Pine Green

For this 120 day challenge we have arrived at Pine Green.  My last few years I have been living in the foothills of the mountains of East Tennessee.  We do have some beautiful pine woods surrounding us.

So for some of this it is a quick 5 minute ride up the mountain to see the woods of pine.

I would also like to show some of the damage caused by the wooly adelgid  in the same type of woods. The good part is they are getting a handle on eradicating this infestation.

For my creative soul I add some quilt tributes to pine green.

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Tropical Rain Forest

I have never been in a tropical rain forest.  Waking through the conservatory in the tropical rooms I imagine this is how it feels, with unique plants in bloom and vines hanging from everywhere. Some of the zoos  have simulated this feeling as well to house the animals and birds from these areas.

This picture is certainly what I imagine and may have no touch with reality at all. And then there is a quilt to pull all things together in my mind.

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Caribbean Green In Aruba A Year of Adventure & Discovery

Todays color is Caribbean Green and my mind went first to Aruba.  What a beautiful island and this color can certainly be found here.

You first find this color in the water as you are flying in and can’t help but notice the variations in the waters color around the island.  Next you see it in the plants and the fish in the ocean.  Warm and happy thoughts of staying here.

Since I do find a quilt pattern in much of what I look at,  here are today’s choices.

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Edible

This is a  weekly photo challenge.

Last summer I spent in Anchorage Alaska and had some incredible experiences.  One of the wonderful things I was able to do was attend the Alaska State Fair. This is well known for it’s gigantic food.  Due to the long summer days of 20 plus hours of daylight and sunshine, things grow extraordinarily large here. So I would like to share a few with you.

Due to the fact that many of the oversized vegetables are on display for about 2 weeks, they are no longer edible.  So the Fair donates the food to a wild animal rescue organization and I will include that as well.

Since my heart and soul always seems to come back to quilts, I will include one as well, but please don’t eat the food theme quilt.

Jungle Green

I have joined the Color your World challenge for 120 days.  Today is jungle green.

Every shade of green fits this description, except maybe neon green. But I am sure some of the animals living in the jungle have those bright vibrant greens on them as well.

Maybe a green Minecraft quilt will have the right shades of green. At the very least, it will make me smile.

Chicago IL, Zoo Day

As with much of the country, Chicago, IL. is experiencing some very nice warm days in anticipation of spring.  What else can we do but take advantage of them.  So we selected a nice sunny and dry day to go to the zoo.  Lincoln Park Zoo is right in the city of Chicago, with high rise apartments and parks and Lake Michigan all nearby.

Lincoln Park Zoo is a free 35-acre zoo located in Lincoln Park in Chicago. The zoo was founded in 1868, making it among the oldest of zoos in North America. It is also one of a few free admission zoos in the United States. The zoo is also open 365 days a year. It was nice to hang out with someone or something much older than I am for a change.

I grew up in Chicago and have been going to this zoo all my life.  I have also been to other zoos around the country and a few in other countries.  This is high on my list for so many reasons  It is a free zoo and very accessible for everyone. It has changed over the years to meet the needs of the patrons and the inhabitants.  The types of cages have evolved, the animals themselves have evolved.

It offer a wide range of animals and truly is appealing to a very wide range of people.  Lots of school groups were taking advantage of the day and using the park setting of the zoo for the students to have a fun outing. As a child I went both with my school and with my family. As a teenager, it was fun to hang out by or in the zoo with friends and on so many days just a nice diversion. As a parent I take my children and grand children there. If you are a traveler to or through this city and have several hours to spend on a sunny day, it is easy to take public transportation to the zoo and commune with nature.

This zoo has a wide variety of animals that most of us will never have the opportunity to see in their natural setting.  It has great food available and nice shops throughout for souvenirs of all sorts. Easily accommodates strollers and wheelchairs.Lots of benches throughout for all to sit and rest.  Great artwork throughout and a delightful touch of whimsy in the water fountain.

 

A Good Match

Weekly Photo Challenge: A Good Match .  Friends at a holiday party.

One blond, one brunette.  One naughty, one nice.  One dressed in dark clothes, one in light colors.  Looks like a good pairing.

For more from this challenge, visit the Daily Post’s Weekly Photo Challenge: A Good Match.

 

Spring

It doesn’t take much for those of us in cold weather to celebrate warm weather.  We made it through the Valentine’s Day events so we are pretty much poised and waiting for spring. We know it arrives eventually, but not sure we can survive the wait.

A few indicators turn us into springaholics.  A couple of nice warmer (this means above freezing) and  sunny days strung together and some blue sky.  The ice on the lake melting a bit, even though some fool-hardy people are out there ice fishing still. New varieties of birds at the feeders and not just the ones who winter here.

One nice green cane on a rose bush or older planting must be the harbinger of spring.  We don’t want to hear what any old groundhog said. Another sure sign, the first bonfire of the season, even if we are wearing heavy jackets, (we had one last night.)

Then come the flowers.  We love those hardy bulbs who are brave enough to poke a nose above the ground and say “Hello” to us.  We also look forward to any and all floral displays. If it is a local flower show or the early plantings at Walmart we stop and sniff.

It can’t come soon enough for us.

And as I do so often, I find a quilt that sings to me of spring.

Split Pea Soup

About once a year I make split pea soup.  After the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays I can usually count on a ham bone leftover in the freezer and off we go. Today with more family around I pulled out the bones to make a pot of soup.

I think the first time I made it I followed a recipe, this was probably about 40 years ago. I was amazed the first time I tried the soup that I even liked it, since peas are one of the few vegies I  don’t like.  But it has been a part of my diet ever since.

I do have a couple of son-in-laws that like the soup and request it when ever possible.  Todays version has onion, carrot, celery and green pepper added to  the ham and split peas. I use whatever broth available and today it was vegetable and chicken that I had on hand.

It’s funny how this soup has generated much debate.  Is there a difference in the flavor if you use different colored peas?  I have only ever used green.  Do you add lentil’s to this soup? I keep them separate and like them both.  Are the vegies chunky or pureed?  Most of the time I like the little pieces of carrot or celery, but occasionally I do use the immersion blender and make it smooth.  Sour cream or not? I have added a dollop of sour cream in each bowl for about the last 15 years, occasionally a touch of dill as well.  The variations go on and on.

I am ready now.  All I want to do is eat a bowl.

 

 

 

February In Florida

This was a stroke of luck.  I met an old friend for lunch and found out she was spending February and March in Florida. So I did the natural thing and invited myself to join her.

Sunset on the first evening looking out at the Gulf of Mexico.

A lot of the brown pelicans like to hang out with the people fishing for an easy lunch.  This is on the pier, with beach condo’s in the background.

The wonderful assortment of beach umbrella’s make the color on the beach match the  buildings on the shore, a mixture of pastel and bright colors.

Mural on the wall at the manatee park.  This is a great area to see the manatee in their natural environment and they are safe, people can only get to a certain area and not near enough to the water to cause any harm to the animals.

Lots of gecko’s everywhere.

The manatee park has an area for plants that attract butterflies.  Not many on the day we visited because of the wind, it was a little to strong for them but nice for us.

Of course in my world all things lead to quilts.  I found a couple of samples of beach umbrella quilts to add to my wish list.

We have 2 new states added to our list and two very successful trips. I am not sure what state we will visit next, but I can hardly wait.