11/22/15

E a, e fia Samoa?... LOL!


Members of DNCE (Joe Jonas' new band) at the recent 2015 American Music Awards (AMA).  OK, to the point, is that an 'ie faitaga that Cole Whittle (right) is wearing?  Hahahaaa... I'm almost convinced it is.  Perhaps not the first celebrity to have worn one.  Some All Blacks players, possibly out of respect, wore them during their recent trip; the Rock also wore an ie faikaga when he visited Samoa, which doesn't count because it's understandable with his Samoan background, but Cole?  Hmmm!!...and the type of dress shoes he's wearing (versus sandals or others) also are part of the Samoan ie faikaga  formal/elegant style.  Ia fai aku ai fo'i.
(Note: Picture copied/used under the Fair Use laws.)

11/5/15

Halloween Weekend

Everyone (hmmm.. most everyone) believes their neighborhood is beautiful, if not the most beautiful.  Well, I think know that my neighborhood is veeery beautiful too. I don't live in a big city which I always loathe, being someone who prefers the outbacks, the rustic and pastoral feel of the more rural places.  In my neighborhood, there are rolling hills and  mountains (lots of ‘em), canyons, rivers, small streams, lakes (big and small), farmlands, the four seasons, etc., etc.  Though I don't ski, I still am excited about the beauty of the snow during winter months.  And the colors of Fall bring an admiration and gratitude for more of Nature's varied offerings.

This past weekend, I made my rounds watching/supporting our grandsons in their football games, as I have been doing for the past several weeks.  The weather has gradually changed from the hot days of Summer to much cooler and colorful Fall afternoons.  As I was going from one football field to another, I was impressed with the overall locality - as always. So I stopped to take some pictures of some of the scenes around this beautiful community and neighborhood of mine.  It was also Halloween weekend and some of the pictures reflect the mood and spirit of the occasion and celebration.
Our family also had its annual Halloween Party on Saturday complete with costume display and contest, mostly by the grandchildren. There was no surprise when it came to the winners.

The other side of the football fields.  A beautiful Fall morning with clear blue skies and leaves starting to change colors.  My phone camera does not do justice to the true beauty of these neighborhood spots.

 I couldn't resist this beautiful shot of the mountains, the sky and the trees and some of the homes.  Again, my kind of place and setting.


 Driving down the highway, I was drawn to these longhorns with a perfect background of rolling hills and homes .... a perfect postcard!


On the opposite side of the mountain range, is the beautiful lake and more mountains ...


I passed by this house of a family with the true spirit of Halloween ...

Part of the family's Halloween display ...


Football field for one of the games, but perhaps the more memorable part of the picture is the building in the background (with storage tanks).  If you've seen the movie "Footloose" (original version), you would remember the building where Kevin Bacon danced - Lehi Roller Mills.   Yes, it still stands and operational too.  Many other locations in the movie are all found around this area.

Kevin Bacon (Ren) and Lori Singer (Ariel) of "Footloose"  ...

Grandchildren getting ready to go trick-or-treating ...





And the 2015 winners were .... The Toy Soldiers family.  The same family that brought you the Minions and Ninja Turtles of the last two years.


 post trick-or-treat snacks...


Surprise!  I arrived at the football field and found this littlest grandson (youngest) who wanted to dress up like his papa ...LOL!!!


ready to go candy hunting ....


 Last year's Halloween bash (2014) in the backyard ...


Grandchildren's 2014 costumes


One more treat from this year's winners ... The Toy Soldiers!! ...costumes all homemade!