Showing posts with label Botanic Garden. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Botanic Garden. Show all posts

Saturday, November 17, 2012

Since August, I've strived very, very, very hard to be more productive.  I've been working on a manuscript to submit soon (I've been saying this since February!), the 3-year follow-up methods chapter of my thesis, an online biostatistics/epidemiology class, and the beginnings of the online intervention development.  It feels like my mind is constantly running and sometimes it just needs a break.  Luckily, there's a botanic garden just a hop, skip and a jump from where I live.  This past week I took a break from PhD life to just wander around.


There are several themed gardens and I spent most of my time around the rhododendrons.  There's actually an annual Rhododendron Festival here!



I'll probably spend more time here as the weather gets nicer.  There are roses out and about already; it's going to be beautiful there in no time!

Monday, February 27, 2012

Start of Week 2 in New Zealand

Today's weather was b-e-a-utiful.  It was just too awesome outside to be inside.


So, I went for a walk...

I wanted to check out the neighborhoods in the hill across from where I live.  That meant I'd have to walk up those hills first.


But, it's worth it to walk up the hills around here.




And, it's not such a shabby deal to walk down a path or two...




...Hydrangeas are everywhere.  The colors change depending on the location.  I've seen them blue, light purple, and red.


I am not too cool to say it.  I am mesmerized by the sky here.  It's beautiful how it changes constantly. The blue is such a pure blue and the clouds make me think they've been filtered to take the ugly gray out and leave the pretty white and gray behind.


 The sun was still shining later in the day.  That meant another walk.


Even though summer is wrapping up around here the flowers don't know it, yet.





I thought I'd have some fun with the editing features on my computer.  I like this picture below because it made the flowers so pink and my eyes so blue (they're actually green with some blue speckles).


The last picture for today cracks me up.  I was trying to figure out why the camera hadn't been capturing pictures the way I wanted to - the colors just looked so dead compared to what they are in person.  Well, I finally got all the auto features reset.  And, what a difference.  The light in the picture is cool, in my humble opinion.  The funny thing is my windows are NOT that filthy!