American History Museum Morning Walk

It was really cold yesterday! But the sun was shining and I needed to find some ideas for the weekly photo challenge. We hadn’t been to the Smithsonian American History Museum for quite a while, so we headed there. We parked at the Tidal Basin and walked over in no time. The building had just opened up, and it’s still winter - so there were no lines getting in and it was really empty. We have been to the museum so many times before. The newest exhibit is “Entertainment  Nation.”  My favorite piece is Prince and his yellow guitar. Then we headed over to the First Ladies gowns and China. I remember visiting that exhibit way back in high school and have returned many times. I was able to get full length photos with no one else in them. Then we went through the transportation area with all of the ships and trains and trucks and cars. We really didn’t stop to look at anything in particular because I was on a mission to get a photo for the weekly challenge. The volunteers approached us twice to tell us about Lincoln’s hat and the flag that flew at Fort McHnery. We politely acknowledged their help. It’s really nice to have the opportunity to visit any time we like. And it’s even better when there aren’t any crowds. 

Greenhill Vineyards

It’s been a long time since we went to a vineyard. When we first moved the Capitol Hill seventeen years ago we drove to a Maryland vineyard and ended up sending six bottles to our friends in the Midwest - twice - because the first batch never arrived, but eventually did. Our next door neighbors asked us to join them on a drive to Middleburg this past weekend. We used to drive to Middleburg for the dog shows to see Borzoi. We also drove there several times because it’s just very pretty. There are many horse farms - and vineyards. Apparently our neighbors are members of Greenhill Vineyards and frequent the place a lot. It was the first time in a long time that we were being driven somewhere. It’s quite the luxury these days! When we arrived we met some friends of theirs from a different part of the state, and we all went to the tasting room for a two hour time period of conversation, sipping wine, and tasting cheese and small plate treats. Unfortunately it was very loud indoors and somewhat difficult to hear. The surrounding area is indeed very lovely - rolling hills and all. We ended up buying two bottles of “Susperstition” - the wine we were drinking. It was a nice getaway on a Sunday afternoon. We haven’t done anything like that since before the pandemic. 

Too Many Health Care Visits

This is not been a good year so far mentally and physically. Mentally taxing because of the several medical visits we have had to make, and physically taxing because my husband is having some inconvenient and annoying health issues. Unfortunately these issues are not clear cut, and he is not used to being sick or ill or uncomfortable. Since January we have been seeing health care professionals for annual checks, acute care checks, lab work, video calls, prescription fills, etc. It is giving me a taste of what the future will hold. And of course I also had routine visits and more are planned for next month, adding to the fatigue. We have never had to deal with so much at one time - without a resolution. And since my husband is a retired surgeon, he isn’t happy until there is a definitive answer - which may never happen. So there was blood work on Monday, and a test yesterday in the outpatient department that was very uncomfortable. With that comes all the inevitable discussions and nightmares about getting old and dying. Neither one of us has had a decent nights sleep for quite a while. It is difficult to think about. It makes both of us irritable and cranky - even though everything so far has been negative. You know you are seeing the doctor too often when you know the password to your patient portal by heart. Next week there is another appointment. Since the pandemic out lives just haven’t snapped back to the way they used to be. I miss the old days. 

The Orchid Has Bloomed

We got an orchid plant from my brother and SIL as a housewarming gift when we moved to northern Virginia from Capitol Hill five years ago. The flowers lasted the usual life span. Bur ever since that first flowering, it never bloomed again - until Valentine’s Day. What I thought was just another root turned out to be a spike in October. We watched it mature from nothing to a large branch that eventually had five flowers. It’s amazing how long it took for the spike to grow - and then in such a short time, each bud opened just a couple of days apart. So I took photos of each of the five flowers  - comparing them to see if they were identical or a little different. They all look pretty much the same, but there are subtle changes in the design shapes on the petals. I hope the flowers last for a long time - and I am almost afraid to cut the spike again once they fall. Orchids are tricky to keep going. If nothing else we were fortunate to see another showcase. 

52Frames Complementary Colors Weekly Photo Challenge

The subject for the weekly 52Frames photo challenge was “complementary colors.” That meant red/green; yellow/purple; or orange/blue. Since I have never done oil and water macro photography before, I thought this might be a good time to try it. So I read up about what I needed to do. It would start out with either photos I have taken in my photo stream or creating a digital artwork using complementary colors. The background images would be seen on my iPad on the highest light, and then a clear glass casserole dish was placed on top of it - after first putting the iPad in a clear freezer bag. Then about an inch or two of water was added to the dish along with drops of oil. Then some dish washing detergent was added so the bubbles would be accentuated. This process went on for a few days - because each time I did it I learned something new, and it was just a lot of fun. The end result was a lot of different abstract bubble art. Of course my husband and I couldn’t agree on what image should be submitted. I liked the obvious bright two color combinations. He liked the image that was visually appealing - whether it met the criteria or not. So I ended up uploading the green/red bubble combination that looked like it was moving, that had a neighborhood park bench as the background. But because some of the bubbles were salmon in color I touched them up a bit to match the other red bubbles in the image. It was a fascinating process, but in the end there were just too many choices! 

Takelot.com Selling My Books Without My Permission

I wrote and illustrated three children’s books and published them on Amazon. One was about a Tiny Fish, another was about Four Promises, and the last was about a Trip to DC. All of them were inspired by my two grandsons. Every once in a while I google the books to see what is what. I have found outlets selling my books without my consent - and have notified Amazon on several occasions by reporting copyright infringement. Sometimes the situation is resolved; sometimes it is not. I have also found a lot of my digital art being sold without permission and have contacted the specific websites. That usually goes nowhere. Last week I found all three of my books being sold on a site called Takealot.com. I sent them an email stating that I had not given them permission to sell my books and to take them down. They actually responded - and the end result was that two of the items were removed. The third item still remains. So I contacted them again with a photo of the book on their website again requesting that it be removed. So now I am waiting to hear. It’s not that I have made any money on any of these books. It’s just the principle of the thing. It took a lot of effort to go through the exercise of not only writing but also illustrating these books. It just doesn’t seem right that someone could collect a dime off of any sale!