fun stuff | Change Is Hard

September 3, 2015
by dawnkinster 21 Comments

Flying through clouds

Glassy water

I’m resting after more than a week at the lake house. A week filled with lots of water activities, lots of family, lots of sun, good food, laughter and quiet conversations.

Last night I randomly read blog entries from years past, blogs about hanging out at the lake. I came across this one written in 2010 that talked about being afraid to try water skiing after years of skiing only occasionally during summer visits.

It seemed appropriate because in the past couple days I’ve water skied twice. Neither time was for a very long distance, though I got up on the first try each time.

But it was still scary.

Scared

You think about how hard it’s going to be to get your heavier person up on that ski. How the boat will pull. Lots of water rushing over your head. Falling. You think maybe it’s best to retire from skiing. After all you’re older then you used to be. You’re no athlete. You might get hurt.

Then you think about your mom who was older than you are right now and still skied once a year just to prove she could. And you think about the fact the lake is absolutely still, the boat is running well, the sun is shining. There’s no one out there but your boat filed with your family.

Breathing relief

It will never be any better than this.

So you put on the life jacket and whine a bit about being scared. You slide into the water and put on the ski which feels unfamiliar and clunky.

You feel clunky and awkward and the ski rope is moving as the boat slowly moves away from you and you can’t remember which side of your ski it’s supposed to be on and you can’t remember if you normally put your back foot into the boot or trail it as you get up. And you’re wobbling back and forth in the water and the rope is tight and everyone is waiting for you to say “HIT IT!” and so you do.

And the boat surges ahead and the water rushes over you and you remind yourself to just hang on. HANG ON and it will all work out. Balance over that ski and hang on. Let the boat do the work. And soon you’re popping up out of the water. Not gracefully. But you can breath.

You’re no expert skier, not throwing big rooster tail spray, not preforming tricks. You’re just out there, but oh the water is glass, the clouds are reflected beneath you, the sun is shining, the lake is beautiful and soft.

Flying

And you are smiling, because you are skiing through the clouds, and because you didn’t give up on yourself.

Lesson learned. Again.

Summer fun

August 30, 2015
by dawnkinster 15 Comments

Plans

Diamonds and cobwebs.

Yesterday three members of my family joined me at the lake. We had the best intentions of spending the majority of the day out in the boat. You know; bobbing in the warm water around the islands, talking, laughing, catching up. Relaxing.

Raindrops were falling on our heads.

Plans sometimes change, but a storm blowing rain up from the south didn’t deter us. We sat in the boat, boat still in the boat lift, and watched the rain.

Twisted web.

It was a beautiful thing.

Rain on water.

And then we did what any typical northern family does in a rain storm in the south.

We went swimming.

Come on in, the water’s fine!

August 28, 2015
by dawnkinster 11 Comments

Lounging

Southern pine

I have much to tell you, much to show you, but at the moment no WIFI where I am. So I am sitting at the public library (where else!) but there’s nowhere to plug in for electricity and my time is limited. Suffice it to say there will be photos later. Meanwhile, here are a couple of pretty things where I’ve been hanging out.

Little spider working hard.

Peaceful here.

Nice view.

Take a deep breath and relax.

Sunset reflections.

August 21, 2015
by dawnkinster 9 Comments

WordPress Photo challenge: Today was a good day

I’m a lucky person. I’ve had hundreds of good days and I’ve photographed many of them. Some of the very best days happened during trips; you’ve seen lots of them right here on this blog. It seems impossible to pick just one day, much less one photo from one good day.

Still, that’s the challenge.

Yosemite grandeur

So here’s a photo from a trip to California. We wandered Yosemite National Park during a misty chilly day. It was stunning, and not just at the famous and often photographed spots. Oh sure those were amazing, the waterfalls, the mountains, all were perfect even in the mist, but it was stunning everywhere we looked. And that’s what made that day a very good day.

Go to the original post to see other interpretations. Or check out a few of my favorites here, here and here.

Now take a moment and think about your life. What makes a good day for you? Share it with us, we’d like to see!

