAAAAAADL4/fxgLS5b3Fwk/IMG_0003.JPG?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0003" width="400" height="266" /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong><br /></strong></span></span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-31774369525360815612012-03-21T20:51:00.001-07:002012-03-21T20:51:35.133-07:00Happy Spring and up to my eyebrows...<p style="text-align: center;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="happy spring.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-UTkrBGpjKBA/T2qhliA_cHI/AAAAAAAADJw/vq5ygcayx60/happy%252520spring.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Happy spring" width="566" height="600" /><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Happy Spring</span></em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>My not so Cottage Life</strong></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Extremely busy with the Farm map but I wanted to check in. I should hand off the proofs for the final edits on Friday then I can jump into enjoying our new little nest. We have been blessed. Big time. Always. the Bearded One is still playing in the dirt and making amazing progress. When the weather warms a bit we will be able to get rid of the lawn weeds. So here's a refresher of where we started.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0003.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-KWvU00k8PZg/T2qhncOQVUI/AAAAAAAADJ4/bHYWmW3Z0u8/IMG_0003.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0003" width="400" height="266" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">The beginning</span></em></span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0044.JPG" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-pzIWKGLHnrY/T2qhpC8Z6GI/AAAAAAAADKA/CS4bV5VnQzs/IMG_0044.JPG?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0044" width="600" height="400" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">How it's looking today</span></em></span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0047.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-JIagzDtKdVA/T2qhqfsx0II/AAAAAAAADKI/YYiPR_ONlEU/IMG_0047.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0047" width="600" height="400" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">The Bearded One at work planting some Tinus Viburnum</span></em></span></p>
<p><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong>Our new couch...</strong></span></span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0001.JPG" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-HlBKsowsaVo/T2qhuSxktOI/AAAAAAAADKQ/Mhwxu7NCgyU/IMG_0001.JPG?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0001" width="400" height="266" /></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">This is our Craigslist couch. We bought it sight unseen. It's perfect for us. Fluffy and large enough to get comfy on...</span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0017-2.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-uNRFyM-m9e4/T2qhvjKqQXI/AAAAAAAADKY/d7LodNIUF_M/IMG_0017-2.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0017 2" width="600" height="431" /></p>
<p style="font-size: 8px;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;">I need to get back to work on the farm map so I will leave you with little miss madee ala' peacock feather.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-size: 8px;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="madee with peacock feather.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-gL4oEb3hxmY/T2qhwaQioBI/AAAAAAAADKg/C6O313Qk3F0/madee%252520with%252520peacock%252520feather.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Madee with peacock feather" width="426" height="600" /></span></span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-81859891898131108732012-03-19T07:39:00.001-07:002012-03-19T07:39:03.863-07:00Late start Monday... Greetings from a "townie"<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0021.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-uRgWonWLJYk/T2dE-JR36zI/AAAAAAAADJc/cCALpBAuahU/IMG_0021.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0021" width="600" height="399" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">The Bearded One sporting his new "zen" do, while stirring the adams all natural peanut butter this morning</span></em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Good Morning... loving it back in town, though I'm up to my elbows in "graphic" projects. This is the last week to get the "Farm Map" ready for print. We are starting work late today because of cold weather so I will be working on a few "work related projects" this morning from home. Did I mention that I love living 4 minutes from my front door to the time clock? Life is good. We are settling in and loving the layout. The Bearded One has already begun to bond with the yard. What amazing changes he's made already.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Leslie came down on Saturday and we went "junkin" looking for treasures. She picked up a great little end table at a local flea market,which is perfect. She then blessed us with some wonderful thick white "Costco" towels. Now the Bearded one and I don't have to fight over our "camping" towel. (The cottage had come pretty much fully furnished so we had passed our linens and towels along)...Thanks sis. She also helped scour craigslist to help us find a couch. We pick it up today after work.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Here's an early morning shot of the back yard in progress from the upstairs birds-eye view... Notice he's strung a line to make sure everything is nice and straight. :-)</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0014.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-_Rvrh-TQrfo/T2dFA2YknCI/AAAAAAAADJk/X6wJcg8Sk9E/IMG_0014.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0014" width="600" height="400" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Okay gotta get busy... Just wanted to check in. Brrr... it's a little chilly out there.</span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-69231216542234491092012-03-14T21:37:00.001-07:002012-03-14T21:37:26.529-07:00Moving update...<p> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="moving.png" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-Y5JVxI1jGJs/T2Fx9_VP15I/AAAAAAAADJI/i0gaQQkzmtc/moving.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Moving" width="600" height="425" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">We are mid move...</span></em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong><span style="color: #940e0a;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Not so Cottage living...</span></span></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">I mention that "we" are in mid-move when in reality it is the "Bearded One" who is doing the moving. One little jeep wrangler load at a time. At this time we are like a couple of bb's rolling around in a large box. We've been living small for a couple of years now and so it seems odd to be surrounded by space. This is a very nice house we are residing in and it feels rather extravagant. We will be paying a little more attention to our budget but the ability to have family and friends over and the close proximity to work will help even things out. Well this is very short but I have hefty bags to unpack. Thanks to friend Sandy for the wonderful little farm table that she has graced us with. I'm sitting at it now it's a blessing indeed. Speaking of blessings, I've never bought anything off of craig's list before but I came across these two marvelous stools right here in Oly for 15.00 for the pair. They are really sturdy and their seats swivel. Just what we needed for the island bar. Whooty Whoo.. filling our space will be fun, I love a bargain. I hope to be back on schedule by this weekend. So until next time...