Dorothy...we're not in Mammoth anymore...

At least, not this week!!!



It's time for the California Police Chiefs Conference!!!

Workshops...shopping...dinner events...shopping...schmoozing...shopping...

Are you catching the underlying theme here??? 

I love driving to Bishop for our local shopping destination at KMART...

BUT....we're talking Nordstrom's now!!!!

It's Skywatch Friday!!!

"Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, 

but to add color to my sunset sky."

                                                                                                    Rabindranath Tagore

To view more participants for Skywatch Friday, click here!

Our Daisy...doing her very favorite thing...

Riding in the car!!!

By the end of this week, Miss Daisy will have surpassed the doc's expectations...

Today, she and I took a drive down to Bishop to pick up her arthritis medicine...when she thinks she's going for  a ride, she still bounces and barks, eyes glittering and a smile on her face.  She climbs in the back with a little help from one of us, and finds her spot on her pad...

For awhile, she watches out the window, taking in the sights, or perhaps shapes...as she appears to have pretty significant cateracts...

And then, she puts her head on the car door by the window, and dozes off...

This is her bliss...

She is our golden girl...

PS...I took this with my droid phone, yep, don't tell the Chief...while driving down 395 to Bishop!!!

"F" is For FUN!!!

How FUN would it be to be a kid again and ride on this Fabulous Harley?!!!

Imagine yourself a kid again...pretending to be riding down the highway with your hair Flying and Filled with that sense of Fearless wonder that kids so easily Find in their everyday world.

Perhaps you'll Fly by a grove of trees...Faded from the winter cold...imagining that there is a world of Faeries beyond the trees, if only you could Find the portal...

Then...just as you're about to pass the grove...you imagine a Feckless gnome darting out onto the road.  He looks Familiar...and yet...not...

The gnome begins to laugh as if he's heard the Funniest joke or story...he Falls down on his Fanny which causes him to laugh even louder...he gets up...Flashes a big grin...and Follows a path across the way...as he approaches the grove, he sees a group of little Folk....next to the path is a Fawn that allows the gnome to climb on his back and ride off into the grove with the little Folk...

Ahhhh...but that's all Falderol...after all...

you're an adult...

and gnomes and Faeries are from the world of yesterday and Fantasy...

Thank you for joining me on my Foray into Fantasy!!!

For mor interpretations of the letter "F"....click here!!!

FYI... my Photographic Journey site is back online!!!  I've reconnected photo files and plan on posting about once a week!  To see the second half of our visit in Ephesus, Turkey,  click here!!!

Isn't that the Hubbard Glacier???

No....it's....

...our deck!!!

and the Chief is working hard to get rid of all that piled up snow!!!

FYI...My Photographic Journey blog is back online...

If you're interested...click here!!!

There's something very peaceful about snow...

This past week we experienced the second "big" snow storm of this winter...Not nearly as rugged a storm as the December storm...instead, just steady, beautiful snow...

the results...

Peace and quiet...

Until you hit the slopes on one of the biggest weekends of the season!!!

I went skiing again today...not nearly as successful as my first day...it was windy...it was cold...it was crowded...and...my knees hurt...

Ah well...back home...Advil...a little wine and good dinner...

(prepared by our wonderful houseguest, Kimberly)

now for a hot shower...

Heading back up tomorrow...

I'm taking Advil before I go up!!!

Reflecting back...

Weekend Reflections

Lake Topaz, California

With all the snowfall these past few days, it's given me time to review photos and see what I may have missed as a post...this is one of those photos.

On our way to Reno, Nevada, the Chief and I stopped at a few spots along the way...Lake Topaz being one of them...the surface of the water was like glass...and the reflection...perfect!!!

To see more weekend reflections, click here...

Contrasts in Light...

The Weekend in Black and White...

"In the right light, at the right time, everything is extraordinary."

                                                                                                            Aaron Rose

To visit other participants of the Weekend in Black and White...click here!

Back to the past!!!

Another gem of a car found next to Eric Schat's World Famous Bakery!!!

(To my international visitors...a little reality check...have you EVER heard of Eric Schat's Bakery in Bishop, CA???)

A little lomo effect...

These are the natural color...

And some more lomo effect!!!

It's still snowing...and I was out and a about in it again today...

Thank you Chief for my snow tires and my little Red (Subaru) Snowmobile!!!

Hail to the Chief!!!  Today the Chief was announced as the permanent Chief here in the town of Mammoth Lakes!!!  Guess we're going to be here for awhile!!!

It's Crystal Clear...

...it snowed again!!!

Yay!!!  Another 12 inches or so!!!  

I think I'm turning into a local...I went to the Dr, the grocery store, and the pet store during the worst of it...got home, couldn't get into the driveway because the berm from the snow plow was too big...the neighbor graciously used his snow blower to level the berm...I pulled in and all was well!!!

It's "E" Day for ABC Wednesday!!!

No, this is not a photo of an Equine...and it's not Early in the morning.  There was an Eagle flying above that would perch periodically on a utility pole, but Each time I Encroached upon it, he Emigrated to another spot.  Here, in the Eastern Sierras, cows Exist and flourish...after all, there's lot's of Edible, lush grass for them to Eat.  Sometimes, there might even be an Elk or two for visitors.  But don't get out your Espresso machine just yet...these aren't the type of cows you need for a latte!!!

Not a bad life for a cow, EH???

To see more participants for ABC Wednesday, click here...

