Mouse Problem

Picture of the Day for 8/31/2015. My desk at work looks like a computer mouse graveyard. I keep bringing ones from home (because I prefer wireless mouses) and accidentally leaving them there when I'm done for the day. I'm sure people walking past my desk wonder if I have a little mouse fetish/problem. 

Christmas in August

Picture of the Day for 8/30/2015. This is a picture of my dining room table- still covered with my Christmas decorations that I piled there in anticipation of packing them away for the year. I'd say there's probably a 100% they still won't get put away in September either. October isn't looking good either. I might as well just keep them out until December rather than bothering with it all.

Toggi Wafers

Picture of the Day for 8/29/2015. My neighborhood grocery store sells these Toggi chocolate wafer cookies and I'm completely obsessed. This is a specialty item they carry by the cash registers so I won't always be able to buy the cookies there. I did see on Amazon that I can get a box of 24 for $22.50. Phew. Good to know I can get them somewhere. 

Why Do I Need a Protractor?

Picture of the Day for 8/28/2015. To answer the question posed in my subject header for this post, I don't. Has anyone in the history of the universe ever really used a protractor for a practical purpose? Oh sure, there's a rumor that it's a device used to measure angles, but c'mon. All anyone has ever done with a protractor is draw shapes with it because it's fun to run a pen or pencil around the inside or outside edge. 

So why did I buy one? Because it was only 10 freaking cents at Office Max. I love the back-to-school sales. It's like office supply crack. 

Vampire Siblings and a Fat Witch

Picture of the Day for 8/27/2015. The stores are already starting to stock Halloween merchandise. I fell in love with these vampire siblings and the fat witch. Luckily, they were more than I wanted to spend on Halloween decorations. I already have more decorations than space in my spouse. Love, love, love Halloween. 

Driving the Pacific Coast Highway

Picture of the Day for 8/26/2015. It's about 20 miles from my office in Irvine to the Long Beach airport where I usually catch my flight home after a work meeting in California. When you're driving the 405 freeway in rush hour traffic, that's the equivalent of a cross-country road trip in terms of the time it takes. Today I decided to see if driving up the Pacific Coast Highway was any shorter. Not really, but the view was more scenic and my blood pressure didn't rise nearly as much.

Oversized Bun

Picture of the Day for 8/25/2015. Yeah, this bun kind of got out of control. I wanted to wear my hair up today and I didn't have time to fix it before leaving for the airport to catch a flight to California for work. Oh well. 

Half-Hearted Endorsement

Picture of the Day for 8/24/2015. I got a kick out of this restaurant's sign. It's the equivalent of saying, "we're not that bad."  But maybe it isn't a bad marketing tool after all because now I want to go eat there to see if I will indeed be pleasantly surprised.

Missionary Homecoming and 240 Chocolate Chip Cookies

Picture of the Day for 8/23/2015. This is what 240 homemade (by me) chocolate chip cookies look like. Let me just say that took some work. What's the occasion you might ask? My nephew Rob's missionary homecoming open house. 

Native American Trading Post

Picture of the Day for 8/22/2015. After last week's trip to New Mexico and Arizona, I'm obsessed with all thing Navajo. I heard about the Native American Trading Post out on Redwood Road so I decided to visit. This seems to be the place where Native Americans living in Salt Lake City really do go to shop. Lot's of really cool stuff. They even had Blue Bird flour for sale! I wasn't in the mood to lug a hug sack of flour home at the time, but I'll have to go back and get some. 

That's Not the Life I'm Choosing for Myself

Picture of the Day for 8/21/2015. My friend and neighbor, Susan Williams, has two daughters who are into health and fitness and have a Facebook page called Strong Fit Mamas that I love to visit. They post exercise videos, recipes, stories of their struggles/adventures as the mothers of small children, and inspirational quotes. The one pictured below really struck me. Obviously it is geared to making good food choices, but there's a larger meaning for me. Sometimes I feel like I'm not choosing anything in my life (aside from my fun adventures). In terms of my day-to-day life, I'm so busy that I'm just hanging on for the ride. 

Take a look at my messy living room, for example. This is not how I like to live, but I haven't managed to have every room in my house clean all at the same time since Christmas. 

Foot Tan Lines

Picture of the Day for 8/20/2015. You can tell by these pictures that:

1. I've been out in the sun.

2. I've been out in the sun wearing one type of shoe only- canvas loafers to be exact.

I didn't realize I had foot tan lines until I put on some slightly nicer shoes for work this morning.

Terry Yazzie Begay Artwork

Picture of the Day for 8/19/2015. I mentioned in a blog entry about a week ago that I met a Navajo artist named Terry who paints/sells his artwork at the Massacre Cave Overlook in Canyon de Chelly. Now that I'm home from my trip and my things are unpacked I can show you the two items I purchased from him. I especially love the Twin Warrior painting.
 
Since he signed the artwork, I was able to do a Google search and find out more about him. Apparently Terry attended the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, New Mexico! Pretty impressive. I would say running into him was definitely a happy accident.

Twin Warriors (Hero Twins/Monster Slayers)

Corn Maiden

Blue Bird Flour Sacks

Picture of the Day for 8/19/2015. During our time in New Mexico and Arizona last week, my nephew Rob was wearing a tie made from a Blue Bird flour sack. 