</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-6JzSFBw2CAM/T2FyAQ4P0wI/AAAAAAAADJQ/tTMmVNTBL28/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="400" height="301" /></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Okay so I was looking for a different kind of bee bees in a box...</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-76684082830911770962012-03-10T20:32:00.001-08:002012-03-10T20:32:23.236-08:00Saturday before the big move...<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="helabore.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-PbASjVm_s48/T1wqxA-7nRI/AAAAAAAADIs/1EHk_VIrNhc/helabore.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Helabore" width="484" height="600" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">The boss's Hellebore in bloom</span></em></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong><span style="color: #940e0a;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Cottage living...</span></span></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span>We're still in the process of packing up and getting ready to move on Tuesday but I thought I'd pop in for a moment. Friday I took a couple of photos of some colorful spring blooms.</span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-9fAqgI0SvAI/T1wqzzaq6aI/AAAAAAAADI0/J7vzZVDfDUg/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="475" height="600" /></span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">I need to get back to packing but I will leave you with this... I was visiting <a href="http://www.finegardening.com/Design/Garden-Art/74932.aspx?channel=2">Finegardening.com</a> and found this neat idea for candle holders. Click on the link for the video how to and several other projects... Happy spring.</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-yJxfhnknYO4/T1wq0_YRFMI/AAAAAAAADI8/XJTiQK5KJN8/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="256" height="307" /></span></span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-71376036132056257532012-03-07T20:27:00.001-08:002012-03-07T20:27:01.439-08:00Lamb chops for two... 6 days and counting, Wednesday on the Bay<div class="ingredients" style="margin-top: 10px;">
<h3></h3>
<h3></h3>
<h3><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0014-2.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-D6obaC1bXoo/T1g0zi81OII/AAAAAAAADHo/G1voAROxoqM/IMG_0014-2.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0014 2" width="600" height="400" /></h3>
<h3 style="font-size: 17px; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;"><em style="font-weight: normal;">Tonight's Dinner</em></span></h3>
<h3 style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;">Cottage Living</span></span></h3>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">We have lamb in the freezer thanks to good friend Pat Labine of Oyster Bay Farm. She raises some of the best lamb I've ever eaten. The Bearded One had gotten some chops out for dinner.</span></p>
<h3 style="font-size: 17px;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 24px;"><span style="color: #00558e;">Lamb chops for Two</span></span></h3>
<h3 style="font-size: 17px;">Ingredients</h3>
<ul style="font-size: 15px;">
<li class="plaincharacterwrap ingredient"> 3/4 teaspoon dried rosemary</li>
<li class="plaincharacterwrap ingredient"> 1/4 teaspoon dried basil</li>
<li class="plaincharacterwrap ingredient"> 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme</li>
<li class="plaincharacterwrap ingredient"> salt and pepper to taste</li>
<li class="plaincharacterwrap ingredient"> 4 lamb chops (3/4 inch thick)</li>
<li class="plaincharacterwrap ingredient"> 1 tablespoon olive oil</li>
<li class="plaincharacterwrap ingredient"> 1/4 cup minced shallots</li>
<li class="plaincharacterwrap ingredient"> 1/3 cup aged balsamic vinegar</li>
<li class="plaincharacterwrap ingredient"> 3/4 cup chicken broth</li>
<li class="plaincharacterwrap ingredient"> 1 tablespoon butter</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div class="directions" style="margin-top: 10px;">
<h3 style="font-size: 17px;">Directions</h3>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0006.JPG" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-Qrd57J7SSoo/T1g01mRJi7I/AAAAAAAADHw/XPLKhifiDzo/IMG_0006.JPG?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0006" width="300" height="200" /></p>
<ol>
<li style="font-size: 15px;"><span class="plaincharacterwrap break"> In a small bowl or cup, mix together the rosemary, basil, thyme, salt and pepper. Rub this mixture onto the lamb chops on both sides. Place them on a plate, cover and set aside for 15 minutes to absorb the flavors. </span></li>
<li style="font-size: 15px;">Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place lamb chops in the skillet, and cook for about 3 1/2 minutes per side for medium rare, or continue to cook to your desired doneness. Remove from the skillet, and keep warm on a serving platter.</li>
<li style="font-size: 15px;"><span class="plaincharacterwrap break"> Add shallots to the skillet, and cook for a few minutes, just until browned. Stir in vinegar, scraping any bits of lamb from the bottom of the skillet, then stir in the chicken broth. Continue to cook and stir over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, until the sauce has reduced by half. If you don't, the sauce will be runny and not good. Remove from heat, and stir in the butter. Pour over the lamb chops, and serve.</span></li>
</ol>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0009.png" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-a0L4muQ9wMo/T1g07OoyACI/AAAAAAAADIA/nD_Hfq00mo4/IMG_0009.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0009" width="400" height="266" /></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0008.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-dRuYssEtgwc/T1g09aVu3VI/AAAAAAAADII/VzEwicTFi1I/IMG_0008.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0008" width="300" height="207" /></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px;">This really turned out well. The balsamic reduction sauce was amazing, although I had to substitute chopped onion with a little garlic for the shallots this time. We had some leftover brown rice and I roasted some beets from the garden. Topped it off with a small glass of Trader Joe's $2.49 finest Cabernet... Perfection.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><strong><span style="color: #940e0a;">A little Art...</span></strong></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">These rusty sand dollars were spotted along the way at work. They fit in well next to the Sound. Great idea...</span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="sand dollars.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-FEFNEoi9oiY/T1g0_sdxdUI/AAAAAAAADIY/8j4q2el_Gyo/sand%252520dollars.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Sand dollars" width="600" height="481" /></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Until next time...</span></p>
