To my followers

Please visit me at my new blog site:

https://mistysbloggingkingdom.wordpress.com/

I found nothing wrong with Blogger, but decided to switch to WordPress.  And for a limited time, my new blog is snowing!

I'll leave this up a while longer to point people over there. There are already new posts up, so you don't want to miss anything. In addition to my travel or musings, I've added a couple of more things like Music on Monday and Wacky Wednesday.

~Misty

Going down a new pathway.

the day after

Black Friday. The day after the o-my-gosh-did-I-really-eat-that-much day. Day two in a much needed four day weekend. Call it what you will, but today is the day after Thanksgiving.

Although I could not be with my extended family, I was blessed to have my husband and children around my table. The turkey was moist, the potatoes smooth, the onion rings on the green bean casserole crunchy. All was perfect. Then we topped it off with pumpkin pie and coffee. A perfect end to a perfect meal.

Once again, 'tis the Season.

So as Christmas approaches, let all of us remember the good times and resist the commercialism and stress that seems to get injected into this time.  Let it be instead a time of Joy, a time to remember family and friends, a time to reflect on the God who made all this possible, a time to continue the attitude of thanksgiving we enjoyed yesterday, being thankful for all we have been given and all we are able to give to others.

Tree at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, AZ

Blessings to you all!

Finding things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving

These are just some of the things that I am thankful for that would like to share with each of you. There are of course friends and family - all of whom I am very thankful for, but in the interest of privacy I will not post their pictures. I will keep this list to more universal things, such as:

Beaches

Mountains

Freedom

Puppies

Blue skies

Bicycles

Town squares

Palace

Carriages

 
May you remember always the things that have blessed your life today and throughout the rest of the year. Enjoy the beauty around you.

Deutsches Museum in Munich

I love museums. It doesn't matter to me what kind of museum it is; I just have a love of learning. In Munich there is the German National Museum and it is a must see for anyone like me who loves museums.

The day we went it was raining, the line was very long, and there was construction, but well worth it!

Inside there were many interesting areas from maritime history (including a full size submarine) to science to transportation.

Take that, Smart car!

The many levels let you look at things from above too.

I am an avid astronomy buff, so the entire two level room devoted to the art and science was of particular interest to me.

Telescopes look like artwork.

More telescopes!

There was also a section devoted to the digital age which wouldn't be complete without a nod to Intel.

I only use computers with Intel chips, including my beloved Apple.

We took time at the museums cafe to rest our feet, enjoy sinfully good hot chocolate, and look out the window at the rain.  Everything was so close by that we walked everywhere, rain or shine.

The rain swollen Isar river behind my red umbrella.

As we were leaving, I was amused to find this exhibit with my homeland's Grand Canyon:

Memories of home across the globe!

This is a must see destination, if you are ever in Munich. The price was very reasonable and there is also a very large gift shop that can be found online. There are a couple of other sites that are part of the museum, but we didn't go to them. More information can be found here.

Hudba, Zene, Musik

In any language, music is sweet to the ear. On my travels this past summer to Europe I saw many musical sights and heard many musical pieces. Here is a montage of my findings.

Two young flautists playing classical music in Vienna.

A harpist!

In Salzburg.

Vienna - a tribute to Mozart.

Close up of Mozart's statue.

Everywhere there were references to Mozart!

I enjoyed listening to music on street corners and in restaurants. I found everything from classical to pop to jazz. I think it is because I had such a great time listening that I failed to shoot very many pictures. It was like the audio overshadowed the visual.

One place I went to that tantalized not only the visual and audio, but also the tactile. It was the Haus der Musik in Austria. This fabulous hands-on museum covered not only the history and sounds of major composers, it taught about the very act of hearing. Various rooms and displays were set up so that you could learn the biology of sound. This is a must see for anyone traveling to Vienna. It is near the famous St. Stephen's Cathedral.

Scary stuff I saw in Europe this past summer

I know it is now Halloween, but the following scary sights were from the bright days of summer. Imagine how horrible they would have been on a dark and stormy night!

It was a dark and stormy afternoon in Prague

Scary building in Prague..ok, it's a church, but it has a sort of Exorcist look about it eh?

Not the WC although I'm sure it was scary. No, look behind and see the sign for the Museum of Torture!

My brother being stalked by a mastodon in the Museum of Natural History in Prague - put this one in here to see if any of my family actually read my blog......

Oh no!!!!! McDonalds are everywhere! This one in Prague across from the aforementioned museum of natural history.

Assimilation is complete. We are now all part of Apple. This one in Munich.

