More Ireland pages

A few more pages from my Ireland scrapbook- day 1-the rest of the days aren't done yet.

Some pages from my Ireland Scrapbook

Take a look at these!

Finally, photographed my Ireland book that I finished several weeks ago. Here's a few.

Which should I buy?

I am thinking of buying some stamps (what's new?) and want to get some more Oxford Impression plates- finish up the collection of the ones I haven't bought but would like.

Here are the ones I'm considering:

They are $24 each- and I could splurge and order

all 3 since I worked 15 hours last week and sold $76 worth of stamps on my eBay clean-out- with more to come. But, I am trying to be good- maybe buy 1 at a time. Hmm- the tea looks like one I would more use in the winter, the schoold days one reminds me of going back to work and so that leaves Cowgirl blues...but I have no western projects planned where I might use them.

What do you think?

Check out Oxford Impressions for yourself to see all their great stamps if you're not familar with them.

summer reading-so far

Not even done a week and have I been reading. (Of course, working at the boat ramp and having zero or so few boats means I have a lot of reading time):

Finished Cross Country- loved the book but the ending was lacking a bit
The BookSeller of Kabul- don't want to go or live there- the type of book made it hard to follow a lot of each person's life- but was a fascinating view into life there
The Good Earth by Pearl Buck- enjoyed this a lot, another fascinating view of life in another time and another place
working on Flushed by W. Hodding Carter- fast read- interesting view of plumbing
Mixed Media Mosaics by Laurie Mika- great ideas, see my other entry

More to say

OK, went to see a good movie today: Waitress. http://http://www.foxsearchlight.com/waitress/

Enjoyed it, though it made me a bit sad too, how she says she and her baby are going to have years of fun, and that's Katie and me- but now she's off all afternoon with her boyfriend and this volunteer job... what was I thinking? I know- we are working only 2 days a week- Friday and Saturdays- and its not a bad job in any way shape or form, but its the last summer before she's 16 and probably working and our time with her home and not driving and not working isn't going to last forever- so short in fact I can see the end in site- our last summer to hang out...no, I tell myself, its not, things change but they still stay good and all ages have their good times and their good things...but just that maybe we should have just hung out this summer- not given up 2 days- why did I say 2? I could have said 1, which may have been a better fit to giving her a bit to do and still giving us time. I know, its the movie that put me in this frame of mind, and the fact work started today, and I just found out we are now regulary on Friday and Saturdays, and no one is home but me and the critters right now, and Katie rushed off to spend all afternoon with her boyfriend- which is ok, but I'm in this mood, and then I say- well at least this week I will make $150 dollars to read and check a few boats... and its not like its all day...

OK, I am saying this to feel better and to some extent its helping...plus Friday and Saturday is good since we have 5 consequetive days to hang out...and with Dave around Saturday its no biggie...augh! But part of me is happy about it too.

Start of summer

Start of summer today at 2:06 p.m.- wow. Start of our job as a Lake Host today. Hope its a good job! Certainly keeping weeds out of lakes is a valuable thing, and I am looking forward to it.

Had book club the other day- always is fun to get together but we 've been having an issue getting together regularly- not sure if a schedule will work- am thinking about quitting after all these years but still like to see the people I don't usually see and to get out occasionally with the girls.

Speaking of books-this one- Mixed Media Mosiacs by Laurie Mika is awesome. My order from Amazon came the other day and it inspired me to make clay tiles yesterday. See my other photos for my tiles, stamps and general mess. Always made beads when I played with clay, and this is so much fun- spent the whole morning yesterday making these awesome tiles- still want to paint and metalicisized them...another day when I have play time. Maybe put together one of those awesomemosiacs she shows in her book- check them out. Highly recommended.

Later- it now 1:30 PM, home from day one of work- only had 3 boats so did quite a bit of reading and talked with a boy who wandered over, he was a pretty smart kid. Dropped Katie off in Wolfeboro for her afternoon-evening appointment, and now I am here by myself- til someone comes homes which might be pretty late since Dave in Westfield, MA. Right now I need a nap, but then will decided what to do...

