Another NEW challenge

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Happy Saturday! Yesterday, I mentioned I appreciated the little push that a photo challenge gave me to get out and shoot.  Well, my other great love is reading – so I’m going to work on another challenge – that of reading 12 classics in 2018.  I’m excited!  I just recently found out about this challenge via I Read That In A Book blog – just in time to sign up before the deadline of March 1st.

Most of the books I plan to read (subject to change) for the 2018 Back to the Classics Challenge came from recommendations from blogs I follow:

1.  A 19th century classic – City folk and country folk by Sofia Khvoshchinskaya (recommended at I Read That In A Book) finished!
2.  A 20th century classic – Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (recommended by The Long Victorian) finished!
3.  A classic by a woman author – I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith (Recommended via a comment on the Classics Challenge link page) finished!
4.  A classic in translation – La dame de Monsoreau by Alexandre Dumas (Highest rating for ‘Best of Dumas’ on GoodReads!)

5. A children’s classic – The Many Adventures of Winnie The Pooh: Tales & Poemby A. A. Milne (recommended by Cafe Book Bean) Finished!
6.  A classic crime story, fiction or non-fiction – A Scandal in Bohemia by  Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (recommended by KatiesCottageBooks) finished!
7. A classic travel or journey narrative, fiction or non-fiction- Gone Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright (Recommended by Gretchen Rubin)finished!
8. A classic with a single-word title – Dracula by Bram Stoker (I’ll read this in October!)
9. A classic with a color in the title – The Silver Crown by Robert O’Brien (Recommended by Gretchen Rubin)finished!
10. A classic by an author that’s new to you – Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert (recommended by Book Club Mom) Finished!
11. A classic that scares you – Youngblood Hawke by Herman Wouk (recommended by Book Club Mom)…this scares me because of how long it is.  It’s really, really long! It scares me to think how long it will take me to read it! Finished!
12. Re-read a favorite classic – Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (Just because it’s my very favorite)

Have a great day! Do or READ something NEW!

 

a NEW winter weather photo challenge

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Happy Friday! Here’s what the weather is like in my neck of the woods.  Snowy and cold! Thanks to Nancy’s Weekly Challenge I picked up my camera and took these photos.  Having the push to get out there and shoot is really why I started this blog in the first place – all those many years ago.  Although I’ve been out of the habit of posting lately, I hope to redeem myself – and get my photographic fix at the same time.

Have a great weekend everyone! Do or learn something NEW!

ps. If you can’t tell what that third photo is all about, it’s ice in between the spaces in my door mat on my front porch. :o)

 

 

NEW taste Tuesday

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Happy Tuesday!

One thing I love about having a blog, is when someone requests a recipe, I know exactly where to go to get it.  I simply send them a link to my site and they have what they need. Happy day!

So, I thought I’d better add this cake to my recipe section because I will most likely need it again.  It was super yummy.  I made this for my DIL’s bday last weekend.  I also need to remember how easy (well, easier) decorating cakes are when you plan ahead and bake the actual cake the day before.  That way, you don’t have to wait for it to cool, and you’re not rushed (well, as rushed)!

I used THIS recipe, with a few minor tweaks.  Have a great day and do or taste something NEW!

 

a NEW thematic bucket list

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I love, loVE, LOVE waterfalls, so I’m gonna keep track of the ones I visit and try to cross off a bucket list of visiting 100 waterfalls. I’ve gotta get busy!

