The Shape of Things

When I think of shapes, I instantly think of so many, many things. So when Beth challenged us all to capture shapes this week, I began my normal weekly process of over-thinking the whole thing!

Yes, I know, it’s a recurring theme nightmare. As usual (and blessedly, I might add), life intervened and the plan for the challenge started to take shape. [Oh, sorry, really bad pun. I actually groaned out loud as I typed it.]

So here we go. My sweet husband bought me some glass art to hang in our bathroom windows and I just love them. They make beautiful rainbows in the morning sun. [He also hung them for me on demand after changing the filter in my van so that the AC would work decently ... and when I'm certain he would have rather been doing anything else!!!] I heart him. Very much.

My second photo op came out of the blue, or rather, out of the blacklight. After a night of fun with some folks from church, our pastor pulled out a blacklight and announced that he was going to go scorpion hunting. He’d not seen any since moving here and really wanted to. Well, it just so happens that we currently have a plethora of scorpions living in our backyard. I don’t heart these. Someone has been called!

When I first looked at his creepy critter, I thought it was dead – it looked a bit flat and skeletal to me. Upon closer examination, I noticed the tiny shapes of two baby scorpions on her back. This shot really needed a tripod and some play with lighting, but it was well after midnight and these guys are CREEPY! I was afraid (um, hoping) that she’d scurry away so I just took the shot. It’s cropped, but otherwise straight out of the camera.

Scorpion fact: The babies are more poisonous than their mama and they don’t glow yet because they lack a protein buildup in their exoskeleton. I learned something this week! I also found myself wishing that we had the kinds of critters Shell gets to photograph!!!

When Husband heard that “shapes” were the in thing this week, he suggested that I get up-close-and-personal with our very blockish pavers. So, I got the wide angle lens out and captured these. [I checked the ground for scorpions first!] I think I’ll be trying out some more shots like this. The perspective is really fun.

These were just begging for a quick shot. I snapped a very organized stack of kindling on a whim and then played with the black and white conversion setting. The landscape setting was the most realistic for sure, but I’ve been doing ancestry research and the newspaper setting gave this kindling a sort of “old treasured artifact” feel that I liked. It also really made the wood jump out!

I’ll end this where I started, I think. You see, my first plan of action was to make a picture using shapes … a mosaic picture of the photos I’ve taken. While I tossed the idea aside as too complicated for me to pull off, I couldn’t help doing a search for some software that might do it for me! Lo and behold … Mosaic Creator. [OK, the page this takes you to is horribly, sickeningly busy. The software is pretty cool.]

This is my first attempt using the software. If you look closely, you’ll see Little Man and BK in there … and a clock I shot for one of these challenges is in the lower right. The tree is made from a lot of beach shots. It’s like a seek and find! I’m going to play with it some more as it looks like it’ll do some pretty cool stuff.

I'll be hoppin' along now ...

5 Things – Sedona, AZ

I’ve had a love affair with Sedona for many years. Seriously, I think it’s been almost 15 years now. With all of that love and history, where do I begin? [Can you hear me humming?]

Here are my “5 Things” about Sedona.

1. Peace

There is something about Sedona and the Red Rock area that puts me at peace. I’m not sure what it is. I just know that when I’m there, the stupid self talk stops and the still,quiet voice inside gets heard.  Also, I think I’m just generally a much nicer, happier person when I’m there. That self talk can do a real number on your disposition.

The Sedona area is said to be the location of some spiritual vortexes and there are certainly quite a few folks making money selling tours and what I’ll call “vortex paraphernalia”.

Depending on your beliefs, you can chalk it up to the vortexes supposedly there, I guess. My personal beliefs don’t necessarily run that way, but I can’t deny that there is something different about the place. I just know that when I can use a little peace in my life, I’ll find it in Sedona.

2. Diversity

Sedona is a place where everyone can find something. For such a small town, that’s pretty amazing. And the diversity is everywhere in everything!

• You can tent camp next to Oak Creek or find a posh $250+ a night bed and breakfast. [We splurged one year ... if you are going to splurge on a B&B in Sedona, I can recommend this one!]
• You can find a quick deli snack or a $50+ a plate meal.
• You can be in the desert one minute and in a riparian area – so green you can’t imagine – it in the next.

