Janet Brien's photos with the keyword: magic hour

(+2 insets!) (you won't be disappointed at the full-size version!) (please scroll down to "Today's Pictures" for information about the insets) Updates from the Home Front I am still trying to thaw out from my morning tromp up and down the driveway--it was a mere 26.5°F / -3°C when I stepped out this morning…YIKES! But I couldn't ask for a more beautiful start to the day. A bright and sunny day with cloudless sky, sparkles greeted me everywhere I turned and as I walked, it was like a spangled parade of twinkling brilliance accenting every step. My feet crunched solidly on the frozen ground and I was amused that the pile of rocks I used to keep track of my laps was frozen solid to the larger rock slab they sat on. Carefully stepping on the stones loosened some of them but alas, a couple refused to budge from their bond and I was forced to use a couple of substitutes to take their place. Heh… Trailer Updates It's been too cold for Steve to do a lot of work on the trailer but he's done what he can if ever the temperature cooperates. Our shop is not heated or insulated very well, and is intolerable to work in if it's too cold. I don't blame him! Even though the trailer is comfortable, much of Steve's work involves use of the shop's many essential tools so there's just no getting around this roadblock. However, he was able to finish an important step a couple of days ago and both of us are ecstatic! The Problematic Entertainment Center One of the things we wanted to address was the "entertainment center" that came with the trailer when we purchased it. This standard feature, found in most trailers, included a nook with a stereo and flat-screen television attached to the wall. Below all of this was a faux fireplace behind glass that actually uses a heater to simulate warmth coming from the artificial wood and graphical fire. Our Artificial Fireplace…is Actually AWESOME! We first thought the fireplace was the ultimate in cheesy, artificial stupidity. But slowly we came to realize that it was not only ok--it was actually wonderful! True, the fireplace is the pinnacle of fakery--you can even change the color of the "fire" and "glowing embers" to a variety of choices--OH BROTHER! But then something wonderful happened: we gave the dumb thing a chance and of all things, had to admit that it was pretty awesome. Changing the color of the flames from gold to purple or blue or green…that was so much fun! (I found this video in on YouTube which shows something vaguely similar to ours (click) We also recognized that the heat that came from the "fire" was wonderful and surprisingly accurate--intensely hot like a real fire if you were too close, cozy and warm if you sat back on the lovely entertainment lounge chairs that sat opposite to the entertainment center. We love our cheesy fireplace now and it reminds us of fun things we had years ago like lava lamps and plasma nebula globes. That TV Has To Go…We Need the Space for Something USEFUL! However, the television aspect of this center was a big, huge NOPE! At first Steve tried to convince himself that it was nice and that we'd use it a lot, but I wouldn't leave him alone about it. I kept reminding him, "DUDE...we'll NEVER EVER use it. We don't WATCH tv except for an hour at night to camp Chicken* before bed, and that's in the bedroom!" Finally he admitted that it was a horrible waste of space. What's more, there was no place to put our espresso machine and grinder, nor did we have enough room for our electronic charging area. The obvious choice would be to pull out the tv and turn it into a coffee bar with a cabinet above for the charging stuff and electronic gadget storage. *"Camping Chicken" is a nightly ritual where I climb into bed and put the sheets over my legs to make a cave. Our parrot, Pumpkin, goes into this cozy space to clean her feathers and settle down while we watch a tv show or part of a movie. After the show we coax her out from where she's snuggled down next to her "pet foot" and after kisses, we put her into her night cage's sleeping tent. Creating the Coffee Bar After a bunch of issues along the way--we tried putting in tiles, only to discover that they lifted and the grout cracked horribly. It then occurred to us, er…duh?...we never considered the fact that an RV in motion is like a nonstop earthquake...tiles would have NEVER worked. We would need a one-piece solution..but what? As a lucky find, Steve was wandering around a home-improvement store one day and discovered a one-piece, 4ft counter kit that would PERFECTLY slide into that spot! The color scheme also went exactly right with the coach! And so with all ducks in a row, Steve installed and siliconed the counter into place and finally, with peacock tail at full and glorious display, ushered me over to take a peekie at his workmanship. It was absolutely marvelous! The counter is better than the tile could have ever been and actually looks as if it were an original installation--how cool is that?! And without the tv in place, there's a wealth of extra room. In fact, during our first plan to put tiles in place, we ended up gaining 1.5 feet of extra space! The removal of the tv and the mechanism that held the tv was nearly a foot of valuable depth that we recovered. Then, upon further investigation, we discovered that the wall behind the tv, when removed, revealed another half-foot of unused space! Every inch of room in a trailer is at a premium and having this newfound, spacious area was a total windfall for us! We now have a gorgeous, spacious area for our beloved espresso machine, the coffee grinder, and all of the implements that go with it. The surface is perfect and just right for the daily mess which happens when making coffee. And, now that the counter is finished, Steve will be able to get started on the electronics cabinet above the coffee bar…hooray! :) Today's Pictures Our sunset walk out along the water at Parksville's Surfside RV Park was almost too wonderful for words. I ended up with so many great pictures that I couldn't bear the thought of lumping them all together in one gaudy presentation without giving at least a couple of them a "main shot" position. So today's star is a panorama which shows some of the amazing driftwood found along the shores here, accented by the setting sun and beautiful fading light. The insets show two other sunset pictures, each of which I thought merited a look. I hope you like them too! What an evening for memories it was!! :) HAPPY BIRTHDAY PAM!!! I hope you have a super day!! Pam, I know that you are moved by sunsets/rises just as much as I am, so I went to remind myself of some of your lovely pictures. Wow, wow, wow. Yeah, no two are ever the same and all of them are so special in their own colorful way! What a joy to behold your fine imagery and also, the graphical creativity that you let loose on some of your pictures. Outstanding and breathtaking. Thank you for the show! *BIG HUGS from southern Oregon* Explored on 2/10/20; highest placement #2.

