Tag: reflections

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Calm – Week 2

5 Comments

2 calm

zen and the art of the tourist

∀

Glorious sunshine after a cold, grey dawn brought out the masses along the waterfront yesterday and we decided to join them in a decidedly un-local move.  Having come to this summer destination for as long as we can remember, we have become inured to the throngs spilling off the cruiseships and the ever-changing spectacle of festivals and street shows designed to please.  There were a few faces that had been around for a while who put on a great show for families with small children and posed good-naturedly for photos with random people they would never see again and so we waited until the crowd had moved on, threw some coins into the sturdy white bucket and asked if we could take a photo. Not only were we rewarded with a smile and a bit of conversation but a couple of hugs thrown in for good measure. Just what the doctor ordered to lift our spirits.

The life of the busker has been co-opted by local government to become an intrinsic part of the summer tourist trade. Licenses for prime harbour real-estate and the bustling shopping strip now require an initial outlay of hard-earned cash; paperwork and schedules replace once easy decisions to just get up, out to make visitors to the city smile and perhaps scrape together a few bucks in an afternoon. All inclusive vacations have made it hard for those who earn a living with their talent on the streets. Once-a-year travellers don’t always understand the art of outdoor entertainment, they see it and the artists who perform as just another part of the scenery, a living, breathing bit of pleasant backdrop and rarely as people with families, dreams and often, a mission in life. Just like us.

When faced with unbending rules and regulations and those events in our daily existence that give us pause, we must, like this fortnight’s Two Cents Tuesday Challenge and Plasterman, attempt to stay  – Calm.

Last week we asked “What does calm look like to you?” –  A placid lake or crystal snowflake, curled up cats, meditation mats, denim blues or an afternoon snooze…

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, some great entries and the guidelines for this fortnight’s challenge can be found here. Need more info – Have a look at HOW DOES THIS WORK.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Calm

23 Comments

calm

into the mystic
❈

There are certain locales on earth that have a special something, be it the freshness of the air, the glorious colour of the fields or the crisp coolness of the forest. Sometimes, they can be found in the lovely rooms of a tranquil hotel, the galleries of a museum, on a piece of driftwood by the sea or even on one’s favourite chair in the garden. These destinations appeal to an inner sensibility that longs for quiet away from the hustle and bustle of our daily lives.

 

Summer seems to be the perfect time to find that little bit of respite – whether it is a conventional vacation filled with kids and dogs, relatives and friends or in the serenity of a solitary retreat, ten days or one, it is in these times and places that all the data that invades our very being gets subconsciously sorted and stowed to be retrieved when our days get back to their routine. The Two Cents Tuesday Challenge asserts that everyone needs to find that moment to take a breath, to restore the balance that nourishes, to be  – Calm.

 

“What does calm look like to you?” –  A placid lake or crystal snowflake, curled up cats, meditation mats, denim blues or an afternoon snooze…

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Curious – Week 2

8 Comments

the view

imagine making the crossing on horseback

✈

Many would argue that air travel has become more complicated, less glamorous and infinitely more tiresome than in the past. The glory days of getting dressed up in Sunday best to take a plane trip are gone let alone full service, real cutlery with a decent in-flight meal and unlimited baggage allowances. Now we have to weigh our luggage even before we leave home, check ourselves in electronically and bring our own provisions. Nevertheless, there is something magical in being able to wake up in one time zone and go to sleep in another.

This fortnight’s Two Cents Tuesday Challenge has literally flown across the continent today and in doing so have simultaneously gained and lost three hours. No matter how many times we do it, the transition from one state of being to another, no matter how familiar, is always  – Curious.

Last week we asked “How does curious look to you?” –  A silly hat or wiffle bat, Granny on her roller skates, things in bottles, painted plates, one weird shoe without a mate, urchins in the ocean deep, twisted kitties fast asleep…

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, some great entries and the guidelines for this fortnight’s challenge can be found here. Need more info – Have a look at HOW DOES THIS WORK.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Curious

19 Comments

curious

out of the primordial soup

♆

Across the Bored has decided at the last minute to shirk off those domestic obligations which can certainly wait until the weather is inclement and head west.  Vacation is too large and loaded a word to use in this case, but we have certainly made the arrangements to return to our summer spot of the last few decades with the aim of recharging our psychic batteries for the upcoming long and dreaded winter.

