Cincinnati City Walk, Part Two: Street Art

I love murals and Cincinnati has a few beauties. These are some of the finest and I thought it nice to share them with you.

Have a Great Weekend!!

Love and Liefs, Johanna

Thank You All & Cincinnati City Walk: Part I

Thank you all so much for leaving kind and encouraging comments on my previous post. I am a 100% sure it sped up the healing process, it felt like a warm blanket, friends!!!

But enough with the indulging in a little pampering! Sore backs don’t heal themselves, work needs to be done: exercises, rowing, swimming and above all walking.

Hilly nature walks are a step too far at the moment. So a nice walk through the city centre in the vicinity of Findlay Market it was and we brought the camera this time. In Spring weather the light is perfect for street photography.

So images from Cincinnati on a Saturday morning. This is our brand new street car!

Cincinnati with its history with the meat industry, has a fondness of (flying) pigs. You find them everywhere.This is a window display at a butcher…I don’t think those pigs entirely agree ;o)

That costume of the tour guide of this guided tour is too beautiful for words!!!

Cincinati is climbing out of recession and many building are done up beautifully at the moment. The contrast on what is and is not done yet, is clearly visible…

And than a perfect ending in one of our favorite restaurant for a proper BBQ meal.

Nou wat een lieve, leuke berichtjes kreeg op mijn vorige post. Daar knapt een mens van op hoor. Ik ben alweer aan de wandel en druk met oefeningen. In de modder ploeteren, op de heuvels in de wilde natuur is wat veel gevraagd nog maar een knusse stadswandeling met de camera in de aanslag zit er alweer in. Dit is Cincinnati op een zaterdag morgen met lekker lente weer.

Love and Liefs, Johanna

Oh Snap and No Drawings to Show For Either!!!

Some memories stay engraved in your mind with date and all: two weeks ago, Friday morning I made the bed and whilst bending over I felt a sharp pain in my back which I had not felt for long time. Snap!!! I could hardly walk, not sit up straight, not lay down. Ouch Ouch ouch…

The next few days I spent dozing of on muscle relaxers, soaking in the hot tub, scurrying through the house in the most inelegant way. Mr. Walker felt so sorry for me whilst I wailed and moaned  I complained just a little because in the greater scheme of things life was still good right?

Of course it was, Monday morning I called a chiropractor and he turned out to be a man of action who does not waste time! An hour later he was doing his witchcraft with high tec machinery and skillfully pulling and twisting my arms, legs and spine, which I bravely tried not find scary at all ( in vain)

So for the past two weeks, I could not sit up right, so no drawing to show for what so ever. I did read plenty of books.

And I did have fun crocheting these pebbles..and they fit so nicely with my green and blue light. Do not watch too closely, crocheting is not really my thing. Raveled it here

I admired greatly a quiche I baked (yes, that is rather pathetic indeed)

Knitted one sleeve at my from the top down cardigan.

There was snow and cold, as you can see in the first photos. I had cut a few branches earlier and put them in a vase. If you wait long enough, they will flower and you have a little Spring at home.

I laughed out loud when the Oldest Walker Boy send this photo all the way from Toronto.We debated wether this was left by a contemptuous dog or was Mr. Snowman trembling in his little snow boots about the upcoming winter storm?

We have nice Spring weather now…and I am knitting an Easter Hare in happy anticipation. You can already see it’s pretty behind ;o)

And this is what Charley is suggesting every time, I lay on the floor, doing my re-hab exercises. That is twice a day…

Love and Liefs, Johanna

Lately: Looking for Sunshine, Yoga Knitting, and More…

 

“It is a serious thing //just to be alive / on this fresh morning / in this broken world.”
― Mary Oliver, Red Bird

The Oldest Walker Boy send me this beautiful photo of the view from his office in Toronto. The sun broke through glorious.

At the moment, sunshine is a bit of a rare commodity here and it almost seems to reflect the state of the world we are in right now. Its hard, very hard not to be weighed down by the daily news I find. I am not going to discuss that, this blog is not about politics and the likes. But I find it difficult to make a post about my important nothings. However I am going to because I need to. We all need to find things that replenish our energy and make us keep going on doing what we believe in..right?

Here you see a moment of sunshine in my living room…

I tidied up my card rack after Christmas. I love my card rack. It reminds me of lovely people and the beauty of great images. This year’s Christmas cards will not be discarded, they find their way as book markers  and make me smile every time I pick up a book and I read a lot of books!  

