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Urban structure

This structure contained a restaurant until it recently relocated to another space in downtown Abilene, TX. I haven't seen the new location so I don't know if there's an outside eating space as there was here. 

The weather has been much more tolerable although still warm and it was almost pleasant being outside and walking around after dealing with temps in the high 100s and up to 113 for a while.

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Downtown Alley

Seen in downtown Abilene, Texas.  While waiting for a friend to meet me at a coffee shop I wandered around for a few minutes with my camera.  I'm always surprised at how clean the alleys are.

The weather has been much more tolerable the past couple of days.

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Downtown Building

It's been averaging between 102-105 degrees here lately, way too hot to go outside to make images.  But now I'm way far behind my photo-a-day and probably won't be able to catch up by the end of the year.

So I decided to rework an image from my files.

This is one of the buildings in town.  I think it's a bank on the ground floor, but I don't have any idea what the upper levels are.  

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Hat and Scarves

One day, years ago, I walked into a shop in downtown Honolulu and on one of the walls there was a display of 4-5 hats with hanging scarves.  It was really striking and the shop owner was kind enough to let my friend and I take photos of the decor.  

Ever since then I've had this hat and scarves hanging in my bedroom.  The hat was a gift (I don't wear hats) and the scarves were also gifts (I don't use scarves either) and together they make a beautiful wall decor~~at least I think it's beautiful.

It's 8 pm and the temp is still 97 with the forecast of low 100s for the next week.  Ugh.

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Baby Portrait

Today's half of the Maternity/Baby Portrait workshop we had a 10-day-old newborn and the family.

The students had the chance to photograph the infant.

What a precious baby and what a great keepsake this will be for the family.

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Maternity Shoot

I attended a maternity/new baby workshop this weekend.  I made this image with my phone so it's not sharp but I like it better than any of the others I took.  

I seriously dislike maternity photos, but that's what the workshop was about.

The mom-to-be loved the images the instructor took and I guess that's what it's all about.

For being our model, she'll receive some free images.

Hooray for her.

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Weeds in Cement

I was walking along a sidewalk the other day.  It was cracked in one spot and this weed was growing through the crack.  Nature is amazing.

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Alaska State

I saw this wall decor in a coffee shop in Fairbanks,  Alaska.  I've seen it before and I love it.  I don't understand the passion of living permanently in Alaska, but all of the locals seem to have that passion.

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Pickleball Game

White taking a photo of the rackets in the previous post I decided to get a shot of a game in progress.  These 4 folks are really good.

I still need all the help I can get...

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Pickleball rackets

I accidentally got hooked on pickleball.  For 5-6 years I thought it was a stupid game and refused to even try playing it.

When I visited my son, he talked me into trying it, and the rest, as the saying goes, is history.

I play at the Y every day.  When the kiddos are out of school there's only one court available.  The rackets are piled in groups of 4 so when one game is over, the next 4 people can play.

The kids are going back to school soon so maybe there will be more playing time because the other side of the gym will be open for the game. 

(I've heard that for the past 3 years Pickleball is the FASTEST growing sport in America~~go figure!) 

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Houseplant

I love houseplants.  This one is turning out to be a beauty.  It needs to be repotted though. I already purchased the soil so now I have to be on the lookout for a bigger pot.

It's Saturday and it's 101 F.  right now.  By Wed it's supposed to be 108 F. with no rain in the forecast. This is too tedious and it's really

No Fun At All.

My heart is grateful for:

air-conditioning

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Coffee Maker

I came into the world of drinking coffee pretty late.  I had a Very Occasional cup in college because it was the cheapest item at the grill and I had very little discretionary money in those days.

I was probably in my late 20s before I started drinking coffee with any regularity and even then I preferred iced coffee.

These days I drink it every day, usually iced, even in the winter.  I use flavored creamer which satisfies my craving for sweets.  

When I first moved to be near my daughter who was just starting her family, she gave me the Nana cup. Coffee seems to taste better in a cup I like.

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Sunflowers

A few years ago one of my photo groups held a workshop led by a woman who is a seriously good photographer and we had the opportunity to photograph random still-life scenes with flowers and other items. 

One day I impulsively purchased these three sunflower canvases.  Maybe someday

I'll give them to someone as a gift.

Until then, I'm really enjoying them.

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Favorite Books

When I moved into a smaller place a few years ago I seriously cleaned out my stash of books and only  kept the ones I really loved and knew I wanted to re-read.  I tried desperately not to accumulate any other books~~and just to be honest, that plan failed but I did re-read all the books I kept.

Most of the books I've accumulated have been for bookgroup.  They were great.  Will I read them again?  hmmm  Should I get rid of them?  Probably.

If I don't get rid of them soon it will be up to my daughter and other kids to clean my house out at some point. I don't really want to leave that burden to them.

It's a conundrum.

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Decor

I was in Hobby Lobby the other day.  I found what I wanted and was on my way to the cash register when I wandered down an aisle where home decor was for sale.  I know this isn't very sophisticated, but there are times when I need a little whimsy in my life.  I basically fell in love with this picture AND it was on sale for a great price.

 

So now it lives on the wall above my couch and is one of the first things I see when I walk through my front door.  

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Books

I've loved to read since I was old enough to read.  Seems like I always have more than one book going, but lately I've been holding back.  I belong to a bookgroup and we read one book a month.  

Sometimes I start another one.  But right now I have three that I'm interested in reading.

The top one, "The Dictionary of Lost Words" is the bookgroup read.

"The Defiant Brides" is historical and I'm struggling to get into it, but I'll persevere a little longer and see how it goes.  It was a birthday gift from a casual friend so I think I need to make an honest effort to read it.

The bottom one, "Perceptions of a Renegade Mind" is one I read before.  It was amazing.

I think David Icke is my new favorite author.