Screens

This is the view outside of my computer room window.  I've taken photos of this view before, but I've had to hold the camera over my head and shoot the photo through the top portion of the window.   The top of the window doesn't have a screen, but the window also doesn't get cleaned from the outside.  This photograph however, is through an open window!  I finally got the screen out of the window.  I haven't been working on that every day, but I have been working on it.  I didn't want to bend the screen because for safety issues, the screen needs to go back in, but I wanted to be able to take it out so I could have a clear shot out of my window.  That darned thing was very stubborn.

One of the drawbacks to living in a condo in Florida is that everything is screened in.  It's nice for keeping the bugs out and for keeping birds off the patio, but the world through the windows is only seen through a screen.  Also, it is incredibly difficult to wash these screens.  The patio screens don't come out, as they are floor to ceiling and the window screens are just a bear to remove. 

I'm a Michigan girl that is really used to cloudy skies, but...I've gotten very fond of the sunshine of Florida.  Most of my windows are covered in sheers to keep the blazing sun from heating the up the house, but my computer room is open to the sunshine.  It brightens up that whole corner of the condo and besides, it has a nice view of the retention pond/lake with the fountains and the towers.  I'm not quite sure what those towers are for, but I like them.

Expect to see more photos out of that window, now that I have an unobstructed view.  

I hope you have a great day!
Kristin

I've been looking for a NaBloPoMo blog for about an hour now and haven't found one yet that I want to feature - so before I miss my midnight deadline, I'm going to post this now and keep looking for a blog to recommend (for tomorrow)

POTD - Nebraska Road

Nebraska Road - by Kristin Corlett

Sand roads.  Every time I see one I think of Nebraska.  It might be because I've been on more sand roads in Nebraska than anywhere else.  This road just happens to be in Nebraska :) 

Enjoy!
Kristin

11 November 2009

I found this (the screen shot above) on Kikolani.com when I was looking for images for 11:11.  Now I'll have to come back to talking about coincidences, but first I want to talk about  today - November 11th or 11/11/09.

This is one of my favorite days of the year because 11:11 is my favorite time of day.  I see 11:11 on the clock a lot.  Once a day is not a stretch, but I can probably say with great safety that I see 11:11 on the clock at least 5 days a week.  I don't make a wish, but I've heard that's one of the things that should be done when seeing 11:11.  I usually don't do anything but smile when I see the time - that and run to the kitchen to see 11:11 on the microwave, the stove and the big clock if I'm in the house.

I decided today that I was going to plan a party for 11/11/11.  I think that is a perfect day to have a big party.  Don't you think?  My friend Bob said she'd come if I planned the party - I'm thinking I'll have to get my guest room ready :)

The Kikolani.com site that I mentioned above, talked briefly about coincidences and do we pay attention to them?  I'd say that I do!  I'm really into cheap thrills and coincidences are cheap thrills in my book.  If I see a bright yellow car for the first time in forever I will get a HUGE giggle if I see another one within a few days.  If I think of my friend Steve hard enough, he will call me within a day and if I am wanting Chinese food, I'll be fortunate enough to have a dinner planned at a local Chinese place by friends and am told to just show up :)  (that happened tonight!)

I sometimes wonder if thinking about something or talking to someone about something and then seeing that exact thing the next day or so is not a coincidence.  I see it more as my short term memory is still intact :)  or that I was newly attuned to a certain item.  I had really never noticed a Hyundai Santa Fe on the road until I bought one.  Now I am surrounded by them!

I hope you had a wonderful Veteran's Day and a happy November 11th.  I'll see you at my place on this date in 2011??  RSVP please :)

Kristin

POTD - Chained

Chained - by Kristin Corlett

I see these water mains all over town and am always wanting to photograph them.  They are ugly and beautiful and painted so many different colors.  I like the ones that are painted several different colors best.

Enjoy!
Kristin

Palm Trees

In my Photo of the Day today (Palm shadow) Karen mentioned in the comment section that she didn't know that palm trees needed to be trimmed.  I thought that was rather interesting, so I decided to do a little informational post.  (It also gave me a reason to go out and take some photos!)  I looked for an untrimmed palm tree, but couldn't find one that I could get to easily - so I went to Google and found this one.

