Aglow

A  L  O  H  A !

" The glow 

of one warm thought

is to me 

worth more

 than money. "

                      Thomas Jefferson

“ I touched the moon last night;

a golden glow beyond my grasp.

Eons before me it rested there.

It will remain when I am dust.

My hand now glows 

from the embrace. . .

I touched the moon last night.” 

                              Craig Froman

" The loveliest of faces

 are to be seen

 by moonlight, 

when one sees half 

with the eye 

& half 

with the fancy. "

                            Persian Proverb

(})

Thank You

          Fondly, cloudia

Willow Mill Park "Under the Roller Coaster"

A    L    O    H    A  !

" If the 

only prayer you said 

was 'thank you'

that would be 

enough. "

                        Meister Eckhart 

". . . it takes a life 

to learn how

 to live. "

                     Jonathan Safran Foer 

click on photo to enjoy all the shadows showing off

“ I have learned that

if you must leave a place

that you have lived in 

and loved 

and where all your 

yesteryears 

are buried deep, -

" leave it any way 

except a slow way,

 leave it 

the fastest way 

you can. -

" Never turn back

 and never believe

 that an hour you remember

 is a better hour

 because it is dead. 

Passed years seem safe ones, 

vanquished ones, 

while the future lives

 in a cloud,

 formidable from a distance. ” 

                       Beryl Markham, 

                               " West with the Night "

({)

Sometimes

our memories are

"creative."

We walked to school

in 40 feet of snow

every day!

Summer afternoons

were centuries long;

Ice cream was sweeter.

Heck, maybe it was.

In Annie Hall

Woody Allen remembers

growing up in a house

under a roller coaster!

[You can see it HERE]

I have 

roller coaster memories 

too. . .

My high school boyfriend's

(I wrote about Carl Here)

older brother played lead guitar

in a band. After hearing me

play my flute, "Chopper"

invited me to be in the band.

We played every weekend

in a bar in Maryland.

So every weekend,

Carl and I rode the Reading Railroad

out to Mechanicsburg PA 17050.

The girl lead singer

had a house

directly across the street

from a sweet, small time

amusement park called

"Willow Mill Park" Link.

We practiced for hours 

and slept at her house,

and during our breaks

we walked across the small 

residential road

to take rides on the 

Red Streaker!

Link

That exciting name 

hardly describes

the rickety, old & small

ride we knew. Of wood,

as I recall.

Shook all the wrong notes

right out of my fingers!

Sounds like a made-up

story, a scene in a comedy,

a Fellini film,

or an outright 

bald-faced lie,
but I assure you 

it's true.

Thank YOU

 for Bellying Up

to our Tall Tale

table today!

Care to share one?

                     Fondly, cloudia

A Saturday Critter

A  L  O  H  A !

SINGING KAHULI 

OAHU TREE SNAIL Link

“Then turn not pale, beloved snail, 

but come and join the dance.”

 Lewis Carroll

 1832-1898

Linking to Saturday Critters

Here

Thank YOU

            Warmly, cloudia

Remember: “By perseverance the snail reached the ark.”

 Charles H. Spurgeon 

 1834-1892)

Whatever it is you're seeking

A  L  O  H  A !

Chocolate toothbrush

Johnny Appleteen

follows the moon

in search of a queen

swallows lies

 if you know what I mean

splits the difference nicely

by

living on beans

Green Green 

A Chorus of 

G R E E N

PDVA: 

Public Display

 of Vegetal Affection

" Always be 

a first-rate version 

of yourself, instead of 

a second-rate version 

of somebody else. "

                  Judy Garland

At this rate

who ELSE

am I fit to be?!

Pixie?

" Whatever it is you're seeking

won't come 
in the form you're expecting. "
                           Haruki Murakami


[|]

Thank YOU
for exploring the 
Wondrous Nonsense
with us today!
                     Warmly, cloudia

Sincerely

A  L  O  H  A !  
 Click on Photos

" Insincerity
 is always weakness; 
sincerity 
even in error
 is strength. "
          George H. Lewes

Hard Working Young Woman

 " A friend 
is a person 
with whom I may
 be sincere. 
Before him
 I may think aloud.” 
         Ralph Waldo Emerson

Hurrying Tugboat / US Coast Guard
maintaining navigation buoys 

"I'm from the government,

and I'm here to help."

