OLD MEMORIES FLYING BY

You will never guess, this is such a fun picture for me!

My oldest grandaughter's closet, with my mother's old jewelry box!

Mom was the queen of beads, making jewelry and lots of gorgeous tree ornament, among other things. One year we found the perfect gift, this big box!

She just loved it, and after she died, I got it back. It sat in storage for years, I couldn't take it to Kenya!

At last, it has a home. We put it in the car in B.C. and it drove with us to upstate New York, and Maria's new closet.

And she is the queen of loving jewelry, vintage or otherwise, definitely related to her great grandma.

It is so much fun to pass something on, the right thing to the right person, just makes me feel good!

We didn't samve a lot of stuff, but the odd bit here and there, ahhh, what fun!

One thing I can take to Kenya, or anywhere for that matter, is all the wonderful memories. They are even better than picutres, and never glitch in the external hard drive, or stick in the photo album, or get lost in the baggage department!

mmmmm, memories, old and new.

Have a memorable day, wontcha?

FIRST STEPS TO FLYING

September and the kids go to school, for some it is the first step into kindergarden, or first step into high school!

Or a September holiday, and the first step to getting on the plane, or the boat, or the car....

I started thinking of first steps, and that made me notice how many people take photos of feet!

Feet, footsteps, first steps....

We have travelled so much this year, and every trip had a first step .... maybe to unearth the passports, the suitcase, walk into the travel agent ...

Other journeys..... like the first step down the aisle in a church, who would have thought that 35 years later that first step would have taken me around and around the world!

...First step into a store to buy a camera, would lead to a special friend who takes amazing photos, and has encouraged me to try to take amazing photos!

We all have first steps everyday, and who knows where it is leading,

Have a really stepping out day, wontcha!

FLYING BACKWARDS AGAIN!

Well, I did it! I took a picture of the past in the present!

Don't you just love this photo - I took it as we travelled along, ( yeah, I do get bored occasionally) so took this photo in the side rear view mirror!

It was just at sunset, and I never messed with colour or anything, just one of those photos that sooooo works, you think you will give up your day job and become a full time photographer.

11,000 photos later, I am still at my day job!

If I could figure out how to get what I see to come out the camera!

Actually, I realize I do.

The pictures in my heart are perfect, and there forever.

Occasionally I can photograph the past, but mostly I like looking forward, going forward, and just enjoying everyday as it happens!

But if the chance presents itself, do take a picture of what lies behind!

Have a saving your memories day, wontcha!

LEARNING TO FLY IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY

"IF YOU CAN KEEP YOUR HEAD WHEN EVERYONE AROUND IS LOSING THEIRS, YOU PROBBALY DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON!"

I am not normally a grumbler. But some days, I just get a bad case of the crazies.

Situations that make me feel STUPID make me crazy. I feel totally grounded, totally wingless, flightless, motionless, STUPID!!!

The situation I am talking about is debit machines, card machines, those little gagets on store counters designed to make my life easy, by

a.) saving me a trip to the bank

b.) not having to carry a cheque book

ahhh, life will be so simple!

But then came the invention option, and everyone and their dog has a different kind of debit machine!!!

Yes, dog: remember the old St. Bernard photo with the brandy keg around his neck? WEll, I am sure the modern day one has a debit machine!!!!

And no two dogs with the same one!

Maybe it's because we have been travelling so much, but I always seem to be pressing ok, when it should be enter, or using my finger when it should be the stylus, (and by the way, why is the stylus on the left side, when most of the world is right handed???)

Okay, I am over my tantrum. I will get my head out of Aliigator Al's jaws and go shopping.

Shopping? yeah, with a shopping bag of cash! No more debits for awhile, until I finish my class in "Debit machine Management 101."

Have a technology free day , wontcha!

FLYING OVER
A BRIDGE!

Bridges are one of my favorite things!

This one makes me think that if you stand in the middle on a perfect day, you will just sail away into the clouds!

When you stand on the side of the bridge and look down, you see the water flow under, and all ahead, there is new fresh water coming at you!

So like life: you stand on today, and coming at you , your whole life! Full of good things, and promises, and wow! There it is ahead, coming at me!

