Cub-isms and Picasso

Jacqueline with Flowers, Picasso

The past few days have disappeared so quickly. Sometimes, I feel as if time is racing ahead of me. Each day is so precious. I just want to savor these days of summer with my daughter for as long as I can. I miss her so much when I'm working. The ache never goes away when I leave her all day in the care of others. I hate it. As working mothers, we are forced to throw an invisible switch to deal with these feelings. Our time together has done us both a world of good. When she saw us a few weeks ago, Grandma said we were both so calm. Yes, in the natural realm, that's what is supposed to happen, a mother and child together. Why can't it be that way for everyone?

I'm still thinking a lot about homeschooling. But unfortunately, I don't think a single mom like me has many options here in NYC. I have strong views about education and what it should be. I'll leave it at that for now.

We had a lovely lunch picnic with a friend and her daughter at our favorite place, The Alice Austen House. We have passed so many lovely hours there this summer. It has become a place we call "ours." It is our yard, because we don't have one. And we just feel good there.

Now, I'll share the "cub-isms" with you. I hope they will make you smile.
When we arrived home late this afternoon, I was playing Pandora radio while doing the dishes, and "Across the Universe" covered by Jim Sturgess was playing. She stopped playing and slowly made her way over to the computer and just stared at the screen. I knew she was listening..."Nothing's gonna change my world....Nothing's gonna change my world."
Pause. Listening. Thinking. Slowly...
"Mama, he's right. (Quietly, pensively.)"Nothing's gonna change..."

I held my breath. Sometimes, she just blows me away. She was thoughtful when she said it. I didn't ask her to elaborate. I didn't need her to. It didn't matter. She went inside the music. She heard the words. It was beautiful.

Later, after dinner, a less philisophical girl cub started the conversation:
"Mama, Sponge Bob is poopie." (The television wasn't on and we don't watch Sponge Bob.)
"No, he's not. He's a sea sponge. He lives in the ocean."
"No he doesn't, Mama! He lives in the sink!!"

As for the Picasso, I love everything about this painting. The style. The colors. The form. The subject. Everything. And I want that dress.

On the crafting front, I've been photographing like crazy. I've also been playing around with a lot of paper. Bookmarks, Albums made out of paper bags, and the latest ATC's (thanks, Jenn!) I tend to work on a small scale, so this has been wonderful for me. After seeing the post on playing card notebooks courtesy of whipup, I'll dabble some more with the cards.
My ATC's are not "scrapbooky" looking. I don't have scrapbooking supplies, so I'm using old magazines and vintage children's books, wrapping paper, ribbon, thread, glitter, whatever I have around the house. So far, they seem to revolve around the themes of childhood and coming-of-age, so I'm going to keep going with that. I'll post some photos soon!

Psychedelic Chick

Grand National "Talk Amongst Yourselves" (Thanks for the tech help, Arlene!)
Love this band. Thought I'd share some music this evening.

Cousins

Cousins, Great Kills, NY
July 2008

The children in the photo above are Girl Cub and her beautiful cousin.

Spending time with the two of them always reminds me of the relationship I had with my cousin, Diane. For the first seven years of our lives, we spent practically every weekend and holiday together. Our mothers were first cousins and we lived a short distance away from each other.

Summers were always spent together. Diane had a big backyard, complete with a swing set, pool, and the most glorious wheeping willow tree I have ever seen.

At age seven, my mother unexpectedly passed away. We moved over an hour away to live with my grandparents. It seemed like another universe altogether. My late Uncle John, sweet soul that he was, would pick-up my brother and I every friday after work. He would drive us back at 4:30am on a Monday morning, just so us cousins could be together again.

I guess we did this for a few years. Then things got hard and my aunt and uncle separated and sold the house. We all struggled. Life went on and on as it will do. We were out of touch for too many years. I lost her, my cousin, my sister.

When I was in my early twenties, I received a phone call from my cousin, Diane. She told me that she would be getting married and asked if I would be her Maid of Honor.

