Day1: Budapest

The Var.Tor.Ten 

Hole In One-Yippee!

The kids were all in town this weekend.

We decided to play golf at the Pub Course at McMenamins Edgefield. Notable things about this course are:

• it has 20 holes (perhaps two are for warm up) 
• the average hole length is about 70 yards
• you only carry a wedge and putter around
• the cart lady serves ups 22 oz bottles of beer

That said, I got a hole in one with all my family watching. It was worth the price of admission.

Here I am at the victory flag with ball, beer and club in hand. Is Rick photo bombing this shot?

First Harvest

Gardening in Oregon can be frustrating. Generally, the sunny season is too short; there is too much rain in the spring; and slugs and snails prevail. Most of that was for naught this year. I am picking cherry tomatoes every day now. I am loving this.

Have a Think About It

99 is Hot

I've worked hard at my golf game but it doesn't come easily or quickly. Granted the course is not aneasy-peasy one either. But today I broke 100, just by the hair on my chinny, chin, chin. I shot 99.

I texted Rick. "99 today"

He texted back...I thought it wasn't going to get hot until tomorrow.

What, what!

The Fourth

Spent at a party out in the gorge, the day was as it should be. With friends, eating, dancing, watching the river.  But first, airing my flag quilt.

Next up were jello shots. How cute!

And last, a gorgeous sunset!

Before heading home just in time to see the fireworks display at Oak Hills.

Golfing with Deer Friends

Rick, Drew and I played golf last Thursday evening. The 11th hole is a par 5. From far back, we could just see deer ears sticking out of the sand trap. Rick and I both hit our balls near this trap. You can see mine circled in red. As we approached, our dear friend did not budge. It was a rather warm and humid evening and she was all about staying cool.  It's kind of nice to be able to get so close to these animals. They have been hanging around on the golf course for a long time and are not too afraid of the humans. It was a perfect day for all!

Airing the Quilts

I have a lot of quilts and fiber art. I've given many away but some remain with me. Inspired by the Sister's Outdoor Quilt Show, I have decided to air a different quilt on good weather Saturdays this summer. I have the perfect spot on the back deck. Since our house is on the corner, everyone walking past on the sidewalk can pause and look. Last week it was "Midnight in the Garden". I love the movement in the lines of this quilt and the large florals. Stay tuned.

Sharing a Hanging Basket

I bought this planter in the spring for the edge of my deck. Mostly the rain has provided the watering and the blooms were abundant. It needed some TLC but when I took it down to pull off the spent flowers, a bird flew out and the neighborhood of birds made such a squawk, I peaked in and their it was. A tiny nest with three eggs in it. I promptly put the planter back in place sans deadheading.

It's been dry so I needed to water the flowers. Using a long spouted sprinkling can, I poured water in from the edge. Once again, mama tolerated some but let me know when enough was ENOUGH. For now, I will leave it/her/them alone. After all, a mama has work to do. MUMS the word!

Good Read: Boston Girl

Written by Anita Diamant of The Red Tent fame, Boston Girl is the story of a young Jewish woman from an immigrant family growing up in Boston in the early twentieth century.

Addie Baum is the Boston Girl and is telling the story of her life to her twenty-two-year-old granddaughter, who has asked her “How did you get to be the woman you are today.” She begins in 1915, the year she found her voice and made friends who would help shape the course of her life. From the one-room tenement apartment she shared with her parents and two sisters, to the library group for girls she joins at a neighborhood settlement house, to her first, disastrous love affair and the work she finds, Addie recalls her adventures with compassion and humor.

While reading this book, I couldn't help imagine that my own daughter was interviewing her grandmothers who belonged to this generation of women finding their place in the changing world of the twentieth century.

I highly recommend this good read.

Unlikely Friends

This image caught my eye the other day, mostly because of all the different colors on one vine.

It reminded of the new Android television ad. It's the ditty they chose that makes me look up. Roger Miller's "Robin Hood and Little John walking through the forest...". Next are the cutest and most unusual animal pairs having a great time. And in the end, the message: Be together. Not the same.
It's brilliant!

If you haven't seen it, here it is:

Don't you just love advertising like this!

Martin - Again

Love this music and his voice!

Martin - A Flash Mob of One

Beautiful! Inspiring! Enjoy!

Photostream and the Techno Geek

 Don't you just hate it when some working thing stops. So was the case of Photostream. January 24 was the last time it magically appeared on my PC. Dang! Around then, C-cleaner helped unload whatever turtle was living in this machine. Google Chrome was added. Photostream updates were installed. So who really knew how the link was broken. Spent too much time on the fix yesterday, to no avail.

Google, everyone's BFF, indicated that a lot of people have this problem. Many possible solutions and  tries later, Photostream remained PhotoStuck.  One guy provided the steps to make it work. They didn't for me but I did note that the file to be deleted was in the Roaming section of the software. In January, when my Quicken software failed to open after downloading a new release, the tech dude gave me a set of steps to follow. These files were also in the roaming section. So...

In this case, make connections to solutions not people. So...it included, deleting the old software and restarting the machine. Disconnecting from the internet, reloading the software and restarting the machine. Guess what, it's:

now. Persistence is a gift!