Don't you just love it?

And if you stand in the middle of your life on a perfect day, you just might fly away!

Well, not really.

I wouldn't want to fly away, not yet anyway.

There's so much life coming up!

Lots more travel: we just passed the 20,000km. or 12,500 miles, since April 25th. Not joking!

And we have a lot of flying!

And tonight: a wonderful evening with the family! MMMMMMM

Maybe you were thinking that bridges take you from this side to that side, but rethink just where you can go when you stand in the middle and dream!

Have a great dreaming day, wontcha!

LEARNING TO FLY WITH A PURSE

Hey there, what IS it with purses!!

I hate to be a fashionista, but I LOVE purses! Big, small, lots of straps, no straps, purses, purses, purses!!!

Well, maybe not that many, but I love to find a purse that works, which means it has to carry my wallet, which differs in size from country to country! Kenya money is big, and in Uganda, you need so many bills you need a sack!!!

Cameras!!!! I hate to leave my house without it, because every , every, every time I do, I miss the photo of a lifetime!!! Never fails! So a good purse has to accomodate my camera.

Lotion, hand sanitizer, lip gloss, notebook ( in case I feel the urge to write a poem, blog idea, or grocery note!) many pens - I am one of those who has "being without a pen" phobia. BWAP syndrome.

Sooooo, that leads me to Jacksonville, and this amazing purse place.

If you look at the photo, you can see just how totally practical this purse is.

It holds all the stuff mentioned, and so is just a total must have.

Oh, you think the colours are wild? The pattern bizarre?

Well, so did I, and that's the most important thing about a purse, for me!

IT HAS TO MAKE A STATEMENT!

LIFE IS TOOOOOOO SHORT TO PACK A BORING PURSE!!!

Have a perfect purse day, wontcha!

LEARNING TO FLY IN THE RAIN!!!

DID YOU KNOW??? BATS DON'T FLY IN THE RAIN!

For some reason, I love that statement! I think it should be on a T-shirt! Why? Who knows!!!!! But when it rains, bats come to a full halt! Stop! Relax! Kick-back! or would that be, Hang-up!

I love our Kenya rainstorms, life really comes to a halt! The sky opens up and down it comes, within minutes, our backyard, pictured above, is running with brown bubbling water!

Everything glistens, because so often the sun is still shining through it all. I totally love it!

Kenya rainstorms are so violent, and enveloping, and activity stopping!!!!!

All the animals come to a halt, the insects hide, and people----well, we come to a halt too!

Because we don't have electricity in the daytime, we don't do a whole lot in the house during rainstorms because it gets too dark!!

It's raining?? Kick back, hang up, ENJOY THE INACTIVITY!

WATCH THE AWESOME POWER OF RAIN!

Have a rainy day, wontcha!

LEARNING TO FLY....TAKES TIME!!!!!

I like to put my p.s. first: unless otherwise stated, all the photos on my blogg I took myself, with a camera given to me by a friend who opened up the whole idea of doing a blog to me!!! Thanks Betty!

WELL, if you didn't read my "Martian" blogg, you missed the two photos of the same thing!

No Loss!

But, then next blogg won't make sense, because I was moaning that I could't delete a photo, but had unexpectedly found out how to put in two or more photos!!!!

And thanks to my super talented niece, who really inspired my blogging attemtps, she told me how to delete the "Martian!!!" Thanks, Koralee!

Okay, I know. None of this makes sense now, but just be advised::::: I am getting really scary in what I, a former computer-hater can do on one of these scary,still-to-be tamed inventions!

Have a try again day, wontcha!!!!

SOMETIMES YOU JUST CRASH!!!!

WELL HOKEY-DOODLE!

YOU JUST CAN'T WIN THEM ALL!

I THOUGHT I WAS LEARNING A LOT ABOUT BLOGGING, AND I THINK I BRAGGED ABOUT IT SOMEWHERE!!!!!

THEN -OOOOOOPPPPSSS! CRASH!!!!!

I COULD NOT GET THE SECOND MARTIAN PICTURE OFF, BUT OH WAIT, I JUST THOUGHT: MAYBE I NOW KNOW HOW TO ADD A SECOND PHOTO!!! WAIT, I THINK I'LL TRY.

