WE CLIMBED A MOUNTAIN

This weekend my son and I decided to go for a casual hike, and being as out of shape as I am, I decide, why not! As it turns out, not only did we go to the most beautiful place to hike in all of Arizona, a place called Ramsey Canyon, but we just kept climbing upward until, lo and behold, we had reached the top of the mountain. That's right, all 6,200 feet of it. I knew I was having a hard time breathing, but I just thought it was due to the fact that I am so out of shape. I got the most amazing pictures, and how, you might ask, did I manage to take a picture of the two of us on the top of the mountain without a tripod? Well, as luck would have it, standing at the top of the mountain, was a man and his wife, probably in their late 60's, standing there, taking in the view. They offered to take our picture with my camera. Also, they were kind enough to share their water with us, as we had not remembered to bring ours (for only what was planned to be a very short hike and picture-taking excursion). How sweet, after traveling that far, to happen upon two very lovely and generous strangers, who turned out to be friends in nature.

When we ventured a bit more over the top of the hill, we happened upon this rather large waterfall (large for Arizona mind you). It was such a blessing to find this frigidly cold water at the top of our trek, and rub it all over our necks and faces. It was quite a warm day. I was so glad we didn't "trip" over any rattle snakes or "bump" into any mountain lions or bears. There aren't many places to escape such potential fates up that high.

All in all, a lovely Saturday with my son, bonding and conquering a mountain. I wouldn't have spent it any other way.

TIME

Time lets you sleep, time lets you rise;
turns babes to adults, in front of your eyes.

Time is your foe; time is your friend;
you'll succeed if you try, or try it again.

It wrinkles your skin and grays your hair;
it sags body parts, that once were up there.

You can spend it with loved ones, or spend it alone;
you can clean up your house, or talk on the phone.

You can go for long walks, or jog in the park;
it's there all day long, it's there in the dark.

You can be with your family, on land or by water;
spend time with your son, and dish with your daughter.

Time is best spent with those you love;
it's the meaning of life, a gift from above.

So whether you're calm or stand up and cheer;
cherish each moment, and live without fear.

(c) 2007 - Kimberly Miller

OCTOBER CHALLENGE - ONE MAN'S TRAVELS

It's that time of the month again (well, not that time - lol). But it is the time for Graham's monthly challenge at One Man's Travels, and this month he has chosen "Shadows" as the theme. I had to think long and hard on this one and when I began my trek, I had in mind to photograph small shadows within small objects, i.e. rocks.
It was at that point that I happened upon my own shadow and actually began to pose and move in different angles in respect to the sun's position. When I took a picture of my shadow with both hands on the camera, it looked odd to me, sort of like my arms were missing, or that they were oddly connected to my head.
Then decided to put one hand on my hip and take the picture with the other hand. This resulted in what seemed to be an accidental, deliberate, sensual pose. I took another one of a cactus and its shadows, but was not as happy with this one.

Again, I had a great time with this challenge Graham. These challenges make me push myself to go that extra mile and think outside the box, which, as luck would have it, tends to be my regular way of thinking the older I get. LOL.

IF ANTIQUES COULD TALK

I didn't actually go spelunking, I mean, no caves were involved, but my son and I did go searching for artifacts, in the thrift stores and antique stores. We don't get to do this very often, but after the fun we had at the local art gala we decided to just stay out and continue to seek out new life and new civilization, to boldly go where no man...oh, wait, that's Star Trek - my bad!!! But we did continue to seek out new adventures and look what we found.

The first greatest find of the day, was this exquisite jewelry box for only $10.00. I try to imagine the jewelry and other treasures that have been in and out of this lovely piece. It is in very good condition, with only a few scratches on the outside. The top and sides are intricately carved. The inside dons 2 places for rings, two pouches lined with lace under the lid, a tuck away box in the center and three open trays. There are two drawers below that and all lined in voluptuous red velvet. I was impressed at how clean and in tact this box was, considering its age and history. It is so large that I was able to transport three of my small boxes of treasures into it and condense some space in my room. I absolutely fell in love with this jewelry box.

My second coolest find of the day was this picture book, circa 1818, in perfect condition (other than a few loose pages) for only $3.00. The pages are nicely yellowed through time, telling its tale of age and generation. If only it could tell its own story about who it has been with over time, I would sit and listen for hours.

I also happened upon this old, solid wood cigar box with metal hinges, also for $3.00. I love cigar boxes and if you combine that with the older, rarer, wooden type, I was ecstatic with this find. It didn't retain its genuine cigar smell inside, but I can imagine the sweet aroma. My grandpa used to smoke cigars occasionally, a cherry blend if I recall correctly. That particular smell always triggers fond memories.

And then, I happened upon some skeleton keys. I find these keys fascinating when you compare them to the keys of today. They are not as intricate in they way they were shaped to dislodge various tumblers in the lock, but they served their purpose and they did so well. One of these keys looks much like another and it is hard to imagine that they all opened different things. This bag of keys was a little pricey, but my son splurged for them for me. What a dude!

The piece de resistance, was this hinged, leather-covered box with a handle and metal corner protectors for a mere $7.00. There is nothing inside. I imagine it used to house a particular item, but now the possibilities are endless. Again, I know this piece could tell the most amusing stories.
I think that's what I find so intriguing about antiques - the fact that they have been around so long and various people have owned them or used them and passed them on. People have lived and died during their existence and they continue to be here. I wonder how many people read the story book, how many children learned to read because of this particular story book, and how many mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters used this particular book to soothe someone, entertain them, or put them sleep at night.

It certainly was a stupendous Saturday.

ANDREA'S SPREAD

I finally finished my spread in Andrea's book. I rather like this one. I hope she likes it. I used self-leveling gel in the hole in the "a" and it looks really wet, like it's submerged in the water. Pretty cool stuff, that self-leveling gel.

I'm so glad I got this done, since I've been having so much stress in my life right now. I went for an hour long walk after work tonight with my MP3 player and really enjoyed myself. I'm going to do that more often. It's a great stress reliever.

I'm also very submerged into my photography right now and having so much fun honing various new techniques. Sometimes it's tough having so many interests because I want to fulfill them all to their fullest.