Weekly Photo Challenge

the subject from, Czolya is:

 … “ Crunch Time ” …

I lived through a frustration this evening, learning once again, from the experience.  The moral of my story, there is more than a single way to skin a cat.  The Xanga uploader will not load animations, in working order.  I tried maybe 5 times until, rethinking the problem, I loaded the animation from inside the editor, and it’s working.  If I can remember what I have learned, for the next time around, I’ll be very pleased with myself. 

So, I salvaged my entry which I thought was SHOT DOWN, by the Xanga Gods.

It’s that time of year, heading into the discovery of new Recipes to crunch/munch into and lots of family gatherings.

 

It’s Crunch Time

Now, that’s scary!
MAKE SOME JACK-O-LANTERNS:  CLICK HERE

 

Tomato, Cranberry, Orange soup and Hot tea or apple cider make a fun meal for Halloween.  It’s Yummy. 

2 cans of tomato soup (I use Campbell’s)
2 cans of water
1 can of whole cranberry sauce or cranraspberry sauce, sort of smoothed out with a fork before adding.  Don’t break the berries up.
1 can of mandarin oranges including the juice, same size can as the cranberries
OPTIONAL:  ChiChi salsa and I use about a 1/6 of the tomato soup can for each can of soup
OPTIONAL:  Splenda or sugar to equal the packets used, 2 packets per can of soup
OPTIONAL:  I like to add into the ladled bowls of soup, a tablespoon or two of real cream.  Cooking it will curdle the cream if it gets too hot.
GARNISH:  Ground Cinnamon and fresh grated nutmeg is nice, too. 

DIRECTIONS:  Mix soups with the water till smooth.  Heat till good and hot, don’t burn.  Add all other ingredients mixing well then reheat to a nice eating temperature. Ladle into bowls, add cream now if you plan to use it, dust with cinnamon and/or nutmeg and serve.  Gingersnaps are good with this or your choice of saltines.

Have a great week, Xanga.  Keep your kids safe over Halloween by attending a supervised party instead of trusting in unknown neighbors who may be the bogeyman disguised as Mr. Nice.

 

 

Weekly Photo Challenge

the subject from, me, PhotoGraphics is:

 … “Hillbilly Heaven / Haven” …

 

Most of us have encountered spots on our part of the map befitting the concept of wild, free, and sometimes rundown, but often with a look of enchanting solitude and privacy.  These are the spots which call to my camera’s eye, and when the shot is missed, I remember the spot, in hopes of the encounter, again. 

 

To better define what I think of as  Hillbilly Heaven/Haven, here are a few of my photo definitions: 

1. City-Up-Setting (dirt, crowds, traffic, tenements) 
2. Urban Yuppie Prim and Proper (fancy homes, manicured lawns)
3. Hillbilly Heaven/Haven (no display of material wealth as much as a display of the total surroundings with a natural charm)
4. God’s Country (appearing as if never touched by the hand of man including field, mountain and wooded area and skyscapes of clouds and sunsets etc)
5. Techno – Photo (the world of technology is the main interest, from highway construction to trucks on the move to cellphone towers to bridge to ??)
6. Creature Comforts includes all life, other than ourselves, surrounding us, in the home or otherwise.

Some of my Photos

 

 

All of the images on this page were taken from a moving car so some of them aren’t as clear as I would like.  This one of the Mailpouch barn, with its rolling hills behind, is one I have posted before.  It was taken on a trip to Ashland, Kentucky.

 

 

I spend a lot of time with my camera on driving trips, John drives, I take photos.  I love the fields and barns but a lot of them fly by so quick I can barely get them.  This one was a distant shot I saw coming up.  I love the old tin roof and the weathered, forgotten look.  People living in areas like this would be called flatlanders.