<div class="ingredients" style="margin-top: 10px;">
<h3><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-2VSOF_98H14/T1g1DxPejYI/AAAAAAAADIg/Dkc1VzWXj6U/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="600" height="569" /></h3>
</div>
<ol> </ol></div>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-29685416955839312572012-03-06T21:03:00.001-08:002012-03-06T21:03:39.023-08:00Very, Very, brief but had to share...<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I hadn't planned on doing the blog tonight. Filed our taxes instead, tying up some loose ends before we move. then I came across this really cool website that has lots of freebies like this...</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="CoffeeShop Frames 15 ad.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-B9EjPEbWLS0/T1bsGNxDEmI/AAAAAAAADHE/bIy6cAHVoxQ/CoffeeShop%252520Frames%25252015%252520ad.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="CoffeeShop Frames 15 ad" width="434" height="600" /></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">So I tried it...</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">It's not the "crayola" effect but it's fun none the less and the price is right. Free.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">Here I've used my grandson Hunter as an example.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="oldSchoolHunter.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-ibat8D_ajtY/T1bsIKuR2nI/AAAAAAAADHU/EhAdbJ7wvSI/oldSchoolHunter.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="OldSchoolHunter" width="583" height="580" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"> And then here's another one...</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-Oa9JpeHrIww/T1bsJv9uNOI/AAAAAAAADHc/ZHgWrslxmCs/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="418" height="600" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">Okay I'm done just had to share. A regular post tomorrow.</span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-488198501628107922012-03-05T21:47:00.001-08:002012-03-05T21:50:17.702-08:00Let the countdown begin...<h1 style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="mockup roots and soil Wolberts-Edit.png" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-Q_03BYVZud8/T1WkyKXdvRI/AAAAAAAADGw/khyHC28I_ck/mockup%252520roots%252520and%252520soil%252520Wolberts-Edit.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Mockup roots and soil Wolberts Edit" width="600" height="413" /></h1>
<h1 style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: normal; font-size: 14px;"><em>The Final-final Crayola rendition...</em></span></h1>
<p><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px; font-weight: bold;"><strong>Cottage Life</strong></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">It's official. One week from tomorrow we will get the keys to our new abode. "The Wolbert's lawn treatment" is really beginning to show. The weeds which were abundant are now beginning to decline a bit, the moss has turned black, and the sparse blades of grass are vibrant with color and should begin to fill in. We will over seed after we move in. I will be posting pictures of the transformation. Be prepared to be amazed. We will have sun. I may be complaining about too much sun coming in the sliders later this year but right now it sounds fabulous. We will be sleeping on a blowup mattress with a tempurpedic topper for the first bit though the "Bearded One" would much prefer the floor. I like to roll out of bed using gravity to propel me on my way. Getting up from the floor... not so easy. It's more of a get on your hands and knees, back your <span class="hwGrp" style="font-size: 18px;"><em><span class="hw">derrière </span></em></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">up into the air and then push off sort of procedure. Gravity working against you.</span></p>
<blockquote>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><em><span class="pronGrp"><span class="pr" style="font-family: HiraMinPro-W3;">derēˈe(ə)r| </span></span></em></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><em><span class="ps" style="font-weight: normal;">noun </span><span class="regLabel" style="font-family: HelveticaNeue-Light;">informal </span></em></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><em><span style="font-size: 18px;">euphemistic term for a person's buttocks. Behind.</span></em></span></p>
</blockquote>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 18px;">We will begin to do a little yard work while we have a break in the weather. I admit that I've sat on the back step a time or two and taken in the ambiance. Well the "imagined" ambiance anyway. I can smell the burgers on the BBQ grill already. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><strong>A little Art...</strong></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">I'm dragin' a little so this dragon seemed appropriate, although not really very artsy.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="dragin.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-q9K3wDlwhII/T1Wks2_hLRI/AAAAAAAADGo/kUmHUIojgEU/dragin.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Dragin" width="600" height="306" /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Hmmm... Pause for Thought</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;">There is no thought...I'm heading for bed. </span></span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-37176592949018455932012-03-04T21:10:00.001-08:002012-03-04T21:20:42.209-08:00Whoops, I must've fallen off the face of the earth for a bit...<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="frisbee.gif" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-ojlnvzCyjK8/T1RMxLb1q-I/AAAAAAAADF8/4To3sf8jhnA/frisbee.gif?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Frisbee" width="600" height="149" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">What I've been up to... If you missed it refresh the page and it should cycle again.</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Cottage Life</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I've been a little pre-occupied. Trying to learn webpage design in dreamweaver, animation gif files, learning to shoot HD video with the canon 7D, and doing the layout for the Thurston County Direct Sales Farm Map. Oh and then there's the little matter about getting ready to move. So I will attempt to get myself back on track.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>The last of the "crayola" files</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Well my trial for AlienSkins SnapArt ends tomorrow. I have really enjoyed playing with the program. I thought I'd run a few images through the crayon filter since it is one of the most fascinating techniques. So here goes. A plethera of photos. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #00558e; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;"><strong><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0024-Edit.png" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-nJl3e2SxZVs/T1RKexWr6cI/AAAAAAAADFU/reAsORoCEjA/IMG_0024-Edit.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0024 Edit" width="600" height="513" /></strong></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Oak leaf Hydrangea</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></em></span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0060-Edit.