Joyous June

Today marks the end of doing the photoblog for 6 months. It is hard to believe that I am halfway done with this year and this project. Time really does fly faster the older you get!

30 June 2009 Photo: Cheap and Cheerful Fruit

The wild berries that grow in the back of our property are getting closer to being ready for picking. I always have great thoughts of picking them and making something yummy but they never quite make it to that stage. They are so good to pop into your mouth when they are warm from the sun!

29 June 2009 Photo: Prolific Posies

The daylilies are blooming. These prolific flowers are bright and plentiful on our property. I am always excited when they start to bloom in the yard because the bright orange haze of daylilies glow against the green grass!

28 June 2009 Photo: Eating Out

In looking for today's photo, I noticed this leaf that appears to have been dinner for an insect or two. The blue skies and the sun beaming in provided a great subject but I hope the bugs have gotten their fill of my tulip tree leaves!

27 June 2009 Photo: Like Pie And Chips For Free

Unlike the Geico gecko, our resident gecko never gives us pie OR chips for free. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmiK7cIx-pU

26 June 2009 Photo: Trolley Car Diner

This morning we headed to the Trolley Car Diner for breakfast to give my West Coast friend the East Coast diner experience. This diner was in Chestnut Hill, PA and we celebrated our last day of meetings for the week.

25 June 2009 Photo: Old Stuff

Storefront of some fun old stuff and antiques!

24 June 2009 Photo: Repetition

The repetition of the pattern and the depth of field are pretty cool.

23 June 2009 Photo: Zotten

Microbrews have been all the rage for several years now. My friend Kelly's husband works for one of these microbreweries in PA. While I am not a beer drinker, my colleagues certainly enjoyed the wares that she brought with her to Glenside this week. Check out the many different types of beer that Weyerbacher brews here http://www.weyerbacher.com. Try one if you see them around!

22 June 2009 Photo: Collegial Support

Just a funny picture of the many faces of my crazy colleagues! When I first started working for Arcadia about 5 years ago, I started taking "Dumb Dru" pictures during all of our travels. Dru was joined by Amy and Todd for this "dumb" picture!

21 June 2009 Photo: Mr Potato Head Is Old

It is Retreat Week for my job. Once a year, my colleagues from all over the U.S. come together for a week in Glenside, PA to discuss topics, address issues, regroup and get ready for the next year. We stay in nearby Chestnut Hill which is a quaint neighborhood in suburban Philly. This toy store is just up the road from our hotel and I was attracted by Mr Potato Head in the window. Did you know Mr Potato Head is almost 60? I remember many a day spent in the toy store in my hometown...what more could a kid want (well, other than money to buy all the toys)?

20 June 2009 Photo(s): Surprise!!!

I survived the SURPRISE party for my mother in law's 60th birthday. At some point of weakness, I thought it would be a good idea to cater a party for 30 people the week after our Hot Air Balloon party and a day before I had head down to PA for a week due to my job. Thankfully 2 of my sisters agreed to help out with the party and I couldn't have done it without them. After 2 or more days (I lost count) of cooking, the party was damp because of the weather but a huge success despite the rain. It was a great day - everyone enjoyed the party, the food and my mother in law was surprised. Above you will see one of our creations...the quilt cookie cake. She is a quilter so I came up with the design and decorated cookies using royal icing, used a mini cupcake for a pincushion and made a thimble out of chocolate! Kind of cute, huh?

19 June 2009 Photo(s): Jurassic Park

Both Bill and I have family visiting from out of town. And what do any good folks living in the Syracuse area do with their guests??? We bring them to Dinosaur BBQ of course. Dinosaur was recently named the #1 BBQ in the country as decided by a poll done by Good Morning America. I am sure there is better BBQ but they didn't get the votes. If you haven't been, find one of the three around NY state (Syracuse, Rochester and NYC) and get your own Big Ass Pork Plate! http://www.dinosaurbarbque.com/

18 June 2009 Photo: Get Out Of Jail Free Card

With this face and those dimples, how you resist squeezing those cheeks?

17 June 2009 Photo: Rorschach Test

Ok it is not an inkblot but what do you see in the clouds? I spy with my little eye a fish! It sort of looks like Mr. Limpet or Charlie the Tuna.

16 June 2009 Photo: More Than Just Dressing

I am taking some vacation time this week while my sister is visiting from GA. Today was a perfect day so I took her up to Alexandria Bay (Alex Bay or A Bay for those in the know). Last year was my first time up there to do one of the boat tours of the Thousand Islands and it was a great way to spend a warm sunny day.

