Tuesday, May 31, 2011

miscellaneous

last week's whimsical wednesday activity was sending postcards to celebrate national postcard week.  since the five i created were mailed, three responses were received; two email messages and one phone call.  no responses were expected so each was a great  treat.  it was a pleasure to catch up with three postcard recipients.

Monday, May 30, 2011

get ready.....

let's play with our cameras this whimsical wednesday.  with your camera or phone plant yourself somewhere, close your eyes, spin around a few times and when you stop take a picture (keep your eyes closed!).  then look at the image.  what did you capture?

Friday, May 27, 2011

photo friday

decorated doggie

oh what a compliant and patient little dog.  the get up made me giggle.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

thoughtful thursday

most days we have a set agenda and work diligently to accomplish the day's tasks. for me, some days are all about puttering.  meandering through the day, giving attention to small details that are often ignored in the general routine of the house chores or just working on tasks that i want to do instead of what i must, gives the day the feel of a day off.  beyond choosing what to do for a change in routine, at the end of the day, much more than expected has been completed.  a day of puttering is a day of relaxation that one can feel good about that provides the added bonus of accomplishment.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

whimsical wednesday!

wednesday is the day a friend and i have lunch.  we eat at the same place every week and sit at the same table.  since we are regulars, we have become friendly with the servers.  with that in mind, planning for the JUST BECAUSE celebration for whimsical wednesday included them.  a small basketful of heart shaped "ornaments" wrapped in a cloth the way a bread basket would be prepared and a small bright yellow smiley face balloon were taken to the restaurant.

when my friend saw me in the parking lot (yes, we park in the same area either next to or close to one another) she giggled at my armload of goodies, asking what i was up to this week!  i just smiled.  we enjoyed our lunch with the balloon (on a stick stuck in a paper cup) and basket decorating our table.  we ate and talked and enjoyed our visit.

at the next table was two young boys with their mother and grandparents.  they finished eating before we did.  as they were leaving i held out the balloon to the younger boy and asked if he would like to have my balloon. his eyes  grew wide and he nodded yes.  as he took it from me he was asked to please share with his brother.

it was just before we prepared to leave that i told my friend it was JUST BECAUSE celebration day and that meant balloons and prizes.  the basket was offered and she was invited to have one (three choices: red, green, blue).  she was delighted as she selected her favorite color green.  as we left we paused to offer a JUST BECAUSE celebration gift to all "our" regular servers.  they were surprised, then excited to be able to select a heart just for them!  we got hugs and thank yous.

light-hearted and grinning, i drove from the parking lot.  at the stop sign i was behind a car with a license plate from the state of virginia; a state not yet sighted so could be added to our list.  what a perfect way to end whimsical wednesday!

Monday, May 23, 2011

get ready.....

JUST BECAUSE will be the reason to have a celebration this whimsical wednesday!  make it fun!  make it a huge surprise for those you bring into the celebration!  and if you find you'll be alone, have a just because celebration just for you!  i'm already planning......

Sunday, May 22, 2011

spring!

this sunday morning has dawned as the most wonderfully perfect spring day......

the sun is shining,
a gentle breeze is blowing,
the temperature just right,
wildflowers are blooming,
birds are chattering,
ducks are lazing on the lake,
the trees are full with bursts of green leaves.

the day is a poem!

sipping tea on the screened porch, savoring it all, creates a very special whimsey.

Friday, May 20, 2011

Thursday, May 19, 2011

thoughtful thursday

for the last few months it has seemed that the weather consists only of rain.  rain means dark clouds and dreary, gloomy days.  monday i awoke to sunshine.  it was so bright and overwhelming i felt as if i had awakened some some place other than earth!  and thought i needed sunglasses even in the house, so unaccustomed i had become to the brilliant light of the sun.

later in the morning, at the volunteer quilting group i work with, we commented on how wonderful it was to have the sun shine once again.   one of the ladies remarked, "remember, the sun is always there; we just can't see it sometimes."  how true that observation!  it prompted me to think how often we think something in life is absent.  however, if we pay attention we find that what we thought was missing has been there all the while.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

whimsical wednesday!

