Photo Adventure

Shopping for a Valentine at the Harrods Department store in London

2012-02-13T20:12:00.001-06:00

Before I traveled to London, I asked my friends for their recommendations as to where I should visit and many told me to go to Harrods department store. I had visited two museums in the morning and I decided that the cool winter air would be better than the stuffy stale air of the Tube (London subway). So I walked from Cromwell Road through Brompton road all the way to Harrods. Harrods has a dress code policy and has turned away several people who it believed are not dressed appropriately, so I was a little concerned as I walked through the door into the massive department store. I had no idea where to go but loved seeing the beautiful bags, scarfs of expensive named brands. But you know me, I can always follow my nose to the food court. As Valentines day was approaching many departments were decorated in pink and red hearts. Chocolates, oh those delicious decadent chocolates where everywhere.

Can't you just see the smiling face of a lover when she (or he?) receives one of these heart shaped boxes filled with chocolates on Valentines day?

I had a great time looking at every counter trying to find just the right gift....

So many different kinds of chocolate truffles, what is this girl supposed to do???

Counter after counter filled with so many different kind of chocolates from all over Europe. What a heavenly place.....

Buckingham Palace in the Winter

2012-02-11T21:55:00.000-06:00

I was fortunate to visit London last weekend. I have been wanting to visit for so long that I was totally ecstatic. After a long airplane ride from Chicago, I was nodding off going through the city of London in a cab then I saw it !!!! The Buckingham Palace ... It is not like a castle you would imagine, it is more like a huge government building but Oh it is THE place where the Queen of England resides. Just seeing the palace where I have watched it on the TV all these years for the Royal weddings was right in front of me. What a sight...it was so amazing

Just look at this gorgeous gilded royal crest of The King George on the gate....

This palace is in the heart of London and even on this cold winter day tourists from all of the world kept streaming in and taking pictures..

To me this is where all the fairly tales begins... Handsome prince finally gets to kiss his beautiful princess...Recently this is where Prince William kissed his newlywed Duchess Catherine in front of the whole world.

Ornamental Orb on the fence.

Though I did not see the formal changing of the guard, I did see the intricate hourly changing of the guard.

Where spring never stops

2012-02-02T20:05:00.000-06:00

Today is a ground hogs day. It is said that the little ground chuck will come out of his burrow and if he sees its own shadow then there will be 6 more weeks of winter. But I know one place in town where it is always spring and is filled with colorful flowers. It is Hausermann Orchids nursery. It is set back from the busy street and you would never know that it is there except for the huge bill board in front of the driveway. When you walk in through a small glass door, it looks like a small shed with a small collections of Orchids under a grow light. But when you walk by the checkout desk, and a small gift shop to the left the whole place opens up to the light filled green house filled with every kind of Orchids that you can imagine....

I was with a dozen photographers this day and after a couple of hours it was decided that we were going for a lunch, but several of us decided that it was more fun to keep photographing these gorgeous Orchids then grabbing hot dogs.. Yes, we are a crazy bunch of people who would rather take pictures then eat....Here are some more of the gorgeous Orchids...

The Rose Bowl -- football championship game

2012-01-31T20:17:00.001-06:00

Continued from last post.....The football championship game between the University of Oregon and University of Wisconsin was fierce. It was a very hot day and we were sitting on the side of the stadium that did not give us any shade until much later in the game but that did not dampen our spirits to cheer for our team...

During the halftime, marching bands from both schools put on a great show. But I must admit, the University of Wisconsin marching band made this Midwesterner proud. Their style of playing loud and louder really worked in this stadium with really bad acoustics.

At the very end of what turned out to be highest scoring Rose Bowl game ever, University of Oregon Won the championship 45-38. If you would like to read more about the game itself, here is the link. Just click here.

It had been a long time dream of mine to go to the Rose Bowl, and this game did not disappoint me especially since my Alma Mater won. GO DUCKS !!!!

The Rose Bowl -- Univesity of Oregon vs. University of Wisconsin

2012-01-29T19:09:00.000-06:00

The day of the game, Jan 2, 2012. I was meeting my friends from college days early at the Rose Bowl Stadium.

We all wanted to take in the excitement and anticipation of the game, and heck it is a championship football game. People who were for Wisconsin dressed up in bright red shirts, and Oregon bright Yellow and green. We all wanted to get our picture taken in front of the "Rose Bowl" sign. The day was just gorgeous, typical southern California blue sky and by 10am you can tell that the temperature was going to be above 80F for the day.

Rose Bowl Stadium has a seating capacity of 90,000 plus and has a beautiful view of the mountains....

As the morning progressed, more and more people started to fill the stadium.

With huge cheers the team from University of Oregon ran onto the field.

Then the University of Wisconsin team ran onto the field with even louder cheers...

With fireworks,

With a Stealth Bomber flyby,

The 98th Rose Bowl championship between U of Oregon and U of Wisconsin kicked off...

To be continued.......

The day before the Rose Bowl in Pasadena Calif - Part 2

2012-01-22T17:18:00.000-06:00

Another area that I was able to observe was where the Cal-Poly University students were making their huge float. This float was totally constructed by the students and as we watched, they were busying themselves with putting the flowers one by one on to the float... The Cal-Poly float was one of very few that was covered in all California grown flowers. No material from other countries was used to decorate it....

This was the area where they kept the flowers before being prepared and used.

Some younger volunteers stripping just the flower petals to be used on the float.

This showed a basic structure and the way the floats were built...

Samples of the natural materials and their variety of colors and textures...

Little closer details of the float and yes they did use the whole potatoes as the cobble stones.

This was a very clever and nice way to ask for donations. You paid $2 and addressed a "To the Rescue" post card. The day of the Parade, the card rode on the Cal Poly University float. After being stamped with "This card rode in the Cal Ploy float January 2, 2012" it was sent back to the addressee. Of course I got mine a few days after the Rose Parade....

In the same area, there were antique cars all decorated with flowers that were going to be used in the Parade.Photographs below are for the Grand Marshall, and for the Tournament of Roses President.

My visit to the float making was a lot more than I had expected. I saw many beautiful floats decorated with breath taking flowers, shopped a little, received University of Oregon colored roses, met many nice people and took vast amount of photographs. Next year? I hope I can make it back and actually see the parade itself...

The Day before the Rose Bowl in Pasadena California - Part 1

2012-01-18T21:57:00.000-06:00

It has been a dream of mine to be in Pasadena, California for the Rose Bowl football championship on New Year's day and this year my hubby decided to give me the trip as my Christmas present. Yes, I know he is a really nice guy. The Rose Bowl is a collegiate football championship game between Pac-12 conference champion- University of Oregon and Big-10 conference champion -University of Wisconsin. There are several events that happens leading up to the football championship. One of those is you can observe the volunteers putting the finishing touches on the parade floats.

I have always wanted to see the making of the floats, so I drove through the parade route and went out to the Rose Bowl Stadium early in the morning. Even though they had advertised that the place will not open up to the public until 11am, the parking lot was full, and there were long lines of people waiting to get in.

