#365Ways2021 | J.R. Johnson

Posts Tagged ‘#365Ways2021’

Happy Fourth!

Posted in Holidays, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2021, Thoughts, yay on July 4, 2021| Leave a Comment »

I’m out enjoying a beautiful Fourth of July. Hope you are too!

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Counting Sheep

Posted in Holidays, Likes, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2021, Affinity Photo, creativity, holidays on July 3, 2021| Leave a Comment »

It’s a holiday weekend, bookended by Canada Day and the Fourth of July. As a dual citizen, I feel obligated to celebrate as much as possible, which means I am trying to work as little as possible. Today, that means learning something fun. Like perspective bending, with sheep.

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*Original photo by Hasan Almasi on Unsplash*

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Summer Magic

Posted in Likes, Science!, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2021, family, home, Lampyridae, memories, Thoughts on July 2, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Yesterday I took a brief break to check on my butterfly weed (blooming happily!) and noticed an interesting beetle by the door.

“Ooh,” I asked myself, “could that be a firefly?”

It could. It was.

Last night, between brightly-colored expressions of Canadian joy (aka celebratory fireworks), we spotted brightly-colored expressions of firefly joy above the cedar hedge. The lone Lampyridae had a hard time competing, but he gave it his best shot.

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I have great memories of family nights outside in the garden when I was a kid, watching hundreds of fireflies looking for love. It was magic.

We don’t have hundreds now, but I’m working to make our yard as firefly-friendly as I can, particularly around mating season (aka now). Here’s how:

Save The Fireflies

Some of the things you can do:

turn off outdoor lights (who can get any action when that giant porch light is acting like the worst wingman ever?)
leave logs and leaves on the ground (I’ve totally got this covered)
add water (we have birdbaths, so check)
say no thanks to pesticides (no problemo, that stuff’s nasty)
let your lawn grow (skip mowing this weekend? yes please!)
add trees (I’ll see what I can do to keep the ones we have happy)

Time to recapture a bit of that summer magic.

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O Canada!

Posted in Holidays, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2021, holidays, Thoughts on July 1, 2021| Leave a Comment »

I originally hail from the United States but I’m also proud to be a citizen of Canada. Is it perfect? (Is either country?) No. But this is a multi-faceted country with a complex history and also a lot of good, and being part of something is the best way to both contribute to its present and better its future.

Happy Canada Day, Canada! Let’s all work together for brighter days.

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Warm and Toasted

Posted in Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2021, home, hot! on June 30, 2021| Leave a Comment »

It’s hot here and everywhere. The critters in the back yard are trying to keep cool.

*A local taking advantage of a cool dirt bath. Also my planters.*

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Sorry for the mesh and pine sap, it messed up the image clarity but my functionality decreases 50% without a mosquito-proof environment;)

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It ain’t the heat, it’s the humility.
— Yogi Berra

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Lego and Chill

Posted in Likes, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2021, creativity, fun, inspiration, invention on June 29, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Lots to do today, so here’s a house-of-cards-building robot for you!

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Still Dancing

Posted in Likes, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2021, Affinity Photo, creativity, family, learning on June 28, 2021| Leave a Comment »

I’m not quite done with my grandmother’s portrait, apparently. One of the things I did over the weekend was to start learning colorization, and now Grandma has a pretty pink dress:)

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Once Upon a Sunday

Posted in Holidays, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2021, Thoughts, travel, Turkey, writing on June 27, 2021| Leave a Comment »

Sunday
Istanbul-Cappadoccia
I’m in seat 34 and already seven minutes late. We’re on the night bus to Cappadocia and I’m settling in for a ten-hour ride into the heart of Turkey. The old woman ahead of me is getting feisty, pounding on the window and demanding to leave, loudly. This little drama is all in Turkish, of course, but it’s hard to misunderstand this kind of impatience. Most of the country seems to travel by bus and this is the largest terminal I’ve ever seen. The station is huge, complete with hotel and shopping complex, mosque, 200,000 lira WCs, and plenty of air guns to keep the kids occupied.
What’s this? We’re leaving right on time, only 14 minutes behind schedule.
Tops in Turkey: Topkapi Palace, cherry juice and jam, beer on a rooftop terrace with a view of the Haghia Sofia and Blue Mosque.

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