Caravan Quaint Honeywell

(snapped at the airport on the way home this morning)

Yeah, I'm back from Iowa! We had a great time meeting our future family-in-law. They are wonderful, welcoming, and generous people who kept us busy, entertained, and extremely well fed. In fact we had such a good time that we just might make it an annual event but we haven't mentioned that to them yet (!). For now I am working on my 150 pictures and picking some highlights to tell you about, but first, after a trip from misery, I am going to eat a bit of Chinese take-out, pat the pooch who is extremely needy, and go to bed. Be back in the morning with the deets.

Giuliano Exaggerate Division

Yup, I can. Let's hypnotize some critters!

Rabbits, piece o' cake! I even have experience with hypnotizing rabbits. my old house Rabbit, Br'er was my subject. When he was a pup I discovered I could flip him on his back and rub his tummy and he would get stiff all over. I could pick him up and place him wherever I wanted and he would stay that way for a long time. Later on I performed this as a parlor trick for anyone who happened in my apartment with Br'er as a willing participant. No, I never took advantage, and he loved the 'rest'.

This I would call 'taking advantage' but it reminds me that my iPod crapped out and I have to reset it. OH yeah- that's why I got on the computer this morning...
This looks more like Br'er under my influence, so cute. Br'er was all black and would walk across the room on his hind legs for a chocolate chip. He also would steal the apple juice bottle from my baby daughter on the floor and run with it. All her bottle nipples were completely rabbit chewed and she would nearly gag on the fast flow of whatever she was drinking until I discovered the reason. My first 'bad mom' experience.

I've never tried to do a lobstah- though it may soften the shock of that boiling water bath.

Never tried this either, and don't you even think about it!

Puppies are easy, just watch 'em fall where they may and call it hypnotized. I watched one of my puppies on his first night with us fall over flat in his crate while I was talking to him in my motherly-pack-dog soothing voice.

Apparently fowl are easy pickin's too. Above, are a pair of pigeons and I guarantee they aren't dead, just a little nap after a treatment.

And this Italian guy has his way with chickens.

Like I told you, "HEY, I have an IDEA!"

Just like this guy.

And with that I must go try and solve my iPod problem just like I started out to do. Later...

Marina Workbench Porterhouse

Spending today getting packed up for the Iowa trip. I even went out and bought myself a new plane-ride tee shirt! The *leetle problem* about this trip is I left it up to TY to make reservations and he picked for our first leg, a plane that leaves at 6:30. That would be AY-EM. Yes, there was also a perfectly acceptable take off later on in the morning but Ole TY is up and at-em very early so we all have to be there with him. Oy. One problem was solved somewhat by asking Nate to come spend the night here the night before rather than having to go pick him up driving all around hell's half acre. The dog I can deliver to her kennel the day before, so that's done.

Now I have to pack up my troubles in my ole kit bag and smile, smile smile.

(The Spike Jones version, 1942)

Pack up your troubles in your old kit bag And smile, smile, smile. Don't let your joy and laughter hear the snag Smile boys, that's the style What's the use of worrying It never was worth while So, pack up your troubles in your old kit bag And smile, smile, smile. (Musical Interlude) Pack up your troubles in your old kit bag And smile, smile, smile. Just pucker up and whistle (Whistle) (Whistling) What's the use of worrying It never was worth while So, pack up your troubles in your old kit bag And smile, smile, smile.

I used to love Spike Jones- back in the mid 40's, my mother would put on the radio for my nap in the afternoon, one of the first portables which was the size of the suitcase I am currently packing, and covered in black embossed leatherette.
My father tried to 'give' me this monstrous thing when I went away to college but I held out for a much smaller version without batteries the size of a Kitchen-Aid stand mixer. Instead I took the typewriter that it took my roommate and I together to lift from under the bed.
Wish I still had this thing- I could disassemble it and ... umm... I dunno, build something I guess! I always typed everything on onionskin paper because I liked the way it looked and felt, though I doubt my professors felt the same way since you could see right through the pages. Until recently I still had my thesis from graduate school, many rambling pages of unreadable Bauhaus practice and theory that took absolutely no room in the files but pretty much disintegrated from lack of care. I tossed it happily knowing that I had access to much better and more accurate information right here on the laptop. What a waste of months.

And also this is a waste of my time when I should be assembling just the right amount of *stuff* to pack the bag yet till be able to lift the bag! Thanks for letting me drift along to procrastinate a bit more.

Write On Sandbank

Tom Gauld has perfectly caught my cabin in the woods that we went summers fixing up! He has characterized every threat, every danger, every reason not to be there. My mother had an active imagination when it came to children's dangers so we were kept pretty close to the cabin, but knew what lurked out there behind the tree. As I grew older I got more fearful myself and now know for a fact that if you camp you get eaten by fur bearing animals.

