Art on Utility

I dig this electricity box or whatever it is. It was painted a couple of years ago by one of my favorite local artists, David Spear. He was asked to do this as a deterrent to rash of graffiti artists that had been defacing public property in the District. I can't think of a better way to dress up ugly stuff that no one really notices. All four sides are painted with musicians which also tied in to the inaugural Roots & Blues & BBQ Festival in 2008 for which David painted the festival poster. Just one of the cool things I love about Columbia.

Flame On

Sat in front of the fireplace for a little while tonight. So relaxing.

Marathoners

This is "The Marathoners" a sculpture in Flatbranch Park behind my office. I pass it every day and this is not the first time I have photographed it. Today it caught my eye again because the sun came out and there was a beautiful contrast between the sculpture and the blue sky. It's nice to take notice of the blue sky again, especially in a Missouri winter where it is a rare occurrence.

I think it is also significant as I enter my busy season at work. Getting through the next 6 months will be like what I imagine running a marathon would be like. It will be a lot of hard work. Many times I will want to quit "running," but in the end, I will be so happy that I finished.

The Yuckbranch Creek

I check out the Flatbranch Creek each day as I walk across our little bridge from our staff parking lot at my office. It looks different almost everyday. This morning, when I arrived at work, it was pretty clear. I could see the bottom at least. When I left for an appointment at lunch, it looked like this. Murky, cloudy and gross. Not sure what causes all the changes, but it is interesting to watch. There will probably be a few pictures of the 'Ol Yuckbranch Creek during this experiment. Hopefully the next time, the water will look better.

Goof Balls

Sunday night. Try to get the kids fed, bathed and calmed down before bed so they will get a good night sleep for school the next day. OR they can run wildly through the house dripping wet and crazy which is what happened tonight. I can't believe I got them to sit still long enough to get a picture...

Late Night Snack (January 23)

It was late and I was a little bit hungry; I wanted just a little something. I love these pickles and it really hit the spot.

Jesse Hall at Night

I was at the office later than I normally would be this evening and as I was walking to the car, I looked up and saw the dome of Jesse Hall lit up on campus. I decided to detour on my journey home so I could pull into the circle drive and take a closer look. Turned out pretty good through the windshield of the car.

Ice Cream Face

After dinner tonight, we opened up our new container of Blue Bunny ice cream and much to our surprise, the lid had a face. This is exactly how it looked right after opening. We didn't do anything to the lid. Pretty cool!

A Glass of Cat Pee

For a short week, this has been a real beyotch! Today, in fact, was one of the suckiest days I've had in a long time. When I got home, I could probably should have gone for a run or something more productive, but instead I cooked up a big meal for the family and enjoyed a bottle of wine with the hubs. We broke into the "Cat Pee on a Gooseberry Bush" which was quite nice, I must say. Am I fully recovered from my crappy day? Not yet, but a nice glass or two of cat pee has helped me relax just a little bit.

Cabbage Leaf (January 19)

This wouldn't upload yesterday so I am trying again today. And I wrote such a great entry which I can't remember now, so instead I will just say that this was part of our dinner last night. I was preparing a new recipe of roasted cabbage and when I cut this one open, it was just so cool inside that I had to take a shot.


If you want the recipe, which turned out fantastic, drop me a line and I'll share. Super simple. Super tasty.

It's a dog's life

Here's Bilbo Baggins, my 12-year-old pound puppy - our first "kid." Ninety-nine percent of the time, while we're running around like chickens with our heads cut off, he's chillin' on the floor. Just hanging out. Chillaxing.

This evening, I decided to get down on the floor with Mr. B and check things out. Not a whole lot to see here, but I think Bilbo's lesson is that sometimes you just need to slow down and hang out. So that's what I did this evening. Hang out with the furry kid. Nice way to wind down.

Back to Slipper Weather (January 17)

This is my photographic realization that the weather was not as warm back home as it was in Florida. I toughed it out for a few hours after we got home, but then I finally had to cover up my pedicure and put the warm fuzzy slippers back on. Back to reality.

People Watching (January 16)

There is a lot going on in this shot, but there is always a lot going on at the airport and this is one picture of many I took as we waited for our delayed plane.

