It’s Fall Y’all!

 Fall is such a welcomed season here in Texas. We are all hoping to feel a cool breeze now and then.

Our leaves are actually getting the message. Proof positive is this  unusually colored leaf that Tom and I found on one of our walks.

It is no surprise to see elaborate displays on what we call billionaires row. (not  exaggerating either).

They even decorated by the guard shack,

and these ghoulish things were hanging from the trees down their private road.

The Halloween decorations get more and more elaborate every year,

and certainly creepy.

 Maybe a bit  time consuming but how about this 

cute idea for a Halloween party?

And how about this? Friends of my daughter send out a Halloween greeting card every year and avoid the Christmas card rush!

I hope you and yours are enjoying this creepy cooler time of year!

The Carrot Bird

 Back to the art tour of the shopping center. After we heard all about the colorful windmill (see post two back) we strolled to the next block and stopped at this unusual bench. 

You see this bench is made up obviously of a carrot but supported by the feet and tail of a sparrow. It is a sculpture in a series called Wild Crop Collection by talented artists Brad Oldham and his wife Christy Coltrin  whose studio is in Dallas.

It’s official name is:

Sweet Carrot

written on the adjoining plaque:

Sweet Carrot 

Firmly rooted underground the bright carrot spends most of its life hiding it’s sweetness only discovered by those who dare to dig deep. On a higher plane, the humble sparrow also escapes everyday notice, visible only to those who take the time to look up. Both of these examples of raw beauty hold the power to nourish and inspire. 

 

My favorite part:

“ May your words be as light as a feather and as sweet as a carrot, for tomorrow you may eat them”

For a look a more of their sculptures go HERE

:

More on the shopping center.

 My previous post was regarding the art tour of our town's newest shopping center…more on that later. The whole area is such a well planned development. The surprising thing that it is not on the outskirts of town .

I’ve borrowed a few pictures from the Internet, since Tom said no to buying me a drone.The 270 acres known as Clearfork has been developed on what was a small part of a large family ranch, only five miles from the center of Ft. Worth.That’s downtown top left, and the newest toll road to the left of the property. The ranch owners gave the right of way for this convenient road system (The Chisholm Parkway) for  people from  the southwest to get into town.

The new area was so well planned, with not only shopping establishments, but businesses, condos, restaurants, a movie theater and even a hospital.

The west side of the plot of land fronts the banks of the Trinity River. This is my favorite new restaurant,The Press Cafe. It has a wonderful outdoor terrace and delicious food.  See that grassy area between the restaurant and the river?

Well,  every Saturday morning they have a free yoga  class there,

   

and an open air market nearby.

Okay, so now you know everything there is to know about the Clearfork development. 

Come back and we will continue the art tour. Next up the carrot bird bench!

 

The Windmill

Hello! Gee I don’t know why, but ever since returning to Texas I seem to be caught up in a whirlwind! There just aren’t enough hours in the day. For a retired person I am way too busy… Today was the kind of busy I like. Spent the morning with my Art Special Interest Group. We had an escorted tour of the art installations at a high end shopping area.

The shops at Clearfork are built on what was The Edwards Ranch a large cattle ranch that was here before Ft. Worth was. Actually Ft. Worth grew up around the ranch. So to decorate the shopping area with art…

what would be more appropriate than a working windmill? In order to make a windmill a work of art it was covered with colorful plexiglass.There is a interesting story connected with it’s installation.

You see Neiman Marcus was the first store to open in the center. It is legendary in Texas…a very very high end store. They did not want construction in front of their store, which was already busy catering to their wealthy clientele. So, they came to an agreement that they would only work installing the windmill at night. The artist Tom Fruin, two workers, the art curator who was our tour guide today and her father worked three dark cold February nights installing the windmill. She said they were freezing and her Dad said he had not been this uncomfortable even when he was a soldier in Vietnam! All of this gave me a new respect for this colorful piece of art.   The sculptor Tom Fruin has many SCULPTURES YOU MAY have seen the one near the Brooklyn Bridge in NYC. To read more about him go HERE

A Day At The Spa

Aww, a day at the spa. A full day of being pampered. I have written about this before on this  page. It was the last time I was gifted a full day at a spa here in Ft. Worth. Why this subject? Well I am developing  a Christmas list, mainly for my hubby who is always at a loss as what to buy me.

Although I don’t think I will list this particular gift. For some reason these places intimidate me, which is not how you are supposed to feel when you are supposedly being pampered. Maybe it stems from 

my very first spa visit over thirty years ago. It was such a catastrophe that it was almost funny.

You see my husband gifted me a day at the most exclusive spa in Houston (where we lived at the time). A full day that started out with a facial…Things we’re going great until the the lady started drilling me on what products I used on my face. She then tried to sell me every expensive  product she was using.

