Happy New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!
alas, the New Year is upon us. it's New Year's Eve and I'm stayin' home and rockin', if I rock at all....lol....just came in from outside wearing my sandals WITH SOCKS and my toes are cold. I was reminded of last week this time in Old Town with friends when it was below 30degrees and we saw a Monk, we presumed, wearing his sandals with no socks. I have no clue how he did that as cold as it was. Nor any clue of the guy I saw only 2 days later when it was 20 degrees outside and he was in his shorts and sandals, no socks.....brrrrrr. I wonder if these 2 guys are orginally from the North Pole or something. but to each their own beat, their own drummer. just too damn cold for me with clothes on, let alone barefoot......lol
...anyways, I'm bringing the New Year quietly as usual. I'll probably be snugged in my bed upon its arrival. today I've been draggin' ass all day in part due to the slightest hangover from a TALL beer @ happy hour with friends last night. we drank as the snow fell again leaving a few inches that stayed with us today. the norm for here is it snows, then melts within a few hours; however, the weather has been COLD more consistantly than the norm for our winters. the snow is beautiful and still knot enough in the city to cause any harm, thank goodness. but I'm ready for our usual mid 40s-50s highs to return. makes winter easier to live with. but for now, I stay cuddled in my hovel with a book and my doggies. Life is still Good in the slow lane.....
...here's Hoping you have a wonderful and grand New Year!

new template

alas, a new template for my blog. did this after reading Julia's journal this morn just to see if I'd want a different image going into the New Year. so how do you like it? I'm really partial to the old one, Minima Dark, with the black background but will try this look for awhile anyways. we'll see how long I keep it.....lol
...anyways, still taking Life in the slow lane. will be headed out to see sum movies in a few days. Avatar is first on the list. then possibly Sherlock Holmes, Invictus or Blind Side. has anyone seen these movies yet? I've heard good things about at least 3 of the 4 here. I'll know in time. I know me and my love for books nowadays. let's see if the movies can live up to their hype for me. in the meantime, I'm on my third book in less than 2 weeks. nice change of pace to really relax and knot worry about work. been asking how soon could i really retire from all work, woodn't that be the luxury...ha! hmmm, maybe sooner than later. let's see how life unfolds for me this coming new year. it's a good life nonetheless. I am in the slow lane compared to my postal days of old. I am very grateful for that....
....in the meantime, I got a new cell phone. knot that i really needed a new phone, but the ads in my email finally caught my attention. but i Love this new phone. it has a keyboard for one. lots easier to type text messages with it and i have 2 people at least i text often, very often. my phone i've learned also talks to me when someone calls or texts me. it says, 'get your phone...then it says the name(s) of who's calling or texting'. didn't understand what it was saying at first, but finally caught it. after it says all that, then it starts ringing. whoa..technology! but one of the bigger changes here, is i finally feel like i've got a phone in my hand...lol...the other was soooo small. needless to say, I'm happy I spent the extra $100 for the phone plus accessories. Life is Good all the time right now. let's hope it continues for the New Year!

bingo!....lights!

i think i figured it out.....
i went down the street here from my hovel to try shootin' the lights again. much better results this time. b4 going, i played around with the shutter speed AND the aperture. whew i tell you, Manual on this digital camera sure is different than the old SLR. first there are a few missing low shutter speeds. but with the adjustment of the aperture, it compensated what i needed to capture the lights almost perfectly. the adventure has been figuring it out. now if i can only remember next time. we'll see. the other problem i kept running into whether last night or tonight is the road is not evenly flat. it slides down the sides. and for sum reason, my camera will knot shoot a photo at times if i'm 'too close'. knot sure how the camera reads that, but it does it during the daylight hours too. at nighttime here it was worse. need to get the owner's manual out to see if i can read up on it. anyways, task accomplished!...for the most part anyways....now will debate whether to attempt sum more on Wednesday eve. at least tonight it was a little warmer because it got up to 40degrees today. had yet to get cold. but more snow on the way tonight and manana which means it's getting colder again. at least one nice thing around here, we know it doesn't last (except in the mountain ranges). so it's been a good day. now for sum more chillin....

wrong journal...

