The Lost Generation

The term" the lost generation" was coined by the late Gertrude Stein to describe the lost directionless generation following World War One, especially the 1920'S crowd of artists and writers living in Paris.

I am using it to describe the children of today.....and the lack of their very images. When I was a young mother I took as many photos of my children as parents do today. The difference is, I took them  when we had film in our cameras and had to take them to be developed to even see them. Not only did I get a copy, good or bad since there was no deleting, but I got an extra copy to send to grandma. Today the images of children are stuck on cell phones or embedded in social media....some to never be seen again, especially if someone loses their phone, or their computer crashes.

So I have started a memory box of sorts for my three little granddaughters.

 I bought these large boxes (online) constructed of heavy cardboard. They measure 13x15 inches.

I then went back and ordered pictures of all of the good snapshots that I could find of each grandchild. I used a photo service that only charges 9 cents a copy for a 4x6" print. I made sure the boxes were larger so if I wanted to put larger photos in there, and also have room for their artwork and any other treasure I wanted to save for them.

 There is even bracket on the end where you can slide a card with their name on it. You notice that I bought an extra.....since you never know if at least one more comes along. Fingers crossed :)

Someday I hope that they will be pleasantly surprised to find their very own treasure box.



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It's A Dog's World

Dog parks are not new to me. I remember when my daughter lived in Chicago. She lived in a condo and was happy that there was a city dog park only a block away. The dog park was a fenced area for dogs to run free and play with other dogs, while the owners visited with each other on comfortable benches .

  Click on any photo to enlarge

Well, a new business has opened in our town. An outdoor restaurant, with a large playground behind just for your dog.

Apparently you can buy a day pass for your dog to run around and play for $6.00 or if you want a monthly membership it is only $16.00 better yet a yearly membership is  $120.00

You can have dinner or just grab a beer, wine etc. (extra charge) and visit with the other canine owners while you dogs run free. The attendants even pick up after the dogs (you get the idea) and also give them treats.

To enter the doggie section of this establishment, you scan your phone for proof of purchase or membership in this little cut out. Me oh my...It's a new world!Do you have a Mutts Cantina in your town?

The Mascot

Schools and colleges around the U. S. have mascots. A mascot according to Wikipedia is any person, animal or object to bring good luck.

A lot of people think it rather amusing that the university in our town chose the Horned Toad (pictured above) as their mascot. He is almost invisible in this picture, as they blend in with the landscape. The Horned Toad, which has sadly become rather scare, in reality is not a toad... but a lizard. When I was a child they were plentiful in North Texas, and I remember not being afraid of them. We would discover them burrowed into the sand and play with them, even though we were warned that they could squirt blood from their eyes when threatened. I never saw this happen, so I guess they were not afraid of me either.

In the neighborhood near the university (Texas Christian Univ.) on the corner by the Chancellors resident, is a new bench of their mascot...the Horned Toad. I had to laugh because they did not put the little horns along its back....probably because it would make it uncomfortable to sit on..

Have you ever seen a Horned Toad?

top photo credit: The Internet

Practicing

Have you ever done it? Used packing cubes? I have decided to try, so that I can carry everything on the plane. It is not so much to save money, since we have a credit card where the airlines allow us to check a bag for free. It is for an upcoming trip where we have a close connection, and I don't want to arrive without any clothes. 

The packing cubes I purchased are from Sharper Image, although I got them at a discount store ($14.95 for all three). In the larger one I was able to pack 8 blouses, a sundress 1 nightgown, 1 robe, 2 swimsuits and a cover-up. In the next smaller bag I have packed 3 pair of capri's, two pair of slacks and a pair of shorts. The smallest one is full of unmentionables. I might add, to make all of this fit you must roll the items.

Yippee, they fit in the suitcase with a corner left over for two extra pair of shoes and a foldable sun-hat.

My smaller carry-on, that will go under the seat will have my I-pad, liquid toiletries, etc.
What have I forgotten?
Donna, I hope you have an iron :)

  

Difficult Climb

I think many of you know by now that I have difficulty understanding most modern art.

So, hopefully you will forgive me for giggling when I walked into the room displaying a work of art by Martin Puryear. Only later with a bit of research, do I understand why a ladder that gets so small at the top that few could climb it, would be a metaphor dedicated to the struggles of one who was born a slave, and became and esteemed educator ....Booker T. Washington.

Washington (1856-1915) was an African American  with a long list of accomplishments, including advisor to presidents. whose autobiography was titled. "Up from Slavery".

The photo from The Modern's site will give you a better visual. For more on Puryear and Booker T. Washington go :HERE

Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life

 as by the obstacles which he has overcome.

 Booker T. Washington.

The Modern

While Tom's granddaughter Annie was here over the weekend, we tried to find things to do indoors due to the unusually cold weather.

 So, we visited a couple of museums starting with The Modern. I don't have to tell you who this artist is. Picasso is one artist that many can readily identify. Although, when I visited The  Musee de l'Orangerie in Paris there were what I refer to as normal paintings of his. Only later did I learn that he didn't switch to Cubism until about 1907.

excuse the bad photography

I actually own a Picasso self portrait (numbered print of a sketch). It was a gift from my daughter's. It was done in 1901 when he was very new to Paris. Look closely and you can see the Eiffel Tower in the background. The man in the red coat is the wealthy friend of a friend Jaume Andreau Bonsons. I like the way at this point Picasso was still acting like the tourist he was. I by the way prefer the paintings he did before Cubism....

Annie

Tom’s granddaughter came for a visit this weekend. She is a freshman at St. Edwards University in Austin, Texas. We are so happy she decided to come to school in Texas instead of Georgia where she grew up. Annie and her family are regular visitors to our home in Colorado,but she has never been to Ft. Worth. So, we spent a fun weekend showing her our new town...which we love.

This is not the sort of place we usually show people, but she spotted this abandoned building on the north side and it was just the sort of place an avid photographed loves to photograph.

We also took her to our famous stockyards where they have a cattle drive with longhorn steers twice daily. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to be there at one of those appointed times, but I know where the pens are, so she did get to photograph a few of  the steers

Yesterday was bitterly cold here and the wind made it even colder with the wind chill in the low 20’s, but when we got out today it was a bit warmer and the wind had died down.

I hope your weather has been agreeable and you have been able to enjoy being outside.