I went up to the ticketing booth but there were sign that said that they had stopped selling the ticket and people were walking away. Of course I had to find out why and I was told that because of the beautiful, warm weather that they were already bringing out the floats to the street to finish the last of the decoration.

Every inch of the floats were covered with beautiful flowers and natural materials. No artificial, man-made materials were used in the Rose Bowl Floats. Even the wheels were covered in pasted seaweeds and the horse of the Ray Rogers float were covered in different shades of seeds.

Walking in the snow with my new snowshoes....

2012-01-14T11:21:00.000-06:00

Snow !!! yes it snowed in the Chicago areas yesterday, and today was my first chance to bring out my brand new snowshoes. I have watched 'Youtube' videos on "how to walk" and "how to get up if you fall" so I thought I was pretty ready. I wasn't sure how many layers I needed to wear so I dressed like I was going skiing. (my hubby told me to take my phone,just in case)

With little difficulty putting on the snowshoes (no direction came with my equipments) I was off.

It felt so good to be outdoors right after it had snowed. Everything looked and felt so pristine. Walking in my snowshoes was a lot easier then I first thought, but I kept sinking into the snow a couple of inches and every time I picked up my feet I brought up not only my snowshoes but also snow as well. Even though we had really fluffy snow, it added some weight and my legs started to feel the pain.

Luckily my friend "the fat squirrel" came out looking to see what I was up to, so I took this opportunity to stop for the day and get him some peanuts...

My teacher Natsume Soseki's granddaughter

2012-01-10T20:12:00.000-06:00

"Wagahai wa nekodearu" Every Japanese growing up has heard this phrase, which means "I am a cat". It was written by a modern Japanese writer Natsume Soseki. It was one of the first modern literature written from an animal's point of view and this book and phrase

became a huge sensation. After moving to the U.S. I attended the University of Oregon where I met and studied under Mrs. Yoko McClain who turned out to be the granddaughter of Soseki. She was a gentle, small women, with a quick wit and small rimed glasses. She came to America as a Fulbright Scholar when she was young and ended up in Eugene, Oregon where she studied, taught, married and raised her family. Long after I graduated from the U of O we kept in touch and last year when I was in Eugene I went to visit her. We talked about many of my classmates she still kept in touch with and the lectures she had given. But of course she talked mostly about her grandson. I am so glad that I took the time to go see her then. Unfortunately she passed away in November of 2011. Mrs. McClain I will truly miss you....

New Years Day 2012

2012-01-07T22:40:00.000-06:00

How did you spend your new year day? For me it started in a fog, literally...after arriving in Los Angeles late, I was looking for my hotel in a thick fog. I knew I was in the right area but just could not see the sign and I kept driving by. I finally had to call the hotel to see what landmarks were near by, but just then the fog parted just enough to see the hotel. When I drove up to the office to check in I heard fire crackers, and fire works going off. Happy New Year to me....

In the morning I woke up to a bright blue sky and could not resist the chance to head to the beach. When I saw the waves crashing and smelling the salty ocean air I knew that I was at the right place. I sat on the sandy beach bathed in a morning sun for what seemed like a long time. What a great way to start the new years....

Random Backyard Find

2011-07-21T21:02:00.000-05:00

Few things I found today on my walk around my backyard.

Do you know why Hugh Hefner cancelled his wedding?

2011-06-18T20:42:00.000-05:00

One thing for sure, I had nothing to do with it..... no nothing....

I am being sooooo tourist in this picture...

Weeding or Clicking

2011-06-14T20:36:00.000-05:00

I have been enjoying gardening this summer. I have put in borders with bricks from our old fire place, transplanted some plants from the back yard to hopefully a better sunnier location, and lots of trimming, and weeding. But today while I was taking a wheel barrel full of weeds to our compost pile, I saw a beautiful butterfly fluttering in our bushes. As soon as I saw it, my photographer side took over. I ran into the house, got my camera, fixed the settings and started shooting away. Just as I thought I had taken enough photographs, another butterfly, this time black and blue showed up, and of course I had to stay and click away. What do you think? If anyone knows the name of these butterflies please let me know....

2011-06-13T21:30:00.001-05:00

Very early Sunday morning myself and another budding photographer started our drive to Starved Rock State Park in Utica, Il about 1 1/2 hrs away. But our heads must of been still in a fuzz because we missed the turn off onto I-80. We did eventually make it to the state park, but with the recent rain the Illinois River has flooded the parking lot of the visitor center and the whole area was closed. So our plan to ask which is the best trail to take photographs of wild flowers failed..... Of course we had other plans ... just go on any trail that was open, and this is where we ended up.. St. Louis Canyon ..... Beautiful isn't it?

Got kissed by the fishes

2011-06-05T21:42:00.000-05:00

It has been a while since I have last blogged, but I have been very busy with my family life and traveling. One of the place I traveled recently was Cozumel. It is an island off of Cancun Mexico in a Caribbean Sea and it is known for its great scuba dive spots. I do not scuba dive, but was rewarded with many colorful fishes just off the docks and beaches. I wanted to photograph these friendly fishes and I was throwing bread to gather them near me. I thought it would it be great to capture them feeding out of my hand. Great idea, but when the fish started biting my fingers trying to get to the bread, not so good idea. One actually bit down hard enough that I started bleeding in open water. I realized that it could be potentially dangerous as there are sharks that are known to swim in these waters.

The painful bite from a fish came out like it had kissed me, but don't be fooled by it, it really hurt....

Daffodil yellow colored tree

2011-04-24T20:28:00.000-05:00

Among the old bare oak trees this daffodil yellow colored tree stood. I did not know how or why it was there...but since it was Easter I almost expected Easter bunnies with pastel colored bows to be dancing about....

Spring wildflower -- Terrarium

2011-04-14T20:30:00.000-05:00

When this wildflower Terrarium emerges in my back yard, I know that it is spring. Right now it is still very small, but it will grow to be about 8 inches tall and it will cover most of my back yard. Every year I fight with my hubby to make sure that he does not mow them down before they are totally done flowering. My hubby always loses.

Carpet of Daffodiles

2011-04-04T23:05:00.000-05:00

Spring is nearly here and that we can expect to see the Daffodiles blooming soon. This photographed just received a Honorable Mention at the Mayslake Photography competition. Last year this image recieved 2nd place at the Union League of Chicago photography competition as well..... I do have a confession to make, this image was photographed using my Canon G9, small camera, not my Nikon DSLR. That just goes to show you that it does not matter what equipment you use, but the composition and the light of the day that makes the image...

spring time cherry blossom

2011-03-27T14:08:00.000-05:00

Cherry blossoms in Japan are famous for their beauty, and to the Japanese people it symbolizes the beginning. With the recent tragedies I hope that the cherry blossoms will once again bring joy and beauty back to the country that is suffering greatly.

