Straight from the auction block

I've got a new adventure going in my life right now - I'm part owner in a 6' x 6' booth space at an antique mall.  Since that space is pretty small to display furniture, I've been looking for another place to rent.  I found a really cool spot, but I'm not sure.  It's just a corner of someone else's business and sigh.  It just seems wonderful, but they've never done this type of renting before.  I'm not sure I want to be the guinea pig!

However, I keep buying furniture! and I keep seeing the FABULOUS things I can do with it!

For Example --

I purchased this yesterday at auction.

It's little bench with two shelves.  In the olden days when we had telephones that actually attached to the wall and cords that were famously short, people actually sat in chair or on a bench when they talked on the phone.  I had a vision for this little sad piece of furniture, so I bought it.


Then when I came home to see if I could find some good ideas on paint colors or fabrics, I found this...

Do you think my homely little bench will be transformed to look something like the inspiration piece??(The inspiration photo is from here -- Kanibal Home)


I think it can, I think it can, I think it can, I think it can...




For more Sundays in my City and around the world, please visit Unknown Mami and all the other participants.

Have a wonderful day!
Kristin

The Four C's

When you think of the Four C's, does a church in Cozumel come to mind?  I'm sure you probably thought of the Four C's of a gemstone - cut, clarity, carat or color. Well in this case I'm talking about the Corpus Christi Cathedral in Cozumel, the island's largest Catholic Church.  That actually may be the Six C's!

I just got back home from a week long cruise of the Western Caribbean and Cozumel was one of our stops. 

I saw the bell towers from the ship and knew that those towers were going to be a destination for me.   Once we got off the ship, I couldn't see the towers anymore, so I had to explain what I wanted to find and after a pow wow with a few taxi drivers, we finally found one who knew exactly where I wanted to go. 

I was immediately struck by the intricacy of the ironwork on the three sets of doors that open up to the body of the church.

I don't know why these plowers were hanging here, but I bet they were just gorgeous a few days ago.  I still thought they looked nice, even with the faded flowers.

The man on left hand side of the photo was praying (and watching me take photos when he didn't think I was looking) the entire time I was there.  He had a picture he was holding in his hands. 

The side windows were the same yellow, green and blue glass, but much smaller and less ornate. 

One of the side isles was decorated for Mary. 

I think the translation is Tender Mother. 

I think I took a picture of every window in the place.  (I was obsessed)

A close up view of the bell tower and one of my favorite types of palm trees.  They have super sleek trunks without any stubble from old palm fronds. 



I hope you have enjoyed a quickie tour of the Corpus Christi Cathedral on the island of Cozumel, Mexico.  For more Sundays in My City, please visit Unknown Mami who always has a lovely party on Sunday.

Have a great day!
Kristin

Holiday Home Tour

On Saturday evening a few friends and I went on a Holiday Home Tour of 5 homes in the San Marco area of Jacksonville, FL.  The very first house that we went to I asked about being able to take photos in the home and I was told no way.  None of the houses allowed it.

So below you will see the unlawful photos that I took - most of them with my cell phone!  I figure the outside photos were allowed, so only the interior photos were illegally gotten.

Please don't tell on me. :o)

This was such a great idea and made quite a statement in the kitchen.

It was a beautiful sunset.

This was such a great idea with the wreaths hanging from old windows.  I have some old windows in my garage - I may actually do this.

This was the house number to one of the featured homes.  It belongs to the ivy covered wall a few photos below.

I thought this was a really cute way to use a white Christmas tree.  The three buttons on the snowman are black Christmas ornaments.

This house had wall to wall pine flooring and the entire place had the smell of pine.  It was pretty cool.  This is the stairway all decked out. 

I would love to have this be the entry to my house!  Oh I loved it.

The last place we visited was the church.  This photo is really grainy but it was such a neat sight with the moon and the stained glass and the clouds.




Thank you for joining me on a mini tour of homes - If I was allowed to photograph inside the houses this post would have had a few hundred photos!  The homes were just gorgeous.


For more Sundays in my City, go ahead and visit Unknown Mami.  Lots of folks link up each week and it's a great time!

Have a great week,
Kristin

Vintage Florida Photos

I just recently discovered the Florida Memory Project website.  It's a division of the library and information services and they have managed to collect over 170,000 digital photos.  I think I can probably spend a few dozen hours looking through this particular archive.  I pulled just a few photos from my search  "Jacksonville Beaches" in black and white.   I've been home sick for well over a week now, so what's going on in my city is a look back at the way it was. 