I got to stand beside her on that day, in the place we both knew I belonged.

I will never forget this act of love she showed me. She had remembered me and remebered how things would have been if life hadn't pulled us in different directions.

We are forever connected by blood and memory.

Made by Cub and her Mama

"The sun made it up and the sun rang a little bell, just a little so all his friends could come." (This sun drawing is on the second page...Sorry.)

"Good morning, flowers. Did you have a nice sleep last night?"

I had a crafting hang-over this morning. Stayed up way past my bedtime turning paper bags into little books. So at the start of this very slow morning, I began folding up a piece of paper into a little accordion. Nothing serious. Just messing around while she colored on the floor. Something to keep my hands busy. "Mama lets make a book together." And here is what we came up with.

Words by her.

Drawings by us.

Ready to Create

I have collected vintage children books for a while now. I will buy the non-vintage variety (used) if the art is unusual or exceptionally appealing. Over the past few days I've been quite lucky with my finds. Here is a bad photo of some of the goods. I'm too tired and lazy to try for a better flick, sorry. The Growing Story by Ruth Krauss is a total score. This is a first printing 1947 edition. Big smiles all around! She wrote two of our favorite books, The Carrot Seed and Harold and the Purple Crayon.

I Live in Tokyo is not vintage. I found it on the library sale cart for 10 cents and couldn't resist. This one evokes the enchantment of daily life in Tokyo with exquisitely detailed illustrations and descriptions.

In the bottom right hand corner is a (piece of) this lovely vintage pillow case found at The Salvation Army. I will use this to practice making some more birdies this evening.

I've noticed that when I tell people on Staten Island that I bought this or that at The Salvation Army there are some wierd looks or just silence. I guess some people don't get it. There are basically no thrift shops here on the island. There was an excellent one, but it closed last year. I know of one little hidden gem and then the rest of my thrifting needs get satisfied at good old "Sal's Boutique," as we called it in college.

This book was originally published in 1956 and you can totally tell by the lovely drawings. This magic was also purchased for 10 cents at the local library sale.

I have some high hopes for creating goodies for my etsy shop with these, but the more I look at them, the more I fall in love with them. How the heck can I take a scissor to all this goodness?

Ugh. What to do?

The above illustration makes my heart sing. It is so adorable. Again, apologize for the bad photo. It's from the Ruth Krauss book.

Girl Land Sara, if you're reading this...I thought of you when I found this one. It was printed in Japan and published by Playmore, Inc. I've coveted all of those great vintage 3D books you are lucky enough to find in Detroit for way toooooo long. Now I've got my own. Hee, hee. I adored these as a child and had all but forgotten them. Until I found your lovely shop.

Now I am off to finally bake that chocolate zucchini cake I have been talking about for way too long. Hopefully, tonight there will be some serious crafting happening here. Hope everyone is enjoying the day.

Etsy Love

I've been spending a lot of time on etsy lately, probably too much. I wait in anticipation for the lovely packages. People are so creative. I love to see how each person chooses to express it. Today, I received a very special treat on my doorstep. This thoughtfully wrapped package was sent to me by the wonderful Heather from Beauty That Moves. It smelled soooooo good, too. If you haven't already, check out her blog. It is truly food for the soul and a treat for the eyes.

This is the fabulous pouch I purchased last week. It was difficult to choose just one, but this vintage fabric just speaks to me. I can't get enough of it. I still don't know if I'll use this as a cosmetic case or something else. It's almost too pretty for that.

I have a real weakness for all things dutch and folk-arty. So, I had to exercise an extreme amount of self control while tralling new etsy shop Pony Party.


I passed on the cutting board but caved in when I saw these two cuties. They will live in my dutch-style wood shelf which needs some legitimate inhabitants. There, I justified this purchase!