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-SV92UeywVFQ/T1RKh1pxliI/AAAAAAAADFc/DY1vYn0HKeg/IMG_0060-Edit.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0060 Edit" width="472" height="600" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">This one is colored pencil</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0021-Edit-3.png" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-WOgE1NJDVLQ/T1RKnikYQBI/AAAAAAAADFk/0AW6woVpu_I/IMG_0021-Edit-3.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0021 Edit 3" width="600" height="267" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em>A very primitive farm scene with sister Sandy's critters</em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0074-Edit.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-Yw4ZkbUlREQ/T1RKsjUWXTI/AAAAAAAADFs/zVBiU1YpFG0/IMG_0074-Edit.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0074 Edit" width="600" height="408" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Marbles in the snow</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong><br /></strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;">until next time... Grab a crayon.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-1r1ukdAM7VU/T1RK1qR4R-I/AAAAAAAADF0/sC4RCCm1W_M/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="365" height="242" /></strong></span></span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-90685569122855074262012-03-01T22:05:00.001-08:002012-03-01T22:05:10.229-08:00Thursday, a little wine... okay a lot of wine.<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-bdsxpNxvGqI/T1BjAQNckAI/AAAAAAAADEo/H6UrBtRzNXc/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="400" height="400" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Sharing a glass of wine with the Neighbor</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Cottage Life</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">These are happy-sad times at the cottage. Happy to be getting into our new digs which will allow us to have the family over, and yet very sad to leave the quaint little cottage that we've called home for the last two years. I went to the neighbor's / landlord's house for a glass of wine this evening. A mixture of laughter and tears. She is thinking of turning the cottage into a vacation rental. A place where people can go to get away for a couple of days. It will be perfect for that. The Bearded One and I have certainly enjoyed the peace and quiet it has had to offer. The one thing I was going to miss terribly was the "emeril" cookware. Bless Melody's heart she took pity on me and is giving me all of it. Two frypans and a small stockpot. I am truly in heaven. I will be planting some primroses in the planter boxes and getting it ready for spring. </span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled-2-Edit.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-5tabRfL5FsI/T1BjCYp0QjI/AAAAAAAADEw/pSnbIbI8pog/Untitled-2-Edit.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Untitled 2 Edit" width="600" height="600" /><span style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Primroses ala' crayola...</span></em></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong>A little Art...</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">A great photo taken by my good friend Sandy Wolbert... Crayola'd of course... It seems to be a theme, and alas, I only have the program for a couple of more days.</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Sandys camera oct 09 008(1)-Edit.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-SGM-V88PVpo/T1BjDtmtpgI/AAAAAAAADE4/SmEt6hj9KLc/Sandys%252520camera%252520oct%25252009%252520008%2525281%252529-Edit.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Sandys camera oct 09 008 1 Edit" width="600" height="450" /></strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Hmmm... Pause for Thought</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Ysxw7EON5xc?fs=1" width="459" height="344" frameborder="0"></iframe><br /></strong></span></span></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Until Next time...</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I couldn't help myself... really. </span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="crayons-Edit.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-Z5G4hANN48A/T1BjE7DDJFI/AAAAAAAADFA/pyqvzzsyMGk/crayons-Edit.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Crayons Edit" width="600" height="600" /></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-87825779232709159392012-02-28T19:18:00.001-08:002012-02-28T19:18:22.481-08:00Leap year, tis the season, and lil' Abner to boot...<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Cottage Life</strong></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Apparently 1908 was "the year" for leap year mania... The fair maidens took it quite seriously. Guns were involved. How politically incorrect these postcards would be today... </span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-uqv-kdbKnRc/T02Y0YEPeeI/AAAAAAAADD8/FmMAKcSgraU/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="320" height="203" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-0CMISKWuCrE/T02Y4JHVs3I/AAAAAAAADEE/xGZiehL867k/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="600" height="380" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-5w3LKDfkD00/T02YkIBdC7I/AAAAAAAADDU/V2YFosbRD00/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="600" height="391" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-643brNcyTmc/T02YnnvyO6I/AAAAAAAADDc/3Haaxb2L_P8/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="600" height="378" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-dKG2RWjOZd8/T02YpSlnXdI/AAAAAAAADDk/sKH1mdXr1BA/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="600" height="383" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-aei6PVrgIwU/T02YxedDxgI/AAAAAAAADDs/qQs7TTNv2s8/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="300" height="466" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-SX9uIR9jz5Q/T02YzBXosnI/AAAAAAAADD0/NqJUXqmVTXA/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="500" height="319" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;">Yi Haw girls... It's rodeo time. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong>A little art...</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Yes spring is really on the way in spite of a few little flurries...</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="little iris.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-nGbVd0Du80o/T02Y5o9OhGI/AAAAAAAADEM/kKzeg1XKkCs/little%252520iris.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Little iris" width="600" height="473" /></strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;"><em>Tiny Iris spotted at work today</em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="tiny iris crayola.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-2tqlEmP1jjw/T02Y71v6T2I/AAAAAAAADEU/pJXhrMbOB8Q/tiny%252520iris%252520crayola.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Tiny iris crayola" width="600" height="484" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">The Crayola version</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong><br /></strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Hmmm... Pause for Thought</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;">Why lil' Abner of course... Daisy Mae has gotta catch her man...