Rosemary Carpenter, Miss Florida 1948, posing in front of sea-oats - Jacksonville Beach, Florida

Date 1948
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number C010331

Jacksonville Beach "baby races"

Date 1973
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number C680688

Two young children fishing at Jacksonville Beach

Date 1981
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number C800981

Young women posing from behind a beach umbrella

Date 1930
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number SP01286

Ida May Roth at the beach - Jacksonville Beach, Florida

Date ca 1924
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number N048043

Tourists walking along the Jacksonville jetties - Jacksonville Beach, Florida

Date 1929
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number N032606

Group at the beach - Jacksonville Beach, Florida

Date 1923 or 1924
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number N048045

Family standing next to its car at a Mayport beach

Date 191-
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number PR06772

Looking down roller coaster at the beach - Jacksonville Beach, Florida

Date Between 1930 and 1949
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number RC07957

Bird's eye view of Jacksonville Beach

Date 1946
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number RF00359

People walking near the beach in Jacksonville

Date 1936
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number SP00001

Young women with man at the beach

Date 1930
Collection Florida Photographic Collection
Image Number SP01284





I hope you enjoyed a look back at what it was like in Jacksonville, FL before the internet :)  For more tours of cities near and far, please head on over to Unknown Mami's weekly carnival - Sundays in my City.   It's one of my favorite places to be each week.

Have a great day!
Kristin

Racing Pigs

A couple of friends and I went to the Jacksonville Fair on Friday.  (Thanks Mike and Chris for suggesting the outing!)  I've lived in Jacksonville for five years now and I had never attended.  I'm used to the big county fairs that we have in Michigan, so I was quite curious to see what kind of a fair a Southern city could create.

I would have never guessed that I was going to see some pigs run around a track and jump into a water trough. 

It was a very popular event!  The pigs are a few months old and gladly race around the track so they can get to the end to get their reward.

What do you think motivates a pig to run?

Look at them go!
The little capes on them are their numbers, so that the crowd can root for their favorite.

They look like SuperMan with those capes.

In answer to the question - the pigs are motivated by an Oreo Cookie.  That's their reward at the end of the track.



One of the other things that pigs like to do is swim!
The pig handlers said that if pigs had a nice big pool to swim in and cool off, then they wouldn't roll around in the mud (to cool off.)

Since the pigs enjoy the water a special water trough was set up for them to swim in.

This group of four came barreling around the corner and put on the brakes!!  It was so funny.  I think they are new to the water trough trick. 

It took one brave soul to put a hoof into the water before the others would join in. 

They were still racing to the end for an Oreo, so they made short work of the swim.  I was amazed at how quickly those teeny little pig legs could paddle!

Snouts up!

I Win!!

But these fellas are right behind.

At the end of the show we could get a picture taken with this little piggy.

I completely enjoyed the Racing Pigs.  They were a hoot!



That's what can happen on a Sunday in Jacksonville, FL.  For more Sundays in my City, please head on over to Unknown Mami's place.  Who knew you'd see a pig race when you came here?!  You never know what others will blog about in their city.

Have a great day!
Kristin

Home of the Bulls Chips

My husband was very excited to be home and to have an entire day of College Football to watch, including his Michigan State University Spartans.

I wasn't as excited about football (but I do have my loyalties - Go State!) so I decided to spend the afternoon on a photo excursion.  I haven't done much of that since I've gotten home from my road trip a month ago, so it was about time!   I took a few unfamiliar roads and ended up finding Hastings - Florida's Potato Capital.  

I had no idea what was to come just a mile into town...

The first place I stopped was the Florida Museum, which looked like it was probably a very cool place at one time.  I would have loved to poke around here when it was open...if I'd only known.

Above the front door was this football player.  He is in really great shape for hanging out over a door 24/7.

Farm machinery of all types were all over the place.  These were the nicest of the bunch. 

Now, right across the street from the Florida Museum was this place. 
Bull's Hit Ranch and Farm. 
Their big draw? (Besides their name)
They made potato chips!

Bulls Chips to be exact.

This was their production facility, store and amusements. 

I looked them up online and it looks like they were open in 2010, but I couldn't find any mention of them being open at all this year.  They'd been around for at least a dozen years and had their Bulls Chips in a lot of stores and had an online shop for awhile. 

This was their truck out by the road. 

I like the tag line on the truck, "From the little Chippery in Hastings...Florida's Potato Capital."  Oh, actually I quoted that wrong.  It's spelled Captal on the truck.  ha!

Handmade potato chips from Bull's Hit Ranch and Farm.

What a treasure.  I sure wish they were still open.  I wanted to have a bag of chips at least!




I wonder what other sights there are to see in Unknown Mami's  carnival, Sundays in my City?  I guess we're going to have to go on over and find out.


Hope you have a great day!
Kristin