Yes, it was.
It felt historic. And it was.
(Photo from the Obama website.)
VOTE!
I have voted in every presidential election since I was old enough to vote, but today felt different. It felt historic. We were at our polling place at 6:25 am along with two of our neighbors. We were driving out of the polling place at 6:35 am, so no wait for us. Go vote, even if you have to wait. I do believe every vote makes a difference. Especially this year.
Happy Halloween
I had a much better than average Halloween as I helped with my friend Sandy’s field trip today. We took her kindergarten students to a local nursing home where they knocked on residents’ doors for treats and sang to the residents at the end of their “tour.” They all wore crowns of colored leaves, and brought the pumpkins we painted last week as gifts to the residents.
Here at home, we gave up carving pumpkins after the kids left home. I found these cute metal jack-0-lantern bags at Michaels several years ago, and they do a good job of greeting our sparse collection of treat or treaters.
Hope your Halloween was a good one!
Design Your Life: Week 4
Week 4 continues the study of repetition in design. For scrapbookers that might be repetition of color, embellishments, photo size, or page design. For our first assignment, the repetition of the black photo mats is the most obvious, but also the two fish stickers. I’m not much a fan of stickers, but I liked them here. I used quite a few “old” photos from previous years this week. In the Real World Color assignment, the photos were taken 16 years ago!
Assignment 1:
Assignment 2 was a mini-book:
Real World Color Assignment:
Design Your Life: Week 3
Once again, I’m finishing up at the last minute. Tomorrow we’ll get new assignments for Week 4. I am loving this class. This week the layouts came together a little more easily, but I’m spending a lot of time trying to find the right photos and get them printed in the right sizes as well as taking care of color choices and other elements. But the end result has been worth the time.
The first two layouts were for this week’s focus on repetition–color in both of mine.
This was the Real World Color assignment that Cathy posted: gray, white, red, and green.
Reflect
Today’s prompt at HS, MS, HS is reflect: A process in which light is thrown back after impinging on a surface, or to think, meditate or ponder. Find ‘Reflect’ in your space. My favorite of the following three is the first one which I took as I got back into the van after taking photos at the Southern Vermont Art Center. The second photo is a reservoir in Vermont that we pass each year on our way to Manchester. And the leaf in the puddle was taken just a block from our house in Highland Park.
Design Your Life: Week 2
We’re on to week 3 in Cathy Zielske’s Design Your Life class, and I have just finished the week 2 assignments. I’ve taken a lot of online courses but this rates in the top 2. Barbara Carroll’s Photo 101 class on BPS was another fabulous class where I learned so much. Cathy’s class is on graphic design principles. We’re working from sketches which is really pretty unusual for me. Getting the measurements just right is proving to be a time consumer, but I’m happy with the results. The first two are based on asymmetrical design principles, and the third one is the weekly Real World Color assignment.
I’ve never cut photos in the gutter before. We’re using 3-ring binders and I’m not sure I like it as much once it’s in the album.
I’m learning a lot from the message board as well. Cathy provides pdf. files for the journaling boxes (as well as other goodies.) This week I learned that I can drag the pdf. file into Photoshop Elements and change it, write on it, whatever . . .
I got this assignment just before we left last weekend to spend some time with my brother and nieces. They were great about letting me take their pictures, and helping me with the journaling. I doubt that my own two children would be as cooperative, although in fairness, they are more tolerant now that they are older.
Baked
Today’s prompt at HS, MS, HS is baked: To cook with a dry heat without exposure to a flame. I am not baking today. We’re off to Niagara-on-the-Lake with good friends for a weekend of theater, good food, and wine tasting. But I do have a new toaster/convection oven which I love. It has a huge interior but takes up very little of my scarce counter space.
Hold–as in “hold on tight”
Today’s prompt on HS, MS, HS is hold: To have, or keep, or embrace an object or person. This is Dan, a friend of ours who came over to trim a branch hanging over the yard. I’m afraid of heights so I didn’t watch most of the action.
Orange
I’ve been a lurker on We Spy: You Spy for several months, but this week’s challenge–Orange–was too perfect to miss. There was lots of orange on our trip last weekend.
Orange leaves.
Pumpkins.
And my favorite:
Halloween lollipops.
Dip
Today’s prompt is dip: To put something down quickly into liquid. We saw these amazing kite sailors outside of Santa Cruz, CA this summer. They flew through the air, dipped down into the cold Pacific, and flew back up into the air. There were about 20 of them, and it was an amazing sight.
Autumnal
Autumnal: A characteristic of or occuring in Autumn. Find something autumnal in your space today. Today’s prompt couldn’t have come at a better time. Tracy, my brother, and I spent yesterday hiking in Minnewaska State Park. The autumn colors are at their peak, and it was the perfect fall day. Here are two favorites, although I’m sure I’ll be posting some more from both our hike and our day in Vermont on Saturday.
Look
A rare second post in one day. Today’s prompt from HS, MS, HS is Look: To view or investigate. Find ‘Look’ in your space. I guess this is really “THE look,” but I’ve always loved this photo taken after my daughter’s wedding. It kind of symbolizes for me the fun attitude she and Adam have always shared. So it’s an “oldie but goodie.”
Weekend Road Trip
We’re off on our fourth annual Columbus Day weekend road trip. Tonight to Albany, then to Manchester, VT, and finally to Hyde Park to visit my brother, Kathy, and my nieces. We’ll be indulging in a few favorites: Up for Breakfast (their Morning Glory pancakes are to die for!), the Northshire Book Store (a hugely successful independent book store), and Max’s Memphis Barbeque in Red Hook. I’m looking forward to getting lots of photographs, we’ll be hiking in the Minnewaska State Park, and best of all, the weather report is fabulous for the whole weekend.
Before I left I wanted to post the last two layouts for Cathy Z’s Design Your Life class. I’ll have Week 2’s projects waiting for me when I get home. This is turning out to be a great class. Still struggling with how to get a good, straight, in focus photograph of the 12 X 12 layouts or two page spreads.
Balance:
Real World Color challenge:
One thing I really like about this class is I can scrap photos I have in my files as well as supplies in my stash.
Sign
HS, MS, HS prompt for today: Sign: To convey information or a command. Find ‘Sign’ in your space.
Our street sign at the corner.
I started volunteering in my friend Sandy’s special education class today. She has seven of the most adorable students. I helped them make pumpkin paintings by painting the palms of their hands orange and one finger green for the stem. They loved it, and the paintings were really cute. I have to remember to get my camera out. Then I read three books the kids picked for their free time period. They’re all kindergarten and first graders, and I love the snuggle you get when you read on the rug. Although I loved my fifth graders and they loved to listen to books, they definitely weren’t snugglers. I’ll be going in every Thursday, and I can already tell it’s going to be something I look forward to each week.