It's Monday and here in the US it's also Halloween. One of my favorite holidays since I was a kid. What's more fun then dressing up in a costume and going door to door filling up a bag with yummy candy!
In honor of this holiday for my Macro Monday on Lisa's Chaos & 31 Days of Reflection I am show casing Halloween Ghoulishness.
Can you guess what this is?
This is a close-up of a Floormat that I purchased many years ago and decided it made a much better wall hanging. Who would want to walk all over something this awesome.
There is no artist listed anywhere on this rug and oh how I wish there was as I just love this piece and would like to know if there is anything else out there like it.
Talk about "Scared to Death" this look pretty much says it all. I edited this in Black and White for a much spookier effect.
Below is what this actually is:
It's actually a Styrofoam pumpkin. The stem was chewed off by one of our cats a couple of years ago so maybe that's how the look of fear arrived on this poor pumpkins face!
For my last musical reflection I am going with: Monster Mash by Bobby "Boris" Pickett and the Cryptkickers (don't you love the name of the back-up group).
Hello and Welcome. - Well today is the last day of the PBR Bullriding finals so once again my musical selection relates to Cowboys. Today I have chosen two songs, Cowboy Logic sung by Michael Martin Murphy and Mama Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys by Willie Nelson
The first one is just a FUN song and the 2nd one I'm sharing because after watching some of yesterday's PBR finals and seeing the hits the cowboys and bull fighters took it seems like a very appropriate song. - Check out this link to see what I'm talking about:
Happy Saturday! The day is rapidly winding down and I realized I hadn't yet posted my 31 Days of Reflection, musical selection yet. In keeping with my "Cowboy" attitude for the PBR Bullriding Finals once again I am sharing a song about, Cowboys.
This time it's (Even Cowboys Like a Little Rock-n-Roll) by Chris LeDoux with Charlie Daniels. - I had the pleasure of hearing Chris in concert just about a year before he passed away.
Take care and I'll be back tomorrow with another musical selection.
Thought I'd also share a shot (taken off the television screen) of, Trickster one of the Bulls at the PBR Finals.
Hello and Happy Friday! - First before I get to my entry for Photo Art Friday I want to thank everyone for their thoughts, prayers and get well wishes for my mom. I am happy to report that her BP seems to be under control now. She had a good report at her doctor's visit on Wednesday and is feeling much better now. I am slowly but surely catching up on e-mails and other stuff so hopefully I'll be able to visit each of your blogs and leave comments on your photos.
Here is my entry for this week.
I used Bonnie's Medieval Magic texture (again-can't seem to get enough of that one) on my photo. Then edited further in Picnik. Doggone I keep forgetting to write down what I do to these photo's. At any rate I really like how this turned out and hope you do as well.
In case you can't read the quote I added: Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns. ~ George Eliot.
Here is my Original Photo:
Now for those who may have noticed I have missed another couple of days of my 31 Days of Reflection musical selections. During the past couple of days our Internet was off due to lines being cut at a construction site about 50 miles from where we live. So I've not been able to be on the computer much and just couldn't get songs posted.
We are "Big" PBR (Professional Bull Riders) fans and the Built Ford Tough finals have started in Las Vegas this week. In honor of that event I am posting: Willie Nelson's,
My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys as today's musical selection.
Enjoy
Wow it's been a tough few days but I'm hanging in there.
My mom is home from the hospital and doing okay but there are still issues I have to deal with like taking her to doctor's appointments, taking her BP and being the "worrywort" that I am I tend stress over the little details far more then I should.
So here is my entery for Macro Monday over on Lisa's blog.
I was out taking photo's of "orange" items for another challenge and this was one of my Zinnia's. As I was shooting photo's this Box Elderbug walked onto the flower and I snapped a bunch of pictures. I liked this one the best. I love how this photo shows both the detail of the bug and the flower.
Hope you all have a wonderful week. I will try my best to get around to comment on the other enteries. If I'm not able to leave comments on all your blogs I just want you to know that I really enjoy looking at your photo's. Don't forget to pop over to Lisa's blog and check out all the other enteries. There are some awesome shots there.
Since I've missed a couple of days now of my 31 Days of Reflection due to being at the hospital with my mom I thought I'd just pick up here today and continue on through the month as I am able to.
