leisure time – Page 4 – Thoughts From The Passenger Seat

2024, family, friends, leisure time, life, Memories, relaxing, thoughts, Travel

When Vacation Is Over

Posted on August 18, 2024 by nancyb422

Is there anything worse on vacation than opening the Friday on a pill case? I can’t think of one!

Our last day at Lake Winnipesauke was spent on the boat with my sister and her husband who drove over from their home in Maine. We tried to dock in Wolfesboro for lunch again but everyone had the same idea so we headed over to Weirs Beach instead. We’ve been there many times by motorcycle for Laconia Bike Week in June so this was a whole different view! We saw buildings usually blocked by big white vendor tents and the arcades were in full swing. We had lunch at Dox and headed back out to drift on the lake.

It was a great week of boating, hiking, and shopping! The early part of the week was sunny but by Wednesday the smoke from the Canadian fires made its way to us and it was hazy sun. We knew rain was coming on Thursday so we headed to Conway for shopping – but we didn’t think to bring our umbrellas so ended up buying new ones!

Packing up on Saturday and saying goodbye to our little home was sad as I was finally sleeping past 6am but it was time to go. I’m hoping to rent for 10 days next year at the same location.

*Our one bedroom cottage among 4 rentals on the property*

Today it’s rainy in Connecticut which is perfect weather to get laundry done, open the mail, and get ready for our family’s Fantasy Football draft tonight!

2024, family, friends, leisure time, life, relaxing, Travel

August 14 Hump Day Photo

Posted on August 14, 2024 by nancyb422

I’m on vacation this week which I’ve told you about in previous posts.

So why not share a picture from today!

We had our friends over for a day on the boat and lunch in Wolfeboro. It was still very warm after they left so we went back out to anchor somewhere and spend some time reading.

The smoke from the Canadian fires made the skies very hazy and strange!

2024, friends, leisure time, life, relaxing, Sports, Travel

Vacation Mid-Week

Posted on August 14, 2024 by nancyb422

It’s beautiful here on Lake Winnipesaukee and we are loving every minute. Isn’t that what vacation is all about?

*Looking out from our property on Alton Bay*

We spent some time on our boat Sunday anchored up and Monday we boated down to the town dock to go to breakfast 🤗. We also boated up to Wolfeboro and docked to do some shopping. My husband gets nervous docking if it’s a right spot but he did great! I took the pressure off by dropping the push off/hook on pole in the water! 🤣 Luckily it floated towards the boat launch area and some nice young people got their hook and dragged it in.

Yesterday we drove up to Lincoln to go hiking with one of our employees and his wife. We held our own but omg I could barely walk by the time we were done. I have a couple of toes that give me trouble when they’re in shoes for too long (one connected with our rowing machine when I kicked back doing yoga 😫).

We hiked in Franconia Notch, first to the top of Mt Pemigewasset, 3.3 mile round trip.

Came back down, ate our packed lunch, and then heading to the Flume Gorge which is a 2.2 round trip. You need tickets to see it and it was worth every single penny. We had no idea that existed!

We had dinner at the Woodstock Inn and brewery then headed back to our little cottage.

Today it’s more boating with our hiking friends who are heading back home.

I’m so grateful to be able to take this time and relax!

2024, Goals, leisure time, life, Politics, relaxing, thoughts, Travel

Stepping Back

Posted on August 11, 2024 by nancyb422

*Lakehurst Cottages, Alton New Hampshire*

Mark and I are spending the week at a cute little cottage in Alton New Hampshire. We brought our boat up and it is docked here on Lake Winnipesauke.

After trading comments back and forth last night with a former classmate on one post and some stranger on another, I decided it’s time to take a break from social media. Personal Facebook and Instagram accounts specifically.

Today my phone was tucked away in my backpack, only brought out to use Apple Maps on the water (it’s easier to see what the islands are!) and I felt free!

It’s time to take care of my mental health.

2024, family, friends, leisure time, life, Memories, photography, Travel

August 7 Hump Day Photo

Posted on August 7, 2024 by nancyb422

I took a trip to Paris in May 2007 with my sister, her daughter, and their friend. We rented an apartment in the Marais District from a friend of mine from California.

Our apartment was about four blocks from the Seine and after we rested, we took off to look around. It was amazing to see all the beautiful buildings and that famous river we’ve heard so much about!

I like this picture because of the couple stealing some moments together on the banks of the river Seine. It is one of the first pictures I took on our trip.

Before we left, I studied the Rick Steves’ book on Paris and came up with a list of places we might want to visit. Everyone was willing to follow my suggestions! We went to the Montmatre, the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Père LaChaise Cemetery, the Louvre, Musee d’ Orsay, and Versailles. We really packed in a lot of sights in 7 days!

Back then, I was taking pictures on one of those small Canon SD600 cameras. I don’t know what type of phone I had back then but it must not have been very good if I didn’t use it for pictures. I took 305 pictures, they are still in my iCloud photos and I still enjoy looking at them and remembering our trip which means another one from this trip might show up sometime!

2024, family, friends, Holidays, leisure time, life, Memories, photography, Sports, Travel

July 31 Hump Day Photo

Posted on July 31, 2024 by nancyb422

Today I’m sharing a photo from February 2006. The same sister and her family that we went to Mexico with, we also took a few ski vacations together over the years!

