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Lightning Bug
Sitting on my front porch back in the spring of 2020, with nothing better to do than find random things to take pictures of… and this lighting bug lands on my sleeve. I took a few pictures of it crawling around and then was lucky enough to capture it ready to fly away.
Tattoosday – Part 1
That’s a thing, isn’t it?
I have a little “show me yours and I’ll show you mine” agreement with Karma, and I’ve already posted about my first three tattoos here, so I will post my other ones in the next few weeks, with my (as of yet unfinished) London tattoo as the grand finale… because it deserves a post all of its own.
Next came a little flower growing out of my shoe (the bit where the leaf is? HURT!! Ow) and a small heart, that I technically still have…but it’s been covered up with another one.
And then a lotus / lace design on my stomach
My next one was a seashell on the top of my foot. Funny story there… about half way through tattooing, my tattoo artist must have assumed it hurt (which of course it did, but it wasn’t that bad) and – without asking – put a numbing gel on. Which stung like crazy! I looked at him and said “what did you do that for?! I didn’t need it and the stinging is worse than the tattooing!”
Dill Pickle Ice Cream?
Yup. It actually exists and can be found at Walmart. My first thought was “ew!” And so was my second and third, etc. But I have this annoying best friend who can talk me into just about anything with barely a suggestion (it’s quite clear which one of us is the bad influence!) so I decided to give it a try. At least it was clearance priced at $2, marked down from $4.98
The verdict? It’s surprisingly delicious! It’s mostly sweet (vanilla?) with just a hint of dill pickles. Just enough to make you think “is that… dill pickle??” and not at all like eating pickles out of the jar. As far as I could tell, there are no pickle pieces in the ice cream and the pickle flavor comes from a swirl, except it’s just little specks and not a swirl. Next time I’m at Walmart, I might stock up and grab a few more of these clearance priced little pints of goodness.
I’ve tried their Sticky Toffee Pudding ice cream (good, but nothing really special), and the Hot Honey ice cream, which is a definite favorite. I love sweet & spicy (I love chocolate & spicy even more!!). Now who’s volunteering to try their (limited edition) Kraft Macaroni & Cheese flavored ice cream? Because it will.not.be.me!
Btw., I have discovered that Van Leeuwen also has scoop shops in several States, and two of them are in Dallas! Might have to talk Greg into taking me there for dessert after my birthday dinner later this month.
Before & After
I’ve always enjoyed Karen’s Photo Hunts and it seems that I came back just in time for another one. She wants us to find a photo of anything we want, and show a before and after. (Another assignment is to take the same picture during each of the four seasons, but I think I’ll skip that one).
Back to the assignment due on February 5…
We moved into our current house in September of 2003, and in the spring of 2012 we decided to do some major remodeling. New siding, new windows, new front porch (with a new roof line), new paint, and some much needed insulation because we had none at all except in the attic.
Here it is before the complete makeover…
And after…
National Hot Chocolate Day
… or so I’ve heard.
Personally I don’t drink hot chocolate and much prefer coffee (or tea)… and have to admit, that’s really coffee in my mug. But we can pretend it’s hot chocolate, right?
The mug was made by Becky and you can find many more of her beautiful pottery creations on her Mud in Maine website.
Cruisin’
Have you ever been on a cruise? Did you love it? Hate it? Somewhere in between?
We went on our first cruise in November 2022 out of Galveston, Texas; with stops in Roatan, Honduras, Puerto Costa Maya and Cozumel, both in Mexico.
Honestly, I could take it or leave it. The ship was great. HUGE! But being stuck on the ship for days at a time was almost as boring as watching paint dry. That was NOT for me because there was only so much to do and I spent most of my time in the (adult only) solarium with a book as company.
We went with a group of Greg’s family (cousins, aunts & uncles) and some of their friends, and Greg just booked whatever excursions everyone else booked, without even looking to see what else was available. The first excursion was snorkeling, which I would not have ever picked because I’m not a very good swimmer, hate deep water, and very much prefer to keep my head above water. I still went, since it was booked, but spent the whole time on the boat.
The next two excursions were beach days, which were ok, but as much I love the beach, I would have rather done some sightseeing instead. I mean, you’re in a country you’ve never been to, why sit on a beach all day?
So yeah, this cruise left me…. not caring if I ever go on another cruise again. I can see why anyone would buy the alcohol drinks package, because what else is there to do on the ship, but spend the day drinking? We, however, opted not to buy it because it is crazy expensive and I would have to teeter on the edge of alcohol poisoning to get my money’s worth. No thank you.
