Spinning wheel

Now here is the tool of a lost art.  A spinning wheel used by my ancestors.  Brought from Norway to Minnesota originally back in the 1800's by the family of my great, great grandmother.  One of the ties we have to our family pioneers.

Spinning Wheel

Fast food lunch

A drink, a food basket, some meat and potatoes (or maybe a burger and fries) make for a fast food lunch--or at least the shadow of one...

Fast food lunch

Eagle Eye

A little walk on the wild side for today's image.

Eagle Eye

Simplicity

Simple but elegant.  The amaryllis that served as the subject for my January 1, 2013 post as it sprouted is now over two feet tall and ready to bloom.  Even before the blossom appears it is beautiful in its simplicity and elegance.

Simplicity

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

This image reminded me of those introductory words from the original Star Wars.  Holy cow!  It was almost 36 years ago that the movie was first released.  36 years!  Wow!  Yep, I am feeling it now.  I remember sitting in that theater in Santa Barbara, California enthralled in the movie.  What a memorable night.  I saw my first Star Wars episode and came out of the theater to see the mountain side on fire--the mountain side where I lived at the time.  We sat up the rest of the night packed and ready to evacuate while watching evacuees from above come by watching their homes burn to the ground.  What a day that was.

Anyway, hard to believe that a simple image of an aluminum cookie pan under one of my kitchen lights could open the memories stored away so long ago...

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

The slopes are calling...

There is a place out there for us.  More than just a prayer or anything you've ever dreamed of.  Yep, we are still short a lot of snow in the hills but there is enough to strap on the board or skis and carve up your own dream come true...

The slopes are calling...

Snowboarding Babe

Out of the valley pollution, high up in the mountains where the air is pure and the sky is blue.  The sun shines brightly enough to blind you.  Even my snowboarding babe daughter could not open her eyes to look at the camera.  She was living her dream though.  That's what made the entire day a glorious one!

Snowboarding babe

Morning commute begins

Hallelujah!  Another day begins.  The first day of the rest of my life.  Today will be what I make of it.  Even the nation's worst pollution hanging over our valley in this winter inversion cannot totally hide the gorgeous sunrise that starts the day.  So it is each day.  There is great stuff going on all around me and many times I have to look beyond the junk to see and appreciate it.  It is all about perspective.  Let the morning commute begin...

Morning commute begins

Dare to be different

Dare to be different.  Life is too short to be someone you don't want to be.

Dare to be different

Feeling Healthy

So far so good with my New Year's resolution of eating better--more healthy stuff and less garbage.  I have finally found the right mix of ingredients in my morning smoothie that works for me.  By the time this is mixed up (and yes, there is no question of "Will It Blend?"  It does blend!) I have a quart of smoothie to go with my scrambled eggs that are pretty much fried in coconut oil.  The smoothie doesn't look so good because of the green color from the spinach and kale.  But it does taste a whole lot better than the V8 vegetable juice I used to drink.  Maybe "I could have had a V8" but this is much healthier and better tasting to boot!  Here's hoping I can keep it up.....  Cheers!

Feeling Healthy

The half of banana was absent for the photo opp so a stand-in was created.  It finally came to the party after everything was loaded up and partially blended.

Firefly (including brief tutorial)

I did not know what to expect when I started playing with the initial capture of today's image.  After the initial cropping I just began experimenting with many of the various options available in the PhotoStudio app.  When finished the image pretty much titled itself.  I love this stuff....

Firefly

Just to provide an idea of the starting point, you can see the initial image capture straight from the camera below.  Add some cropping, cloning to remove the stem and hand, and curves work in Filterstorm. Then it was over to PhotoStudio for the color effects, vignette and framing.

Pins and Needles

Tools of the trade for the work of a quilter and seamstress all kept organized in a homemade cupcake pincushion.  

Pins and Needles

Busy day in the sewing center

I am totally lost when entering my wife's sewing "office".  I have no clue but do get to enjoy the benefits of many of her projects.  I use my creative juices to fuel my iphoneography passion while she produces worthwhile tangible products.  Today she will even take a break and alter some new pants for me.  What a woman!

Busy day in the sewing center

Quilter's Workshop

While my passion includes iPhoneography, one of my wife's passions is quilting.  She loves to piece together fabric and create all kinds of artistic designs which get memorialized into quilts.  At least her hobby produces something tangible that is used and remembered for years on end.  I happened to venture into her "office" and find a few images of work in process.  This is one.

Quilter's Workshop

You are the star today

You are the star of the show today.  Make your performance worthy of a standing ovation.

You are the star today

Let's see you try it...

So you think it is easy?  Let's see you try climbing out of a glass with vertical glass walls three times your height.  So if you are six feet tall the glass walls would need to be eighteen feet tall.  No so easy anymore is it?  Maybe Joe just keeps his mutant powers hidden from the rest of us...