in honor of national postcard week, postcards are being made this whimsical wednesday.

the morning began with making a pot of tea to sip while considering postcard making options.  post tea and thinking, five postcards were created using a variety of colored card stock (a standard sheet of card stock, cut into four pieces, makes the perfect postcard).  festive stickers were applied to the side that the note was written on.  simple but lighthearted and certainly postal delivery friendly.  the postcards are being sent to unsuspecting recipients.  hopefully there will be responses!

a postcard stamp costs less than 30 cents.  a stamped postcard can also be purchased for a few cents more.  a very economical way to make someone happy when the mailbox yields a handwritten hi.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

miscellaneous

the first batch of ripe strawberries were picked yesterday!  strawberry season is sooo wonderful; so rich in flavor and warm from the sun.  yum!  yum!  after sampling a few, the rest are prepared for the freezer.  when the grandchildren arrive for their late summer visit we will make jam.  then strawberries will be enjoyed all winter as the homemade strawberry jam will remind us of spring.

the hummingbirds have returned.  the two that have been observed are enjoying homemade nectar.  if you'd like to attract hummingbirds to your landscape make nectar.

the recipe:  one part sugar to four parts water.  pour measured hot water over the sugar and stir until the sugar is dissolved.  after the nectar cools, pour into any hummingbird feeder (these can be purchased rather inexpensively) not more than halfway full.

why only halfway?  because more hummers will be attracted to the feeders if the nectar is changed often (be sure to wash the feeder before adding fresh nectar); especially when the temperature exceeds 80 degrees.  giving them less per fill keeps the waste of nectar to a minimum.

begin with one or two feeders.  hang them from a tree or by the house on a plant hook or get a feeder that attaches to a window with a suction cup.  then enjoy the peace and whimsey of observing hummingbirds.

Monday, May 16, 2011

get ready.....

the month of may hosts national postcard week.  in honor of postcard week this whimsical wednesday, make a postcard or two (or five) and send to people who would least expect them!

Friday, May 13, 2011

photo friday

my recent travel to new york city to visit libby netted this photo. did you spy the little frog figurine living in the planter amid the leaves?  it's just one bit of whimsey found in her apartment.

Thursday, May 12, 2011

thoughtful thursday

be a better you instead of trying to be better than anyone else.

that is, compare yourself to no one.  no one else is you and you are no one else.  you are your own standard by which any change should be measured.  if the need to be more or different is present, be gentle with yourself.  and always have a touch of whimsey within!  

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

whimsical wednesday!

whimsical wednesday had participants trying something new.  my efforts took many hours as trying to think of that something new occupied much of the morning.  after a few false starts i decided to learn new crochet stitches.  doing such usually isn't very pleasant for me as i find reading patterns and stitch directions difficult (that's why i typically make up my own!).  however, this was the something new i decided upon and i was going to see it through.  i fumbled with my attempts initially as i couldn't get myself situated with what to learn or how to learn it.  finally i decided to create a small crocheted piece that would be a sampler of the different new stitches i was going to learn.  and i began at the beginning of the "how to" of stitches in one my crochet books.

first came the row of chain stitches, the stitch that begins most crocheted pieces.  then a row of single crochet between each row of the rest of the stitches.  the first stitches, half double crochet (my favorite crochet stitch) and double crochet i already knew how to execute.  from those rows i learned how to crochet the triple crochet, any stitch (i used the half double crochet) around the front of the stitch post, then around the back of the stitch post as well as stitches in the top front loop and the back top loop.  the cluster crochet stitch, the popcorn crochet stitch and the puff crochet stitch finished the project.

when the last single crochet stitch was finished, i lifted the small sampler piece to examine and admire.  big grin!  collectively, i learned eight new stitches for my learn something new activity.  some i had to do over and over again until i crocheted them correctly.  i was quite pleased with my efforts and the results as my knowledge of crochet expanded today.  my mom would be pleased too!