about an hour ago...or longer...i posted an entry only to discover i posted it in the wrong journal. posted it in my old journal which i brought over from AOL-ugh-it's been one of those days...so i figure you guys aren't suppose to see it. what the gist of the entry was about was i went on the adventure of shooting lights again tonight. this time i took the tripod but with knot much better results. so i figured i must have it on the wrong shutter speed...so i'll try again this Wednesday after happy hour with friends. then i'll have sum liquor in my system to keep me warm in the cold. i didn't play with the shutter speed as i usually do when using the tripod. i was in a hurry because it's just been too damn cold to stay outside. 20degrees on colder....brrrrrr.....but it's been fun attempting the shots anyways. a great learning experience for shooting at night. maybe with all this trial and error i can become a master of it...ha! anyways, Life is about lounging around nowadays for the most part. a short visit to another party last night. but mostly staying at home chillin. Life is Good in the slow lane. just the way i like winter....

Christmas Spirits

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!.......
from NEW MEXICO....
from me and my new friends.....
it's past midnight Christmas Eve....so it's Christmas already. I haven't been home long for it was quite a night out this evening. first Christmas Eve service @ church. Rev Julie gave a great talk about the Christ Consciousness with the choir singing all night long. then it was off to Old Town for the lumanarias...camera in tow....I went with Jessica and Anna above. we started off with a little bit of spirits to drink, sum rugged wine that was might potent. I took my unipod to capture the lights but the only 2 shots that came out decent are posted above. definitely the unipod was knot enough but I'm sure the wine didn't help me either. it was a great time of fun and laughs though for the night. next year definitely the tripod, but I had a great time regardless. my first night trying to shoot the lights and lumanarias. first time really just going to see them on a Christmas Eve. knot as many people as I thought. we were going to go to midnight mass, but at least one of us got tired and was ready to head home. it was a COLD night, 30 degrees or colder but as long as we kept moving I stayed warm, in thought at least. so anyways, another Christmas has arrived and it's been a great week. now to bed and hopefully sleep in for once in the morn.....HOPE you all have a WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS!!! may PEACE, LOVE & JOY be yours always!!!!

White Christmas

today will be my White Christmas. most likely by the time Christmas actually arrives, the snow will be all gone except in the mountains. as I just headed out to take photos of the snow, more fog and snow rolled in to blanket us sum more. so perhaps tomorrow or soon thereafter when the sun shines again, I can really get some photos of the snow. for now I'll enjoy the snowflakes falling softly, gently upon the city and enjoy a White Christmas....

Happy Holidays!

Here's hoping everyone has a Wonderful Holiday Season. Christmas is just down the street in a few days. it's a busy week for me for once during this holiday season. tonight I visited a friend where we sat and had tamales with ice cream for dessert in front of her fireplace. it was a spontaneous moment. we're both usually too busy to get together, so this was especially nice. but first her beau delivered some enchiladas and goodies this morn, even sum goodies for my dogs. the best delight was a photo of her and her dog together. she's only had her pup for a year now and she retold the story of how the Universe brought her the Wheaton. anyways, the 3 of us spent the evening together. quite a delight. pleasant surprise this morn since I was just expecting a plate of enchiladas. she is a dear and very dear to me. Life has been so much grander with her friendship which began about 5yrs ago. I am blessed!
...and tomorrow night, I will be blessed with some new friends arriving here for sum pizza and beer. then Wednesday will be Happy Hour with the boss and other staff members from church. Thursday is of course Christmas Eve service @ church. I haven't had this busy of a week during Christmas week in a very long time. it is a great delight....and with much pleasure to announce I haven't had the Holiday blues hardly at all this year. I am truly enjoying the spirit this year.....
........so if I don't get back before Friday. have a very very Merry Christmas!!!!

a little spring in the winter...

knot sure I ever posted this photo from this past summer actually. feel like a little sunshine at this moment. this will be its reflection at the moment. I sit passing time just totally relaxing after studying all week for a test in class this morn. I feel confident I did well on the test, but then came home to finally look at the study guide for the major final exam and fell out of my seat...lol....but bring it on. I'm ready to tackle whatever this Practitioner class has for me. at least for now I'm ready. although it's my goal to become the spiritual counselor, it's really the journey that is best of all. such growth and change for me, but It's all Good. in another week we will break for class for the holidays givng me at least a full week of knot doing anything for class. I'm ready for the down time. hope to take photos and read a book that's knot class related. I'll also have all my Jeep repairs done by then, so maybe a day trip somewhere provided it's knot too cold. regardless, I look forward to the fun. I've been too serious lately. all study and no play-bah humbug.....and for once I'm lookin' forward to the holidays. and I haven't had much of the holiday blues this year which I am very thankful. Life is change and good things and people are coming my way. Let's hope the New Year brings the same too. I've made my list for the coming year too. it can only get better.....

