So, I just returned home from San Francisco on Monday night to some friendly visitors in town (not to mention gardens and school plans that are in not-the-best-of-shape).
Because I was taking a solo trip (my first since I've been married as I've always had at least a little one along on previous trips) I packed light and didn't have a car. When I flew into SF last week, I took the BART up to Market Street and had a Panini at a sidewalk cafe in the beautiful sunny weather. Delightful! I hopped this cable car (haven't been on one in twenty years) out to visit Alice and it was a lovely ride. I took lots of pictures (though our camera does leave something to be desired).
Alice is every bit as lovely as you'd imagine, even on what she'd call a "bad" day. :) It wasn't long before I felt like I'd known her and her children forever and I can't wait for our two families to meet some day.
We visited Golden Gate Park and had Oolong tea and other goodies at the Japanese Tea Garden. Alice's older girls and I also visited St. Ignatius Church while the little ones took a rest in the car with mom. It was fun to meet with other children who were so interested and enthusiastic about beautiful art and architecture.
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Since I Dived Right Back into a Really Busy Week...
for now I'll just give you a link to solve the strange pink head puzzle from the previous post.
Click here
Click here
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
I'm Back!
Can you guess who I visited? One particular family will likely be obvious to some of my readers based on this photo - and yes it was delightful to finally meet them in person!
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
15 Years Ago Today....
John and I started our adventure of a lifetime.
To quote John's grandfather, "May God Bless everything to do with that day." :)
Happy Feast of the Queenship of Mary!
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
The Little Girl and the Otter
Alice has a cute and amazing little video of her children watching an otter at the Monterrey Bay Aquarium in California. Her three year old daughter was playing with a stuffed otter and making it swim and do flips and such in front of the glass - when the real otter started to follow its movement! You really should see it!
Monday, August 20, 2007
Since We Discussed This Harry Potter Question Here Earlier...
ya'll might be interested in Regina Doman's take on Dumbledore's death as explained in Book 7 of HP.
A Little Dancing and a Lot of Rain
The dance school my girls have been attending for Irish dance for a number of years recently put together a few mini recitals to promote the school at local events. Because of our relatively uncluttered schedule (ahem, a different thing than being "busy") we were able to participate.
Thursday night was an exhibition at our local park bandstand. The three older girls comprised more than half of the Irish contingent and performed very beautifully. Ria's performance was so beautiful it made me cry. She's gained so much confidence and "presence" this past year. She credits her experience at the Chesterton conference. The weather was very nice at that point and we even made it back to the same park the next evening for a free outdoor showing of Charlotte's Web. That was a lot of fun too!
Saturday they were scheduled to dance at a local art show that our friend Nancy and her husband Michael Brown would be exhibiting at! What a fun coincidence.
I've never been to an art show before - not too surprising as we have neither the money nor the wall space to exhibit anything beyond our eclectic and well-loved collection of framed religious art (and other pieces) from rummage sales, National Geographic and AAA maps and framed photo collages.
John and I both love art, though (which is partly why our walls are so very crowded with interesting things to look at!) and it was a treat to have an excuse to go. You may have heard a little about the soggy Midwest weather of the past few weeks. Our lawn is completely spring-like (and more) - such a shock after a very brown July. The art show looked like an encampment. Lots of green grass crowded with big white tents and a lovely lake for a background. It was fun to see the famous Brown photography in person. His pieces are a lot of fun to look at and have a broad appeal. (Be sure to check out his website here).
Nancy was planning on watching the girls dance, but alas, the youth stage was unsheltered with a plywood floor that was completely water-logged. So the kids enjoyed some face painting and crafts in the kids' tent before we returned home in the rain.
Saturday night John and I celebrated our anniversary early with dessert (wonderful fruit pie a la mode) followed by dinner (we arrived at the restaurant a half hour before it opened and so decided to start with pie next door (yum!) followed by a movie. We finally saw the 5th Harry Potter movie which was quite enjoyable and engrossing.
Yesterday, we had planned on attending Irish Fest (it's been quite a few years since we made it - last year John was in Taiwan at the time), but the rain, rain and more rain just didn't sound like a pleasant prospect. So we had an impromptu Irish fest at the house with the grandparents and a few cousins. We had dancing, music, beer and a full corned beef and cabbage meal complete with delicious Irish soda bread from the local bakery (I think the local stores bring back some of these goodies in honor of Irish Fest every year).
Prospects are for more rain all week. Please pray for those who are having a great deal of trouble from all this rain. Parts of western Wisconsin (including the town where we visited friends on the way home from South Dakota earlier this summer) and suffering from severe flooding and mudslides.
Thursday night was an exhibition at our local park bandstand. The three older girls comprised more than half of the Irish contingent and performed very beautifully. Ria's performance was so beautiful it made me cry. She's gained so much confidence and "presence" this past year. She credits her experience at the Chesterton conference. The weather was very nice at that point and we even made it back to the same park the next evening for a free outdoor showing of Charlotte's Web. That was a lot of fun too!
Saturday they were scheduled to dance at a local art show that our friend Nancy and her husband Michael Brown would be exhibiting at! What a fun coincidence.
I've never been to an art show before - not too surprising as we have neither the money nor the wall space to exhibit anything beyond our eclectic and well-loved collection of framed religious art (and other pieces) from rummage sales, National Geographic and AAA maps and framed photo collages.