Maybe a movie, maybe scrap book, maybe paint tiles...

LAST DAY OF SCHOOL FOR THE SUMMER

No kids, teacher meeting- should be done by 11 (I think). Then its summer. Time for a break and to live my other life- my New Durham life I should say- home, crafting, reading-having lots of summer fun!!!

I love summer vacation! Still!

Bike Week 2007

http://www.laconiamcweek.com/

Its Laconia Bike week 2007. Thanks to the official web site for the photo. Last night I was out in the hot tub about 9:30 and all you could hear was the bikers out on route 11. They are everywhere today- and a gorgeous day for them. I wish Dave had a bike for this week-since it is in our back yard practically, maybe one day- maybe once Katie's all grown up.

Took Dave out to dinner for Father's Day- and going past the Harley shop in Rochester and they had this sign- I love it. Made Dave turn around and go back so I could shoot it.

Of course my Harley is a bit different from the biker, though that's what he's named after- since he was this big black puppy, his tail dragging on the ground at 6 months, his paws huge, and Dave was turning 40 and wanted me to get him a Harley for his birthday- so I did- just that Katie and I wanted another dog... he's my favorite Harley- baby-boy puppy!

Almost over! and Next scrap project!

Its almost summer vacation! One more day of kids- really only 1 more half day! At 11:22, they go off to summer vacation and I can finish up. And after probably 11 on Monday- I will be off for 10 weeks- more or less. What a great thought!

Next scrap book project- last summer's vacation. Time to do Bryce Canyon! Here's Dave and Katie at the sign. Bryce was a last minute decision. We had a room at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, and it was just morning so we had time. The sign at the end of the road out of Zion said:

Bryce Canyon 60 miles (to the left) and The North Rim was 120 miles to the right. Dave didn't want to do the trip up to Bryce, but I convinced him and off we went for a few hours. It was worth it too.

Check out some other photos I will scrap.

(And yes, once I take photos of the Ireland pages I finished I will post them too.)

This Weekend

A list of my weekend!

• 
  1- Went to see Shrek 3- fun time- with my friend Vicky and our 2 girls (Katie and Katie)
• 
  2- Spent Saturday morning vaccing, doing laundry and getting the veggie garden up and set- just before the rain arrived
• 
  3- Got the cards made I needed for family and friend's graduation and birthdays
• 
  4- Went to a retirement party for one of my co-workers for a little while
• 
  5- Went out to dinner with some co-workers and Dave, Katie and her friend Nick
• 
  6- Got to Trader Joe's (need a store closer to us)
• 
  7- Got some more screen doors to replace the ones that aren't holding up on our screen porch
• 
  8- Bound my first Ireland book
• 
  9- Went to Dave's niece's high school graduation party
• 
  10- Walked this morning
• 
  11- Tried to squeeze in some relax time
• 
  12- Now need to get ready for school tomorrow (last week!) and did get my review sheets for the final typed up

Great reads

Ok, today I book do reviews. Bought a bunch of books lately- getting ready for summer and feeling antsy to spend some money.

• Fabric Leftovers-This is a great craft book if you are a fabric addict. She has some fun ideas to use up your scraps like cute purses and beads and tassles to name a few. Its very collage style- which appeals to me. All you need for some of these projects is some cloth rug backing and your sewign machine. I need to go check Joanne's Fabrics of Portsmouth Fabric store (a dreamy place) to see if I can find some for fun summer purse projects. PLus there's cloth flowers and other bags! Its a good jump start book to let your own creativity take you far. Check it out!
• Also bought the Micheal deMeng book- The Secret of Rusty Objects. Although I can't see me doing a lot of these projects, it got great tips for using those yard sale treasures. Its also a beautiful book and worth a read if you're into the art scene. I haven't finished my purusing of this book yet, but I don't regret buying it- so it may be exactly what you would like. Check it out!

