Hiking on St. Maarten…

There is a zip line course at Loterie Farm near the high point of St. Maarten. Julie and Wayne have ‘zipped’ before and while it sounded like (dangerous) fun, we decided that hiking was more our style. Julie opted to read a book on the beach and Steve, Wayne and I set off for the jungle.

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It was hot and humid and sort of jungle-y.

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It was uphill mostly going in, and downhill mostly going out. In some spots it was very rocky. I’m not sure how far we hiked but we all felt like we had accomplished something when it was over.

There used to be a sugar plantation on the property and this is a ruin of a well…

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This was one of the overlooks on the trail…

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We got to the top and were stopped by this gate. We did not try ringing Nils Larsen, the name by the buzzer, to see if he’d let us in.

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The view beyond the gate:

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I got the guys to stand by this blue pole…

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And then I got them to strike a pose. Wayne and Steve were very good sports about the whole photo thing.

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The trail back down started here, just to the right of the concrete wall. Look close and you can see the arrows pointing us down the trail.

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It started to rain as we walked the trail out. We spotted a monkey who didn’t seem to mind us but took off when the thunder started and the rain began to fall in earnest.

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And that was the end of the hike picture taking!

St. Maarten, continued…

There were lots of photo ops. In fact, I could turn into one of those people who makes little forward progress because they are too busy taking pictures. That used to drive me crazy with other people, so I try not to overdo it.

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Sometimes I like to play with filters or other editing options. (Camera+ has some really great built-in editing features.) There is never only one perfect choice so it’s hard to know when to stop..

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This photo in color is not nearly as good…

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The same is true with this photo. In black and white is looks very retro.

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There was one wall with a broken glass bottle ridge along its top that looked like dangerous flowers.

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It was more interesting in black and white.

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Sint Maarten…

AKA St Maarten, is an island in the Caribbean that is split between the Netherlands and France. We stayed on the Dutch side, at Dawn Beach. By ‘we’, I mean Julie, Wayne, Steve, and me.

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We were in an lovely condo and could look out from the living room onto the balcony, over the next building to the ocean. I’m not sure why, but I really liked the view through the doors to the balcony.

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This was our view…

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Even the cloudy days were beautiful…

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In case you are wondering, I took all of these photos with my iPhone using the Camera+ app.

We walked on the beach…

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I’ll post more photos from our trip over the next few days. It’s nice to re-visit the ocean!

News from Linda…

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For those of you who would like to do something in remembrance of Linda and Paul’s son, Jerry, they’ve asked that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Iron Man Scholarship Fund in memory of Jerry Jenkins to help graduates from the Deed and Truth Union Rescue Mission.

Click here to read Pastor Dan’s post with more information about The Iron Man and about Jerry’s part in the Mission.

Click here and then click where indicated on the site to make a donation online. You should have an opportunity to add Jerry Jenkins’ name and to choose the Iron Man Scholarship Fund.

OR you can send a check made out made to the Iron Man Scholarship Fund and mail it to:
Deed and Truth
1901 E 4th
Suite 100
Santa Ana CA 92605

Be sure to write in memory of Jerry Jenkins in the memo area of your check. Thank you so much.

What do you say when the news is bad?

I have to let our friends know that on July 22, Linda and Paul’s son Jerry passed away. He has gone home to be with God.

His wife Viviana, that he loved with all his heart, and his family and friends will hold his memory always in their hearts.

Jerry spent thousands of hours working with the LA Rescue Mission. It was his passion to help rehabilitate the lost and homeless. In lieu of flowers the family would like donations to the Mission in Jerry’s name. We will send another email out with the donation information in a few days when the Scholarship fund is set up.

Visiting the Hill Country…

Last Friday, Steve drove me to the Texas Hill Country to visit the Veriens Quilt Guild in Fredericksburg, the Hill Country Quilt Guild in Kerrville, and the Highland Lakes Quilt Guild in Marble Falls. The Hill Country is about 6 hours south of Sherman, sort of in the middle of Texas. (Texas is a big state.)

Here are the members of the Veriens QG waving hello to you at my lecture on Saturday.

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The lecture was followed by the first half of a 6 hour class, which then carried over to Sunday. Steve and I had half the day Sunday to toodle around Fredericksburg where I found this wonderful tile floor in the kitchen store that is in the building that used to be the local hospital. It would make a nice applique quilt!

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As we drove around town, I noticed something I don’t remember seeing before: road signs with interesting designs printed on the back. Here’s the front of one sign:

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And here’s the back:

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There are many of these signs around Fredericksburg and they sport different designs on their backsides. It’s a lovely attention to detail!

After 2 days with the Veriens QG, I lectured at the Hill Country Quilt Guild in Kerrville. I forgot to take a waving-hello picture, but I know those ladies would have happily waved to you.

After the lecture and lunch, Mary to me to an amazing quilt shop — Creations. I was too busy shopping to take pictures. If you had been with me, you would not have stopped for pictures either. I left with a big ziplock bag full of fat quarters and some interesting thread. You can only see part of what’s in my bag. What’s below is equally as interesting.

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Creations puts purchases in ziplock bags. I’ve never seen this before but I’d love to encounter it again. It’s so very functional!

Steve has been busy carrying my bags and getting me where I need to be on time, fulfilling his job as sherpa. He’s also been hiking and visiting various sites. The Admiral Nimitz Museum in Fredericksburg was something he didn’t know he’d enjoy, but he really has. He’s going back tomorrow while I teach. After class we head to Marble Falls for 2 more days.

The Texas Hill Country is beautiful, full of friendly people and interesting things to do and see. If you get the chance to visit, you should!