great artists

"No great artist ever sees things as they really are. If he did, he would cease to be an artist." Oscar Wilde

colour

i still miss my old kodachrome slides -- they had such nice bright colors, but mama they took my kodachrome away..
"the purest and most thoughtful minds are those which love colour the most." -- john ruskin, "the stones of venice"

weather or not

there is really no such thing as "bad weather," only different kinds of "good weather." -- John Ruskin

the heat during the balloon fest last weekend has continued this week, but is simply called "weather". with so many wonderful experiences possible it doesn't really matter if it is rain or shine....

different directions

sometimes when you are floating along it's hard to know which direction to go.... focus, must focus..."you can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus." -- Mark Twain

up, up, and away

with unusual summer heat it was refreshing to take to the skies, even if it was next to a propane burner.

copiloting a hot air balloon has always been on my bucket list so last weekend i was able to check off another wish. the offer to ride along on the "clair skies" at the red rock balloon fest was a dream come true. rising up from a farmer's hayfield early in the morning with hazy skies was a bit surreal, but a third place finish out of 23 brought us back to reality. i'm ready to go again, but still found time to kayak to painted rocks last night with a slight breeze and calm water.

dock of the bay

tae recently purchased a preamp so he could play our old 33 1/3's, but alas, my old otis redding album didn't include "dock of the bay." last night's view from marina cove bay had flood water to the top of the ramp.

pictures can't reproduce (at least with my pentax) the beauty of last night's fiery orb of orange and gold sunlight reflected off a calm lake. the peacefulness of the evening and the coolness of the water was a welcome respite to a hot humid afternoon at the farm.

getting their goat

a trip to bluegate farm for homemade goatcheese ice cream gave us the op to see a baby goat and all the wonderful organic gardens.

standing tall

a 15 mile day paddling from kennedy st. to the dam and back included a chance to see stripbuilder's new standup paddle board (sup) in action. unfortunately my balance and old knees precluded a long trip up competine creek to hickory ridge.

the sky is that beautiful old parchment in which the sun and moon keep their diary. -- alfred kreymborg, "old manuscript"

no respect

with a grand opening for hickory ridge wilderness camp coming up soon, a visit to the ramp there witnessed the encroachment of flotsam and weeds covering up the dnr's best efforts. no matter how hard we work to make things manageable nature has her own agenda.