Summer Memories Last Forever ~ Photos ~ Quotes

In the summer, we write life’s summary with the slow waves of love flowing over the sandy beach. The slow breeze and the warm sun write our memories  ~ Debasish Mridha

Some of the days in November carry the whole memory of summer as a fire opal carries the color of moonrise ~ Gladys Taber

every summer has its own story ~
the tan will fade but the memories will always stay ~ Kiara Harris

To guarantee the individual maximum freedom within a social frame of minimal laws ensures – if not happiness – its hopeful pursuit ~ John Updike

I pray that the life of this spring and summer may ever lie fair in my memory ~ Henry David Thoreau

Summer Flowers ~ Quotes ~ Photos ~ August 2022

The smallest flower is a thought, a life answering to some feature of the Great Whole, of whom they have a persistent intuition ~ Honore de Balzac

You’re only here for a short visit. Don’t hurry, don’t worry. And be sure to smell the flowers along the way ~ Walter Hagen

If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly our whole life would change ~ Buddha

Flowers don’t worry about how they’re going to bloom. They just open up and turn toward the light and that makes them beautiful ~ Jim Carrey

A flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms ~ Zen Shin

Earth laughs in flowers ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Clearwater Marine Aquarium, Florida ~ Photos ~ Quotes ~ May 2022

There’s no question dolphins are smarter than humans as they play more ~ Albert Einstein

Several years ago, after watching the beautiful movie, “A Dolphin Tale,” I made a mental note to someday visit the Clearwater Aquarium, which is Florida’s Marine Life Rescue Center. It is an incredible place to spend several hours and one that you can easily revisit.

Your journey to the Aquarium will include learning about the dolphins and otters and pelicans, etc. For those who have seen the movie and its sequel, there are photos and information about parts of the movie which were shot on location plus interesting data about Winter, the star. Winter and the Rescue Center gained world wide attention due to the film and the compelling story of Winter.

The main attraction is the dolphins ~ they are beautiful, mesmerizing and quite memorable.

Their web site has a great deal of information, including special events plus several web cams:

Clearwater Marine Aquarium | Florida’s Marine Life Rescue Center (cmaquarium.org)

Savor your journeys, near or far, real or imagined

Dolphins speak to us of the rhythm of our emotions; breathing in joy before plunging into the depths and rushing to the surface to do it all over again ~ Anonymous

The dolphins and whales have a brain that is actually bigger in proportion to their size than we do. They are very complex. They are thinkers ~ Owsley Stanley

National Hug Your Cat Day ~ June 4, 2022 ~ Photos ~ Quotes

Celebrate with your special feline … and give lots of hugs …. OR hug a friend’s cat OR visit a shelter and hug a cat ….

Journeys are more meaningful with special pals … Savor the moments with your precious felines  … 

A cat has absolute emotional honesty: human beings, for one reason or another, may hide their feelings, but a cat does not ~ Ernest Hemingway

Cats have it all: admiration, an endless sleep, and company only when they want it ~ Rod McKuen

A cat is a puzzle for which there is no solution ~ Hazel Nicholson

All cats like being the focus of attention.” –Peter Gray

Time spent with cats is never wasted ~ Sigmund Freud

When the cat you love becomes a memory, that memory becomes a treasure ~ Unknown

The loss of a cat is immeasurable. But so is the love left behind ~ Unknown

Clearwater Beach, Florida ~ May 2022 ~ Photos ~ Quotes

Don’t grow up too quickly, lest you forget how much you love the beach ~ Michelle Held

The ocean stirs the heart, inspires the imagination and brings eternal joy to the soul ~ Robert Wyland 

The beach to me is a sacred zone between the earth and the sea, one of those in-between between places where transitions can be experienced – where endings can be mourned and beginnings birthed. A walk along the beach offers the gift of the unexpected ~ Joan Anderson

 Our memories of the ocean will linger on, long after our footprints in the sand are gone ~ Anonymous

 Isn’t it strange, the way time moves? I could stand here and watch the sea crash beneath me for hours and it would feel only like minutes had passed ~ Sjana Elisa Earp