It seems that no matter where we go, whether around the corner or across the oceans, to places unknown or familiar, we always are struck by those things that are different, out of context, those bits of life that excite our imaginations and make us want to just show them to someone else. The Two Cents Tuesday Challenge would venture that the found object pictured above is like much of what we see  – Curious.

“How does curious look to you?” –  A silly hat or wiffle bat, Granny on her roller skates, things in bottles, painted plates, one weird shoe without a mate, urchins in the ocean deep, twisted kitties fast asleep…

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: It’s up to you… Week 2

6 Comments

strawberries

straight from the garden, dirt and all

☺

The unbearable heat of the last few days means that there are few hours during the day when one can really appreciate the greener pleasures of the back yard.  Out early to check whether the birds have beaten us to the strawberry patch, the tomatoes and squash look limp, the zucchini flowers have been snapped off and carted away by furry urban poachers for a 4 am snack and the weeds….. well, the weeds do very well no matter what. With temperatures soaring to the low 40s by mid afternoon, we have spent a good part of the day inside in constructive pursuits with a glance out the front window every once in a while to check for Mad dogs and Englishmen.

On one of these breaks we were awestruck by an unusual scene unfolding on the front lawn. The squirrels had come down out of the trees and were stretched out full-length cooling their bellies in the shaded grass. The utilities companies have been hacking off large parts of the local trees lately, supposedly in an effort to clear the power lines from possible breakage – in doing so they have not only mangled the greenery but removed much of what was keeping the little rodents’ homes at a bearable temperature. I am not an overly huge fan of what most cityfolk refer to as “rats with good PR” but they were very cute and seemed in need of a good cool-off.

Across the Bored’s nurturing instincts kicked in and when the little blighters had moved on we put out a bowl of water. A squirrel rest-stop as it were, if the neighborhood dogs don’t get to it first…  Like this fortnight’s Two Cents Tuesday Challenge, it is all about doing something to effect positive change in our small corner of the universe – It’s up to You.

Have a look at the previous topics covered in the challenge – “Is there a theme that appeals to you?”

It’s up to you     Toys    Clean    Bold     Random    Heritage    Special    Happy     Gifts    Graffiti     Brilliant     Funny     Habit     Resolution     Relax     Sweet    Illumination   Decoration   Morning   Style    Home   Pressure   Temptation    Manipulation    Compromise    Procrastination

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, some great entries and the guidelines for this fortnight’s challenge can be found here. Need more info – Have a look at HOW DOES THIS WORK.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: It’s up to you…

15 Comments

Your choice

about 18 cents worth

✭

While most people see the winter solstice as the end of the year, with January ringing in a new and glorious reprieve from old bad habits, in our house it is June that is counted as year-end. The end of school, the end of those fall through spring routines, the time to wrap up business before the hazy days of summer cast their spell and make even the simplest tasks an Atlantean chore. July means the days are in flux and we try for a time where there are no set plans to see what comes to us instead. A whole chunk of life now recedes like flotsam carried by waves at the shore – recent events have inspired change, necessitating some adjustment in the way we all think and react. They have instigated various bouts of reflection, some poignant, some maudlin, some downright silly.

With that in mind, and as Across the Bored is easing its way slowly back into the blogosphere with a rather annoying case of monitor neck (related only in degree of pain to tennis elbow and carpal tunnel), something fast and easy (for us) was decidedly in order for this week’s offering. The Two Cents Tuesday Challenge feels it is time for a retrospective, scroll through the archives by clicking on this link, the image widget in the sidebar or on one of the topics below and pick something, anything  – It’s up to You.

“Which theme appeals to you?”