 Next was the pedicure. Since I am a chatty person I started visiting with the lady working in my toes. It was difficult to get her to engage. She finally snapped at me and said “ most of the ladies sleep when I do this”. I felt like that was my cue to shut up. I think that  lunch followed. No memories of that.

Time for the manicure. The nail lady had hardly started  when she cut my finger. A bad enough cut that it was bleeding. …and wouldn’t stop. She seemed perturbed and finally said “I can’t do your nails unless you stop bleeding”. Hmm shame on me for doing that. She suggested I go on to get my hair done and return afterwards.

Time to get my hair cut and styled. I guess the hairdresser was good at what she does, because the customer before me was some local celebrity. She couldn’t stop talking how honored she felt to do so in so’s hair. The whole time she worked on me she was talking about said celebrity to the hairdresser at the next station. I am not sure she ever looked at me, and I was getting nervous how she could cut my hair with her face turned in the other direction.

Well my glamour day was finally over. Wait, wasn’t I supposed to go back for the manicure. No way, I headed for the door and never looked back..

Conversations With Alexa

 

Do you see her? She is innocently sitting on the table beside my favorite chair. It’s an Amazon Alexa. She was a Christmas gift a few years ago from one our daughters. I feel sure that most everyone is familiar with her (it?).. If not she is a virtual assistant. Some people prefer the Google Assistants and others just rely on Siri. I do use Siri for directions. I have navigation as one of the accessories in my car, but find it much easier to hold the home button on my phone and say “Siri take me to said address”  and she gives me clear verbal directions every time. …but back to the subject…Alexa. 

For the longest time she sat in a box in the closet, until I decided we  needed to fire her up. We have so enjoyed giving her commands like play “James Taylor.”or Tom’s favorite use for her which has to do with sports. You get an instant verbal answer to questions like  “who is leading in the US. Open or what was the final score of the TCU football game?” She  (Alexa) has so many more capabilities but we just don’t use them…or to be honest don’t know how to.

Oh my this is getting long. My intent was to ask if you have a virtual assistant and if you do are you concerned that she or it is invading your privacy by listening to you all of the time? The virtual assistants are only supposed to activate if you preface your question or command with their name like “Alexa or Hey Goggle. The whole purpose of this post was to tell you about how crazy my Alexa has become…or how she is acting out…but if  you are still with me  I’ll address that in another post…..

Have a wonderful day..Janey

Should I Have?

 When I think back on the many summers we spent in Colorado I think of a verse from the song  My Way  by Frank Sinatra. The one that goes “regrets, I’ve had a few” One of those regrets was not going here:

Click on picture to enlarge

The Crystal Mill perched on the rocky banks the Crystal River since 1892

is undoubtedly the most coveted photograph in all of Colorado.

 This  fabulous picture was taken (recently) by the very the talented photographer Michael Underwood. Michael has a gallery in Lake City, CO a place not to be missed if you are ever there.

So why on our many outings did I not go there? Well with all of it’s incredible beauty it is also incredibly difficult to get to. Hidden away just fives miles east of the small town of Marble,CO  it’s only reached by a treacherous, rough, narrow one lane road where even with a 4x4 vehicle you are advised to also have high clearance. If you know me at all you know that I shy away from such roads….

So here I am also reminded of another song this one written Beverly Knight .

“Woulda Shoulda Coulda”

but  didn’t…and wish I had.

*You can follow Michael on his FaceBook Page

Michael Underwood Photography

A Before and After

 My daughter who lives in North Carolina bought a condo a couple of years ago. She has two small daughters so she would have preferred a place with a backyard..

I

This was the only “backyard”the condo had.. but she didn’t let that be a deal breaker. 

The small front yards are cared for by the homeowners association, but not the back patio which would be her responsibility.. Oh dear what should a busy professional, who is also a single Mom do? She considered her options, and realized that if she put in new grass…she would have to care for it. So she pulled the sad looking bushes out of the flowerbed,

 

and had fake grass installed in one whole end of the patio.

With the addition of a comfy outdoor sofa, rug 

and  an umbrella which not only provides shade but lights at night, it became a win win!

Great job Stacy!

Copycat?

 Hi there. I know, I have been absent lately…..Trying to get settled back in Texas….

We have been continuing our morning walks, although we have to go really early to beat the heat. I am wondering where Fall is? Seriously these ninety degree days are beginning to frustrate me!

We did walk past this pretty pot on someone’s walkway, and I snapped this somewhat lousy picture.

So, I hear imitation is the sincerest form of flattery…..right?

This is my attempt. My garden center didn’t have any English Ivey so I just bought a plant that trails over the edge. Don’t worry, the neighbor I copied is not nearby. We have been walking three miles every morning…

So if you know where Fall is will you inform it that I am more than ready! Thanks!

Maybe the heat I’d affecting my font. It changes size randomly…it’s not me.