the beauty of last weekend

a straw hat

a sandy beach

umbrellas dotting a blue sky

finishing up a book

spontaneously planning this late afternoon adventure after an already full and exciting morning of taking my dad to a doctor appointment and moving him back home after his stay at a physical therapy rehab center after his knee replacement earlier this month. blessed to help and blessed to enjoy the sun after.

driving south on WI 35 for a day road trip

and finding some old stuff for $5.50 total

picking a pound of blueberries and enjoying seeing how a family lives on their farm

seeing this table and chairs

and this flower box

wearing a sundress and sandals

walking through this gorgeously sparse gallery in alma, wi

capturing shadows

completing another task on my 34 to dos with dinner at the harbor view cafe. seeing again the waitress who served me last year, and another patron who said to me last year, "i love seeing a woman taking care of herself." confidently enjoying this fantastic meal at a table for one, while becoming engrossed in a new book. remembering that i haven't eaten gazpacho since this trip. (i haven't forgetten that i need to finish this

story. . . )

walking on a rocky pier in lake pepin

the care towns put into their aesthetic and people chatting and laughing together along sidewalks

harbor view leftovers and fresh sweet corn on my deck the next evening

this is beauty of (summer) life.

documented: june adventure

I wrapped up my destinations :: northfield minibook last weekend. More images of the final pages here. Just in time to embark on my July adventure tomorrow. . .and the start of another wonderful little book. 

I completed two of my 34 to do's in Northfield - stay at a B&B and find something fabulous at a consignment store. Done and done. Love it.

off to breathe fresh air and be away from my laptop

I've spent most of the day with technology, hooking up my new scanner and downloading a lot of drivers for it to actually perform. I'm thankful I can figure all of this out, but it was sorta exhausting. Need to change it up for the rest of the day.

A (dusty?) fruit of my labor.

Happy Sunday!

celebrating independence. . . or something like that

It's interesting to me that at 234, we're still celebrating our "independence" as a country, when we're ever more interdependent on the nations of this world. 4th of July has always been sort of a "non-holiday" for me. The middle of summer is here. As a kid we were usually back from a fantastic vacation in northern Minnesota, and the post-vacation blues sorta stole the thunder of the 4th. When I started working it was a day off. After college, when I was still close with a group of high school friends, we would go to a local park with beach for the day, grill and watch fireworks on the West Side of St. Paul late in the evening. Those years were probably the most "festive" 4ths of July for me. Even though I've acknowledged feeling this way about fireworks. This year my 4th o' July included these:

 homemade blueberry and raspberry triffle

 ha! yes, that's me holding a sparkler

 and another

this incredible sky

reflected in the window of my childhood home

I recently told a friend that I'm not always proud to be a citizen of the United States, but I'm always grateful to be a citizen of this country. 234 years ago a group of men decided a new world would be built on freedom. . .for a few at that time. . .then a few more years later. . . and then a few more some years later. But really, 234 years later, there are still citizens who aren't free. I guess no ideation is perfect. Yet tonight I was able to drive safely to my parents' home, prepare food I found in abundance and at a price I could afford, cooled my body in an air-conditioned home and watched fireworks on a TV. I could walk outside and see the beauty of nature. And I can openly, without fear of government retaliation, share my views about the imperfections I see in my homeland. These are no small feats. And realities that do make me proud. Happy 4th. 

two more accomplished :: the year of 34

I stayed overnight at a B&B, The Magic Door, in Northfield on Friday to Saturday. Loved it. It was probably the most decadent accommodations I've ever enjoyed, and yet, the luxury of it didn't make it any more enjoyable than other places I've stayed while adventuring (except that one scary hotel I stayed in for one night in DC - another story).

And if The Magic Door and living in Northfield overnight wasn't enough, I also found that gem of a vintage dress. Fits like a glove! I feel so Joan/Betty/Trudy in it. I just might have to wear it on July 25 to celebrate the premiere of Season 4 of Mad Men.

Two more to-do's accomplished. 34 is one fine year, indeed.

A few more photos from my B&B stay.