Morton Arboretum, Illinois
April 2009

Munchy Delight Adventure

2011-03-24T20:42:00.000-05:00

Munchy Delight Adventure is a new blog that I have started to post things related to food. Mostly new recipes that I am trying out to stay healthy, and hopefully to loose some unwanted weight. I hope you will come and check it out.
Photo adventure will continue and I will post many of the photographs from my trips on a weekly basis. I hope you will continue to support this blog as well...
Noriko

kalyns kitchen

2011-03-20T20:36:00.003-05:00

I am so excited to come across Kalyns Kitchen blog that I am seriously thinking about going back on the "South Beach Diet". Several years ago I lost 25 pounds in three months (since then I have gained back 10 pounds) and have remained within my safe weight zone, but with several special occasions coming up, I thought maybe it is time to loose few pounds. One thing that kept me from going back to this diet was that, I used all of the recipe in the book, and needed to find newer, more exciting recipe to follow.. Kalyns Kitchen seems to have some great recipes, and I can not wait to try few of them... Starting with the Egg Muffins....

I will let you know in a few days how this turns out....

N....

Life support Japan

2011-03-12T21:55:00.001-06:00

http://elizabethavedon.blogspot.com/2011/03/life-support-japan-auction.html

Squirrel in the snow

2011-02-04T08:04:00.006-06:00

When the blizzard stopped, and the sun came out yesterday, squirrels came out one by one to find some food. Yes, I do feed them during the winter... I know, I know, but it keeps my cat "Karamel" very happy seeing her friends show up at our back door.

SNOWMAGEDDON 2011

2011-02-02T18:44:00.007-06:00

9 AM Feb 1st, 2011

4 pm Feb 1st, 2011. Start of the storm.

9 PM Feb 1st, 2011. Smack in the middle of the storm 60MPH wind, Thundersnow.

7 AM Feb 2, 2011. 19 inches of snow, snow drift up to 6feet.

10 AM Feb 2, 2011. 20.5 inches of snow total. Third highest in the recorded history of Chicago.

2011-01-11T07:01:00.004-06:00

I am so done with being in this cold weather. I want to escape to some place warm and take a nice long stroll on the sandy beach. Or just sit under an umbrella with a cold drink and listening to the surf.... just few more days..........

photo from "the wave" series Isla Mujeres 2009

I love my "DUCKS"

2011-01-10T08:43:00.006-06:00

Pep Rally in Arizona, the night before the game

I am so excited that Oregon will play tonight in the BCS championship. Good Luck "Ducks"

Closed Door

2011-01-09T07:06:00.004-06:00

For the last couple of months that my son has been home, it was a habit of mine to check to see if his bedroom door was closed in the morning. But today, I realized that I don't have to do that anymore, at least not until he comes home from college in May....

photo Bo-Kaap, South Africa 2010

"From the Ordinary to the Extra-Ordinary"

2011-01-07T16:04:00.003-06:00

Bloomingdale Park District Museum has Juried photo exhibition every year. I always try to enter and this year I have three photographs accepted (Maximum allowed) so I am really excited... I hope you can stop by and see many of the wonderful photographs. We won't know until the night of the reception that who's work has won an award... good luck to everyone....

A horse and a kitty love

2011-01-06T07:00:00.003-06:00

Every once in a while you come across a photograph that says "Ahhh....." this is one of them. I love that the horse has he's eye closed, and you can practically hear the kitty's purrrrr...... Credit goes to "Paula"

The Year of the Rabbit - 2011

2011-01-01T17:06:00.003-06:00

The year of the Rabbit according to the Chinese calender does not start until Feb.3rd, but in Japan it starts with the calender year of Jan. 1st. So even though some of you may not recognize it I would like to honor my heritage and will start the new year with the bunny. It is said that people born in the Year of the Rabbit are reasonably friendly individuals who enjoy the company of a group of good friends. They are good teachers, counselors and communicators, but also need their own space. My grandmother on my fathers side was born in the year of the Rabbit and she was very friendly and well liked by many. She was also a poet, who wrote many short poems that were published in her later years. But she was not one of those grandmothers who doted over her grandchildren. She was always running around doing her own thing.

Christmas lights.....

2010-12-25T17:52:00.004-06:00

One strand of Christmas lights hanging on a barn fence... so simple, yet so festive...

Merry Christmas

2010-12-24T13:23:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas from my family to yours.....

Deer in my yard....

2010-12-17T19:45:00.002-06:00

Every year family of deers will show up in my yard to forage leftover acorns from the fall. Yesterday was the first time I saw six of them together and they stayed all day long. I went out several times to photograph, and by the end of the day, they figured that I was not any threat to them, and they just kept eating...but they did keep an eye on me....

Heart shaped lights?

2010-12-13T20:52:00.005-06:00

I saw a post on my fellow bloggers site and I had to try it... I think it turned out pretty... Go check out C. Jane Create blog and find out how I made the lights into heart shapes.... Please let her know that you saw it on my blog.....

New note cards from N Buckles Photography

2010-12-08T07:17:00.007-06:00

Fun and colorful photographs of doors from Bo-Kaap, Cape Town South Africa has been made into a lovely note cards. It is ready to write your special messages and send it in matching envelops or it can be put it right into 5x7 frame to decorate your walls..... it is a set of five different note cards in clear plastic box with lovely silver ribbon, but can also be purchased separately...

"Landen's Lions and Friends"

2010-12-05T19:01:00.004-06:00

This holiday season, I decided to make a photo book for my nephew with animals and birds I photographed in South Africa. I thought it would be a very special one of a kind gift from an Aunty....I color corrected, re-sized and prepared each file. I then put them in a folder and uploaded them to the Kodak site. I choose the layout for each page, added captions and appropriate photographs. I also added personal messages for my nephew. After several editorial review (My husband and spell check) I have finally sent it in to be made into a book... it is titled "Landen's Lions and Friends" I can not wait to see my nephew's face when he sees this special book.......

Protea...flowers beyond the ordinary

2010-11-23T19:43:00.004-06:00

The King Protea the National Flower of South Africa

Fynbos is the major vegetation type of the small botanical region known as the Cape Floral Kingdom. The smallest of the six floral kingdoms, the Cape Floral Kingdom is a global biodiversity asset of great importance. It is home to more types of indigenous plants than any other similar sized area on Earth. At least 70% of the 9,600 plant species of the Cape Floral Kingdom are found nowhere else on Earth. One of the fynbos plant families are proteas. I was fortunate to see many different kind on my recent trip, above photographs were taken at Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden which is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site –it is the first botanic garden in the world to be included within a natural World Heritage Site.

