Delicate Haven, Chihuly Garden and Glass

Mother nature is a fickle thing. We cannot live without it and it has a beauty no one can deny. However, people cannot always handle its will to pollinate in order to live. The fine dust-like particles blanket anything and everything in its path. If going outside means an attack of sneezes, tears, and itchiness than being indoors is a no-brainer.

Human nature is even more fickle. When the weather is hot, we want it to be cool; when it is cold, we prefer warmth. Flora and fauna can really test our immune defenses but their colors are just too captivating to ignore. Who knew a garden made of glass sculptures could be similar to gardens of the botanical variety? The former is so far and few in-between that it'd be difficult to picture. Yet both can be just as vibrant and dainty as the other in their own ways.

I had never heard of Chihuly prior to our visit to Seattle. It is difficult to forget the artist's style once you've seen his work. Despite everything being made of glass and ultimately having a rigid quality, it still keeps its sense of fluidity and softness with the use of curves, colors, and lines.

It's been a few years since I saw these in person. The Seattle Center garden displays his glass-blowing talent at a grand scale. Chihuly has since evolved to use glass in newer ways. I would love to see his "Glass on Glass" exhibit one day where he marries a more traditional medium of paint to a non-conventional canvas of glass and light.

lavlilacs Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington Chihuly Garden and Glass - Space Needle and Glasshouse

lavlilacs Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington Chihuly Garden and Glass - Glasshouse

lavlilacs Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington Chihuly Garden and Glass - demonstration

lavlilacs Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington Chihuly Garden and Glass chandelier lavlilacs Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington Chihuly Garden and Glass chandelier

lavlilacs Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington Chihuly Garden and Glass - Mille Fiori

lavlilacs Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington Chihuly Garden and Glass - Mille Fiori persians lavlilacs Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington Chihuly Garden and Glass - Mille Fiori

lavlilacs Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington Chihuly Garden and Glass - Mille Fiori

lavlilacs Seattle Center, Seattle, Washington Chihuly Garden and Glass - persian ceiling

Alive

Photographing people normally isn't within my comfort zone. I find more solace in quietly snapping images of inanimate subjects than interacting with living ones. But when I do, candid shots are my preferred style—time that stands still, encapsulating the exact moment for what it was and not how anyone wants to pretend to be.

Everyone visits Pike Place when in Seattle. Most go to grab some bites, look around, take quick photos, and be on their merry way. Frequent visitors may make the marketplace livelier, I would say the people of make Pike Place alive.

lavlilacs Pike Place, Seattle, Washington Piano Man Johnny Hahn

lavlilacs Pike Place, Seattle, Washington Beecher's Handmade Cheese waiting lavlilacs Pike Place, Seattle, Washington Beecher's Handmade Cheese making

lavlilacs Pike Place, Seattle, Washington Mee Sum Pastry accepting

lavlilacs Pike Place, Seattle, Washington Starbucks watching lavlilacs Pike Place, Seattle, Washington Starbucks chatting

lavlilacs Pike Place, Seattle, Washington Simply the Best smiling

Kill Nothing But Time

lavlilacs Skagit Valley, Mount Vernon, Washington RoozenGaarde purple tulips

To take nothing but pictures
To kill nothing but time
To leave nothing but footprints
A change of pace from what I have been posting thus far in 2018. It has actually been almost a year since I last edited non-beauty, travel related photos. I guess I lacked the motivation to share since those posts aren't generally the most viewed on the blog.

An unsaid resolution I had for this site, along with trying to post at least once a week, was to share whatever the heck I wanted regardless of how well or terrible it would be received. I am not an influencer nor monetize from this teeny blog. It is and has always been, first and foremost, a place where I stored my thoughts and memories.

I have done fairly well with the consistency goal (until this month); here goes to shyly greet the ever more personal side of my life (even if I randomly share images from years ago).

lavlilacs Skagit Valley, Mount Vernon, Washington RoozenGaarde sign

RoozenGaarde
15867 Beaver Marsh Rd, Mt Vernon, WA 98273

lavlilacs Skagit Valley, Mount Vernon, Washington RoozenGaarde tulip field
lavlilacs Skagit Valley, Mount Vernon, Washington sky lavlilacs Skagit Valley, Mount Vernon, Washington RoozenGaarde child tulip field

My family and I visited the Pacific Northwest three years ago to the day. This was a trip of many firsts. It was our first time to Seattle, Vancouver, and nearby cities. It was the first overnight trip we'd taken together in six years. It was the first trip we rented a car and drove around. It was the first trip I had the job of setting some kind of an itinerary.

So much responsibility. So much stress. So many options. So many people's different interests to consider. So many unanticipated meetings and reunions with friends and family. Maybe being ferried around on bus tours wouldn't have been that bad?

The peace and nature that is the Pacific Northwest though, is an environment that is hard to stay stressed in. All the greenery and bright skies are hard to be grumpy in. Of course, Seattle is known to be rainy but it uncharacteristically was not when we visited. I can never imagine living there because of the potential allergy attack I would have to all the pollen but for the brief week or so we were there the lively colors and relaxed lifestyle (when compared to New York City) was a breathe of fresh air.