Time is what prevents everything from happening at once. – John Archibald Wheeler.

Unfortunately, the clock is ticking, the hours are going by. The past increases, the future recedes. Possibilities decreasing, regrets mounting.  ~~Haruki Murakami

To be clear, this is not a quote that describes my life.  For the most part, I grab the possibilities as they fly by and I have very few regrets.  I accept what I cannot do, because I understand I cannot do everything and really try hard to do everything that I can do to the best of my ability.

It is hard to believe that I have been in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea for a month.  Time is moving very quickly.  I do love it when time goes fast, even when I am trying to slow down.  I have a feeling though that as fast as my time goes here, at times it will feel like time is passing very, very slowly. It’s a small island with not a lot of modern amenities.

However, that does not bother me and as a matter of fact, I believe that this will give me some great opportunities to do some of the things that I keep putting off.  Art, blogging, writing, cooking, and working on personal health goals always seem to take a back seat to other more important (less important) work taskings and life in general.  I am super, excited about the new possibilities that will no longer fly by but start drifting by slow enough for me to catch them.  To catch them, ponder them, work on them, and re-imagine them.

Round the world I go as my world goes round.. round.. round… still a little girl in a big, big world.. that seems to get just a little smaller each year.

Little tour round my neighborhood.  Hope you enjoy!

Inspired by:  ailsa’s blog wheresmybackpack

More fun posts to read… if you only had the time.  Thanks for stopping by.

Memories, flashchallenges, colorful, paradise, 6words, vibrant,  round, pommepal,  Seating, retired, Round | cornishkylie,  It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see – Thoreau, Round (the Sushi Bar) | AngelineM’s Blog, Here & Abroad, Ese’ s Voice, being mrscarmichael, Patchwork Ponderings, Jaspa’s Journal, Albatz Travel Adventures, Travel Monkey, nowathome,  maxidiehexi, That Montreal Girl, Chronicles of Illusions, Chronicles of Illusions, Wind Against Current, ALMOST ITALIAN, Healthcare Updates, Kat Pegi Mana, Witrian’s Photofolio, Beyond the Brush, Memories are made of this, fathersunny, Thirdperson, Four Deer Oak, världen vackrare, 2far2shout, beyondpaisley, Geophilia Photography,  @vannilla, Tish Farrell,  Foto Challenge,  decocraftsdigicrafts, Albatz Travel Adventures, The Quotidian Hudson,  Meg Travels,  Northwest Frame of Mind, | The Rider, Babsje Heron, WoollyMuses, Shoot ‘N Go, Isadora Art and PhotographyLooknWalk,  WordsVisual, conversation is an engine, Stephen Kelly Creative, thechangingpalette, Taking a Deep Breath,  The Quotidian Hudson,  Pretty Packed,  Travel with Intent,  Jaspa’s Journal,  Photography Journal Blog, The Day After , | Cee’s Photography, (elleturner4), Compass Photography, Canoe Communications, The World Is a Book…, Sunrise Adventures,  Le Drake Noir,  Rainbow Bakery, Living Life Almost Gracefully,  Completely Disappear, | never nothing going on, Taking One Day At A Time, The Wanderlust Gene, anotherdayinparadise, The Beauty Along the Road, Jaspa’s Journal,  Del’s other stuff…, Getting the Picture, Across the Bored

Stay Calm and Carry on

Sometimes I wish that I could go into a time machine right now and just look at my self and say, ‘Calm down. Things are gonna be fine. Things are gonna be all great. Just relax.’ Tristan Wilds

Chaos runs amok in my life and the lives of my friends these days.  Surgery, work, construction, sickness, death, language practice, social commitments, and just life in general.  It’s always easy after the fact to remember that these things come and these things go.  In the heat of the moment though.. not so easy.  Sometimes I’m just chugging along and “BAM” there it goes again.  When I finally calm down.. I realize it was never that bad.. or even if it was, it’s over and life is good again and I feel silly for taking it all so personally.  That’s one reason I’m so happy to have some visual reminders of the calm that exists in my life no matter how chaotic my mental state can sometimes be. I hope you enjoy the visuals that I have been exposed to recently.  Sunsets, sunrises and grandkids first day of school!

Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm. Publilius Syrus

“How you can sit there, calmly eating muffins when we are in this horrible trouble, I can’t make out. You seem to me to be perfectly heartless.”

“Well, I can’t eat muffins in an agitated manner. The butter would probably get on my cuffs. One should always eat muffins quite calmly. It is the only way to eat them.”