• Now the travel bug side of me. 1,000 Places to See Before You Die, USA and Canada. The first book- 1,000 Places to See Before You Die- was good, but so big it seems to often only cover really obvious spots. It was a fun read/skim book, and although if you travel you know there are many hidden treasures these books can't list. But the USA and Canada book, being more specific, is really good and really hits lots of the top spots. Definately recommend!
  
• 
  Undiscovered America- 250 Places you might have missed by Don and Betty Woo Martin is also a fun book. It mentions some popular places, but mentions also those places that everybody doesn't go to (or didn't before the book) that are really worth it- even Bangor, Maine and some of the Museums at my alma mater-UMO.
  
• 
  Lastly- I am reading Cross Country by Robert Sullivan and I am really loving this book. Its about driving home to NY from Oregon in 5 days, but making a few stops at unique and interesting places. Its also recounting other cross country trips, both by the author and people like Emily Post (way back when and now I want to get and check out this book)). Its not neccesarily a get to know this family really well book, but I feel like I know them well enough in a broad sterotypical sense to smile a lot, and I really enjoy the way Sullivan hones in on the "issues" of a big road trip- food, the radio, how long you stay at places, rain, packing, car rentals...etc. I also know some places I now want to explore that I didn't know existed or weren't high on my to visit list before. Its not a heavy read- and its making me want to do a big road trip- (I love road trips- love riding in the car- maybe explains why I drive 45 minutes each way to work each day).
  
  That's my book reviews for now! Happy Reading all- whatvere you chose.
  
  

Good intentions

Had some time at school whole the kids did computer work today, so I decided to come up with some lists for the summer. I love writing lists, not that I do everything on them- and sometimes I don't even make any headway into the list. But these summer lists- they give me ideas to contemplate and a place to jar some life into the occasional blank brain. Here's my lists:

• 
  1) Books I would like to and may even read.
• 
  2) Books I have started reading and would like to and may even finish.
• 
  3) "House work" I would like to and may even do.
• 
  4) Movies I would like to and may even rent and watch.
• 
  5) Road trip adventures I would like to and may even take.
• 
  6) Summer activities I would like to and may even actually do.
• 
  7) Art projects I may play with, and would like to even finish- like a few of those scrap books.
  
  

Now some of these lists are quite long, but I will give you the short forms, the must try to do, the list I can look back to to get started on my lists:


1) books to read: Flushed, The Hot Zone, re-read Great Expectations




2) books to finish- see under my night stand and on the windowsill next to my bed




3) "house work"- my bed quilt to finish, touch out paint in my bedroom, clean the cabinet under the living room bookshelf, stain the decks, clean out the freezer
(why is that list so long?)




4)Movie to watch- some of those foreing films (can never spell that word), some of those artsy films all which have names that escape me




5)Road trips- this is a LONG list but the top ones I would like to do- A duck tour of Boston, the Isabella Stewart Garnider Museum, Rubber Stamps of America, etc., etc.

6) Summer activites- Kayak more than 2x, go to east of Suez to eat, spend lots of beach time




7) art projects- get back into knitting, do some fun cloth books, make bags and cards to sell, catch up on some scrapping, make supplies like dyed fabric, soldered tags, etc.




Check with me at the end of August to see how many got done and to see how crazy I got at the end of the summer trying to do some of the things on those lists.

Thursday- as the week winds down-sort of

Ok, been plugging away to finish the first of my Ireland scrap books- so I can photo and display here- (well really am so close to being done and want to get into a few other projects as a change of pace, but since I am so close I can't just put the project aside to whenever I get back to it) but still the final page eludes me. Think I have just a few more pages to go- always seems the last pages of on of my scrap books (I am a story teller by nature- no- I am a novel writer by nature) never quite seem to happen. But they will-SOON! Then I am going to do a few other projects I have sketched out and will get back to some more scrap booking in the near future.

