typography

Last night, while walking "home" from a lookout point, miradouro in Portuguese, we passed the National Institute of Typography in Lisbon.  

from wikipedia:  

Typography is the art and technique of arranging type to make written language legible, readable and appealing when displayed.

It is very interesting to me that over the years I have consistently gravitated towards photographing the same sorts of things while traveling and even at home and one of the main ones is . . . you guessed it . . . typography.  :) 

So here is a smattering of typography photos from this trip:

"D" door handle 

Estação ferroviária de São Bento  

São Bento railway station 

Porto

shop in Porto

Adriano ♥️

Porto, Portugal

I love this parking garage sign!

(Porto)

I was sooo surprised by this typography in Portugal!  I really liked Kid to Kid when we lived in Dallas.  We don't have it in Colorado Springs but my SIL and I used to go in Salt Lake a lot.  I had no idea there were any international locations.  

Cobbler sign in Vigo, Spain

Madrid

another familiar sight, Madrid

 

and one from right before we left home

Mandy gave me this book for Christmas and this is the back cover.  

I like how they did that.

What do you tend to always take photos of on trips?

Kelly

happy new year!

 happy new year!

I wonder if I am the first person who I know personally to have experienced 2026?  I saw fireworks over the Duoro River.  I suppose that if the people I met in New Zealand and Australia in 1996 are still living in Australia and New Zealand then they entered 2026 before I did.   What do we count as knowing someone personally?  I mean I have met them face to face and stayed with some of them in their homes but haven't been in contact with them in over 20 years so is that still knowing someone personally?

I'd love to hear your thoughts.  

Kelly

p.s. Does anyone know the airport art pictured?  Know which airport we flew out of?

small hard things

 

"I’ve said before that the beautiful thing about travel is that it teaches people how to enjoy themselves in spite of a near-constant stream of small disappointments."  - ISABEL SLONE

This photo is of me obsessively fanning myself with whatever paper I could find in my pack at DFW airport.  I mean, it has been a warm winter at home and yet it's "winter" and places are running the heat.  

Well, travel makes you sweaty.  The fast walking and carrying heavy stuff and the crowds.  I was wearing short sleeves but was still too hot.  

Even though I felt really confident on this trip about packing I still have some things that I would do differently.  I think I might bring a light-weight packable dress on every trip from now on. 

I also wish I had brought some of our laundry detergent strips on this trip.  They would be super easy to pack and light-weight.  But I didn't.  So we bought some laundry detergent pods in Madrid to take advantage of our washer there in our apartment.  We packed some in a ziploc to take to our other rented apartments but there were still some left in the container.  I tried to give them away to some women who I didn't speak the same language as and wildly they looked at me as if I might have two heads.  My family was amused.  I ended up leaving the rest of the container, open, so people could see what was inside on top of a trash can in a space with a lot of people coming and going.  I hope someone took them home.  Someone in my family told me that "no one is going to take them."  I still hope they didn't go to waste.  

At TSA, I surprisingly got my bag checked for a deck of cards that I brought that we haven't used yet.  I don't regret bringing them but if we don't use them before we leave I think I'm gonna leave that game at our last apartment for other guests.  

Hmmm, I don't remember seeing any little free libraries out of America.  Does anyone know if other countries have them?  

Okay, off to play spades with the fam.  

Kelly

looking up

 

Portugal is known for its ceramic tiled exterior walls.  

This shot is looking up from street level along the wall and to the roof.  

a kind of "inside porch" of a cathedral building

Sometimes the tile is more "inlaid" like this.

groceries

 

We've been to the grocery store a few times on this trip.  I love seeing the different packaging and sizes and types of groceries in different places. And we have a teeny tiny little kitchen in the apartment.  

taking a trip

We used to take "big trips" a lot and it has been awhile!  It felt good to strap on the backpacks and go experience a new to us place.  There were pluses and minuses to traveling over Christmastide but all in all, soooo glad we went!  