My selection for today: Obladi, Oblada by the Beatles. Also used in a TV called, Life Goes On, I think it's fitting given my life the past few days.
Wow I did not think I would get this up and posted but here I am. I've spent the last 2 days at the hospital with my mom. You can read more about this below after my post. - It's time for my entry for Scavenger Hunt Sunday.
The words this week were: Orange, Fly, Under, Words and Always look on the bright side.
I strugged with a few of these but finally got something done so lets get started:
Orange: I didn't want to do a Pumpkin photo for my orange so I decided on this photo of one of my Perennial plants, Some type of a Wallflower plant. I love the color of this plant and sure hope it will weather the winter here.
Fly - Taken from my photo Archives. I tried and tried to think of something for this and couldn't seem to get any decent shots. I took pictures of airplanes but they were blurred, I tried some Carrier Pigeons but the shot wasn't close enough, I tried an Ariel Act at the Circus but the lighting was to poor so finally I remember this incredible (imho) photo that I had taken and just happened to get lucky enough to catch the bee in flight.
Under: This one gave me some trouble but not to much. I decided on taking a photo of the underside of a toadstool in my mom's yard. I'm sure the neighbors thought I was nuts laying on the ground with my camera snapping pictures of a toadstool. It's not the greatest of photo's but I think it works.
Words: This one I knew right away what I wanted to photograph. We have a couple of really cool signs on buildings here in town that I've always been fascinated with. One was above the old movie theater but I couldn't get a decent photo of that so I opted for the other sign.
Lastly: Always look on the bright side. This one gave me the worst time. I just couldn't think of anything to fit this concept. Here's what I finally came up with.
I figured when you look on the "bright" side of a situation you should be able to smile about it so without further ado...
This is a portion of a new Halloween wall canvas that I recently purchased. I think that pumpkin is certainly looking on the bright side. I know it's probably a stretch but under the circumstances of the last few days I'm just happy to get this posted.
On Friday morning my mom came over a little before 7:00 am and said she wasn't feeling well. She told me she had a burning sensation in her chest and back that just wouldn't go away. Naturally our first thought was, Heart Attack and after a few minutes of trying to decide what we should do we opted to just go to the ER. It's a good thing we did. Her BP was up to 201/97 NOT GOOD. They gave her medication for her heart, and also to lower her Blood Pressure. She was feeling pretty good but the ER doctor felt she should be admitted and spend the night so they could monitor her BP and other vital signs and rule out that it was a Heart Attack. So she spent Friday and most of Saturday in the hospital which was where I was most of the time as well. I'm happy to report she is home now and doing a lot better. We'll see her regular doctor on Wednesday but in the meantime they have her on BP medication and a bunch of other stuff as well.
So be sure to drop by Ashley's blog and check out the other enteries. This is really a lot of fun and I hope that this coming week is a lot less stressful for me and I can get my post up a lot sooner.
Have a great week.
Happy Friday everyone! I hope you've had a good week.
It's time for Photo Art Friday at Bonnie's blog (Pixel Dust Photo Art). I was excited this week to play around and use some of Bonnie's Free Texture's now that I've learned how to use them in the Gimp program.
Here is my original photo that I shot in Black and White
I started playing around and decided to use Bonnie's Medieval Magic Texture and Tangled Tendrils. In the Gimp program I overlayed both these textures using various Opacity settings. I tried to write them down but somehow things got jumbled as to what I used and how much percentage etc...so you'll just have take the photo's as they are and next time I'll try harder to write every step down. After adding the textures I opened the photo's in Picnik and messed around with a few edits there as well.
Here is my 1st edit:
Then I played some more and this time used, the Fanciful texture. Once again I went to Picnik and did some other editing. I know on this one I changed fonts on the text, used the 1960's feature and one other thing but I can't recall what it was.
I apologize again for not writing this all down.
This one is my favorite:
Since these photo's have a Spider (which by the way normally use to scare the heebie jeebies out of me) until I started photographing them. I have decided to use, Boris the Spider as my musical Reflection. I love this song (I know, strange but true).
Okay today I'm feeling a bit frustrated as I've spent the better part of the morning trying to re-install some files from the old computer to the new computer. Discovered we need to re-install a program that I used and I have no clue where the disk is or if we even had one to begin with. Still can't figure Microsoft Office out - Why or why do they have to change things! - With that being said I thought I would just play something totally goofy for my musical reflection. So today I am sharing, The Credit Card Song by Dick Feller. So I hope you all have a good laugh or two and I'll carry on with my computer woes!
Today I thought I would share my 2 favorite photo's of Coleen from the Pumpkin Patch this year. We've been taking her out since she could walk to get her "official" Pumpkin Patch Photo's taken. She is growing up so quickly and every year I can see the changes just by reviewing past years Pumpkin Patch photo's.
Sometimes I wish I could keep her young just like she is now but I know that isn't possible.
She is just an amazing little girl and so full of love, life and a joy (most of the time) to be around.
With that thought in mind today's Musical Reflection is,
Forever Young by Rod Stewart - This song really shows that no matter how much they change and grow they will be in our hearts forever.
Welcome! - I'm heading off to the Bowling Alley shortly and as I was thinking about what "musical" Reflection I wanted to share today the song, Come On Get Happy by the Partridge Family popped into my head.
Lately my bowling has been awful. Last week (shhh don't tell anyone) my scores were, 123-121-121 and I was not a Happy Camper so I'm hoping today will be better.
I thought this little Candy Corn Candle would bring a smile to your face if you are here viewing and reading this post.
Have a great day and Smile!
Good Day! - It's Monday and that means it's also time to post for Macro Monday on Lisa's blog. I've been taking a lot of Macro Shots lately so the hard part for me is trying to decide which one to use.
I was out at my husband's workshop this weekend and of course I had my camera along (hey you never know what might be waiting for you to snap a picture) I walked outside and saw these Thistle Plants and knew right away that I had to take a picture of them.
Then I decided to get up close and personal (not to personal though as those things have nasty thorns) and took a Macro Shot of one of the thistle heads.
Lastly I've been playing around and trying to learn how to use textures etc...on photo's so I thought I'd include a this shot editing in Gimp using a new Free texture from Bonnie at Pixel Dust Studio. This one is called, Happy Day.
I'm not totally sure of all that I did with the texture to get this next photo. I'm still learning and need to write these things down as I go along. So for now you'll just have to take the photo as is since I didn't write down the formula on how I did the edit.
In keeping with my 31 Days of "musical" Reflection today I have chosen a song by Carly Simon, Anticipation. I like this song and it's really true that "We Can Never Know about the Days to Come, But we Think
About Them Anyway." I find myself looking ahead to so many different things or thinking about all the things that I want to accomplish and learn and sometimes it's just overwhelming. So for today I'm just taking it one step at a time and trust that no matter what God will see me through whatever comes my way.
over on Ashley's blog, Ramblings and Photo's. This is a really interesting and fun challenge. Each week you are give 5 different themes/words that you are then to take photographs of and share back with a link.
This week the words were: Abstract, Round, Fire, Seeing Faces in Strange Places, and Stars. - Everyone does their own interpretation of the themes.
Here are my photo's.
First up, Abstract
This is actually a Macro shot of a portion of an Abstract Paperweight that my husband bought me several years ago. I really love all the different colors and patterns in the paperweight and thought it was just ideal for this challenge.
Next up, Round - I took this picture out at the local Pumpkin Patch this week. I'm not sure what these wheels originally belonged on but I rather like the way they look in this shot.
Fire:
I have this really fun candle holder that has black ghosts and cauldron. The holder casts ghost shadows on the wall which is really cool.
Seeing Faces in Strange Places: This one was a bit of a challenge and I did use a photo that I took a couple of weeks ago. I'm not sure if it qualifies as faces in strange places or strange faces as you will see in the photo.
Normally they are not all on the bed at one time. I happened to open the door to go to bed and saw them all laying on the bed so I quickly shut the door, ran and got the camera, opened the door and "snapped" quickly. This is the result. Don't their eyes look awesome!
Stars:
For this photo I decided to get a little creative. I took a Glass Drinking Jug that had stars on it, I photographed it outside and then cropped and added texture to the photo. The texture is, Medieval Magic which is a free texture offered by Bonnie over at Pixel Dust Photo Art.
In keeping with my 31 Days of "musical" Reflection today I am sharing,
For the Beauty of the Earth - This video has some gorgeous photo's as well so be sure to watch as you listen. Enjoy.
Today's Musical Reflection is, Time Passages by Al Stewart.
I chose this because we have been considering some "changes" in our life right now and yet cannot seem to come to full agreement on where we want or need to be. We do realize thought that eventually things can and will change. I believe we just need to trust God to bring about those changes when the time is right.
It was late in December, the sky turned to snow
All round the day was going down slow
Night like a river beginning to flow
I felt the beat of my mind go
Drifting into time passages
Years go falling in the fading light
Time passages
Buy me a ticket on the last train home tonight
Well I'm not the kind to live in the past
The years run too short and the days too fast
The things you lean on are the things that don't last
Well it's just now and then my line gets cast into these
Time passages
There's something back here that you left behind
Oh time passages
Buy me a ticket on the last train home tonight
Hear the echoes and feel yourself starting to turn
Don't know why you should feel
That there's something to learn
It's just a game that you play
Well the picture is changing
Now you're part of a crowd
They're laughing at something
And the music's loud
A girl comes towards you
You once used to know
You reach out your hand
But you're all alone, in these
Time passages
I know you're in there, you're just out of sight
Time passages
Buy me a ticket on the last train home tonight
Hello and Happy Friday. - It's time for my entry for Photo Art Friday over on Bonnie's Blog, Pixel Dust Photo Art. - This week we had an "optional" theme to use one of Bonnie's textures in our art work. I chose to work with a Free texture she offers called,
Sapphire Dust.
I also edited in Picnik using Viginette.
Here is the original photo:
In keeping with my 31 Days of Reflection I thought it would be fitting to add a song with Dreams in it since I used a quote about dreams.
I decided on, These Dreams by Heart. Please enjoy.
Well it's officially "Hair Pulling" time. - The new computer was installed yesterday and I'm now trying to figure out a new email program as the new one doesn't use the same program as the old computer did. It's messed with how my Address Book looks and I'm getting frustrated trying to figure everything out. So with that said I thought my musical reflection today should be a song about frustration or going bonkers and what better song then: They're Coming to Take Me Away by Napoleon XIV.
So this is dedicated to anyone having "One of those days" and you know the kind I'm talking about.
Yep, I've "pre-scheduled" these posts and hopefully they go live when they are suppose to.
So I've been sharing a lot of serious songs and thought that today I'd like to just throw in something totally fun and silly. Sometimes we all need those moments where we can just be a little "crazy" and kick back without thinking about all the things around us that need to be done. So what did I pick...how about, Hair by the Cowsills. Does anyone remember this group? - This song is really silly and the video equally so but I enjoy both and hope you do as well.
Well today the old computer is in to have the data transferred to the new computer. Wednesdy the new computer will be installed and hopefully Thursday I'll be back if I haven't pulled my hair out or smashed the computer in frustration. I hate having to learn new stuff when I'm so familiar with the old. Oh well change was inevitable.
So here is my "Musical" reflection for today.
I chose John Denver's - The Music Is You.
Music has and always will be a big part of my life. I love all kinds of music with the exception of a few generes.
Happy Monday! - It's a Cloudy and Rainy day here in "Wally World."
Here is my entry for Macro Monday over at Lisa's Chaos.
My granddaughter, Coleen came in the house all excited because she had spoted a Preying Mantis on the side of the house. I went out and took some pictures and then we transferred the Mantis to the Rose bed. Here are shots both on the house and on one of my roses.
She was pretty excited about seeing this bug and even commented that she had never seen one this color before. Most of the time they are the Green colored one's but this guy (or girl) was brown.
Be sure to stop by Lisa's blog and check out all the other fantastic enteries for today's Macro Monday feature.
Now for my 31 Days of Reflection my "muscial" selection today is, Lean on Me by Bill Withers.
I love this song and hope that whatever you are going through in life you will have a friend you can lean on. Plus I know that if you trust in the Lord you will always have a friend you can count on in the good times and the bad times.
