![Photo by AstroHurricane001 at en.wikipedia [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons](http://www.kkish.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/cardinal1.jpg)
Photo by AstroHurricane001 at en.wikipedia [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
do not deter this cardinal,
whose voice declares Spring.
Spring Haiku
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do not deter this cardinal,
whose voice declares Spring.
Category Archives: Miscellany
do not deter this cardinal,
whose voice declares Spring.
Online Book Club: 1Q84
I used to be part of a book club. I really enjoyed it, but eventually the members let it die out, largely because of changing priorities and life demands. Sometimes I really miss it, though, usually when I find myself in the embrace of a book that’s so dense I either want to share it or need someone with whom I can bounce around ideas.
My glasses resting on the open book, 1Q84. I snapped this after jotting down some notes as I was reading.
This is one of those times.
I just finished 1Q84, by Haruki Murakami, and I have to say it was one of the most amazing books I’ve read in a long time — dense and multi-faceted and rich with themes and images that seem to simultaneously unfold and wrap together as you read. Continue reading
A Cheap Birthday Excuse to Post Photos
Today is my wedding anniversary, and yesterday was my husband’s birthday. I used to be very organized about personal milestone/celebration dates such as these, but those days seem long gone. Between the demands of work, family and now-too-infrequent attempts to do good in the world, I’m lucky if I even remember birthdays anymore.
Many of my cooking tools are old. Both the mixing bowl and the hand beater were my mother's, circa the 1960s. I just love the colors in this pic.
So it was that I got home from work last night and had made no real plans for a birthday celebration. I had asked my husband to think about where he would like to go for dinner, but he’s even worse at planning than I am and had not even managed to choose a preferred cuisine, much less an actual restaurant.
As for a cake? Forget it. I thought about it as I was leaving work, and again as I was driving home, but by the time I got close to home, the thought of a store-bought or bakery-bought cake just seemed too uncaring and impersonal. Continue reading
Happy Begets Happy
My “One Moment” this week
A long time ago, on a dare, I gave up swearing and grumbling. I was working in a newsroom at the time. My college education was in journalism, and the first 15 years of my professional life were spent in newsrooms — which is a lot like being raised by sailors. I’ve heard and used almost every kind of foul language, and almost nothing you can say would shock me. Swearing in a newsroom is pretty much second nature.
A reporter came into work one morning, either on or just before Ash Wednesday, and said she didn’t know what she should give up for Lent. Laughing, I dared her to give up swearing. She looked at me and said, “I will if you will.” Continue reading
You’ve Got Spam!
I’m a success!
Really. I am. I know this because my blog is starting to be inundated by spam. I’m getting spam comments at a rate of 6-to-1 versus actual comments. I could ask y’all to get more engaged by submitting real comments (wink), but I’d rather celebrate my little successes.
The thing about spam comments, as annoying as they are, is that it means someone outside my usual network has started finding my blog. Continue reading
Seriously? This is how we celebrate King Day?
Martin Luther King Jr. has finally achieved the pinnacle of true greatness as an American.
No, I’m not talking about the fact that we celebrate his birthday with a federal holiday; that’s old news. I’m talking about the true gauge of greatness — what really determines whether someone was a great player in this nation’s history, an achievement matched only by the likes of Presidents Lincoln and Washington, our military heroes and the founding fathers who declared this nation’s independence. Yes, not only do we have a holiday marking the anniversary of Dr. King’s birth; now we celebrate it with appliance and electronic ssales.
After all, in the United States, it’s not really a holiday unless we have huge blow-out sales to draw shoppers into stores, right? This year, I discovered that we’ve extended the practice to Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday. From consumer electronics superstores to neighborhood thrift stores, everywhere I look I see retail outlets offering sale pricing for King Day.
Am I the only person who finds that more than a bit disgusting?