First Debate

 

Anyone else watch the first presidential debate last night? In many ways I felt like I was watching a commodity act...

Yours truly,

Nicklas

Morning Sun

   The southeast corner of my home has spectacular lighting in the morning. So which room benefits from natures gift you might ask? Well for my home’s layout this only the dining room and the master bedroom. In the dining room the hand blown leaded glass windows are weaving good morning as you walk in the room. The reflections off the crystal candelabras shoot their magic around the room, and the room because so bright and joyous.

    Now in my master I can see the potential. But unlike the dining room the restoration is still in process so for the time being I can only imagine how it will feel like. Eventually there will be three stain glass windows incorporated into interior shutters that will give a glow of amber and a calming blue throughout the room. The dark monochromatic paint will transform from the dark green charcoal by night to a elegant gray by day.

    Lucky for me though nature for some reason must of known that I am not a morning person and decided to wait till around 9:30 in the morning (EST) for the room to become illuminate to the same level of brilliance as the dining room.

Yours truly,

Nicklas

New Horizon

As everyday passes, the horizon is becomes a little more colorful! Maybe we should all do the same and turn over a new leaf... and yes I am aware that was a bad jock, however the idea is still good.

Take time to reflect, and become a better you then you had been the day before.

Happy Fall and Happy Weekend!

Yours truly,

Nicklas

A Visit to a Orchard

    I was with my mom today and on our way home my aunt made a suggestion for a alternate route home. So being that it was completely spontaneous we wound up finding ourselves at a local apple orchard that neither on of us knew was in town. So when life gives you apples you make homemade apple sauce and homemade apple pies! Maybe this is a good sign for fall, but I can't wait to have the house fill up with the overwhelming scent of fresh apples and cinnamon!

Yours truly,

Nicklas

In Remeberance...

    When the news broke about the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg my first reaction was sadness. She stood for equality, and thanks to her we have seen a tremendous amount of progress made in our nation. She was seen to many as that matriarch grandmother of justice for the nation, and so the nation is in mourning.

    My next reaction however was fear. I fear with how political charged this nation is on everything, and what will happen if the highest court in the land would become corrupted by politics. Where will we be as a nation? Will we step back in time? What will life become now for a whole generation? What will our country look like?

    Now I don't pretend to have all the answers, but I will say there is a lot of hypocrisy going on and people need to be called out. Yet time and time again politicians on both sides of the isle are easily swayed and side with parties lines and not with the people they represent. Thus to carry on Ruth's legacy for standing up for what is just, we must all vote with our conscious and not become so stuck to parties lines that our judgment becomes so clouded. To put this in perspective over my lifetime, back in 1993 the Senate confirmed Ruth by a 96-3 vote. Yet the latest Justice that was appointed in 2018 received a confirmation vote of 51-49, basically right along party lines. We are all Americans first and foremost, and it is high time we start to act like that.

 

RIP RBG

Yours truly,

Nicklas

The Last Bloom

I find it is sad to see all my gardens cut down for the year, yet I still have one last brave little soldiers carrying on despite the cold nights. These yellow beauties are call Black-Eyed Susan, and it won't be long before they enter their final chapter in natures cycle.

Has anyone else gotten their yard ready for winter yet?

Yours truly,

Nicklas

Musical Films

Anyone who knows me knows that I love musicals. At one point in time I dreamed of going to college and majoring in theatre, and then one day move to NYC and audition for shows and maybe catch my break. Alas this dream stayed just but a dream, yet I am still obsessed with this genre and I am way over due (even prior to the pandemic) to travel to New York and see a show. The last show I saw was Disney's Aladdin back in 2015 where I was able to meet the original cast at the stage door. Plus it was amazing to see Jonathan Freeman revised his role Jafar so to hear that villainous laugh from my childhood live. That said how about I get back on topic and here are just a handful of my film favorites to check out.

Into the Woods (1987)

Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella (1997)

Annie (1982)

The Pirates of Penzance (1983)

Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

Yours truly,

Nicklas

Side Note: I have been in live productions of Into the Woods, Cinderella, and Little Shop of Horrors.

Fall Windows

In my line of work, I don't need to use my display windows to show merchandise that represents my business. I have a marquee and poster cases for that. but instead they are used more as a form of attention getting and to add a form of visual interest on the façade.

Here are two different window displays from years pass.

2018

By using curtains in asymmetrical fashion I was able to reveal a fall harvest scene. I used a old dresser, and filled it flowers and pumpkins overflowing the drawers. I added a touch of whimsy with the soft glow of light behind the fabric, as well as by suspending leaves to look as though they are falling and blowing in the wind.

2019

This year I went with a more circus/ big top inspired feel. I kept the background symmetrical, and in the foreground I suspended cloth rope and pined up old film and stage ads I reprinted from my theatre and the various previous theatres and opera houses that had entertained the town from the 1880s-1960s. In the center I used another antique piece of furniture that had a piercing mint green paint that had begun to chip off due to age, and of course a few pumpkins because why not? I also hid cute little owls in the window.

  So, unfortunately this year I am not doing my fall window displays at the theatre. I have a total of three large windows on the façade of the building. I always enjoy creating and designing them, however they are very time consuming and as well as can become expensive.

Yet I'm still planning on hopefully doing some kind of display for Christmas. Time will tell though!

Yours truly,

Nicklas

Remember

Take time today to remember, and say a pray for all those who lost there lives 19 years ago.

Yours truly,

Nicklas

AUTUMN

As the days get shorter,

Use your time well and thrall,

Take chances with life,

Uplifting you to new heights,

Making mistakes and setting strives,

Now go forth and live your life.

Yours truly,

Nicklas

You Are Invited

What: Digital Detox Day

When: September 5th

How: Just UNPLUG

So, I found out about this initiative a couple of days ago and I am all for the idea of a disconnecting ourselves off from the world wide web for a whole day. By doing this we can recharge and reflect on our online presence and what boundaries we need to set for ourselves!

Please concider joining me, but do it for yourself no one else!

Yours truly,

Nicklas

Looking Back

    So, I decided to go through some old files I had saved on a hard drive from back when I was in school. What I found was some photos I had taken back then when I was a yearbook photographer. I would have to go to different events and take pictures, and it is amazing the deja vu you experience when looking back. I graduated in spring over 2013 however some photos date back as far as my freshmen year in the fall of 2009. To see how young everyone looks is wild.

    As we all know after school we all go our own ways and follow different paths on life. I see some my peers from time to time around town. Some who moved away may come in and watch a movie with their families or friends around the holidays. That core group of friends I had at the time I still try to text on holidays or birthdays. Yet life moves on for everyone, and is no secret that we aren't the same person as we were back then. It is normal to drift apart since we all evolve with whatever life throws at us.

We learn not to care what others think of us, and we grow into a better version of ourselves.

Yours truly,

Nicklas