My pre-ordered Hero Arts stamps at Stamping Online are in- must pay for those so I can get them to play with!!!. All Stamping Online carries is Hero Arts stamps- and they make some pretty nice stamps. I'm not into the cutesy ones, but they always manage to make a few I just have to have- like several other stamping lines I can name but won't bore you with my list.

Speaking of lists- I am ordered some used travel guides for New England off of Amazon. Have lived here all my life, but I know there's lots of places I haven't visited or played tourist at, so think this summer if Ican make a day or 2 I shall have to take a road trip or several. I love road trips! They are such adventures. Anyhow- shall make a list of those places I want to visit in N.E. I haven't visited and will start working my way through it. What I hope is I find some places that are on my usual travel routes, those occassional road trips I make anyhow- like to LL Beans in Freeport, ME or on my way to visit Mom in Worcester, MA. so I can spice up those rides a bit. Never mind, maybe find some exciting visits in my museum a month project.

Alright, so I am a bit eccentric.

Speaking of road trips, this Saturday is the annual sale at Keepsakes Quilting in Center Harbor. The sale is actually tomorrow and Saturday- but tomorrow is the tent for serious supplies like fabric bolts, and Saturday is fat quarters day- which is what I drool over. That and scraps, love digging through scrap piles for those sensuous fabric pieces. Not that I need any fabric of any kind except maybe something gorgeous like velvet, but it is only once a year, and I am looking forward to going, have been for several weeks now, and its suppose to be a cloudy cool day- PERFECT!

A couple more garden shots as my irises and a few other flowers are in bloom...

Little brown bat

Here's a photo thanks to NH Fish and Game and the internet. Last night we had a bat in the house, which Leo spotted (well Leo eyeballed something but being a cat- it could have been anything from a moth to a mouse), I heard it trying to get out the screen on the skylight, and Katie spotted. (Twice, the first time she thought it was a big moth). Of course we didn't know it was a bat until katie saw it and recognized it. She comes into my room and says so matter-of-factly "There's a bat in my room." I tell her to close the door to her room, and then I decided to go in and open her windows so the bat can fly out. Now I'm not scared of bats- they swoop around otuside while we use hot tub and I don't even flinch, but this one was crawling out from under her door into the hall. Not what I expected in any way! I screamed and ran into my room, slamming the door. "Dave- get the net."

"Why me?"

"You're the animal man."

With Leo as the tracker, he eventually got the bat in a fishing net in my studio. It was stunned when he let it go, but this morning there was no bat to be found outside. I hope it flew off eventually. In the NH Fish and Game website it said these bats can live for 20-30 years and eat 50% of their body weight a night in insects- like those mosquitoes that are everywhere right now.

Of course, my screaming scared big old 90 pound Harley to death, and he sat on the couch with Katie and myself as we waited for Dave to make his catch, shaking, and then once caught and we were going to bed, Harley went outside and wouldn't come back in. I had to pull him by his collar. Poor baby boy. And Katie who was so calm earlier decided she had to sleep on our floor- just in case the bat was still around which he wasn't...

Wish I could be calm and not a screamer, and I'm ok afterwards because I will pull my courage together, but that initial unexpected action is what sets me off...

That was our Adventure at home at 10 p.m. on the Memorial day Monday!

More garden photos

Spend the morning out in the sun doing my container gardening out on the deck- now that they are done it is really summer. Today was beautiful-82 degrees but low humidity- and the week is suppose to be nice! I am so enjoying this weather.

Didn't quite finish Ireland book 1- I did a bunch of scrapping yesterday but today I gardened, grocery shopped, watched an old Naked Gun movie and took a nap. Enjoyed that.

Here's a few more photos of how the yard is shaping up.

Garden day

Today was gorgeous- though maybe not perfect sun all day but it was a work day- in the garden. Love to garden. Weeding, planting, thinning, bark - I worked hard most of the day but its looking great.

Here's a few photos both old and new of my gardens!