I baked scones and drank tea and lit so many candles on days the sun is hiding.

Lots of comfort yoga knitting too! These slippers looked so funny when they came fresh from the needle but they look so dainty when on the foot! Pattern here.

Finished my summer bag! I repurposed one of Mr. Walker nice cotton shirts. He wears them to work and when too old for wearing, I use the nice fabrics for all kinds. In this case, I lined the bag cleverly (if I may say so myself) with the breast pocket part so I have a nice inside pocket without any difficulty. There was a some yarn left for a little pouch for my shopping cards. Raveled it here.

I picked up the “from the top down cardigan” again. I am not very patient with bigger projects. But we are getting there.

And I started knitting a blanket!! The perfect project for me. Little squares in a wonderful lace pattern. It’s called the Tulip…ahw, the national flower from The Netherlands ;o) BTW the gorgeous deep purple yarn is a blend of merino and possum, send to me as a present all the way from New Zealand by my friends from Union Homestead…finally found a purpose for the beautiful and to me unusual yarn. Its so soft!!!

And the ultimate “comfort food”: finding a new perfect fitting dress!!! This is better than pizza and chocolate!! What are the odds of finding my favorite kind of dress in a perfect size: a 100% wool jumper dress, in a second hand store…it was never worn, the label was still on it. I paid $12.- dollar. (And keep in mind, I am a royal 6ft+, finding clothes that fit , is a serious undertaking!) If you heard some yodeling…it was me!!! And I apologize for this selfie…I send it even to my sons that’s how happy I was. They were good natured about it, bless them!!

Och hemel, t lijkt allemaal wat grijs: ‘t weer, ‘t nieuws. Dat laatste ga ik niet bespreken want deze blog gaat niet over politiek. Maar t maakt me wel somber en ik vind t moeilijk om over gezellige niemendalletjes te babbelen. Toch ik ga t wel doen, want ik heb  iets nodig om vergane energie weer aan te vullen…dat hebben we allemaal nodig toch?
Dus mooie momenten van zonneschijn vanuit t kantoor van mijn oudste zoon en in onze woonkamer. Ik word ook blij van gezellige kaartjes en als ze niet op t rek hangen dan worden t boekenleggers. Heel veel breien en kopjes thee en kaarsjes en lekkere warme scones. En och hemel…als je luid gejodel hoorde…dat was ik in mijn nieuwe jurk. Past perfect , ondanks mijn lengte, en nog een koopje ook. Dat is zelfs een selfie waard!! (Met excuses)

Love and Liefs, Johanna

Back to Peaceful, Calm and Tidy

Oh man, what a wonderful time we had with the Walker Boys. They arrived just after Christmas and left only last Saturday for Canada again.  When you only meet a couple times a year, family time together is even more valuable!

There were plenty of good winter walks at Rowe Woods, excellent meals (Dutch Pea soup, now that sticks to your ribs!) Lots of good talks and banter or just quietly sitting together and reading. Charley was so happy with both her best friends around.

The Oldest Walker Boy went with Mr. Walker to The Air force Museum in Dayton, for a photo shoot. They have just opened a new wing and it lead to many new gorgeous photos. And we went with the four of us the FABULOUS Viking Exhibition at the Cincinnati Museum Center. No photos but I can indeed highly recommend it!

And then they left again…SIGH!!! I was sulking, and pouting for days. But of course, that won’t do any good. What’s a girl to do? Some vigorous cleaning (as any other possessed by cleanliness Dutch Girl will) and knitting. I finally finished this shawl and it was received with a little dance of joy by a wonderful Princess in Toronto. And I am having lots of fun with this summer colored yarn I received for Christmas. It’s going to be a little summer bag.

And a little thrift store shopping was in order too.(My comfort food, so to speak) I found these beautiful swans to compliment my collection of Fifties Kitsch Planters. But this one receives a place of honor in this nice cupboard because it is a little light as well…such bliss!! It makes me very happy and Mr. Walker says that is all what really matters. ( as long as it doesn’t end up in the living room ;o))

And I found this pretty little handmade quilt. I love the colors. And my darling girl Charley was very happy with it when she returned so cold from a walk. (She is getting on in age)

So back to drawing , I will show some later….drawing and pouting, not a good combination.

