Creative Living Archives | Page 5 of 5

Best Amador County October Activities

With fall just around the corner, one week from today in fact, outdoor summer activities are starting to wind down in Amador County. Even the weather has given us a taste of fall the past few days, but just because summer is winding down doesn’t mean there will be any shortage of things to do! There will still be plenty of theater productions, festivals and fairs, art and craft shows, comedy nights, fundraisers, parties, parades, mine and cavern tours, and of course wine tasting. Some weekends it is difficult to choose what to do. Here are my thoughts on the best Amador County October activities. The Big Crush Harvest Festival The 45 member wineries of the Amador Vintners’ Association host two group events every year. The first weekend in…

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Kodiak Canvas Truck Tent Review

I had the opportunity to try out a Kodiak Canvas truck tent on a recent horse camping trip. I share the pros and cons of the tent with you in this blog post.

Kelly and I just got back from a horse camping trip to Pt. Reyes National Seashore north of San Francisco. Kelly usually stays in the back of her horse trailer when she camps, but for this trip, she decided to get a tent for her truck. I hadn’t heard of such a thing but it sounded like a great idea. She did some research and decided that the Kodiak Canvas truck tent had the best reviews and seemed like it had the features she wanted. The Kodiak Canvas Truck Tent The Kodiak Canvas truck tent comes in two sizes. The regular size fits 5.5 to 6.8 foot beds and the long bed size fits 8 to 8.5 foot beds, which is the size Kelly got for her dually…

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Anje Olmstead Collage Artist

Local artist Anje Olmstead brought her collage art class to a lunch meeting of our Saucy Sisters cooking group. Learn more about Anje Olmstead and her art.

Every month I am amazed at how creative the hostesses of the Saucy Sister’s cooking group are with the monthly meeting activities. At one meeting, we made two kinds of liqueur and everyone got to take home a bottle of each. One time we made fudge and had lots of samples to take home. We have made recipes from around the world and even had an elegant tea party. Last month, we made lavender wands then cooked pizza in an outdoor oven. I hear sourdough is in our future. Anje Olmstead, Fine Artist We are very lucky to have so many talented women in our group including local artist Anje Olmstead. Anje and her husband have lived in Pioneer for five years. Her husband, Dennis, wanted to move from the Fair Oaks/Sacramento…

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Lavender Crafts and Camaraderie

Jan, our gracious hostess for the July meeting of our Saucy Sisters cooking group, has a beautiful home with lots of lavender beds. She orchestrated a Day of Lavender for us that included lavender crafts and some lavender infused food. When we arrived, Jan had tea, coffee and scrumptious lavender scones waiting for us. While we enjoyed our refreshments, Jan explained the craft we were going to make — lavender wands. The finished product she showed us looked and smelled amazing. Making Our Lavender Wands We had been told via email to bring pruning shears to the meeting. Once we were finished with our coffee and scones, we headed out into the gardens with our shears to cut lavender for our wands — 11 stems. You can use more…

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T.G.I.F. Summer Concert Series

Last Friday I had one of the most fun evenings I can remember having since I moved to Amador County almost two years ago. A group of friends and I went to the concert in the park at Volcano Amphitheater, one of the concerts in the T.G.I.F. Summer Concert Series, and we had a blast. I went to one of these concerts last year and I wondered what made this one so different that it was so much more fun. It was in a beautiful outdoor setting among the trees, just like last year. The band was awesome and entertaining. Everyone brought food to share and a bottle of wine or other favorite beverage, same as last year. A lot of people turned out for the event.…

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6 Ways to Meet New People

To meet new people, you have to get up and get out of your comfort zone. You have to make an effort to connect. Here are methods I've tried to meet people.

Have you moved to a new area and don’t know anyone? Maybe you’ve lived there a while and still have just not met anyone. I know how that goes. I lived in my condo in Southern California for over 13 years and knew only a couple of my neighbors. Or perhaps you have started a new hobby or other pastime and want to meet like-minded people. How do you meet new people? Meeting new people can be hard, especially if you are shy and introverted like me. As I was thinking about this post, I realized that all of my best friends, even my significant others, have always been the outgoing type. They dominate the conversation and everyone remembers them. I am the friend who came…

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Which Type of Baby Boomer Are You?

Baby boomers seem to fall into one of two categories. Either you have decided to live or you have decided to begin dying. Whoa, what do I mean by that? Astrologers call it the Chiron Return, which occurs around the age of 50. It is the point where we subconsciously decide to carry on living or give up and begin to die. Whether you believe in this or not, I think that any subconscious decision can be consciously changed at any time. Maybe you are sure you fit in the living category but consider these questions. What do you talk about when you are with your friends? Do you talk about your health or lack of it? How about who died recently or has some…

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Do You Love Craft Fairs?

Main Street in Jackson, CA, for Dandelion Days event with craft fair

Do you love craft fairs like I do? What is it about craft fairs that attracts us? Why do we go? I used to dabble in crafts and often think I’d like to get back into it, but then I tell myself, “Who are you kidding? You can barely keep up with what you already do.” So instead, I go to see what wonderful things other artists have created. Craft fairs range from small local events with a few crafters to huge events with hundreds of crafters that take over entire towns, like in the case of Candy Dance. These larger events usually include entertainment and lots of food. They are almost like going to the circus and are great fun for the whole family. The two-day…

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