It is especially pleasing that I am probably considered to old to like this techno geek stuff.

Raise

A new and useful app showed up. It's called Raise.

This app allows you to buy and sell gift cards at discounted prices. So before you shop online or in stores, check out the Raise marketplace to find discounted gift cards for stores such as Starbucks, Target, The Home Depot, and Macy’s. You can search by brand, category or value, and easily add it to your shopping cart. No need to wait for the card to be shipped. Simply have it downloaded to your smart phone and you carry it with you. I'm told that you need to allow as much as 24 hours for the transaction to complete so plan ahead.

Uber New

You CAN teach an old dog HMMM! lady new tricks.
Last week it was Uber. Not uber new but uber Uber!

As in:

I might not have chosen this experience but the hotel gave us a pass to try it. Downloading the app was required. Setting up an account with credit card on file was also. After that, it was:

• very easy to use
• they are personal cars and were very clean
• the drivers were very polite
• the pick up was quicker
• and the ride was cheaper
• the ride is automatically billed to your credit card
• and a receipt is emailed on the spot
• they send you a picture of your driver so you won't get in any random car

Our first driver was on his lunch hour and earning some extra cash so he didn't mind a shorter drive. The drivers have an app on their smart phone that when they plug in their availability, maps their location. The closest car to the client is offered and if he accepts, comes to fetch you. If he declines, the next closest is pegged.The driver know where he needs to go and thus can respond based on the time he/she has available. 

There were three of us and I am not sure if I would go it alone.

But for this time, it was uber cool!

Happy New Year!

It's that time of year to try and bring focus to the days ahead. But for me, closing out last year is a good starting point.

Last years "14 in 14" was good for me. It mostly has to do with learning new things but sometimes it needs to be about getting things done.

• I stuck with Duolingo and my Spanish learning. (they teach a lot of languages and the price is right (FREE) so do check it out.)
•  I am still doing the "Practice" photo class with Katrina Kennedy. It's a year long effort.
• I finished the "Dyeing to Design" class with Elizabeth Barton. It was good.
• I continue with Lightroom and need to step it up this year.

In addition:

• Took a family trip to South Africa to attend our nephews wedding.
• Documented our trip to Spain with a Blurb photo journal book.
• Volunteered time by leading both a geranium and wreath sale for a ladies group to which I belong.
• Organized a small quilt show for the United Methodist ladies group.
• Completed several scrapbooking classes and a number of iphoneography classes. All online stuff.
• Took a trip to Hawaii for some R & R.
• Entered my quilt Heirlooms in SAQA's Food for Thought exhibit. It was accepted and the first venue is the Quilt Museum in Paducah, KY, a place I visited many times when I lived in St Louis. To me, this is the best quilt museum around and I can't believe I will have something hanging there. 
• Got an Eagle (that's a 3 on a par 5 hole) at Pumpkin Ridge...hole #11, from about 135 yards out. It's all luck but then, it's good to be lucky:).
• Attended my 50th grade school reunion. How did we get so old but good that it was a blast and we can still have fun!
• Remain a totally geeky Trailblazer fan watching as many games as is possible. Go Boys!

What are you up to?

Voices: Anne Lamott

I had the opportunity to hear Anne Lamott speak this past week at the Voices lecture series. A 60 year old white woman with dreads might cause one to pause. She is however riveting. She often speaks of loss but in a hopeful way. I have read several of her books. Traveling Mercies is the most recent one.

I left the lecture with three thoughts.

First, there are three kinds of prayer: Help, Thanks and Wow! I do think most fit one of those categories. I certainly applied them to my golf game on Friday. haha
She later added a forth prayer called Whatever. I think that fits the case when you don't get the answer for which you hoped.

Second, there are really only two things that can fill you up. One is giving and the other is solitude.

Third, for writers or artists or anyone learning something new or doing something new, DO THE WORK. Don't wait for inspiration to come. It comes by doing the work.

She was funny, engaging and very honest. I wish you could have joined me for this fun and thoughtful evening.

Twenty-Four

My girl turned 24 last Friday. Here is one of my very favorite pics from her first year.

Look at her now...at work. Such poise, so professional, so grown up. WOW! She is amazing.

Happy, happy Birthday. Love you to bits, my sweet girl!

Storyteller

I am a storyteller. I have a blog by that name. Sometimes I cross reference it here. It is mostly about digital scrap booking and the tools of Photoshop. I am a PS addict. I love it to bits. I am working on stories from back in the day...

In September, 1990, we noticed an unusual caterpillar in our front flower bed. It was lime green, black and white striped. My boys had bug jars and so Drew snatched it up and put it along with some leaves in his bug jar. The next morning, the caterpillar was missing but hanging from the lid was the most amazing chrysalis, bright green with gold studs. Our timing must have been spot on. 

We did some research and thought it just might be a Monarch. We patiently waited and in about 10 days, the chrysalis became transparent and we could see the Monarch within. It gyrated out of the chrysalis and hung upside down, stretching and drying it's wings. We gently opened the jar to release it from it's confines. After a bit, it fluttered away. 

Here is the photo journal story. If you would like to see more stories, set up an RSS feed and follow me there.  www.elainemillarstoryteller.blogspot.com
I would love to have you on board.