 

Owl in Vigo

I spied this guy as were walking around and snapped his photo.  

Travel makes me smile

 This photo was taken on the second day of our travel.  We left home on a Tuesday, travelled + had a layover on Wednesday and arrived in Madrid on Thursday morning very early.  We had no idea that the sun doesn't rise in Spain at this time of year until after 8:30 a.m.!  What???!!!  That was a wild feeling to be traveling into the city on a train and then walking around and it wasn't even light yet!  

I love the colors!

I took this photo during our day long layover in Vigo, Spain.  I love the all of the colors - in particular the periwinkle and yellow painted buildings in the center.  

Have you been to Spain?

Tell me more.

Kelly 

 

 

The Crossroads of Europe

 

this has been a week of . . .

seeing Mesa Verde's cliff dwellings for the first time after having wanted to since my Sweetie and Poppy came home from a trip there when I was a child and shared photos and stories.  

spending time with "my girls".  

enjoying a ladies' tea party!

thinking about house decor

texting with Betty about home organization

going on a snowy hike around a frozen pond on a BEAUTIFUL sunny Sunday afternoon with Mrs. Rebecca!

getting rid of SO much with a donation pick up tomorrow!  

 

Psalm 145

 "I will exalt you, my God and King, 

and praise your name forever and ever." Psalm 145:1

photo:  six years ago at The National Aviary in Pittsburgh

what's working for us Wednesday

 

We are working on some habit building over here.  These punch cards that they get to whole punch themselves are working for us right now.  

What is something that is working in your home right now?  

Kelly

road trip

Road tripping in Southern Colorado in our electric car.  Remote cabin means bringing in our own groceries, drinking water and firewood.  

 

happy Friday!

 Happy Friday from these two goofs!  

photo from our cabin trip last weekend 

What are you doing this weekend?  Which day will you rest?  I'm hoping for a Saturday of planning house projects and a Sunday of worship and rest.  

Kelly

polar bears in action

I think they count today among their best days ever!

 Hope you've had a good day too!

Kelly

what if . . . rest?

 I was just feeling tired in the middle of the day and decided to just relax for a few minutes and take care of myself.  I am in no way an infectious disease expert but I found myself wondering if perhaps feeling tired just might possibly (I know people who have studied this far more than I have been saying things like this for a very long time, so I am speaking a bit tongue in cheek) . . . if feeling tired just might possibly be a signal that my body needs rest?  

It seems that viral load is a pretty big contributing factor to "catching" Covid-19.  What if feeling tired might mean that I was unknowingly exposed to some corona virus bugs and my body is working on fighting those off?  

Maybe not.  Maybe so.  

I think what I am working on remembering is that I am the one who most often puts expectations on myself.  What if I gave myself permission to listen to my body and rest when it feels tired?  

What are your thoughts on rest these days?  

I'd love to hear. 

Kelly

morning

July 6, 2020

at least 6 feet apart

I'd say that does it!  

😀

playing at the creek 6/29/20

and the results

I'd say it worked well enough.  ☺

experiement . . .

Does string cheese melt well?  

I have no idea.  

When food in the fridge isn't getting eaten as is it's time to get creative.  Waste not want not.  

I kind of like the striped pizza look.  We'll see what happens as it cooks.  :) 

What creativity have you exercised in the kitchen lately?

Kelly

9 things

nine things . . . 

1.  I had a wonderful birthday week last week celebrating with my family.

2.  Bike riding is one of my favorite things.

3.  Our living room floor is covered with lego train tracks, lego trains, instruction booklets and lots of spare pieces.  

4.  I like to listen to podcasts while driving around in my car. 

5.  I still think I can one day get my entire house organized all at once . . . for at least a few seconds.

6.  I miss going to thrift stores.  I thought garage sales would scratch the itch but it's not really.

7.  I am so excited to stay home all day tomorrow and it makes me happy that after all of these wonky months I still love days at home with my people.

8.  I am getting better at gardening.

9.  Summer is my favorite season.