Remember the Shelf? An update.

Some of my readers may get remember the little shelf on a pole, which changed over time to a "Shelter." It's gotten shabby and the kids who added things to it are now pre-teens and teen, and moved on in different directions.

I decided to use a few items from the goodie back that my honey brought me from a NYC exhibit called Take This or something like that. So he took stuff, including, molded plaster take out coffee lids in two sizes, some "coins," a pin of a man's profile in blue and red, some fortune cookies, which I broke open and looked at the "fortunes." Also, a foil emergency blanket in a little plastic bag and part of the poem from the statue of liberty. I put these into the "shelf" and will check it tomorrow to see if things have been removed.

I'm happy the box is still there. I hope it intrigues people, still.

You can see past posts on this item if you search using the tag - shelf or elflog.

Bienvenida a Mexico

Practicing bull fight moves in the Viveros Coyoacan. We came upon this sight, which was totally amazing for us. We really knew we were in another place, for sure!

Passersby were oblivious to the practicing matador, while we were enchanted by it.

 Aw, a missing Gato, named Planeta. I hope someone found him or he found he way home. He has a flea collar on and a in his left pupil. Pobrecito.

We stopped for coffee at this cafe, not far from Frida Kahlo's house. It's very well known. We pulled plastic garden chairs from a stack set against the little building. We sat outside and had delicious coffee and watched the people going by and listening to a street musician. It was lovely.

We saw so many different types of flowers in bloom, everywhere.
Lots of succulents, of course, and palm trees. Plants seemed big! I'm sure that having so much vegetation was good since the city still has problems with bad air, though I think they're doing better. I think the pollution has lessened.

For me, in the beginning, it was hard to breathe because of the altitude. I had to slow down, but after a couple days, it wasn't noticeable. When we returned to Mexico City, after staying in San Miguel de Allende for a number of days, I didn't notice anything at all. Altitude in Mexico city is over 7,000 feet, I think.

We were so happy to be there. The trip we hadn't thought we'd take!!

Images from Mexico City

Nopales - cactus, which we cut up, fried, & ate

 We stayed in a very modern high rise in Mexico City when we first arrived. Because it was hazy, the mountains surrounding the city couldn't be seen clearly.

 Zinn likes the mirrors in the elevators in the building. She's practice making faces.

 Flowers seen while out on a walk.

 Across the street from the building was the Viveros Coyoacan. A very large park, part of which was used to grow trees and plants that would be planted around the city.

 We walked across this park to get to Frida Kahlo's home.

Plants in pots, gown to be transplanted. There were tiny plants in tiny pots, and large plants and even trees.  The park was full of people jogging, walking, exercising, and even practicing bull fighting poses.

Hello again. Long time, no see.

So, we went to Mexico. We loved it. I got to use the Spanish that I've been studying for years and it worked. I had lots of excellent conversations with people in Mexico City and San Miguel de Allende. We want to return. We've been back for a month now but it seems like we were just there. It was good to be away, for the most part, from the political news in the U.S.

Here are three cards that I made while in Mexico. We were so fortunate to have seen Frida Kahlo's home but I didn't buy the permit to take photos, so I just looked at everything. The top card is my attempt to capture a bit of her studio. The second card is a bit of the roof top terrace over looking San Miguel from where Mica was living. The third shows three of the dresses that we bought Zinn. She said that her favorite thing about Mexico was the dresses.
More to come, once I can figure out how to get my photos from Google Photos. I'm still not doing great using my Chrome Book. I know, the same old same old.

Made before we left for Mexico

Our family art making!

For the first time, probably the only time-we're all in an exhibit!

The altered-card background is a card my honey brought me
from the Victoria and Albert when he was in a London last year with a friend.

The final image is a photo taken in a museum in Norfolk, VA.
Our grandgirl was dancing in front of a sculpture was
captured by a photographer for the local newspaper, the Virginian Pilot.

The year is almost over! Wow!

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#178

I had fun altering these floral paintings that my honey got for me on his trip to London last spring. They called for just the right additions, and I'm pleased with how they turned out.







Here are more of my Inktense festive cards. I have a lot of fun with doing these, also.

I can make several at once, then after I cut them up, do the black lines.

Very meditative, as I might have mentioned before.

#179

The holiday season is just about over. We've had our share of Christmas festivities, but Chanukah does continue, so it's not quite over. However, it's a very low key holiday, with just candle lighting and tiny gifts for the grandgirl. For instance, we got her a tiny sticker book with sparkly Nutcracker Ballet stickers, and another day she'll get a Nutcracker Ballet sticker book of Clara with a wardrobe. There's a theme here, as you might see. The grandgirl got to see the ballet in person this year and was quite taken by it. The final gift will be a book of the Nutcracker Ballet that has a little pop up stage and figures that one can place on it.

She'll like that, we think.


Here's hoping we all have a good year ahead, in whatever way we can find that is good for each of us.

As my mother-in-law used to say "Take care on each other."