The Ragged Men in Ragged Clothes

Hi guys. It is Saturday Scavenger Shots time...and my word choice has made this into a CELESTIAL Saturday too!

I picked the word CELESTIAL because I am fascinated by the beauty of the visible heavens. I wasn't so much thinking of anything suggesting divinity...but you might be! I'm looking forward to seeing what CELESTIAL might mean to other bloggers.

I am just going to post up a bunch of photos now. I took them all in my bedroom. Oo-la-la! Well, no...not so much. But, um, you can see that I like to rest and relax with the CELESTIAL around me.

This is one of my favorite pillow cases. Lay down your head and dream of beautiful, far away things.

This guy hangs right over the doorway as you exit my room. I look up and try to take a bit of the moon with me as I leave into the outside world.

 Feeling moon-y or sunny, I have you covered! You can gaze into your choice of CELESTIAL bodies!

Watching over us all is the Wizard Love Monkey. His hat is thing of CELESTIAL magic!

 

Now you know how I roll, so to speak. I'd love to see something CELESTIAL from you. Yes, you.  And for next week...I will throw this tag back to Tara, so as to mix up the mix a bit :)

Bring On the Bacon and Fill Me Up

What a day, what a day...at least it is a Wednesday, the perfect day to play Choose and Defend Wednesday! I have not been very domestic lately, so I thought maybe a rather domestic Choose and Defend could be nice.  So let's do that. Let's say it is time to prepare dinner and you are given a choice by your  *husband, girlfriend, mom, son, roommate...whoever!* Tonight you may either...

Cook the Meal

OR

 

Clean Up After

Which task would you Choose? Why? Defend your choice!  Choose and Defend :)

Happy, Happy Birthday, Baby

My baby, Daniel Handsome Lad, is 16 today. Unbelievable! Somehow, I had a much easier time as my older kids entered each new stage of their lives. But with my youngest, who trails his sister by 4.5 years, I have found each new phase both familiar and entirely new. I guess the slightly skewed view came because both he and I were traveling through territory already occupied by four others before him. He watched (and continues to watch) his older siblings intently, trying to see what to expect and how to behave. As for me, I could pretend to be jaded by now, but in truth every child is so different that going through an experience with one scarcely qualifies you to go through it with another.

Baby of the family. Aw!

Over the years, Handsome Lad has given me so many good times. He is very smart and funny. Nowadays, he seems to be focusing on the funny and using the smart to avoid all but the most passing glance at boring, boring school work. He fancies himself a man of style, an auteur. He remains commitedly hipster. He's actually pretty awesome, but also pretty frustrating. Hoping the next few months will bring some maturity that will aid him in finding his path...

Here is is from a distance, hanging out with his girlfriend.

So, here's to my baby, my Handsome Lad, the light o' my life. Happy 16th Birthday :)

This Musical Message is For I Naturally Fled

You Fix the Ribbon in Your Hair

It is Saturday, so I am here to post my Saturday Scavenger Shots. This week's word, chosen by Tara @ Eclectic Spaghetti , is DRAW. What a great word! I love to DRAW. But don't DRAW any wacky conclusions. Like singing, DRAWing is something I enjoy, but it isn't something to boast about.

Still here are a couple of examples of things I have DRAWn for fun and as part of my work.

Here are a couple of springtime images I created using the high tech medium of multi-colored die-cut card stock and crayon on white card stock. As you can see, I DRAW with only marginally more competence than the toddlers I work with.

 

Let me DRAW you in with another fine example of my work. As you can see, I have mastered the blue sky, the green grass, and the lovely orange sun. DRAW your own conclusions about the bear shown here. Could be a self-portrait I reckon...

 

I hope this weekend DRAWs out long and lovely for you. If you haven't DRAWn anything lately, please take a moment and just do it. It is great fun and quite relaxing.

 

Now to see who Tara will tag for next week!

We Let Our Hair Grow Long

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood, a beautiful day for a neighbor. Would you be mine? Could you be mine?

That's right! This week's Choose and Defend Wednesday is all about neighbors. We all have them. Maybe you live rurally, or just comfortably, and your neighbors are some distance away. Maybe you, like me, are an apartment dweller living cheek to jowl with your neighbors.

There are good neighbors. I have some myself. And then there are the dreaded bad neighbors. Everyone has a least one, don't they?

So, my question for you today is - Which bad neighbor would you Choose? And why? Tell us all about it!

Noisy Neighbors

OR

Nosy Neighbors

Two bad neighbors, one choice. Which bad neighbor would you be more able to tolerate? Choose and Defend!!!