Photo from Rambling Junketeers

The palm fronds usually don't fall off.  They dry up and fall over, but never come off of the trunk.  It looks like a big shaggy column when they haven't been trimmed.  They are also a huge fire hazzard.

There are several different looks to a trimmed palm tree.  Some are more attractive than others, depending on the tree.  Come with me and I'll show you!

This is typical.  The fronds are cut off at a point that is easy to get to and not too labor intensive.  This type of trimming leaves a large bulb just under the new fronds.  As the cut portions dry they end up hugging the tree a bit more.  All sorts of wonderful things grow and hide in these little spaces, as you can see above. 

This is the perfect little home for a gecko to hide out during the afternoon sun.  I've seen many of them peeking out from behind these little arrows.  I doubt that's a technical term for these.  It's just what I call them :)

Another common sight is this one.  The fronds have been cut as above, but when the tree trimmers come back out months later to trim the next batch that has fallen, they also trim up the arrows that were left behind.   There aren't as many hiding spots for critters and plants, but the moss sure love this.  This example is right here in my condo complex.  I think it's really pretty.

See all the clouds in the sky?  That's part of the storm system from Hurricane Ida.  We only got a sprinkling of rain and a bunch of wind, but the dense cloud cover was so odd.  Especially since it lasted all day.  Anyway, back to the palm trees.  This next example shows some examples of different trimming techniques.  The ferns just love this tree!  The dead palm fronds have been cut very near the trunk like the first example, but when the trimmers came back, they trim away the arrows as close as possible. 

Here's a close up of the ferns.  You know those lovely ferns that shed their tiny little leaves all over the place when you have them in the Northern climates?  When I lived in Michigan I just stopped buying ferns for houseplants.  I could kill them in less than a week.    They grow all over the place here in Florida.  No one even has to take care of them.  They just grow in the nooks and crannies of the palm trees.  Isn't that cool?!  I think so.

and finally... here is the perfectly manicured trunk of that last palm.  This is a pretty good shot if I do say so myself!  You can see the little bits of lichen growing here.  It doesn't matter how the trunks are trimmed, something finds its way to use it as housing.

I hope you've enjoyed my observances of palm tree trimming.  I'm sure an expert could give a whole lot more information on the wheres and hows and whys but hey, I'm a photographer and blogger :) 

Have a fabulous day!
Kristin

NaBloPoMo site of the day - 365 Days: Art Projects and Life through a Lens

POTD - Palm Shadow

Palm Shadow - by Kristin Corlett

I think I've photographed the palm trees on this street a hundred times.  The city of Jacksonville keeps them so well trimmed that they make beautiful subjects.  

Enjoy!
Kristin

Saturday at the Market

I've been home a week and a day now.  Well maybe a week and two days.  The day after I got back I hardly moved off the couch so I really wasn't counting that day.   But now that I'm officially home and off the couch, I was able to attend the Riverside Arts Market on Saturday.  It was Fire Department day so there were lots of kids at the market, lots of little plastic firemens hats and two fire trucks.

I love it when you can see that an old car or in this case fire truck was actually used.  The grill is dented, banged up and used.  The paint is such a deep red color.  It was just beautiful. 

Here's what I could get of the antique truck.  There wasn't a moment when this truck wasn't surrounded by men.  They loved this old gal :)  (Are firetrucks gals?)  Anyway, I decided to just take a photo of the truck with all the guys standing around it. 

I watched this Fireman climb up this ladder and I have to tell you that my knees got weak.   I'm not afraid of heights in general, but I am very very very uncomfortable on a tall ladder.  I get pretty shaky climbing up one over 5 feet or so.  It was truly terrifying watching him climb all the way to the top.  I wondered what the people driving by on the highway above thought when they saw the fireman at the top of that ladder! 

The sign in front of this juggler said that he was 15 years old.  He did a pretty good job!  He juggled those fire batons  up and down, around his body, through his legs, high up in the air and twirling around - pretty fun.  He had a lot of props behind him, so I bet he's going to put on a pretty good show.  I didn't stay for a whole lot of his performance, but I tossed a dollar into his bucket all the same.