I have been inspired by everything around me lately. Finishing up some great books I will write about in a future post. Also watched documentary The Business of Being Born. What an important film. Every woman needs to see it. (Another future post.) Last night I watched In the Realms of the Unreal about the life of artist Henry Darger. I enjoyed it. His life, artwork, and 15,000 page novel are fascinating.

Feeling better today. If the weather holds out, there is a live Afro-Peruvian dance party at the children's museum tonight. Can't wait to boogie with cub who told me, "I'm gonna shake my bootie!" Like mother, like daughter.

Under the Weather

I guess all the summer time fun we've been having lately finally has us pooped.

This lingering heat wave hasn't helped. We were really good soldiers in the beginning, too. After spending under an hour at the gym, we stayed in the rest of the day. Playing, cleaning, napping, and indulging in one of our favorite things to do.

Long live Play Doh!

Even better...Scented Play Doh. Oh, my. You haven't lived until you've sniffed the Rose scent. Pure Heaven.

And a random question...Why have neighbors on three sides of our building let their pools turn green? Just wondering.

Vanilla Lemonade and Toothpaste

Sounds yucky, right? But I just have to share these two yummy concoctions with y'all:

After the birth of my daughter, I got on a kick to make homemade bath products for our family and friends. I started with soap, then went on to bath salts, milk, and oils. Two months ago, I started making my own shampoo and hair rinse for girl cub. I use the tried and true baking soda wash with apple cider vinegar rinse. I add rosemary oil to both. It works beautifully on her hair and smells so good. I came across a simple recipe for toothpaste here (love this site) and have been using it ever since. I tweaked the recipe a bit for extra whitening.

It's easy: In a small plastic container mix: 6 tsp. baking soda, 1/2 tsp. salt, 4 tsp. glycerine, 1/2 tsp. hydrogen peroxide, 10 drops wintergreen or peppermint oil!

I can't tell you enough how great this is. It's all natural and is much more affordable than buying organic toothpaste (or the other stuff with saccharine. Ewh.)

This is what's left of the delicious Vanilla Lemonade recipe I got from a certain Apple. "This is the best lemonade I've ever had!" said Cub and I think I have to agree with her.

And for no othe reason than feeling a little sad and needing to share...Saying goodbye to a special friend, today. I made this for her over the weekend

Stuffings

I just realized when I was about to start this post that all three of my photos had something in common!

I stuffed two sweet red peppers with cooked brown rice, ground turkey breast(browned), onions, garlic, parsley, and vegetable broth. Before putting it in the oven, pour 1 cup tomato sauce over them. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 35 minutes in a pan (covered in foil) with some water at the bottom. The last five minutes I sprinkled on some grated mozzerella cheese and stuck it under the broiler for a few minutes. After trying to take appetizing photos of my meals, I seriously have a new found respect for food photo sylists. Then there is always the thing I don't think of, like crumbs on the plate. The stylist would definitely catch that.

I made these today without using the oven. I used most of today's farmers market booty, too. At the suggestion of one of the farmers, I steamed this round summer squash after cutting it in half and taking out the seeds. It worked really well. Then I boiled up some quinoa-a grain with the most wonderfully satisfying texture, along with some tamari, chopped carrot, garlic, and assorted herbs and spices. When the water cooked down, I added chopped green onion and the freshest juiciest tomatoes to hold it all together. Then I just stuffed them and took these goofy photos! Boy, were they goooood. This may sound strange, but the quinoa stuffing slightly resembles a savory (and healthy) fried rice. I put a spoonful of plain yogurt on the side, too.

I kinda like the quinoa crumbs on the side of the squash here. Hee, hee.

And here is the non-edible birdie I made last week. I thought this would be easy-breezy, but to my surprise, it was not. I think the fact that I haven't hand sewn since last winter may have something to do with it. Also, I decided to make him at 1 am. I tend to make a lot of things in that half sleepy state. I think I use this slightly altered space as a way of tapping into my creative process. Yet, it's not the most precise way of doing things. The bird's head definitely needs more bird-like shaping. I have a ritual of leaving whatever I make at night on girl cub's little table where she eats her breakfast...so she can see it in the morning. I do this as an offering of love to her. Mostly everything I make is a devotion to her. She is the root of all my creations. I want to make a ton of these until I can whip them up with my eyes closed.