I like the fish sculptures hanging on the wall, the moving people and the reflections of those sitting near me at the gate waiting area.

Hot Miami Nights (January 15)

Okay, it wasn't hot, but it was 65 degrees on January 15 and to my Midwestern blood, that felt pretty darn good. This shot was taken on Miami Beach's famous Ocean Drive. It is already a pretty happenin' place, but on this particular Friday night, there was also an art festival going on, so the streets were blocked off and there was lots of foot traffic making for some stellar people watching.

I took this shot of the outside of Mango's Tropical Cafe, the place we had gone on Wednesday evening, as everyone was milling up and down Ocean Drive. It is lit up like Christmas every day of the year. Even though this isn't the best photo, I thought it summed up the activity going on during the art festival and the vivid colors and images from Ocean Drive at night.

There's a bird on my head! (January 14)

It's catch up time! Not having free Internet at the hotel or airport has left me in a lurch. I have much catching up to do on my postings. I continued to take pictures each day, just didn't have a chance to post.

This is January 14th picture and it was our first official hang out day on the beach. Marty took this shot and thought it was so funny because it looks like there's a bird on my head. I had so many wonderful pictures from this day, but this was the funniest one!

Life's a Beach

This was a fun shot taken from the window seat I had on this morning's flight. The sky was so clear and the when the wing lined up perfectly with the Miami coast, I just had to take the shot. There were several shots today that were worthy for the photo of the day, but this one just sums it up!

Cold, cold night (January 12)

So it was pretty darn cold last night in St. Louis. This is the view from our hotel room window - snow still on vehicles.

I am happy to post this picture from the hotel in Miami where it is much warmer with no snow on the vehicles.

This is technically my picture of the day for Tuesday but I didn't want to pay $12 to gain wireless access at the hotel to post one picture so I'm posting a day late.

Ice, ice, baby!

This morning, before the temps "warmed" up to 31 degrees, I caught this shot of footprints on the frozen Flatbranch Creek. When I returned to work an hour later, the creek had already started melting and was almost completely thawed by the time I left the office, but there was still a thin later of ice that still had the footprints on it.

It's the little things in life...

On a Sunday adventure to Target, the kids acquired new spin brush tooth brushes. I never knew how much joy a tooth brush could bring. The kids win because they got new tooth brushes. I win because they love to use them. It really is the little things in life.

Mizzou-Rah!

Spent the afternoon at Mizzou Arena watching the Fastest 40 Minutes of Basketball. It was a great game! Here's the final score - MU 74 and Kansas State 68.

I missed the money photo shot, however. Just after I took this picture and turned off my camera, the screen changed to "Mizzou Wins" - would have made a better photo of the day, but this one is still pretty cool.

Capped off the day with some Shakespeare's Pizza and cold beer - it just doesn't get much better than that! Go TIGERS!!

Ahhhh, Friday

Just a random shot of some of my martini glasses perched on a shelf above the bar, just waiting for a celebration.

I think the fact that today's Friday is good enough, don't you?

Snow Day

School was cancelled today and the kids had to at least go out there and mess it up a bit, despite the freezing temperatures. They were even more excited when just an hour after they had been playing, school was cancelled for Friday as well.

Whiney Evening

After a long, slow car ride home in a snow storm in mid-Missouri, I felt like I might need a spot of wine to relax and stop whining about the terrible drivers that seem to come out of the woodwork at the slightest change in the weather. Which shall I choose?

We actually got these bottles as a Christmas gift in our family gift exchange. YES!

In case you can't read the wine names from left to right: "The Ball Buster," "Bitch," and "Cat Pee on a Gooseberry Bush."

Sub-Zero

On this very cold sub-zero morning, the steam from the stacks at the MU power plant put on quite a show. Catching the early morning sun, it made for a nice shot.

Birthday Bouquet

Today's photo is a close up of one of the beautiful flowers in the bouquet that arrived at my office today from my dear friend.

In the last few years, we have been sending each other flowers for our birthdays and it is a wonderful treat.

I can't think of a better way to honor a great friendship.

Thanks, Sonja. You're the best!

Birdie Feet

This afternoon when I let the pooch out, I found these cute little footie prints on our back deck in the dusting of snow that we got today. They made me smile.