I asked the woman who was the creative force in River City Artworks if I could take a photo of her Let It Snow collage.  I just loved it!  I asked her if she had it listed on her River City Artworks Etsy site.  She said no it wasn't but she'd list it.  I still don't see it there, but she may have sold it.  It was darling.  I'll have to send her an email and tell her that I've blogged about it and if it's still for sale, to get it on her site!

Her business cards were just genius!!  I loved this.  She just put her stickers on playing cards.  They weren't new cards either, they were well worn.  I bet she picked up the cards for a song because she didn't need to have a full deck.

A few weeks before I went to Michigan I took these photos.  I totally forgot about them, but while I'm talking about the market I decided to pull up these photos.  The guy in the photo above is named Richard.  He and I were joking around and I told him I blogged.  He said that he was blogworthy, so I took his photo!  Hi Richard!!

I love pottery bowls.  You all already knew that I'm sure.  I'm not shy talking about my love of them. :)   My family is also pretty pottery bowl crazy, so I took my rolling bucket with me to the market and made a bee line to this booth and bought up a bunch of those bowls and several of the little plates.  All of the bowls I purchased are marked with a black dot.  You will notice that I picked one from nearly every color!   The bowls were $5 a piece.  That is just an incredible price!  I love this vendor.

I brought all of the bowls and plates to Michigan and one night we all sat around the dining room table and they picked out the ones they'd like to own.  This was my Christmas gift to them and it was perfect! 

The last thing on my list from the arts market is this great product.  I love the name!  I wear my keys on a purple lanyard around my neck.  I'm used to it now and don't think I could go back to having them around my wrist, but....

with the cute factor of these little wristlets, I could change my mind.  They are very well made and the fabric choices are wonderfully varied.  Your favorite team colors are included!  At $5 a piece, these would make great stocking stuffers. 


Well, that's what I did on Saturday.  Thanks for joining me on my journey.    The market is only open a few more Saturdays then it's over until next April.  I wonder what I'll find to do on Saturdays.  You all will be the first to know!

Hope you have a fabulous week!
Kristin

POTD - Wheel

Steam Pumper Wheel - by Kristin Corlett

This wheel, as well as the rest of the steam pumper is located in front of the Michigan Millers Insurance Company in Lansing, MI.   The whole thing is enclosed in a glass box, that's why there is that strange haze on the wheel.  In a future post I'll show the whole thing.

Enjoy!
Kristin

The Jax Palm

I have my first photo in my Kirby3131 Etsy shop!

Goodness! I don't see how one person can make so many mistakes on just one listing. Hopefully the next several photos will be much easier to list now that I've made 10 million mistakes on this one.

I didn't want to list any photos until I had made at least one print. I have only seen my photos on my computer screen, but today I picked up some prints. Wow! I'm excited. I can't wait to actually get some of my own photos framed and on my walls!

The photo above is the very first listing :) The Jax Palm in Black and White.

Oh, I'm so excited. I'd better get back to my listing. I'd like to have more than one photo for sale! haha

I hope you've had a great weekend!
Kristin

Airstream Ranch

I found this photo on the Airstream Blog.

The things you find from fellow bloggers!  I found this incredible attraction while I was reading a NaBloPoMo (Nat'l Blog Posting Month) member, (mis)adventures of spindlerose, blog.  She talked about this in her post Florida Surprise. 

It's called the Airstream Ranch and it's on I-4 in Dover, FL.  I had no idea where Dover was so a little Googling was in order and I found out that it's between Lakeland and Tampa. 

It looks like the Airstream Ranch is having some legal problems as it's not quite in the right zone for such an installation.  I'm not exactly sure what you'd zone this, but the owner is having legal troubles all the same.  This has been going on for a few years.  What a headache!  I would like to see this someday, so I hope that the city decides to let them stay.  I've lived in Florida since 2003 and have never been to the West Coast of Florida, so it may be a few years :)

The NaBloPoMo member, (mis)adventures of spindlerose, is a knitter.  I've always admired the craft of knitting as I've been the fortunate recipient of several wonderful scarves lovingly knitted just for me :)  I have, however, never wanted to take up the hobby as I have plenty of hobbies right now :)

One of my new blogging friends, Denise of Mommy's Journey, asked me if being a member of NaBloPoMo meant that you had to feature a different blogger each day?   That is just something I wanted to do.  So the answer to her question is no.  The only thing you are asked to do to be a part of NaBloPoMo is to blog every day for 30 days. 