This Musical Message is For I Just Have to Remember

When You Are Gone

Thank you to the super-est of super men, Jasen @ Swamp Gas & Moonlit Reflections for choosing this week's Saturday Scavenger Shots word - STONE. It felt so right, as I am currently in the process of turning my heart to STONE! Perfect :)

The word STONE can feel negative (STONE-y silence), or positive (she is strong as a STONE, my Rock of Gibralter). And of course...I would not feel so all alone. Everybody must get STONEd.
All this descriptive stuff. But my STONE will be literal today.

Here is some STONE in my life -

This is a street island festooned with STONEs set in cement (which is really more STONE). So we got your STONE up in here.

At this house, they surrendered to the fact that lawns are a rich man's game in Southern California...people forget that it is basically a desert here! Go ahead...just make your yard into a STONE garden. I think it's kinda cool looking, but not very hospitable for lounging around on.

 

Here is a grouping of large STONEs at the front of the apartment building next to mine. Kids or young folks, as we oldies would say, like to sit on the big STONE to wait for their friends to pick them up or to talk on their phones in a sort of privacy.

 

As you can see, there are plenty of non-rolling STONEs around...none of them gathering moss! As a couple of my favorite song writers would say, "Well, it's a STONE soul picnic for the early resigned." Whatever that means...I don't know...it sounds cool.

 

That's it. Let's just hope that we can avoid the fate of  Tessie Hutchinson. Get it? Get it?!?!  Um, now we'll see who Jasen tags.   

 

Happy Mother's Day to all you badass mothers out there! Keep on fighting the good fight. ♥

And I'm An Honest Man

On Tuesday when I did my "Ick" post, I mentioned that there are also good things to report. So, let's go there, shall we?

My first piece of good news is that my daughter, Girlie Girl, recently finished her certification course to become a Massage Therapist. She laid low for about a week. Then, she got an interview at Cielo Mio Spa & Salon and got herself a job! I'm very proud of her for finding a place so quickly. She has such an outgoing, friendly personality. I'm sure that helped. Also, she's practiced her massage techniques on me and she's very good. So, yay Girlie Girl!

My second piece of good news is that my son Social Animal, after spending some time after high school working and slowly making his way through courses at Citrus Community College, decided to make a move to the big leagues. He applied to four very good University of California schools - UC Santa Cruz,  UC Santa Barbara, UC Berkeley, and UCLA. He was quite surprised when he was accepted at all four. So, he had to make a decision. Fortunately, his first choice offered a HUGE fee waiver, which along with a PELL Grant should mean he can just go to school and not worry about working much, if at all. So, in the fall, Social Animal will be heading off to University of California, Berkeley! He has plans to earn a BA in Philosophy. I'm so excited for him. I admit to being a little nervous, just because this will be the farthest away (about 400 miles) that any of my children have ever lived. 

The future is bright for Girlie Girl and Social Animal!



5.01 – The Fabian Strategy

Going through some sadness and feeling uncomfortably numb. In an effort to get myself going and cheer myself up, I am stealing this week's Choose and Defend directly from 30 Rock. Thus, the title.

Frank: Liz get in on this. Would you rather...

 ...have to start every sentence for the rest of your life with Urkle’s catch phrase “Did I do that?”

OR

...be Siamese twins with Sharon Stone for a year

I don't know...something about this makes me laugh. And trust me, I really need a laugh. So even though this might be extra dumb, please play Choose and Defend Wednesday with me. Consider it a random act of kindness :)

Liz: No! It okay! No be cry!

Ick

I must say, things have been very up and down for me lately. The down is mostly just very ordinary stuff. Never quite feeling quite safe financially, which leads to the shame I feel when I'm perceived as being stingy. Some struggles with the people closest to me, which leads to feeling misunderstood, helpless, and lonely.

Here is something that is bothering me. Yesterday, when it was still fairly quiet in the library, I was pulling some books from the shelves when suddenly two teenage boys came up behind me. I heard a bit of a scuffle, then one of them grabbed my butt. I turned to them and they were laughing. I was furious, but just told them to get out of the library. I was going to leave it at that. One of the boys walked right towards the exit. The other one had the nerve to stop at the service desk and tell the Associate Director who happened to be working there, "The woman back there is making an unsafe environment for me." Seriously. Let's call her...Smiley...looked up and saw me and told the boy that I was an employee and if he was asked to leave he needed to leave. He started walking away and I muttered that he'd grabbed my ass. She started after him and I think just told him not to come back in for the rest of the day. She asked me to write an incident report, which then goes to everyone. So, I did. And of course, everyone has something to say about it. Some people felt I should have called the police...which seemed a bit much. Some people seemed to find it somewhat comical. It isn't that I don't understand that reaction, but it didn't seem funny to me. I know I am not the best humored person, but honestly, it felt like a pretty big invasion of my person. These were not small children, they were probably 15 or 16 and it felt creepy. So, I admit, the more jovial views of it have kind of upset me. Even the person I counted on most to sympathize went to the default snicker position. I guess part of me resents the internal chastising I've been giving myself for overreacting to what is, in the big picture, a small matter. Not outwardly overreacting...well, maybe once...but mostly internally sort of obsessing a little.