"I sincerely believe 

that banking establishments 

are more dangerous 

than standing armies" 

Thomas Jefferson 

USA Co-Designer,

USA President,

University Founder

Skateboard

2 in 1: Fishing boat &
  surfers [to the right]

" Nothing in the world 

is more dangerous 

than sincere ignorance. "

           Martin Luther King, Jr.

Waikiki Morning / Construction Fence

“Truly appreciate
 those around you, 
and you'll soon find 
many others around you. 
Truly appreciate life, 
and you'll find 
that you have 
more of it.
Ralph Marston

{])

Thank YOU Sincerely!

                 Warmly, cloudia

Successful Acorns

A  L  O  H  A 

" Successful people are

 always looking for opportunities 

to help others. -

- Unsuccessful people are

 always asking,

 'What's in it for me?' "

                Brian Tracy

Linking to Skywatch

Here

" The ungrateful one

 is like a hog 

under a tree eating acorns,

 but never looking up 

to see 

where they come from. "

                                        Timothy Dexter

Early Morning Paddle

A  L  O  H  A !

" I'm a very early riser, 

and I don't like to miss 

that beautiful 

early morning 

light. "

                 David Hockney

“I hear lake water lapping 

with low sounds by the shore. . . .

I hear it in 

the deep heart's core.”

                   William Butler Yeats

There is more to life

 than increasing it's speed." 

                        Mahatma Gandhi

 

" Loud

gush the streamlets, 

but great rivers

 flow silently. "

               Buddha

" Adopt 

the pace of nature:

 her secret

 is patience. "

                 Ralph Waldo Emerson

" True happiness...
 arises, in the first place, 
from the enjoyment
 of one's self. "
Joseph Addison

" Be still like a mountain

 and flow like a great river. "

 Lao Tzu

[/]

Thank YOU

for floating by!

             Warmly, cloudia

A B C's of a Day

A  L  O  H  A !

 Sunset  Angel

 Garden Gnome

 Soaring Rainbow

Bring  It  Home!


([\])

" You will never be happy 

if you continue to search 

for what happiness 

consists of. 

You will never live 

if you are looking for 

the meaning of life. "

Albert Camus

" I don't believe 

people are looking 

for the meaning of 

life 

as much as they 

are looking for 

the experience 

of being alive. "

Joseph Campbell

Thank YOU

for looking

Together

           Warmly, cloudia

Birds of a Feather

A  L  O  H  A !

"A dream you dream 

alone 

is only a dream. 

A dream you dream

 together 

is reality. "

              John Lennon

            

( )

Linking to Thematic Photographic

Here

Thank You

                    Warmly, cloudia

What the Angel Said - Over 50

Life

is not a mountain.

You needn't feel

"Over the hill."

It's more of a plateau.

You're born looking up

looking ahead

to this climb.

You head for the landmarks

you recognize:

Growing, Graduation, Gratification.

Much of what we pursue

is illusion.

With each one dispelled

or realized

we become more than we were,

yet more ourselves.

Our perspective changes

with altitude.

Nothing is as it seemed

when we get there.

Often it is much MUCH

better

than we could ever know.

Now that I have achieved

the journey over the lip

of what can be glimpsed

by those under 50.

I see not a decline

down some other side

but a delightful raising path

towards lovely mystery.

If the Unknown

can be called lovely.

The harsh sun of midday

so suited to the work I had to do

does not penetrate here.

The atmosphere is gentle,

even if unknowns lurk about,

ahead.

Oh there is work to be done

but with urgency removed.

I do not want to eat up miles,

but to savor my steps.

Each stage of life

has its tasks and compensations

and I intend to enjoy 

ALL of mine!

Age is a gift
to those who can
accept it.

You deserve ALL
Good Things, Friend-
That is my wish for
Y O U
                Warmly, cloudia