Have any of you ever seen the Airstream Ranch?
Kristin

Bacon

photo from Google Images

My husband cooked up bacon this morning. Usually when he is making it my stomach starts growling, my mouth starts to water, I can hear the sizzling and popping of the bacon cooking and I am impatiently waiting for my plate of three half pieces.

This morning, as I was sitting on the couch reading blogs, my husband said "Here's your bacon!"

What?

Bacon?

How did I miss this?

I wasn't expecting the treat.

My mouth wasn't watering, my stomach wasn't growling, my ears didn't hear the sizzle.

What a sad state of affairs.  I knew I woke up with a stuffy nose, but I had no idea how stuffed up it really was!

Bacon is one of my favorite things, but now I know for sure that anticipating eating bacon, smelling the cooking of bacon and hearing bacon frying is almost better than eating the bacon.

It certainly enhances the end product.

I have a question - if one doesn't smell the bacon cooking, does it still make a mess on the stove top?

Have a great day!
Kristin

POTD - Woodford

Woodford - by Kristin Corlett

It's titled Woodford because that's one of the words on the pump.  I thought about naming this Iowa, but they were playing Michigan State in football the day that I took this photo and didn't want to go against the Green and White.  :) 

Enjoy!
Kristin

Friday Fragments

Mrs. 4444, from Half-Past Kissing Time, hosts Friday Fragments each week. It's a great excuse to get all those little snippets that gather in the brain and don't seem enough for one post but together they can make one fun blog post! I've been writing little notes to myself for the past two weeks of all of the fragments that I needed to write about.  Last week I was lost somewhere on Friday and didn't get to my fragments until Monday! 

.•:*¨¨*:•.

I don't work in an office cubical, but I love to read about the pranks that people pull on others in that type of office environment.  I have no idea if it's true or not, but this little story is quite amusing!  I just love the ingenuity!

.•:*¨¨*:•.

I saw a vanity plate on a vehicle while driving home.  OK, so I saw lots of vanity plates on vehicles, but this one I wrote down.  It was...  SEE-U-BYE

.•:*¨¨*:•.

speaking of cars, when my sister Hillary and I were in the car together she looked over at another driver and said "Drivers Ed - 10 and 2"  I didn't catch on right away, but when I looked over I saw that the person had both of their hands on the wheel in the position of the clock of 10 and 2.  I'm a two handed driver about a quarter of the time, but I have to admit I tend to hold the steering wheel with just two fingers.

.•:*¨¨*:•.

I saw this basket of stamps at an Open House one day and snapped a photo.  It's a very interesting decorating element and handy for making monograms on stationery!  (It'd be a bear to dust though)

.•:*¨¨*:•.

33 Ways to Start Your Day - I really liked this post. At first I thought that you were supposed to do all 33 things each morning and I was immediately wondering how much time some people had! But no, it's a suggestion of things you can do. I like suggestions :)

.•:*¨¨*:•.

My mom remodeled her kitchen and a bathroom last year and also changed out a toilet in the remaining bath.  The new toilets have self closing lids, which is pretty cool.  You just give the lid a little push and it slowly closes all on it's own.  After living at my mom's house for a month, I just about scared myself to death when I got back to my own home.  I do not have self closing lids and mine go crashing to the seat with that little nudge.   My husband thought I might have forgotten how to use the bathroom after hearing that crashing sound several times. (I'm a slow learner) haha

.•:*¨¨*:•.

Book display for kids room - I thought this was a really great idea and a total DIY that I could do. This would be a fun thing for my sister to put in her little girls room. A small one could be placed in a bathroom and the fabric would be easy to toss in the wash. Oooh, I'm brainstorming :)

.•:*¨¨*:•.