</span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Y5_T6VYqt6A?fs=1" width="459" height="344" frameborder="0"></iframe><br /></strong></span></span></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;">Thanks Leslie for reminding me that it was indeed leap year....</span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-LuDlJdLGUbE/T02Y-kY6jZI/AAAAAAAADEc/5TDXj-cx2KY/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="229" height="220" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-81388065183170304972012-02-27T21:56:00.001-08:002012-02-27T21:56:05.119-08:00Made it through Monday, sort of... with a little whining and sniveling<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-pQ24hHr_oI0/T0xsQF90DBI/AAAAAAAADCY/tq7cgHdygpo/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="600" height="401" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Cottage Life</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I've been off a little for the last several days. I have discovered that I am a clencher... I tend to clench my jaw when stressed or fatigued, which in turn tenses up my neck and shoulder which in turn makes me clench my jaw. It's the chicken and the egg dilemma. I don't know what started the whole thing not that it matters but I just can't seem to unclench or un-tense. So anyway the last few days have been accompanied by a continuos ache. The Bearded one has been very patient as have my co-workers since I'm sure I've appeared more than a little distracted. It comes at a time when I want to be looking forward to moving into our new digs. I am such a planner. It's my favorite part, so it's been a little frustrating. I have shared this whole pitiful "woe is me" to explain why I have been a little lax in my posting. I will endeavor to stop clenching and tensing and get on with the life that I've been given. It's a pretty good one after all...</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-btnPtIn_lNE/T0xsNskLK7I/AAAAAAAADCQ/lzSVm-DcLrc/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="242" height="208" /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"> </span><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><strong>Before and After</strong></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I am enjoying the "Alien Skin Snap Art" filter trial and have it for one more week so thought I'd experiment... It costs 299.00 for the plugin, and can be used with both lightroom and photoshop. I will be putting it on my christmas list, along with more lenses of course.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 24px;"><span style="color: #00558e;"><strong>Before</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">A simple blue hydrangea photo...</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_2928.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-0qUc4F_9NXU/T0xsSzQ4vCI/AAAAAAAADCo/b2VHVu3-FNw/IMG_2928.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 2928" width="300" height="450" /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 24px;"><span style="color: #00558e;"><strong>After</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-WOdx7pB8OgE/T0xsR7724HI/AAAAAAAADCg/7Jn8qCtE-qE/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="435" height="600" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">A section enlarged so you can see texture.... Oil on textured canvas</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="h1.jpg" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-veT3cl2jCNQ/T0xsUCy8_NI/AAAAAAAADCw/44MkXXjxhzM/h1.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="H1" width="403" height="600" /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">This one's fun... called impressionist... All done with one or two clicks.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-XEfk3cF3kX0/T0xsVw52-uI/AAAAAAAADC4/J8vu0Y7LC7A/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="400" height="600" /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">And then there is good old crayola...</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Healthy Choices</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">A great quick and easy recipe from Jorge Cruise...</span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/2Zkc3YDWlWA?fs=1" width="480" height="270" frameborder="0"></iframe><br /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.thebellyfatcure.com/funnel_events/21708-jorges-skinny-muffin?pt=wKb9CpcscsF0YRVnFBnL&art=http://www.kajabi.com/admin/funnels/10159"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">The link for other quick muffins</span></a></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><strong>Hmmm... Pause for Thought...</strong></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><strong><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-ABjb1lSVCLQ/T0xsY-dCGyI/AAAAAAAADDA/dA2uSheisXI/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="288" height="288" /></strong></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">until next time...</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-gmVmj2Dl0fk/T0xscDOUn6I/AAAAAAAADDI/CueTaY_Gg1Q/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="600" height="319" /></span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-90587077532646992102012-02-25T14:50:00.001-08:002012-02-25T14:51:13.664-08:00Saturday, A little rain, a lot of wind and getting ready to move...<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0005-4.jpg" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-y0Fx5Beoazc/T0llcPSL-EI/AAAAAAAADBU/2yIfz_mG-lg/IMG_0005-4.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0005 4" width="600" height="475" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">The hellebores on the cottage porch</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Cottage Life</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Here at the cottage I find myself in a sort of limbo. Neither here nor there and we are beginning to sort through the combination of our stuff and the cottage's. We have been merged together for a couple of years now, the cooking utensils mingling quite well together so it seems a little odd to be separating them. I will miss the fine assortment of frying pans. They are "Emeril" pans and I've become quite smitten. They are stainless with really thick bottoms and they work really well without sticking. I looked on line to see how much it would cost me to purchase two of my favorites. $70 and $50 dollars respectively. It looks like I will be scouring the thrift stores. I was able to find a small "Wolfgang Puck" pan at value village, along with a nice set of sheets. I hope the pan proves to be an acceptable substitute. Having the wrangler as a moving vehicle means we can transfer only a couple of totes at a time to the storage shed. The Bearded one wants to get everything we own there, and then get a pickup and move from the storage unit to the house in one fell swoop. It's a good thing we don't have a lot to move. We want to be able to clear out enough so that the cottage can be shown and rented in a timely fashion, at least that's the plan. The one thing we have a lot of are books. Lots of them. No paperback novels, mostly how-to, self help, and gardening books all heavy. I'm finding that using shopping totes is working quite well. They are easy to transport with their sturdy handles.