We have our next cruise booked for this coming April, again with the same group (but even more of them this time) and I agreed to go on the condition that we will choose our excursions and don’t just do whatever everyone else does. So as soon as Greg started booking and I was able to log in, I made a list of excursions I was interested in and we decided which ones to book without consulting anyone else first. Two of them will be sightseeing and the last one will be a beach day at Coco Cay, which is all that’s offered.
I’m definitely going to do my own thing more. Including not joining everyone else for dinner every night, but going to the main dining room (buffet) instead.
We briefly considered taking an Alaskan cruise at some point, but I think I convinced Greg that it will be a much nicer vacation, and better value, to fly to Alaska and then rent a car and go see what we want to see.
That’s really my biggest problem with cruises. You have the opportunity to go to all these amazing places, but you don’t actually get to see anything. It’s just thousands of Dollars wasted, sitting on a giant shopping mall. And then there’s all the extras they charge you for. See those cheap cruises advertised? That is SO misleading! That’s per person in the cheapest possible room and (I think) only includes food from the main dining room and a couple of other places. Cruising solo? You’ll still pay for two because the rooms sleep two. Want a better room? of course that would be an extra cost, depending on where the room is and whether or not you want any kind of view. Don’t want to die of thirst? Drinks are extra, and they have three different drinks packages available. Excursions? Extra. Some are more expensive than others. And then there are restaurants on the ship that you have to pay extra for if you want to eat there. So depending on what you want to do, your $400 advertised 7-night Caribbean cruise can very quickly turn into a $3000+ per person vacation. Airfare (if applicable) not included.
I’m… Back?
Since I’m going to make an effort to blog again, I thought I would (re-)introduce myself.
This is me. Michaela, aka TheDailyClick.
Shhh… I don’t really look like this and had plenty of help from photo editing apps. (“I’d like to thank iPhone for their Portrait setting, and Snapseed for the tools to make even not-so-photogenic people like me look presentable”).
Anyway. I grew up in Germany and moved to the US as a 19-year-old newlywed (to husband #1). And after living in Illinois and Indiana, and then (with husband #2) in Maryland, I now live in the terribly boring Dallas, Texas area in one of the northern suburbs. Those of you who know me, also know that I hate Texas. Hate it! SOOO much!! One of the dumbest things I ever did was agree to move here. At least the Dallas Arboretum is a small consolation and I really enjoy spending time there.
I spend my free time…. hmm… mostly reading these days, because there’s not much else to do. I do still very much enjoy photography… when I find the motivation to pick up my camera, which isn’t nearly as often as it used to be, but maybe getting back to blogging will change that (fingers crossed). Most of my photos are taken with my phone because I always have it with me, and it’s all around more convenient.
(I know what certain some of yous are thinking – you know who you are! – but it has nothing to do with the fact that I am Team Nikon and not Team Canon).
Some of the photos I take end up on Instagram where I post regularly.
I also enjoy traveling and we usually go on one or two trips each year.
We also like visiting local craft breweries (personally I like stouts, porters, and sours), and the occasional winery, depending on what kind of wines they offer (I prefer sweet or fruit wines).
And, most of all I enjoy the peace and quiet of having the house all to myself, which almost never happens anymore because both girls are out of school and rarely work at the same time, and the husband is still working from home 3 out of the 5 workdays. His home office is out in the shed, but he’s annoyingly constantly wandering in and out of the house all.day.long.
There were times I really missed blogging these last… I don’t even know how many years I’ve been away, and seeing that some of my old blogging friends are still (or again) around, makes me look forward to dipping my toes in again. We’ll see how it goes. I’m shooting for once or twice a week for now, and who knows… maybe The not so Daily Click will be daily again at some point.
Any photo ideas or suggestions to provide some inspiration or motivation are greatly appreciated, just leave me a comment. (Karen/Karma would you consider doing your photo hunts again at some point? Those were so much fun!)
I Left My Heart in… London
Hello! Remember me? Yes, I’m still around. Somewhere.
I got to check London off my Bucket List last June and thought that this deserved a blog post (finally).
I had been saving up for years and was all booked to go in June 2020, but we all know what happened in March! So I cancelled and put the trip on hold until the restrictions eased up, and finally rebooked for June 2023. The best (and scariest!) part was that I went solo! No husband, no kids. Just me! To do what I wanted, when I wanted, and no missing out on things because they “cost too much”.