Hello, Today I am sharing one of my all time favorite Hymns, Amazing Grace as my musical inspiration. - This song is truly one of great beauty and deep meaning. As a Christian I feel hope and peace when I hear this song. There have been numerous artists who have preformed this song but I discovered this group, Il Divo and just get the chills when I hear their version. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
If you are here for my Photo Art Friday entry please scroll down one post or click here:
Today's Musical "Reflection" is, Get Over It by The Eagles:
We often played this song to our kids when they were complaining about things. Personally I think this song should be played over loud speakers everywhere with so many people out there complaining all the time.
I turn on the tube and what do I see
A whole lotta people cryin' 'don't blame me'
They point their crooked little fingers ar everybody else
Spend all their time feelin' sorry for themselves
Victim of this, victim of that
Your momma's too thin; your daddy's too fat
Get over it
Get over it
All this whinin' and cryin' and pitchin' a fit
Get over it, get over it
You say you haven't been the same since you had your little crash
But you might feel better if I gave you some cash
The more I think about it, old billy was right
Let's kill all the lawyers, kill 'em tonight
You don't want to work, you want to live like a king
But the big, bad world doesn't owe you a thing
Get over it
Get over it
If you don't want to play, then you might as well split
Get over it, get over it
It's like going to confession every time I hear you speak
You're makin' the most of your losin' streak
Some call it sick, but I call it weak
You drag it around like a ball and chain
You wallow in the guilt; you wallow in the pain
You wave it like a flag, you wear it like a crown
Got your mind in the gutter, bringin' everybody dow
Complain about the present and blame it on the past
I'd like to find your inner child and kick it's little ass
Get over it
Get over it
All this bitchin' and moanin' and pitchin' a fit
Get over it, get over it
Get over it
Get over it
It's gotta stop sometime, so why don't you quit
Get over it, get over it
Hello and Welcome! - It's always a pleasure to have you pop in and see what is happening here on my blog. What's exciting is that it's time for, Photo Art Friday over on Bonnie's Blog (Pixel Dust Photo Art)
Here is my piece for this week:
You will be surprised (I think) when you see the before shot of what this actually is.
I edited my photo on Picnik
Sadly I forgot to write down what things I did to the photo so I'm trying to go from memory.
I know I used the Neon feature, and the Posterize feature and also added the textured background. I may have used (Boost) as well but I'm not totally sure.
So here is the "Before" photo:
This in itself is a piece of "Art" - This statue is one of many here in Walla Walla where I live. I took several shots of this piece and will share those at a later date.
Here is a brief bit of information about this statue:
Matilde On Her Way To The Market by Nano Lopez catches folks attention from the front lawn of the Walla Walla, Washington, Public Library. When she was first unveiled in 2003, there were mixed reactions to her from the locals. Some thought she was just fine, others wondered who in their right mind would call her art.
When the library went into a period of renovation, Matilde had to be moved and folks began to wonder where she went. She's back, still generating comments and quizzical looks and rating high on the number of folk who just have to have their picture taken with her.
Name: Matilde On Her Way To The Market
Figure Type: Animal
Artist Name: Nano Lopez
Date created or placed: 2003
Materials used: Bronze
Location: Walla Walla Public Library
Today's Musical Reflection is: Stay For Awhile by Amy Grant
I've always loved this song even though it often brings tears to my eyes. Below are the lyrics:
The Video shows a "couple" and I'm sure the song is probably about broken relationships but to me I feel something different. I think it's about "lost" relationships and remembering those who've passed on before us. I'd love to just be able to "freeze" time and remember my family/friends just the way they were. I think that's what memories are for and like the song says, "When I close my eyes, I remember."
Well after the 1st couple of days of doing this I finally figured out that I'd like to spend my 31 days of Reflection sharing songs that mean something to me. Today I'm bringing you: Ripple by the Grateful Dead.
Since we all have our own perception of things I will leave it up to you to decide how or if this song reflects anything about you or your life.
Lyrics:
If my words did glow with the gold of sunshine
And my tunes were played on the harp unstrung,
Would you hear my voice come thru the music,
Would you hold it near as it were your own?
It's a hand-me-down, the thoughts are broken,
Perhaps they're better left unsung.
I don't know, don't really care
Let there be songs to fill the air.
Ripple in still water,
When there is no pebble tossed,
Nor wind to blow.
Reach out your hand if your cup be empty,
If your cup is full may it be again,
Let it be known there is a fountain,
That was not made by the hands of men.
