Catching up

Yes, I know I've been *very* remiss about blogging lately. I think I was somewhat burned out from the massive blog-a-rama that followed our trip to the UK last year. After putting in a few posts later, when I went somewhere interesting (Santa Fe, Colorado, Maine), but then I just ran out of steam.

So, as a spur to myself, I decided to finally respond to Google's occasional "You're almost out of storage!!!" notices and subscribe to a larger chunk of The Cloud. So now I have no excuse but to fill that up with photos and text, I guess!

Another advantage is that I get to go back thru the photo gallery and remember some of the less-than-spectacular junkets that have happened over the last year. To keep things straight for myself, I'm starting with July, 2025...

...when Henry and I went on a walk I'd never been on before, back up and behind the Japanese Tea Garden you can see above. I've shown you pictures from it before, but not from this vantage! Looks pretty amazing, does it not?

The trail we took goes behind the Sunken Garden Theatre...

...where we actually attended a concert some time ago, courtesy of the Brackenridge Park folks. It's a pretty neat place to catch a show. Here's a better view of the seating area:

Note the somewhat hazy view of part of downtown (the Hemisfair Tower, which we ascended during a visit from grandkids a couple of years back, is a dead giveaway) in the background here. This trail gives you some pretty nice viewpoints!

The whole jaunt was Henry's idea, so I thought it only fitting he should appear in the post:

I hope to be able to get back in the blogging habit and show you some other round-about-town sights in the coming weeks. Wish me luck!

Wordless Wednesday: a state that knows diversity is a strength!

 

A Big "Little Flower"

Last weekend I got to sing with one of my choirs in a truly special space: the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Little Flower. This architectural jewel, built during the Depression, is on the near west side of San Antonio and is the center of an active parish as well as being a tourist destination. 

It was put on the National Register of Historic Places, and was awarded the status of a Minor Catholic Basilica in, 1998. (I know the former is a big deal, and, while not being Catholic, I assume the latter is, too!) It is also the first National Shrine dedicated to Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, the "Little Flower." You can read more about the building's purpose and history here, and more about Saint Thérèse here.

Isn't this a beautiful space? I was particularly taken with the light fixtures along the side aisles. Here's a closeup of one:

Another gorgeous feature is the dome above the equally amazing altar...

Here's another shot, taken just under the dome (during our Saturday rehearsal the church was pretty empty, so I could go wherever I needed to get the best angles):

maybe not as spectacular as that of St. Pauls, but...

And of course there are lovely stained glass windows...

...and even floor tile art! Both of these features, as long-time readers know, are favorites of mine when visiting houses of worship.

A great place to sing the Carols of Lessons and [ ], and a wonderful place to know is right in our home town!

Wordless Wednesday: feast for monarchs

 

Wordless Wednesday: both sides now

 

Wordless Wednesday: so clever!

 

Fall in Maine

After our quick trip to New Hampshire, we were back in beautiful Portland, where the colors were spotty, but still impressive to us.

As is often the case on our visits to this great city, some of the best scenery is just a few blocks away, at Evergreen Cemetery. Here are a couple of the best leaf-peeping views from this trip:

the monuments are impressive, too

But another great scenic spot, though rather unexpected, was this nice soccer complex in Grey, Maine, where eldest granddaughter's team was in a tournament. I mean, grass-covered fields (what a concept!) and autumn woods as a surrounding backdrop—what more could you ask for?

Because of the increased level of activities which take up more and more of the family's time, we didn't have a chance for the kind of extended day hikes we made when the kids were younger. But we did take time for a short visit to Jewell Falls, a lovely little bit of woods and rocks that's part of the Fore River Sanctuary. This waterway is an important part of Portland, forming the boundary between Portland proper and South Portland, as well as hosting all kinds of sea-going traffic.

However, upstream at Jewell it's much quieter. Although there wasn't much water coming over the falls, and there was some major refurbishment work going on with part of the trail. But it was still a nice interlude and place for grandchildren who are part mountain goat to do some climbing about:

blue jacket in upper left is one of the climbers

And of course a trip to Portland wouldn't be complete without at least a short excursion to one of its wonderful beaches. 

Higgins Beach at low tide

Some boogie-boarding was attempted, but it was a little chilly (!) so the brave surfers didn't last long. I only waded up to ankle depth. 

I'll close out with a shot of a couple of trees still (and one is always) green....even without the fall colors, the flora around here is always wonderful to see: