It all started with a mouse...{Part 1 of 2}

I've got so many photos to put up that I can't save them right now as a group. So I'm loading them as I finish them. You may wonder why it is out of order. Well, I don't edit in order :-) This first one is one from our shopping trip to Destin the last week of December.

"I only hope that we don't lose sight of one thing - that it was all started by a mouse." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Walt Disney

This well played guitar was displayed on the wall at the Hard Rock Cafe in Destin. I wish I could remember what the plaque said. But, try as I might, I can't. I just remember that I loved the worn look of the guitar.

"...And the very next day / Bought a beat-up six-string in a secondhand store..." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Foreigner, "Juke Box Heroes"



Back at my 'ranch', this was taken in my backyard. My backyard is not big. But the picture taking opportunities are plentiful. This iron chair was left at our house by the previous owner. I'm going to find a perfect spot for it this spring. And have pretty flowers surrounding it.

"...And no one heard at all Not even the chair..." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Neil Diamond


{Continue to part 2...}

It all started with a mouse...{Part 2 of 2}

This one was taken last weekend. At the farmer's market downtown. I was about ready to leave when I saw this man and his bird. Standing by a motorcycle that I presume they rode up on. Quite the couple.

"Is convinced there's something we can learn from the animals, but so far all he can think of is that you should shut up when someone's got you on a leash." ¸.•*´¨`♥ storypeople


After the market, I went to Joe Paddy's. I always love to go there. Besides all the hub bub on the inside, there is the most marvelous dock to the side and around the back. I have more pictures of the dock and the inside that I will post when I get a chance.

"Every historian discloses a new horizon." ¸.•*´¨`♥ George Sand

To wrap it up this week, here is another kitchen window sill photo. I add and move and generally shift things on that sill daily. Fun.

"So she poured out the liquid music of her voice to quench the thirst of his spirit." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Nathaniel Hawthorne

More hydrangeas and mysteries of life {Part 1 of 3}

Another menagerie of images. From this and that. I'm saving the last photo in this post because it is something special. A new little series that I've taken upon myself to do. So read on.

This bowl of seaglass was sitting on my kitchen window. It is now in the living room by my bonsai...it gets around. The little seashell was one I found and have kept. I love the inside. The swirls. The design. Nature is amazing.

"Today is a smooth white seashell, hold it close and listen to the beauty of the hours." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Anon


The blue hydrangeas are back for another appearance. I love the huge blooming heads. Almost gaudy. Yet so delicate.

"Dreams are illustrations... from the book your soul is writing about you." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Marsha Norman


This bowl of fruit was perfect. Perfect apples. Perfect bananas. Perfect morning sunlight. Sitting in the perfect wooden bowl. It was sitting on my counter between the kitchen and dining area.

"Love is a fruit in season at all times, and within reach of every hand." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Mother Teresa


While I'm showing kitchen items, this little setting is on top of my refrigerator. The Old Rum box actually contains a bottle of Goslings Black Seal Rum from Bermuda. It was a gift from my son-in-law for my husband. I LOVE that box and am so happy I finally found a place to display it. The flowers have been around for ages. It was a joint effort between my husband and my son. They usually lived on our dining room table. But, in this home it just didn't work on the the table. I put them on top of the refrigerator one day when we needed room on the table to set Christmas decorations while decorating for the holidays. It was magic. They have found a new home.

"Rum, n. Generically, fiery liquors that produce madness in total abstainers." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Ambrose Bierce



{Continue to part 2...}

More hydrangeas and mysteries of life {Part 2 of 3}

This was the most bizarre thing. My husband was going out the back door to the garage and called for me to come out. Over our fence, was this reflection on our neighbor's house. Something in our yard was making the reflection. We never did figure out where the reflection originated.

"The true mystery of the world is the visible, not the invisible." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Oscar Wilde

It was a rather nice day...in comparison to the weather we had been having, and the light was beautiful, so I took a few more photos from my yard while I was out.

"Springtime is the land awakening. The March winds are the morning yawn." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Lewis Grizzard in Kathy Sue Loudermilk, I Love You

This little Buddha lives in my backyard sanctuary. (I call it a sanctuary...it is so enclosed, so green, so peaceful.) He greets me everyday when I come home from work, with that contagious smile. No matter what kind of day I've had, he makes it a little better.

"When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Buddha

This is from my front yard. Not taken the same day. I know that probably doesn't matter to most of you, but this was a morning shot...the sun was just coming up. The previous shots were late afternoon shots. I know. Too much information. When I saw the finished image, this song instantly jumped into my head. I LOVE Cream.

I've been waiting so long / To be where I'm going / In the sunshine of your love. ¸.•*´¨`♥ Cream - Sunshine Of Your Love


{Continue to part 3...}

More hydrangeas and mysteries of life {Part 3 of 3}

I'm so happy that camellias bloom this time of year. It is such a pleasant surprise to see trees heavy with red and pink blossoms.

"I miss you ... like the sun misses the flower in the depths of winter." ¸.•*´¨`♥ A Knight's Tale





I fear this may be my last photo of my hydrangeas. I'm looking at them on the table now, and even water isn't helping. So, soon time to plant them outside in hopes of a new flurry of blooms later in the year.


"The Nature of This Flower is to bloom." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Alice Walker

Bonsai's & Blue Ball Jars {Part 1 of 3}

The weather has not been great. It is pretty good in comparison to the rest of the country, but it is not warm enough for me to go about taking pictures. So these are mostly indoors. At my house.

This is my kitchen pot rack. And I hang all the pots I can. I love the function of having them handy. I love the way they look. I love the space it saves in my cabinets. It is a warm and cozy feeling for me.

"If you can organize your kitchen, you can organize your life." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Louis Parrish


"I don't like to say that my kitchen is a religious place, but I would say that if I were a voodoo priestess, I would conduct my rituals there." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Pearl Bailey, Pearl's Kitchen


I sometimes have to take a picture when I feel it. And I felt like this. I got this fantastic framed art from a yard sale for just $3! I was excited. At first I put it in my back entrance hallway. Didn't like it there, so moved it to the upstairs bathroom. It is like it was created for that spot. This image is a bit on the grungy side...but it really is a clean beautiful piece of art. But, I was feeling the iphone grunge when I snapped it.

Bathroom art my bathroom



Last Monday night we went to our favorite pizza place...a little neighborhood bar called OZones. This was taken as we were waiting for a seat by the front door. It had an unusual vantage point overlooking the bar.

At the bar OZones


Finally at the bar waiting for our pizza. This was the coaster by candle light.

Dinner at O'Zones the coaster



{Continue to part 2...}

Bonsai's & Blue Ball Jars {Part 2 of 3}

I had a birthday. And this is the beautiful (and I DO mean beautiful) birthday cake that my husband got for me from my most favorite bakery in the world...Jay's in P'Cola. But, I have a dilemma. It has to do with choices. And I totally suck at choices. This choice involves my present. Here are my choices:

1. A trip with hubby to South Dakota. (I know it sounds hokey...but South Dakota has a special place in my heart.) He has never been there and I could show him all the places I've only talked to him about over the years.

2. A trip to Bermuda to visit my daughter. This is a two-fer. I would get to visit my daughter (and do we ever have fun) and Bermuda is enchanting. Drawback is hubby would not go. Plus to this is I LOVE Bermuda, and the opportunity is now while my daughter is over there. And I think this may be her last year there. So after that I'll probably never go back.

3. I get a SCOOTER!!! OMG! Plus to this is...it is a scooter! I have wanted one since my first trip to Bermuda. A scooter will last much longer than a week or two. And it would continue to make memories.

Problems? I have a few. Bad problems? I think not. Like I said . I'm horrible at choices. So...HELP!!!!

"I've never worried about getting older...I've been too busy worrying about getting caught." ¸.•*´¨`♥ StoryPeople

This is a bowl of seaglass in a wooden bowl I have in our livingroom window. On the seaglass is a little coin that says "celebrate each day". The coin was a gift from my daughter. And the seaglass probably was too. She brings me seaglass each time she visits. And when I go, I collect it. So it may be a mix of both.

"I celebrate myself, and sing myself." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Walt Whitman

In that same window, next to the bowl of seaglass, is a little bonsai. I got it on a shopping trip with my daughter. It was on clearance at Lowe's. And it looked like it may not make it. But, I adored it's shape and took a chance. I gave it some attention, love, water and sunlight. And it is growing and bringing me such joy!

"...the ultimate challenge for the bonsai designer is to expose the essence of the tree." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Herb L. Gustafson

In another window in our living room sits these three blue ball canning jars with zinc lids. I LOVE blue ball glass jars. All sizes. All shapes.

"Blue color is everlastingly appointed by the Deity to be a source of delight" ¸.•*´¨`♥ John Ruskin

Usually laying in front of the glass jars, under the window on his bed is Petey. He is our little dog. But that hardly says what he is exactly. He is my clown. My bride. (Long story.) Our little companion when days are long and we need a little friendly face.

"taunting the neighbor's dog with meat-flavored tofu because he can't get anyone else to eat it." ¸.•*´¨`♥ StoryPeople


{Continue to part 3...}

Bonsai's & Blue Ball Jars {Part 3 of 3}

This is the same tulips from last weeks post. Opened up. On their last hurrah, but beautiful none the less. Did I tell you that they were a surprise from D? Yes. Isn't he sweet?

"Things are pretty, graceful, rich, elegant, handsome, but until they speak to the imagination, not yet beautiful." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Ralph Waldo Emerson


These hydrangeas have been blooming on my dining room table for a couple of weeks now. They don't get a great amount of light to speak of. But they look beautiful day in and day out. When the weather gets warmer, I'm going to plant them somewhere in my yard.

"The Nature of This Flower is to bloom." ¸.•*´¨`♥ Alice Walker