Toys    Clean    Bold     Random    Heritage    Special    Happy     Gifts    Graffiti    Brilliant    Funny    Habit    Resolution    Relax    Sweet    Illumination   Decoration   Morning   Style    Home   Pressure   Temptation    Manipulation    Compromise    Procrastination

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Toys

14 Comments

toys

to each his own

Before Miss Z convinced us to add a canine member to our already rollicking family dynamic we used to wonder about many of the peculiarities of dog “owners”.  Many of the homes we visited had designated doggy areas, special bowls and watering devices, little beds that resembled something Louis XIV would be comfortable lounging on and any number of collars and leashes.  Across the Bored’s childhood had seen pets mainly of the feline or rodent variety with the occasional stray pup arriving unannounced for a brief overnighter or two before being reunited with its rightful owner. Our animal distractions had never seemed to need a huge amount of possessions – the cats, not ones to suffer being dressed up as dollies, were happy with the occasional bit of dangling string or outside mousing and the rodents were, well, rodents – pretty much content to chew things down to mulch or run friday night races through cardboard tubes lined up on the dining room table. The whole doggy thing, therefore, came across as a little “much”….

Miss Z’s adoption of one fuzzy puppy changed all that.  Our barbet came with his own blanket, a few necessary accessories and an odd grenade-shaped object that the previous owner would fill with peanut butter to keep him occupied during the hours when she could not be at home.  When he found out that he had a whole houseful of human entertainment, he never touched it again. We did acquire balls and throw things, went through a variety of leashes until we found ones that didn’t chafe him or us, tried out a series of collars that got chewed through, learned that there are some bowls that really aren’t dog-friendly and got educated about dog car safety-harnesses because, as the man in the store so patiently explained, a flying dog will break your neck if you slam on the brakes….

It was just a matter of time before we broke down and bought that plush roadkill with the 19 squeakers. The Two Cents Tuesday Challenge knows that everyone enjoys some form of amusement, so with that in mind we have done the once unthinkable and indulged our dog with – Toys.

“What form do toys take for you?” –  That fuzzy bear, a game of solitaire, pick-up sticks or camera clicks, beads and baubles, stereos sweet, nail polish for toes on pretty feet, shiny cars, long telescopes to see the stars or best of all – a cardboard box and simple ball…

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Clean

19 Comments

cleansometimes a little help is a good thing

Cause and effect. These are two words that usually spur Across the Bored into taking action on matters long-procrastinated upon. Not that we don’t usually have a plan, but this one hinged upon ideal climactic conditions, a reasonable amount of free time and the motivation to hurl ourselves into the infernal chasm of (belated) spring-cleaning and material divestiture. All while tidying up, doing laundry and checking emails…

Effect: suspicious cracking grout and lifting floor tile near the bathtub and shower.

Cause: clear (to us anyways) evidence of a leak, a drip, moisture finding its way somewhere that was not down the drain.  The handyman did not concur – he put the blame on our rather heavy tub not having a supporting frame – it rests atop the plywood sub-floor – something akin to an elephant sitting in the middle of a trampoline. Sooner or later, something is going to give.

This week’s sudden cold snap finally spurred us to begin the long-overdue task of garage triage. One must understand that this “room”, which is directly under the master bath and surely the reason for the cold floors in same, has never actually been used as a place for parking a car in minus 40 degree weather. Rather it had been converted into our “studio” with a nifty raised floor and held all the stuff that we didn’t use on a daily basis or didn’t fit neatly into the rest of the house. It worked well for a while, but like most things we got busy with projects that didn’t require being cloistered in a room with no view and our little studio quickly became the repository for that “which shall not be seen” and “that which multiplies tenfold when left unattended”.  Until yesterday, that is, when good intentions forced us to start somewhere – somewhere being to the stuff which shouldn’t have been lying precariously atop boxes already stacked six high not according to manufacturer’s explicit instructions.

Effect: That somewhere was damp.

Not full out rainstorm wet or someone spilled something wet but oddly just enough that something was amiss wet. Directly under the bathtub wet.

Cause: a small, water damaged crack in the conduit built around the drainage pipes that run along the ceiling of the garage (don’t ask, I didn’t build this one…). Although dry now, it must have leaked recently and begged the question when would the disaster of elephantine proportions occur?