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><br /><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0001-5.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-3-8s-0zZGis/T0llepXCVWI/AAAAAAAADBc/ONmEMuloWJ4/IMG_0001-5.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0001 5" width="300" height="450" /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Totes and baskets getting ready to be transported.</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>A little Art</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong> </strong></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">A photo of miss Madelynn run through different "Alien skin" snap art filters</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 24px;"><span style="color: #00558e;"><strong>Before</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_5339.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/--rZ-UJ2WdLU/T0llhKwBi0I/AAAAAAAADBk/ENLvtaIP9jA/IMG_5339.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 5339" width="300" height="446" /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 24px;"><span style="color: #00558e;"><strong>After</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="madee colored pencil.jpg" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-ms1PlthSQhQ/T0llkRBKK_I/AAAAAAAADBs/erYCOAzrEY8/madee%252520colored%252520pencil.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Madee colored pencil" width="464" height="600" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Colored pencil</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="madee sketch.jpg" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-rvqP9OcXUlY/T0llmOm_wHI/AAAAAAAADB0/v7x1jLhm_Og/madee%252520sketch.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Madee sketch" width="521" height="600" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Sketch</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="madee oil.jpg" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-l7oO1teU_KQ/T0lln1GI3jI/AAAAAAAADB8/fs0uyYGcFwU/madee%252520oil.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Madee oil" width="482" height="600" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Oil paint</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><strong>Hmmm... Pause for Thought (laughter)</strong></span><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><strong> </strong></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><strong><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/wewzGYW_Hrw?fs=1" width="480" height="270" frameborder="0"></iframe><br /></strong></span></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Until next time...</span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-JbWGSpnMmzM/T0llpTjsb9I/AAAAAAAADCE/IpYm0YZL880/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="203" height="248" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-58237113026593229072012-02-23T20:47:00.001-08:002012-02-23T20:47:04.927-08:00Friday Eve, Signs of Spring, and the great lawn experiment.<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0035.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-ySpMG_RCir8/T0cV_sS-lmI/AAAAAAAADAo/MWB7_aCluWk/IMG_0035.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0035" width="405" height="600" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Pussy willows showing their stuff today...</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Cottage Life</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I enjoyed the bit of blue sky that peeked out today, however fleeting. I came across a couple of weeping pussy willows that had begun to pop. My new lawn has been christened with a "Wolbert's treatment". I will be documenting the before and after transformation. The lawn itself consists mostly of broad leaf weeds and moss. It was treated with fertilizer with a little extra iron for moss control. Today, with the sun break I was able to treat the broadleaf weeds in the lawn and the ornamental bed weeds and grass in the beds.</span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="Untitled-1.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-9MtReFkLHQk/T0cWDmCaaOI/AAAAAAAADAw/7HSSe4DDqZU/Untitled-1.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Untitled 1" width="600" height="480" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Already you can see the effect of the treatment... The moss will begin to turn black, and the grass will have the nutrients it need to fill in and become healthy. I will continue to update and document the progress. It's a little exciting. I know what a transformation our lawn program can make and it's great to be able to do a real time comparison. here is a shot of some of the weeds in the beds. I will document this also. Also make note of the "faux mulch" kind of like grated rubber. Stay tuned it will be miraculous I assure you.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0013.jpg" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-B63WrX5WQ-Y/T0cWFrDDByI/AAAAAAAADA4/835DkCpgn6Q/IMG_0013.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0013" width="400" height="266" /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>A little Art...</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;">I pulled this one from the archives... I'm ready for a seasonal change...</span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-x7nHXRwfp9w/T0cWJyMROQI/AAAAAAAADBA/95ocHGfFUHk/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="480" height="600" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><em>hostas and bluebells</em></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: large;"><br /></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Hmmm... Pause for Thought</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">A vintage spring... an awfully big egg for such a little peep...</span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-vXJfQThxDxE/T0cWP7hWNTI/AAAAAAAADBI/Dz5ObVVr6QU/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="400" height="247" /></strong></span></span></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-8465307417107219562012-02-21T19:30:00.001-08:002012-02-21T19:34:48.374-08:00Fresh winter veggies, home grown lamb... and margaritas on the horizon<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="foggy morning 3art.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-idNpeWVqPdU/T0RhKUnm4SI/AAAAAAAADAE/8AjKV5YyOQI/foggy%252520morning%2525203art.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Foggy morning 3art" width="402" height="600" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;"><em>A foggy morning at Swantown Marina, Olympia WA</em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Cottage Life</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I've been in a bit of a fog of late. Actually I've just been a little distracted. I think I'm just waiting for the light to finally turn green. I'm anticipating the change but can't actually go until the light really changes. So in the meantime though, there is a lot that I could be doing. Prep work. Organizing my little stash of stuff. Making lists of things that we will need and putting the "would likes" aside for a bit. Life is full of wonder. Whatever we need has a way of showing up right on time. And then there are all those "beyond what could be imagined" things that are sprinkled in. Had a great visit with my friend Sandy W. this afternoon. It's good to have someone to chuckle with about life's ups and downs, comparing trench notes as it were... a great wash of fresh air. Besides, I needed somebody to share my excitement with... The bearded one is the one who gets the brunt of all my planning and scheming. Bless his heart. He just smiles and ignores me. I'm so busy rattling on that I don't really notice so it's okay. There shall be family picnics and margaritas. We do have a blender. See I can't finish a sentence without going right back to the planning and dreaming. I think I shall burst...