 We must free ourselves of the hope that the sea will ever rest. We must learn to sail in high winds ~ Aristotle Onassis

 In one drop of water are found all the secrets of all the oceans ~ Kahlil Gibran

I followed my heart and it led me to the beach ~ Unknown

Armchair Traveler ~ Greece

Greece is the home of the gods; they may have died but their presence still makes itself felt. The gods were of human proportion; they were created out of the human spirit. ~ Henry Miller

We are all Greeks. Our laws, our literature, out religion, our arts, have their roots in Greece. ~ Percy Bysshe Shelley

Enthusiasm is a wonderful thing. In South Africa, they throw flowers at you. In Greece, Greeks throw themselves. ~ Melina Mercouri

Recently, on a rainy day, I came upon some old postcards. Several were of Greece, primarily Athens and they brought back some terrific memories.

A friend and I went to Greece (Athens plus a 3 day tour to Corinth and Delphi) and Rome on our first trip to Europe. Athens has so many memorable sights, including the Acropolis (link below) and a short distance away from the city is the beautiful scenic Temple of Poseidon. Temple of Poseidon at Sounion | The Official Athens Guide (thisisathens.org)

I still recall a fabulous restaurant dinner at Dionysius restaurant which had the most incredible view of the Acropolis. I googled the restaurant and yes, it is still there … with it’s fantastic view and menu. Home | Dionysos Zonar’s (dionysoszonars.gr).

Here is a link about Delphi, one of the most beautiful serene places I have visited. It is a place where you can feel the presence of the Gods.

Delphi Greece – Complete Travel Guide | Discover Greece

The great fun of Armchair Travel is you can go where you want, check out museums, monuments, parks, restaurants, book shops, day tours, etc. And imagine yourself there … enjoying stuffed vine leaves, Moussaka and a beautiful glass of Greek wine. If you are lucky to live near a good Green restaurant, indulge!

Perhaps play some Greek music, watch a movie set in Greece, check out “Aerial Greece” by the Smithsonian Channel  (marvelous 4 part show covering mainland Greece and the islands)  or hunt about for books set in Greece. If you enjoy mysteries, check out the Chief Andreas Kaldis series by Jeffrey Siger. Most of the books also feature the Greek isles … which is definitely another Armchair Travel journey.

Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail. ~  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Savor your journeys… real, imagined or virtual, near or far

Home | Acropolis Museum | Official website (theacropolismuseum.gr)

Athens (visitgreece.gr)

Favorite Cat Photos ~ Quotes ~ March 2022

The innocent look on their face is enough to take up most of the room in your heart ~ Mark Twain

Cats and music are the two ways of refuge from the miseries of life ~ Albert Schweitzer

A part of your soul remains asleep,if you have not loved an animal ~ Anatole France

The vibrations you recieve when the cat purrs on your lap are of contentment and pure love ~ St. Francis of Assisi

Cats own numerous charms which will make you forget all your worries ~ Saki

If you think that its only a cat then obviously you have never loved a cat ~ T.S.Eliot

First Signs of Spring ~ Photos ~ Quotes ~ March 2022

The spring wakes us, nurtures us and revitalizes us. How often does your spring come? If you are a prisoner of the calendar, it comes once a year. If you are creating authentic power, it comes frequently, or very frequently ~ Gary Zukav

Spring: a lovely reminder of how beautiful change can truly be ~ Anonymous

Every spring is the only spring, a perpetual astonishment ~ Ellis Peters

No matter how long the winter, spring is sure to follow ~ English Proverb

Spring is painted in daffodil yellows, robin egg blues, new grass green and the brightness of hope for a better life ~ Toni Sorenson

Walk About a Pond ~ Photos ~ Quotes ~ Gig Harbor, WA ~ March 2022

In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect. Trees can be contorted, bent in weird ways, and they’re still beautiful ~ Alice Walker

Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair ~ Khalil Gibran

Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better ~ Albert Einstein

Heaven is under our feet as well as over our heads ~ Henry David Thoreau

To me a lush carpet of pine needles or spongy grass is more welcome than the most luxurious Persian rug ~ Helen Keller