Someone will, of course, have to come and fix it (hopefully sooner rather than later) and for that to happen efficiently all that stuff would have to go somewhere. Like a horrible game of domestic dominoes, everything that had gone in in a careless fashion was now coming out under a more critical eye – out to a new home, out to a charity, out to that garage sale the foundation is having, out of the garage studio abyss. But sadly, for the moment, out into the common room. And the dining room. And the computer room…

Now, the The Two Cents Tuesday Challenge has no choice but to wrestle cause and effect into a manageable stranglehold and make it  – Clean.

“How does clean appear to you?” –  The lines of a Countach or curve of her back, fresh laundry on the line or graphics of a sign, raindrops, old-fashioned string mops, even spinning tops, is it sudsy or soapy, stringent or strange, glossy and glassy, fancy or plain…

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Bold

41 Comments

bold

a glorious gift of colour

A meal at our house where we all manage to sit down together can range from the awe-inspiring to the downright incredible – it is not the quantity or quality of food but rather the tone and variety of conversation that bursts forth as if it has been bottled under pressure and kept hidden in a cool, dark cellar until it was worth savouring.  On a good night our witty banter is a fine champagne, measured and inspiring with just the right amount of kick to keep things titillating yet civilized but on others…. discussion erupts with all the force of a can of soda pop shaken and sprayed over an unsuspecting audience by some guffawing, miscreant five-year old.

Not to say that we don’t act appropriately when the occasion calls for it but the personalities that make up this particular family unit are large, they take up copious amounts of space and if one can get a word in edgewise then the game is truly afoot. The range of subject matter and the rapid-fire pace of exchange can bewilder unassuming guests who thought they were in for a nice quiet meal. Miss Z and the Professor know instinctively that anyone they choose to break bread with better be able to hold their own and with flair, no less….

The best of shared times are like the flowers that grace our table – vividly dynamic, impressively coloured and delightfully engaging so The Two Cents Tuesday Challenge lays out it out that we are  – Bold.

“What shape does bold take for you?” –  A flash of chrome, the walls of home, an umbrella bright or neon light, a favourite font, fishing cat or fearless brat, challenging or conspicuous, brave or brassy …

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Random

20 Comments

random

waiting for the bus

In this part of the world, the seasons dictate just how far Across the Bored strays from the comforts of home. In winter, when everything is literally snowed in, we have every excuse to hibernate and apply ourselves to tasks close at hand (or keyboard) but once the sun exposes dusty corners and dog nose prints on windows those indoor pursuits are quickly abandoned. A northern climate can be intense in its fluctuations – one week we are parking-wearing warriors the next everyone has stripped down. In this city the joke runs that as soon as the temperature hits 50F (10C) everyone takes their clothes off and the first thing they do is get out and about to see what has changed since last summer.

That’s exactly what we did: one day not to any place in particular and the next to a destination decidedly more tourist-oriented but on both occasions good weather made us like a kid in a candy shop –  armed with nothing more cumbersome than a phone camera and a few bucks for a gelato and a cold drink, everything looked vividly different.  Excursions should be veritable voyages of discovery, no matter how dull the reason for going out in the first place, no matter how pedestrian, no matter how routine. We just have to open our eyes to opportunity and see things in a different light. The Two Cents Tuesday Challenge throws down the gauntlet to look at your world and find things that are odd, out of context  – Random.

“How does random look to you?” –  A mess on the floor, wildly painted door, clouds in the sky or the reflection in her eyes, an arrangement of fruit or toe of a boot…

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Heritage

12 Comments

ancestors

where life took one along a narrow path

It must have been a wonderful day to let all thought of work and responsibility slide softly away on the sweet summer air, to take a hamper of cold meat, berries and pound cake, a few pints of lager and a pot for boiling tea down to the quarry, to sit in the warmth of the sun and talk of love and dreams and plans and maybe even… escape. To have the whole of time ahead spread out like a silky blanket where one could rest on bent elbow, gaze on delicate wildflowers and listen to the poet’s voice lull. For one afternoon.