Blue Bird flour is preferred by Navajos for their fry bread. According to an article I read on the Navajo Times website, the Cortez Milling Company in Colorado produces 600,000 25-pound bags that are primarily sold in the Navajo Nation. A cottage industry has resulted from the flour sacks and you can find a lot of hand-crafted items made from the sacks. Rob's tie was a real ice-breaker. We couldn't go anywhere on our travels without someone commenting it. I love the blue bird design so I ended up buying myself an apron and an oven mitt.

Toiletry Organization System

Picture of the Day for 8/18/2015. Just got back from nearly two weeks of travel. This is rather typical. I travel a lot for both work and fun so packing my suitcase and toiletry bag is a frequent activity. I don't necessarily like throwing all my toiletries into one bag so here's the system I just tried out with some novelty cases I bought in Las Vegas last month.

The "cake" bag holds my toothbrush, toothpaste, and floss. Because one should always brush after eating sugar.

The "floral" bag holds my make-up. Several years ago my sister Paula's best friend exclaimed "what a garden of beauty" upon seeing all of the nieces when she dropped by for a visit. We knew she was coming over and we knew she have an effusive greeting for us, but this exceeded all of our expectations. That memory still makes me smile. A bag that resembles a garden of beauty seems perfect for make-up.

The "Dick and Jane" bag hold all my hair stuff. Sadly, I took a picture of the wrong side of the bag. The little girls' hairstyles on the front of the bag are pretty cute. 

The "cowgirl" bag holds all my facial creams. I figure cowgirls spend a lot of time out in the sun and wind and need to take special care of their skin. 

I know. You don't have to say anything. It's weird. I'm weird.

Changing Seasons

Picture of the Day for 8/17/2015. Well, if this isn't evidence that summer is fading and autumn is approaching, I don't what is. I love how half the shelves on this aisle are filled with summer items and the other half are filled with Halloween items. 

Strawberry Butt and a Perfect Head of Hair

Picture of the Day  for 8/16/2016. My niece Michelle and her husband David and their baby Hazel were in town while I was off traveling in the Four Corners region, but luckily I was able to see them for a few hours today before they had to fly home. Baby Hazel is adorable. She was having a field day with all the new toys at her disposal at her grandma's house. Her baby hair is so perfect and beautiful that I ended up taking more pictures of her back than front- although her face is perfect and beautiful too. And you can't go wrong with a big strawberry on your backside either.

Monument Valley

Picture of the Day for 8/15/2015. We drove through Monument Valley today. I posted pictures of my trip there last year so I'll only post a couple this time. We stopped at a road-side market on the way there and I love how you can see one of the rock formations in the background.

I love this sign. In case you weren't aware, you're at Monument Valley. As if anyone needs a sign to know what they are seeing this place is so iconic. 

Gallup, New Mexico

Picture of the Day for 8/14/2015. We spent the day in Gallup, New Mexico visiting jewelry galleries. And buying a lot of jewelry. And spending a lot of money.

At the Nugget Gallery, the owner (Steve), who is also a friend of my nephew Rob, appraised a Navajo rug that belonged to my brother-in-law Will's mother. It was fascinating to hear Steve talk about the different features of the rug- he was so knowledgeable. He guessed it was used as a horse blanket underneath a saddle. Will's mother used to ride horses so that was spot on. The blanket isn't worth a lot of money, but it's a precious family heirloom nonetheless. 

I love how Gallup's Main Street is part of Route 66 and the rail road passes right by it. It looks so Route 66-ish!

Another Day at Canyon de Chelly

Picture of the Day for 8/13/2015. We spent some more time at Canyon de Chelly. I couldn't stop taking pictures. The shifting light and shadows made each photograph come out just a little different.

Spider Rock Overlook
According to Navajo lore, Spider Woman preserved the Navajo by teaching them how to slay the monsters roaming the land when the people emerged into this world. She is also credited with teaching the Navajo how to weave. Spider Rock is her home.

White House (Anasazi Ruins) Overlook
This area has gotten a lot of rain lately. My nephew Rob was telling us that there hasn't been this much green vegetation in decades. 

Road Trip to Chinle, AZ

Picture of the Day for 8/12/2015. We will be spending a few days down here in New Mexico and Arizona touring the places and visiting the people my nephew Rob loved during his two-year mission spent largely on the Navajo reservation. 

We began the morning by driving past the Shiprock rock formation that give Shiprock, New Mexico its name. Rob was telling us in Navajo lore the rock is an eagle that crashed into the earth and what remains above the ground is the eagle's wing. I like that version better than the reference to a ship.

We drove west along Indian Route 13 into Arizona and through the Buffalo Pass where the scenery was stunning. You can see Shiprock faintly in the distance to the east. 

Continuing along Indian Route 13 into Arizona is a rock feature called Butt Rock. I'll leave it up to you to examine the picture and guess why.

We arrived in Chinle, Arizona, our final destination for the day, and drove straight to Canyon de Chelly. First stop was the Mummy Cave overlook where you can see some Anasazi ruins. I love how it looks like a wise, old face.

The next stop was the Massacre Cave overlook where we met Terry, a Navajo artist who paints on flat sheets of rock at a makeshift worktable he's created there. I bought a couple of cool pieces from him. I'll blog more about that at a later date.

 

 Below is my favorite picture from the Massacre Cave overlook.

The day ended with one of the most spectacular sunsets I've ever seen.