Clean Hereditary Succession

OMG! It was rainy and hideous yesterday and TY decided it was a perfect day to visit our old friends on the Cape. He called them and they were housebound because of the weather and welcomed our visit so off we went. They're in Barnstable and it only takes an hour and fifteen minutes to get there, an easy ride in spite of:
this! Gray and yukky and the wipers going full speed. Here is the bridge:

(Caught it just as the wipers went by!) We had a great morning talking old times and new times, very little 'organ recitals' going on, and much picture swapping of new additions to both clans. Lunch time approached and off we went to Brewsters. Note white-out through windows... Note salty old patrons... Note empty beer glasses... I think this was just before the platters of fried delicacies appeared and disappeared. I couldn't take the time to snap a food picture or I'd miss my share.


Love salty old places like this. We had calamari and onion rings, then clam chowder and our first steamers of the season. The dog weathered the storm in the car and kept watch for us while we drank the afternoon away. (Some of us.) And about 4 we left to head home. We took a 'faster' way to get off the Cape and were in bumper to bumper traffic for almost 2 full hours just trying to get back to the bridge. OF COURSE it was Sunday evening, it was pouring, and every renter on the Cape was headed home following all the guys who have to get back to work in the morning. Once we got back to the bridge it was clear sailing and we were home by 7. In fact, as we were passing under Fenway Park and saw all the people walking to the game a huge SUN came out, like a Disney cartoon.

We took this as a Sign from Above that tonight was indeed a win over the dreaded Yankees. (Monday Update: YUP! Thanksyew Heavens Above for a Sox win, even if we had to stay awake the whole damn game to get there!)

And by the time we traveled the last 3 or 4 miles the roads went dry and you would never know what we had been through on that ride.

I was cold and wet and mad and tired. Looking back on it today it was fun to see our friends but Never Again on a Sunday afternoon! Hear me? I missed a whole day working on the quilt, I am so far behind I think I am ahead!

Metaphorical Carbonate Masterpiece

At the Cooper Hewitt this spring there was a show about Sonia Delaunay's life work that I wasn't able to attend. I just came cross this YouTube video that was the curators slide show about the show, so I was thrilled. I know, a poor second from actually seeing it but better than I had hoped.
This is a long video, go get your coffee before you start.


If you skip the first seven minutes of introduction to the introducers, you will finally get to the story of Sonia. Then if you skip to about the 18 minute mark you get to a better interview with the grandson of the owner of Metz & Co., the avant garde store that promoted her designs. And, if you didn't like that, stay on the YouTube page and check any one of the other sonia-related videos to see more of her work.

Last night we had dinner with our companions for the Ireland trip coming up. She has done lots of research so far and I have nothing to contribute other than wanting to see a shell house, so I have to catch up with learning where we will be and what's there. Sylvia has sent me this link:
and told me that there are many shell houses there, or 'follies'. Hope I can find one to investigate! And finally today it's raining so I get to test my rain jacket! If it works, great, if not it's back to the hideous rubber poncho I always have with me, making me feel like an unmade king sized flapping army cot. Practical, yes. Attractive, you be the judge!
And with that I hope that when I push the 'publish' bar that something happens! Blogger is acting strange this morning with lots of red warnings flashing at me.

Curly We Shall Wonder

WATCH OUT FOR FISH SCALES

Old Soviet accident posters here:

in case you can't think of your own accidents

Pantone, Pantera, Panera, Pan American: one of these things is not like the other, one of these things just doesn't belong...

This morning I spent some time writing a long COMPLAINING email to a friend- complaining about everything from feeling trapped like a rodent here in condo-land, to the way the wedding quilt is emerging and how to 'fix' it if it won't read when all constructed, to packing and unpacking. Then I go read my Horror and I feel so much better! I've already done it and now can go on with what I need to do today. It's sort of a validation:

Your life isn't as carefree as others assume just because you make it appear as if you are having a lot of fun, even when you're troubled. Your defense mechanisms can effectively hide a very deep well of feelings today. But just going through the motions isn't very rewarding, so share some of what's on your mind with someone you trust. If you're having a hard time starting the conversation, write down your thoughts and use your notes to get the ball rolling.

Like so many Americans, she was trying to construct a life that made sense from things she found in gift shops. Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle

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Thanks to TV and for the convenience of TV, you can only be one of two kinds of human beings, either a liberal or a conservative.

A couple of just located quotes, all dealing with dying for some reason:

Good health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.

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Health nuts are going to feel stupid someday, lying in the hospitals, dying of nothing

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There are some days when I think I'm going to die

from an overdose of satisfaction.