“I say it’s perfectly heartless your eating muffins at all, under the circumstances.”
― Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest

Where’s my Backpack,  Leya, WoollyMuses,Roaming Urban Gypsy, Ladyleemanila, Oh, the Places We See . . ., Netdancer’s Musings, Jaspa’s Journal,WordsVisual,  A Day In The Life, ceenphotography.com, Ouch!! My back hurts!!,Mama Cormier,Figments of a DuTchess, Travelrat’s Travels, Out an’ About, Une photo, un poème,  Musin’ With Susan, The New 3 Rs: Retire, Recharge, Reconnect,

 

A different garden

To you, it was just picking flowers. To them, it was a massacre.  by:  pleasefindthis, I Wrote This For You

If you didn’t see the boarded windows, the dirty floors, walls, and ceilings, it was just a camp house..just rows of camp houses.

If you only saw the beautiful trees and flowers and grass…. you could believe it was only someone’s garden.

If you didn’t see the barbed wire fences and the guard shacks and the destroyed crematoriums, you might be able to envision a time it could have been a lovely place to live.

If you didn’t have the memories or the knowledge of the left behind shoes, the combs, the luggage and the hair…the horror of the hair….

This is no garden …we should never forget…this is no garden.

I need you to understand something. I wrote this for you. I wrote this for you and only you. Everyone else who reads it, doesn’t get it. They may think they get it, but they don’t. This is the sign you’ve been looking for. You were meant to read these words.  by: pleasefindthis, I Wrote This For You

Other garden themed blogs can be found at:

Travel theme: Garden

 

I am woman.. hear me…

You.Are.Amazing.

As. you. are.
Stronger than you know.
More beautiful than you think.
Worthier than you believe.
More loved than you can ever imagine.
Passionate about making a difference.
Fiery when protecting those you love.
Learning. Growing. Not alone.
Warm. Giving. Generous.
Quirky. Sexy. Funny. Smart.
Flawed. Whole. Scared. Brave.
And so, so, so.much.more.

Be Strong. Be Confident. Be You. ~ Copyright: Tia Sparkles Singh, 2011

I have been living and working in Lagos, Nigeria now for 18 months.  One of my favorite things about this country is how vibrant and strong the people are.  Specifically the women.  Talk about inspiring folks.  Every day there is a new surprise that faces me down.  In celebration of International Women’s Day 2017, my friend and I visited the Nike Centre for Art and Culture.

Every time I visit this gallery I find about 200 pieces I would love to buy.  The work covers everything from photography, to bead work, statutes of wood and metal, oils, fabrics, and really just everything you can imagine.  Well, this installation was possibly my favorite as it covered all of the artistic genres mentioned with a focus on the strong women who create the work.

What I love even more is the owner of the gallery.  Nike Davies-Okundaye – Nike Davies-Okundaye a.k.a. “‘Nike Davies'” a.k.a. “‘Nike Twin Seven Seven'” a.k.a. “‘Nike Olaniyi'” a.k.a. “‘Mummy Nike'”  – Wikipedia

Talk about a strong woman.  I. LOVE. HER.  She is Nigerian.  She is strong. She is intelligent. She is kind.  She is an art piece all by herself.  What an amazing person.  So generous with her time and her ability to explain every piece of art in her gallery.  If you make it to Lagos, Nigeria and do not stop in to her gallery, you are missing a treat!!

The art presented that was specifically on display for Women’s Day was spectacular.  Created by women about women.  I did not take enough photos to really give it due respect.

My favorite pieces were so amazing!! They were huge though.  If I only had a place big enough to house them.

All of the other work was equally impressive and to be fair, there were many more “favorites”.  Even the work not specifically on display for Women’s Day, had a flair that I could not stop going back to.

For more Nigerian artwork that focuses on the Nigerian woman’s perspective, this book would be an excellent choice to get started.  I hope you enjoyed the tour!

Travel theme: Woman

Other woman links:

Woman! ; Women of Cuba ; A daily stroll through Bucharest ; Roaming Urban Gypsy; 2017/03/12/athlete/; Woman | Ladyleemanila;

Animal Eyes

Let my soul smile through my heart and my heart smile through my eyes, that I may scatter rich smiles in sad hearts. Paramahansa Yogananda

We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures that we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open. Jawaharlal Nehru

More eyes –

Where’s my backpack – The eyes have it……with sunglasses! | Third Time Lucky! – Eyes Eyes – JenStewie – Geriatri’x’ Fotogallery – A Day In The Life – Übersetzen und Literatur, doch nicht nur – Ladyleemanila