I’ve not been there yet with someone who didn’t find something to like about the place. You can go to shop, hike, visit galleries, mountain bike, ride horses, or just hang out. In the times I’ve visited, I’m not sure that we’ve ever done the same thing twice. It’s all good!

3. Umm …  Red Rocks

OK, seriously. There is no place on earth like Red Rock country. I actually think it’s better than the Grand Canyon – although that might be because it’s more accessible.

The colors are just stunning everywhere you turn and the formations are just awesome. Most pictures don’t do the area justice … although on our recent trip, I certainly tried! [It's an amazing place to practice your photography habit!]

One of my favorite places to visit is the Chapel of the Holy Cross. The architecture is just amazing and the church itself is so simple. The simplicity makes it a perfect match for the amazing “cathedral” of rocks around it. I just love it!

There are hikes and tours to just about anywhere you would want to go want to go – and you can find something suitable for all ages and abilities. [I don't hike, normally. I will here. It didn't/doesn't kill me.]

At the end of the day, however you get wherever you get, a good long sit and stare is necessary and appropriate!

4. Water

When you are surrounded by desert, water is important – and interesting – and wonderful. Oak Creek is life to the areas around Sedona. The area gets about 10 inches of rain each year and depends on the run off from the Flagstaff area. But, no matter what the season, water is a main attraction.

In the summer, Slide Rock State Park is packed with folks trying to cool off in the cold waters of Oak Creek. I must tell you that it’s not my cup of tea … but clearly it works for a lot of people!

I think I prefer to experience the life of the canyons here in other ways. I love to sit and eat at The Hideaway where you can thoroughly enjoy a great pizza and cream soda (or whatever you like) on a terrace overlooking Oak Creek. And I’ve recently ventured into the canyon itself … the hikes into the Oak Creek area – West Fork Oak Creek Trail and Huckaby Trail were two that got us “waterside” and allowed us to see the area from a different perspective!

5. Tlaquepaque

OK … this may be a stretch, but I have to put Tlaquepaque (pronounced Tla-keh-pah-keh) in the mix just because it’s a fun word to say!

Seriously though, you can watch artists sculpt in clay as they prepare the models for amazing bronze sculptures. You can get a great meal. [Can I get a WOOT for beer-battered fries prepared in the local brew?] You can sit and listen to musicians play in the courtyards. It’s an amazing place … and one of the many places to see artists of all kinds in the Sedona area.

Oh, and the flowers, fountains, and sycamore trees in this place are just wonderful! And, at Christmastime? Forget it. You just want to stay!

For me Tlaquepaque represents all of the cool places to discover in the Sedona area. It’s a place where you can see/get things you just can’t anywhere else – some are pretty pricey (fantastic art usually is) and some are perfect for taking a bit of Sedona home with you.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. If you get a chance to visit Sedona, don’t turn it down. Whether for the day or for the week, it’s worth it. Yep, everyone goes there – it’s not off of the vacation radar. There’s a reason for that – embrace it!

Oh, and while you’re there? Don’t be afraid to “go off-road” a bit. There is a lot to see and do … and learn!

[Wow. I may have just sounded like your mother there. Sorry about that! Now, go book your ticket! What are you waiting for???]

I'll be hoppin' along now ...

Red, White, and the Bluest Sky Ever

The challenge over at Beth’s this week was “Independence Day” (or food) and I’m so glad that she didn’t say “the 4th”!

See, Husband and I were truly experiencing independence this Independence Day. Little Man and BK are spending a few weeks at their Gram’s house and we found ourselves on our own for the long holiday weekend! What to do?

We headed to one of my favorite places on the planet – Sedona, AZ – for a get-away and it was a wonderful weekend full of exploring Red Rock country. [Also, we got to eat many meals in restaurants without worrying about meltdowns and kids' menus.]

I must confess before we get to the pics. I don’t hike – well, not normally. But, you really can’t experience all of Sedona without going off-road at least a little. So, like all sensible people, I decided that I could do two hikes a day – one in the morning and one in the evening. [Um, suffering for art? Nah, I'll blame the heat!]