~Salvador Dali

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I tell you, we are here on Earth to fart around, and don't let anybody tell you different.

Kurt Vonnegut

Outgoing Eavesdropping Report*

* (I located my old file with the gibberish from spam that I used to use for blog headings! I am so excited to find it again- some phrasing is priceless. This time around I'll just use it randomly)

OK, so I took a little break. Basically I've been doing wash and picking up dirty dishes around the manse, so there isn't much I have to say. Oh, also the cable to my internets was busted so that had a bit of a cause on my silence. I visited my little kiddos and gave them the spoils of my trip but I was so busy holding the coonskin on Elias' head that I didn't get a picture. Hope that my daughter can rescue it from being a dog toy and send me one.

I did manage to find a few things that made me laugh before the cable went boooiiinnnggg and snapped back in my face- the rubber-band-effect. Which reminds me to take another picture of the ever expanding rubber band ball one of these days. It's gotten too large for many supermarket bands so growth hasn't been at the same rate as it was for a long time, Also, the plastic lizard I encased in it a few seasons ago has now all but disappeared- it will be a nice surprise for whoever gets to watch it disintegrate.

Some Things I WANT! First of all, on Blik, there is a series of wall decorations that involve heating grates. How much fun it this to have a guy wiggling his fingers at ya!
Or perhaps you prefer the goat looking out at the room? My birthday is coming (hint hint)
This I doubt comes in my size but I'm sure for those of you still in normal sizes, an Angry Birds Bra is just the thing. Found this at Geeks Are Sexy. I no longer play- it was give it up or up the blood pressure meds.
And this is what NOT to do as a kid if you want to wear cute bras as an adult. and most certainly never even consider an 'augmentation' unless you want to fall on your face and break more than your front teeth. Seriously, boobs keep growing forever, like rodent teeth, but they can't easily be filed down.
Remember this? "We Must, We Must, We Must Increase Our Bust!", chanting while alternately squeezing and releasing clenched fists in front of us? Well take it from me, stop it!

While collecting fodder for my fuel, I found some helmets of major importance. First I'll show you the human versions:

Imagine this family coming at you down the slopes... And what's with the finger in the pie- is it because none can see him touching the food or is it just wistful because nobody can eat through those things. Whatever. Assuming that the idiot in the apron is responsible for knitting these, AND making the the pie, she ought to be ashamed teasing her family that way. I can on;y figure that the pie had to be made way before she started the knitting project so I can imagine it's beyond it's sell-by date. On to more helmets---

This one, for your pet hawk is spectacular. Imagine how proud he will feel on your arm as you take him out hunting!
OK, not so much pride in the Steampunk Squirrel helmet, but it probably protects him electrically as he does his high wire act. Or maybe he is getting signals from his team members?
And my own chapeau, heavy duty 'Al-u-minimum' which offers similar protections~~~

That's enough file cleaning for one day. Maybe tomorrow I'll do pithy quotes, the only kind I save.

Orchard Park Redux

Back from the '50-ish Reunion' and had a stellar time which surprised me completely! We had a great turnout in spite of having so many deaths recently- I'm so glad I went because let's face it, every 25 years isn't too hard to handle for reunions! The next one, the Seventy Fifth, I am sure might have some trouble attracting folks!

Friday night was hideous- a very small place with bad acoustics and terrible traffic flow that even the open bar couldn't make work. We had our first meeting along with the class behind us so the place was way too crowded and the noise deafening. Thanksgod we got our name tags because it's been a very long time and names kind of evaporated without reminders. Of course as soon a the cogs connected we could absolutely 'see' who we were talking to. The two 'fat-kids-with-great-personalities' were the biggest surprises- both had lost the weight and were in great shape so that was wonderful to see. After that night we were all exhausted and hoarse from screaming into the din.

There were parade and street fairs this weekend that allowed me to indulge my love of old cars- note that the woody is a commercial vehicle for a pet cemetery!!

The next day a few of 'the girls' got together for a three hour lunch where we bulked up after the night before hideous food. About ten of us were there and it was much better catching up on their lives, a few juicy stories, dead classmates (way too many!), and just plain gossip. We chased out all other patrons with our noise I am sure, but I'm usually on the other end of that issue so didn't care a whit.

That night we had the 'formal' evening and it was so much better- a larger room, much better food, and clear paths to mix and mingle. And dancing'- The Stroll got everybody up and moving, hysterical watching them with closed eyes and spastic feet. One old friend, from the class behind us remembered that I had given her my fake ID when I turned 18 so she told me of her adventure being Sandy Townsend for a year. My boyfriend and I spend hours forging the fake licenses, but back then you could drop into any DMV and pick up a blank license and they would type in the name and add the stamp after you passed the test. Not even laminated! We had a stack of them and had quite the little underground business going for awhile. And that, dear reader, was the end of my crime career- (said hoping the statute of limitations is in effect!)

