End of Day-End of Week
It has been a long, drawn out week with disturbing things happening at work which have zapped my energy physically and emotionally.
On the positive side, the daylight hours are growing longer and it is still light when I leave work now. Today I just had to stop to watch the sun set- I took these photos with my cell phone, no filters, no alteration of colors. I thought the colors of the clouds and the brilliance of the sun so beautiful I wanted to share. I have neglected answering your comments, and reading your blogs, I do hope to catch up over the weekend! Looking forward to seeing you then!
Wordless Wednesday
Share Your World
What is the most incredible natural venue that you’ve ever seen in person?
Nothing immediately came to mind when I read this question. On a trip to New Hampshire I was in awe of the mountains and waterfalls, in California the giant redwoods in Muir Woods, the ocean as the sun rises over it, which has moved me to tears at times.
How many siblings do you have? What’s your birth order?
I am the oldest of 4 children. My brother came next and then two sisters. My brother died two years ago, I wrote about him here.
If you were a shoe, what kind would you be and why?
A flat shoe with some sparkle.
Why? Because flat makes it comfortable and as I always say, I was built for comfort- I am not a “roughing it” kind of girl. Sparkly because I like to keep life interesting by trying new things and changing things up which add sparkle to life.
What is the strangest/weirdest thing you have ever eaten?
I am not an adventurous eater. I grew up being taught to try something once and then you can say you don’t like it, but you can’t just turn your nose up to something because of the way it looks or smells. I tried sweet breads as a child without being told what they were and liked them, but then found out what they were and was pretty turned off.
The Weekly Smile
Well this week I had a lot to smile about…. I was on winter break from school!!
I started off the week going to a paint your own pottery place with a friend- a great thing to do on a rainy Monday. I think she did a great job.
Tuesday I had a mini reunion with two childhood friends. We have known each other since first grade, and went through school together right through high school. We met for coffee and had a great catch up for three hours. We keep up on Facebook, but filled each other in on the details. We reminisced and shared some funny memories and stories. 
Wednesday my husband and I drove down to the New Jersey shore- my very favorite place. It wasn’t too cold, considering it’s January- in the 50’s, but it was windy. We walked along the ocean and then a few miles on the boardwalk. We stopped for lunch and then as we were driving out of town passed a small museum and stopped there. It was a wonderful day and really made me feel like I was on vacation.
I started my days taking a walk, and visited some of my favorite local spots to take some photos. Lots of smiles to look back on and keep me smiling.
Repurpose
Washing the floor is such mundane chore. My kitchen floor is very old white linoleum, and impossible to clean at this point. I was using an old Swiffer mop that no longer worked with its appropriate cleaner and pad, instead using a towel with it to push along the floor to clean it. Until today, when someone posted on Facebook “helpful hints” for using different things for different purposes. They suggested taking an old pair of cozy socks- and wrapping one around the bottom of a Swiffer. GENIUS! I have plenty of these old type of socks that I can use. Throw them in the laundry and they’re good to go for next time. 
A Photo A Week: Ice
As I walked around a local pond last week, it was not cold enough to have frozen over, but ice had formed along the edges of the pond making what I thought was a pretty pattern as it trapped some of the rocks and branches within the pond.
Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge: Construction
Feathers on Friday
My husband and I took a drive down to the New Jersey shore this week, as the weather was very un winterlike, with temps in the 50’s. On the way, we passed a tall structure which we found out was a water tower disguised to look like a lighthouse. As I approached it to take a photo I realized something was sitting on the edge of the roof. 
It turned out to be a Black Vulture- a bird I had never seen before. I looked it up when I got home and found the following:
The black vulture is a scavenger and feeds on carrion, but will also eat eggs or kill newborn animals. In areas populated by humans, it also feeds at garbage dumps. It finds its meals either by using its keen eyesight or by following other vultures, which possess a keen sense of smell. Lacking a syrinx—the vocal organ of birds—its only vocalizations are grunts or low hisses. It lays its eggs in caves or hollow trees or on the bare ground, and generally raises two chicks each year, which it feeds by regurgitation. In the United States, the vulture receives legal protection under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. The common name “vulture” is derived from the Latin word vulturus, which means “tearer” and is a reference to its feeding habits. The black vulture is a fairly large bird of prey, measuring 56–74 cm (22–29 in) in length, with a 1.33–1.67 m (52–66 in) wingspan.
A fellow Vulture flew in while I was standing there- I guess it’s always good to have a friend around.
Not the most attractive bird I have ever seen, but a thrill to add a new spotting to my list!
One Word Photo Challenge: Duck
The photo below is one of my favorite photos. It is my grandmother feeding the ducklings that lived on my grandparent’s property. My grandmother died when I was 17, and this photo was taken not much before then. I can see she was smiling in the photo and it always makes me smile to look at it.
Thursday’s Special: Wintry
Wordless Wednesday
Foggy Morning
FOG
The fog comes
on little cat feet.
It sits looking
over harbor and city
on silent haunches
and then moves on.
– Carl Sandburg
Carl Sandburg (January 6, 1878 – July 22, 1967) was an American poet, writer, and editor who won three Pulitzer Prizes: two for his poetry and one for his biography of Abraham Lincoln. During his lifetime, Sandburg was widely regarded as “a major figure in contemporary literature” He enjoyed “unrivaled appeal as a poet in his day, perhaps because the breadth of his experiences connected him with so many strands of American life”, and at his death in 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson observed that “Carl Sandburg was more than the voice of America, more than the poet of its strength and genius. He was America.”
