Thoughts of Umbrella Days. . . . . . .

While gazing out the window this morning I was thinking about the sopping wet
 weather we've had this week. Three straight days of rain falling, unusual for this
 area, a slow moving farewell from tropical storm Arthur.
I didn't need my umbrella though as I didn't go out of the house. . . . . except to
slosh around in the soggy garden now and then. All this thinking took me back
 to places in the world where umbrellas played

 a memorable part whilst sightseeing. 

Here are a few that come to mind as I enjoy a sunny morning again.

My photo from that special morning at Monet's garden in Giverny, France.

My art version of the gorgeous Claude Monet paintings reproduced on the umbrellas

 for sale at the gift shop in his gardens.

Handmade umbrellas waiting to dry before decorative painting - Chiang Mai, Thailand 2011

. . . . . . . and me among the painted umbrellas outside the shop.

First morning in Moscow, heavy rain whilst crossing waterlogged Red Square - 2013
Dreary and foreboding - thankfully the following day the sun came out.

The steady rain of 'the wet' season bringing to life the ancient colors of ancient
Hue, Vietnam. 

More of historic Hue, Vietnam in 2011

Rainy day - plenty of umbrellas and plastic rainwear available!
Beautiful colors of very old buildings - hang the red lantern!
Hoi An, Vietnam - 2011. A beautiful place.

Hope your Memorial Day weekend is dry, bright and sunny.
Not going far from home but will probably grill something or other........as that's
what we do, right?

Stay well - be safe.

Enough is plenty. . . . . . . . .

T HOME

We're at home for the Memorial Day weekend. 

How about you?

The coast would be lovely. . . . . . the mountains even better.

But being here and having some quiet moments is fine with me.

Saturday Morning in May. . . . . . . . .

Sun is up. . . . . . . .it's a lovely start to the day during these early morning hours. 

Perhaps a thunderstorm later in the afternoon as the heat builds, typical late

spring weather in our area. Some garden chores await.

I'm trying to eat more raw fruit, especially from the berry family. 
Because I have some difficulty swallowing it, I've started making 'smoothie' breakfasts. 
 Nothing complicated - for the base I use so good for you Kefir, a couple of ice cubes,
 a handful of strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, and a third of a banana.
 Toss in some chia seeds, sometimes a half teaspoon of honey, and I'm good to liquefy!

Yes, definitely a promising morning - I'm off to enjoy it.

Have a happy Memorial Day weekend. . . . . . and please remember

 the true meaning of this very special holiday.

Blogging with Blondie!

Jane, known to all as 'Blondie' from Blondie's Journals, and I have blogged and followed each other for many years. When she told me that she and 'The Husband' would be visiting Asheville again this Spring I was thrilled to think we could meet again for a second time. Then, the sad news came that they would be there when we were off on a trip overseas. There was no way we could drive west to the North Carolina mountains and be back in time to fly east to catch our boat! 

The good news followed later…they were driving to Asheville from Washington D.C. and would stop in several beautiful Virginia spots along the way, and then spend an overnight in Raleigh so that we could get together for dinner.

We are in disarray while preparing to venture forth on another Cunard 'Queen' very soon - more on that later! However, some quick cleaning, Jane you've no idea what got stuffed behind closet doors, fresh flowers from Trader Joe's, early Saturday morning baking and cream whipping, and we were prepared for a fun evening yesterday. 

Following dinner out - pic via the wait person - we came back to the cottage. Although dark, it was a perfect evening, warm and apparently mosquito free as we toured the garden a bit, then sat inside and chatted about all and sundry while enjoying dessert and coffee.

The time flew by much too quickly. We exchanged 'blog gifts'. The four of us get along famously. The husbands have much in common, and of course Jane and I found more than enough to chat about - bloggers were your ears burning? Don't worry we were nice!

Pic via Bob

My really beautiful gift from Jane - a wonderful 'teatime recipe book' with fabulous recipes from the world's best tearooms, with a classical music CD to play at teatime. I really love this - it has many of my favorite pieces of relaxing music - in fact I'm playing it now and it's breakfast time, and I may just play again at lunch time, and I've added it to my iTunes on the MacBook so I can travel with it too! Jane is great at choosing perfect gifts - thank you dear friend.

Enjoy the remainder of your trip Jane and A. Hug those Asheville gals for me please, and tell them I hope to catch up with them this Summer!

*******

Tomorrow, being a busy day of celebration, I will not be posting here. 
Wishing each of you a great holiday, and please, in between the eating, drinking, 
fun with family and friends, remember the meaning of this very special day.