on a mission

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if you get a chance to visit the santa barbara mission, do not pass it up. it is the most beautiful place, with gorgeous crumbly bits everywhere you turn.

i confess that i did not listen to anything our guide was saying, as i'd had my fill of mission tours back in elementary school. plus, the idea of people coming to a place to convert the native inhabitants makes my skin crawl. instead i followed along, snapping photos of the gorgeous crumbly bits, & humming quietly to myself.

thehobbit already knew the history of the california missions, & our feelings on the subject, so i wasn't worried that he'd come away thinking how wonderful that those selfless spaniards came here to take such lovely care of the natives who clearly could not care for themselves.

in any case, being a lover of crumbly bits himself, he was paying more attention to the sites than the guide. he did say that she was very nice though.

the interior was just as gorgeous, filled with artifacts. a bit dark, so most of my photos did not turn out well.

except for photographs of windows. just look at how thick those walls are!

i loved this window most.

before long we were back outside. the cemetery was my favorite place. so pretty. so hauntingly pretty.

~peace.

well that explains it

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just as thehobbit's medieval studies class comes to an end, i discover my own bit of medievalness (real word) -    i managed to trace one line of my mother's family back to some muckity-mucks the middle ages! yes, about six months ago, i joined the ranks of amateur genealogists, & began researching my family. in fact, that research is one of the things that has kept me from blogging on a regular basis. that, & a certain pesky toddler.

so! the short of what is a very long story: tinker (who has been addicted to genealogy vastly longer than i) thinks she may have found one of my ancestors on the bayeux tapestry. let me interrupt myself here to say that the more i learn about my the places & players in my family history, the more i am convinced that we are drawn to what is in our blood. if that makes no sense, i apologize. i'll explain what i mean more fully another day. back to the topic at hand - this morning i showed the bayeux tapestry to thehobbit, which led us to some fun. enjoy!

firstly, for those who may not have heard of the bayeux tapestry read this. 

some activities at britain's bayeux tapestry. our favorite is the interactive create your own tapestry link. (note :: this is not the original tapestry, but a victorian reproduction, that is housed in england.)

& now watch this wonderful animation, created by students at goldsmiths college.

~peace.