Gardens and frescoes

So when you think frescoes you think Italy. (Right? I do.) But there are also some frescoes in the mountains of good ol' North Carolina. Who knew? I expected falling apart gorgeous mythic images just like I saw 1,000 years ago in Italy (I saw them 14 years ago in Italy actually if you want to get specific, but 14 years rounds up to 1,000). Instead, I get an Episcopalian church with lovely, Biblical images created in the 1970s. Unexpected! And there was a supremely beautiful garden across the street (pictured above).

Falling water

I have spent so much time in the mountains this summer. Can you blame me? The Appalachian Mountains are one of the most beautiful places on earth, and my parents bought a house there after retiring so of course I'm going to be doing a lot of visiting!

My whole family came together for some outdoorsy family fun last weekend. Stop one: Kayaking. Sadly, I didn't take any pictures because I was worried about water ruining my camera and decided to just live in the now, man. Stop two: hiking to a waterfall. I wore some sneakers, my staple summer shorts and a peasant top (love them) that looks just like another one I own, but I bought it anyway because it was $3.75 I love that other shirt and this one is slightly less cute, but also slightly more comfortable. I'm calling it a thrift store score.

It's okay to have two very similar tops if you love them! And they're not exactly the same. The other one is in this Disneyland post and is a little smaller with more white detailing. I've been peasant-blousing it up all summer!

Massive waterfall! This is the view from the top, and I couldn't get the entire falls in frame. It was quite a long way down. 

My adorable nephew Nate was not so sure about that long drop!

But he broke out a smile once his older sister sat next to him. 

They are such cuties! I love spending time with them! They're turning into such interesting people! We have great conversations about bugs and Legos and superheros. (Makayla, my four-year-old niece, also pointed out that I needed to shave my legs. Thanks Makayla! Way to be honest!)

I love spending time with you too, waterfall! Why is water so pretty when falling down rocks? It just is.

And to conclude this post, I'm throwing in some photos taken by Makayla while waiting for food at a restaurant. I'm hanging out with her ballerina doll, cheesing for the camera. Makayla's used to me taking 1,000 pictures of her, but now the tables have turned! I'd say she's not a bad photographer. She really captures the essence of me and the ballerina, don't you think?

Nostalgia

The '90s were an amazing time to be a teen. Riot Grrrl. Zines. The anti-fashion of grunge being the fashion. "My So-Called Life" speaking to the core of my being. It was the best.

I loved high school. I hated middle school, but I loved high school. Or at least I remember it really fondly. I had a tight-knit group of awesome, weird friends and we'd burn incense and hang out and listen to Mazzy Star.



Just the best.

Norma Jean

I think we all love Marilyn Monroe because she was Norma Jean first.

At least that's part of the reason why I love her.

A blouse for peasants

Back when I was working for a newspaper, the sports editor once wrote a headline that read something like "100 Peasants Killed." He meant pheasants and the story had to do with some sort of hunting something or other. One little "h" changes things from a horrible massacre of an oppressed class to... dead birds (neither one is especially pleasant).

Anyway, I bought a peasant blouse when I went thrifting Friday. No pheasants were harmed in the making of this blouse (as far as I know).

I am finding myself drawn to peasant blouses these days. They're great for summer heat -- loose and thin.

They're also pretty modest so I feel good wearing them with wedges and short shorts -- showing some leg, but not much else. Those are the shorts I cut up myself a couple of weeks ago. They are my summertime staples.

I love the print of this blouse and all the little details. Look at that one, tiny button! Look at those cute cap sleeves! Look at the crocheted shenanigans happening there in the center! Love it!

It's a wonderful outfit to have on as I count down my last weeks of summertime. (Vacation ends in two weeks, but workshops start in one, students are back in three.)

I bought these Toms wedges for full-price because Toms are so darn comfortable. These aren't as comfortable as the brand's flats (I guess I was hoping for too much), but they're still pretty enjoyable. Plus they're cute. I bought them to wear on our California trip and then proceeded to not actually pack them. Oops.

This has been a really excellent summer, but I have to admit I'm ready to get back in the swing of school. Before then, I'll grab a little more extended family time and mountain time and maybe eat a few watermelons all on my own (I can eat a crazy amount of watermelon). It's not time to say goodbye to summer yet!

Oh Ginger Rogers

"The only way to enjoy anything in this life is to earn it first." -- Ginger Rogers.

I love Ginger Rogers so much. I love her with Fred Astaire, but I think I love her most without him. I'm not big on dance sequences, but I am big on brassy, smart, glamorous women, and Ginger Rogers is all that (and she does in backwards and, you know, in heels).

Two things

Let's talk about two things: My dog and my foyer.

There they are -- my dog and my foyer or, I guess, my dog in my foyer.

First of all, I'm pretty pleased that I am living a life that involves a foyer. This is my first foyer, and I so prefer having a foyer to having, I don't know, unruly roommates and a cement block front porch. Just sayin'.

Second of all, my dog has an awesome scarf made out of T-shirts created by my dog sitter (who is also a friend and really into DIY projects). My dog is hipper and cooler and more hipster-cool than I can hope to be.

Third of all, my foyer has this giant, very nice oriental rug in it. We inherited it. It matches the art that I did not inherit and instead picked up from consignment shops and thrift stores and artist friends who are awesome. I like this rug in the foyer. It makes me feel a little bit like a rich European lady even though I am only one of those three things (I am a lady. I am totally a lady.).

Fourth of all, part of me is not so sure about this rug. Do I like it? Do I really like it?

Fifth of all, all of me is absolutely sure about my dog. I love her so much, and she loves the rug because it makes it easy to grip the floor. With hardwood floors, she was always having traction problems and skittering about like a Looney Toons character. So the rug stays because the dog stays and no one wants to live in a Loony Toons cartoon. No one.