Friday Favourites

My favourite photo that I took this week is this one. 

My favourite quote I came across this week:

We are the leaves of one branch,
the drops of one sea,
the flowers of one garden.

~Jean-Baptiste Henri Lacordaire 

(Thanks to Jessica at Sweet Eventide for that.)

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It was a great week in the blogasphere. Here are a few of the lovelies I came across this week....

http://www.kimklassencafe.com/thecafe/wise-words-wednesday.html

I DID in fact need to hear that this week.

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http://leoniedawson.com/dear-you/

Everyone needs to read this and believe it! (thanks to my friend at http://www.comfychairmystic.com/ for sharing)

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The wonderful Hanna Marcotti made me feel brave when I read this: 

http://hannahmarcotti.com/2013/05/15/gathering-choice-power/

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And when I need a flower fix (besides my own) I go to the one and only Georgianna Lane - How are these for perfection?

http://georgiannalane.com/2013/04/plum-perfect.html

52 Photos Project - Crop It

This week at 52 Photos Project the challenge is to crop a photo. It's a before and after of the same photo. 

I chose this snapshot I took of our puppy Astro a couple of years ago. I've cropped it twice because in the first I think it's interesting that you can see her reflection in the fridge and the second because she's the cutest puppy ever!

This shot wasn't taken to be an artistic photo or a skillful one...it's simply a snapshot of our very busy puppy.

Bookshelf Challenge

I love books. I love old books and new books and any kind of book at all. Of course I have genres that appeal to me more than others, but mostly I just love books.

I've been reading since I was 4 and I've long ago lost count of how many I've read over the last 40 years.

We live with so many of them the question I am most often asked when people see my library is "Have you actually read them all?" To which I can (and do) proudly respond with - about 98% of them; yes.

I  have 67 more shelves just like this one and I've challenged myself to read one book from each shelf gradually (and in no rush) over the next coming months. I've always been a re-reader but usually it's an intuitive thing. I'll just amble through the books and read whatever catches my eye on that particular day.

This challenge is a bit more structured. My first choice on each shelf will be the book I haven't yet read (if there is one), and if not then I'll likely reach for the one I either enjoyed the most or the least.

I'm starting with a beloved childhood classic. Little Women.

Here's a picture of my original copy...as you can see I've had it since 1974 and it cost a whole $1.29 (I can't even tell you how much I wish we could still buy books for that price!!) It's a little beat up and worse for wear but that's part of the charm of re-reading old books - especially old ones from our childhoods.

What are your beloved childhood books?

For Mother's Day

I am thinking of the lilac-trees,

  That shook their purple plumes,

And when the sash was open,

  Shed fragrance through the room.

        ~Mrs. Anna S. Stephens

     ~The Old Apple-Tree.

52 Photos Project - Street Art

Street Art. Wow...this was a tough one for me. The small town I live near doesn't really have a lot of what most people would consider 'street art'. 

This is what I came up with - the only thing I could find in my little community.

And because it's not that interesting (to me) here are a couple more that I played around with.

Which one do you like the best?

Tunes Tuesday

Today I'm doing something a little different. This is a portion of the album Angels of the sea by Dan Gibson. I love most of the Solitude line but this one in particular puts me in my happy place.

Take a listen and feel your tension melt away.

Sometimes....

Sometimes all you need is a change of perspective.