Archives for March 2013

March 30, 2013

Kiva Loan: March/April

2 down, 4 to go!My Kiva loan for March and April goes to Mirian Angela in Ecuador. She runs a clothing business out of her home to help support her family. She is requesting a loan so she can fix up her spare room and rent it out. Renting the room will provide her family with some much needed extra income.

Photo from Mirian Angela’s Kiva listing.

Mirian’s profile stood out to me because right now Mike and I are renting a room from someone to help him earn a little extra cash.
I was checking out my portfolio the other day and 13 of my loans have been repaid. Nice work, ladies! If you haven’t made a loan yet, go ahead and grab a free trial. You’ll be happy you did!
xo, jill
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March 29, 2013

From the Hip Friday

Pretzel Love.

Today’s photo from the hip comes from Jenny, one of my oldest and dearest friends. (She’s the kind of friend who will organized a surprise picnic to welcome you back into the country.) She snapped this photo while in Philadelphia for a business trip. Driving into the city she held up her phone, took the photo, and was delighted to have captured a giant pretzel billboard. Who doesn’t love pretzels? 


Thanks, Jenny!

xo, jill 

From the Hip Friday features photos taken without the use of a viewfinder. If you have a photograph that was taken from the hip you’d like to share here, please contact me!

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March 27, 2013

Big Thing Thursday: Merino

Nice and wooly.

The Big Merino is definitely imposing. There’s no way you can drive past a ram that big and not stop. (It’s also adjacent to a gas station so that probably helps a bit.)

As you might imagine, the large ram, aptly named Rambo, is a tribute to the wool industry. He was built in 1985 and was originally located on the opposite end of town. Due to changes in highway and city development, Rambo was starting to feel a bit lonely. So, in 2007 he was moved to his current location connected to a gift shop and an exhibition on Australian wool. Can you imagine seeing this guy coming down the street?

We didn’t check out the shop or exhibit, but you really have to give it to them for two reasons. 1. The thing is absolutely huge (15.2 meters high, 18m long) and 2. It’s anatomically correct. You really can’t help but check.

Big Thing: Merino ram
Location: Goulburn, NSW
Rating: 

I noticed on the Big Merino website that in honor of Goulburn’s 150th birthday, a group of knitters knit Rambo a 30 meter long scarf. It just keeps getting sillier. I love it. 
xo, jill 
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Filed Under: Australia, Big Things
March 27, 2013

Even kitties have a sweet tooth.

Meow.In Abu Dhabi there was a fairly fancy sweet shop on my block. I never went inside but I’d often glance at the extravagant cakes in the window on my way by. One afternoon when I came home from work, I noticed someone else taking a little peek too…

So cute.

xo, jill

 

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March 21, 2013

From the Hip Friday

Guten tag.

Today’s photo from the hip comes from the small town of Hahndorf in South Australia. Hahndorf was originally a German enclave and the people there today are holding tightly to the past. Now it’s essentially a very pretty tourist town selling German souvenirs.

We stopped into one shop specializing in German food products. It was fun to see a few past novelty snacks on the shelves and then I was blown away by the gigantic cans of sauerkraut (use the shopping basket for reference). No photos allowed so I snuck one from the hip.

xo, jill

From the Hip Friday features photos taken without the use of a viewfinder. If you have a photograph that was taken from the hip you’d like to share here, please contact me!

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March 18, 2013

Sunrises or the one good thing about snoring.

But I still hate it.

The other day I was up at 3:30am thanks to a gentleman loudly snoring in a tent nearby. Instead of digging around in the car for my earplugs, I decided to just get up and get a headstart on the day. This mostly meant reading blogs on my phone until it grew light enough to read. But I did manage to take a little walk around the park at sunrise.

Lake Macquarie
Pelicans!

So while I do have that man to thank for these photos, there was still an exchange that went something like:

Me: I need the car keys.
Mike: Why?
Me: I’m going to sit in the car… and then drive over that tent!! 

xo, jill 

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