So...I am feeling mildly disgruntled. Yet there have been good things happening too. And those, I will save for another post. Because this one is just...ick.

This Musical Message is for Queue Jumpers

The Chicken Saved Me!

Welcome to my Saturday. I got to choose this week's Saturday Scavenger Shots word. I tried to think of a word which would allow me to incorporate the program I presented this afternoon. You know how I love presenting programs and there are generally photos to remember the good times :)  The word for this week is CLASSIC.

The program was called "Mice, Frogs, & Fish! Oh My!"  It was a celebration of CLASSIC children's author and illustrator Leo Lionni. We had a great time!  Here are a couple of CLASSIC shots -

Here is a display of some CLASSIC picture books for children. Leo Lionni wrote about 40 books, so this is just a sampling of his work. I love his art.

We are pretty sure our puppet play version of Five Little Monkeys is destined to become a CLASSIC of modern theater. The cast members were very talented, although the director was a bit of a goof.

Thanks for dropping by for this CLASSIC edition of Saturday Scavenger Shots.  I am tagging Jasen @ Swap Gas & Moonlit Reflections to choose for next week. Now, inch out of sight...

Just Remember, You Are What You Feel

 Welcome to another Choose and Defend Wednesday. I thought today would be a good day for a music oriented Choose and Defend, in honor of my guest post over at James' awesome blog - Why It Matters.

Here is the deal...you are musically talented. Good for you! Now, you are never going to be Paul McCartney or even Joe Newman. Still you can make a good living in the music industry. But how? Well, here comes the choice. Would you prefer to be...

A Session Musician

OR

A Songwriter

I know that you are so talented and amazing that you could do both! Or even more! But since this is Choose and Defend, you must Choose...and then you must Defend your choice.

All that's left to do is for you to explain how you're going to make your mark in the world of music. Feel free to include as much detail as you wish :) Choose and Defend!

From Tara and Blogthings Blog - Shopping

This Friday 5 thing from Blogthings Blog turned up on Tara's blog and I had to have it for myself! 

1.What are your favorite stores to shop at? I like Barnes & Noble and other bookstores. There is a small record store called Kaos which is nice. I also really like a local thrift shop called New Unto Others. My favorite grocery store is Albertsons.

2.What do you like to shop for? I don't like shopping much. But my favorite things to shop for are books and music.

3.Where do you prefer to shop? Online? At an indoor mall? An outdoor mall? Downtown? I have become a big fan of online shopping. So much easier. I like going to Amazon and finding anything I need and being able to easily compare prices and features. My second choice is interesting, independent stores. Swap meets are usually fun. Big box stores and malls make me feel kind of tense and uneasy.

4.What’s the best thing you’ve bought in the past year or two? A copy of "That's Good, That's Bad" by Joan M. Lexau. It was a book DR remembered very fondly from his childhood, so I hunted one down (on Amazon, of course) and gave it to him for Valentine's Day.

Also, I hardly ever buy clothes, but I found this black shirt from a stack on an endcap at Walgreen's around Christmastime. In that I got it cheap, on a whim, and it makes me feel good when I wear it, I consider it quite the coup. haha!

5.Take What’s Your Shopping Stereotype? – What do you get? Is it accurate?
I got Unique. I would say that is accuarate up until the part about shopping being my way of expressing myself. Shopping isn't really that kind of an outlet for me. But I do agree that I almost never go with the crowd :)

Your Shopping Stereotype is Unique

It's hard to stereotype you, because you simply buy what you like. You are a true individual. Sometimes you go high end. Sometimes you go low end. But you almost never go with the crowd. You don't settle until you find the perfect item. Shopping is one of the ways that you express yourself. You're proud of what you own, and if you change your mind about something, you immediately get rid of it.

What's Your Shopping Stereotype?

Blogthings: Waste Time at Work!

