Orchids and a metal bouquet for Jake’s Theme

It’s great to see Jake back again with his Sunday Post Challenge. I absolutely love flowers, but have very few photos, as I find they’re so difficult to photograph, to do justice to their beauty.

The Singapore Botanic Gardens has a wonderful orchid house, and this was, in my opinion, the most spectacular one.

I always like to have at least one orchid in my home. This one has been flowering for months, and has just a few blooms left on it.

Although we’re going back to South Africa soon, I couldn’t resist buying this orchid a couple of weeks ago. I’ll  have to donate it to my neighbour when we leave. Do you think she’ll mind?

Talking about giving flowers away, here’s a young lady who sits at the side of the road in Ambato Ecuador, generously offering her bouquet to all the passers-by.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my flowers for the challenge. To see Jake’s amazing graphics, just click on the badge below.

The consequences of not getting all your ducks in a row, and what do thin people eat?

I haven’t mentioned the musical showcase we’ve been working on for a while, because I haven’t known exactly what’s happening. Anyway, I can now report that owing to the fact that our organiser didn’t get all his ducks in a row before getting everyone all excited about it, the show isn’t going to happen. So, after my spending hours sorting out and purchasing the sheet music on line, plus getting the correct lyrics for the songs, not to mention a few sleepless nights and all the time spent practising at home and attending rehearsals, the show won’t go on. This is because the weekend when we were going to do the performance, coincides with midterm break, and it’s going to be too busy here at the club, as many members have their families coming down to stay. This is the weekend before I have to return to South Africa, because of our visa restrictions, so we couldn’t have it at a later date. After having a meeting with the club committee, the organiser called me to say, “You can stop practising now, because the show is off.” His phone call caught me literally mid song, whilst I was driving hubby mad, pounding out South Pacific’s ‘There is Nothin’ Like a Dame’ and  Fiddler on the Roof’s ‘Tradition’.

I was somewhat dumbstruck, and didn’t quite know what to say. We had a two hour rehearsal scheduled for the following day at my house. He asked me not to say anything to the others, as he would make the announcement then. They all arrived, ready to sing their hearts out, and we sat around waiting for our leader to arrive. They kept asking me which song we were going to start with, and I didn’t know what to say to them. He brought his wife with him for moral support, and as you can imagine, all the blame was laid at the Board of Directors’ door. Of course everyone was hugely disappointed, and one guy said he’d just managed to memorise the whole of the soliloquy for ‘Tradition’. Quite an effort on his part, as he is 90-years-old. So that’s that, I guess. I have to admit that I slept much better that night, and now I am so over it, that I wouldn’t be interested if they approach me again next year, which is quite likely. I’m back to just playing for my own enjoyment, and very relaxing it is too. We have less than a month here, before we leave, so I’m going to enjoy every minute.

Last night, we went with friends to the club for dinner. Just as our meal was being served, a guy I’ve often seen at gym, came over and said, “I’ve just come to see what thin people eat.” He was quite amazed.

For starters,  hubby’s choice was delicious French onion soup with loads of melted cheddar on top.

For myself, deep fried Calamari,

followed by a Salmon Burger, although I didn’t eat half the bun.

I forgot to take a pic of my chocolate and vanilla frozen yoghurt, but it was yummy, and we did share it.

Today it’s pouring with rain, so as the saying goes, its “Lovely weather for ducks.”

Hope your Thursday has been as laid-back as mine.

Wordless Wednesday: Wow… Look at me now!

Today was the first time I’ve seen our Great Blue Heron posing this way.  Do you think he was just warming his belly in the sunshine, or has he been practising yoga, and finally mastered the Buddha pose?

Ed’s Sunday Stills: What bad weather?

Apologies to you guys up north. I just couldn’t resist this challenge from Ed, but as I have no bad weather pics to show you, I thought I’d just show you what you’re missing by not living here in Florida, at least for the winter. As you can see. the pool area here, wasn’t at all crowded. Maybe the weather wasn’t quite good enough.

The golf course looks pretty deserted too. There’s just no pleasing some people.

This blogger was very happy, as she perused and commented on your posts, but I did have one complaint. The bright sunshine made the screen really hard to read. I suppose one can’t have everything in this life. *sigh*

Mr Great Blue Heron  doesn’t really care what the weather is like, but he looked pretty happy taking a stroll in the afternoon sunshine.

If you really want to see some ‘bad weather ‘ pics, you’d better get over to Ed’s blog.

WPC: Juxtaposition

When I saw Michelle’s new theme ‘Juxtaposition’, I immediately remembered these few pics from my archives. We quite often see most unexpected pairings, and whilst travelling in Peru, I came upon this rather unlikely combination, near to the Temple of Wiracocha in Raqchi.

