Zooming in Zealously on Life: A to Z Blogging Challenge

It's with regret, as well as relief that I write this last post..."Z"  I am running out of steam, but have just enough oomph to reach the finish line!

I will share in about a week, all the things I have learned and loved about this Challenge. Since I plan to continue posting in the months ahead, I will want to know which posts you have enjoyed the most and why.  If you have other ideas for future posts, share those too!

So, on to "Zooming In Zealously On Life"!

I love my Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ5!  My camera has accompanied me all around the world, and I must say, it has taken some amazing photos in difficult circumstances.  Low light, quick moving targets, and catching a shot from on top a camel challenged the "motion sensors"to the 'nth' degree.  So, I shouldn't have been surprised to find that I could "Zoom In" on life, without the use of a special lens.  Below are a few shots, mostly of living things, with a few inanimate objects to end the show.  I will not caption or comment, but let you guess what they are...the majority are obvious.

Not spectacular, but, a closer look than usual...I hope you've enjoyed zeroing in on God's Beautiful World!  If you have a favorite, let me know in the comment section.

If you are not following my blog yet, but like what you have seen, feel free to follow in any of the ways offered.  Stay tuned for my After-Challenge post next week...I'd love to hear what would keep you coming back for more!


It's been a pleasure to get to know so many fellow bloggers...I have appreciated each and every comment you have left.  Keep up the good work and your ZEST for the Art of Blogging!

Yearning for Yesteryear: A to Z Blogging Challenge

Have you ever longed to live in another century?  I have.  Not that I am dissatisfied with who and where I am today, but, I'd like, just for a short while, to live in the Victorian/Edwardian Era...along with Jane Austen and the Bronte sisters, and, of course, Queen Victoria.

The times were not ideal, so what attracts me?  Maybe it's the manners and dress, the architecture and the furnishings, or the dances and social gatherings.  Come to think of it, my reasons are rather frivolous, which is not typical of me!

Below are some photos from that Era, and a few websites for you to peruse:

A Chicago Brownstone

Galena, Il. antique shop

Victorian Day Dress: V and A Museum, London

A Lovely Garden in the Cotswolds, England

Lehmans Country Store








Victoria's Past:  Explores a Victorian Home and all pastimes and routines connected with it!








"All That's Vintage" Shop in Galena, Illinois
Features items from the 30's, 40's and 50's






The Nourished Kitchen: Reviving Traditional Foods

















Victorian Trading Company: Fashions, Collectibles and items for the Home and Hearth

Long Ago: Vintage Costuming Pattern Catalog

What era would you like to visit?  What is it about that time in history that attracts you?

Xenophile...X Marks the Spot: A to Z Blogging Challenge

Dictionary.com defines "Xenophile" as: 'a person who is attracted to foreign peoples, cultures or customs.'

I have travelled to 6 of the 7 continents with my family in the last 10 years, and I am always fascinated with the differences in the cultures...what they eat, wear and drive, where they live, and what they say!  I have taken photos of signs in many of the countries that tickle my funny bone, or make me pause to consider.  They are so unlike our culture, and yet so similar.  You don't need fiction to make you laugh...the jokes are out there in real life.  Here they are below:

ENGLAND:

                          The Cotswolds, England: Boys will be boys!

The Cotswolds, England: All right...pay up!

 London, England: The Victorian and Albert Museum...Tributes to Man's Best friend.

      The Tower of London (England): While awaiting execution....someone made his mark.

PATAGONIA, ARGENTINA:

                   Haberton Estancia, Gable Island: Think about this one for a minute..

              Peninsula Valdez: This was the exception to the rule in Argentina!

THE MIDDLE EAST:

                            Cana near Bethany, Israel...that's what I call aged wine!

                                               Sea of Galilee, Israel: Say what?

                                                Near Petra, Jordan:  How late?

                                          Sardis, Turkey:  Or is it "Fake Genuine"?

                                 Top of Mt Sinai, Egypt: Frappuccino, Anyone?

                                                Bethlehem, Israel: Stolen Identity

Which one did you enjoy/relate to the most?  Why?

Watching for The Winsome Writer's Voice: A to Z Blogging Challenge

On one of my blog posts, where I shared a "Flash Fiction" piece, a commenter had mentioned that I had "a voice".  I can't tell you how thrilled I was with that revelation! I kept saying to myself, over and over: "I have a voice!  I have a voice!" as if I had received the greatest gift in the world. 

Writer's Voice, according to  'About.com' is defined as: "the author's style, the quality which makes his or her writing unique, and which conveys the author's attitude, personality and character."

Here is an excerpt of the piece from my blog post: 


Too Close for Comfort


"Hyperventilating because of my near death experience, I leaned against the rusty remains of a concrete bridge, thankful to be alive.  Miraculously, I had only a cut on my leg.  Becky, my best friend, had rescued me again.  But this time. it wasn't from a social faux pas.  And she had only wet hair to show for the feat...."


I am just beginning to see what she meant, as I continue my writing career.  Here is the link to the post for the rest of the story.

These famous writers below have obvious Voice.  Can you guess the author of each of these excerpts below (the answers are at the bottom of this post)?

A
Take these again; for to the noble mind 
Rich gifts wax poor when givers prove unkind. 

B

There was no time for play.
This was no time for fun.
This was no time for games.
There was work to be done. 

All that deep,
Deep, deep snow,
All that snow had to go.

When our mother went
Down to the town for the day,
She said, "somebody has to

Clean all this away.
Somebody, SOMEBODY
Has to, you see."

Then she picked out two Somebodies.
Sally and me.

C
What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?   God  forbid. How shall we, that are  dead to sin, live any  longer therein?

D

"Is he—quite safe?"
[...]
"Safe?" said Mr. Beaver [...] "Who said anything about safe? 

'Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you."

Here are some links to books and websites about Writer's Voice:


What is Writer's Voice?
Three Ways to Spark Literary Magic-Voice Part 2

"Finding Your Voice: How to Put Personality in Your Writing" by Lee Edgerton

Answers:  

         

A Shakespeare's "Hamlet": Scene 3 Act 1

B "The Cat and the Hat Comes Back" by Dr. Seuss

C The Apostle Paul: Romans 6:1,2
D "The Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis Ch. 8

Do you have a voice?  Can you give me another example of an author who has an obvious writer's voice?