I spent nine AMAZING days there, and other than a couple of light rain showers on my first full day, the weather was absolutely perfect, and I finally got to meet a very good friend and fellow (former) blogger in person.
My flight to London was long, sleepless, but otherwise uneventful, other than being delayed one hour (British Airways is great! Much nicer than my flight back with American Airlines) but I went into a bit of a panic after we landed and I get a welcome message from T-Mobile, but had NO data service!! After I got to the hotel and connected to their wifi, said very good friend and fellow (former) blogger…. also life saver… figured out that I had data roaming turned off and once I turned it on, all was well. Phew!
I didn’t have the energy to do much that first afternoon, but did walk to St. Paul’s Cathedral, since it was close to my hotel. They were already closed to tours, so I just walked around the outside and then went back to the hotel to figure out what I wanted to do the next day.
Miles walked: 2.6
On Day 2 I walked along the South Bank to the London Eye, then across Westminster Bridge past Big Ben / Houses of Parliament to Westminster Abbey. Unfortunately you can only buy tickets online and the earliest still available were for that afternoon. So I went back to the London Eye and was able to get tickets to get on right away. Then back to Westminster Abbey for the tour. I think I spent more than an hour inside and probably didn’t see all of it.
After a late lunch I walked past the narrow House at 22 Fleet Street and the Royal Courts of Justice to Twinings, the oldest tea shop in London, and of course bought some tea there.
Miles walked: 7.5
On Day 3 I walked across Millennium Bridge past the Tate Modern, Shakespeare’s Globe, the Golden Hinde replica and City Hall to Tower Bridge and took the tour. Again, it’s preferable to buy tickets online, but I was able to get a ticket right then and there. The tour was pretty interesting and my favorite part was the glass floor you can walk across and see the cars and people below.
Then it was off to the Tower of London where I spent a good couple of hours, but decided to skip the crown jewels because the line was at least 12 years long! (Best to get there as soon as the Tower of London opens and go straight to where the crown jewels are). After that I walked through Borough Market and back to St. Paul’s Cathedral to take the tour. Even walked the 528 steps to the top of the dome for an amazing view of London.
Miles walked: 8.6
On Day 4 I walked to Temple Church (closed), past the Royal Opera House, through Covent Garden, the Victoria Embankment Gardens, stopped at The Sherlock Holmes (pub) for some pictures, to Admiralty Arch and down The Mall to Buckingham Palace. Then through Green Park to Royal Albert Hall and the Albert Memorial and though Hyde Park, St. James’s Park (my favorite park in London!) to Somerset House and finally back to the hotel.
Miles walked: 11.1
On Day 5 I decided to take it a bit easier and not stray too far from the hotel. My first stop was the Walkie Talkie and I was lucky enough to get a ticket to go up to the Sky Garden. Not sure what is up with the Sky Garden tickets, because they give away free ones online for each day, but you can’t buy any online. Of course you have to be lucky to score a free ticket, and, well… I wasn’t. So I walked in, went to the ticket counter and asked if they had any tickets available, and she sold me one. Yes!
After the Sky Garden I went to the Lloyd’s Building (aka Inside Out Building), the Gherkin (is it me, or does it look like a giant… um… ok, this is a family blog..) and through Leadenhall Market to The Garden at 120, which is a free rooftop Garden, and eventually ended up at St. Dunstan in the East (very pretty and peaceful church garden). Then I went to The Monument and climbed the 311 continuous spiral staircase steps to the top for an (again) amazing view of London.
Miles walked: 5.7
Day 6 was definitely one of the highlights of my trip because I finally got to meet Brian (aka FS Photography in person. We met right here on the blogs (can’t remember on whose exactly) way back in 2010 and even though we’ve both been neglecting our blogs, we stayed friends all these years.
So that day he came to London and we spent the day walking through Covent Garden, Neal’s Yard, the British Museum (didn’t actually spend much time there, I just wanted to get a certain shot), Chinatown, Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus, sat talking and people watching in the grass in St. James’s Park, admired the graffiti in the Leake Street Tunnel, and even had time for a Guinness somewhere before Brian had to head home again. Strangely enough (and I’m a bit sad about it) this was the day I took the least amount of pictures. Guess we were having too much fun to think about the cameras much.
