Leap!

Leap Year

Leap for Joy

Leap of Faith

One Giant Leap

Take a Flying Leap

Leap Ahead

Leapin' Lizards!

Leap Frog

Verticle Leap

Leap Forward

Leaps and Bounds

Quantum Leap

Once every four years, whether we like it or not, this action word get's it's own day!

Doesn't just saying it out loud make you want to do it?

I made a series of tiny leaps. Went out to eat at a new place (Yau's Chinese Bistro on High Street in Columbus with the son), ordered a Chao Gui Dew (a food I'd never had and wasn't sure what was it was made of - delicious by the way!), and ate the entire meal successfully with chop sticks - my first real attempt! If you've dined with me you know that I look longly at all the lovely menu items, remark about how interesting things look, and then order the exact same item I did the last ten times I was at the place. We may be talking baby leaps here - but you have to start somewhere!

Make the best of this quadrennial opportunity - LEAP!

A Visit to School

Like the bumper stickers say: My son and my money go to Columbus College of Art and Design. Took a visit through campus and saw the sculpture lab where we works. I took some boring pictures, and tried to make them interesting! Enjoy!

Brain Freeze

I've mentioned Jack Frost here before I believe? Like that old boy friend that you just can't seem to kick out of your life... he just keeps coming back!

He gets under your skin, causes you no end of irritation, chills you to the bone, and you just wish he'd go away for good.

But every once in a while you see a flash of what drew you to him to begin with. The beauty of what he could do if he'd just stick with what he's good at. The complexity of him, they way he could pull you in...

Remember: there is a reason your not with him anymore.

Frost Bites!

just a few shots taken of the garage windows the other day...

From Here to There

I saw a post on Carmen's Blog which showed us among other things, the sites on her way to work. I thought that might be fun, so I'm giving it a try. I may begin to get a reputation for snapping while driving if I keep this up!

I start out by driving through one of the Cleveland Metro Parks on Euclid Creek Parkway. What a beautiful place! Lots of trees, deep ravines and rock structure, wildlife, and of course the creek itself.

Early on when I was dating my husband, we came here and he showed Ian how to carefully hunt for salamanders under the rocks (just to look at them, and not disturb them!) and we tried to skip stones.

Since it is a park, there are often walkers and joggers on the path. I am blessed that almost every day I get to see the person I call "the waving guy." As he runs, he waves at every vehicle that goes by. I always look forward to seeing him and wave back every time - I often wonder if others wave back as well. His simple gesture of kindness and friendship puts me in the right frame of mind to approach the next leg of my journey...

...into the abyss! Here we are on the triumph of civil engineering, the spacious Cleveland Memorial Shoreway. Four lanes of bumper to bumper, door to door, fun and games! Sometimes people wave here - it's just what finger they are waving!

After facing the gauntlet for a bit, I am fortunate once again to see something amazing. One of America's finest natural wonders: Lake Erie, one of our Great Lakes! It's a bit freezy here in this shot, but in the Summer it is glorious!

Then the "Big City" arises in my windsheild. I love living near the city. As much as I love being near the simplicity of the park and nature, the buildings and the triumphs of art, archetecture, science, and technology they represent astound me. I particularly love it on a crisp, clear night. Some day I will take some night shots so you can see it the way I do.

Then it's around famous Deadman's Curve (not the Jan and Dean one though...) and into the heart of downtown traffic.

Over the Interbelt Bridge and on your right is Jacob's Field (don't correct me - I meant to say that instead of Progressive Field. I guess I'm not that progressive!) home of our fine Cleveland Indians Baseball Team.

Off the expressway (do you say expressway, freeway, or highway where you live?!) and down a few decaying, but getting gentrified, side streets in the Tremont Area and we've arrived.

Darn- now I have to go in!

Hope you enjoyed the ride in!

Alignment

Did you know there was an eclipse tonight? Read about it more in a Sky & Telescope piece. It's 10:15pm EST and we are in the thick of it! Here are a few shots, the first from about 60 minutes ago, the second from about 15 minutes ago. If you go over to flicker, there are probably some awesome ones taken with fancy cameras... but these are the view from my corner of the world, my own personal lens. My poor son, bless his heart, has a had a rotten few days. He keeps asking me, "Why is this happening!?" I kept saying I really didn't know, sometimes things just don't go well. No matter how kind and calm you are, and how much good karma you think you're banking up, sometimes things just get out of alignment. When I heard abou the eclipse on NPR on the way home from work... it all made sense. Maybe this alignment is what put him OUT of alignment.

Don't worry buddy, we're not getting another full one until December 20, 2010. We'll have to plan a quiet, peaceful escape somewhere that week for Solstice and try to avoid it!

Love - Hate Relationship

On the one hand, I love the bus station. When my son comes to visit, I pick him up right there under that big beautiful sign. On the other hand, I also have to drop him back off there and he gets on the sleek, grey bus and rides away from me. Upon closer reflection, I have a conflicted relationship with many things I suppose: ♥ chocolate ♥ butter ♥ direct sunlight ♥ being a grown-up ♥ incredibly loud rock & roll music ♥ beer ♥ blogging ♥ driving really, really fast ♥ spending money ♥ using my beautiful handmade and patterned papers Why do all the good things have a down side? I want to keep my cake and eat it too!

Wicked!

Had a delightful day today as I went downtown to Cleveland's State Theater to see Wicked!

I thought it was a great thing to do on a chilly, windy afternoon - to be transported to the Emerald City and surroundings for a while. I had read the book which came first, and wondered how they would change this deep, dark story into a light hearted musical commedy....

The answer was easy: change the story line almost completely and leave out all but the bare minimum of deep and dark spots! (and be the way... you do not have my permission at any time to change the ending of stories I have grown to love!) I appreciated the original story for it's emphasis on things not being as they seem - its exposure of the ridiculousness of prejudice, the stupidity of oppression, the importance of human (and Animal with a capital A) rights, how painful it can be to trust someone and be let down, and just what is evil anyway? I had frankly never thought of the story from the perspective of the witch before I read Gregory Maguire's book.

Diversions from the original plot aside, this was a stunning stage show. The sets utilizing the clockwork were wonderful, the flying monkeys very believeable, and I've never seen so many colors of green before! The actors were superb, funny when they were supposed to be, and with such wonderful voices.

I don't go to things like this as often as I should. My husband doesn't enjoy musicals, theater, ballet, symphony, etc. Together we enjoy many other things, but not these. I hesitate to go alone, but I think I should stop making excuses and just go. Life is to short not to do the things that give you pleasure. The Clock of the Time Dragon says tick-tock!

What are you making excuses not to do?