I purchased Photoshop Elements yesterday. I truly understand how clueless I am when it comes to editing now that I have a real editing program in front of me. I have no idea where to begin. I think I'm going to have to lock myself in a room for a little while and learn some of it. I have my Etsy shop but so far there isn't a single photograph in it. I was going to get a few of the photos printed and put into frames, so I could photograph them for the site. But a thousand things went wrong getting them printed. Now I think I may have compounded my issues by trying to edit the photos with a new program. It's quite laughable actually. My new deadline for getting product to sell is Saturday night. I do believe I can have at least 6 photos in there by then. goodness!


Thanks so much for coming to my Friday Fragments party.  I so enjoy being a part of this each week and the other Fragmenting participants are so much fun as well.  Go on over to Mrs. 4444's place to see what the others are talking about!

Have a fabulous day!
Minnie Morris  (that's a joke from yesterday's post!)

The NaBloPoMo site of the day is my blogging friend 5 Cats Shy.  Someone did something really nice for her this week and she's blogged about it, so I wanted to be sure and showcase her now :)

POTD - Barbed Wire Bull

Barbed Wire Bull - by Kristin Corlett

I found this bull in Maywood, Nebraska in the yard next door to my grandparents former home.  He wasn't there when I used to visit, but a lot of things have changed since then.

Enjoy!
Kristin

Thrifty Cookbooks

Welcome to my musty, old, fun, cookbook edition of  Thrifty Thursday hosted by Leigh of Tales from Bloggeritaville. I'm focusing on cookbooks today, but you never know what the other participants have found as thier thrifty find.

 This week I've put together some scans from some very thrifty cookbooks that I got at an estate sale while I was in Michigan.  I got eight books and a folding yard stick for $4.  Most of the cookbooks were compilation books lovingly put together by women (I'm sure) as a way to raise money for some event or church event.  I love those types of cookbooks, especially the ones from the 50's and 60's, because it really shows what people were eating and cooking at that time.


One of the things that caught my eye in this first book is the section on sandwiches.

I don't eat a lot of sandwiches mostly because I rarely feel like eating deli meat on bread.  I think of a sandwich as being that way and only that way.  (BLT's being the exception to that thinking!)  In the 70's when the "If You Can't Stand to Cook" cook book was written, the idea of having a sandwich was much more varied than I would have ever imagined.   You can click on the pictures to enlarge them. 

I have to interject - I am not going to eat peanut butter and pickles.  I just can't!  Ahhh, but someone really liked that combination or it wouldn't have made it into the book.

 Do you see anything you'd try?  Some of the ideas are truly thrifty - cottage cheese and chives?  I eat that in a bowl.  I never thought of making a sandwich out of it. 

"A Flavor Saver!"  A metal tea ball holds whole spices, like bay leaves, cloves and garlic.  Saves tying in a bag.  Hang over the edge of kettle to season food.  (Pierce County Medical Auxiliary Cook Book Tacoma WA.)

 I thought this was a good tip - one that I wouldn't think of right away.  Funny though, I wouldn't put the garlic in there, as I'd want it in whatever I was simmering.  To me, the garlic is a prize if I get some in my bowl. yuuuummm :)


I am a lover of hot dogs.  I love them.  It's like a secret indulgence.  I now buy the all beef, sold by the pound at my local Fresh Market hot dogs, so that's not thrifty, but it's definitely very good eating.  If you've got some of those regular hot dogs hanging around the house, you may want to make up some interesting "Frank" dishes!  I may have to try the Frankfurter Stroganoff.

This next section came from a book that had lost it's cover and several pages.  I have no idea what organization put the recipes together, but there were some ads in there from Puyallup, WA. so I'm assuming it was at least put together there.   Every recipe had a hand drawn something on the page.  I fell in love with the drawings before I realized that it was not a complete book.  Ah well.  Love is blind :)

Don't you just love the names that accompany each recipe?  I want to be Minnie Morris :)  Maybe I can be for just a day.

Look! more frankfurters and a fun weenie dog haha

The next clip is from a 1976 East Lansing Michigan edition cookbook.  The cookbook contained recipes from as many of the families of East Lansing Mayors, city administrators and those associated with Michigan State University.   I'll spotlight some of the things I found in that cookbook at a later date, but I had to showcase this snippet.  I can't imagine when I'd need to know this, but it's definitely not something I would have ever thought up on my own.