St. George's Cathedral

2010-11-17T21:49:00.004-06:00

When I travel I make a point to visit at least one church, and if time allows I go to the service and Cape Town was no exception. St. George's Cathedral is known as the People's church, and it was central in the fight against apartheid and at the time many people gathered to listen to Archbishop Desmond Tutu and other speakers. Since English was not the only language the service was conducted in, the person next to me helped me find my place in the program. This person had the prettiest lavender fingernails that I had to take a second look.. He was... yes, he was dressed very dapper. Little later, a young black couple came in and sat on my other side. They were very serious and followed the sermon with an intent look on their face, but very kind expression. This church was like the melting pot of the Cape Town, where all different race, black or white, or whatever came to listen to the service...I knew that AIDS is a big problem in South Africa, I don't know that statistics, but many families are raised by a single parent because of AIDS. The service talked about how Jesus healed Lepers with his hand. While AIDS will not be healed by our beliefs we can help heal the victims' hearts with our prayers. It was very moving service...

Groot Constantia Vineyard and Winery

2010-11-08T21:49:00.008-06:00

Groot Constantia is the South Africa's oldest winery estate (established in 1685)and is easy drive from Cape Town. After you go through an impressive gate you will come to the visitors center. It is a Cape-Dutch white washed building and inside is just as impressive. Here you can purchase bottles of wine, art, and you can taste wines for R35, about $5. I decided to take a cellar tour which was few kilometers up the mountain through the Vineyards. Once I reached the tour area I was told to come back in one hour because of the big private tour. But you know me, after talking to the manager, I was allowed to tag along, of all things, 35 Japanese tourists from Tokyo....I don't think anyone suspected that I was not with the tour, even the Japanese tour guide helped me find a seat at the wine tasting. How was the wines? it was probably the best, well balanced wine I have ever had... not that I drink awfully a lot..

More photographs can be viewed on my flicker site. Just click on the flicker badge to the top left......

Bo-Kaap the colorful neighborhood

2010-11-04T21:00:00.007-05:00

Bo-Kaap (means above Cape Town) was one of the place I had marked as the must visit for a photo shoot, and as it turned out it was a walking distance from my hotel. So early one morning, I grabbed my camera and walked up a steep hill for several blocks to reach this colorful, very unique area. I thought I would be the only one with the camera walking around, but several tour buses had already beat me to it, and there was a fashion shoot going on as well, so I took this opportunity to visit with the street vendors that were selling breakfast, and talked to a self appointed mayor of Bo-Kaap and it's welcoming committee until they left. This area is mostly associated with the Muslims who arrived in the Cape from 1658 and onwards and today's residents are the descendants of skilled craftsmen.

African Penguins ( Part - 1 @ Boulders Beach)

2010-11-03T19:42:00.023-05:00

Only 10% of the 1.4 million population of African Penguins estimated in 1910 remains. At the Borders beach, it has grown from two breeding pairs in 1982 to about 3,000 in recent years. Because of their donkey-like braying call they were previously named the jackass Penguin, but now the local birds have been renamed African Penguins. Peak moulting time is December, but this year they were in the mid-peak moulting season in early October. While they are moulting, they do not go out to the sea to feed so all of the Penguins at Boulders beach were on the land, and it was delight to see them sunning nearby....

My travel to Cape Town, South Africa

2010-11-01T13:44:00.006-05:00

I was very fortunate to be able to travel to Cape Town, South Africa in October. For the next month or so I would like to post my wonderful and exciting experience of traveling solo to the other side of the earth. I had some anxious moments starting from arriving into the foreign country at midnight to an empty airport, having couple of huge baboons jumping into the rented car to steal bag of potato chips, huge Rhino with long horn charging at the jeep I was sitting in, but I also had many wonderful memorable moments.. By far the best experience was just being able to talk to the warm and very welcoming local people.. I did see that South Africa is still very much divided racially, at some instances I was totally ignored (I am Asian) until upon hearing my American accent, I instantly became Okay because I am an American.... but overall, It was a fantastic trip and one that I will never forget.....

So I hope you will enjoy my journey to Breathtakingly Beautiful South Africa .....

Photo above is of rose garden at Company Garden with Table Mountain at the back ground.

Multnomah Falls, Oregon

2010-10-04T22:11:00.005-05:00

On the day I re-visited the Multnomah Falls, it was raining pretty hard. I parked the car at the parking lot just off the Interstate thinking I really do not want to get out of the car. I had been driving all morning photographing and this was my last stop, so needless to say I was tired and did not have the energy to walk to the bottom of the fall as I had planned. But as I looked out the window from my car, I noticed that fog was starting to cover the top of the trees, and created this mystical aura. With trees heavy with rain and intensifying the deep green the waterfall looked just amazing....

Sky Lantern

2010-10-03T07:57:00.003-05:00

At the recent outdoor wedding we attended in Oregon, relative of the bride released this lantern at the reception. It was just simply beautiful to see the warm glow from the lantern fill the nights sky at the vineyard wishing the newlyweds good fortune.....

Autzen Stadium

2010-10-02T09:31:00.005-05:00

Autzen stadium has got to be one of the most beautiful stadiums in the conference. We sat at the very top and what we saw from our seats were fantastic. Clear view of the game,intensity of the game was not lost, great sound of the marching band, and .. the mountains... wow, we can't get that in the Midwest...... and look at this little guy.... so cool... "I love my Ducks"

side note.... beat Cardinals.....

Columbia River

2010-09-30T22:39:00.004-05:00

Above photographs were taken at Columbia River on the Oregon side about one hour apart. Photographers always talk about magic of the light as the sun goes down, and here is the proof... how beautiful is this.....

Taco Time

2010-09-17T11:52:00.003-05:00

My love for Taco Time started way back in high school days. I used to go at least once a week, and even thought of owning one at one point. Their Mexifries are the best, it is the one that looks like Tater Tots but with Mexican seasonings and it is deep fried. It is the best.... crunchy on the outside, very potatoy in the inside and just the right seasoning to make it spicy.....

Little critters of summer

2010-09-01T07:39:00.008-05:00

With a new lens on my camera, I went for an early morning walk. I found these critters on the path and was able to photograph them before they went out on their way.. I love the way these photographs turned out, but the new lens just did not work out, so was returned....

College Marching Band

2010-08-24T21:37:00.007-05:00

Okay so I have been absent from blogging for a while, it has been a busy summer but as my boys have gone back to school, and I can feel the autumn in the air. I thought maybe it is time to get back to blogging....

There is nothing that says fall, and start of the new academic year like good old football games. But for me, what I enjoyed most was the marching bands. They play before, during, halftime, and after the game. There day on game day starts well before the football players makes it into the locker rooms, and does not end until way after the game. And most of the students on the marching band does it just for fun... no credits earned..... Wow...

This is the first year in 10 years that my boys are not involved in marching band, I am already going through a withdraw...... Ah... maybe, just maybe one will play in the marching band in the grad school next year.... I really miss the sound of the drum line...

Purdue University All American Marching Band will be participating in the Macy's
Thanksgiving day parade, and University of Southern California marching band participated in the Shanghai worlds fair this summer, and will travel to Hawaii for USC's first game of the season......

