Are you goin' to Scarborough Fair? Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme.

OK so it wasn't Scarborough fair , but e did go to the first Friday Art detour and the 7ave street fair this week end. The weekend was a whirlwind of art and craft and Oscars.

(........aliens and art)

We started Friday night at Another Gallery on 3rd St in Phoenix. One of our closest friends, Daniel Moore, is the featured artist. his photography is simply amazing it can transport you to that quiet place in your heart. The gallery was hoping with friends and family, and it was so nice to see such a wonderful response to Dans work. From there it was off to Roosevelt. They now close the street for the evening and it feel like a night fair . We saw all kind of interesting things , aliens ,circus freaks and even art. Every month on the first Friday of the month all the art galleries in down town phoenix open there doors. it is a great venue to see new and emerging artist .(Lots of good people watching too!!

Saturday was the 7Th avenue street fair. this is a great big event for us. since we live in the neighborhood we are very close to lots of people on the street. This year was no disappointment there was such a high level of creativity. I met the girls who run Bewilderknits Gwyne, Karn, and Cora. They were a oasis of fiber in a see of other crafts.

One thing I love about the downtown crowd is the diversity and acceptance that goes with it. It seems there was a place for everyone.

To cap off the great weekend we went out to Fountain Hills for Oscar night at my best friend's house. It has been quite a tradition to watch Oscars with Sari and Adin( her son). My mom is always on speed dial.( A really awful dress constitutes a call immediately) We had a great dinner and were really pleased to see the Oscar for best director go to a woman!

All in all it was a spectacular weekend!

Keep chasing Rainbows ............

Over the Hills and Through the Woods........

Anchorage the Alaskan Frontier. I started my day with a hearty breakfast at the Snow City cafe.

This place is legendary. The food is amazing. Michelle Shocked sang about it on her album, Anchorage.(or maybe she mentions it in the album notes, but I new about it from her)

Check out her video on the side bar while you are reading.

After breakfast with a nice warm Tummy it was......... Over the hills and through the woods to a knitting store I go. A true knitter will travel a long way when they are in need of a yarn fix(at least I will) ok so it was almost 2 miles from my hotel and it was 36 degrees, but The Far North Yarn Co. was well worth the trip. My weary frozen eyes were treated with a great wall of Irish. Greens of every hue!( This was conceived by the owners son)

It made me want to knit something for St Patrick's day.

The owner of the store is a refreshing burst of energy. Her name is Kay. There are wonderful yarns to be had in this store. Lots of great books samples and ideas at every turn......and yes. I bought something a skien of wonderful Kathmandu yarn merino silk and cashmere. Yes, it feels yummy and smoochy. I have no idea what I am gonna make, maybe a great hat! It will match my cell phone gloves( the pattern is coming soon). Travelers and locals alike you need to check out this charming shop. Tell them A Traveling Knitter sent you.

On my way back I thought I would give my knitting a chance to check out the view from Resolution point. This is where Captain Cook endened his nothern exploration. ( I thought my knitting need a closer look)

Valley Of The Temples

So I have been a little remiss in my posting. Give a guy a break I do need to sleep and it was raining the last two days........
On Saturday my flying buddy Corey and I went on a great adventure. We were in Oahu (Honolulu). We set out for the valley of the temples. To see a replica of a 900 year old Japanese temple. We had no idea what we were getting in to we knew we just had to take 2 buses and it was on the other side of the island. You see the most interesting things on buses. On the second bus, the driver told us we would get off when we saw Mc Donalds. So we were driving and driving. ( Beautiful scenery). Kept commenting on how easy it was to take a great picture and Corey said "duh, it Hawaii" she has a point!
We finally arrived at the Mc Donalds stop after an hour( yes I said an hour! I would have knitted but I was too busy looking out the windows)

We were told to walk thru the cemetery and the temple was behind.

We came upon the Byodo-In Temple. It is almost magical and was completely unexpected. It was built in 1968. To commemorate the first Japanese immigrants to Hawaii. It was built completely without nails. As we approached we heard a beautiful haunting bell. It just sounded like tranquility. Byodo-in Temple translates. "Temple of equality"

The bell we heard is 5 foot high 3 ton brass bell.

The Buddha housed in the temple is 18 feet high covered in gold lacquer.
As you can see I didn't have to many problems getting a good picture.

It was a beautiful day and quite the experience. We could have stayed longer watching the koi swim., I would have liked to spend time knitting. (It would be a good place to work on a prayer shawl) .
Alas we had a long bus ride back. I will hold my memories of that beautiful tranquil place inside me.

As a after note I had mentioned that evening on the bus to our pilot what a wonderful day Corey and I had. As well as what a beautiful place it was. He said " as a christian, I wouldn't be interested at all" I thought what a sad person you are..............
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