John and I both love art, though (which is partly why our walls are so very crowded with interesting things to look at!) and it was a treat to have an excuse to go. You may have heard a little about the soggy Midwest weather of the past few weeks. Our lawn is completely spring-like (and more) - such a shock after a very brown July. The art show looked like an encampment. Lots of green grass crowded with big white tents and a lovely lake for a background. It was fun to see the famous Brown photography in person. His pieces are a lot of fun to look at and have a broad appeal. (Be sure to check out his website here).
Nancy was planning on watching the girls dance, but alas, the youth stage was unsheltered with a plywood floor that was completely water-logged. So the kids enjoyed some face painting and crafts in the kids' tent before we returned home in the rain.
Saturday night John and I celebrated our anniversary early with dessert (wonderful fruit pie a la mode) followed by dinner (we arrived at the restaurant a half hour before it opened and so decided to start with pie next door (yum!) followed by a movie. We finally saw the 5th Harry Potter movie which was quite enjoyable and engrossing.
Yesterday, we had planned on attending Irish Fest (it's been quite a few years since we made it - last year John was in Taiwan at the time), but the rain, rain and more rain just didn't sound like a pleasant prospect. So we had an impromptu Irish fest at the house with the grandparents and a few cousins. We had dancing, music, beer and a full corned beef and cabbage meal complete with delicious Irish soda bread from the local bakery (I think the local stores bring back some of these goodies in honor of Irish Fest every year).
Prospects are for more rain all week. Please pray for those who are having a great deal of trouble from all this rain. Parts of western Wisconsin (including the town where we visited friends on the way home from South Dakota earlier this summer) and suffering from severe flooding and mudslides.
Friday, August 17, 2007
Frankly Hilarious
and yes he's still cute too.
Right now Gus (with great confidence and enthusiasm) is out mowing the lawn with the big rider mower (he's finally tall enough to handle the safety feature which causes it to turn off if you're not sitting fully in the seat). Frank is calling after him, "Come on, Gus, you can do it" ...over and over again.
Frank has started calling sleeper pajamas "sleepies".
Right now Gus (with great confidence and enthusiasm) is out mowing the lawn with the big rider mower (he's finally tall enough to handle the safety feature which causes it to turn off if you're not sitting fully in the seat). Frank is calling after him, "Come on, Gus, you can do it" ...over and over again.
Frank has started calling sleeper pajamas "sleepies".
Wow!
This essay by Regina Doman is easily the most touching and beautiful commentary I've seen on Book 7 of Harry Potter.
By the way, I have started re-reading the series and am getting a lot more out of it this second time through. I'm about 3/4 of the way through the first book. I expect it will take me awhile to get through all 7 this time, but it's kind of nice to savor it.
Some of our descriptions really struck me this time around. The scene where Harry first visits Diagon Alley is a lot of fun - he wishes he had eight pairs of eyes to look at everything. I love it!
By the way, I have started re-reading the series and am getting a lot more out of it this second time through. I'm about 3/4 of the way through the first book. I expect it will take me awhile to get through all 7 this time, but it's kind of nice to savor it.
Some of our descriptions really struck me this time around. The scene where Harry first visits Diagon Alley is a lot of fun - he wishes he had eight pairs of eyes to look at everything. I love it!
Poetry Friday - Ode on a Grecian Urn
...because we've been watching (as in "I've watched three episodes so far") the fascinating "Classical Archaeology of Greece and Rome" from the Teaching Company this week. As much as this is a famous and parodied poem and all that, I had never read it in its entirety until today.
Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats
(first published in 1820)
THOU still unravish'd bride of quietness,
Thou foster-child of Silence and slow Time,
Sylvan historian, who canst thus express
A flowery tale more sweetly than our rhyme:
What leaf-fringed legend haunts about thy shape
Of deities or mortals, or of both,
In Tempe or the dales of Arcady?
What men or gods are these? What maidens loth?
What mad pursuit? What struggle to escape?
What pipes and timbrels? What wild ecstasy?
Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard
Are sweeter; therefore, ye soft pipes, play on;
Not to the sensual ear, but, more endear'd,
Pipe to the spirit ditties of no tone:
Fair youth, beneath the trees, thou canst not leave
Thy song, nor ever can those trees be bare;
Bold Lover, never, never canst thou kiss,
Though winning near the goal—yet, do not grieve;
She cannot fade, though thou hast not thy bliss,
For ever wilt thou love, and she be fair!
Ah, happy, happy boughs! that cannot shed
Your leaves, nor ever bid the Spring adieu;
And, happy melodist, unwearièd,
For ever piping songs for ever new;
More happy love! more happy, happy love!
For ever warm and still to be enjoy'd,
For ever panting, and for ever young;
All breathing human passion far above,
That leaves a heart high-sorrowful and cloy'd,
A burning forehead, and a parching tongue.
Who are these coming to the sacrifice?
To what green altar, O mysterious priest,
Lead'st thou that heifer lowing at the skies,
And all her silken flanks with garlands drest?
What little town by river or sea-shore,
Or mountain-built with peaceful citadel,
Is emptied of its folk, this pious morn?
And, little town, thy streets for evermore
Will silent be; and not a soul, to tell
Why thou art desolate, can e'er return.
O Attic shape! fair attitude! with brede
Of marble men and maidens overwrought,
With forest branches and the trodden weed;
Thou, silent form! dost tease us out of thought
As doth eternity: Cold Pastoral!
When old age shall this generation waste,
Thou shalt remain, in midst of other woe
Than ours, a friend to man, to whom thou say'st,
'Beauty is truth, truth beauty,—that is all
Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.'
Commentary available here (courtesy of Brooklyn College)
Photo courtesy of Duke Magazine
Poetry Friday Roundup to be found at Kellyrfineman's BlogAnd thanks to Karen for reminding me.
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