Summer.

Flowers by Zoe Firchau

Summer Sun

Great is the sun, and wide he goes
Through empty heaven with repose;
And in the blue and glowing days
More thick than rain he showers his rays.

Though closer still the blinds we pull
To keep the shady parlour cool,
Yet he will find a chink or two
To slip his golden fingers through.

The dusty attic spider-clad
He, through the keyhole, maketh glad;
And through the broken edge of tiles
Into the laddered hay-loft smiles.

Meantime his golden face around
He bares to all the garden ground,
And sheds a warm and glittering look
Among the ivy's inmost nook.

Above the hills, along the blue,
Round the bright air with footing true,
To please the child, to paint the rose,
The gardener of the World, he goes.
- Robert Louis Stevenson

Dad.

Thanks Dad!

My Dad has been a wonderful guide to me. I love the way my Dad does things, the way he goes about things.

Dad's an engineer. Everything has "a way." Figuratively and literally, Dad has "a way."

His "system." Grill, garage, garden, yard, ... packing! Mom and Dad take extended expeditions to see me here in Ohio and my sis in Virginia Beach. Dad can pack a vehicle, boy! Organized, accessible, practical ... with a cat.

My Dad gave me my love, respect, and appreciation for many of the things that are important me.

Food ... unmatched on the grill. U-N-M-A-T-C-H-E-D. He uses gas, but this is Father's Day so we won't go there. Besides, the things he can do with a box of wood chips will make you think he cooked over a campfire! U-N-M-A-T-C-H-E-D. And, he is always "experimenting." Ask anyone who's had it about Dad's Higgins Lake Chicken.

Here's a shot of Dad and his brother, my Uncle Fred. Up North, frying perch old school ... no turkey fryer, no Fry Daddy. No, these boys banged it out in frying pans atop the charcoal Weber, Jack!
HA! Look above at the lawn chairs in the background ...

 

Speaking of Up North, as a kid, I remember everyday seemed like a field trip! Woods, water, sky (we had cloud charts and Beaufort scales posted in the garage), fishing, boating, camping, sports, bikes, radios, airhorns, flags, cameras, tools ("Use whatever you want, just put it back" ... did you ever leave a hammer outside, in the rain, at a friend's house?!), fire pits, PIE IRONS!!!

As I've said before, Dad and I don't always see things the same way. We're wired differently ... sometimes I'm sure he wonders if I'm wired at all! He's a wonderful teacher ... patient. He shows, then you do.

For all of his systems, mannerisms, and regulations, it may seem like Dad's a tough guy. Nope. My cousin Sally sat me down one night and told me story after story about my Dad. Tales of family get-togethers and emergencies, jokes ... after she was finished, she grabbed me, looked me in the eye with a huge, warm smile and said, "That guy's got soul."

Yes, he does.

Thanks Dad.

I love you. Happy Father's Day.

Head in the clouds

Friday was a great day to have your head in the clouds.

Sunrise in Appleton never disappoints ...

The alto cumulus over Croton reminded me of O'Keeffe ..




O'Keeffe's Sky Over Clouds

I had lunch outside, enjoying the show ...






When I got back, I had a visitor ...

Doors.

In the universe, there are things that are known, and things that are unknown, and in between, there are doors.
- William Blake

Avoid the door enticingly labeled "control" ... it won't open.

Marvel.

Each second we live is a new and unique moment of the universe, a moment that will never be again. And what do we teach our children? We teach them that two and two make four, and that Paris is the capital of France. When will we also teach them what they are? We should say to each of them: Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique. In all the years that have passed, there has never been another child like you. Your legs, your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move. You may become a Shakespeare, a Michelangelo, a Beethoven. You must work, we must all work, to make the world worthy of its children.
- Pablo Picasso

But ... just be you.

Interest.

I think it's so foolish for people to want to be happy. Happy is so momentary--you're happy for an instant and then you start thinking again. Interest is the most important thing in life; happiness is temporary, but interest is continuous.
- Georgia O'Keeffe

Monkeys.

A great day.

Fruit salad ... W-A-T-E-R-M-E-L-O-N!!!

Wiffle ball.

Dancing.

Love to you, Drew and Zuzu!

Head in the clouds

Refuge. Retreat.

ref·uge, noun.
1. Protection or shelter, as from danger or hardship.
2. A place providing protection or shelter.
3. A source of help, relief, or comfort in times of trouble.

re·treat, noun.
1. The act or process of withdrawing, especially from something hazardous, formidable, or unpleasant.
2. A place affording peace, quiet, privacy, or security. See Synonyms at shelter.
3. A period of seclusion, retirement, or solitude.

London's Victoria and Albert Museum just opened an exhibition titled 1:1 - Architects Build Small Spaces.

See it all here.

Surmount experience.

What I have been able to put into form seems infinitesimal compared with the variety of experience. It has to become a part of ne's world, a part of what one has to speak with -- one paints it slowly. To formulate the new experience into something takes time. Maybe the new place enlarges one's world a little. Maybe one takes one's own world along and cannot see anything else.

O'Keeffe climbing to the roof of Ghost Ranch

I can't understand people who want something badly but don't grab for it. I grabbed.

O'Keeffe, Ladder To The Moon

It belongs to me. God told me if I painted it enough, I could have it.
- Georgia O'Keeffe

Connie Wanek, "Directions"

First you'll come to the end of the freeway.
Then it's not so much north on Woodland Avenue
as it is a feeling that the pines are taller and weigh more,
and the road, you'll notice,
is older with faded lines and unmown shoulders.
You'll see a cemetery on your right
and another later on your left.
Sobered, drive on.
Drive on for miles
if the fields are full of hawkweed and daisies.
Sometimes a spotted horse
will gallop along the fence. Sometimes you'll see
a hawk circling, sometimes a vulture.
You'll cross the river many times
over smaller and smaller bridges.
You'll know when you're close;
people always say they have a sudden sensation
that the horizon, which was always far ahead,
is now directly behind them.
At this point you may want to park
and proceed on foot, or even
on your knees.

Head in the clouds

Whew! What a great day!

Head in the clouds

From FrazierPhone ...

Thanks bud!

Head in the clouds

I enjoyed the sky on the way home from work today.

Over Granville ...


Over Appleton ...