an award

I received an award from Julie (Julia Photo Journey) a few days ago. Thank you Julie. so now is my turn to return the blessing. the rules are simple:

Rules
1. Tell your readers how your journey into blogging began. Be as verbose or shy as you like.
2. Pick 3-5 fellow bloggers whom you adore and write what exactly it is you value about that person or their blog. This is a chance to really appreciate your blog friends who have been there with and for you through thick & thin.
3. Let the blessed winners know they have been awarded.

First, I started blogging about 5 years ago. my roommate at the moment had suggested blogging on the internet. I was fairly new to a computer as it was and this was a way to connect to others. I had no idea what I was going to say or write about, so I began to scribble. now 5yrs and counting, maybe more, I enjoy sharing my photos and insights to my experiences in life.

Now although I've chosen a few below, there are others who'd I love to give the award to also. bloggers have come and gone but there have been a few who have remained....

first I give this award to Chie @ Chie Muses. she lives in Europe and I love her blog and she always stops in to say hello. she tells her story through her pictures and words surrounding what's going on in her life which always brightens my day. stop by and visit her.

second, I give this award to Lori @ Purple Snapdragons. Lori loves to do artsy things and always doing her projects which are fun. she also writes about her cats and ferret(s) which are also a delight.

third, I love Jeannette @ Outside Looking In whom lives in England. she provides constant updates of her daily family life and provides wonderful photos of her famiily and beautiful surroundings.

as an Honorable Mention, I would like to note the blog Nikon Sniper who posts photos numerous times a day. I love looking at these photos to study to improve mine. plus i get an idea or two.

last but knot least, I give great thanks back to Julie who gave me this award. I love her journal as well with great photos and stories about what's happening in Iowa. she's a great friend and photographer as well.

You all deserve these awards. enJOY them. and pass them along. have fun. much gratitude for being a blogger friend. hugz

charlie brown christmas

Snowflake

meet Snowflake (pictured above). she's a stray cat that has wondered again into our church. she visited only a few weeks ago for which I took her to a vet hospital to see if she had a microchip. sure enough she did and they kept her to return her to her owners. well last night while we had a jazz concert @ our church, here she came again. once she gets there, she doesn't leave no matter how many attempts to get her to go home. so not knowing her owners number (I didn't keep that info), I brought her home with me last night. she's a very friendly kitty, but I'm knot sure I want to keep her. I will attempt again to find her owners, and keep her info for sure should they retrieve her. I don't know my Boo (rottie) likes cats. even my Jimmy barked at her thru the window which I thought at least he'd be harmless. only time will tell. it's been a nice visit if nothing else. at the moment, I'm just waiting for the vet hospital to open to see if they can still retrieve her info or if they still have it on file. so we'll see what happens to Snowflake. I'll keep you posted. another adventure unfolding for sure...

gratitude...

Pray for
PEACE
Plant a
TREE
And sing
more
JOYFUL
songs.
-author unknown

it is a blessed day filled with friends and quiet time. I feel blessed despite the painful scars of the past but from whence I learn and grow. much wisdom is learned through the pain. I recognize the sameness in others as I recognize those same emotions within me. who would have thought that one can knot truly know love without knowing hate. i didn't at least. to me love is behind the hate, but one must get thru the mud before knowing the beauty at it's highest peak. as winter is on the horizon, sometimes here already, it is in that quiet solitude new seeds begin to grow out of the darkness of life. winter a place to recollect, reflect, embrace and move forward all that you are and have ever been. spring will come forth and bring new life to change and evolve into that much more. i amaze myself at times recognizing my inner wisdom from experiences past. yet there's so much more for me to learn. a New Year will bring forth another beginning stretching me beyond the horizon. most is Unknown to me and only time will tell what's in store....

scary late...

so this morn I ordered another collage poster of photos from our Harvest Fest last month to hang in our social hall at church. it dawned on me tonight, and as i browsed back thru my blog, that I did knot post the best Halloween costume of the day...pictured above....damn i've been busy. now Christmas is almost here so will start soon with those photos when i get them. just wanted to shre this one with you. i really get a kick out of him....