Unanswered Prayers...

"Some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers."

                                                                                                    Garth Brooks

When I drove through Bishop and the Sherwin grade during the beautiful fall color, I wondered what the trees would look like when all their wonderful leaves fell...

Little did I know that in the absence of color there would be such grace...

A little side note...it's my sister's birthday today!!!  

Happy Birhday Annie!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

From our house to yours....

Wishing you a Happy Valentine's Day!!!

I know...it's a bit corny...and some of you may be gagging...but...

We do all wish you a Happy Valentine's Day...however you celebrate (or not!)

Bridge over troubled.....snow???

"It is not good to cross the bridge before you get to it."

                                                                                                          Judi Dench

Words of wisdom, in my book....

Sunday Bridges...Click here to see more participants for the Sunday Bridges Meme!!!

Wait...was that Bonnie and Clyde???

Another antique car next to Eric Schat's Bakery...a little worse for wear, but I didn't see any bullet holes...

It's for sale!  Anyone interested??? 

Check out more participants for the Weekend in Black and White...

She's a Flying Lady...

or, if you prefer, a flying Goddess...

...hood ornament, that is!!!

Initially, the hood ornament started out as a temperature gauge which was mounted on the external radiator caps.  Eventually, they began to create designs to hide the gauge.  When the gauges made their way onto the dashboard of the car, the hood ornament came into being...

The flying lady or goddess was a very popular design with versions on the Buick, DeSoto, Plymouth, Packard, Oldsmobile, Studebaker, and Graham.  Not to forget..the classic Rolls Royce's Spirit of Ecstasy.  

Some of the luxury cars went so far as to have Louis Lejeune of London or Rene Lalique of France manufacture fine art hood ornaments.  

Can you guess what make and model this car is???

I'm sure the Chief will be happy to fill you in...

The car is one of 3 old cars off to the side of Eric Schat's World Famous Bakery in Bishop, California...

on the way to Mammoth, most everyone stops at Schat's!!!

Love that asiago cheese bread!!!

(Laurie...So Pas isn't the only place you can find old cars!!!)

City Lights...

"We can't all be stars, but we can all twinkle."

                                                                                                    Anonymous

Sometime around Christmas I mentioned that I thought Mammoth kept a fair amount of it's lights up throughout the year...well, don't know how long these'll last, but they're still shining bright!!!

It's the letter "D"!! Three guesses who's the star of today's post!!!!

Yep!

It's the letter "D" today...obviously, for Miss DAISY!!!

Arguably, the best DOG...EVER!!!

Miss DAISY enjoying the first snow of the year...

Miss DAISY resting after playing in the snow with the grandkids...and of course, Miss Cleo making sure no one disturbs the grand DAME...

Miss Daisy is still doing well...much better than expected.  She still bounces and barks when she sees me  getting ready to go out as she's sure she's going with me...she still gets all twinkle toes when going for a walk, though she stops to sniff a whole lot more...

She's still our DARLING girl and every day we have with her is a gift...

It's ABC Wednesday, please click here to view the other participants....

Just Breathe....

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, 

but by the moments that take our breath away."

                                                                                             Anonymous

                                                                                            

Darn it...

Another gosh darn gorgeous sunset!!!

What's a girl to do in another day of paradise, but take another photo!!!

It's a Bird...It's a plane...It's a...

Petrified Praying Mantis???

Anything else come to mind???

What do you do when you left your camera at home???

Soooo...Daisy and I drove to Bishop the other day, and I didn't take my camera...I was enjoying the afternoon and decided to take a drive around the outskirts of Bishop...Daisy, of course, was all in favor of the extended excursion.

I decided to check out the housing development that I've seen numerous times while driving from Bishop to Mammoth...you know, the one on the left of 395 just as you're starting the uphill grade?

Well...I took the wrong turnoff and ended up on several beautiful country roads...with cows and trees and fences and old buildings...but no camera!!!

But I did have my Droid!!!  

8 mg pixels to my Nikon with only 6!!!  

Go figure...

The hard part is keeping the darned thing steady!!!

In Case of Doubt...

Just in case you were doubting the truth of my excursion on skis...

Yep!  That's me!!!

Ski outfits have lost the glamour they used to have way back when...

????

OK...can someone enlighten me???

Yep...a teepee, in the snow (yes, it's snow...just hard packed), with little munchkins sitting by it...

????????

"C" is for Chairlift!!!

It's only appropriate that today's post is a Chair lift...

Today is my first day skiing again in many, many, many years!!!

Hopefully, the C for Chair lift will not extend to C for Cast or Crutches!!!

Please send Calm and Cheerful thoughts my way,

 as I brave the Mammoth Chair lift today!!!

To view other participants in ABC Wednesday, click here!!!

"A little perspective,

like a little humor, goes a long way."

                                                                                       Allen Klein

After yesterday's post, which truly did not have any manipulation at all,

 I decided to have a little fun!

And what better scene than some of the tufa at Mono Lake...

already a perfect backdrop for a bit of 

Sci Fi!!!

This first one is untouched...a bit dark, but I liked the dramatic lighting...

Ok...similar in feel to last night's real time twilight hour, 

but not nearly as effective!!!

Playing with the edge...leaning toward black and white...

a bit more dramatic than the last one...

Definitely a twilight hour effect...

But ohhhhhh...now this one's dramatic!!!  And perfect for SciFi!!!

I think this one's my favorite...

Which one is yours???