Let's see you try it...

Well worn

Oh those long past days of youth when life was footloose and fancy-free.....  My little granddaughter is smack in the middle of those years now.  She lives life to its fullest and collapses in exhaustion at the end of each day.  No time for shoes when life is happening so fast and movement never slows down.  A pair of flip-flops is about all that find her feet most of the time when she is not barefoot.

Well Worn

Colorful footwear

Girls have all the color when it comes to footwear.  At least at our house where we had five females and only two males in our day.  The boys, we are happy with white, blue, black, gray and tan.  The girls, well that is an entirely different story.  The combinations are endless.  Especially in today's high school fashion world where one of the favorites is to wear bright colored socks that do not match.  Shoot, with that methodology one can put on her socks in the dark and it does not matter what she gets.

Colorful footwear

Sun comes out at last...

It was a long few days of overcast skies, cold temperatures and lots and lots of snow.  The inversion layer of pollution is gone, there is white stuff everywhere and it will be 0.0 degrees F tonight.  All is good though as the sky is now blue and the sun has come back.

Sun comes out at last...

Neither rain, sleet nor snow, the mail must go!

Neither rain, sleet nor snow, the mail must go!  No matter the postman's creed, sometimes they just need a little assistance.

Neither rain, sleet nor snow....(with some assistance)

Nightly commute

Driving home from work.  This was the day before the big storm.  It's bad enough to drive and snap a picture on a nice day but it will not happen on a blizzard day.  Not that I work really late either, it is just the season of short days during the winter now.

Nightly commute

Morning Drive

The broken con trail basked in the early morning sunlight made this drive to the office view a better-than-normal sight.  Enough so that I had to grab my iPhone and snap this image through the windshield.  Headed for a good day.

Morning Drive

Let the chips fall where they may

The chips are going to fall where they may.  The real question is "What are I going to do about it?"  I cannot control where they fall but I can control my reaction and myself.  In fact, about the only person I can control is myself.  So, no more complaining... Just get with it and deal with the chips where ever they fall... Right now I think I will just eat them!  Problem solved!  Bring it on!

Let the chips fall where they may

On the cutting edge...

Joe and I fancy ourselves as always being on the cutting edge of many things in different aspects of our lives. This time Joe has outdone me and has gone a little too far for me...  The closest I have ever come, and ever want to come, is when I used to ride my road bike for exercise and spend hours and miles on a hard, skinny seat not too much wider than the edge of a butcher knife.  You've got me on this one Joe!

On the cutting edge...

Cold and Lonely

Yep, it is the dead of winter.  A sure sign around these parts is the winter inversion--cold air trapped in the valley by warmer air at higher altitudes.  This trapped air fills with pollution and particles in the air and the cold gets colder--it will be only 8 degrees F tonight.  Not a time for playing in the park or even breathing deeply when outside.  The cure--head up to the ski resorts at higher altitude for clear skies, refreshing mountain air and our world-famous Utah snow.

Cold and Lonely

Lonely Tree

Cold spell!  No one at the park when the outside temperature is only a cool 10 degrees (F).  Not that I blame them.  I think the smart ones are at the ski resorts enjoying our famous Utah snow.

Lonely Tree

Well Worn Classics

Cleaning up around the house.  Sat down and noticed this pile of well worn classics.  I thought to myself, this is me to my kids and grandkids--classics from a different era well worn with age and use.  My youngest daughter puts it a different way whenever she finds herself home with her parents instead of out with her friends--she'll text her friends "...another night with the old folks..."

Well Worn Classics

Many hands make for light work

There are often days when I could use a few more hands to take care of tasks at hand.  How about you?

I don't know the story behind this Chinese figure and am too lazy even to look up the Wikipedia version of the story, but when I say this in a local Chinese restaurant, I had a personal connection.  I could use some extra hands with some home projects on my New Year's list.  Of course, if I had some extra hands I guess I would also need some extra pockets too....

Many hands make light work

Born to Fly

A neighbor of mine just recently completed his six year project of toil and love.  He now is the proud papa to this little two-seat airplane that he hand built rivet-by-rivet.  He did most of the work in his garage, not needing hanger space until he finally put on the wings.  The paint job was done after getting 40 hours of flying time--enough to certify it to carry a passenger.  Great job Richard!

Born to Fly

Inside Story

Joe is on the case.  His latest investigation--what is the inside story on this whole smoothie craze.  He is on location in his stake out position now...

Inside Story

New Beginnings

Time for new beginnings.  Today is the first day of the rest of your life.  A time to reflect, to set new goals, to refocus on the best instead of just the good or the better.

What are you going to do with your new year?

Happy New Year to all!

New Beginnings