Sunday, December 31, 2023

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! 




Saturday, December 30, 2023

Barbie, Wonka, and Holdovers

What do they all have in common? Barbie, Wonka, and Holdovers are all one name movies. They were also really bad movies. My husband and I are always in the minority. Whenever everyone likes a movie - or it is hyped to be absolutely wonderful and in the top ten of the year - we hate it. And when we really like a movie, it gets little attention. Perhaps it’s because we just prefer British actors and British films and series. When we went to visit our family over Christmas we thought it would be nice to see Barbie because of all of the hype. I loved Barbie and had several of them - including a car that I trained my parakeet to ride on the steering wheel. But the movie was just awful. Then we went to an actual theater to see Wonka. We haven’t been to a theater since before the pandemic. The atmosphere was most annoying, the quality of the film was terrible and almost grainy compared to TV watching these days. Neither my husband nor I are in to Willy Wonka - so it meant little to us. I think our kids and twenty year old grandson connected to it for sentimental reasons. They actually met Gene Wilder and there is a photo of our grandson sitting on his lap. At least there were a couple of heartfelt moments. When we returned home we thought we should see the Holdovers last night with Paul Giamatti. We like him, and this was another movie that got so much hype. We even got a subscription to Peacock rather than pay to rent it. And for the third time we just didn’t get the noise around this film. It was just terrible and predictable - and long. So I don’t think we will be going to another theater in the near future. It’s really disappointing because we love movies and they are a big part of our lives. We have come to the conclusion that it must be us. 








Friday, December 29, 2023

Ninja Combi All in One Multicooker, Oven and Air Fryer

We don’t have a lot of kitchen counter space, but we do have a large penninsula. It’s better than an island if you need to place things next to the wall. We got a small four quart air fryer about a month ago and really like everything about it - except that it is too small for pizza, French fries, eggplant - things that require more space to cook. It’s great for chicken breasts, shrimp, fish, and all other smaller sized portions. And, we couldn’t make more than one thing at once - baked potato with an entree. So we looked around for an air fryer that had more space, but also had other capabilities. We rarely use our oven anymore and it takes forever to heat up. For whatever reason we ended up with the Ninja Combi multicooker, oven, and air fryer. I think it is overkill and we will probably never use it for all of the options it has. Although if our oven ever stops working this thing could do just about anything. It is much larger and I’m not sure where the best place is to put it. It’s about twenty pounds so I don’t want to move it from one counter to another. Our first attempt was a salmon filet and it turned out fine except it needed more seasoning - which isn’t the oven’s fault. Today we tried the toast function - to see if we could eliminate the toaster. That worked well too. The small air fryer had a handle that you can easily remove the basket. Because this is an oven, you need to use mitts so you don’t burn yourself - like any regular oven. I have mixed feelings about this device but I’m sure we won’t return it because we never return anything. After doing a lot of research there are so many options out there. These are the times when a pantry comes in handy. 






















Thursday, December 28, 2023

LITDigitalart Labrador Puppies

I have been doing digital art custom pet portraits for over ten years. There is nothing better than to have a returning customer - not just once - but several times. A few years back I was asked to do a head shot portrait of a chocolate lab named Izzie. She was a special lab because she was being trained to become a service dog. So my customer wanted the portrait for her parents who are doing the training. A year or two later another request was made to have a yellow lab puppy portrait made of Humor, who was also being trained to become a service dog. By all accounts they have been successful in that effort. This year there was a third request for a black lab puppy named Lilac to have a portrait. It has almost become a tradition. All of the portraits are head shots, with a blank background. That way they look like they should all be together when they are on display. It is ironic that there was a black, chocolate, and yellow Labrador puppy to paint. I was told that if they don’t succeed in their training that the puppy is kept as a family member. I wonder if I’ll be asked to paint another one? 








Wednesday, December 27, 2023

52Frames Unfinished Weekly Photo Challenge

The subject this week for the 52Frames photo challenge was “unfinished.” I only had one thing in mind - and that was to take a photo of the orchid we were given by my brother and SIL. That was almost five years ago. We never had another bloom, but the leaves continued to grow. Then, all of a sudden, in mid October what I thought was just another root ended up being a spike! Both my husband and I were ecstatic that we might once again have a flower. The only thing I did was switch the pot so the roots faced the window. Now the spike has grown and there is what appears to be a bud. I’m just sorry that it’s not growing at the same speed it was before because the sun has shifted in the winter sky and gets blocked by the building next door. So I took several photos of the plant and found a good one to isolate to create a composite image. A light blue/turquoise background color was added. To inspire the plant to continue growing the photo we took at the US Botanic Garden was used. The flower was isolated times three and they were added - but transparently - because they don’t exist yet. I really enjoy creating composite images compared to just taking a photo and editing it. Oftentimes they won’t be contenders, but I like to combine photography with digital art. The comments from around the world are fun to get. So we are keeping our fingers crossed and hope our little orchid cooperates. 






Saturday, December 23, 2023

Old Town Alexandria Christmas

Every year around this time we always take a drive to Old Town, Alexandria. Aside from that we drive in about every month or so for a morning walk since we moved to northern Virginia almost five years ago. Many years ago we stayed in Old Town for Christmas because we were visiting family who lived in the area. That was before we moved to Capitol Hill seventeen years ago and Old Town became a favorite lunch destination. We love walking along the waterfront, and then return to the car via the beautiful historic streets. All of the townhouses and row houses are lovely. And they are decorated so nicely for Christmas. One can only imagine what has gone on in this place. George Washington had a home here along with so many other prominent figures. So it’s a treat to meander down the sidewalks and cobblestones and get a glimpse of time gone by. And at Christmas time it is worth the visit. 
























































Friday, December 22, 2023

Capitol Christmas Tree

Yesterday we took a ride over to the Tidal Basin so we could take a morning walk to see the White House/National Christmas Tree. It felt like we just did this! A few days ago we went to a program at the Library of Congress. I was hoping to see the Christmas tree there, but we weren’t allowed in to the Great Hall because the building was technically closed - except for the program. And before that we took a morning walk to see the Christmas trains and US Botanic Garden conservatory. It is always a delight. Afterwards we walked over to the US Capitol to see the tree there on the west lawn. The tree came from West Virginia. Of course all of these Christmas trees always look so much prettier in the evening when all of the lights are on. But we don’t go in to town except for morning walks and afternoon programs at the Library. We have been visiting these places since before we moved to DC seventeen years ago, including the trees and trains at Union Station and the Smithsonian Castle. Since moving to northern Virginia we still like to make it a habit to visit them every year as long as we can. We both miss living on Capitol Hill for these sorts of things and are glad we left for other reasons. The nice thing is that we know our way around so it makes driving there a whole lot easier - though we do miss having our parking sticker. Now it’s a matter of finding a free two hour parking space or a park mobile slot. It’s well worth it.