WELL GLORY BE!

I KNOW HOW TO PUT ON MORE THAN ONE PHOTO!!

AND THEY DON'T MAKE ANY SENSE, SO HEY, JUST CELEBRATE WITH ME THAT I KNOW HOW TO PUT ON MULTIPLE PHOTOS,

AND ONE DAY THE BLOGG FAIRY WILL COME AND TEACH ME HOW TO TAKE PHOTOS OFF!

In case you care, these photos are from the weekend at the lake up in UpState New York, just random things that caught my eye.

p.s. I think the green buds might be Baby Martian eggs that hatched????

Have a learnsomething new week end, wontcha!

FLYING INTO OUTER SPACE!

MARTIANS???????

How about this for a photo! We have all heard about the babies found in the cabbage patch, well at least those of over 60 heard that myth.

Just imagine my surprise to see this cute little alien face looking up at me when I visited the greenhouse where my oldest grandson Stryker works. I never even got scared! I guess all my years living in the African bush has tuned me up to accept other cultures. So, aliens in the flowers, how cute!!!

My most recent dip into another culture was watching "How to Tame your Dragon! in 3D with all the four McNeal grandchildren, Riley, Bailey, Keiran and Caedon. I hope I am never NEVER NEVER too old to accept new cultures, new ideas, and new friends.

Watch out you don't weed out the Marians next time you weed,

Have an accepting day, wontcha! Oh, P.S!!!! I did not mean to insert two photos, but I don't know how to take it offf!!!!!!!

FLYING BACKWARDS!!!

FLYING BACKWARDS!!!

I think this might be impossible! But we can try!

On the weekend, we stayed in a cabin: the very word makes me think of SPIDERS and LOG WALLS, but this was not our cabin!

Our cabin was a Heritage Moment, with a double bed covered in a handmade, old,old quilt!

A painted white dresser, and antique chair!!

It all made me feel totally warm and contented: my MOM used to make quilts!

We sold our antiques when we moved to AFRICA.

So the cabin was a delightful dip into the past, and good memories surfaced, and we had a really nice weekend.

You can fly backward in your mind!

Have a warm fuzzy memory, wontcha???/

FLYING INTO PARRALEL UNIVERSES!

1. Books that I have known and loved!

2.Through the lens of a camera!!!

have you ever thought how both these things take you another place? Sort of like flying!!! You leave here, and arrive THERE!

PAGE ONE of any book immediately transports to Somewhere else, good, bad, or boring. No wait, sometimes informative.

I don't like boring, and don't like bad: I recently read three quarters of a book, and tossed it in the garbage! What started off funny degenerated! Someone suggested the editor was responsible: add some spice or else!

Yuk, I chucked. I don't read spice!!!

Then there was the over a thousand page book that I read only to get a nugget of wisdom on the almost last page:

"PITY ISN'T LOVE."

Food for thought, that. How often do we think we love a problem person and actually we only feel pity. Pity comes to an end. Love doesn't.

Hmmmmmm big difference there.

So if I pity you, and try to help, and my help doesn't change you, I'll give up.

But if I love you, I'll look for a way that will help.

Love you!

OOps, didn't get to the Camera Universe, but there's always tomorrow!!!

Have a great day in an Alternative Universe, Wontcha!

MEMORIES AND MOMENTS

MEMORIES AND MOMENTS

An interesting thought occurred to me: even dwelling on good memories too long takes your mind off the now!!!

A good cup of coffee and a slice of memory cake is nice, but then real life sets in, and its time to move on!

If I linger in the past, a whole slice of now slides by!

So I like a quick peek at the past, and a whole wopping portion of the future before me.

Life is just too exciting to live it looking back.

Hmmm, is is possible to fly backwards when you aren't even off the ground forward??

So my efforts are forward! There are some moments coming up today: shopping for camp food for the weekend, dinner tonight with friends: and moment by moment time in the presence of three awesome grandchildren!

Have a momentous day, wontcha!!!!

GOING IN CIRCLES IS NOT FLYING!!!!

Well look at this! Colour everywhere!

