Hot Air Balloon Ride!

I was given a hot air balloon ride with my daughter as a birthday gift!  We camped by lake Berryessa where our tent nearly blew away with strong winds in the night.  We got up at 3:30am on Friday the 13th!  This balloon was inflated and ready with the sunrise.

One of the crew took this shot, the rest are my daughter's pictures, which I love, they capture just what it was like up there, except for the sounds.  It was so peaceful and quiet, you could hear the sounds of a day beginning--dogs barking and a few tractors tilling the fields--then the roar of the flame every so often heating the air to take us up further...

My granddaughter was such a good sport to be there and watch us fly away!

A bit of humor for people in parachutes--makes me wonder if one would find this funny if they were truly in that situation--a chuckle right before it's over?

Our shadow was always surrounded with a glow--the driver thought it had something to do with the moisture in the fields--I wondered if it had something to do with the hot air in the balloon.

After we landed, the rope is pulled to open the balloon to let out air.

We had a bumpy landing, and the basket tipped over--the driver said this was an unusual landing--I'm still feeling the effects of the landing--a bump to the ribs, but I'm doing good. 

The first time we saw the basket was on the way to the airport, the equipment truck passed us by and there, on the back of the truck, was this small basket--my daughter and I just looked at each other and laughed!  These next few video clips were taken by my husband and granddaughter--they were chasing the balloon chasers and managed to film us taking off  and then landing--ouch!  

Preparing

Laying out the finished Magic Elastic Button Strings.  We're selling some of the same things we've sold in the past Children's Crafts Fair.  We've added some shiny gold to the buttons so when they whirl, they shine!

Dance Recital

Sitting out in the summer sun after the dance recital.
School's out--we've got a few things planned--some art classes, a week of acting class, and in between, lots of swimming in a local pool.  We are, once again, getting ready for the children's crafts fair which will be held at a local library on August 4th.

Cauliflower

I may have picked this too soon, but I already let two other heads go bad, from not picking them on time--I kept the protective leaves on this head until we cook it tonight.  It sure is a massive plant just for this small head of cauliflower!  All the outer leaves filled my compost to the top!

My Mother's Profile

I remember, as kids, we'd go to the fair where a silhouette artist would cut out people's profiles all day long.  They didn't use the trick of projecting their shadow to make it easier, no, they maneuvered the thick black paper all around, twisted the scissors in and out then presto--a perfect silhouette!--no drawing--no cheating--they pulled it right out of thin air!  I could have sat and watched that all day!  (I also loved to watch the close up of Captain Kangaroo's hands when he was cutting paper for his show's daily art project!) These were things that could put me in a trance....................I found this little silhouette of my mom that I had cut way back when I was still in high school or soon after.  I had used a very ugly yellow construction paper--probably didn't have any black paper on hand, so I photo shopped it to be a bit darker--my mom must have been in her early 50's.  It turned out to be a pretty good likeness!

 

Then and Now

I found a few self portraits I had drawn back when I was much younger--this one, I might have been 18--it's done quickly with a much freer style than I have now.  Because I've been thinking about aging--time passing--growing older, I thought I'd strike the same or similar  pose now at the age of 57.  Sort of a before and after--and what about all those years in between?  I guess that's the allure of a comparison like this---there's the mystery of the time that has passed and the mystery of aging.

Pelican Mural

Painted pelicans on a house in Morro Bay--I caught a bird flying when I took this picture.

Pelicans

Pelicans in flight--one of my favorite things to watch.

Solar Eclipse 2012

We ran around for two hours trying to find the best way to view the solar eclipse--binoculars for a double effect, then a monocular--the dappled sunlight through the trees casts multiple crescent suns, enough to make you dizzy and feel the magic of the moment.  We took our tea to windy cove where the moon eyed monster ate the sun--not totally, just partially. 

Making a Stencil

I made this sketch awhile ago, you may recognize the design from the Shrinky Dink necklace I had made for my granddaughter.  My intention was to make a stencil with this design.  The day had come.  I shaded in the areas to cut out, this changed the design--it got a little too complicated (I tend to do that), so I had to simplify a bit. 
I cut a piece from an old tinted roll of plastic or acetate, that I had held onto, (I tend to do that), I suppose it once blocked the sun for a  large picture window?  I taped my sketch over the plastic and cut it out with an exacto knife.
To have the stencil temporarily stick to the wall, I bought a can of repositional spray adhesive to spray on the back side--I'd never used this adhesive before, but it helps to achieve crisp lines, (after spraying the adhesive, you do need to let it sit for a few minutes before using the stencil)--also the sticky backing doesn't remain sticky for that long--I found I had to respray with the adhesive each time I used the stencil.

I've always like stencils--I might experiment with more or even cut this same design out in another way?
I recently watched a documentary, Exit Through the Gift Shop, where an obsessive film maker, Thierry Guetta, follows and films street artists--there's more to the movie, but I loved the stencils of "Banksy", a British street artist, who inspired me to finish my small idea with this stencil.

Bees on the Move!!

I feel pretty lucky to have this swam of bees gather in a tree right outside my door!  I stepped out and heard this loud, continuous buzz, I saw quite a few bees, but thought, no, the buzz is probably from machinery being used some where in the near distance, but no--how amazing!  My tree was buzzing, the bees were just starting to form this hanging mass!

Moments later, all was quiet--if I hadn't been outside while they were gathering, I never would have known they were there.  Somewhere in the middle being protected was the queen.  Now the scouts were looking for a new home.  About an hour or so later, I was dumping my compost and heard the buzz once again.  The bees were moving!  They flew pretty low--I ducked, but then ran to follow and saw them flying into the distance, holding together in an undulating shape--a bee bubble--they flew off toward a group of eucalyptus trees--where they all rose together and disappeared.  Wow--I saw this happen!

Kite Festival

Check out the legs kite in the background!

There was a booth where you could make your own kite for free--they flew very easily.

We had a kite festival here in Morro Bay, a few weekends ago.  The wind gradually picked up enough for the big balloon kites to be airborne, but it was fun for the little kids to chase after and tug on those big purple feet, while the kite was deciding whether or not to fly.  

Another Fairy Gift

My granddaughter asked  the fairy to make a small pair of wings.  The fairy told us they were made from a pine needle, moss, mica and glued together with pine sap.

Quail

I quickly grabbed my camera and took these pictures through the window and screen.  This male quail surprised me, he was the first thing I saw as I sat down at the table and looked out the window--so big!
At first I wasn't even sure what I was looking at.