I enjoy the WordPress challenges. This one, UP, was particularly fun. Up is ubiquitous. As I looked up my photos, “up” took on one meaning after another. Some of my up connections may be stretching it a bit, but I’ve heard them all used – or used them myself. Yesterday I wanted to finish up showing my favorite quilt show pictures using different challenges, but then I wondered….
Are you fed up with quilts, or are you still upbeat about looking at the Best of the Valley Quilts?
But things keep happening in my life, and I can’t keep up with the many things I want to share with you. I wanted to put up a few pictures from my first ever photography class. We went up into the foothills to a TCOE property called Circle J Ranch near Springville, CA on Yokohl Valley Road. The class was learning to take wildflowers, but it seems that when we hold a camera up to our eyes, anything that moves captures our attention. Never barking up the wrong tree, this photogenic squirrel filled up on acorns. As for me, I am now up on the latest in using ISOs, F-stops, and can now manually focus my camera. Yeah! Yippee! Giddyup!
Someone had to give me a leg up today. What’s up with that?
I was so focused on the work of upping my use of F-stops, that I didn’t realize my pants were soaking up moisture from the ground until all of the sudden I felt wet! Having already gotten my knees wet from the grass, I little suspected that I had sat in a fresh cow pie. I got up when I was done, only to realize that the gig was up, and no one there was going to look up to me and think I was cool, or smart or anything but messed up. It looked like I … well, you know! I wore my jacket the rest of the day around my waist as a cover-up.
These guys were probably off in the background chatting up a storm and having a good laugh at my expense. I give up. I’ll never be cool. I had to clean up when I got home. Did you know that Oxy-clean does NOT clean up all stains?
Changing up the conversation, but keeping up with the theme, a few years ago I went with a group of teachers from the Central Valley to a teachers’ institute in Colonial Williamsburg, VA. In Colonial Williamsburg we learned a lot about how folks cleaned up around the house in the 17th and 18th centuries, about the time my family arrived here from England.
After cleaning, we had to set up for dinner. Education for women in the 18th century included: measurement, time-management, keeping up the books, preserving and storing up food for winter months by pickling, smoking and drying as well as using up a lot of salt. They also had to be up on politics because they hosted political meetings in their homes.
Some of us stocked up on trouble. Jami Beck and I fessed up, and look where it got us. I give up! Jami has really shaped up.
She was honored Thursday, April 18th as the SJVCSS Elementary Teacher of the Year! Give it up for Jami everyone!!
Back in Williamsburg some of the socially upward-moving folks in those days, called “middling sorts,” were tobacco farmers. They hung up the tobacco leaves to dry in the barn.
Others, like Clementina Rind, were publishers. She had to go up stairs just to get inside the front door. That’s really me, but we all were assigned to be a certain person for a week, and I was Clementina, and this was her house.
We spent much of our week in taverns. That’s where everyone congregated and visit and eat in those days. They are still good places to go and bulk up. Re-enactors dressed up in colonial clothing showed up everywhere to draw us into the 18th century daily life. This tavern owner, is telling us what George Washington liked at her tavern.
Let’s jump forward two centuries. Former slaves, led by Col. Allen Allensworth, who fought in the Civil War, established the one freedom colony in California. It is located in the southern end of Tulare County. He rounded up other retired African-American military men, known as Buffalo Soldiers to settle his town, founded in 1908. Interpreter Steve Ptomey lifted up spirits with his razor-sharp demonstration of a trip to the Barbershop. In Allensworth some of the kids cleaned up really well. Just so you don’t suspect Steve of child abuse – he wasn’t using a real razor!
Moving back up to the 21st century to the small upscale town Exeter, folks are considering what to cook up for dinner. Hanging up in the meat locker might be one of those cows that got up the nerve to laugh at me!
In nearby Woodlake someone took borrowed a cart from the grocery story, and left it broken up, littering up our beautiful lake. Do people do that in your area? That steams me up.
I’d like to hurry up and get this published. I have many more pictures to share, but I’m going to limit myself to two or three that I dug up from my collection.
That’s all I could scoop up in a couple of days of preparing this post. (lie – I have tons more)
I’m almost all dried up.
I’ll leave you with this thought. Cuddle up with someone you love and read a good post or book, or watch a movie. Life is looking up!
For more ups worldwide check out WordPress’ Weekly Photo Challenge: Up.
Marsha Ingrao - Always Write 
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