(+7 insets!) (you can see the edgelit clouds better in full size!) :) Trip Talk: Up the Coast from Nanaimo to Parksville! After our too-short stay at our Nanaimo-based campground, we pulled up stakes and made the 40-minute drive to our next destination, Surfside RV Resort in Parksville. We were really happy to arrive at our next campsite so soon and since it was such an easy drive, we were able to go out and explore after getting our RV set up! Goats on the Roof and Country Store We decided that a drive around the area would be fun so we set off to go see a very popular country store with an unusual claim to fame. The store was set back on a hillside and had a grass-covered roof. On that roof were a group of goats! People come from near and far to see the goats up there, and we wanted to see as well! As it turned out, the blatant tourist trap of it all really turned us off, though we should have known better to begin with. The goats are actually kept on the roof. People milling around taking pictures of them made us feel like we were part of a crowd of mindless sight-seers and though I took my own shots, I felt a bit duped by the experience. The store was definitely overpriced but it was actually worth seeing. Vast selections of anything you could think of, mostly in the gourmet-food sector, it was really neat to see so many interesting varieties they had to offer. In fact, we ended up going home with a lovely marbled Porter cheddar cheese that wasn't expensive and turned out to be delicious and beautiful too! (If you'd like to see the sort of cheese we got, here's an article which shows pictures o f "alcohol-marbled cheeses" ) Wandering around outside the store, we found an enormous area filled with statuary for sale. They were fun to look at and I took some pictures, one of which you'll see as an inset. We also went around behind the store and saw a really cool old log cabin which I'm sharing a picture of too. Ultimately though, we were very underwhelmed with our experience at this tourist trap and just as well because it was time to head back for dinner. What a surprise we had in store…Mother Nature was about to make up for that bland experience! A Sunset to Remember After we'd had a lovely dinner, Steve and I decided to take a walk along the park's beautifully manicured path that went along the coastline. There was plenty of time to watch the sun go down and as the moments ticked by, the views got prettier and prettier. Adding to the drama, there were folks out on the bay enjoying themselves in kayaks and paddleboards. Steve and I enjoyed the challenge of trying to get pictures of them fully-silhouetted in the beam of sunshine in the water. It was such a lovely evening and we got piles of pictures! In fact, I was at a loss of how to properly share the images I got because there were so many that turned out very nicely. So, my solution is to present four sets of pictures so I can give a proper show that isn't too repetitive, I hope! :) Today's Pictures Today's main picture is a favorite for its light and wonderful mood. It really gives a feeling of what it was like to be out there that evening…the experience was amazing and so breathtaking! The insets show my best silhouetted person in the sunbeam, followed by a friendly fellow paddling into the sunbeam, droplets of water edge-lit in the glowing light. Finally, a silhouetted view of a paddleboarder looking back to see her friends in kayaks nearby. What a lovely way to experience that wonderful evening. A glorious occasion which we will never forget. Pam, have you ever played the "people in the sunbeam" game like we did? It's a grand bit of fun, especially because they were always paddling around, we were on the move, and everything was always changing up. I haven't tried it on a beach but it would be the same thing to sit in the sand and capture people silhouetted against the waves with the sun beaming past them…fun stuff. I hope you are having a nice day! :) *BIG HUGS* from southern Oregon! Explored on 2/06/20; highest placement #4.