We did 2+ hour tour of the islands on the Two Nations Tour. Despite the busload of 5th and 6th graders on the boat, we had a great day. Well worth the drive and fee to get a look at how the other half lives. If you are wondering, this is the place where Thousand Island dressing was first made. George Boldt (the same one that Boldt Hall is named after for all my Cornell readers) helped to make the dressing famous and built the beautiful Boldt Castle which will never be completed. Find out why on the website below!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thousand_Islands
http://www.boldtcastle.com/

15 June 2009 Photo: Keeping The Doctor Away

Our apple trees have little apples on the branches. Last year we did have some edible apples and we will see how this year's go.

14 June 2009 Photo(s): Magical Moments

By 9AM this moring, I had a pretty magical day. Bill and I went across the street to our neighbors who live on the water to watch the 6am balloon launch. When we got down there, the water looked so inviting that I decided to take the kayak out to watch the balloons take off. I love kayaking and love hot air balloons so it was a perfect combination. I put my camera in a plastic bag and off I paddled. The rising sun with the rising balloons...it just couldn't get much better than that.

Afterward when we got home, Bill was taking Mona out and came across a baby woodpecker who was learning to fly. I had come across the same scene last year so I knew the baby would be ok so I ran to get the camera and take some photographs. As we were standing around, the bird started hopping toward my sister and she kept moving back to let the bird have space but it continued to follow her. I told her to stand still for a moment and the woodpecker hopped right on her foot and started climbing up her leg while saying, "Are you my mommy?" We were AMAZED and enjoyed this magical moment until I removed the baby and placed it in the tree out of harms way. All this followed by a lovely morning under the gazebo reading the Sunday paper...I just wish everyday could start off so perfect!

13 June 2009 Photo(s): Plenty Of Hot Air To Go Around

It was Day 2 of Balloon Festival. The balloons went up last night and this morning but unfortunately for my guests, they did not fly this evening. We had a fabulous time despite the lack of hot air in the balloons...if you knew my friends, you know that the hot air was still flowing!

I went to the balloon field this morning with Bill, my sister and my in-laws and we had a spectacular show as more than 20 balloons took off. As we were watching, Bill called them gems in the sky and I liked that phrase. The morning and early afternoon was lovely and pretty much as soon as my guests arrived, so did the rain. Despite the rain and no balloons flying, we had a great time catching up. The 2 little girls are Carlea and Nina after a rousing game of rug twister. Both of their parents also have blogs that you can check out to see more cute pictures...

http://jenndavisblog.blogspot.com/

http://joesfamily.wordpress.com/

12 June 2009 Photo: Let The Festivities Begin

The Jamesville Balloon Festival begins today and in preparation of our party tomorrow, my sister and I decorated our traditional balloon sugar cookies. I like how the forks looked after mixing in the food coloring to the royal icing. Don't the cookies look yummy. We tried to make hotair balloon cake pops but it was not successful so we just made regular cupcake pops.

11 June 2009 Photo: Jaywalking Geese

Don't you just hate when Canada geese jaywalk in the middle of a busy intersection? I think the guy behind me was even more mad because I was taking pictures rather than trying to hurry them along. I think I heard one of the babies asking to go to KFC across the street...oh that is just wrong!

10 June 2009 Photo: Sweet Sweet Nectar

Since people liked the fly so much yesterday, when I saw this bee on my straw flowers I knew it would be the photo of the day. As I was taking this bee's picture, another one almost attacked me. I felt like the paparazzi being accosted by some Hollywood star just for taking a picture!

9 June 2009 Photo: Stop And Smell The Roses

Well it finally rained and gave all my flowers, plants and veggies a much needed soaking. As I am still in awe of my roses blooming this year, I decided it was time to take some pictures of my little rose buds and found this fly who stopped to smell the roses.

When I went to find the origin of this phrase, I was surprised that it seems to be attributed to Ringo Starr's album in the 80's. Surely it was around before that but the web produced no definitive proof other than it may have been around for a century or so. Too often we get so caught up in life and forget to appreciate the small moments, the beauty around us, the people we know or even the ones we don't. And then before you know it, it may be too late. Whomever crafted this suggestion, we should all take a lesson from this fly, Ringo Starr, or two old friends meandering through a rose garden a century ago...take some time out today and do something you enjoy! OK...I am stepping off my soap box before I fall or am pushed.

8 June 2009 Photo: Growing Garden

I just love this time of year. The gardens are growing and changing everyday. I have spent a lot of time enjoying our yard this year for a couple reasons. It has been a gorgeous late spring/early summer and I have not had to travel for work during these few weeks for the first time in years.

It's amazing each year to see what pops up or grows bigger. We have lived in our house for almost 4 years and this is the first time the rose bushes have had buds on them. The irises have more blooms than ever. The oregano keeps coming back bigger and bolder. I just have to stop and admire this natural beauty! We have not had a lot of rain recently so I had to water flowers this morning and saw this photo op.

