Dandelions and Daydreams

Photowalking, as defined by wikipedia is:

the act of walking with a camera for the main purpose of taking pictures of things you may find interesting.

I’ve only heard the term used recently, but I’ve been doing it for years (just ask my mom about the cat pictures)!

Today I bundled up and went for an afternoon walk to catch some photowalking time before the sunset. I decided to take my camera along so you could come with me (without the cold fingers, the drippy nose, and the rosy red cheeks of course).

My First Official Photowalk
(click thumbnails to see full-sized images)

I started my afternoon walk headed out towards city beach. The water surrounding the marina and heading up Sand Creek has started to ice over into a slush. The marina sits empty now, but in the summertime it will be full of great big boats and bustling with people.

Crossing the bridge over Sand Creek, I saw a handful of mallard ducks swimming in the un-frozen sections of the creek. I’m glad I’m not a duck because today is a cold day for a swim!

I watched as one of the ducks took off for flight, but I had forgotten my gloves. Cold fingers won’t allow for still feet very long, not even when there is duck-watching involved.

Heading on down the path, the park was basically deserted. The grass has turned to dirt and the flowers have faded away. The driftwood “garden” that is at the top of the boat ramp actually stands out more when the bleached, weather-worn wood is not hidden by pansies and petunias.

The patterns on the driftwood stumps are so intricate and interesting. I had to stop for a few macro shots before heading on my way.

The dock and the beach are empty now, and it makes me a little sad. During the summer this scene would be crowded with people.

November is possibly the dreariest month, in North Idaho. The glories of fall have passed and right now we are all just waiting for the thrill of snow, and the start of ski season. It usually starts the day after Thanksgiving, but there is only 4 inches of snow on the ski slopes.

The sun hung low in the sky and my shadow stretched out long headed off towards the mountains across the lake. A cold wind was blowing in over the water.

I kept my ungloved hands stuffed down in my jacket pockets (except when I was taking pictures of course), and I kept my scarf wrapped tight around my face. I did my best to cover my ears and nose and neck with it. Every time I breathed, my glasses fogged up. I only pulled my hands out of my pocket to re-wrap my scarf and cover my nose again.

I have never taken much notice of this lion before, but I have been reading the Chronicles of Narnia series over the past few weeks. Somehow, I think he could be a Narnia Lion, and maybe he could even talk–once upon a time.

Today, he just sat cold and silent watching over the beach.

It was a cold, and muted sort of day at the beach, and just the sort of day to snuggle up on the couch with a cup of hot cocoa. I left off my photowalk and headed home. My cheeks rosy and my fingers longing to wrap around a much of hot chocolaty goodness.

Before I left, I took one parting shot. Just in case you were tempted by the film of ice covering the water, “No Lifeguards, swim at your own risk!”

It has been 2 weeks since I posted my plan to stop grocery shopping, and I wanted to send out an update on the challenge.

I didn’t really have a clear idea of guidelines for this challenge, but after I posted, I did some more thinking on it.

My basic guidelines are:

1. To eat out of my pantry and freezer for as long as possible without going grocery shopping
2. Because some things are perishable, I have allowed myself a budget of $50/2 weeks to buy milk, fresh vegetables, and great deals that I just can’t pass up (more on this later).
3. When I do shop, I will buy minimally processed foods.

These past two weeks have been difficult, not because of the cooking challenge but because of personal stuff. When life gets tough, it is usually easier to just go out to eat.

The main challenge that I have encountered is the wintertime blues setting in. Sunset is at 4 p.m. right now, and I have been feeling the wintertime blues setting in. Time to switch out the CFL’s for full spectrum lighting.

So I’ve spent $44 on groceries in the past 2 weeks. That includes a $20 trip to Pizza Hut on Friday night wen I was just too blue to think about cooking.

I got a great deal on turkey ($.27/lb), so I picked up a 17 lb turkey for $5.00!

I am trying to remember what I cooked over the past week. I can’t remember it all but here is the parts that I can remember:

• I cooked salmon patties which gave us 2 meals worth of leftovers.
• Brenton went on a trip and I made up a big pot of Lentil chili roughly based off the recipe from Hillbilly Housewife. It was a great deal more than sufficient, and after eating lentil chili for 5 days, I ended up throwing out about 2 servings.
• We grilled steaks one night, and the leftovers went into a salad later.
• I made a chicken and veggies meal in the crockpot and the leftovers went to sandwiches, salad, and soup.
• I think we had Ramen noodle soup one night too (shredded cooked chicken, frozen veggies, ramen noodles).
• Brenton made an incredible spaghetti last night, which I am currently enjoying for my lunch.

Things I could do better

The main thing I need to watch for is throwing away the last little tidbits.  Throwing away food because it has gone bad in the refrigerator is wasteful and expensive.  I need to be more diligent at putting extra servings in the freezer when I cook way more than we need.

Off to start another adventure this week.

What do concert pianists, professional football players, and writers all have in common?

If they want to be good great at their craft, they all have to practice…daily!

As we sit back with our cup of morning coffee–or tea, if you prefer–we dream of writing.  As every aspiring writer knows, when the time is right (when I retire, when the kids are grown, when life slows down, when I save enough to take a month off from my job…) that we will be able to sit down and pound out a Pulitzer Prize winning book.

And if you are ever going to get that published book or article, you need to start now.  Drink your tea and sit down for some daily writing practice.

How do I approach daily writing practice?