Little has survived, the names lost on the lips that once uttered them freely, the homestead vanished to circumstance and the landscape to the passage of time and industry but the few photographs that remain are as clear as the day they were taken. The stories they tell belong to us and like The Two Cents Tuesday Challenge surmises, the importance we  attach to them becomes our  – Heritage.

“How does heritage look to you?” –  A stately building on the street, long-lost cousins that you meet, a silver tea pot or favourite recipe, a packet of heirloom seeds or string of coloured beads…

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Special

11 Comments

special

each stitch a moment in time

If you swung a cat in our house chances are that we could tell you exactly when and where each object its talons grazed came from. Some might call it an obsession but at one point everything that came through the front door, relatives and Miss Z’s friends excluded, was carefully curated with a specific idea of how it would fit into the overall scheme of things.  Times change and the need for things material seems to become less important as our attention shifts to subjects more ethereal. That and the fact that we have become loaded down with the left-overs from our ancestors that are in dire need of a physical, if not emotional, house-cleaning and purging. Some people are able to part with their stuff with ease, have a garage sale, throw it in the bin and walk away with nary a thought otherwise. For us this is an impossibility for every thing carries with it a memory, is imbued with some sort of karmic energy that will float along to the next carefully chosen owner. Well, the good stuff at least – we’re not talking tupperware and mismatched socks here.  Some pieces can never be parted with, no matter how small and inconsequential, how valuable, how old or how silly, for they have that unique quality that brings back an occasion and place, a brief bubble where the air vibrates, our nostrils fill with scent and we remember….

The Two Cents Tuesday Challenge guarantees that everyone has one thing that is – Special.

“What is special for you?” –  The photo of that sandy beach, the sweet faces of those you teach, an amulet or well-worn hat, silver spoon or ancient cat, the strains on a guitar or a night under the stars…

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Happy

13 Comments

happy

any reason to be glad is a good one

The sun finally came out today and the heat seeping in through the windows promised a spring not long to follow.  Although the snow is still in great mounds throughout the city, people have that glint in their eyes that tells how relieved they are to have made it relatively intact through another long winter.  They smile and strike up conversations with strangers more easily than in the dull days of January when everyone would look away and force themselves to make only the required contact.  Urban nature is a little louder than yesterday, more vibrant – the cardinal calls to his mate and the squirrels chitter arrogantly at the dogs nosing around their territory. Even the postman has a bounce in his gait despite his heavy burden of bills, flyers and subscriptions.

There was something in the mail for Miss Z this afternoon – the thick envelope from one of the best colleges in our city.  Thanks to the wonders of technology her acceptance was already a fact but the very tangible proof she could hold in her hands, the evidence she could wave in the faces of all those teenage detractors, was the perfect way to end her day.  Lo, like a cheshire cat our court does grin at such good news and so the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge can’t be anything but – Happy.

“How does happy look to you?” –  Your mum’s mug or hole the dog dug, friends gathered round, a night on the town, a yellow sunflower or a rainbow after a shower, a pair of shoes or a new tattoo …

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Gifts

18 Comments

laduree

sweetly unexpected

It used to be that we would pack our bags and trot off to some far-flung destination with nary a care, now our journeys have become more defined. Time is of the essence and as much as we are still taken away from the nest for vacation, work or duty, more often than not in the recent past we are the ones to stay behind and wonder how life unfolds for our own young travellers.  Luckily, the luxury of technology lets us remain close through our devices – our phones even ring, oddly enough, in the tone of the land we are trying to reach and voices coming from across the ocean are sometimes clearer than if they were across the country. At first the days seem longer, quieter, less filled with the big, bold noise of life and then suddenly they are past and once again we are standing in an airport waiting for our missed ones return from another most amazing and enlightening adventure.

