Focus, Fun, and Creativity
I’ve always loved looking through things. Yesterday, I noticed my beautiful Easter gift, this orchid, with the light shining through the petals. Naturally, I grabbed my camera and this is what I saw.
“Let there be Light.”
Backing off a little bit:
And then there’s this beauty to share this beautiful Sunday.
May your Sunday be filled with light and beautiful colors!
Husband: “Honey, can you remember what we planted in that big pot near the patio last year? I think there’s a weed coming up, but I’m not sure.”
Me: “Yes. It was a citronella plant and I think it should be back this year. Let me take a look.”
Uh… Hello citronella…
Why not turn a once beautiful theater into a hustling, happening Indie bookstore?
That’s exactly what happened to the old Bonfils/Lowenstein Theater in Denver. After closing in 1986 and sitting vacant for twenty years, Joyce Meskis, the owner of the Tattered Cover Book Store had a wonderful vision of the old theater as the new location for her fabulously successful Tattered Cover Book Store. (The TC has been in business since 1971.)
In June of 2006, the Tattered Cover Book Store opened for business in its new location and continues showcasing new and/or local authors, selling new and used books, and setting an example for just how well a little vision and creativity can create the ultimate recycled experience.
The old orchestra pit is now available for small group meetings or just to sit and enjoy perusing a good book!
This is the view looking up from the orchestra pit to what was the old stage.
The view above is looking the other way from the orchestra pit to the balcony.
I so admire people with the vision to create something new from something old that can be enjoyed and appreciated by many.
If you’re ever in Denver and want to enjoy a good cup of coffee and a fabulous collection of books, check out the Tattered Cover. It’s a bibliophile’s heaven on earth!
Be sure to enjoy a virtual tour of the Tattered Cover Book Store here to get an even better “show” of this ultimate recycling venture.
Mimi’s Cafe is a lovely restaurant in Aurora with excellent food and colorful New Orleans decor.
A friend and I recently had a most enjoyable lunch soaking up the French ambiance and enjoying the excellent food.
When you can’t get away to the “real deal,” Mimi’s “let’s the good times roll” with near-real sights, sounds, and tastes of N’awlins.
… bring May flowers.”
Ooooppppsss! Mother Nature didn’t get the memo.
They say location is everything.
Yesterday I walked into my gym, Bally’s, for the first time in a while.
I was huffing and puffing on the treadmill, heart racing like a race car, when I looked out the front window and THIS is the view directly across the highway!
I didn’t find it particularly reassuring.
There once was a saying that all roads led to Rome and, from what I’ve read, they had major problems with traffic congestion caused by donkey carts.
Today, no matter where I tried to drive, there were detours and traffic and lots and lots of irate drivers.
It seems that our fearless city leaders have contracted major construction or repairs for some reason or another on virtually every major thoroughfare in my neighborhood and, in fact, in the entire Denver-Metro area! And all at the same blasted time!!!
So it appears to me that even today, after thousands of years and thousands of miles away, there’s still a problem with DONKEYS!
… my way.
Last Friday, Nancy at Spirit Lights the Way had an excellent suggestion. Why not take a virtual vacation? I liked the idea so much I took her suggestion to heart.
Saturday, I “went” to the Kentucky Derby. I clipped pictures of ladies in beautiful hats, and gorgeous horses, and made some chai tea. (I’m not a big fan of mint.)
For two hours, I reveled in the “atmosphere” of Derby Day via HD TV and could almost feel the buzz of excitement.
When the race began, my husband and I cheered and hollered and carried on like “dumbasses.” (This is a reference to the owners of the derby winner, California Chrome. They call themselves the “Dumbasses” and they were cheering like crazy.)
We were “almost” there amidst all the excitement. And we had great fun.
Thanks to Nancy’s suggestion, our virtual adventure at the Kentucky Derby was a lovely “get-away” – without all the traffic!
I took lots of pictures and had fun being creative and trying different edit techniques.
For the picture above, I used the “pixellate” feature at PicMonkey.
For the picture below, I used the “focal” feature.
Getaways – virtual or real – are good for the soul.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m doing a fitness challenge and need to go work-out!
The Survivor – A True Story
by I am J
You stood alone amidst all the rubble,
that long, hard day of heartache and trouble.
It was March 18, 1925,
When tornadoes took
So many lives.
Just that morning- like so many others,
You were filled with a brush
And shaving lather.
Your owner was happy, a husband and father.
He loved his wife, his son, and his daughter.
By afternoon, his life was over.
He lay dead on the ground protecting his daughter.
His wife was trapped. They cut off her arm.
But his son and his daughter suffered no harm.
All was lost of what once was his home.
No pictures. No “things.” Nothing he owned.
Except there in the rubble, alone and untouched,
As if mocking the wind with its lethal thrust,
You sat alone atop all the debris.
A memory – a tribute – to a man –
Samuel Key.
Everything I’ve written above is true. Samuel Key died March 18, 1925, in Princeton, Indiana, on the deadliest day of tornadoes still on record.
Tornadoes ripped through three states leaving over 600 people dead and thousands injured and homeless. It is known as the Tri-State Tornado.
My mother-in-law, a very tiny girl, was trapped beneath the body of her dead father, Samuel Key, as he lay protectively on top of her.
Ironically, this shaving mug, which to this day is still in near-perfect condition, is all that was left of their home in Princeton, Indiana, one deadly day in 1925.
For more information about that historic and tragic day, here are some interesting articles:
“Flowers don’t worry about how they’re going to bloom. They just open up and turn toward the light and that makes them beautiful.”
~Jim Carrey
For all his craziness, I think this quote of Jim Carrey’s indicates a lot of wisdom.
Turning toward the Light can make us all bloom more beautifully.
Bosnian tourism, nature and beauty pics. Welcome!
Here and now, with all of it.
Inspirational, Motivational, and Heartwarming Stories
Living From the Center of Your Being
So many things to say, so little time!
Sometimes even I can't explain my life!
Random and Abstract Lines
- My Essays for the Essences in Life
Naturally Curious
Recapturing the charm and elegance of afternoon tea
Fashion, Lifestyle, and Science
As My Camera Sees It 