Thoughts from Alison that might at least entertain you!

Oh, Books!

Good evening Friends!

I'm on a bit of an adventure, and I find myself wanting to share parts of it with blogging.  I'm thinking a lot about books I read when I was a child.  Some of you will know that I have a bit of a thing about children's books, as evidenced by my rather large collection of books written for children - and my lack of children!  I'm interested to know what books you remember vividly from when you were young.  A few of the most vivid ones for me are listed below:

Some books I feel like I used to read over and over and over - and still read on occasion include Millions of Cats (Wanda Ga'g), The Velveteen Rabbit (Margery Williams - illustrated many times over by lots of illustrators, and I own at least two different illustrators' versions), Goodnight Moon (Margaret Wise Brown, illustrations by Clement Hurd), Where the Wild Things Are (Maurice Sendak - and I simply can't wait for the movie to come out soon!!), and the list goes on and on.  I also grew up on a number of series books/novels, mostly ones that my mom had all of her original copies of.  Lots of mystery series here, including Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden, The Hardy Boys, and also Little House on the Prairie.  There were also, of course, all the requisite horse books/series: Black Beauty, The Black Stallion, Misty of Chincoteague!

Two picture books hold as probably my all-time favorites:  Jennifer's Walk by Anne Carriere (out of print, and sadly I don't think I own it any more), and The Maggie B. by Irene Haas.  Yes, John and I have a cat named Maggie B!  I can still recite most of the book - it was so much a part of my reading life.  "This is a story of a wish come true.  Margaret Barnstable wished on a star one night - 'North Star, star of the sea, I wish for a ship named after me, To sail for a day alone and free, With someone nice for company.'  And then she went off to bed."  She wakes up on her very own little ship - The Maggie B.  I'll tell you the rest of the story sometime if you wish, or at least loan you one of my two copies if you'd like!

I also have a book I love - it's so used it's falling apart - but can't remember for the life of me who/where it came from.  "Two Chanticleers" is a collection of Ukrainian folk tales with beautiful illustrations.  It was published in Kiev in 1975, and has both the original language (Ukranian?  Russian?  I'm not sure) and English translations.  Mom, do you have any recollection where this came from?  I have a feeling it was a gift from someone who might have actually been to Ukraine.

My life and my personality have been so formed by books - especially the dozens on dozens of books I loved as a kid.  I mean seriously - who knew that as an adult, reciting memorized lines from The Maggie B. would make me cry?!?  I suspect there is a child in me who will never grow up, and I'm really good with that.  Keep reading, friends, and by all means read to your children.  And share thoughts or info on the books that have formed you if you wish - I'd love to read your lists and maybe some of your favorite books.

Be Well and Keep Reading, All!

Beautiful

Corn Moon, Barley Moon, Moon When Cherries Turn Black.  Full moon this Saturday according to the calendar.  It is spectacular over Ann Arbor tonight - nearly full, and hovering behind high blowing bits of clouds.  Just beautiful.  Happy Night, Friends!

English Retreads, etc!

Hello and Happy Nearly-Next Year, Everyone!

First a quick note especially for those of you who were with us at the DIA (Detroit Institute of Art) yesterday to see me drooling over the $209 bag I successfully talked myself out of buying:  The manufacturer was English Retreads, and the company just gets cooler!  This is a company (an artist, really - Heather English is her name) making amazingly beautiful handbags, totes, and a few accessories out of recycled inner tubes!  Actually talking myself out of buying a $209 bag wasn't difficult, but I was smitten.  So...  John helped me remember the name of the website, and I'm still smitten.  So much so that I just ordered a different bag from the same company (but off of Ebags.com for slightly less $$)!  The pic is the "Coupe" bag that I just ordered!

We had a great (and exhausting!) day at the DIA yesterday with John's family!  The DIA might be mildly disappointed to know that my favorite experience of the day was walking into the "great hall" of the museum that was hung with thousands (at least - I can't imagine how many there really were) of tiny mirrored discs on nylon string.  The effect was breathtaking - sparkly, shimmery circles all the way to the ceiling - a little like being under water and in space at the same time.

Tonight is New Year's Eve, of course - and I'm going to be working my first NYEve show at the club.  Some of you will appreciate that part of the job tonight (for someone - hopefully several of my brave and experienced volunteers!) will be corking about 6 dozen bottles of champagne.  The rest of you will appreciate knowing that I am TERRIFIED of champagne corks!  I'm also thrilled with the fact that there's a winter storm watch for tonight with 5-8 inches of snow predicted.  Whee...  driving home after midnight on New Year's Eve in the snow AND with merrymakers on the road?!?

All will be fine and I will be careful, but I sure won't be overly calm.

And so I end this year filled with gratitude and happiness.  Work is exactly where I should be (even on a stressful day), and Home is even more exactly where I should be.  Family are ever-present in our lives, music is ever-engaging, and Scrabble is ever-challenging.  To my Husband: I love you! 

In the new year I aim for perhaps a move of our home into Ann Arbor, a LOT of collaging that has been neglected these last several months, continued growth and focus at work, and better sleep! 

Happiest end of this year to You, Friends.  I'll see you in the New Year, we'll elect a new president (!), we'll have plenty of good times (regardless of the new president's identity), and I'll continue to report on the silly and sometimes pointless points of my life here.  Be Well and Be Taking Care of Each Other!