Beaches and Book Guilt

Here is what I am feeling guitly about at the moment:

And wait, there's more..

Here's how it happened...

In keeping up with the routine that has sort of found us, we were off to the beach at about 4 this afternoon. We decided it was too late for the shore, so we kept it local. Growing up on Long Island, I was used to some pretty lovely beaches. In the past, I may have considered myself to be a bit of a beach snob. These days I am not quite so picky. I guess spending ten sticky summers in the city made me appreciate a simple body of water and some sand.

Today's beach was by far the "best" we've been to here on the island. This beach is located inside a national park and what a difference that makes! There was actually clean, yes clean sand. Quiet, too. The bathrooms were nearby and clean. Yes, clean. Girl cub was in her glory and made two friends within the first five minutes of our arrival. She has definitely acquired her mama's love for the surf, sand and (late afternoon) sun. The water however, was another story. I have to say, I have never seen water that brown. The cub's daddy joined us today and he said the brown stuff was just, "everything churning up from the bottom." Gee, that made me feel so much better. I wouldn't go near it. But Daddy took Cub and her new friend in and they had a blast. Ewh. Yuck.

Fast-forward to the conclusion of our late Indian dinner. I am on a mission to get a cranky cub back to the car and I know what's coming..."We're not going in here. Don't even think about it," I say quickly to the daddy. Forty-five minutes later, I am exiting Jim Hanley's Universe and have spent over $30.00 on books I don't technically need...but oh, they make me HAPPY in that little spot that only art books like these can tickle! Why, oh why, do comic book stores still do this to me? Is this normal? Apparently, it is to the cub's dad. (I knew there was a reason.) And she, as tired and full of sand as she was...got it! She only nagged a little bit at the end when we told her we wouldn't buy her the Buffy the Vampire Slayer doll. Oh, yeah...there was a comic book involved, too. Optic Nerve.

Letter to Her

Dear Girl Cub,

You are the most patient little daughter a mama could ask for.

Thank-you for putting up with all of my wild antics and schemes on a fairly regular basis.

While we were supposed to be getting ready for bed tonight, Mama took off to the bathroom to cut her hair and then streak it, too. "Wow, Mama!" is all you said when you entered the bathroom to brush your teeth. You gave me a wide smile while raising your eyebrows in that amused look of surprise I so often see on your innocent face.

Thank you for all of the worlds you create in our little home, while Mama tears the house apart with paper, books, hot glue guns, more paper, fabric, irons, needles, pots, pans, spoons, and whatever else catches her fancy.

When you grow-up, I hope you will remember these days with that same smile on your face.

Love You Forever,

Your Silly Mama
xoxo

Sad Day/Glad Day

Sad Day- Ratatat is playing live tonight at The Music Hall in Williamsburg and it sold out before I could get a ticket! I loooooove this band. Not only did they record their newest album in a vacant upstate New York mansion...They mix harpsichord and wurlitzer, sleigh bells, and cello into their unique blend of sci-fi, hip-hop, synthie electronic (if that makes any sense)! Oh, yeah...and lots of electric guitar mixed in. If you want to see something that I think is pretty cool, check them out playing the Guggenheim Museum in NYC (youtube, of course.) Listening to their music makes me nostalgically happy, not getting to experience their sounds live...extremely sad.

Glad Day: Working out in the gym this morning, taking my healthy breakfast to a local park and eating, relaxing, and reading the first forty pages of Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich. I can already tell what I love about this book are all the things I loved about My Antonia. The prose are stunningly down to earth, the portrait of the land and its people (Native American in this story) gets me in the gut, for lack of a better term.