So, without further ado, we’ll start with nature’s red, white, and blue and then move on a sampling of nature in northern Arizona!

It’s monsoon time in the desert so it’s quite common to get late day rains. We thought we were going to get rained out of a sunset hike in Red Rock State Park. Instead, we got treated to a lightening show followed by this rainbow (which actually ended up being a double). Then it passed and we were able to hike away!

Oak Creek supplies water to the area and it’s truly a life giving thing. There are quite a few riparian areas in Sedona and they are just stunning in their colors and creatures – so different from the high desert that surrounds them. Amazing!

I had my polarizing filter on almost the whole time we were out and about. I love the green of this funky old tree against the blue sky.

This guy. Oh my word! He was just hanging out when we walked by on our sunset hike. For whatever reason, I couldn’t get my camera to focus so that I could capture him. He stayed still for something like 20 attempts – just posed. He finally moved when the guide with us moved his hand to show us the petroglyphs that were above him!

I have no idea what these are, but they just begged for a picture. They were the only plants like this and were surrounded by a field of green!

OK … this next one is funky and I like it. We went up to the airport to watch the sunset (popular place to watch the sunset, by the way). We’d been out hiking in Fay Canyon until right up to sunset and we were tired! I wasn’t even going to take a picture because the sunset wasn’t all that pretty. But, we’d driven up there, so I took a shot just after the sun sunk behind the mountain.

I forgot that I had the polarizing filter on and this is what the sunset looked like to my camera. The shadows in the black are the layers of the mountains west of town.

Did I mention that Sedona is one of my favorite places on the planet??? Yeh, I get kind of carried away. These are seven of the almost 500 pictures I shot in four days! (More pictures will be coming in my 5 Things – Sedona post.)

I hope you enjoyed and if you get a chance to visit Sedona? Do it!

I'll be hoppin' along now ...

I Capture, You Capture

I’ve been meaning to participate in the You Capture challenges/carnival Beth’s got going over at I Should Be Folding Laundry for a while now. I mean well. I just never have managed to do it! [My self-talk is now taunting me thank-you-very-much.]

This week the challenge was “nature” and I was mulling it around and around for much of the end of last week and the weekend. I thought I’d go for something cerebral and try to capture something of human nature. Good, right? Unique and thought provoking … and lives up to the word challenge!

But, then, the aforementioned human nature reared it’s ugly head and all of the best creative intentions got sucked up in work, the book I’m enjoying, and my family. So, it was looking like another week of NGH. [For those of you playing at home, that's Not Gonna Happen.]

Enter serendipity. Saturday, Little Man decided we needed to go on an adventure to the zoo. [... and friends, I'd be lying to you if I told you that I immediately hatched a plan to save my You Capture intentions. Yeh ... didn't happen that way. Never even crossed my mind as I was trying to figure out what we needed to take for our big day out ... we don't pack light!]

We had a great time! The weather was darn near perfect and the kids were really well-behaved. [ I can't say the same for some of the other park visitors, by the way.] And … as we made our way through the zoo, several very natural things caught my eye and, of course, I snapped a few shots. [Although I still wasn't thinking about the challenge.]

So, here they are … my unplanned acceptance to a challenge.

In the end, I’m happy with my shots here – especially the lily pad. They are better than my usual suspects – even before I edited them for the challenge. I still hope to take a crack at capturing the elements of human nature, but that’s a challenge for another time!

Flush

Nice title, huh? I mean you really don’t know what you’re going to get, do you?

It could be that I’m going to fuss once again about sharing a bathroom with boys (specifically Little Man) or I could be about to share the first chapter of my romance novel between a handsome and strapping (but, of course, aloof and moody) cowboy who is forced to share space with a bonny lass who was dropped on his doorstep by fate. Heck, it might even be a post about a big  video poker win [Vegas, anyone?]!

Yeh, no. This one is about a funeral. You see, I killed Fishdy.

OK, that may be a bit dramatic. I didn’t do it on purpose. There was no premeditation or heinous act. But it happened. [And, to be fair, it's probably a good thing that I've gotten some distance from the whole thing because I was inexplicably upset and traumatized by the whole thing.]

