Heron in flight

I got a new favorite shot whilst down by the dam.

{25 May 2014}

Hummingbird closeup

We found a dead hummingbird at the Goza residence.

I guess sometimes the little guys' hearts just give out.

Maybe that sugar water puts them into super hyper overdrive.

Well, this one was quite perfectly preserved. 

Its amazing these little birds can survive in storms...

they weigh so little you think they'd get blown away.

The boys and I had a nice little biology lesson. 

And a burial.

RIP, hummer.

{June 2014}

Missouri bound

Two months ago today, I headed to S.Missouri for the first time.

I woke up early, but was instructed to stay in the 'girl' section of the house till I was summonsed to appear.

So. I stayed in my section.

And outside.

The sunrise was beautiful.

The breakfast I was served when summonsed was delicious.

And then, I was off in the car with two engineers.

It was a highly entertaining and informative ride.

We stopped at the St. Louis Arch for a stretch break.

And because I'd never stopped there before.

I kinda sorta felt a little spoiled.

{29 May 2014}

TIMBER!!!

That tree there is dead.

And its tall.

And, the time has come to finally take it down.

My father got some special equipment...

And a tall ladder...

and took the branches down as far up as he could get them.

Then, this happened.

We waited, and waited...and it fell before I could get a video of the kids yelling "TIMBER!"

{April 2014}

German grub

I like to force Mex to spend hours in the kitchen

when she comes to visit.

Which may be why she won't come very often.

I know, this doesn't look like hours' worth of work. 

But what if I stretch the truth and tell you we:

~killed the pig

~ground the meat

~seasoned the meat

~stuffed the sausages into casings

~cured the meat

~grilled the meat

~grew the red cabbage

~shredded the cabbage

~picked the apples

~preserved the apple cabbage kraut

~opened the jar of kraut and ate it

~ground the flour

~made the spaetzle from scratch

(Hint: each grouping above has one true statement.)

{April 2014}

Attacked by wild animals

Warning:

When in Kiev, watch out for zebras and tigers.

They're stripey, they speak English,

their costumes may be a little ripe, 

AND: they would like to have some money.

End of warning.

{29 June 2014}

A little hike

Back this spring, Mex, Mr. P-Nut and I went on a stroll 

through uncharted territory.

This tree led to nowhere.

Plus it was rotten. 

Luckily I didn't fall in. It looks like it was chilly.

Peering over the land from whence we came.

I'm not quite sure how uncharted territory has a photo of a lake.

And a telescope.

But there you have it.

{5 April 2014}

Bonfire-o-rama

We had a very nice (and large) bonfire a few weeks back.

The moon was out. 

The culvert was echo-y.

The graveyard was not spooky. 

The countryside was fantastic.

And so was the company. 

And the food.

Dutch oven pineapple upside down cake. 

The prequel.

{11April2014}

SKA

Well, its been a full few months.

But work isn't too exciting to write about.

If I look hard enough, there may be a few photos of a few exciting events.

And they may show up eventually.

But here and now...

I must share last weekend with you.

It was beauteous.

It was gorgeous.

It was a little hard on the arms.

 The kayak shop on wheels.

 Paddling to the dam. 

We conquered the portage...thanks to Mex's guide skills.

{10 May 2014}

Cozumel

Once upon a time, 4 slightly awkward people decided

to go on a vacation together.

The unifying factor: the desire to dive.

(and perhaps some underlying nerdiness.)

 Coal miner, Accountant, Musician and Farmer on our one beach day.

(Our occupations are based solely on the looks of our feet, 

and assigned arbitrarily.)

 So, other than hanging out on the beach for only one afternoon,

We did lots of dive training

Diving

Eating tacos

Dune buggy riding

Eating tacos

Walking through town

Snorkeling

One small hike

Eating pizza

Yoga

Making large breakfasts

Wishing we knew some French

Playing card games

Avoiding McDonalds

(except when sneaking out late at night!)