The possibilities for how to practice writing are endless.  Use any or all the following methods to stretch the author within you.

1.   Morning Pages–three pages, single spaced, handwritten, writing down whatever comes to your mind.  Don’t stop writing until you reach the end of three pages.  Don’t critique.  Don’t correct.  Just write.  (this suggestion is from The Right to Write)
2. Blogging–pick a niche you are interested in and research/write articles. Your blog posts today could become a published article tomorrow
3. Maintain a swipe file– whenever you read a magazine, newspaper,website, or etc. Look for attention grabbing headlines, watch for topics that interest you. Collect these articles and use them later to create your own version.
4. Writing Prompts–The internet is full of writing prompt lists and generators. My favorite writing prompt list is the monthly calendar from Toasted Cheese, a website devoted to helping writers pursue their craft. Other good websites for writing prompts are: Creative Writing Prompts, Writers Digest, and Prompt Generator.
5. Books–Get a book on writing or creativity and do the suggested exercises. My favorites are The Right to Write, Writing Down the Bones, and The Artist’s Way.

Start today.  Write, and write often.  Don’t critique.  Don’t edit.  Let the creative, imaginative, vibrant author  grow and  flourish.

You don’t have to be published to be an author and a writer.  All you have to do is write.

Welcome to the November 15, 2007 edition of Carnival of Christian Women. We have some great articles for you in this edition. Aside from the submissions on the blog carnival site, I also scoured the web and found a few good articles to include in the carnival. I hope you enjoy your reading.

Ministering to your Husband

christinemoers presents The Kind of Wife Every Husband Needs posted at welcome to my brain. As wives, we have the challenge of supporting our husbands so that he can become the best leader of the home.

Devotionals

Nadege presents More shall be given posted at Clearly Envision, a reflection on Matthew 13:12 “For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him.”

Renae presents 10 Characteristics of a Slave posted at Life Nurturing Education. Are you ready to enter the Promised land? Are you really free?

Annette ponders the sufficiency of Christ in He is perfect posted at Fish and Cans.

In Psalms 37: 4 we are told, “Delight yourself in the Lord…” Jody Neufeld presents Delight in the Lord posted at Jody Along the Path, exploring what it means to truly delight in God.

Christian Women at Home

Christine presents Cinnamon and Honey Crepes posted at Me, My Kid and Life, saying, “Healthy eating!”

Overcoming hardship

Ecclesiastes 3 says, “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die…a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance. Anna Farmery presents Live and let die posted at Widows Quest.

Barb writes about prayer and the drought in the southeaster U.S. in And the rains came posted at Tidbits and Treasures.

Amanda Ottaway has chosen to follow Christ in spite of hardships. She writes about that decision in My Choice for Faith posted at Mandi Kaye.

Celebrating the Holidays

Christianity has its roots in Judaism. By exploring the various Jewish holidays and festivals, Christians can develop a greater appreciation for our own Christian beliefs. e-Mom presents The Jewish Feast of Hanukkah: A Festival of Victory and Light posted at C h r y s a l i s, saying, “An exploration of this Jewish winter holiday for Christians. Includes the two miracles, Jesus as the Tree of Life, Hanukkah and eschatology, plus rules for dreidel spinning.”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Carnival of Christian Women using our carnival submission form.
Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags:

Carnival of Christian Women, blog carnival, Christian wife, devotionChristian holidays

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Argh! The holidays are coming and I don’t even want to think about trying to keep my house clean for the parade of people that will be passing through, and I delight at the idea of opening my home to the people I love the most.

Now is the time to start cleaning for those holiday get-togethers. Your house can stay company clean if you follow these seven steps.

1. Wash the dishes every night. Do it right away as soon as you finish supper. No matter what you think you want to do after you eat, if you don’t take care of the dishes right away, they won’t get done.
2. Make the bed every morning. My great-grandma used to say that if the dishes are washed and the beds are made, the house is clean. I know it seems foolish to make your bed when you have clothes thrown all over the bedroom floor, but trust on this one.
3. Spend 15 minutes before bed picking up around your house. Just 15 minutes, that’s all. Take that time to clear off flat surfaces, sweep the floor, wipe down the counters.
4. Don’t set things down “just for a minute” put them away. We all have those areas in our house that are always a mess. Usually the worst one is the flat surface nearest the front door. The end of your kitchen counters, the coffee table. Stop putting things down “just for now.” You don’t want to have to deal with stuff twice. Deal with it once and put it away. If it doesn’t have a home, find one or throw it away.
5. Wash, dry, fold, and put away a load of laundry every time you have a full load. I admit that I won’t do this one because I don’t have my own washer and dryer in my house. If you are fortunate enough to have your own washer and dryer do laundry every time you have a full load, don’t just wait until you are out of clean underwear. Likewise, if you do not have your own washer and dryer, set a weekly laundry day and stick to it!
6. Get rid of clutter. This is key to keeping your house clean long after the holidays have passed. When you find something out of place ask yourself, “Do I love this? Do I use this? Will I feel bad if I get rid of it?” If you answer no to all three of those questions, pass it on. Goodwill, Freecycle, and the local dump are all great places to get rid of your excess junk. Please don’t give garbage to Goodwill. They have to pay to get rid of it.
7. Finally, relax and remember the people who are coming over are interested in you not your stuff.

This article has been featured in Personal Development and Happiness Carnival.
photo used by permission stephcarter cc-by-nd