  1. Dunn’s River Falls, Jamaica {done}
  2. Minnehaha Falls, Minnesota {done}
  3. Multnomah Falls, Oregon {done}
  4. American Falls, Niagara, New York {done}
  5. Bridal Veil Falls, Niagara, New York {done}
  6. Horseshoe Falls, Niagara, New York {done}
  7. Bridal Veil Falls, Provo, Utah{done}
  8. Akaka Falls in Hilo, Hawaii {done}
  9. Emerald Pools Waterfall, Zion National Park, Utah {done}
  10. Horsetail Falls, Alpine, Utah{done}
  11. Cascade Falls, Brianhead, Utah{done}
  12. Upper Yellowstone Falls, Yellowstone National Park {done}
  13. Lower Yellowstone Falls, Yellowstone National Park {done}
  14. Snoqualmie Falls, Seattle, Washington {done}
  15. Kanarraville Falls, Kanarraville, Utah {done}
  16. Toquerville, Falls, Toquerville, UT {done}
  17. Shoshone Falls, Twin Falls, ID {done}
  18. Twin Falls, ID {done}
  19. St. Anthony Falls, Minneapolis, MN {done}
  20. Hog’s Back Falls, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada {done}
  21. Rideau Falls, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada {done}
  22. Montmorency Falls, Quebec, Canada {done}
  23. Upper Mesa Falls, Idaho {done}
  24. Lower Mesa Falls, Idaho {done}
  25. Talcott Falls, New York {done}
  26. Pixley Falls, New York {done}
  27. Stewart Falls, Sundance, UT {done}
  28. Battle Creek Fall, Pleasant Grove, UT {done}
  29. Yosemite Falls, Yosemite National Park, CA {done}
  30. Bridal Veil Falls, Yosemite National Park, CA {done}
  31. Vernal Falls, Yosemite National Park, CA {done}
  32. Nevada Falls, Yosemite National Park, CA {done}
  33. Lower Calf Creek Falls, Escalante, UT {done}
  34. Grizzly Falls, Kings Canyon, CA {done}
  35. Box Canyon Springs Waterfall, Wendell, ID {done}
  36. Bullion Falls, Marysvale, UT {done}
  37. High Falls, Dupont State Forest, North Carolina {done}
  38. Triple Falls, Dupont State Forest, North Carolina {done}
  39. Linville Falls, North Carolina {done}
  40. Pearson’s Falls, Polk County, North Carolina {done}
  41. Hickory Nut Falls, North Carolina {done}
  42. Mingo Falls, North Carolina {done}
  43. Tom Branch Falls, North Carolina {done}
  44. Juneywhank Falls, North Carolina {done}
  45. Indian Creek Falls, North Carolina {done}
  46. Soco Falls, North Carolina {done}
  47. Bowen Falls, New Zealand {done}
  48. Hidden Falls, Jenny Lake, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming {done}
  49. Potem Falls, Shasta-Trinity National Forest, Shasta County, California {done}
  50. Burney Falls, McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, California {done}
  51. McCloud Falls, Shasta-Trinity National Forest, Shasta County, California {done}
  52. Hedge Creek Falls, Dunsmuir, California, {done}
  53. Kings Creek Falls, Lassen Volcanic National Park, California, {done}
  54. Whiskeytown Falls, Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, California, {done}
  55. Crystal Creek Falls, Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, California, {done}
  56. Cascade Falls, Ouray, Colorado {done}
  57. Box Cañon Falls, Ouray, Colorado {done}
  58. Bridal Veil Falls, Telluride, Colorado {done}
  59. Milky Falls, Sanpete County, Utah {done}
  60. Baring Falls, Glacier National Park, Montana {done}
  61. St. Mary Falls, Glacier National Park, Montana {done}
  62. Virginia Falls, Glacier National Park, Montana {done}
  63. Iguazu Falls, Argentina {done}
  64. Brandywind Falls, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio {done}
  65. Blue Hen Falls, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio {done}
  66. Chagrin Falls, Chagrin Falls, Ohio {done}
  67. Minnehaha Falls, Nelson – Kennedy Ledges State Park, Ohio {done}
  68. Cascade Falls, Nelson – Kennedy Ledges State Park, Ohio, {done}
  69. Rainbow Falls, Watkins Glen State Park, New York {done}
  70. Triphammer Falls, Ithaca, New York {done}
  71. Cascadilla Falls, Ithaca, New York {done}
  72. Ithaca Falls, Ithaca, New York {done}
  73. Lucifer Falls, Robert H. Treman State Park, New York {done}
  74. Taughannock Falls, Taughannock State Park, New York {done}
  75. Buttermilk Falls, Ithaca, New York {done}
  76. Upper Genesee Falls, Letchworth State Park, New York {done}
  77. Middle Genesee Falls, Letchworth State Park, New York {done}
  78. Lower Genesee Falls, Letchworth State Park, New York {done}
  79. High Falls, Rochester, New York {done}
  80. Lower, Middle, and Upper Falls, Stony Brook State Park, New York {done}
  81. Salmon River Falls, Orwell, Oswego, New York {done}
  82. Shelving Rock Falls, New York {done}
  83. Kent Falls, Connecticut {done}
  84. Great Falls, Connecticut {done}
  85. Gonic Falls, New Hampshire {done}
  86. Flume Gorge Falls, New Hampshire {done}
  87. Sabbaday Falls, New Hampshire {done}
  88. Wachirathen Falls, Chiang Mai, Thailand {done}
  89. Kanching Falls, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia {done}
  90. Wentworth Falls, New South Wales, Australia {done}
  91. Drift Creek Falls, Oregon {done}

Miscellaneous Monday – NEW stuff i gotta share

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Mt. Vesuvius

(The volcano that erupted and buried the ancient Roman city of Pompeii in ash)

See, this is why I really like reading all of your blogs!  I learn NEW stuff: I enjoyed seeing Maureen’s photo of Mt. Taranaki and I since I hadn’t heard of Mt. Taranaki, I googled it. Google informed me where it was, and what kind of volcano it was. I either didn’t know there were different classifications of volcanoes, or I had forgot!  So, after I read her blog I had to go research the difference between stratovolcanoes, and shield volcanoes etc. I’m just a research junky!

One thing led to another and since I had just recently visited Pompeii, I had to find out what type of volcano Mt. Vesuvius was (it’s also classified as a stratovolcano – same as Mt. Taranaki). Here’s a few more pics from Pompeii:

 

On our trip, I also learned that the term “stepping stones” originated from these literal stepping stones that were sort of like a cross-walk on a street.  Back in 70AD there would have been sewage and muck running down the streets and people didn’t want to walk in that stuff!  You can even see the tracks from chariots between the stepping stones!  It was an amazing place to see!

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So, that’s the miscellaneous tidbits I had to share today!  Have a terrific day and do or learn something NEW!

 

a NEW photo and a short Sunday sermon

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Happy Sunday! Here’s a view from our hotel room at Ashdown Park Hotel and Country Club in East Sussex, England. One of these days, I want to play around with Photoshop with this old window and change the scenery like Melinda Anderson did in THIS very cool post! {check it out…such a cool idea!}

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The Ashdown Park Hotel was gorgeous – an old manor house next to an old convent that had beautiful stained glass windows and a majestic pipe organ where they host meetings, conferences, weddings etc. Those lucky, lucky nuns who used to live in that convent!

So…for today’s short sermon I’ll just share a few lines from the talk “Charity Never Faileth”

 

Mother Teresa, a Catholic nun who worked among the poor in India most of her life, spoke this profound truth: “If you judge people, you have no time to love them.” The Savior has admonished, “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.”I ask: can we love one another, as the Savior has commanded, if we judge each other? And I answer—with Mother Teresa: no, we cannot.

The Apostle James taught, “If any … among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s [or woman’s] religion is vain.”

Charity has been defined as “the highest, noblest, strongest kind of love,” the “pure love of Christ … ; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with [her].”

Have a great day! Do or learn something NEW!