Getting Ready for Pirates 3

Ok, so I will admit it, I am a Johnny Depp fan. Watching Pirates 2- got to refresh my memory since I haven't seen this movie since last winter. Got to catch up so I can be really ready for number 3. If I didn't have to work tomorrow and if I wasn't so tired from our 90 degree weather (got to love it since the humidity is low), I'd go tonight to an early showing at 8. Guess Katie and I will have to go tomorrow after work/school- that is if Dave doesn't want to join us.

Was reading the reviews, not the best- but that's ok, it should be fun- and hopefully they don't try to do everything like Spider Man 3 did (Spiderman: get rid of the Sandman- especially since they changed the story of the uncle's death and that was old from movie 1- didn't need addressing in my opinion).

OK, so favorite Johnny Depp flicks-where I can actually gaze onto him-of course

My #1 Johnny Depp film: The 9th Gate

Then we will add, but not neccesarily in order since the next 3 are all pretty close to call-

Chocolat

Pirates

Secret Window

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Sleepy Hollow

Benny and Joon

Edward Scissorhand

I know I'm missing a few that are not hopping into my head right now, but this is a good start at least. The 9th Gate is a favorite, great story, a bit gothic/a bit spooky, chance to see some of Europe in glimpses, which is topper with me right now, has books in it-which of course books are GREAT...

Today and the last few days

Today is Wednesday- waiting to see who takes the American Idol final. Jordan I hope, though Melinda was my favorite and she left last week.

So haven't mentioned I am going to work a few mornings this summer- I am going to be a Lake Host, check boats for invasive weeds. Should be an interesting way to make a few $$$ to play with, a couple of mornings a week should be enough. Feel like its a great way to help the local environment, make some cash, not kill myself with too many hours.

Speaking of summer: Countdown to vacation-16 days of kids, 1 work day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I love summer. I have lots of art ideas- more bags to make, more scrapping for all those hundreds of photos I have from Ireland, Bryce and the Grand Canyon, try to come up with a stash of cards, work on a book I want to make called Bella Luna, who knows what else may come into my head. Ready for some adventure, long days, reading lots of books...some day trips...this list can go on and on. Plus, not getting up at 4:30 a.m., even on the days I do my Lake Hosting Job.

Also it obvious I haven't had much art to post lately- seems like I have been taking a hiatus for a few too many weeks. Not that I haven't done anything- been working on Ireland photos, started an Ireland scrap book, and of course my journal from the trip. Got some card ideas I want to play with, and a new cloth book idea that combines geometrics and sealife...hmmm... but hopefully once all the yard work gets squared away and once all the end of the school year work gets wrapped up, I will get some photos and start posting more.

Here's a photo from last summer when we went on our vacation in August.

I love these 2 guys in the photo above- 2 ravens, which were just sitting there on a rock wall in Bryce National Park. They were watching me, and let me take several photos of them. I feel some great Halloween ideas for art projects coming on...never mind the Bryce Canyon scrap book I someday need to do.

Ok this blog tonight is rather random and jumping about, but that's kind of where my head is at...waiting for all the blab of the first 1 hour and 50 minutes of American idol to end...responding to an email about summer work, thinking about summer...what do they call this? Spontaneous Journaling?

A few hours later

And feeling perkier- more in the positive- ready to face the day. Between being tired and feeling stress over things I don't need to be stressed over-I do feel that summer opportunities are nice but NOT something people should feel pressured to do- by who ever for whatever reasons.

Helps to talk to someone and come to the realization it can be ok to say NO.

One of those mornings

I know everyone has those mornings on occassion- when you hate your job and having to be there. I want to do something different- I want to be able to do my art and have work be just work- NOT a CAREER. I have been teaching for 22 years now and I think it is enough. Things are just not working for me in a lot of ways. Problem is I expect too much from myself.


Can I just put in for a leave of absence? I will need to work but let Dave take care of the main things instead of me. I am tired of that. I don't have excitement for here now. What could I do instead? HMMMMM. I am careered out right now. I am thinking it is time- that the moment is now to go and make a change.

