Red Tape

It's Time To Say Goodbye......

Melissa — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 01:04:00 -0500

Things change, life morphs, chapters draw to a close.....

This River runs from Dark to Light
So I must say, "Adieu, kind friends"
And 'tho my ship sails from your sight;
It does not mean my journey ends
It only means the River bends...

-John Enoch

....it was good to be with you, friends,

and be seeing you 'round the river's bend

When You Feel Black and White

Melissa — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 19:56:58 -0400

Have you ever found yourself going round and round?

What do you do, when life changes the way you think? When you are not seeing in color?

How do you get back to this....

......I ask you

Shadows of PEI

Melissa — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 16:47:00 -0400

Fleeting thoughts still pop into my head about the trip Erin and I took to Prince Edward Island. Here is one more picture from our adventure north. What I learned: shadows are the same in Canada, as in the US. Never hurts to collect this information.

............looking back on memories carries a certain sweetness to it

Honor Flight

Melissa — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 16:37:22 -0400

On a recent trip south, I had a layover at Baltimore/Washington Airport. An announcement was given alerting waiting passengers of the approach of an Honor Flight. I had never witnessed this before. In the air, the plane was escorted in by military planes, with some flourish added! This particular plane carried 25 WW II veterans, coming to Washington to see their WWII Memorial, which most, had never seen. People flocked to the gate to welcome them. Some vets were in wheelchairs, and some came under their own steam. Some smiled and waved to the crowd like royalty, and others were overcome to tears by the welcome. It was very moving and I felt like a very very proud American to have caught a glimpse of these heroes from an earlier era.

.......volunteer for this, if you live anywhere near these destinations!

Cabinet Card Art

Melissa — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 11:50:18 -0400

Have you ever tried altering cabinet cards? These are the sepia toned images you can find at the flea market, from around the 1850'5-1920's. You know, the ones where no one ever smiles. I can never figure that one out! Here is one of my book covers with an altered card.

You can see a set of my altered cards on my Flickr site here. The key is to mask the image, itself, then you are free to alter the background by sanding , painting, stenciling, rubberstamping, or anything you can think of. Once finished, add some rub-ons or phrases and these become pretty interesting little works of art! Try one!

Life Sometimes Throws You A Monkey Wrench

Melissa — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 22:11:50 -0400

.......when a girl is shaved to her hip, it's a bit humiliating!

We Will Never Forget

Melissa — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 09:12:34 -0400

It has been 10 years. Ten. The horror of it just as fresh in every American's mind, today, as when we first saw it. We are thinking of those we lost, and their loved ones who still suffer because of it. I kept a file of clippings, when the attacks happened in 2001. Looking through it today, I found this picture drawn by a 5th grader. Powerful then, and now.

..........today, our cry remains, God help America

Rolling In The Deep

Melissa — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 18:34:06 -0400

Are you familiar with Adele's Rolling In The Deep song? Here is my favorite duo playing their version. Jon Schmidt cannot do a tune wrong! You can purchase it at his website if you have a mind to.

...... and repeat.

Prince Edward Island Memories

Melissa — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 19:04:00 -0400

I finished up my journal pages from the trip to PEI and thought I would share a few with you. I tried not to 'over-do' it this time, and just did small summary sections for each day. That seemed to make travel journaling more in my grasp....making it possible to finish in a reasonable time frame.

A map of the island and the primary villages we visited.

Right, was the "century house" that we leased. So cute inside.

We saw numerous lighthouses, but this one had a Marconi Station.

Couldn't resist a sketch of the beautiful lupins.

........exploring a new place is such a pleasure. Thanks Erin!

PEI Sends Us Home

Melissa — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 21:56:48 -0400

Erin and I returned to the states, in the midst of Irene's wrath, on Sunday. We were able to fly to Montreal, but drove the rest of the way from there. Vermont was a royal nightmare...driving winds, slashing rain. Fun. But looking back at the PEI pictures, reminded me of how mother nature can behave herself. Here are a few shots from our trip.

Beautiful countryside...rolling hills and patchwork farms.
Lots of 'English-style" gardens in evidence. Gorgeous layouts.
Beautiful decay
On the porch of a seaside tea house in Victoria
Murray Harbor, belonging to the village in which we stayed
Murray Harbor's train station. When the trains stopped running in 1989,these stations became part of the Confederation Trail. A bike rider's dream! If you look closely, you see the 'bones' of the station represented in the series 'Anne of Green Gables'.
A PEI kind of sunset
Erin and I on a beach in Cavendish. Wind was a constant in PEI.
The view from our very cute cottage
An artist working on a sand sculpture during an Open Air Art show in Charlottetown. This is the color of their sand....very red!

Stay tuned for pages from my travel journal..........