Sunday's Psalm--First Sunday of Advent

 

Back to the Future

Craver Vii presented us with the theme "Back to the Future" for this week. It caught me prepared but with a stumbling block. I had a picture ready but coming back from our Thanksgiving with family we found the wi-fi in our hotel out last night. Once again, winds in Weed, California, made a trip home interesting. (Last March in the same spot we had high winds and snow. Last night it was wind and rain.)

So, lacking the opportunity to get a shot of Nigel's De Lorean, which he restored as his senior project, I thought about what I might find along the trip that was futuristic. This post came to mind and a shot I tried to get of the two types of windmills in juxtaposition about that same time.

On our way through Oregon we passed several semis hauling portions of the new windmills. Those things are huge. I have no thought of how to contrast their size to anything. Perhaps this old photo of one of the blades being moved to its location gives a good idea. See it in comparison to the vehicles on the road behind it. This was taken in October 2008. The hills in the distance now hold at least forty or fifty of the wind machines.  

 

So I watched for a good chance at a windfarm picture, and this is the one I chose cropped to fit the header. This is part of the windfarm in the desert east of Los Angeles.

 

Sunday's Psalm--Feast of Christ the King

 

Over the River(s)

We set off over the rivers and through the woods, though the song says to Grandmother's house we go, rather we the grandparents go to the Grandkids for Thanksgiving.  You would have thought that having gone over the Yakima, Columbia, Umatilla, Grande Ronde, Malheur, Snake (twice), Boise, Raft, Bear, Sevier,  Virgin (at least five times), Muddy, Colorado,  Big Sandy, Santa Maria,  Hassayampa,  Agua Fria,  New, and the Salt Rivers, we would have had many pictures to choose from for my own choice of theme Over the River. Alas, when you are determined to reach your destination on a deadline, stopping for pictures just doesn't happen.

The plan was to stop and take new pictures of this bridge at over the Snake at Twin Falls.

We could have sidetracked for a fresh view of the  Blue Bridge at Tri-Cities'

But alas, the only picture stop we made was this viewpoint over the Colorado River just after we crossed the bridge (that I had intended to take pictures of) into Arizona.

 

For my header I am choosing to show something of the reason for our wanting to reach Phoenix before Sunday, We came to cheer on our son-in-law Greg as he completed his third Ironman Triathlon. If we had stopped to take pictures of all those rivers we would have arrived about when he crossed the finish line.



On the 112 mile bicycle leg of the Ironman after a 2.4 mile swim.
 

 

 

The header has Greg in his run (marathon after the swim and bike--making a total of 140.6 miles) along the Tempe Town Lake, after crossing the bridge in the background over the lake which is actually part of the riverbed of the Salt River (thus it really is over the river.)

Check my sidebar for links to the other Headbangers and see what they have made of my theme.

Here are some more Over the River pictures from my archives.

Grandfather Turns Loose the Ponies--looking OVER the Columbia River

 

Icicles hang over the Nisqually River

 

Suspended over the river

 

Would you?

 

Sunday's Psalm--33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

 

Orange

Our Headbangers' theme this week, courtesy of Tom, is Orange.

I considered using this
 

or this

 

and I even took this while I was wandering through Hobby Lobby looking for something else. 

 

But the theme is Orange. hmm. Orange.

 

This is ORANGE! 



 

We say good bye for now to Richard and Chris who promise to stop back and say hi once in a while.

We welcome three new Headbangers, well, two new and one returning. Craver Vii is giving us a try. That is what I said last year. "I'll give it a try." Lew has accepted our invitation and posted his challenge header here. Sandy has returned. She may be the Headbanger whose absence made possible my own invitation. Welcome back Sandy.

Sunday's Psalm--32nd Sunday of Ordinary Time

Shop Window

I had to go back to England for my Shop Window image. It's not that there aren't any shop windows around here, and I certainly should have brought out the camera while we were at the mall the other day, but the more interesting ones would be in the cities--where I don't live--or require my wandering through town on foot--which I'm not currently fit to do as it would set off a coughing spell.

You don't mind wandering back to England with me do you? I thought not.

I actually have a sort of a shop window photo from walking down Steep Street with Stewart, who proposed the theme for today.
 

Shops in centuries old streets don't have such large show windows as we might be seeking.

 

 

 

While in Newcastle upon Tyne we happened upon this shop which held great interest for me as a quilter. The window above the door next showed old sewing machines, but the sign below indicated it was a purveyor of spirits. What combination is this? Is it the same shop? What might we find inside? Alas, we would not find out as we were there on a Sunday and caught an early train the next morning so we could meet up with Stewart and his lovely wife Julie in Lincoln. Perhaps Julie, who is also a quilter, and I can explore this in another trip some day.

While we were in London we stayed in a suburb where we couldn't see much of the shop windows as we walked between our hotel and our train stop each day of sightseeing.  The whole neighborhood was a maze of construction. I hope they are back to normal now.
 

My choice for the header contains a shop window on the ground floor--but in the windows above is the choice view--the steeple of Westminster Cathedral.

 

 

 

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Richard's headbanger post reminded me of these windows in India. I'll keep my cathedral for the header, but thought you might enjoy the variety the chance to travel provides.

 

Sunday's Psalm--31st Sunday of Ordinary Time

 

Chaos!

Well, it isn't exactly chaos, but consider, if that was how things actually looked when you were standing up straight, things would be very chaotic.
 

 

I've been down and out with a cold all week, so had no chance to take a picture better depicting chaos. Hubby suggested pictures from after the floods at Mt. Rainier six years ago next week. Some of the scenes were pretty chaotic--huge trees thrown down the ridge into the Ohanepecosh River. Campsites destroyed. Washouts on several park roads. Roofs blown off fire lookouts and dropped in the valley below.

 

 

It suggests also the chaos after the eruption of Mt. St. Helens. Look at the trees tossed helter skelter--even thirty years after the big blow.

It's a little too close to what is happening in the Eastern US right now. Looks a lot more interesting and less frightening after six or thirty years.

 

But this picture does it for me. It is as it came from the camera--upside down. That is how I had to hold the camera to take the picture over my shoulder from the Seattle Big Wheel.

 

Which for me is kind of chaotic anyway.

 

This is our headbangers theme this week. Chaos!

Christopher gave it to us. I wonder what chaos he is getting into this week.

He and the others are listed in my sidebar.

 

This picture makes me dizzy. Dizzier than when we rode the wheel.