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

miscellaneous

more license plate sightings from my recent travels to both new york city and chicago:  connecticut, alaska (yes, alaska!) and arizona.  we have seventeen more state license plates to sight and the entire united states will have been accounted for.  we have also seen four canadian provinces.  it's fun, a challenge and always exciting to see another new plate to add to the list.  wonder if we'll manage to see a plate from hawaii.......

may brings the hummingbirds so it's beyond time to hang the feeders full of nectar that will bring them to the farm.  i'm on it! hummingbirds are very whimsical.  hopefully you have the pleasure of the company of these delightful creatures.

Monday, May 9, 2011

get ready.....

this whimsical wednesday try something new.  it matters not what the new is, just do something you have never done before! 

project whimsey in chicago

EMBODY:  IT'S WHAT WE HAVE TO WORK WITH  was performed by the LUNA TROOP dance company in chicago over the weekend.  the whimsey project offered an opportunity for the audience to become active participants during the performance with the piece, BODYWORKS.

each member of the audience was given a card that depicted a muscle of the body and what area of the body that muscle was connected to.  audience members then gathered on the dance floor and stood in the "correct" place to correspond with that of the body.  after every body was in place and adjustments were made, photographs were taken.  a portrait of a human body composed of bodies featuring the part of the body that helps the body work.....muscles!    

(the whimsey project thanks the LUNA TROOP for being included in this performance......)

Friday, May 6, 2011

photo friday

not only do i find whimsey at libby's new york city apartment, i also find whimsey at sarah's home in chicago!

Thursday, May 5, 2011

thoughtful thursday

after arriving at my chicago destination yesterday early afternoon, i decided a walk on a lovely spring day was just what was needed to relax from the journey.  out of the neighborhood to the nearest busy street i walked along.  at a major intersection, i found myself amid lots of persons out for a walk on a lovely spring day just as i was.  and, while waiting for the light to change so i could cross the street, i examined all the stores in the four blocks that bound the intersection of the street.  what i found, in both building and human, was that they seemed to be from everywhere all over the world.  as with new york city, such an environment is a living united nations; not just an idea or a building or an organization but actual life and all of us living it together.  as much as the lovely spring day warmed and renewed me, so did finding variety in life that actually finds us all so similar there are no true differences. 

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

whimsical wednesday

the whimsey project has arrived in chicago!  whimsical wednesday was observed along the way.  today's activity was to note nouns along the drive and to create new "names" with the found words.  because the drive is long, 40 words were gathered (stopping once coming close to the city as driving becomes such that playing games isn't a very good idea! and 40 seemed a lot to work with).  because there are lots of nouns, parameters were established; with the names of towns, counties or the names on 18 wheeler trucks being eligible for inclusion.  the following was created after arriving at my destination:

mcgrif schiber
bradley bourbonnais
will renegade
hetzel manteno
buckley roberts
moc quast
paxton lagrou
beelman rantoul
heyl tiphook
dart gilman
chatsworth onarga
averitt mcnay
clifton iroquis
ashkum hapag
pontiac coles
dix chebanse
momence sherwin
salem n'dair
kankakee prime
arthur mattoon

would you like to have any of these names?  i'm partial to mcgrif schiber, hetzel manteno, paxton lagrou, heyl tiphook and averitt mcnay.  (actually i like them all!)  it's neat how random words found along the road can be configured to create names that could belong to characters in books or movies or authors of paperbook books, like romance novels.  giggle.......

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

miscellaneous

the whimsey project will be on the road this week.  we will be participating in the performances of the LUNA TROOP dance company in chicago.  there will be lots of wonderful dancing and fun with the whimsey project!

Monday, May 2, 2011

get ready.....

wednesday will find me on the road so let's play a roadtrip game for whimsical wednesday.  you can play even if you aren't on a roadtrip.  note the names of towns or streets or stores (or whatever is in your view).  take those names and blend them to create new and different  "people" names.