Fireworks 2010

2010-07-05T22:07:00.002-05:00

Last summer I started experimenting with taking photographs of fireworks. Why would I haul all those equipments to take photographs like everyone else... well, the experiment worked really well, and I even had a show to show some of my fireworks shots that turned out well... Thinking that I can duplicate it again, off I went to the same place as last summer... Because of the recent storms we could not park at our usual place, so we had to walk several blocks with heavy tripod, and my gears... when the beautiful fireworks started with a bang I was so excited... yes, I wanted to see the same results... but when I checked, NOOOOOOOOOO...... I could not figure out why it was not turning out as last year, and with all of the stuff I had to carry, I forgot the flash light..... bummer.... Next day we went off to the next fireworks... here... yes.... I brought the flashlight and fixed the settings as the show started... hum.... not quite what I had imagined, but some turned out quite interesting....more can be seen on my facebook page...

Green energy

2010-06-20T09:31:00.004-05:00

On I-65 north of Lafayette Indiana, all of the traffic which has been going about 80 mph or faster will suddenly slow down. It is the wind-farm corridor of Indiana. Couple of years a go few showed up right up against the freeway in the corn fields, and now, it is just filled with windmills as far as eyes can see. It is quiet an amazing sight.......come by at night, when all of the red lights on top of the windmill blinks in unison...

Lemonade

2010-06-07T22:13:00.003-05:00

Lemonade and Summer... ahhhhh.... My son went out for a run today, and found neighbors girls selling lemonade to raise money for local humane society. He couldn't resist so he grabbed some money (mine) and went out to contribute..... well, it turned out that they were selling lemonade so that they can buy a hamster... he got sucked into by cute girls..... he never learns..... but lemonade, symbols of summer tasted great... he said.....

My sea glass from Cancun

2010-05-16T21:04:00.005-05:00

My trip to Cancun last fall was a really special trip. I loved walking on the beach every morning, and just being near the ocean was a joy to me.... on one of the walks I found this sea glass, it is not quiet frosted on the back but this was THE only one that I found the whole week.. When I got back I asked my friend and fellow blogger Jeannine to make it into a jewelry with several of the shells I found .. It turned out just as I had imagined to be... thank you Jeannine.....

Raindrops and flowers...

2010-05-12T06:42:00.004-05:00

There is something so therapeutic about rain...seeing raindrops on my garden flowers I could not resist photographing in the rain......

"Colorfest" photography book

2010-05-09T22:58:00.005-05:00

Joan Kalmanek, a fellow photographer who I had a privilege of showing our work in "Colorfest" photography exhibit, made the book of our show. It is a glossy 9 1/2 x 8 soft cover photography book with all of our photographs that we had it in the show. It also includes our biography, information about our reception and the cover of this book is actual images from our postcards that we had sent out... Thank you Joan... I will treasure this forever....

Bleeding Heart

2010-05-01T20:50:00.003-05:00

I am so sad to report that right after this photograph was taken there was an accident and most of the flowers on this bleeding heart plant were ripped off. I am so thankful that I was able to capture the beautiful little pink heart shaped flowers while they lasted. It shows that we have to treasure every minute as life is so precious.....

Candy Factory - Albanese

2010-04-26T20:58:00.009-05:00

Albanese Candy
Factory Outlet store is where everyone, no matter how old you are, turns into kids. First thing I noticed when I walked in was all the fun colored candies that every bin was filled with and melted Chocolate were pouring down from top of the tall column. So sweet.... I did not plan to buy anything (... not) but came out from the place with three pounds of Gummie bears and Gummie worms. They are just the right firmness and filled with tons of unique and tasty flavors..... many people knew exactly what flavor they wanted but me I choose a garden variety to be hand packed. They are sold by the pound and really reasonably priced. There are also chocolate covered goodies that smelled wonderful.. Unfortunately I can not eat chocolate so I only got a small bag of double chocolate covered peanuts for my hubby.....

Amazing animals .......

2010-04-23T20:41:00.004-05:00

Is this for real or is it Photoshoped?

This is for real.. these animals are the real things.....

Saving Hermit Thrush

2010-04-13T20:51:00.011-05:00

Today this little bird, Catharus Guttatus, common name Hermit Thrush,ran into my front window. This happens several times a year and birds usually recover and fly away, but this little bird just sat there with it's eyes closed, and even when I got close by it did not move. So I had to decide, go to exercise or to take this little bird to somewhere where it might have a chance to survive, need I say more?. I easily captured it with a towel, and put it in a paper bag. I rushed it to the Willowbrook Wildlife Heaven to it's animal hospital to see what they can do... The nice lady at the front desk took my information and told me that they will look over the bird and make sure that it will be taken care of... I hope so....

Soft afternoon light vs. harsh midday light

2010-04-10T21:52:00.005-05:00

I have always been a morning photographer, getting up before the sun rises and be at the location before the sun is above the horizon to taking advantage of the mornings soft light. But today, I decided to shoot right before the sun had set. Wow, I have always heard that the light is just as good and I think the photo above speaks for itself. Maybe my days of getting up early is no more.

Just for comparison, top photo was taken in soft, warm light, versus bottom photo in a harsh midday sun. Which do you like?

Peepshi -- Peep Sushi

2010-04-03T09:17:00.005-05:00

I don't get Peeps, you know that yellow blob of a thing that shows up at Easter time every year. But when I saw this "Peepshi" I got it. How fun is this?

Friends

2010-03-11T18:55:00.005-06:00

photo courtesy of Sophie Gosper

At the end of a busy day, all you need are good friends and a beautiful sunset on a beach.
What more can you ask for.......

"Red Door"

2010-03-04T22:54:00.003-06:00

Tonight was my photo exhibit reception for "The Color Fest" I raffled one 16 x 20 photo of "Red Door" from Beijing, China. A Parent of my sons best friend from college won. She was so excited, she showed me what she wrote in my guest book before the raffle, it said "You are so awesome! Your work is beautiful. I love the Beijing door-- my favorite type of setting" I was so thrilled that she won and was able to take home the photo.

Color Fest -- My photo exhibit

2010-03-02T20:39:00.002-06:00

When we decided to show our work in Westmont,Il, we simply set out to show our work to as many people as possible. This is not the first time we have worked together, we have shown our works in our photography group "fotoMuses" several times a year for last 5 years or so. We always worked with a set of themes voted by our group but for this show rather than picking a phrase or a word Joan suggested to show colorful photographs to brighten this long and dreary winter in Chicago. We have works from our travel to Mexico, Chicago, Oak Brook fireworks and the Downers Grove Heritage Festival (Village canceled this wonderful festival this year due to budget constraints). After taking 4 hours arranging and hanging our photographs I think we have achieved what we set out to do.... a bright, colorful, and a fun show....

My Favorite Restaurants in West Suburban Chicago

2010-02-27T21:27:00.007-06:00

This is the list of the restaurants that I have personally visited, and have consistently wowed by their mouth watering delicacies .... You say you have a place that will beat my list? Well let me know...... Next, Indiana Lafayette Area.