Miles walked: 8.8
Day 7 was one of the most exhausting! As usual, I left the hotel right after breakfast and walked to St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel because it’s a gorgeous building. Then on to Coal Drops Yard to browse the shops and through Regent’s Park to the top of Primrose Hill for a view of the London Skyline in the distance. The back through St. Mary’s Garden, which is part of Regent’s Park to Daunt Books (very photogenic, and yes, I did buy a book!) and then in search for a phone box outside Russel Square Garden that sells tiramisu. What better excuse to sit and rest for a while, and enjoy some delicious dessert?
Made it back to the hotel at some point, and then went out again for dinner and a stroll around St. Paul’s Cathedral and down to Millennium Bridge for some sunset shots.
Miles walked: 12.9
Day 8 was again a lot of walking. I went back to Leake Street Graffiti Tunnel because when I was there with Brian, we saw one in the process of being painted and I wanted to see it finished. Sadly it was already painted over again. From there I went to “Big Ben Viewpoint” for more pictures, and then past Lambeth Palace to Battersea Power Station, which has been converted to a mall. Then I strolled through Battersea Park before finding a place for lunch, and on the way back to the hotel, I found Little Ben (which I didn’t even know existed) and Westminster Cathedral (not quite as impressive as Westminster Abbey).
Miles walked: 12.5
Day 9 was my last full day in London and even though I still had some things to see and do on my list, I decided to revisit some of my favorites…. although everything was my favorite!
I walked to St. Paul’s Cathedral first, the down to and across Millennium Bridge, and along the Thames past City Hall and Tower Bridge to St. Savior’s Dock to get some pictures at high tide. Then back across Tower Bridge to St. Katherine Dock and then found my way to Borough Market to eat lunch. Then, at Brian’s recommendation I did the London Bridge Experience. He claimed it’s scary, but… meh, I disagree.
Then I went back to Tower Bridge and Shad Thames, where there are steps to walk down to the river at low tide. That was pretty cool. I also went back to St. Savior’s Dock to get some pictures at low tide.
Then finally back to the hotel via Somerset House in search of Carting Street and London’s only surviving sewer powered gas lamp.
Miles walked: 12
Day 10 was just enough time to finish packing and have breakfast before I had to head back to the airport… and back to hell Texas. I hate Texas.
Miles walked: 1. For a grand total of 82.7 (133km)
This was without a doubt by far the best vacation ever, and I can’t wait to do it again. Because…. I have to! There are still things left to see and do on my list, and I’m finding even more things I need to see and do!
If you’ve made it all the way to the end, thank you for reading. Wish I could have included pictures of everything, but that would have made this post about 5 miles long.
Look for my next post after my next London vacation. Whenever that will be…
….And Now I Have Three!
I’ve wanted a tattoo for a years ! I’ve even mentioned it in this post but I’ve always been too chicken to do it (a tattoo of a chicken was mentioned in the comments – haha, very funny :-P)
Then last year, after a devastating event, I decided it was finally time to overcome my fear and just DO IT! And I knew exactly what I wanted. The initials of all four of my kids in the shape of a heart….and I must say, it worked out perfectly. The design was a bit of a problem for me, though, because I was working with all upper case letters…until a friend’s genius idea of using lower case, then it all came together nicely.
My hip seemed the perfect spot for it, because that’s where I carried them when they were little (not to mention the fact that there’s a bit of umm…padding…which would hopefully make it less painful 😉 ) It really wasn’t bad at all. It stings a little bit and kind of feels like someone’s drawing on you with a mechanical pencil. The weirdest thing was the vibrations I felt from my hips all the way down my legs.
The thing about tattoos…..they’re addicting! You can’t just stop at one, because you’ll want another one. NEED another one! LOL
And the perfect second tattoo for me? A camera of course! A very good friend of mine was nice enough to agree to draw one for me (Thank you! Again) because my camera drawing skills just aren’t that great, and I wanted something original. As expected, this hurt a bit more than the first one, but still not too bad. Ha this one done in February, about a week after my birthday.
When I got my camera tattoo, I already knew that I wanted a third (did I mention tattoos are addictive??) and decided on a butterfly. Just because I like butterflies. And this time it was my own drawing, too. I chose my left shoulder because it just seemed like the right spot to put it, and it would balance out the other two that are both on the right side of my body. Had this one done just a couple of days ago
Not sure if I’ll stop at three. I might. But there’s also a chance that I might…maybe…possibly….get two more. Just need to decide what and where 😉
A big thank you to Matt (who did my first tattoo) and Daryl (who did the other two) at Scarecrow Tattoo and Art Gallery for doing such a wonderful job.
iPhotographer
She’s getting quite good with my old iPhone 4s and olloclip
The Daily Click 