And a Game Stop in Munich! You can't escape them! Put this in here for a certain young man who remain anonymous, just to see if he ever reads this.

Yes, for certain there are lots of scary sights in Europe. It is the continent that brought us Vlad the Impaler (Count Dracula) after all. Boo! Have a fun and safe Halloween!

A Haunting Treat

Reminiscent of Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven," I caught this wondrous photo of a large black bird (raven?) as it flew from a rather spooky looking tree. Perhaps he is on his way to visit the ill-fated and grief-stricken narrator of that dark poem.

Of course this was taken during the day and such things as messengers from beyond don't exist, do they? Well, do they? Nah, didn't think so.

And, by the way, for those interested in Poe's "The Raven," by far the best reading (by the incomparable James Earl Jones) and illustration of it I've seen thus far was actually part of a Simpson's episode, one of the Treehouse of Horrors. Here is a link to the best one I could find on YouTube. Bart Simpson as The Raven - sublime. Enjoy!

On my way home

Now that I have a job and a routine drive, I've started looking around a bit at the sights along the way. Because I live and work in the fifth largest city in the United States, I was surprised to find a bit of country on my evening route. This afternoon I took the time to stop and snap some photos.

Not sure, but I think they're alpaca.

Very woolly and curious, coming to see what I'm doing.

I'm thinking he is the stud - very regal and proud.

A curious emu.

These two followed me around.

Pretty pony - notice that compared to the fence, this pony is about the same size as the emu.

Taking time to relax on a Friday afternoon and to really see what is around me is a great way to unwind and start the weekend. Cheers.

Where have I been?

I haven't been at my computer blogging, that's for sure. I have now what is known as a "job." Before I was "funemployed" but thanks to the Summer of Recovery and the upswing in the economy, I now have a fascinating, high paying, meaningful, green job. No wait. That isn't right. It's because the economy still sucks that although I am working, it is in a temp position. The company I'm working at is trying to sell off this very division, so they can't hire an actual employee.

But at least it's a fascinating, high paying, meaningful, green job - right? Um, no. It's about as mind-numbingly irrelevant to my life as it could possible get. I sit in a cubicle farm all day making phone calls to other people in their cubicle farms that owe my cubicle farm money. Blegh! (Guess I can't reveal my blog to my co-workers now.) So, here I am, barely keeping my head above water:

Turtle, but he looks happy right?

However, if I am anything at all, I am a blissful optimist. I look at the opportunities that are out there, set goals and look for the blue skies all around me:

Groovin' on a sunny afternoon!

Life is too short to give up so much of my life doing something without meaning; now is the time to seek what I want to do. The possibilities really are endless and now I am really motivated to find something else by which to earn a living. I'm excited to think where all this will lead. Freebird playing the background and I'm off!

Readers:  I welcome any and all suggestions you want to make in the comments. Keep 'em clean though, I'm not That Kind of Girl!

Astronomical Clock in Prague, Czech Republic - Awesome!

I was privileged this past summer to go to Prague and see this amazing clock first hand:

Prague's Astronomical Clock

Notice the astronomical symbols.

More information than I can remember can be found at Wikipedia, so I won't be too redundant here except to say that the clock tower includes astrological signs, statues representing among other things vanity, death, a philosopher, an angel, an astronomer and a chronicler, as well as the Apostles that march by every hour. It may even tell time!

In celebration of it's 600th year,  a video mapping has been produced that shows computerized projections right onto the clock tower depicting it's history. Here's a link to the video The 600 Years. It's ten minutes long, but worth watching.

Being a tourist on a casual Saturday in my home town

Last month I wrote that you don't have to leave your own city in order to be on vacation, that it was more a state of mind than a location thing. Look at your surroundings every day as if seeing them for the first time and let your mind take flight even when you can't.

In that spirit my weekend wanderings took me to Desert Ridge Mall in North Phoenix, a place I have been to countless times before, but this time I decided to take my own advice. This is what I saw:

artwork in structures

The moon through the patio lights.

Another brick in the wall.

I love geometry.

I wonder how many people don't look up when they walk here?

nice plant life

Date palm under-lit by evening lights.

awesome shoes

Amazing how easy it was to go up and ask this young woman if I could photograph her shoes.

surprised by a band

Love a good sax!

They were quite good even though the acoustics were not.

Sorry, I don't know who they are - if you do, post a comment.

and a little girl living large and free as only a the very young can

Gonna be a heart breaker one day!

All in all the weather was balmy, the sights and sounds great, and the time memorable because I looked at things with different eyes rather than just running around shopping or going to dinner.