Katy’s Dumpling (Chinese dumpling and noodles)
665 N Cass Ave
Westmont, Il 60559
630-323-9393

The Capital Grille (Steak)
87 Yorktown Center
Lombard, Il 60148
630-627-9800

Los Burritos Tapatios (Mexican)
1410 E Ogden Ave
Downers Grove, Il 60151
630-271-1150

Omega Restaurant (American)
1300 Ogden Ave
Downers Grove, Il
630-963-0300

Dali’s Café (American)
5130 Main St
Downers Grove, Il
630-724-0900

Yokohama Restaurant (Japanese)
13 W Burlington Ave
Westmont, Il
630-810-0022

Kamehachi Sushi Cafe (Japanese)
311 S. Wacker Ave
Chicago, Il
312-765-8700

Honey
499 Main St
Glen Ellyn, Il
630-469-0000

Always put some kind of identifying mark on your photographs

2010-02-25T15:31:00.009-06:00

I would love to give credits to photographers who took these adorable, heart warming pictures. But I can not, because I found them on the Internet without any identifying watermarks. Probably original photograph was posted with some kind of captions that clearly identified who captured the images but whomever saw it only copied the photographs and decided to post it on their site, and next person did the same and by the time I found it, no identifying marks of any kind was apparent.

On the photograph below, it does have the URL address of the internet site that was posted, but not the photographer. When you post a photographs on the Internet, it is a good idea to put some kind of marking on your photographs to identify you as a photographer. Get credit for the photographs you took time and effort to post it, you deserve it......

Creative Photographs

2010-02-24T19:18:00.003-06:00

Taking photographs has become much easier in recent years with the introduction of new digital cameras that do almost everything for you. But what makes the difference between good photographs and excellent photographs are its creativity. Look what the sleeve face did with these record album covers, isn't this so much interesting than another snow covered landscape? Be creative... have fun with photographs.....

The Getty Center

2010-02-21T16:47:00.008-06:00

The Getty Center in Brentwood, California is a must visit place when you are in Los Angeles. I wanted to see the exhibit by F. Evans the photographer, so on my last visit to LA off we went.

The place is easy enough to find even for a person like me who always gets lost. Not a good thing in LA where one wrong turn on a freeway can easily take you half an hour just to get back to where you took the wrong turn. Anyway,The Getty Center is located just off I-405 north of Sunset Blvd. at the foot of the Santa Monica Mountains above I-405. Exit at the Getty Center exit and just follow the easily marked signs.

You will be directed to the gate where you pay $15 for parking (yes, it is steep, but that is all you pay no entrance fee to the museum). You go into this cave like structure and look for a place to park. The day we went, we kept going down, down, and down wondering how far does this go? Well, it turns out that the structure is 7 stories deep underground. After you park and get back to the surface via elevator, there is an automated 3 car tram waiting to take you to the museum. As soon as you get off the tram, you are memorized by the view and the travertine and aluminium clad buildings with bubbling fountains that seems to be tucked in numerous places. The collections of art are large, and it is housed in 4 exhibit halls in 9 buildings.

What most of the people seems to be doing is just enjoying the view. On the day we went, it had been raining for a few days, and had just cleared up. So no smog to obscure the view and we were able to see all the way to the Catalina Islands. It was just gorgeous.

The Shape Collage Program -- perfect for a technology challenged person

2010-02-16T19:56:00.008-06:00

I am totally technology challenged but whenever I come across books and magazines with neat way to manipulate photographs I think "Yes, I can do this. It shouldn't be too hard" but as soon as I try to follow the instruction... nothing turn out the way it should.

For example, I was making a postcard for my upcoming photo exhibit. I decided rather then just putting two photos on the back of the card, I would try to inlay them in Polaroid like boxes. So I went on line and found the instructions on how to create a Polaroid like box with drop shadow in the Photoshop. Well, I thought I was following the instructions step by step, mind you the instructions had photographs and illustrations as to where and what to use in Photoshop, but that didn't help. I got something soooo different that I had to give it up..... so when I came across this program "The Shape Collage"

I thought cool, but is it really easy to follow like it promised? with huge skepticism, I downloaded the trial program and started to play with it. And you know what? it is easy to use, and it actually is fun.

All you do, really, is to prepare a file with all the pictures that you want to have in the collage and save. Remember where you put it (that is another of my problems) open the shape collage program. Click the "+" sign at the bottom left to up load the folder that you have just created. Now go to the top left and pick the shape you would like for your collage. Once you have done that, Click "Create" lower middle, small window will appear, name the collage and pick where you would like to save the collage. Then click "Save" and watch the magic. The result is what I posted on Valentines day. Doesn't it look great?

I have not bought the actual program but I am thinking about purchasing it. Trail download collage has a watermark on it, and unless I buy the program I can't remove it. But wouldn't it be fun to use the program to make collage note cards or use it for the cover of a client's photo book?

Happy Valentines Day

2010-02-14T13:03:00.004-06:00

Los Angeles Flower Market

2010-02-11T21:29:00.009-06:00

With Valentines Day just around the corner, I decided to go to the Los Angeles flower market to find the perfect Valentines Day Red Roses. What I found was a warehouses filled with flowers as far as the eyes can see. There were so many places that sold every kind of roses that I totally lost track of what I came to find. If you are having a party, or planning a wedding, this is the place to find that one extraordinary to unusual colored flowers.
Public can get in for a $1 and buy flowers at a discounted retail price. Great deal……I wanted to buy car loads of flowers and surrendered myself with beautiful and vibrant colors…..

Off to LA

2010-02-04T22:05:00.006-06:00

I am off to Los Angeles for the weekend. I was hoping to soak up much needed sun and walk on the beaches, but unfortunately they are predicting two days of rain. Don't get me wrong, after being in the frozen tundra for the last two months I will take rain over snow any day. Anyway, I am looking forward to eating some delicious Sushi and visiting with families....

A Deer in my neighborhood

2010-02-01T21:46:00.007-06:00

My backyard is connected to a forest preserve and every winter we have group of deers that comes through looking for food. This deer looks to be a really young one as she was very curious and kept coming closer and closer before she ran away....

Best WONTON soup in the city

2010-01-31T19:32:00.004-06:00

A While a go I decided not to write about restaurants in my blogs anymore. I figured that there were enough people who wrote reviews and they could do much better job then I can.... So what changed my mind?... well, the wonton soup and noodles are extraordinary here that I just had to make sure that everyone knew about this place.