7 June 2009 Photo: Disappointing Del's

We were driving by Tim Horton's and I saw a sign and almost drove off of the road. "Del's Sold Here!" What?!?! Could it be? Did someone FINALLY bring one of my favorite summertime treats to NY .

If you are from RI, you certainly know what Del's is and understand the tasty memory that made my drool in my car. If you aren't from RI, here is a bit of history of Del's http://www.dels.com/ As a kid/teenager, it was great to find the Del's truck or go to the Del's storefront to get this frozen lemony treat complete with little bits of lemon rind to cool you down in the heat of the summer.

To my dismay, this "Del's" did not live up to the name. Del's sells a packet now that you can make your own from and it is not the same as Great grandfather DeLucia used to make back in the day. It was very disappointing...the taste was all wrong, no lemon rind and no smell of the salt water of the Atlantic. I need to write to Tim Horton's about this false advertising! Oh well, I guess I will have to wait until I get back to RI this summer to get the real deal.

6 June 2009 Photo: Baker Man

Today was an early day at the Regional Farmer's Market in Syracuse. We were up and at the market by 6:30 AM. It is much more manageable at that time because it becomes a zoo by 7:30. No traffic, no problem parking and first choice of all the "good stuff". We bought a ton of flowers, some veggies and the first local strawberries of the season. I am so excited for strawberry picking to begin! While I didn't buy any of this baker's bread today, it did look yummy! I love farmer's markets and frequent them weekly during the spring/summer. While I enjoy the quaintness and location of the Ithaca Farmer's Market, this one is much bigger with great local produce and wonderful vendors.

5 June 2009 Photo(s): Tasting Syracuse

Bill and I went to the Taste of Syracuse tonight. It is an opportunity for local restaurants to do dollar tastings and listen to some bands. It is nice because you get to try a little bit of a bunch of stuff...sort of like tapas. We had Jamaican beef patties, chicken riggies, empanadas, Thai shrimp, gumbo, and some other things I don't recall.

There were tons of kids wandering about and I captured this little one hanging out in front of the Federal Building dreaming about being a secret agent man. Sorry kid, I don't think those red crocs are stand issue for the FBI!

4 June 2009 Photo: Misty Morning

I am so tired of cancer taking people in my family. I just found out today that my cousin lost her battle to cancer early this morning and she was so young. As I was about to walk outside to enjoy the early morning light, my sister called to tell me. The mist was rising from the lake across the street. Mist always pulls me in two directions...the gloomy feeling of mist is contrasted to the beauty and serenity of the scene. I guess death is similar - the sadness we feel when we lose someone we care about contrasted to the relief that they are no longer in pain. RIP Suzi.

3 June 2009 Photo: Gimme My Toy Back

Can't you just hear Mona whining..."It's my toy. Give iT BACK!!!!! Please. You told me we were going to play fetch." I just love that look on her big goofy head!

2 June 2009 Photo: What A Long Strange Trip It's Been

Sometimes my time on the road is just surreal and this drive home was just that. After getting an early start from central MA, I encountered my first bizarre happening. There was a man in front of me driving relatively slow and looked like he was really getting in the music with his car dancing. I was admittedly getting annoyed because he was in the fast lane. As he finally pulled in the other lane, I looked over at him and it looked like he was having some kind of seizure. I slowed down for a bit to make sure he was ok. I didn't really know what to do so I kept an eye on him in my rear view mirror. He wasn't driving erratically so maybe it was just dancing.

Then two encounters with deer running across the highway. I do alot of driving...seriously like truck driver amounts of driving and occassionally I will see deer run into the road. I see many of them already dead on the side of the road but rarely do I see them in the act of deericide. The first one happened and luckily I saw the deer enter on the other side of the highway so I had time to react and slow down to nearly miss him. But the woman next to me in the other lane either didn't see the deer or wanted some venison. She caught the hind quarter of him and sent him flying toward the guard rail. It was very disturbing and nearly made me sick. She just kept on driving, didn't even slow down or stop. And then two hours later, again the deer decided to play frogger. Luckily these 2 young deer were a bit more agile and avoided being hit by me and a truck driving next to me. Maybe someone slipped soemthing into my orange juice this morning...what a long strange trip it's been and I am glad to be home!

1 June 2009 Photo: I Love To Swim...LA LA LA LA LA LA

Yesterday I was traveling with one of our staff from Australia. While we were on campus at Roger Williams University, we took her to the wet lab in the Marine Sciences department. It is my favorite place at RWU because of the seahorses. Unforturnately the seahorse pics did not come out very well but I did like this picture of the clown fish.

If you have seen Finding Nemo, you know them well. Just keep swimming...just keep swimming...what do we do we swim...we love to swim...