Leaving Ontarion yesterday, almost to the U.S. border : ring ring ring

My new eyeglasses were in!!!!!

Turning around is the only option, as we wont see Ontario again til mid September!!!!!!

Ahh, you don't recognize me at this point, as I am wearing my new eyes!

Fashion goes in such circles! I think these are close to the same ones I wore in the 60's. The non-frame look has been sooooo in, now its thick hornrims again, but with such pizzaaaz.

If I learn how to fly photos onto this blog, you will see the new me.

Which is hilarious, as you dont even know what the old me looks like.

4 hours after we started, we started out again. And made it safe and sound to our son's.

have a great going straightforward day, wontcha!

The best p.s. in the world!!!! I posted a flower! It grows out of a tree in my yard in Kenya, and is a type of orchid!

Flying high about posting photos!!!

AS FAR AS THE DAY GOES:

Well, there you go! I found some colour for my blog, and its the end of a long day. Lots of activity and friends. Ahhh, makes life worthwhile knowing you are part of a whole!

Someone today mentioned there will be a church picnic, and they are going to showcase

"STUPID HUMAN TRICKS" !!!! BIG SMILE FROM ME,

as our family has always done these, what's yours?

Personally I do really bad accents. yeah. accents, only I can't do them , so end up sounding like the United Nations is camped out in my mouth.

What does this have to do with flying? Only that smiling and friends and family all make you feel like you might just lift off at any second.

Are you getting any hints about what flying is??
I hope so,

Have a silly trick night, wontcha!

RANDOM THOUGHTS TO HELP GET OFF THE GROUND

"EVENTS FALL AT OUR FEET,
LIFE HAPPENS WHEN WE WALK THROUGH THEM"
PJMC, 3:AM THOUGHT !!!!

I had a dream when I was a child. In it, I stepped up very carefully into the air, and then I could fly! Ever since I've been a grown up, I have looked for that place to step up. Somehow, I've never found it. But I do know it's there!!!

Have a great stepping up day, wontcha!

TO AND FRO ISN'T FLYING

Well, back in Canada after a week in the States, and the Grandchildren certainly wake you up and keep you active.
Had an amazing 4 1/2 hours on an extremely hard bench: but saw our grandson achieve another level in Tae Kwon Doh, which I am sure I cant really spell. Its good to see that the "SYSTEM" allows discipline and respect in some areas of learning, even if not in school.
We were not flying by the end of the evening, everyone had achy bones! but it was soooooooooooo worth it to see what hard work can achieve. I dint know you could kick a board in half with the TOP of your foot. hmmmmm - strength in hidden places.

So, my board breaking experience will be when I figure out how to do something with this blog thing other than boring notes. Like put in some of my totally awesome photos. The ones I call "abstract in nature" and "Guess what this is?" that will be the "break the board" time in my blog.
Oh yeah, and see if anyone ever reads it. ha. its tooooo boring, and definitely not flying.
One of these days I'll tell you what the flying thing is all about.
But not tonight, I'm off to bed.
Have a "break the board" night, wontcha.

SCRAPPY BITS KEEP ME IN THE REAL WORLD

OK, so they say the way to keep active in the brain department is to learn something new. Well here goes me, learning to blog.
All my life I have kept journals and my world famous Scrappy Bits. If you ever looked at my desk, in my purse, on the cupboard, in my books, you would understand Scrappy Bits. Cant live without them. Even wake up at night, jot down a Scrappy Bit, etc. Keeps me sane.
Then eventually get around to putting the Scrappy Bit Info into context of what I intended it for.
Some people call these "Notes to Self".

So, today, sitting here sweltering in Ontario Humidity, which is like a warm fuzzy blanket, on a hot day, I started this blog.
Not sure I will ever find it again though, hahahah!
have a warm fuzzy day, wontcha.

LATER IN THE MORNING

ok, so it seems I have learned to
1. start a blog,
2. write something
3. close
4. reopen, but that took some doing. now have a Scrappy Bit to remind me how to get here,
5. Add something, and hey, that wasn't a cake walk either.
6. decide I have learned enough new things for today, my brain feels like it is 10 !!!

Bye. Have a learning day, wontcha?