When you order pot stickers at any restaurant more then likely it was not made their, if it was, then they just made the filling and wrapped it with factory made skin. Well, Katy's Dumpling is something really special, they make all of their dumplings (pot stickers included) from scratch. For Italian food lovers you know what I am talking about, fresh homemade pasta vs. store bought dry pasta... yes? Place is in a small strip mall next to a Indian gift shop. When you walk through a small glass double doors, you will find a refrigerator filled with ready to take home food, and there is counter where you order before you sit down (maybe 8 tables?). In the back there is a small kitchen filled to the brim with pots and pans, with one cook and one wok. He makes everything with this one wok. It is amazing to watch this cook move around reaching for this and that to produce wonderful dishes.
But by far my favorite is "the house special wonton soup". The dumplings are huge and skin is perfectly aldante, soup is clear chicken stock. It is seasoned with tons of fresh garlic and herbs. The balance of flavor is wonderful when eaten hot, and the fresh greens that are added at the last minute is refreshing.
You can purchase potstickers in quantities of 50 to take home and cook it yourself.. Huge bargain... and they are delicious....

Katy's Dumpling House
665 N. Cass Ave.
Westmont, IL 60559
(630) 323-9393

Hours: 11am – 9pm
Closed Wednesdays
Cash only

iPad and what it means for me....

2010-01-28T19:45:00.002-06:00

Do I want one or not... well at first I thought, it is just a bigger version of the iPhone, but the more I read about the potential of the iPad, I can see that I would like to have one --- NOW. Do you remember the newspaper in Harry Potter, where the magic makes all the pictures comes alive? Well, iPad has the capability of streaming magazines, books and newspapers photographs. It is like a video or having "you tube" for each segment. I am thinking that by the time the next generation of children are in grade school, they will be asking "What do books look like?" Anyway, as a photographer, I can see that I will need to learn Video on top of new technologies about photographs and acquire a program that I can edit videos with.... One more thing on my list. I own a Canon G9 digital camera, and use the video quite often, but now I will have to really learn...... There is a great article by Michael Reichman on his blog site iPad and Video Convergence

Wishing for Spring

2010-01-27T16:13:00.002-06:00

It is cold and grey....I am wishing for sun and warmth...Spring has to be just around the corner......

"Take Aim" A Juried Photography Exhibition

2010-01-22T21:25:00.006-06:00

Today I found out that out of three photographs that was accepted into the "Take Aim" A juried Photography Exhibition at Bloomingdale Museum, Bloomingdale, Illinois "Oak Fairy" received the Fourth place ribbon. Yes, it is not the best of show or even the first place but with over 150 photographs entered, I am quiet happy with the white ribbon and a check.

Two Photographs below my "Oak Fairy" is "Autumn Water" and "Water Lilies" by my good friend AiChen Ho who received a blue ribbon for her honorable mention. She is an amazing landscape photographer who prints all of her works and is an amazing person.

Lose It! Keeps Track of Your Weight Loss

2010-01-20T10:25:00.002-06:00

Lose It! Keeps Track of Your Weight Loss

I love "Lose It" app. for iPhone. It is so easy to keep track of what I eat and how much exercises I do (or not) each day. I know that if you consume less calories than you burn you will loose weight, but this is the first gadget that made me realize that if I exercises I can eat more. Check out the link and read it for your self, for me this has been actually fun... maybe I will loose some weight.

Fingerless Gloves

2010-01-19T10:55:00.007-06:00

When I go out to photograph in the cold weather, the tips of the gloves get in the way of being able to move the little control dials, on and off switch, and other little buttons and such on my camera. So, after going into the woods without any protection to my hands and freezing them, I decided to buy the fingerless gloves. I found this one at Urban Outfitters for $25.00. Color doesn't match anything that I own, but it has fleece lining for extra warmth and has this wonderful flap that I can flip it over my fingers.

I found other fingerless gloves that are really cute like this one at jaykayknits

or the felt gloves at Pine blossoms

or lacy one at Uniquely Chic For You

Winter Walk in the Woods

2010-01-17T12:29:00.002-06:00

This morning when I woke up the whole area was covered in a fog and every branch and blade of grass was covered with ice crystals. So, despite the cold I decided to go for a walk with my camera. I have no idea what I was thinking of, but went out the door with my regular shoes and no gloves. What a mistake.... trails were covered in several inches of snow and below that it had iced up and old footprints that froze in place made it slippery and hard to get footings. It was below freezing so my hands immediately became ice cold and stared to hurt. But, I wanted to photograph the ice crystal covering the branches and grasses. So I tracked along the trail, taking me twice as long as I had expected, so by the time I reached where I thought would be a perfect place for a photo opp. sun had come out and most of the ice crystals were gone... disappointed I started heading back.... then I saw this WOW... bright green pine needles against orange Oak leaves and ice crystals covered grasses in front and the barely visible cardinal... I did not get to photograph what I had hoped but sometimes it is what is totally unexpected that excites you....

Magnetic Photo Rope

2010-01-15T21:15:00.007-06:00

When I saw this Magnetic photo rope from Photojojo, I thought, YES!!!! Hang the rope with a weight on the bottom from a pushpin or a nail, using strong magnets that comes with it to put any photo's on the rope and wallah.... I have photo's on the wall.... it is so easy to change and arrange and without the hassle of usual measuring, hammering.... well you get the picture..(no pun intended)

Dale Chihuly glass art

2010-01-11T22:05:00.005-06:00

I am at awe every time I see Dale Chihuly's glass art. It is huge, colorful, organic, different and the light that emanates from each one of them is amazing. I have seen his work in Las Vegas, San Francisco and at the Museum of Glass at Tacoma Washington, Bridge of Glass, but by far my favorite and totally unexpected place to see the Chihuly glass is at the second floor of Downers Grove Library. It sits on a pedestal at the top of the stairs next to the door encased in a glass box totally unannounced and glowing. If you have a chance, drop by and see this magnificent work.

Frozen Mississippi River

2010-01-08T21:13:00.006-06:00

On the way back from our Ski trip (see last entry) we drove by the Mississippi River. It was frozen at places, and the ice was pushed up against each other. The sun was just setting down and bathed the whole area in this warm glow. I just could not pass up the opportunity to photograph this magnificent site. We were all tired, and son #2 was fast asleep on the back seat, but figured how could I pass up this golden moment? .....I stood right up against the guard rail in the snow while the cars were whizzing by scared to death that at any moment one of the cars will hit me, but I am glad I stopped and took these photographs....

Skiing trip to Chestnut Mountains -- Galena Illinois

2010-01-06T15:33:00.004-06:00

As my guys winter break are coming to an end, we decided to take a little trip to Chestnut Mountains to go skiing and snowboarding. The night before I had a nightmare that I couldn't stop at the bottom of the slopes and crashed... well, it has been a while, but how hard could it be? they says that it is like riding a bike, you never forget .... well, as soon as I tried to go down the bunny hill I fell and could not get up. I needed a friend to push me up. Well,I thought maybe a little lesson will re-fresh me.... So, I took a beginners lesson with son #1 since this was his first time on skis.....he did great, never crashed.... me on the other hand...."get out of my way, get out of my way..." was loudly heard in front of me, oh yeah it was me screaming to get all the little kiddies to move so that I won't crash into them.. my nightmare did come true... never learned to stop... just crashed... fell off the lift and got run over. My son #2 did great, only second time on the snowboard and he took off with his friend down the vertical slopes... wow.... He just waved and disappeared.... mean time... I had to concentrate so not to crash and "hands in front... hands in front.." was my mantra for the day...