I hope you have a fabulous Thrifty Thursday.  Once again, go take a look at the other participants, here, and see what fabulous finds they have in store for us. 

The NaBloPoMo site for today is Life in the Bogs.
I totally got sucked into the photos and found myself clicking back page after page to see the changes in the pond.

Kristin
(aka Minnie Morris!)

My Etsy Shop

Here it is! 

Kristin's Photography on Etsy

You can click on the image to enlarge.

I spent all of that time trying to pick a name, checking to see if there was a website with that name already so I wouldn't duplicate, seeing if anyone else had a similar name on Etsy, making sure the name looked good written as one word, etc. but when I went to make my site, my username became my website name.  It was automatic. 

Grrrrrr

I'll have to change this at some point because "Kirby3131" isn't what I wanted it to be called.  I think though, now that I've given my address and name, I don't think I can create a new username with those details being the same.  I may have to wait until we move LOL  Truth be told though, I was pretty well set on naming it Kristin Corlett.  I was really thinking outside the box for that one! 

I need to get a real banner made.  The one there is just a quicky Photobucket edit of one of my photos. I've still got another 14 hours before the end of the day.  I don't expect it to be perfect, not now anyway, I just want it functional.

Now I've got to load in some of my photographs. A girl needs something to sell if she's got a site!

Thanks for the encouragement.  If it wasn't for my blogging friends I may have never gotten this far.  Thank you so much.

Kristin

POTD - Six Red

Six Red - by Kristin Corlett

This patio was located in Denver.  The bright colors looked so pretty as we were walking down the street, that I was compelled to stop and photograph them.

Enjoy!
Kristin

Shape Up!

When I first started on this crazy internet, one of the first things I did was check my horoscope.  I used to have it sent to my email every day and I was excited to open it up each day.  As the years went on, there was more and more to do and see and read and my daily horoscope wasn't as exciting.  Then last year I was introduced to the ladies behind Astro Style.  Their free horoscope is once a week and is a lot of fun.  I like their style of writing and the suggestions on what I can do to make the most of my week and month.   I usually don't look at the monthly horoscope, but was compelled to do so today -- This is a portion of my AstroStyle Horoscope for the month.

It’s time to grow up, Libra—and to get your act together like never before. While you’re capable of true greatness, there are also parts of your life languishing in fuzzy, amorphous neglect. Now, it’s time to toughen up these “soft spots.” Saturn, the planet of maturity and discipline, is visiting Libra for the next three years.

Nothing like getting slapped in the face!  Ya know, I probably needed it.  I've been lounging quite a bit lately and I know I can get myself in gear and shape up.   I can see now why I was compelled to read the monthly overview.  I needed a kick start :)

As I read further I see something that is probably one of my personality flaws shining bright.

Remember: deciding not to decide is still a decision—one that paralyzes rather than empowers you.


Decision-making is a habit, and habits take twenty-one days to form. With the Sun visiting your second house of daily structures, work and money until November 21st, you’ve got the perfect three-week window to start. You may see results fast, in the form of job offers, increased cashflow and new friends. Celebrate these affirmations, and keep going!

 I am the queen of indecision!  I guess I should toss that crown and let someone else be indecisive or maybe I should toss it into the trash.  

I've been wanting to start an Etsy shop for my photographs but I'm stuck on a name.  I can't seem to get past that hurdle.  All I need to do is choose a name and I can put myself in business!

You all are my witness.  I will choose a name today and get my site up and ready by the end of the day Wednesday Nov 4th. 

Whew!

I'm going to make my decision before someone or something makes one for me!


I didn't take this photo, but it makes me laugh every time I see it.


Have a fabulous day!
Kristin


Ooops, I forgot my NaBloPoMo of the day --- It's 2Things@Once, this person has been a consistent blogger and has just made the goal of blogging for the past 365 days in a row. Lots of nice photographs, too.  I see one in there from Lake Michigan. :)

POTD - Festive

Festive - by Kristin Corlett

This sweet little house is across the street from the Moores River Park.  I really liked the  leaves on the ground, the stairs and the roof.   The weather was so calm that they just wafted down and settled.  Pretty, huh?   Click on the picture to enlarge the photo so you can see the expressions on those pumpkins.

