Wordless Wednesday

   

  

Ode to Notebooks

I have a confession. I am obsessed with school supplies.  There's just something so wonderful about a brand new mechanical pencil, with its pristine eraser and sharp tip that makes my notes better. Even more than  I love a new pencil, I loveee a pretty notebook! I have dozens, most with only a line or two written on the first page.

You can have fun notebooks, practical notebooks, and even secret notebooks.  I have a notebook for my assignments, one to log my workouts in, one to gush about boys I like, one to doodle in, and one just for my explorations. I'm addicted and I don't care who knows it!

Here are a few that I have my eye on when I go school supply shopping for the next semester:

Oscar Wilde notebooks - Mara Mi

Canvass with a Camera

I bought my first, real camera at the end of the last school year.  It was quite an investment, but I have not regretted it! I've used it to capture the small parts of our campus that I'm afraid I'll forget someday.  There are statues, light fixtures, and even ceilings all over school that are so beautiful that I have to have a picture of them (Stapleton, anyone?)! Here are a few I took early in the year:

I highly recommend you take a camera - it can be your phone - and take a walk around our campus.  When you really start to look, you'd be amazed by all of the lovely details you'll find!

Tempted to Travel

On rainy December days (please make it stop!), I like to imagine what it would be like if I were in another country.  I think I'd be wandering aimlessly down crowded streets, window shopping, and generally enjoying the novelty of the sites and people I pass. If I like noticing the environment I currently live in, I would have a field day in another country!

I'm not sure where I would travel first because there are too many options.  If someone asked me to choose, I'd probably dither for a very long time!  I know I want to experience the fashion of Paris, visit the Royals in London, and share a pint in Dublin.  

For now, I content myself with the knowledge that I will travel someday.  I will be as free to explore as the little, blue bird above ! Given the chance, where would you most like to go? 

Critter Watch

If you live or work on a college campus, you have probably seen the plump squirrels that wander gracefully around the grounds.  I'm kidding, of course - there is nothing graceful about the little creatures.  They waddle about and struggle to stay aloft tree branches.  I swear I even saw one lying on its back, waiting for someone to toss him leftovers from lunch!

This is the average size of a campus squirrel:

On the other hand, the poor fellows have led me to appreciate critters like this:

                  

 

What kind of creatures do you notice in your environment? While I don't usually see sheep, chicks, or blue herons around my campus, I have seen them all by my home in MN.  The next time you go for a walk, take a look around - you might be surprised by all of the things you'll notice!

Color of the Day: Red

 Through my procrastination, I have found a color that is really speaking to me lately - red. I have always loved red - red nail polish, red pumps, red dresses, and red popsicles - but it seems to be one of the hot colors this season.

Here are a few pictures that have me riding a crimson tide!

      

        

 

           

Searching Cemeteries

Cemeteries have always been my favorite place for exploration.  There is something I find irresistible about the old gravestones and the history they represent.  I don't find them eerie or upsetting in the least; instead, I am drawn to them like a moth to a flame.  I imagine most girls feel the same exhilaration finding a great pair of shoes as I feel when I stumble upon an old graveyard.

These three pictures were taken at Rutherford Cemetery in Stillwater, MN.  Rutherford had its first burial in 1851. It is also the resting place of many veterans who served as far back as the Civil and Spanish American Wars.

I know I'm confusing my holidays a little bit, but I never miss a chance to look around.  Today's unseasonably warm weather put me in the mood to find a graveyard in the South Bend area (any one have suggestions?!).  For now, you'll have to bear with me and enjoy a Tim Burton Christmas season!