We are glad to see them back with all their appendages intact, no wallets, cameras or even worse, passports pilfered from pockets or packs and in a good mood, happy to be home.  There are enough stories and pictures to last through quite a few dinners, their experience of the world and observations of the people in it the source of much amusement and sometimes, disbelief. Our offspring have found this form of indulgence satisfying but have also learned that the little things do count, like taking the time to find a sewer-rat hand puppet for a sometimes annoying sibling.  And so, unexpected as a lovely box of macarons, the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge gives you – Gifts.

“What is a gift for you?” –  A present, a prize, the look in her eyes, a talent to sing or big shiny ring, the love of a child or something more wild, the quiet of night or just waking up, right…

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Brilliant

19 Comments

painted brilliant

diamonds are a girl’s best friend.

Everyone from Craig Russell to Miss Piggy has taken a shot at this classic but long before Marilyn Monroe sashayed around in slippery hot-pink satin for her breathy version in Gentlemen prefer Blondes, Carol Channing was putting her particular stamp on this song.  The two blonde songstresses are memorable for completely different reasons – Marilyn was gloss, the epitome of desire whereas Carol was a no-messing-around, comfortable in her skin comedienne with chops that could rival any of her male counterparts. As entertainers, they were both accomplished, quick-witted and dazzling.

Wonderful performances such as these, classic movies, stunning sculpture and even a great meal often receive praise in the most direct of terms. There’s a simple phrase often used that falls into this category but which is two very loaded, distinct and completely opposite pronouncements: the first awestruck declaration is one of incredulity that such a thing could exist – a talent, picture or sound so marvellous that we feel the need to let everyone know of its wondrousness. The second, depending on how incredibly stupid the action or comment, is blurted out usually accompanied by an expletive. This too will make the rounds of friendly get-togethers and family holiday dinners, becoming the stuff that legends are made of and the source for endless embellishment as a “remember when” anecdote.  The Two Cents Tuesday Challenge states emphatically that it is – Brilliant.

“What is brilliant to you?” –  The gloss on a Cadillac or chrome of a luggage rack, Benny Hill on a roll or a crystal bowl, an amazing shade of blue, slick patent-leather shoe, Mozart or Beaux Art …

We would love to see your vision.

For all those who are new readers to Across the Bored, here are some guidelines for the challenge: HOW DOES THIS WORK?

  1.  I will post some commentary on a random topic that pops into my head (such as the above) and then ask you to respond on the same.
  2. Your point of view on the current week’s challenge can take any form: a quote, a motto or saying, an essay, poem or opinion of yours or attributed to someone else, a piece of music, a song, a video, a work of art, photograph, graffiti, drawing or scribble – but it has to be about the topic!
  3. Please, don’t just link to an old post… challenge yourself.
  4. The Challenge will be open for 14 days (there will be a reminder post at the 7 day mark) after which I will post another.
  5. ENJOY, have FUN and TELL your friends and fellow bloggers.

 SO – Create your Two Cents Tuesday Challenge post

  1. Then add a link to your blog in my comment box.
  2. To make it easy for others to check out your post, title your blog post “Two Cents Tuesday Challenge” and add the same as a tag.
  3. If you would like your reader to see what others are presenting for the same challenge, add a link to the “Two Cents Tuesday” challenge on your own blog.
  4. Feel free to pick up your badge on the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge page
  5. Remember to Follow My Blog to get your weekly (hopefully) reminders.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Illumination

8 Comments

bus shelter

in darkness one finds light reflected

How many of us believe in coincidence? Its dictionary definition – in which events or conditions that are closely related by time, space, form, or other associations which appear unlikely to bear a relationship occur at one time apparently by mere chance – can in itself be puzzling.

Statisticians note in dry, withered tones that synchronicity is inevitable and often less remarkable than it appears intuitively but it is nonetheless marvellously strange that the photograph now being entered in a challenge about light on the 11th day of this month – and that had lingered in a folder titled “future blog pix” waiting for just the right moment to appear in the multiverse – was taken the eve of December 11th last year, the very same day Across the Bored posted the Two Cents Tuesday Challenge: Illumination.

Hmm.

Trip the light fantastic with this week’s entries at the Weekly Photo Challenge: Illumination.