Och hemel, wat een heerlijke tijd hadden we met de Walker Boys: gezellig samen zijn, winterwandelingen, lekker Hollandse pot op tafel, wat museum tripjes.
Ze gingen zaterdag weer terug naar Canada. En ik pruilde natuurlijk nog dagen daarna. Maar kom, en dan als elke Hollandse meid maar weer verder na een flinke schoonmaakbeurt hier en daar en wat yoga breien en natuurlijk een rondje kringloop wat een knus kitsch lampje opleverde en een warm quiltje voor mijn wat bejaard wordende Charley.

Love and Liefs,
Johanna

The Walker Residence in Mid Century Modern Christmas Style..Sort Of…

Finally, the house is in Christmas glory!! Much later than other years for two reasons. Well, my previous posts already revealed that on account of that crazy long summer weather my seasonal clock was a bit confused. Kerry’s fantastic blog helped to get me in the mood and I shared many memories and thoughts with her…might as well use them here to accompany the many photos I made this year ;o)

The other reason is, that the Walker Boys are coming home for the Holidays!! These hardworking, studying lads normally have to work all through the season and we travel to Toronto. But this year, they made it happen! The Oldest Walker Boy is arriving on Boxing day and the Youngest Walker Boy on the 30th!! We will have a proper Christmas on New Years Eve. And of course, by that time, I do not want to be bored with our decked halls and trimmed trees, the young menfolk love the Christmas decor!

So here goes…the Walker Residence in Mid Century Modern Christmas Style! Some photos look a bit weird because I used a wide angle lens.

My dearest ornament is this strange glass bear-like creature. It was given to me when I was a little girl in the sixties and my sisters and I had our own ornaments and of course a big part of the holidays was spent on moving the ornaments in such a way that our own hung most prominent ;o) It hangs since a few years in my own tree and its a tiny miracle it survived many moves, attacks from pets and curious little children hands!

A lot of our furniture and nicknacks I found at garage sales and the likes. But Ikea understands Mid Century Modern too ;o)

Christmas music: I love of course the fifties golden oldies but my favorite Christmas song is Faye Lovski, “Christmas was a friend of mine” https://youtu.be/GnXdnUZmJ_o. She is singing about the Christmas of my youth! And I really like Jonathan Jeremiah’s “Happiness” https://youtu.be/ZjsbbdsFOOU because it reminds me of our long distance family traveling to each other for Christmas !

Horrible Christmas Memory: I was once in a Christmas pageant, I think I was 8 years. I was a rather clumsy little girl, due to late developing motor skills. Oh how I wished to be the Angel but the teacher for saw many troubles with me so she decided I could be one of the shepherds. Disappointing for me, but still at least I was ‘in’. Alas..I managed to get my robe hooked on the manger, it tumbled over and baby Jesus (thank goodness represented by a baby doll) rolled of the stage. Everybody was in shocked horror and I could add another moment of shame to my long list.

Splendid Christmas Memory: Years later I was head of the ‘children department’ in the church where we lived at that time and together with the other moms we started Christmas celebrations for the tiny toddlers. It was just 15 minutes (taking short attention spans in account) and there was always the delightful squeaky old wooden donkey involved who would bring Mary on his back, pulled by Josef into the church. A little story, a little song and a treat…and than outside for the live Nativity Scene. Oh those shining little faces!!. Within a few years hundreds of people came to it. It made me really happy and when people complained about tumbling toddlers in the church, you can understand they were met with stern reproaches and a quote of Jesus himself who stated “let children come to me!”.
(I grew up with many different churches and beliefs…to me its quite simple: as long as Love and Peace is the message, I am happy.)

Christmas Reading: I like to re-read “Miss. Buncle’s Book” by D.E Stevenson..not really Christmas, but so cozy. And of course never a Christmas without a good Murder Mystery of the Nice Kind:Snow storms, chique family, big mansion and butler are key ingredients. And the sweetest Christmas book of all: The Father Christmas Letters by J.R.R. Tolkien. On our honeymoon in Great Britain in 1988, we searched high and low for a copy which in itself was already a joy. But we finally found it in gorgeous bookstore in Edinburgh …one with dusty windows and mahogany bookcases. It was the best!!!

