Coffee in San Francisco – Two versions!

A photograph from my trip to San Francisco inspired me to make a watercolor art for an Instagram Challenge and since I had just acquired the app Procreate and was in love with it, I decided to digitalize the watercolor! It was and is a great way to explore and experiment with the myriad of tools that Procreate offers.

Digitalized version

Here’s my original watercolor. Which do you like better? Watercolor or digital?

And finally the photograph that inspired it all! I still remember that day two years ago – windy but beautiful and the view of the Golden Gate Bridge – breathtaking!!!

And by the way the digital version is up on my Redbubble store!

Morning visions

As soon as I woke up this morning, I had a choice – pick up my phone and check my Whatsapp or step outside for some time. The sun was just rising and I was basking in that sheer gold just standing in the kitchen. The world outside was beckoning to me!

So donning a warm shrug I stepped outside holding a cup of hot steaming coffee. With every sip the colors and sounds around me started coming to life – the bluest blue sky, blades of grass, the color of fresh limes, and even the sounds of Blue Jays, Cardinals and Sparrows!

Everything that the rays touched began to take a life of its own. Or was it just me? Energized by the morning’s ambience! Connecting to that unknown unseen energy that is bigger than our lives…..

The little things…..

Every once in a while there’s a lull in our blogging world and then a word, a sound or a picture nudges us gently out of it and like a newborn we emerge, fresh and awakened, ready for the world!

I was browsing the aisles for some scrapbooking supplies in a craft store yesterday, when I got distracted and diverted into one with home decor (often happens)! Then I started (wasting my time) admiring every piece.

The mellow music playing in the background drew me deeper into the aisles as I lost track of time and “my purpose”, absorbing and inhaling the words, and colors.

Little did I think this little diversion would end up as a blog post!

It’s always “the little things”, right?

Pause, admire, and breathe.

Flower of the day – September 17th, 2018 – Chaparral yucca

Divine white blossoms of the Chaparral yucca plant

and the waxing gibbous moon shining brightly

Flower of the day – September 1, 2018 – Calendula

Is there anything better than a pretty little flower that smiles and welcomes  a new month?

 

For Cee’s flower of the day

Flower of the day – August 31, 2018 – Texas Sage

A low maintenance shrub with silvery gray-green leaves and bell-shaped purple blooms, it looks pretty both from a close angle as well as a distance. And when I spot an interesting flower I need to really get up close!

An interesting fact – these pretty flowers mostly bloom just before or following a shower! 

For Cee’s flower of the day

Flower of the day – Hibiscus

I had been missing out on photography for sometime. So when I spotted these pretty hibiscus flowers I knew I was in luck!

July photo a day challenge – Horizon

#July photo a day challenge #citysonnet

This spectacular picture of the horizon was taken by my daughter. So the credit goes entirely to her. I was probably zoned out after spending an amazing gratifying day at Yosemite Valley with my family. As we drove, leaving the valley behind, the magnificent sculptures of granite kept reappearing in the distance with every curve and turn until the sun went to rest for the day and the horizon turned a deep blue, violet and mauve and the landscape more tame with soft gentle rolling hills in the distance. I was not ready to say goodbye to this beautiful day!

Cherries!

#July photo a day challenge 

A bowl of sweet, tart, juicy,and vividly red cherries! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

July photo a day challenge – River

#July

The beautiful, 145 mi long Merced river flowing from the Sierra Nevada to San Joaquin Valley in California has helped create the panoramic, 8 mi long Yosemite Valley. This picture is from the base of Vernal Falls where the river flows calmly. It was quite a transition – from the thunder of the Falls to the serenity of the quietly flowing river – as if all the aggression had dissolved and everlasting peace was attained. 

 

Sunshine on Yosemite valley

#July #WorldWatercolorMonth #sunshine

It was a beautiful day in the Yosemite Valley. Under the bright June sun, everything seemed to wake up to its brightest potential. Was it my perception or did the sky looked bluer, the pines greener! I stood there awestruck by the colossal granite cliffs rising behind the sea of gilded blades of grass. Is this heaven on earth?

Yosemite valley comes alive under a June’s sun

June Photo a day challenge – Relax

by the sea

strolling free

watching the horizon

chill from the ocean

whitecaps calling

mind dawdling….

Weekly Photo Challenge – all time favorites

All-Time Favorites

Dandelions in the Dusk

I was waiting to post this picture someday….but didn’t think it would serve as a goodbye post to WPC….so soon! 

I love this picture. There’s no story behind it…just me returning from a plain evening walk. But this scene stopped me on my tracks. For a few moment the dandelions morphed into fairy lights as I entered one of the fairyland of Enid Blyton! 

 

 

Weekly Photo Challenge – Twisted

Twisted

twisting, turning and forking

making their way

through the seasons

Weekly Photo Challenge – Liquid

Liquid

This is a picture from one late afternoon as I watched the sun caress the surface of a lake. It was a sight to behold – dappled sunlight shimmering like crystals and a cool breeze blowing ripples on the placid water.