I was actually trying to be a good fish mom. I was cleaning out his tank. I did everything just like I’d done before … only this time the bubble stone broke. So, good fish mom that I am? I set out to get him another one. He was fine when I left … I swear.

Four stores and a 60 mile round trip later, I had the ding-dang stone [OK, first, I'm not exaggerating about the number of stores and number of miles here. Not even a little bit! Second, I also bought him new rocks and a new net ... he was about to be ready for his own segment on Cribs.]

Seriously, we were gone for about 3 hours. It wasn’t a long time.

When we arrived home, I put the stone in and got the clean water a’bubblin’ again. Ahhh … all was well.  I went to check on Fishdy.

Crap. [I may actually have used a different word. It's all a bit hazy.]

He was laying on his side at the bottom of the holding tank. No gill movement. Nothing.

I told Little Man. He told Husband. There was a bike ride.

A bit later, while Little Man was playing with his trucks, I quietly took Fishdy into the bathroom. I told him I was sorry, dumped him into the bowl, and flushed.

As I walked back to the kitchen, Little Man quietly said,

Mom, I know what that flush was. It was Fishdy wasn’t it?

I told him that it was and that I was very sorry that Fishdy was gone. We shared a quick hug and he went back to playing.

Fishdy’s very clean tank is sitting on my counter top. The pump is still on and the stone is still a’bubblin’.  A couple of times this week I’ve had to remind myself NOT to feed the empty bowl.

Little Man has decided he wants another fish … and a hamster.

I’m sure that there is something deep that I could say here about the frailty of life and the resiliency of childhood. I feel like I should make some commentary here – something deep that resonates with readers everywhere.

But, in the end, this is really just another story of a mom, a boy, a fish, and a flush.

Wild Horses

I live in a place where wild horses still run. It’s a beautiful thing.

The first time I saw them,  I was in awe. Looking back, I think that part of that awe had to do with the fact that I’d seen them – it was a new experience that not everyone has the privilege of seeing.

The horses aren’t always there and they aren’t always easy to see. You have to pay attention. You have to look for them. I think many of my neighbors are too busy commuting to notice them most days. Sad, really. [I really hope I'm wrong about this, by the way.]

As I began to travel the road where they can be seen daily, I started looking for them. It was as if I was looking for a sign. Something that I could hang my day on. If I saw them, my mood was instantly buoyed. The day was sure to be a good one.

I’ve been traveling that same road for some time now and I still look for the horses. I am still in awe and my mood changes instantly for the better when I see them.

I saw them today. As I scanned the horizon for more of them, I thought a bit about these amazing, beautiful creatures out in the middle of nowhere … just being.

There are loads of wild creatures around here. Most of them are of the I-wouldn’t-want-to-meet-you-accidentally variety. Most of them are members of a species that has not been domesticated.

Yet, here, on this stretch of road where a bunch of domesticated humans travel to-and-from work every day there are a bunch of wild horses … following the road less travelled.

Ironic. Wonderful.

Christmas Eve

I drove to work today while the rest of my little family was snug in their beds. I’ve got no idea what they had visions of … I’m guessing Skittles and paper given current trends!

I was crusing  (at the speed limit, thank you) through a rather barren place when the sun rose over the mountains – it was stunning. It made me smile and look forward to the day.

Christmas Eve may just be my favorite day of the year. It’s so full of anticipation and a sort of harnessed, yet unrestrained, joy. You can feel the energy of this day – a day where almost anything seems possible. A day where we wait for great things – and don’t really mind the wait.

As I think about the evening ahead, I remember the sunrise this morning. That clear, spectacular sunrise in a place that otherwise seems barren strikes me as something not-so-dissimilar to the event we celebrate tomorrow.

That thought stopped me in my tracks for a minute. How many other daily reminders do we have? How many go unseen?

So tonight, my prayer is that in the joy of celebration, we don’t forget the simple gifts … stunning beauty in unexpected places, the quiet breathing of a little one sleeping, the fellowship of friends … as we celebrate a gift beyond measure – a very small child who came to save a very big world.

Merry Christmas to all!