On Deck For The Duration: Dinner with Arlene and finally trying out homemade whole grain flour tortillas while blasting Ratatat. Sorry, in advance to Girl Cub and neighbors! Possibly, a Canolli ice in there somewhere after trips to the beach and health food store.

Wierd (in a good way) Local Festival

After spending all day Sunday outdoors at a christening party for our friends son, I thought it was only appropriate to head out to the local Our Lady of Mount Carmel festival later that evening. Girl Cub put up a fight against venturing into the unknown, but I bribed her with the promise of an ice cream cone with sprinkles, then she was good to go. I am such a sucker for photo opps like these. I just can't pass up a small town curiousity, which is exactly what this felt like to me. Turns out this is a 105-year old feast founded by local Italian immigrants and their neighbors.

Upon entering, I think we both had the sensation of entering another world...Yes, this was a bit of a Twilight Zone experience...Complete with a lawn chair audience and blaring oldies music, canned and live. It also felt like Girl Cub and I had "Outsider" signs taped to our backs. Interestingly enough, I was the only one taking photos like crazy.

The centerpiece of the feast is the grotto shrine, built by members of the society using thousands of sand-worn stones, bits of seashells, and glass. Girl Cub kept calling it "God's castle!" I don't think any of the die-hards appreciated all of her commentary. Oh, well. For a small fee, you could light a white candle and place it on the shrine. This is just a small section.

I found this very amusing and quite charming--how this section of the grotto extends into a neighbors side yard.

Best of all, my girl had a great time. She is usually game if I am. She won a few prizes, too. Who knew she was a magnetic fishing pro? And I'm sure this drippy cone made it all worth her while.

I Love Friday Night!

Every friday night at 11pm to be exact, I have a date with this man. Dr. Who, you are my kinda guy...super cute, super intelligent, and extra goofy! Sigh.

I was feeling particularly energized after my date with the Doctor this evening, so I channel surfed a bit and found a VH1 "list" show...The 40 Best Heavy Metal Songs. I watched it so I could get a hearty belly laugh before I turned in. It wasn't long however, before I found myself drawn in by the surprisingly intelligent commentary and factoids about the musicians.

Most of the bands they highlighted on the show were 80's metal bands. The eighties were just an awesome decade for music and I lived and breathed it all, really.

My tastes have always been super ecclectic and during that time, there was just so much musical diversity. It was great. Some of my best (musical) crossover experiences included going to many a heavy metal show with my brother and friends. Those shows rocked and I am so happy I got to see these bands in their creative and physical prime: Rush, Van Halen, Judas Priest, Twisted Sister, Motley Crue, Def Leppard, Metallica, Dio, and Iron Maiden, thanks for doing your thang and for all the good times I had at your shows!

xoxo

Former opera singer, Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden

I love it, right now the boys that live next door and their friends are having a peaceful little pow-wow outside on the grass in front of our building...sitting in a circle, smoking cigarettes, and just talking. Ah, sweet youth...Good times.

Ladies Who Lunch

We got to have lunch today with one of our favorite girls, Aunt Julie. The weather cooperated nicely with a clear, blue, sunny sky and low humidity...finally! An appointment I had this morning brought us to the West Village. So, we kept it in that 'hood for a nice change of pace. (For the record, we are East Village girls!) We had a healthful and relaxing lunch at Village Natural which is a favorite restaurant of ours. It is vegetarian with Asian influences, which I always find to be a pretty nice combo. (Think Zen Palate, another great one on Union Square.) There are so many fresh and healthy culinary options in NYC. That is one of the things I miss living over here in SI. I don't think there is one vegetarian restaurant. Shame on you, Staten Island!

A few other favorite haunts that I miss terribly, but re-visited today were Tasty D Lite and Ricky's. I kept myself under control in Ricky's which is pretty hard. It has all the things I go ga-ga for: beauty supplies, kitsch gifts, fancy bath soaps, hair products of every kind, the funkiest make-up, wigs, and hair dye, hats, scarves, magnets, jewelry, a collection of cat-eye reading glasses, and in some stores "naughty" toys (gasp)! Basically, it's girly/drag queen heaven!