I wish I knew what. I am tired of feeling this way and this was suppose to be just atemporary hold over- yet it turned into a long temporary 22 years...not so temporary- time to find what it is I am suppose to do and what I can do that won't drive me constantly crazy and will get me off high blood pressure meds and give me some not so scheduled time- I am so tired of always a bell every 90 minutes...

I know- whine, whine, whine, but sometimes I just feels really good to whine.

Still playing with photos from Ireland

From the cliffs beyond Giant's Causeway.

Daulkey coast.
and then Cashel. From from inside looking out.

More of from our hike at Giant's Causeway and at Powerscourt Gardens. Of course, I played a bit.

I love it. I get to keep reliving the trip. Am still playing with photos in Photoshop Elements. Printed off a bunch- have gone through most of the cartridges of my first purchase of computer ink- need to get some more so I can print off another 30 pages. Here's a few more favorites that I really like.

Salem,MA

Had a fun day out yesterday with my friend Vicky. We went to Salem, Mass to the Peabody Essex Museum. I haven't been to Salem for ages, since before Katie was born- and she's 15. Maybe even longer. There are some very pretty parts and gorgeous old homes, and I loved the Peabody-Essex Museum. We went to the Chinese House which was fascinating and they have an interesting maritime art collection and items brought over in the old trading/whaling days of the 1800's. Didn't see the whole collection-will have to go back sometime and see some more.

Went to see the Josepj Cornell Exhibit there. His boxes are fascinating- and I enjoy them- though the whole exhibit also puts him somewhat into perspective. It made him appear a dark and slightly troubled man. I don't know if that's true, as I don't know much about him, but he had quite the sense of humor and seemed to spend a lot of time alone. I suppose an artist must in order to get work done...They had some of his tools, and photos of his boxes and storage- I can only imagine what his house looked like inside. The plain collage art wasn't overall as appealing as his boxes, and I picked up several themes. It wasn't as "fun" an exhibit as I hoped, but it made me think and respond, so that is good, and what some people what say- isn't that art?

Had a great time chatty with Vicky about Minders, Finders and Grinders- I am a minder- which bothers me. I don't have the best self image, and I want to be this wild adventurous person when I guess in a lot of ways I'm not. Minders take care of things, Finders go out and discover and start things, and Grinders are folks who get the work done. I take myself way too seriously sometimes. Anyh0w, Vicky mentioned some books on architecure which sounded interesting- you know, tickle the cerebral. I can't remember the names but am going to look them up on Amazon.

Was a fun today- especially since I didn't have to go to work. Today is a gorgeous Saturday morning- want to get that screen porch opened up!

Do art- that's a great way to spend the weekend.

the museum a month project

Tomorrow I am going to see Joseph Cornell Boxes at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, MA. I am so excited.

Remember my year's project, a museum a month- a few museums a month in some cases . To recap- in January I went to Harvard Natural History Museum, February- the Credit Union Museum of America, March-I saw 3! The Museum of Fine Arts Boston Paris Fashion Week Exhibit, The Darwin Exhibit at the Science Museum, and a field trip to the Aquarium. April- Back to the Harvard Natural History Museum on a field trip, and then all those places in Ireland- were they really museums? Lost of ruins, Cathedrals that might as well be museums, (Ireland was a trip about walking outside and seeing various historic buildings/ruins).

Tonight Katie and I went on a shopping adventure- really fun and nice change of pace. Got some shorts and some new short sleeve V necks at Eddie Bauer- great for our summer weather1

Fill you in on my adventure tomorrow.

BLACK FLIES

Finally some gorgeous very warm but not humid weather- and what has appeared in major droves- BLACK FLIES!!! There are billions of them out there- swarming all over the car and all over me if I step outside.

Owl

Was on the phone when Dave called out to check out the owl outside the front window. Wow! Took some photos quickly while chatting and through the glass- since I didn't want to open the window and scare her/him away. In fact when she did fly away- there was another owl a few trees down that flew off too. Wow! Wasn't even dark at that time.