There is a road, no simple highway,
Between the dawn and the dark of night,
And if you go no one may follow,
That path is for your steps alone.
Ripple in still water,
When there is no pebble tossed,
Nor wind to blow.
You who choose to lead must follow
But if you fall you fall alone,
If you should stand then whos to guide you?
If I knew the way I would take you home.
La dee da da da, la da da da da, da da da, da da, da da da da da
La da da da, la da da, da da, la da da da, la da, da da.
Some days you're the Windshield, Some days you're the Bug!
Today I think I was "the bug"!
Okay I woke up feeling great and had high hopes for my Bowling Scores....something went drastically wrong, (154-138-126) I'm guessing it had something to do with the "bug" Not much else to say about that.
So my reflection today is about how we perceive our days. Are you the Windshield or are you the bug?
Today I'm combining two very different challenges. First up I recently discovered Macro Monday (Lisa's Chaos) so I want to share this picture I took recently for that:
This is my 1st time participating.
I captured this shot on one of my flowers and am really please with how it turned out.
Photography has always been fascinating to me and even though I haven't taken any classes or don't own a fancy camera I want to learn and someday I hope to get a better camera and take some classes but for now I am enjoying wht I can do. The "Macro" feature is one of my favorite things about taking photo's. I love the clarity you can get by using this feature.
The 2nd challenge I am doing today is my entry for my 31 Days of Reflection.
Today I'm featuring a link to the Fleetwood Mac song: Landslide.
I love music and this song in particular speaks to me. The line about, " Children growing older and I'm Growing older too" hits home. Life is always changing and one can never go back in time...we can only move forward with each phase. While there are things about my past that I'd love to change I know that's not possible. Instead I have to concentrate on the here and now and what things can be changed so that as I do grow older I can reflect back on those memories and not feel a sadness that they weren't what I had hoped they would be.
It's Day 2 of my 31 Days of Reflection. I had this "brilliant" idea about taking a shot of myself looking into the mirror but then I had a "duh" moment when I realized that if I'm pointing a camera at myself in the mirror what are you going to see...Yep, a shot of me with a camera in the mirror. I don't own a Tripod so I opted to set the camera on a Timed Shot and have Coleen, my granddaughter click the button. So am I looking into the mirror in this shot...not exactly but I like how it turned out except that you always get glare from my glasses which I don't like. But it is what it is.
So why a picture of myself looking into a mirror? I thought about how we all look into mirrors every day and see our own "Reflections" looking back. Do you always like what you see? Do you wish you looked different? Are there things about the way you look that you like? For me I know that sometimes when I look into a mirror I am not always happy with how I look. But is my reflection really who I am inside? No, it's just the external me and what I really should be concerned about is how I am on the inside rather then the outside. Oh that's not to say that I shouldn't try to look as good as I can but more that I should try to concentrate on what is most important and that is what kind of a reflection am I making to those around me who see me every day.
On a "lighter" note...One night when I got up to use the bathroom and get a drink of water I happened to catch sight of someone in the mirror that I thought was standing behind me. It startled me so much that I jumped back through the bathroom door and landed on the bed a few feet away. That woke hubby up and he wanted to know what was wrong. I realized by then what had happened and was a bit embarrassed because I realized that it was actually my own reflection in the mirror that I had seen. We have one of those 3-way panel mirrors and one of the panels was open so the person I saw standing behind me was actually me but in the dark and half asleep I thought it was someone else. It nearly scared the life out of me and of course hubby got a good laugh over it too.
So today I want you to reflect on what kind of a life are you showing to the world. Is it one that you are proud of or one that you need to do some changes to to make it better.
I'll do the same.
Today is Day 1 of my 31 Days of Reflection series. I chose this photo:
Since I think it "reflects" on what life can sometimes be like in my little corner of the world. It's often one of those days and as the old saying goes..."There's no use crying over spilt milk."
I want to share things that are reflections of who I am as a person and the type of person I'd like to become as well.
There are lots of different links here to various blogs participating with their own series so feel free to check them out. I'm sure we'll all gain inspiration by visiting.
Please come back tomorrow. I can't promise anything earth shattering or profound but I hope to learn and grow from this.