The Changing Seasons: January 2017
Max has left it up to us as to how we want to interpret “the changing seasons” : a painting or perhaps a digital manipulation? One photo, a gallery with plenty of photos? Photos of the same place each month or different spots?
I have chosen the same place over the past few months and at different times of day. There is a revolutionary war house not far from where I live. General George Washington actually used it as a headquarters in 1776. The land it stands on has a river on one side, and a beautiful view of a barn on the other. I often stop there to watch the sun set behind it, or watch the many birds that congregate there. One snowfall so far, a blanket of white on the old barn.
Quite different from the fall
This photo I took this past week when the combination of warmer temperatures in the morning created fog. Our winter has been unusually warm.
A January sunset I caught on my way home from work – I just had to stop and take it in.
A Photo a Week Challenge: Just Missed
Seagull Sunday
I always find Seagulls quite entertaining. I took a walk along a local river to find flocks of them hanging around. The fishing was good as evidenced by this guy having the catch of the day.
This group was just hanging out, maybe they had eaten already. They were not bothered at all by my presence, as I stood just a few feet from them.
I enjoyed standing at a lookout over the river and watching them fly by me, they seemed to be moving slowly- maybe preserving their energy against the cold.
This guy preferred bobbing along… 
and this one stood alone taking in the sights
turning to watch me as I left the dock
Have a good Monday all!
Weekly Photo Challenge: Graceful
A seagull as he glides along above the ocean…..
A Butterfly as she alights on a flower…
A bride as she walks down the aisle…
Black & White Sunday: After & Before
Paula has introduced a recurrent monthly theme: after and before. Show the same photo, regardless of the subject, in both monochrome and colour.
Thursday’s Special: Traces of the Past
The Empty Sky
The official New Jersey September 11 memorial to the state’s victims of the September 11 attacks on the United States
Two 30-foot-high rectangular towers stretch 208 feet, 10 inches long — the exact width of the World Trade Center towers, the proportion of the walls a symbolic representation of the buildings as if they were lying on their sides. The 749 victims’ names from the State of New Jersey face one another on the interior elevations of the twin brushed stainless steel walls. A granite passage is oriented to face the site where the twin towers stood.
A few yards from a walkway leading to the memorial are two rusted steel beams that were once part of the imposing towers of the World Trade Center that dominated the Manhattan skyline.
Mark Rosenberg was a young man in his 20’s that lived in my town.
The Weekly Smile
Thursday was my first day of vacation and I got out of the house early (7:30) to take a walk. It was in the 30’s but the sun was shining and I was excited not to be working! I walked around my favorite pond but I think the birds must have still been sleeping as it was pretty quiet. As I was leaving I happened to glance up and there in the very top of a tree overlooking the river that lies on the other side of the pond, was the unmistakable sight of a Bald Eagle. When I was growing up Bald Eagles were extinct. They were affected by the pesticide DDT, leaving them unable to lay eggs that would hatch. After the pesticide was banned they made a slow recovery and began to populate once again. I have seen them in my area, and each time I am almost moved to tears at seeing them. The fact that they recovered in my lifetime, and they are so majestic as they stand on the branch of a tree. 
As I stood watching, another Eagle flew into sight. I quickly attempted to take a photo as he approached, not paying attention to focusing the camera, more intent on just getting a shot if I could
They had a bit of a tussle… and then flew off together. 
What a smiling moment it was for me! What a great way to start my day. I continued to smile any time it came to mind throughout the day. What was your smile of the week?
Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge: Public Transportation
Public Transportation around New York City
Taking the bus from NJ to NYC-much easier than driving!
Cee’s Which Way
Wordless Wednesday
Cee’s Share Your World
Do you sleep with your closet doors open or closed?
Always closed since the night I got up in the dark and walked right into an open door leaving myself with a badly bumped forehead. As you can see in the photo- if that door is open there is no avoiding it when getting up.
Do you take the shampoos and conditioner bottles from hotel?
Who doesn’t? Those little travel sizes are hard to resist. The last place we stayed in had a sign that we should take them.
What is your usual bedtime?
I try to get to bed early most nights- between 9:30 and 10:00pm, as I get up at 5:30. Sometimes I do get too absorbed in some show I am watching and before I know it it’s 11:30.
Do you like to use post-it notes?
I LOVE to use post it notes in school. They are great to grab and stick to something as a reminder, a child’s homework, copies that I need to make. I love all the colors they come in too.
When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper?
August. I write to my nieces all summer while they are away in sleep away camp. There is nothing like getting mail in camp. And then receiving mail back.
Any phobias?
I wouldn’t say actual phobias, but I can’t stand the sight of bugs, I do not like heights, I hate going in elevators and avoid them whenever I can.
How tall are you?
5 feet 2 inches. I have been this height since the age of 12. Tallest in my class in 6th grade, and then ended up one of the shortest as time went on.
1970
Optional Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?
Grateful the cough and congestion I had for close to 5 weeks finally took leave. Grateful everyday to be here.
Good Morning Tuesday!
Just today and tomorrow in school and then I’m off for winter vacation!! Makes it easier to get through the day with that in mind. Also helps to have spoken with an administrator in school about the ongoing problems I am having with the head teacher I work with. Doubtful the teacher will change or can change, but airing my grievances and knowing certain things will have to change makes for a better mood for me.
Sunday I took advantage of the sunny morning and took a walk. My favorite squirrel popped out of his home to say hello as I walked by
The moon decided to hang around longer than usual
and I spotted this nest built within a bush- I am always amazed at the intricacy of a bird’s nest
This White Throated Sparrow sat himself in the sun for some warmth
I followed these footsteps and headed home
Hope your Tuesday is filled with good things!
A Day In The Life 
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