New Header

Playing around with headers since I was tired of the canned one from this web site. Not sure I love the one I have- but I like it. What I really need up there is a piece of art, but its all part of the leaning curve. Also playing with my name- BioGal or BioArtGal. Not sure which is better since I am such a split personality- 1/2 of me is so scientific-biological- half of me is a sensitive artist- looking for beauty. Actually I think the biology part is that I love nature and how it works- but I am very visual- which makes something like natural history so appealing to me. Not exactly a small detail scientist though- that doesn't make me happy. However- my art is more about small details- isn't that strange? As I get older I am definately getting more artistic in temperment and getting more and more visual- or maybe its doing all the art that is just bringing out my visual sense. Anyhow, I love to analyse, and suppose I could be doing my work here at school rather than that. But I am so renewed inside right now- started up a project yesterday after work- scrap booking some of my Ireland photos. I love my scrap booking- its more like making a story book- and my style is NOT 12 x 12 paper or all the latest stickers. I love paint, photos, writing- the details to be complete. I think me work is definately me- rough, a bit messy but bursting with stories. (Do I give myself too much credit?) I love to make my pages more textured and 3D- though someday I will perfect the layering technique. It feels so good to have something up and going again- since in April I seemed to sink into a late winter hole- then the trip came and that consumed me so I really did very little new art that month. Now I'm back on a roll- Ireland pictures, Bryce, Grand Canyon and Chicago need to be printed or turned into a book. I am really antsy to get back into sewing too- haven't done a sewing book since December and the quilt I started needed to be backed and finished. Oh the ideas are flowing like some of the rivers around here after the big storm a few weeks back- flooding every recess of my head.

Summer Weather!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Today 70's, tomorrow 80's. Finally some nice weather. Everything is greening up and popping out- my daffodils look great, the weeping cherry tree is in bloom. Time to pull down the screen windows, put up the storm windows, take the plastic off the screen porch, change the clothes in the closet, wash down the lawn furniture...man this nice weather is a lot of work.

But who's complaining?

30 Days of school left!!!!!!! (Then I get to be an artist full time for the summer- well, sort of full time, since everyone needs some summer to read a good book, kick back and relax.)

Week is flying by

Thursday night- watching Passport to Europe on the Travel Channel- I really love that show- wish I could hope back on a plane for another trip- even though I've been home less than a week. I have travel addiction in a major major way- even if its just driving a short distance to some place exciting. I think rather than dealing with teenagers- who drive me nuts too often- I should do my own travel show- though I think Europe is covered- and that would be a top spot for me.

Week is going fast. Put some small finishing touches on my travel journal- mainly filled the 3 pages that were empty. I had a hard time figuring out how to judge the space in the book-but did a great job keeping pages and making them varied- I should take some photos and blog them for your viewing.

Otherwise- been getting back into NH time- going through my pictures and adding some words or cropping. Its like reliving the trip again.

So commercial on tv- question- if you could drop it all for 3 months- where would you go?
My list:

1- England, Wales, Scotland
2- France
3- Barcelona
4- Back to Italy
5- West Coast of Ireland
6- Iceland
7-Prague
8-Greece
9- Siciliy, Capri
10-Maybe a quick buzz to Morocco
11- Norway, more of Sweden and Denmark
12- Brussels
13- Not to forget- Amsterdam/The Netherlands
Maybe I will find something not popping into my head right now-like do the whole continent-add Switzerland, Estonia...etc.

USA
I would do Monument Valley, Petrified Forest, Mesa Verde
Back to Vegas, then Death Valley
Grand Tetons
Key West
Charleston
Western N.C.
New Mexico
Of course back to California
Hawaii
and...
this list goes on and on

never mind Japan
Australia
New Zealand
Souht Africa

where would you like to take me-Dave?

Now the show is the Western Ireland- where we never got to unfortunately...think I'll focus on that. Goodnight.