Walk into beauty

August 19, 2015
by dawnkinster 25 Comments

Wordless Wednesday – arch nemesis

August 18, 2015
by dawnkinster 11 Comments

Weeding peace

How does your garden grow?

I weeded tall grass out of our wildflower garden this morning. It’s such an easy garden to maintain; this is the first weeding I’ve done, and with the grass as tall as I am it was easy to figure out which was weed and which was not. Plus I got to weed standing up, always a plus.

Pretty in pink.

In the cool shade with a little breeze weeding was actually enjoyable. The only noises were the birds at the feeders and the bees buzzing around the flowers. I hummed along with them as I worked.

Bzzzzzzzzz….

At one point, carefully standing in the middle of the garden I looked up and thought – – I should go get the camera. This is so pretty Mom would like to see it, I’ll email her some photos.

Does anyone know what this is? About 3 feet tall.

And then, for a split second I remembered and waited for the sad to come rolling over me. But it didn’t.

Royal colors.

Instead I felt sure she was already seeing it, even before I took the first shot. And I was also sure she thought it was just as beautiful as I do.

Crazy beautiful.

I remember as a little girl picking her flowers from the fields and woods around the house. She put them in a juice glass and set them up on the windowsill above the kitchen sink. So when I accidentally broke a pretty pink zinnia I tucked it in my shirt right next to my heart. And when I got inside I put it in a juice glass.

And I smiled.

For my mom.

August 16, 2015
by dawnkinster 26 Comments

Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge

I’ve been trying to figure out how to convert photos to black and white for a long time. Maybe years. Oh, not constantly – just when I see something I think would look better in black and white. I have Adobe Photoshop and it should be easy, but I’ve frequently poked around there searching without any luck. So I did what I’ve heard lots of people do when they get stumped about something.

I went to YouTube.

Apparently people are right; you can find instructions for anything there. After watching a couple videos, and going back to figure out exactly which version of Photoshop I had, I figured out the basics. Then I tinkered around a bit more and came up with this:

Still working on the farm.

It seems to fit in perfectly with Cee’s Black and White Photo Challenge, specifically a shot of something with an engine.

This old farm truck sits out by the road advertising events held at the farm. Soon it will be pumpkin picking time. Seems too early doesn’t it, but seasons come and seasons go.

This old workhorse has seen a lot of them, and I think it remains beautiful, and certainly photo worthy, no matter what the season.

August 14, 2015
by dawnkinster 7 Comments

Bet you miss me!

Katie here. I bet you’ve missed me a whole bunch cause my mama won’t let me blog very often. She says it’s not all about me. Whatever do you think she’s talking about? Everything is all about me! Anyway since she’s sleeping in after our big adventure I thought I’d just hijack this blog and tell you all about it. Hurry, she could wake up any minute!

Last Tuesday mama started packing stuff in the car. Well! Last time she did that she left without me, so I made sure to stay underfoot all the time so she didn’t forget me. And guess what? Next thing I know I’m in my crate and we’re on our way!

Ready for take off mama!

We didn’t drive for very long and we ended up here at my favorite campground. We had a big campsite all to ourselves, and it had lots of grass for me to sniff! It was a pretty campsite, though not as private as the last place we camped. Still, I liked it a lot. So did my mama.

This is my tent. I let my mama share it.

This is my camp. I let my mama share it.

Mama set up the tent. I have my own bed and pillows. I like pillows on top of my bed because I can see out of my own private window better. And because I’m a princess. But just to make mama laugh I often sleep next to my princess bed. On the floor. Without pillows. Cause I’m a crazy camping girl and always do what I want regardless of what mama thinks is good for me.

What are you looking at?

I do that outside too. In the morning when the grass is wet mama gives me a towel to hang out on. Just to prove my point I go lay down somewhere else. In the wet grass. Because I can.

I don’t need a towel mama!

I don’t think mama understands me at all.

But anyway. We had a lot of fun. I got to go on lots of walks and take lots of naps…well not really a lot of naps. I stayed awake all the time protecting my mama. Yes I did. A camping dog’s responsibilities are very demanding. You have to be very vigilant!

Just resting my eyes.

