What's Your Favorite Bed Time Story?

More snow is on its way. Time to settle in for a good read.

Sparky requests her favorite story, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, one of the greatest stories around about being lost, and then being found by those who love you best.

She always has happy dreams afterwards.

What do you mean it's over?

Mo says: Halloween CANNOT be over!

Mo checks the window to see if there are any more trick-or-treaters:




An angry monster tells Mo to be quiet and go back to sleep:

Let's have a Picnik!

I'm always looking for new things to do with photos, without spending money on outrageously expensive software I may not even use.  With this in mind,  one of my kids suggested I go and have a Picnik. So I took one of my best buddies, Sparky, and headed on over to this awesome photo site.  We sure had fun playing around. While Picnik seems to have dozens of cool editing features to fix most any photo problem, I concentrated on Picnik's extra features I don't already have in my iPhoto program.  

Let's see what Sparky looked like when we started:
 
This special effect is called Lomo-ish, and blurs the edges.  Sounds pretty simple, but I'm quite pleased with the results.  Brings out Spark's angel-nature, don't you think?  
Here's what Sparky looks like through night vision: 

Neon: 
Heat seeking:  
Sparky and I used the Doodle feature here, for when Spark is feeling silly:  

I'm loving the way Sparky looks here with the posterize effect:  
Signing up with Picnik is free.  There are premium features available for $24.95 per year, but I haven't had a chance to see what those are. For now, I'm going to stick with the free account.  

The Hike

Hiking is a favorite pastime for most anyone who lives in the Rockies, and we go every chance we get. With all the open space in our county, all you really need to get going are a pair of great hiking boots and some good friends. 

We started this morning's adventure at a creek, with the mountains looming all about us.


Isn't this creature exquisite? Looks like a spiny urchin beneath the ocean:

Of course, it isn't. It's really a giant dandelion, otherwise known as a weed.

One of my fellow adventurers climbed to the top of this extremely tall rock (gulp!) to survey the land before us. One cannot tell from this photo, but the rock she's standing on plummets straight down:

Mo of the mountain, the famous trail dog, probably works five times harder than any of us, because he only weighs six pounds and must be diligent in order to keep up.  He does indeed keep up, and never complains.  

Sparky is behind him.  Her job is navigator.  

Can you guess what this is?  And no, I didn't edit this photo in any way at all other than to crop it.  The colors really are this intense:  

It's the bloom on a cactus.  

Romeo and Sparkyette

Sparky and I were cleaning house and came upon one her many theatre portfolios. I thought I'd share some clips from one of her more memorable shows, Romeo and Sparkyette.

In this first shot, Sparkyette is backstage with her dresser, preparing for the ball scene.


Romeo, clearly smitten, searches for Sparkyette's balcony.  Look at the passion on that face:  

Romeo declares his undying love for Sparkyette.  
Sparkyette rises from her bed chamber to find out who is making all that accursed racket:  

 Sparkyette is taken aback by Romeo's fervor and politely asks him to quit sniffing.   

Romeo does not honor the fair maid's request, and Sparkyette has no choice but to try to escape.  

Although the production was an enormous hit, Sparkyette vows she will never work with this Romeo again.  

Perfect Tuesday in Summer

Although it's not quite summer, one of the best things to do in town this time of year is to go to Farmer's Market, held every Tuesday, June through October.  Today was the opening day.  You can't find a better setting, as this market is located in the Foothills of the Rocky Mountains west of Denver.  The elevation is around 7500 feet, (Denver is but a mere mile up) which means there's 40% less oxygen than at sea level.  

That also means that oftentimes we dwell among the clouds.  Look to see the shadows of clouds on the mountain in the photo above.  Here are some of the things I love at Farmer's Market:  

Fresh produce:  

Lots of hand-crafted items, including wearable art:  

Delicious food, including these lovely pastries made by a genuine French pastry chef:  
Sparky also adores the market.  Here she is in her favorite dress, trying to charm said French chef into giving free samples of her wares (it worked, by the way) :   

Fresh flowers, grown and brought to market by one family:  

And after market day is done, Mojo settles down for a nap on my desk:  

The Beauty at my Feet--Part II: Lichens

Fellow lichen-lover Sparky points out TWO different lichens growing on this rock.  

Lichens are just one of the miracles of nature that I find fascinating. At first, you might think lichens are plants.  They're not. Maybe a fungus?  Well, could be, but that's only partially correct. Lichens are actually composite and symbiotic organisms made up from members of as many as three kingdoms.  Here's a bit more, from one of my favorite lichen sites:  

"The dominant partner is a fungus.  Fungi are incapable of making their own food.  They usually provide for themselves as parasites or decomposers... These lichen fungi cultivate partners that manufacture food by photosynthesis. Sometimes the partners are algae (kingdom Protista), other times cyanobacteria (kingdom Monera), formerly called blue-green algae.  Some enterprising fungi exploit both at once.  

It is estimated that lichens are the dominant vegetation on 8% of the earth's terrestrial surface."  

Lichens growing on a spectacular marble boulder.

Part II: What's Your Writual?

Here's Part II of the post I started last week.  I've included the photo above of the wretched sewing table mentioned in last week's post just because Novel Woman asked me to do so.  You will remember that I do have a gorgeous quarter-sawn oak desk and chair, but prefer to write in the space above.  I open the blinds in the window and have a view of the mountains.  

WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO?  

Good gracious, I can't listen to anything if I am writing.  Occasionally I'll pop in one of those awaken-your-creativity CDs that plays mindless tones.  I think it actually helps.   

IS THERE ANYONE ELSE IN THE ROOM?

Aye.  I have my two most understanding friends with me all the time I'm working.  Sparky is a brilliant novelist in her own right, as well as an actress.  Her current WIP is based on a true story.  I'm sure you'll remember the commune disaster of the 1960s in which the residents, ratty-vampire-undead creatures, terrorized northern New Mexico.  In her novel, Spark, as she is known to her close friends, explores the theme of freedom of religion vs. fencing sheep.  With infinite skill, she centers all this around a very moving love story.   
Mojo is also with me.  He may not be the brightest bulb, but he's the most loving fellow you'll ever meet.  

When the writing is going badly I'll read aloud something to him, and no matter how much it sucks, he always wags his tail in approval.  Sometimes you just need someone to lie like hell and tell you you're great.  

WHAT TIME OF DAY DO YOU WRITE?

Anytime, anywhere from dawn until 10 p.m.  

WHAT DO YOU LOOK AT WHEN YOU ARE LOOKING FOR INSPIRATION? 

The inside of my eyelids, with the covers pulled over my head.  Nothing like a good night's sleep to inspire me.  

WHAT IS GUARANTEED TO REMOVE YOUR CONCENTRATION? 

Teenagers talking in my face about whatever, but wouldn't trade their ramblings for anything.  I'd like to make a video of my very own valley girl helping me shop for new tennies, but she says no.  "OMGosh NO!  MOTHER!!!  Those shoes are soooooooo gray.  You've got to be careful with gray, Mother. Before you know it, you'll be swallowed by it!"  

ALSO:   Smells of food cooked or burning in the kitchen below my loft.  I cook by my nose, which means I know when something's done by the smell. Or when Sparky rings a sleigh bell on the bottom hinge of the front door, I bolt, because she's telling me she has a potty emergency. Mojo just craps on the carpeting, so no worries there.  Or phone calls from mother; but that's a whole nuther post.   

Just What Do They Do While We're Away?

Came home unexpectedly and found Sparky all dolled up. I asked her what was up, but all I got was the it's-none-of-your-business-look.