My purchase consisted of Burts Bees Insect Repellant which I can't find anywhere on SI (damn borough), Ricky's brand tweezers (excellent) and the cutest pair of barettes I've seen in a long time--sky blue vintage-y vinyl clips with a little plastic charm off center. Simple but darling. I tried on emerald green sparkly eye shadow and almost broke down, but I reminded myself I have a collection of sparkly make-up I don't where anymore stuffed in a shoe box underneath my bathroom sink!

After kissing Julie g'bye, we made our way back to the Christopher Street station...and then I found the deal of the century. This adorable little number complete with watermelons and polka-dots is now mine and all I had to do was fork over a whopping $3.00!

Yes, today was a good day.

Reasons To Be Cheerful...

I'm a baby in the heat and humidity and life has been a bit stressful this week. Luckily, there have been many things making me smile. I thought I'd share the happiness:

How to Cook Your Life - An interesting documentary focusing on the author of The Tassajara Bread Book and the connection between Zen Buddhism and daily food preparation. So much more but I'm short on words tonight.

Ohhhhhhh, this is so good when you are craving Indian food (as I do almost every day!) and don't want to pay the $30.00 minimum delivery. Boil in the bag and done in five minutes. Vegan, Vegetarian, Gluten-Free, No MSG and less than $3.00 a box...You can't beat it. Local SI people, I buy this at Tastebuds on Hylan. They have the most reasonable prices and are friendly, too. I buy naan at Key Food!



Le Ballon Rouge (1956)
One of my elementary school teachers showed this film to my fifth grade class. I loved it then and still do. What a cool teacher. I can now appreciate the way she was thinking. Very few films in my opinion deserve "must own" status, but this one is definitely on the list. So beautifully captures the innocence of childhood.

& last but certainly not least....This little piggy makes me smile every day.

God Bless You, my silly girl.

Must add other smiles- Pink Martini's Hey Eugene!, Stapleton Library, Uncle Louie G's Cannoli Ice and discovering band WaFoo Chamber Unit.

What's Inside Your Car?

No, this is not my car, but I wish it was! My father's parents had one when I was growing up, except it was light blue. Does that count? Anyway, to avoid another food post I was moved to create my own meme about the inside of our cars and what the contents reveals about us. So, here it goes. If anyone who reads this wants to participate, feel free. Otherwise, thanks for putting up with today's shenanigans.

1.What color is the interior of your car? Boring beige with dirt stains.

2. What cd is currently in your cd player? Best of Astrud Gilberto

3. Any evidence of recent (or not so) food or drink? Large DD Latte Lite plastic cup w/straw and a large Subway cup half filled with fountain Arnold Palmer made by me.

4. What is currently in the back of your car? Car Seat, box of tissues, small stuffed bears, overdue library books and dvd, girl cub's ball, Indian hippie sheet from afternoon picnic, various cds and empty jewel cases, a plastic bag for her car sick yuckies, unopened babywipes, roll of paper towels stuffed under passenger seat.

5. Anything up front? cds all over, a gold metallic purse (a temporary moment of shopping insanity after a day spent at the Hamptons outlets) in its plastic Payless bag that I really need to return!

6. Glove Box? car owners manual, pencils, packages of ketchup, napkins, (omg)feminine hygiene product.

7. Ok, come clean with the rest...The entire contents of my wallet sans money and important plastic, old memos from job used as scratch paper, a powder compact, and a religious magazine...don't ask! All stuffed inside a comparment along driver-side door.

It's a Slow Cooker Day...