Our second night mama says we had a visitor to our campsite. She thinks it was a raccoon. Or a camp monster. It stayed around our tent for at least an hour and mama was kinda upset. I slept through most of it until the ugly smell woke me up. I think the racoon monster needed to take a shower. I barked once at it and lunged at my window, but mama held me and said ‘shhhhhhh’ and so I went back to sleep. It appeared she had it under control and I was tired. Mama was sad because she wanted to go outside right about then to watch for meteorites, but she felt like it was easier to control me while we were inside the tent rather than us being outside with the camp monster. Sigh. At least that’s what she says. Personally I think she was just scared.

Don’t be scared mama!

I love camping. All you doggies out there — I can’t encourage you enough to get your moms and dads to take you camping! You’ll get to spend quality time with them under the night sky and on walks and just hanging out at the campground! You’ll get to meet other dogs too. You won’t believe how many dogs get to go camping! All kinds! And the smells! Amazing! You’ve just got to try it! Even if you do get a little damp!

Damp curls.

Yep, I had a wonderful time and as always I was sorry when mama took the tent down. But she says we’ll go camping again someday. Now I have to go take a nap. I’m going to dream of sweet green grass and hundreds of stars in the dark sky and the fresh air blowing the leaves on the trees, and special smells, and lots of love.

Until next time!

Cause that’s camping!!

I took mama’s chair.

August 13, 2015
by dawnkinster 13 Comments

Share Your World

Cee has a new list of questions to answer…want to play along? It’s fun. You can answer these questions on your blog and link back to hers. Here are my own responses.

Collecting tiles that represent different factions of my life

Are you a collector of anything?

I collect the art tiles of Pat Custer Denison. For a long time I’ve purchased one tile a year. I have enough now to build a unique coffee table. Maybe someday I will. They just make me smile. Most years I buy the one tile from that year’s collection that represents something I enjoy doing. She does larger wall art too. Check out her website. She has a studio in northern Michigan and someday maybe I’ll visit.

What is your biggest fear or phobia? (no photos please)

I’m afraid of being trapped in a car underwater. I actually know someone that survived that, but I could hardly listen to his story it upset me so much. There’s an ad running on TV right now that has a woman in a car trying to get out. I don’t even know what the ad is for because I have to switch the channel immediately when it comes on. I don’t know how I got this phobia but I’ve had it for years.

Do you prefer reading coffee table books (picture), biographies, fiction, non-fiction, educational?

I mostly read fiction, though I have read many biographies and memoirs that I enjoyed. I also love coffee table books because I love good photography of places I’ve been and others I’ll never see any other way.

In fact I like to poke around in just about any kind of book. I almost always find something fun or interesting, even if I don’t buy the book or read the entire thing. You never know what might interest you unless you explore. This is one of the reasons I like libraries and book stores…you can browse books on either side of the one you thought you wanted. You’ll often find much more than you anticipated when you visit your local library or independent bookseller.

Complete this sentence: If I Must Be Reincarnated, In the Next Life I Want to Be…

Well, obviously, I would want to be reincarnated as a dog at my house! But I suppose if I was being reincarnated then there wouldn’t be my house to be a dog in..right? So if that were the case I guess I would want to be a dog in any of my dog friends’ homes…we all spoil our furkids and wouldn’t have it any other way. I want a place with my own pillow and lots of toys, but where I get to sleep in the human bed at night. A place that feeds me great dog food but also shares a bit of their own food with me. A place where my people take me on adventures and I get to share their world. Yep. In my next life I’m going to shoot for being a spoiled rotten dog.

Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up

I’m retired; I can’t remember last week. But I think last week I was up north enjoying my favorite lake, Lake Michigan, and the company of good friends. That might have been the week before, but it feels like last week, and I’m getting elderly, so indulge me. This week Katie and I are going camping and I’m looking forward to that so much. Katie doesn’t know yet so she’s not particularly excited. But she will be.

Trust me.

Did you say CAMPING mama?

Wordless Wednesday

August 12, 2015 by dawnkinster 16 Comments

Change Is Hard

…but change is certain.

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