</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>A little Art...</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">It looks like a local hardware company is going to sponsor me in this year's spring Olympia Art walk. This is something that caught me by surprise. I've always been intrigued by the thought of putting some of my "stuff" out there but would never have gotten around to doing anything about it. Then it just so happens that someone knows someone and Wa Lah! It happened. Out of the blue. With out me lifting a finger. I am grateful for the opportunity, and now I get to figure out something to put out there. This is the cover of the Thurston County Direct sales Map That I've been working on.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #00558e; font-family: Arial; font-size: x-large;"><strong><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="final barnboard scale muted.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-d5c55M-q9bM/T0RhMLbW8aI/AAAAAAAADAM/vjY0Zqxoo2E/final%252520barnboard%252520scale%252520muted.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Final barnboard scale muted" width="365" height="600" /></strong></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Healthy Choices</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">We enjoyed a marvelous dinner last night with neighbors and friends which included fresh salad greens from Pat's Cloche, beets from her garden, lamb from her farm, potatoes from Melody's garden, and Costco's amazing little cream puffs for dessert. Paired with some lovely wine and good conversation it was a lovely time.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Hmmm... Pause for Thought</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;">Eating Pat's fresh winter salad inspired me to look for great ways to have fresh veggies all year round.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/446WshBQW-4?fs=1" width="480" height="270" frameborder="0"></iframe><br /></strong></span></span></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-rPg4B_PHf6k/T0RhQFdM4vI/AAAAAAAADAc/r14pwlVCb3A/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="400" height="266" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-75857566240664762082012-02-20T22:35:00.001-08:002012-02-20T22:35:08.265-08:00Monday and the house hunt is over...<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-DRRCBLww0f4/T0M7BOB6kMI/AAAAAAAAC_g/7t1HLajs2_0/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="439" height="309" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Our future abode</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Cottage Life</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong> </strong></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">We got the news today that the house we've been looking at is ours. They are holding it for us until march 15th, which is amazing. The Bearded one will have a garage for the v-star, I will have my hardwood floors, 2 1/2 bathrooms, 3 bedrooms and a fenced in backyard that we will be able to landscape. It doesn't get any better than this. Funny it's in the development that went up right behind our old house. We will now have plenty of space for all the kidlets and biglets too!!! I've already got my order in for a "Wolbert's" lawn. It will be green, moss, and weed free in no time. This should be fun since we got rid of almost everything when we moved into this mostly furnished cottage. We will start out with a craftsman rocking chair with footstool, a butcher block cart, a pantry shelf and my really cool office chair.... oh, and a blow up bed. I did find a toaster at the goodwill, and a cool wicker hamper. We are well on our way to becoming townies once again. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"> </p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong>A little bit of art...</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">A repeat, but the rain reminds me of mom and her umbrella.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: 36px;"><strong><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-veGVPOrrDho/T0M7ELwltWI/AAAAAAAAC_w/JQO5fSKyjfA/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="511" height="600" /></strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Same Umbrella... still raining....</span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="boy with umbrella.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-LN9IJmIAJWM/T0M7FbidiMI/AAAAAAAAC_4/w1f5DgfxSf0/boy%252520with%252520umbrella.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Boy with umbrella" width="480" height="600" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Hmmm... Pause for Thought</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/tdFKt4-hTj8?fs=1" width="459" height="344" frameborder="0"></iframe><br /></strong></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">Until next time...</span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-JCefRcg8-_w/T0M7CojZTpI/AAAAAAAAC_o/oC9KUy2YloA/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="450" height="338" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-62547137255901989352012-02-19T11:25:00.001-08:002012-02-19T11:25:05.656-08:00Shady Sunday, moss covered Saints, and waiting for Spring<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="frank.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-9CUP2pw0-ws/T0FMXTho4aI/AAAAAAAAC-0/YCtuQJoVUJk/frank.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Frank" width="400" height="600" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Moss-covered Saint Francis</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Cottage Life</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Saint "Francis of Sissie" (daughter leslie bought him for me) and I have something in common. We have both been in the shade too long and have thus accumulated a green tinged coat of moss. We long for the sunshine and the smell of warming earth. I have noticed signs of spring around the cottage. The two clematis have fresh green sprouts as does the hydrangea off the patio. On the front steps the Hellebore is sporting some tight blooms... promising a profusion of blossoms to come. Hooray!</span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0001-4.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-WTnJos_rvqg/T0FMbjA6sXI/AAAAAAAAC-8/AG4ra7pa9F0/IMG_0001-4.