We took a 2 or 3 February vacation trips to Mont Sutton located in Sutton Quebec. It was approximately 6 hours away from our home in Connecticut. We would meet up with my sister and 2 or 3 other families from Rhode Island at The Junction Restaurant in Troy Vermont for lunch. From there, we would cross over the border into Canada. We would stay every trip at an auberge right next to the slopes and rented the entire first floor wing of 8 or so rooms to make sure we had a game room for the kids and so we wouldn’t disturb any other guests! The hotel served us breakfast and dinner and we all brought coolers of food, a microwave, and whatever else we needed to come back to the rooms and have lunch if we wanted. All we had to do was ski.

This picture was from our 3rd trip to Canada. It was crazy to see this up in the tree but even funnier was what I thought I saw on the slope. My husband and I were on the chairlift, and I saw a small group of people on the side of the trail. I looked closely and then said to him “why is there a canoe on the trail?” He thought I was insane! What I was looking at was a snowboarder sitting on the ground with his board up on its side edge. From the direction I was looking, it looked like a person in a canoe!! 😂😂 I have a very vivid imagination!

Every time I see this picture in my favorites album I think about all those fun trips we took, and the canoe on the ski slope.

2024, family, leisure time, life, Memories, photography

July 24 Hump Day Photo

Posted on July 24, 2024 by nancyb422

*View from Las Carmelitas Puerto Vallarta Mexico*

In August of 2006, my family and my sister and her family went to a Mayan Palace resort in Puerto Vallarta Mexico.

For one of the dinners we went to Las Carmelitas which was approximately a half hour outside the side far up into the hills. It was a little nerve wracking being driven so far away from the resort in a taxi in a country we couldn’t speak the language! After passing through the city, we turned off the main road onto a road with a gate at the bottom. What did we get ourselves into! It was a dirt road, bumpy and winding. At one point, my sister’s taxi was having trouble making it up the hill, so she and my niece jumped out of the car and started walking!

Once we got to the top, there was a beautiful open air restaurant overlooking the water. There were chickens walking around and a toddler scooting around on his toy.

The food was so incredibly fresh, I remember the ceviche in particular, it was like it had just come out of the sea. The margaritas weren’t bad either!

We had a beautiful dinner as we watched the sun set over the water. After a few hours, the taxis returned to take us back to the resort. Whoever recommended Las Carmelitas knew what they were talking about. This picture is one of the many I took of the setting sun.

If you missed last week’s photo, you can find it here.

2024, hobbies, leisure time, life, relaxing

Experimental Collage

Posted on July 21, 2024 by nancyb422

On Saturday, I took a class at the Guilford Art Center called “Experimental Collage Workshop”.

I was more than a little nervous as I was driving to the center. I’ve never taken an art class before and it takes me a while to get my “creative juices” going!

It involved using a variety of medium to create a collage. The teacher brought so much material and it was fun to sort through everything there.

As I went through the packets of magazine pages, cutouts, words, and paper stock, I pulled out items that interested me. I realized I knew what I wanted to do.

As I was making it, I had to let go of my need to make things symmetrical or cut strips straight and of equal dimensions! The sun came about on my third try of a sun. As soon as I saw the green leaf paper, I knew I wanted it to be the roof and the teacher was impressed it was 3-D! I had to have Wally there and the cardinal was a fluke as I didn’t see it in the packet the first time I looked through it. I think it came out pretty good!

I’ve always had a thing for standard collage. My earliest memory was in third grade we had a collage project, maybe for our first communion, of a chalice and the communion wafer. I only remember it because it was in a yarn bound “book” of art work that hung around in the basement for years.

I love seeing the tile work in the subway stations. The two tours at Hearst Castle both ended up at the pool and it is breathtaking! The colors and the way they reflect off the water – I have so many pictures!

I really enjoyed this class. Once I had an idea of what I wanted to do, it became soothing to sort my material and cut out the items. I think it’s something I might explore at home!

2021, 2024, friends, leisure time, life, Memories, photography

July 17 Hump Day Photo

Posted on July 17, 2024 by nancyb422

*Arch Rock, Mackinac Island, Michigan August 2021*

I take so many pictures on my IPhone. 29,386 photos and 1,079 videos to be exact! I have a Canon EOS with three different lenses but it just cannot compete with the instant gratification convenience (my Canon doesn’t have wi-fi).

What should I do with all those photos? First off, delete all the duplicates. But second, Share them! So starting today, on Wednesdays I will share a photo and give the when, where, and why.

This photo was taken during a vacation in August 2021 to visit friends who had a home in the Northern Lower Peninsula of Michigan. While there with 2 other couples and the hosts, we took a trip to Mackinac Island.

It was quite a drive to get to the ferry (although we’d gone to Petoskey on a previous trip) but it and the ferry ride were enjoyable!

Once we got to the island, we had lunch and shopped and then took a horse drawn tour which brought us all over the island. It was such an enjoyable trip and one of the stops was at Arch Rock which looks out onto Lake Huron to the east. Believe me when I say, I took many pictures of this view from every angle.

We also saw the beautiful Grand Hotel on our tour along with a cemetery, and our tour guide had a lot of great information about the island.

Once our tour was over, we walked back down to the town and took the ferry ride back to Mackinaw City and headed home.

I’m very grateful for having met these couples on a Danube River cruise and our visits with them afterward!

2024, leisure time, Writing

Getting Lost in Research

Posted on July 15, 2024 by nancyb422

Daily writing prompt

Which activities make you lose track of time?

When I get involved with ancestry research work, time flies! I get so engrossed in names and making sure the information is correct, that an hour will go by before I know it! I’ll sit down to take a quick look and WHOOSH there goes the time!