 

 

 

This is another Ashland, Kentucky photo.  Ashland sits right on the river where there are always train sidings as the barges carry coal to be picked up.  The river cuts a path between very steep hills where hide homes, back in the hills and hollows/hollers.  It’s a beautiful place that fights for its survival as hill communities don’t have big incomes.  There are always the rich areas, people in upper class situations, but the greater numbers bring home less in a paycheck.

 

 

 

Another steep and wooded hill and this image is from one of our Rockford trips but on the way back home.  The hills and hideaways would please any self respecting hillbilly.  The areas are filled with deer and raccoon, possum, fox and a sparse population of hill and mountain loving people.

 

 

 

Farmland between Columbus and Cincinnati, Ohio.  There is always a pile of something lying around on farms.  Waste not, want not used to be a saying we all adhered to.

 

 

 

This was taken on the outskirts of Rockford, Illinois while just driving around.  Somewhere in the lay of the land resides a DaisyMae with a hillbilly heart.

 

 

 

This is taken off the beaten track in Virginia.  There are wonderful little burgs hidden away in these hills, lots of small homes dot the area and cows walk the hillsides.

 

 

 

This photo was taken on the drive from Cincinnati, Ohio to Rockford, Illinois.  There is a lot of farmland on the drive.  I have high hopes of getting closer, taking the little back roads, to get photos.  I grew up in surroundings like these, not on a farm but surrounded by them and all the good things they offered.  It made for a lovely childhood.

 

There are beautiful spots in the surroundings of any of our drives/trips.  Most of the farms have a look of being not kept up as much as the owner would probably like.  For me, it makes them all the more appealing for photos and it gives them the look of the downhome “Havens” hills where people still know what hard work is,  existing on less and appreciating more.   Not one of my photos tells the real story.  They only give a hint of it.

 

 

 

Have a super week and thanks always for your comments.

 

 

Weekly Photo Challenge

the subject from, StixAndStonz is: 

 … “Hats” …

My Photos

There are men’s hats, women’s hats and hats designed specifically for children.  They have been fashioned from skins with and without fur, cloth, straw, metals and ??  Like jewelry, head adornment has taken on the colors of the rainbow.  Hats have been known to be adorned with jewels, flowers, beads, feathers, ribbons, sequins, shells, and bits and pieces of berries, nuts, teeth and claws and even fruit.  A wonderful Internet site for Hats is:  http://www.baronhats.com/

 

Hats or head cover has been worn for centuries as adornment (fancy hats), an indication of status (crowns and tiara) or job situation (military) and as a protection from the elements, heat and cold (hoods and fur caps).  Hats or head cover, in some form or other, has been worn in every country by every nation of people.  Indication of this is found in ancient drawings and historical documents and we take advantage of what we know by use in decoration of some of our most well known toys, dolls.

 

Hats are fun and have found a place in nearly every facet of our lives from hats worn on the banks of rivers while fishing to the caps we wear to cheer on our favorite baseball team.

  

I find a lot of pleasure in the purchase of hats for my husband who is subject to some bad sunburn without them.  Because of this one particular fact, I have my own, personal,

 

Indiana Jones.

So sorry I was late with my entry, again. 

Thanks always for your visits and comments. 
Have a super week,

    

Weekly Photo Challenge

the subject from, SouthernLass is: 

  “Changes”

One of our favorite spots, close to home, is Lake Isabella.  It’s close enough to grab some fast food for a quick outdoor lunch before John has to go to work.  We don’t do the lunch often but we do manage a trip every week or so and John likes to go there, to do his walking.  It’s a fairly small park but it has pleasant aspects, one of which is constant Change because of the days, hours, weather and time of year.

Some of My Photos
Click the image for a larger view

#1  March, 2008, the direction in this image and in fact all of the views in my photos, are the same.  I am looking East, towards the expressway (the white overpass in the distance), I 275 running North and South.  At the far end is a parking area and the bank below it is popular for fishing.  There are places for grilling out and on “fish all night evenings”, people put up their tents.  