Enjoy!
Kristin

Sonic the Hedgehog

Sonic the Hedgehog

I'm exhausted.  I could use some of the power that Sonic possesses :)

I spent the day yesterday with my feet up, sipping iced tea and having my husband wait on me hand and foot, so that I could be all rested for today.

It didn't work.

Actually, I'm pulling your leg!

I'm tired, this is true but I worked on getting the house back to some semblance of order yesterday so that I could meet the day today with at least one set of things done.

I needed to go see my tenants since I hadn't been able to see them at all and really didn't talk to them much while I was gone either.  I also needed to pick up the rent checks, too - so that was nice.   I couldn't pay any of the mortgages though until the checks were in the bank, so it was a rush to get all that accomplished.  Two of the three people that I saw really needed to chat.   It's one of the things that I like to do for them...just let them chat and tell me what's bothering them.  There is just so much stress waiting for a transplant that it's good to be able to let it all out to someone who's been there already.

So I chatted with two of my tenants, hustled off to the bank before 2 so that the checks would post today.  Then over to the pharmacy to try to straighten out the prescription debacle that happened while I was gone.   (I got it fixed)  Then to the grocery store because my husband ran out of pepper last night, seconds after I got back from the store, but I made him wait until today :)  Next I had to pay the bills, so that could be done at home.  Write out checks,  pay some online, check and double check, file the receipts, now dash off to my bank to put some money in that account & drop the bills at the post office.  I didn't realize it was just a few moments before 4pm and my bank closes at 4.  Of course I missed it.  I'll have to get there right away in the morning because my ego's writing checks my body can't cash or something like that.

Cooked up some chicken breasts so that I can have meals ready to eat for lunches, did the dishes, made some phone calls and harassed my husband.  Goodness!  Life is difficult :)

I haven't taken a single photo in two days, so I'll leave you with the photos that someone took of Zora in her Halloween costume.  She went as Sonic the Hedgehog.  Alison, my mom, and Jim's step mom all worked on the costume.  As I mentioned to someone else that it truly does take a village to make a Halloween costume!

Thanks Tricia for telling me that I should go ahead and post the photos of her!  Halloween comes but just once a year.  We can handle a few more costume photos, right?


The NaBloPoMo site for today is someone who hasn't blogged in awhile but I just love her writing, her photos and her compassion.  Please take a visit to Dr. Cason.  Enjoy!

Have a wonderful night.
Kristin

POTD - Jungle Gym

Jungle Gym - by Kristin Corlett

This is a giant top hat worm guy jungle gym play thing found at Moores River Park in Lansing, MI with more of those gorgeous yellow leaved trees in the background.

Enjoy!
Kristin

NaBloPoMo - Year Two

One of the best blogging things that I did last year was to join in the National Blog Posting Month. This prompted me to be SO enthusiastic about blogging every day (even though I had been blogging every day since April) that I made a promise to myself to make it my National Blog Posting Year!   I missed a single day a few months back, but that didn't deter me from going on. The end of November will be the end of my blog posting year...officially.

What a run it's been! I'm so pleased that I have been able to make a habit of it because I have truly enjoyed blogging every day. I've even added in a Photo of the Day, Monday - Friday.  Don't expect me to slow down though :)  The only thing is that if I happen to miss a day this coming year, I won't be quite so upset about it.

I'll be visiting new blogs throughout the month - those that participate in NaBloPoMo and I'll be posting the ones I find interesting.

If you would like to join in NaBloPoMo, go on over to their website - Here - and join in. Although this goes on each month, November is the main month with prizes and incentives. It's a lot of fun!  You can also see all of the blogs that are participating.    This is the first year for categories, which kind of confused me, so I'm in the General category. 


On a totally different subject --

I took a family photo of Jim and Alison and their three girls.  The photos were all really funny and not terribly professional.  I want to hold off on sharing the photos because they may actually use one of them for Christmas cards.  Since I haven't had a photo of Jim, I thought I'd post this one of them.  I don't think I've ever seen Jim smile like this, so it is just making me laugh!  Usually he is making funny faces, so this is a departure.

So here is Alison, Jim and newbaby Scarlett taken on Scarlett's 11th day in our world.

Have a Wonderful Day.
Kristin