Was it watching all the fireworks in the rain? All of those margaritas? Or maybe it's because girl cub didn't go to bed until almost midnight last night. Whatever the reason, "I can't find myself today," as my grandmother used to say almost daily! I feel like every bone in my body aches with exhaustion. Could be the weather too, I suppose. That is precisely why this morning I loaded up my handy-dandy crock-pot with all the fixin's for Split Pea Veggie Soup:

I make only a small batch, otherwise it sits in the fridge and turns to sludge. Ew.

1 cup dry split peas

4 cups water and/or vegetable broth

however many carrots diced small

1/2 sweet vadalia onion

1 clove garlic chopped fine

1/2 parsnip small dice (cuz it needed to be used)

Otherwise, use potato

1 Bay Leaf

Salt, Pepper, Cumin, Thyme, Parsley, and a pinch of Chili Powder - All to taste

Put it all in the slow cooker on high for two hours. When the peas are mushy and everything has combined nicely to look like split pea soup, you'll know it's done. At this point, I added a few large handfuls of delicious SPINACH from last week's market trip and let it wilt...Delicious.

***Now I ask myself, "Is this possibly turning into a food blog?" Hmf.

*** Today's Farmer's Market Booty Included: Beets (can't resist), Arugula (HUGE. So excited!), Big Bunch O'Carrots, Gold Apples, and a handful of White Cherries that cost $4.00! Yes, you heard correctly. I don't think I'll be shopping at that fruit stand again. Sheesh!

Happy Fourth of July!

The first official day of summer

Barbecues and Picnics

Friends and Family

Red, White, and Blue Color Combos

I Like Stars

I love Stripes

Fireworks on the river, now watched from the other side

Sales at the mall this morning (?)

Finally doing my own thing this weekend.

I think I startled girl cub when I saw this on the shelf at Key Food!

Too good to be true, but it is...

I hope my friends who are having the barbecue will appreciate the goodness.

Hope y'all are having a blast!

Kismet.

My girls and their girls went to a local beach yesterday. Girl cub didn't enjoy the sprinklers, sand, or any of the "rides" as she described the playground toys. But she did enjoy about an hour of bubble blowing.We all enjoyed ice-cream...Actually it was frozen yogurt for this group of mamas and hatchlings.

This cool blue wall served as a backdrop for many funny portrait combos of our girls-
And of course, a healthy dose of nose-picking.


J and I are so lucky to have met a group of women right here in our own neighborhood. We are all within a year of each other, live within a few blocks of each other, and all have daughters, too. Patrizia, Winter, G, and H-We love you.

Happiness is...

A TRUCKLOAD OF SWEDISH FISH!!!

So many books, so little time...

This is the pile of books I am in the process of reading at present. My appetite for books is ferocious. I can't devour them fast enough. In fact, it would be so much easier if I could just eat them. I have a habit of reading a handful of books at a time. I've always been like that. Again, I blame it on my fickle nature (or undiagnosed ADD)....Ha. A closer analysis reveals it's not all that crazy of a pile. Two are cookbooks, which I read for fun, but interestingly enough, rarely use. I like to get ideas, see what others are up to in the kitchen. The mythology book reminds me of Griffin and Sabine. It has all kinds of secret compartments, hidden pages and envelopes to open. There is even a lock of golden fleece tucked inside a compressed paper box. So clever. I found it in the children's section of the library.

I had book guilt for never reading the DaVinci Code. What kind of reader am I? When a friend was giving it away, I thought I'd give it a tumble. The ideas set forth are intriguing, but overall I find it to be one long game of cat and mouse. It is set in France, however. I'm almost finished after a few months of picking it up only when the guilt thing creeps in.

The others are in various states of beginnings and middles. I confess, Jackie Collins is my guilty pleasure. I started reading her books when at age 12, I found a copy of Chances on my grandparents bookshelf. Hmmm... Anyway, I think I am beginning to fall in love with Ruth Reichl's Tender at the Bone. It's a book after my own heart, a humorous and touching memoir about growing up "around the table." Food as communicator and connector, right Rachael? I read the first fifty pages in my car this morning after I showed up for yoga class 45 minutes early to do just that.