Giggling inside about our resident L.O.L. smoking and playing computer games at the outdoor table.

Soaking in the sun.

 Underwater, we saw lots of fish.

Many kinds of coral.

Eels.

Mini jellyfish.

Crazy divers.

A shipwreck.

And best of all:

The Atlantis submarine, full of other tourists.

We may have done some somersaults and cartwheels...

and I think I saw someone try to moon them.

 David was a great dive instructor and guide. 

Lucky him: he got to spend many hours with this group during the 5 days we were there.

 Spontaneous dune buggy riding.

The consensus: Tons of fun!

If there's any such thing as too much time in the water,

the guys may have gotten it this trip.

Next time, though, they'll have their certification cards and can dive when and if they want!

It was a great time with good people.

In my humble opinion.

PS. Diver theme song
http://youtu.be/m2DLZkv4Yvg

{7-12 March 2014}

Snow tube!

Oh yes, we did.

{February 2014}

Weekend projects

Near total destruction--just to replace the headlights!

 Wall-hanging....after nearly 6 months.

Sock organization...yes, I may be stretching the 'project' definition.

Aren't they pretty, though?

{February 2014}

New Year, good food

This woman knows how to cook up some gooood meat.



And sides, too!

 

Yes, when you visit Mex in Michigan,

you can pretty much plan to eat well.

This was only one delicious meal.

We also stuffed ourselves on lots of eggs,

piled rice krispy treats,

and curry chicken....

all of which were quite delicious.

 

{1 January 2014}

Fish Stick

The great fisherman.

Them fish just jump onto the sticks!

 

{March 2013}

River Walk

Yesterday was a beautiful day in Muscatine.

So I went for a walk along the river.

And took my camera along for good measure.

 Lots of other people had the walk idea.

Or run.

Or ride.

But I was the only one I saw out shooting eagles.

 Ba gawk!

 Shreik!

Find the eagles in this photo.

 

{28 December 2013}

Giant Mark Twain

Giant Mark got a little addition on Friday.

 

Yes, his neck looked a little cold in that big entryway.

 Putting that scarf up wasn't all that easy...

Giant Mark is aptly named.

 

He needed to be dusted,

fluffed,

and finally dressed.

Even the tallest ladder wasn't quite tall enough.

So, thank goodness for convenient balconies,

good balance,

long broomhandles,

and clothes hooks.

 

The goal was to make the scarf about 12' long.

Even with last minute speed knitting and long fringes,

I think the total length ended up being somewhere around 10'.

It made a good serape, too.

 

{December 2013}



Sleying the Reed

Today, I played with the loom.

Threading these warp threads through the reed

is called sleying.

It slays me.

(Talk about ancient sayings.)

And here she is all ready to go.

Weaving the weft into the warp.

That's the next step.

Its like learning a whole 'nother language.

 

{15 November 2013}

GUAM

When Marvis invited me to go to Saipan with her, I wasn't quite sure what to think.

Nor did I know where it was.

Nor did I know we'd get to see Guam, Saipan AND Narita Japan.

And get the special priveledge of meeting so many fabulous people. 

The view from our hotel room in Guam.

It was a short, sweet stay.

The coral in this bay is very very sharp.

The current is very very strong.

Why yes, I did get beached on sharp coral while snorkeling.

 This group worked hard to feed us.

Photos galore at the end of convention.

We headed off to Saipan that same night...

it was hard to leave Guam after even 2 and a half days!

 

{March 2013}

Meyowl

 

I try not to be pet-obsessed,

but sometimes this cat of mine is pretty cute.

(And yes, sometimes she's pretty obnoxious, too.)

 

{February 2013}

San Francisco on my mind

 

In January of this year, I got to go to San Francisco.

And I got to see this lovely couple.

And their adorable offspring.

My honorary nephew got to have his first co-ed sleepover.

And he didn't even cry much when I shared his closet!

Amazing, considering that Mom and Dad had JUST stopped responding

to every peep one week before.

{January 2013}