Oh, Love!

Hello, Friends!  Today is a cold and wintry Saturday - complete with snow and a bit of wind.  I had an orientation at work for new Volunteers this afternoon, and the rest of the day is a lot of zoning so far.  We're off to Toledo (yes, in this bit of wintry fun) tonight for Bernie's birthday dinner!

In case you're wondering, I LOVE my husband!  Here is just one of the reasons why!

Be Well and Be Warm, All.  Peace to You!

Day of my birth

Hello All!

Yep, you got it - leave it to me to wish myself a Happy Birthday on my own blog!  (How's that for ego, or something?)  Today I am 36 years old!  I'm pretty sure I'm aging, but I'm also pretty sure I'm not growing up.

Case in point for aging:  At least once in the past year, I had to ask John how old I was.  "How old am I?  35 or 36?"  I think I also actually told someone not long after my birthday last year that I had just turned 36.  Sheesh.

Case in point for not growing up:  We went to IKEA in Canton this afternoon.  We came home with a new (gigantic, but I love it) lamp for over the bed, a new (unplanned purchase, but a really good deal) dresser for the bedroom, a few new frames for me to collage in, AND - a TENT for the CATS!  Both girls have already initiated it.  What a brilliant thing we definitely needed - and at only $7, how could I resist this perfect bright red cat tent?  I call the first picture here "When is it my turn, dagnabbit?!?"  Picture number 2 is Tori, clearly claiming it as her own.  John also caught a good video of Maggie diving headfirst into the tent.  How have we lived without this so far?

Tonight we're off to Toledo for a few errands and dinner with my family.  Thanks to everyone for birthday cards and well wishes - I'm happy to be celebrating my birthday "with" all of you!

Be Well, Dear Friends.  Peace!

Happy New Year!

Here's wishing a lot of sunshine to all of you in this New Year!  (Of course most of us have had plenty of warmth so far this winter - dare I say even too much?!?)  I trust that winter is still to join us, and I hope it brings bright winter sun on snowy winter mornings!

I'm ready for a year with a few changes in it.  What are you all ready/waiting/hoping for?  Here's a small challenge to readers of my funny little blog - use the comment function!  Leave a short note about what you'd like to see in your life with the New Year.  I would love to see comments here from anyone who has a thought to share!

Peace, Dear Friends.  Happy New Year - Please be Well!

Fall in Milan

Fall is here for sure, with some days feeling like winter already.  I'm posting a couple of pictures here that John took a few days ago off our porch.  This is little Ford Lake in Milan - right outside our door! 

Many of you will have heard me talking at some point (or many points, even) about our swans, geese, and ducks.  You can see our 3 swans in the pictures.  We have had a mating pair of Mute swans on our little lake this year.  They nested on a tiny little island to the right of the picture above.  We didn't know what to expect really, but our swans successfully hatched 7 or 8 cygnets!  Sadly the 3 you see in the picture seem to be all that have made it this far - mom, dad, and one kiddo.

The population of geese seems to inevitably increase this time of year.  John and I get plenty of entertainment just listening to their conversations on the lake, along with the local ducks.  The Blue Herons seem to have moved on for the season, but we also had the treat of visiting Great Egrets before everyone else left for the year.

Notice in the two pictures that everyone is in the water.  Just before John snapped the pics, a kitten who's been hanging around our yard took it upon himself to chase the entire flock of geese from the lawn back into the water.  Chaos!  We didn't get a good pic of the vicious feline in action, but we had a good laugh anyway! 

Now with fall in the air and winter to follow before long, I will start keeping an eye out for Bald Eagles.  I got my one and only close-up view of a male perched on the tree to the left of the first picture last January.  I have read that we have two nesting pairs not far from us, and that one male seems to be a frequent visitor to our little Ford Lake.

Happy Fall to you all - be well and be taking care!

One Whole Year!

Here we are - one year since our beautiful perfect wedding day!  I still can't believe my good fortune in finding John.  First anniversary! 

On this day a year ago, the sun was shining and leaves were turning.  The park was breezy and the shawls by Honnie were perfect!  The laughing was raucous and the smiling was unstoppable.  Wendy's words were exactly "us."  The Royal Garden Trio was flawless.  The walk through the park was lovely.  Our families were all present and equally joyous.  The food was yummy, the cakes were many, and the ice cream was the perfect cap for the party!  My husband was (and is, and ever will be) a Beautiful Man!

My best description of my love for this man is still in my vows:  "My ultimate joy will be to spend a loving lifetime of dreaming, laughing, learning, playing, and being together.  I hope for our union that we will both be none other than our whole selves, honoring always our individuality...  I ask you to share a lifetime of peace, happiness, and love with me.  I ask you to be my husband."

I love you, John!

Today is also World Food Day - please consider giving food to someone who needs it, or some money to an organization that can put it to good use in fighting hunger.  Today is also Dictionary Day - consider playing a game of Scrabble!

Many thanks and much gratitude to our family and friends who helped move John and I towards each other.  I can't imagine a place in our lives that either of us would rather be.  Also, thanks to Ami for providing John with his awesome sword to fend off any competing suitors a year ago today.  Phew!  We made it over that hurdle! 

Oh Happy Day!