The year of the Tiger -- 2010

2010-01-01T08:47:00.005-06:00

Happy New Years to all of you. I just love the first day of the new years. I feel as though everything is brand new and fresh.... Whatever I have accomplished, or not last year, I can either do better, or forget about it, start totally anew..I think everyone can use a new beginning once in a while, well in this case once a year... Though I don't follow astrology or fortune tellers and such on regular basis, I do occasionally dopple in them. Since today is the first day of the year, I thought I should go back to my roots, and review the Chinese Zodiac -- the year of the Tiger. For fun take a look at jasswin s blog site and find out what to expect this year for your sign. Mine says be proactive and make an effort and save money... well what's new....

2010 here we come.....

Sun finally came out today......everything sparkled

2009-12-28T20:39:00.006-06:00

For one whole week, it snowed, rained, haled, freezing rained, but sun finally came out today... everything sparkled ...

Seasons Greetings.....

2009-12-24T14:52:00.002-06:00

Seasons Greetings to you from my family to yours.....

Noriko

Fluffy snow

2009-12-23T19:38:00.003-06:00

This year I did not clear out my garden, but rather I kept the outside plants as is. When it snowed yesterday, this fluffy snow quietly fell on my dried out plants.

Rainbow Bean Soup Mix

2009-12-22T08:29:00.002-06:00

A neighbour stopped by and brought a thoughtful homemade Christmas present today, "soup in a jar". The jar was filled with beautiful colored beans and in a separate bag all the spices that need to make a hardy bean soup. I can't wait to make the soup especially on a cold snowy day like today.... it is almost like opening the present before Christmas..or is it....

Elis White Chocolate Peppermint cheesecake

2009-12-17T07:52:00.007-06:00

Rejoice in Savings site has 50% off coupon when you order by Dec. 18th. Wouldn't this be perfect on your Christmas table or as a hostess gift?

x-mas trees

2009-12-13T20:21:00.003-06:00

We always buy fresh tree at our local boy-scout x-mas tree stand, and this year we decided to get the white pine for our tree. It has a nice piny fragrance, but does not want to stand straight and we already had to fix it twice. I only used about half the ornaments as I do every year, but I think it turned out beautifully. Bottom photo of a beautiful x-mas tree was taken at Heritage Hall at USC with one of "a song girl" posing for her parents.

George Lopez and USC Trojan Marching Band

2009-12-10T23:05:00.005-06:00

Last weekend was the last home game for the USC football team for the 2009 season. My hubby and I went out to LA to see our son perform with the Trojan Marching Band. At the half-time show George Lopez was the guest conductor and got the huge ovation from the crowd. Even though the football team lost, we had a great time watching, and listening to the marching band....

It has been a while......

2009-12-03T21:10:00.003-06:00

While I enjoy blogging, I have been busy with other projects, soon I will be launching new web-site for my photo business. Group show at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology will be ending next week. My solo show is in the works for March to May. I am off to Southern California for a weekend and when I get back, I hope to get back to blogging, and share my passions with you.

Photo Greeting Cards

2009-11-22T09:41:00.006-06:00

This year I have decided to share my favorite photographs with families and clients as greeting cards. I thought this would be a great way to spread my love of photography and to share some of the great places I have visited. I have included five different images from China, Southern California, Midwest, to Boston, I though having little variety would me more fun then just one image in a bundle. I also included five matching envelops and put it in a clear plastic case with a card of all of the images and their locations.

Jasper-Pulaski Fish & Wildlife Area

2009-11-17T20:51:00.006-06:00

My hubby and I took a side trip to Jasper-Pulaski to see the Sandhill cranes. We arrived just as the sun was setting down, and all the Sandhill cranes were coming back from day trips to settle down for the night. We expected to see few, but was amazed and excited to see groups after groups of cranes coming in from all directions. One thing we noticed was that these birds are noisy bunch, and love to call to one another, with more then five thousand cranes you can imagine how noisy it was. This Wildlife area is about two hours a way from Chicago in state of Indiana and are easy to get to. Wildlife has a huge parking lot with short trail to the platform where you can observe the cranes from high above.

USC marching band at Disneyland

2009-11-09T18:45:00.001-06:00

USC Marching Band was at Disneyland today to film for the Christmas special with Ryan Seacrest.

The first "Vera Bradley" outlet store

2009-11-06T15:52:00.003-06:00

I was out at the Chicago Premium outlet mall today in Aurora, IL to go to the Talbot outlet store that opened today. (see yesterday's post) While I was enjoying the nice selections of sweaters and pants, I saw these people carrying huge Vera Bradley shopping bags. I thought could it be? and checked the directory and sure enough Vera Bradley has just opened up their first outlet store few days ago. They have stacks and stacks of your favorite colors and styles that has been recently retired at 25% to 40% off. Since they retire the colors and styles every year place was packed with people looking for their favorite colors that you can not get at regular stores. I can see this place will be packed come holiday gift season. I am planning to go back to get large Duffel bag for traveling.

New Talbot outlet store to Open

2009-11-05T06:52:00.009-06:00

Talbots Outlet Opening November 6 at Chicago Premium Outlets, Suite 989 - Southside. Save 20% on your entire purchase November 6 - 16. Plus, Classic Awards members get Double Points.

*Offer valid at our Talbots Outlet store at Chicago Premium Outlets, 1650 Premium Outlets Boulevard in Aurora, November 6, 2009 through November 16, 2009.

*Print out the above coupon to receive your discount, can not be combined with any other offer

Classic Mexican Flan

2009-11-04T20:20:00.003-06:00

I love "Flan", whenever I go to any Mexican restaurant I look to see if they have it on the menu.
Depends on the restaurant, Flan could be hard and chewy to silky and creamy, tasteless to too sweet, and often I am disappointed. One restaurant that I was so happy with Flan was in Cancun, at of all places Seafood restaurant on the waters. It was so great that I asked for a recipe but never got one, instead I got a complementary Kahlua and cream. I was not going to complain though since I was able to go back one more time before I left Cancun.
I tried Flan yesterday at "Rocca's Mexican Grill" again I was disappointed and this motivated me to make my own.
Well, I burnt the caramel and had a little bitter taste and I might have had cooked tad bit too long, maybe by 10 min. but custard was firm but not rubbery and flavor was just perfect. Next time I will make sure that caramel will not start smoking---I just took my eyes off for a minute and it started to burn... Oh well. For the first time Flan making I think it turned out pretty good.. anyone care to taste it?

ps Rocca's mexican grill, beside from the Flan everything I tasted had a wonderful flavor, and I am planning to go back for Dinner

Oak Leaves

2009-11-03T21:00:00.002-06:00

Most of the leaves are off the trees now, but I was able to capture yellow oak leaves before they all fell........