Two of my ex-boyfriends were on the dead list, but I'll tell ya, as much as I would have loved to have them there, it sure was freeing not to have had 'history' with anybody. Great good friends and fun memories were all I had to deal with, while some of these people had to spend the weekend skirting around old loves and their spouses. Not that I am advocating getting rid of old alliances... (ahem).

Beverley (this is Beverley-the-Brit as opposed to Beverly-the North and Beverly-the South. I am blessed with three!) and I got along well and found we still had lots of common ground. I'm very glad she is back in my life and hope we can meet up in London some time soon. She is the perfect person to do the V&A with because of so many shared interests. Who woulda thought after all these years and certainly quite different lives... that VIDLERS would be a place to go and laugh together?

An array of candy cigarettes, bought for their packaging alone!

Green, yeah green, goldfish that will become a necklace back at the studio.

A wee coonskin (ish) cap for Elias!

And yes, a Rubber Pig. Much classier than a rubber chicken.

This is for Nate because he is worried how Wedding Roast Pig won't arrive intact at the reception!

We did class it up a bit with a quick ROYCROFT run-through but by then our luggage was stuffed and in the 'boot', making it tough to buy a thing.

And that is basically the Good News. the Bad News is TY slipped in the garage and went down heavily on the bad knee that he won't replace and has been in self-imposed traction for the weekend. And the garbage hasn't gone out since I left. He conned a dog walk and some basic needs out of anyone who could come by and I have a basket full of damage control around here. Sigh. And oh yeah, one more piece of good news:
Posted because Vel and Ricki and Carol asked about the pie I made before I left! I had a piece last night that survived ONLY because TY wasn't able to get to the refrigerator.

Affirmation Button

available here! How can I go on without my own?

I'm sending away for it today so these can be MY dreams too.

Dropping In For Just a Minute

Well I have topped my list of Awful TV this afternoon. I've been cooking all day and while I'm waiting for the timer or waiting to preheat I hit the television and right now I am watching Dance Moms. HOW HIDEOUS CAN YA GET? But you know, I am absolutely transfixed by this train wreck. Guess that's why it's on. But you can be assured I will not be watching it on purpose ever again. Here's a quote from the 400# teacher, "When I was a young dance student I realized that my talents were best used in choreography and behind the scenes." Well, yeah...

But to get back to the cooking thing- I got the blueberry pie out of the oven and it looks great, its all I can do to not find a peeky hole to stick in a big straw and slurp it up.
I got some Tahitian Vanilla ice cream for the top and on the way out of the store found some blueberry sorbet too. I haven't baked in years since I can't eat the stuff I make, and realized that I have no idea how old my bin of flour might be, so this started out with buying a new batch of both flour and (gaack!) sugar. Sure hope I haven't lost my old touch, but just about everything about Murphy's Law proved true. While making the pie dough, the top of the Cuisinart wouldn't come off because a small piece broke off. I had to take the meat tenderizer to it, the top flew off and all the loose flour with it. Dogs turn their backs on licking up flour.

But the good news is that I was able to order a new part online for the antique Cuisinart- we figured out that I probably got it for Christmas in 1974, probably due for a new one but I have all the extras with this one and for $50 it will be almost new again. I did find a site that gave me instructions for repairing it myself but it involved drilling and screwing the lucite and it seemed above my pay grade.

So, the other thing the I am new to is a salad made from raw finely shredded Swiss chard. It's basically a modified Caesar dressing with lots of cheese over the chard, so in that way it's a sort of slaw. Then you grate hard boiled eggs over the top. How bad can this be? I love slaw, love Caesar, and I just won't mention the anchovies so nobody freaks out.

The rest is a roasted salmon over a pile of toasted couscous with a pesto drizzle. The purpose is both
Nate's and Jackie's birthdays which fall only 2 weeks apart. I've closed off the door to the studio because the wedding quilt isn't ready for criticism yet, and I'll stick a candle in the pie. Done.

Horrors. It's talking about the mess in my kitchen...

This can be a most memorable day for you because you can get away with being as weird as you want. Your need to do something totally outrageous may reach a point of no return today, provoking you to take sudden action. But rather than being sensitive to other people's needs, maverick Uranus connects with the Sun in your sign, encouraging you to do as you wish. Nevertheless, there is still an unspoken boundary. Don't go too far over the edge now or you'll have to spend time later cleaning up the mess you make.

Weird? Me??? nah.