(+ 2 insets!) (Please view large to get a feeling of being there!) Steve and I were busy today doing errands and that's kept us out rather late. While we were driving around we talked at one point about how things are changing for us... You know when you travel for a couple of weeks and you come back and it seems like nothing has changed at your home but you feel like a different person? We are now back after our second trip of four days/three nights away. It doesn’t seem as if that should be enough to make a difference, but it really has. We feel as if our lives are morphing into something new. It is an odd kind of feeling but nice too. Having an RV is giving us a freedom we have never experienced before. We have gained the ability to go wherever we want--and we get to bring our dog and parrot with us. It's a way to travel in a relaxed manner without a time frame if we decided to just wander. After dreaming for so long and saving our pennies to make it happen, it's such a strange sensation to recognize that we are actually reaping the rewards of our efforts. We are a bit shocked to be honest. At the same time, we are incredibly thankful for our good fortune. Today's picture was taken on our last evening when Steve and I went on a long hike so I could take pictures along the way. As we were heading back, the light in this meadow was just so incredible that Steve and I just stood there and appreciated the view in front of us. How the leaves glowed, the grass shimmered, and the way the shadows streamed across the scene. Pure magic. We'd planned on hot-footing it out to the lake to take pictures of the sun setting behind the forest and hills but decided to take the advice that so many have stated: stop hurrying from one thing to the next. Enjoy the moment. So we abandoned our initial plan. Our quick boogie to the lake became a slow stroll back to our camp with lots of pictures as we went. There will be other sunsets but the pretty sights we were seeing now deserved our attention, appreciation and enjoyment. We certainly made the right decision and both of us had a lovely time! I am also including pictures of some ferns taken with my Sony (taken from the bridge in my last picture!) and a bumble bee resting under a stalk of flowers. (Anyone know what they are called?) Pam, I totally loved what you said in my last picture's comments, " The marvelous difference it makes to be able to stay and grow into a place. New insights." You are so completely right about that and it's how we feel! There are so many things in this world which must be experienced in order to understand. That understanding takes a bit of time to settle into as well. Ok...we can do that! *BIG HUGS from southern Oregon! Explored on 5/11/19; highest placement #14.

(+2 insets!) Please view large! :) (I'm late again so making this short!) Every day that passes has both Steve and I feeling more excited about our next adventure. We had such a good time on our first RV trip that we're already booked for our next one! We will be going to a nearby destination again just to make sure we're not too far from home if we run into problems. We can't wait! For today, I'm finally posting the sunrise over Upper Lake Klamath. There were clouds in front so it's not a normal kind of sunrise but I really like the way it made the sunrise look. What an incredible moment to experience. I'm so happy I was there. Just look at this reward…even ducks flying by! I just couldn't have asked for more than this. :) I am also sharing two insets: one is a picture of birds on the water with golden light making the cattails glow, and the other is an abstract of the reflection of a jet trail on the water! Pam, I was thinking about my jet trail abstract so I looked up "abstract" on your stream. What a cool image your "Northern Lights" creation is! It gets a 10 on the Groovy scale! :D I hope you had a nice day my dear! *BIG HUGS* Explored on 5/1/19, highest placement, #1.

Last weekend, Steve and I got to visit some friends of ours and I was completely unprepared for the incredible show of daffodils she had! Literally THOUSANDS of flowers, so many species that I could not believe my eyes! I was told they have planted over 15,000 daffodils over the years and even though we came when most of them had died, the show was still magnificent and awesome! This is one of my favorite pictures, taken down by their pond as the sun was beginning to sink below the mountain. The rays were still shining on the pond and making the flowers glow, and I managed to get this image with dancing lights on the water and the flower petals glowing warmly. I spent about an hour flitting around the grounds and it truly was a magic hour. :) I will never forget this day!!!