 

#2  March 21, 2008 and the lake is flooded with water higher than it had been seen for many a year.  I can’t recall details but the water just missed going into the door of the building which had been built in a height away from the water, felt to be a safe zone.  All electric had to be cut off as lightpoles were under water and fishermen wanted to fish.  Fried fish not fried fishermen is the rule and as it turned out, the fisherment continued to fish in spite of the flood and they liked fishing from the parking lot on the other side of the building, standing in the water on the parking pavement.   All of this is behind me as I stand, farther up the drive in a dry spot, taking this photo.

 

#3  April 20, 2008 and the picnic table sitting in the water of the lake is proof positive the flood waters are still high.  Fishermen never stopped coming to the lake.  The water level “change” appeared not to bother them at all.

 

#4  May 30, 2005 was a beautiful day with the water looking as blue as the sky.  The lake reflects all weather changes from rain to snow to extreme heat and each “change” creates a different look in the water of the lake.  I really like it when the skies are blue and there are a lot of white fluffies showing up.

 

#5  May of 2007 and there are days the water looks this blue.  I don’t know what creates the “change” in the color but when the water looks like this, fishermen are eager to throw in their lines.

 

#6  October 2006 and Fall has fell but the ducks don’t mind at all.  It is another really blue water day and the trees are “changing” from their Summer dress into the gown of Fall.

 

#7  August 30, 2008 and its early evening with a really pink sky in the West reflecting the “Change” of day into night in the lake.  It was beautiful.

#8  October 12, 2008, 5:27 P.M. (yesterday) to be exact. The trees are turning but the time of day and the reflections turned out more gold than the trees actually looked to me.  It was a fantastic site for ending this entry on “Changes” and appears to be heralding in Autumn in our part of the world.

 

Have a super week and keep on taking your photos,

 

Weekly Photo Challenge

the subject from, verybasic is: 

  “Sports / Action”

I love sports but don’t profess myself as an expert on any of them, just a fan of good plays and sportsmanship and healthy activities or exercise.  Bonebreaking/dirty dealing sports like a lot of ice hockey is doesn’t turn me on but I really like a good game of football.  I truly enjoy movies about sports and keep building my collection watching many of them over and over.  We watched “Remember the Titans” again just this past week.

Anyway, I don’t get out to see professional games as they are much too expensive but a high school football game can make me want to get out in the cold, wrapped up in blankets with some hot chocolate and a megaphone in hand.

I didn’t want to post images you have seen before so we went out yesterday, Saturday for some new ones.

My Photos
CLICK PHOTOS TO SEE LARGER
all but one, the younger set of aspiring sports stars

1- basketball:  We found this little guy at the park with his mom.  He is little more than 3 feet tall but has the heart of an athlete.  We saw him shoot from great distance compared to his size, making a lot of baskets. 

 

2- basketball:  This shot actually went in and after the fact, he collected the ball and began over again running the court back and forth.

 

3- basketball:  I managed not to get a shot into the hoop but did get this one that hit the rim.  No matter, he grabbed it and started over.  He has a great future in sports even if only for his own enjoyment and isn’t that what it’s really all about?

 

4- tennis:  This couple was playing in a private court, visible from the street.  I managed to catch the ball in the air, always what I’d like to do.

 

5- football:  There are a lot of sports activities in Loveland.  Lovelanders love sports so you can find little league and youth teams all year round doing something at the practice fields.  These images were taken at our high school.  Willing coaches and willing team members on the field doing what they do, practice, practice, practice. 

 

6- football:  On the field things get serious as the young players go thru the motions of what they have learned, agressive running, passing, tackling, huddling, throwing, catching just like the pros.

 

7- football:  You can better believe they know what to do though they may not have it down 100%.  These kids amaze with their catching and throwing skills.

 

8- football:  And then, they end up like THIS!  As I said, Just like the pros.

 

Hoping everyone has a super week,