Love and Liefs, Johanna

Lately: Peaceful, Calm and Tidy

With all the worldwide upheavals I needed more than ever my home to be a safe haven of coziness to cope and stubbornly ploughing on with what I believe is right. So here some pictures of what gives me joy and energy. This is a rainbow cloud. It’s the second time in my life, I spotted one..a good omen right?

Charley and I enjoy the Fall view from our house on top of the hill.

During our invigorating cold walks we discovered more beautiful fungi.

At the thrift store, I found this crazy vintage owl jug, which I use as a vase. It makes me very happy! (and ohlala, only $2.-)

I made some pretty toad stools myself. Sewing is not one of my better talents but this was such fun to do and I was happy with the results. Aaaand I could use these old tea pots which I bought for pennies because of the pretty decorations on them. (One man’s junk…) The pattern for these toadstools can be found on Anne Woods beautiful website.

Charley came back from her bi-weekly bath (she has a skin condition) and shivered. My darling girl is getting on in age. I loved seeing her comfortably taking a warm nap under her blanket. (Also a nice thrift find)

And lately, Mr. Walker and I love these chai chocolate puddings..so pretty too in the little mason jars. Very tasty..but yes, how can chocolate not be???

And of course, the ultimate healing thing to do…baking the apple pie!

Wishing you all good apple pie moments in your life!

Love and Liefs,
Johanna

Lately…Important Nothings and Downton Abbey!

Well we had a little breather with cooler weather last weekend. Mr. Walker and I enjoyed a good walk at Rowe Woods..such joy!!!

Ragweed season has started and our Darling Girl is allergic to it. Her skin gets so itchy and she starts wriggling and crying. So immediately of to the vet for her shot and on coming home, she made sigh of relief and continued with her favorite activity.

With apologies for this rather blurry photo…but all this packing material was used to send  the three little bottles of vitamins in the front of it….

The Walker boys and I text a lot and send each other photos during the day. The Youngest Walker Boy received some doodles making fun of the difference in height between him and his Princess (she is adorable) and him spoiling those cats! ( there is always a lot of teasing going around amongst the Walker Clan)

I showed the Oldest Walker Boy this book and we decided to challenge each other drawing a map…this was his, of course so creative and original!!

Mine…your traditional medieval map. Good practice but not very original.

And what a great book this is!! Cocktails and literature…best of both worlds and beautiful illustrations to boot! 

And I leave you with all these photos of the splendid costumes from Downton Abbey!!! The traveling exhibition arrived at the Taft Museum and my friends and I ordered tickets all ready last spring and were of in a thunder gallop as soon as our time came up!! There was a lot of ‘Oohs’ and ‘Aaahs’ ….and I would be very happy with that red coat!

Have a great weekend!!

Love and Liefs,
Johanna

Sketch Journal Project: Cicadas

It is fascinating how nature changes when summer/the season progresses. The swallows are gathering in groups, lots of birds are molding , the fireflies have gone again. Now the cicadas and crickets have started their chorus in full blast. Especially when the sun sets, the noise is impressive…those ‘love birds’ have lots of competition!

I read up on cicadas on this website and learned so much. But still was not able to determine what kind of cicada this is. Well there are 3390 different ones to choose from!

This is what’s left after the cicada changes from nymph to ‘real cicada’, an imago. If you look carefully you can see a neat cut, where he crawled out.

From a distance they look rather grayish and unassuming…up close it is Star Wars meet Aliens!  And they have amazing legs..you can hang anywhere on any material ;o)

We gaan duidelijke de laatste fase van de zomer in: de zwaluwen verzamelen zich, andere vogels zijn in de rui, de vuurvliegjes zijn weer weg. En nu is t de beurt aan cicaden en krekels…man, vooral als de zon ondergaat is t me een lawaai, allemaal voor de liefde (en de volgende generatie;o)) Cicaden zijn fascinerende beestjes, ze leven ondergronds voor 2 tot wel 17 jaar en dan is feesten en flirten en…doodgaan. Deze website verteld veel meer nog.

Love and Liefs, Johanna

Ps and to be clear, this cicada was already dead. Life is fast, flirty and short for cicadas…

Sketch Journal Project: Summer

It is not that I detest summer with a passion  I do not like summer at all…to keep myself in my positive drive, I focused on this another stinking hot day  today on things I do like about summer. I feel better already ;o)

Love and Liefs, Johanna