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0001 4" width="400" height="266" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I love this time of year. This is the planning part of the season. The look at all the garden books and dream of lush green vignettes to enjoy a cup of tea served up in an english china cup part. Having graph paper in hand, moving plants around, adding trellises, pavers, and garden art, all with a number 2 pencil with eraser. Beckoning the ever patient "bearded one" to see in his mind's eye the magic world that I've put onto paper in the form of squiggles, circles and rectangles with the aid of my exuberant hand gestures to help him to better understand the perfection of placement and design. This is the best part. The no limitations part. I can dream as big as I can imagine. In three month's time when summer is quickly marching upon us, the realities of finances and logistics will become more than obvious, but that is then and right now I choose to revel in the possibilities.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="IMG_0007.JPG" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-9wwblFqnvgk/T0FMd5uYf-I/AAAAAAAAC_E/Cwwh-lUXXPg/IMG_0007.JPG?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="IMG 0007" width="400" height="266" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">Clematis bursting out...</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>A bit of Art</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="latch.jpg" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/-fjh5-YjL2G8/T0FMfbTbFnI/AAAAAAAAC_M/V2bXZS6j9rY/latch.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Latch" width="437" height="600" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">An old latch</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Hmmm... Pause for Thought</strong></span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;">Not really much thought needed here... just a cute animation about springtime on mars after earth's many failed probes... Ahhh spring is in the air.</span></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/yjiGH9QNiU0?fs=1" width="459" height="344" frameborder="0"></iframe><br /></strong></span></span></p>
<p> </p>
<p>U<span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">ntil next time...</span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-6hPxLpX6wOE/T0FMhuXBEFI/AAAAAAAAC_U/4rDen9BSQVM/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="600" height="450" /></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-2412920964656115192012-02-17T22:35:00.001-08:002012-02-17T22:35:41.500-08:00Friday's Fizzle...<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Happy Friday... Personally I'm a little frazzled and frayed with all the changes going on. My focus is blurry, my thoughts are fairly random, and not necessarily interesting. Thus producing this teeny little post. My project 365 photo is an ornate gravestone that has been over-layed with ice from a puddle. I told you I was a little disjointed. My sister Sandy enjoys looking at old grave markers. She says that t</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">hey tell of a life lived rather than a life lost. I think that's a great way of looking at things.</span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="memorial.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-sCqBmEF5I-0/Tz9GuZgX9wI/AAAAAAAAC-o/5uRzZpN2kG0/memorial.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Memorial" width="440" height="600" /></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">A grave stone in Satsop</span></em></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;"><br /></span></em></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;">An ice covered puddle in LaGrande OR</span></em></span></p>
<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="ice.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-k5y0aojGrm0/Tz9GtJAXgwI/AAAAAAAAC-g/BQFVJuPMXss/ice.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Ice" width="402" height="600" /></p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3294412983972985549.post-42401249296019946492012-02-16T20:51:00.001-08:002012-02-16T20:55:39.588-08:00Thursday Transitions...<p><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="mosaic.jpg" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/-L1RNO-foQzw/Tz3cv-gDQ5I/AAAAAAAAC90/zgszFQ60BXA/mosaic.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Mosaic" width="478" height="600" /></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 14px;"><em><span style="font-family: Arial;"> The Thurston County Food Bank Door</span></em></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="color: #940e0a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><strong>Cottage Life</strong></span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Transitions. Some easy, and some not so easy. I've grown to love our little cottage by the bay. The design, impeccable. Totally comfortable, peaceful and enchanted. Our landlord has been a gift and we've been able to share Bette the dog, loving her like our own. It has been a wonderful two years. It seems our lives go through seasons, just as in nature. Circumstances change, winter gives way to spring and so it goes. Nothing is ever static. We now have accumulated a gaggle of grandchildren, six of them which are five and under. It looks like we need to become a little more accessible and centrally located for the benefit of all. They grow up so fast. I will surely miss the dinners with exotic flavors, wine, and great conversation but will cherish the memories and remember that cloth napkins and candles are always appropriate between friends. Thanks Melody. </span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">I have been passing this doorway with the mosaic trim for a couple of years always intending to get a photo. It just has never worked out. It's the Thurston county food bank and there is often a line at the door and or no available parking. Today after gassing up the company van it just seemed to be the right time. No one was there and there was a parking spot so that I could jump out and snap a photo or two. It's a new season.</span></p>
<p style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande';"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="mosaicrainbow.jpg" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-ThP4as5bILg/Tz3c1Gi12UI/AAAAAAAAC98/IkpsKVEMYyg/mosaicrainbow.jpg?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="Mosaicrainbow" width="600" height="401" /></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><em>A mosaic rainbow of sorts</em></span></span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><em><br /></em></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong>Pause for thought...</strong></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span>This is the song one that my sisters, brother and I would sing together with great harmony according to our mom :-) Love you guys. </span></span></span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 36px;"><span style="color: #940e0a;"><strong><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/yt9H19kdcSA?fs=1" width="480" height="270" frameborder="0"></iframe><br /></strong></span></span></p>
<p> </p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;">Until next time...</span></p>
<p><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 18px;"><img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" title="NewImage.png" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/-RHWvTM9_5hc/Tz3c31YwYpI/AAAAAAAAC-E/s6CDXAdpKBc/NewImage.png?imgmax=800" border="0" alt="NewImage" width="600" height="223" /></span></p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>Rhondihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541191751859077567noreply@blogger.com1