Just below Machu Picchu is a market, with a railway line running right through the middle of it.

On our Costa Rican tour, we stopped for lunch at a roadside restaurant, and I found this pair of sculptures really odd, and wondered whose idea it was to place them there. They seemed to bear no relation to one another at all.

Lastly, here are two very different modes of transport. In Sarchi, the most famous crafts centre in Costa Rica, I noticed this modern day bicycle leaning up against the ancient ox cart on display there.

Do you have any photos which depict juxtaposition? To take part in the challenge, or to see what other bloggers have come up with, just click on the badge below.

Cee’s FFC: Wondrous finds on an afternoon’s Nature Walk

“In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.”~ John Muir

For Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge this week, I have a few pics of the amazing creatures I found on my walk in a Florida nature reserve. (Click on any image to enlarge.)

First up is is the undisputed King of the entire outfit sleeping the day away, oblivious to all his subjects who are going about their daily business, and the stares of us visitors to his kingdom.

These large, juicy fish, are  very wisely keeping well out of his way.

Two Great Blue Herons sit huddled together, sharing secrets.

Baby Anhingas wait impatiently for their afternoon sushi snack,

and their uncle is drying off his wings after a fishing expedition.

Mr Turtle pops his head out to say “Hi.”

The Common Gallinule practices walking the plank,

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whilst the White Ibis community just hang out.

The Boat-tailed Grackle with his glossy black feathers, sparkles in the afternoon sun.

Mrs Spider has created a most impressive web to ensure that her fine dining needs are well catered for.

The Tricolored Heron has a reflective moment as he shares his place in the sun with a couple of pond-weed covered turtles.

It’s just another lazy afternoon for this most handsome of fellows, who just has to be the absolute ultimate in ‘Lounge Lizards’.

I saw so many wonderful creatures in nature as I ambled around the boardwalks, and I also kept a look out for the lion which I’d spied on my last visit. He was still there, although I’m sure most visitors walked over him without noticing his cute face peering up at them.

I hope you enjoyed your nature walk with me. To see more entries for Cee’s Challenge, click on the badge below.

Wordless Wednesday: Hitching a ride in Gibraltar.

In Gibraltar, the British may reign, but the monkeys rule. Those Barbary Macaques were such cheeky monkeys. (Click on the pic to see his expression. What do you think he’s thinking?)

Sunday Stills: F is for Flip-Flops

I took this pic at one of our local waterfront restaurants. It typified to me, the laid back lifestyle that we have here in Florida, with a climate that allows for the wearing of flip-flops all the year round.

The name “flip-flop” originated because of the slapping sound that is made between the sole of the foot and the floor when walking in them. This style of footwear has been worn by the people of many cultures throughout the world, originating with the ancient Egyptians as far back as 4,000 B.C, and depictions of flip-flops are to be found in murals adorning the walls of Egyptian tombs and temples. The oldest known pair, made from papyrus, is on display at the British Museum. I doubt that there is a single South African who doesn’t own at least one pair of flip-flops, and  I’ve been wearing them since the 1970’s, when we emigrated there from England. The ones I wear everyday as slippers, are a pair of Havaianas, which I’ve had for about three years. I thought they were quite a recent phenomenon, and didn’t realise that this brand which are sold even in such upmarket stores as Bloomingdales and Niemann Marcus, actually celebrates its 50th birthday this year, and was once the workaday footwear of the Brazilian poor. What a great success story! How many pairs of flip-flops do you own? I just checked my closet, and was shocked to find that I have seventeen pairs, varying from beach flat casuals, to gold and silver evening ones with heels.

To see more entries for Ed’s Sunday Stills Challenge, just click here.

WPC: My Model Family

This week’s Photo Challenge is ‘Family’. In October last year, we were visiting our son and family in New Jersey, and on the Saturday, went with them all to the Brooklyn ‘Ice Cream Factory’ for a photo shoot. http://adinparadise.wordpress.com/2013/10/18/a-lovely-autumn-day-in-brooklyn/

Yesterday, I noticed on Facebook that my son had posted pics of the results of that very busy day. They do a lot of modelling, but I think this is the first time they’ve all been together in the same  ad. (click on any image to enlarge).

To see more family pics for the challenge, just click on the badge below.

Ailsa’s Travel Theme: Illuminated

Ailsa’s Travel Theme this week, is “Illuminated.” On our way back south from New Jersey, I just had to snap this amazing illuminated sky through the car window. It looked like an upside down river that was rushing towards us.  I only had my iPhone handy, but I think it turned out rather well.

To see more illuminated entries for Ailsa’s challenge, just click here.