This Musical Message is For I Can Feel it Coming

I Live to Make You Call My Name

Hello. I like to PUNCTUATE a simple greeting like that with a period. If I said - Hello! I'd just seem over eager :) I was pretty stuck on the word PUNCTUATE for this week, as chosen by Tara @ Eclectic Spaghetti.  I kept thinking of these sentences, like - Their lively conversation was PUNCTUATEd by bursts of laughter and the occasional gasp.  I can think of sentences all day long, yo. But my visuals are not up there.

So, this is what you are getting for PUNCTUATE.

This is a picture of a page from a book about punctuation.  As I am a terribly lazy writer I tend to fall back on the ellipsis quite a lot. I don't even really use it properly, but it makes me feel like I am writing the way I speak...with plenty of pauses...lots of hesitation as I formulate my thoughts. That is just how I PUNCTUATE, brothers and sisters. That is just how I do.

I'm anxious to see how my cohorts in Saturday Scavenger Shots have handled this word. Also watching to see who Tara tags next. Period, stop, stop, stop.

Turn Up the Eagles, The Neighbors Are Listening

Thought I'd go with a very simple Choose and Defend Wednesday this week. Let's get some physical activity, shall we? As your activity leader, I want to go skating! But I will let you Choose what kind of skating you'd prefer to do...

Do you want to go -

Ice Skating

OR

Roller Skating

 

Choose and Defend and let's glide our cares away! Happy Wednesday :)

This Musical Message is For Picking Up Slack

For a Better Batter Better Beat it Harder

Welcome to CAKEday! Time to get off a quick Saturday Scavenger Shots post before this day officially ends :)

CAKE was the word chosen by Jasen @ Swamp Gas & Moonlit Reflections  Worked out good for me! I know of a few different ways to use CAKE. I mean, I considered sneaking into a men's room and photographing a urinal CAKE. Seriously, it crossed my mind. But then I went traditional.

So, let me get you some milk or coffee or tea, whatever you prefer, and have some CAKE, friends!

Here are shelves full of potential CAKE. So many brands and flavors to choose from.

All just waiting to be brought to delicious life.

 

Here is one layer of a chocolate CAKE, just out of the oven. DR made it for his brother-in-law's birthday celebration. This CAKE is striken to be caught in the nude!

 

Well. The CAKE sort of crumbled a bit. DR decided it wasn't worthy to be seen by others, so we ended up buying another CAKE to bring...although no photographic evidence exists. I was secretly just as glad, because now we will get to eat this CAKE all on our own!!!

 

Hope you enjoyed CAKEday here on the blog.  Do stop in tomorrow for one more serving of CAKE in a musical message!

 

Now all that's left is to see who Jasen tags for next week...

 

 

 

Friday 5 - Frosting

Friday 5-ing it today. How could I resist with the topic? Frosting, along with the CAKE theme of tomorrow's Saturday Scavenger Shots? I mean, come on! So, let's do this thing.

1.How much frosting do you like on a slice of cake (or on a cupcake)? It depends on the frosting. Most of the time, I feel like there is a little too much frosting...sometimes it is super-sweet and it is just too much of a good thing. At other times, the cake is uninspired and the frosting is the only thing saving it.

2.What’s something else (besides cake or cupcakes) that’s excellent with frosting? I like to put leftover frosting on graham crackers. I have even been known to eat a spoonful all on its own.

3.How close are you (or how many years removed) from your hair turning grey? I have a good little crop coming in. I've had the stray grey or two since my teens, but now it is beginning in earnest. I think my hair is greying like my mom's...she is 75 and still has some pepper in the salt :)

4.With whom would you say you have a frosty relationship? I can't really think of anyone, at present. Usually, if things get too frosty, there is no longer a relationship and I no longer worry about it.

5.What item in your freezer is most likely to be consumed next? I have my eye on an adorable little frozen pizza. I'm-a comin' for ya, tiny pizza!



Scrivener, who writes the Friday 5 says - Thanks for participating, and have a toasty weekend!
I will add that around here it is looking like it will be a very warm and toasty weekend, if today's weather was any indication. Hotty hot hot!

Now...please come back for some CAKE tomorrow as I Saturday Scavenger Shoot! kthxbi

Analyze This! #2

Let's face it, your very own blog is the only place where you can tell about that weird dream you had last night. It has been established...no one in your life wants to hear that shit. But when it comes to blogging, I think it is established that your blog is yours to do with as you like. People reading will possibly indulge you, because after all, you can't see their eyes rolling! They can make barfy noises and you'll never even know! Yeah...blogging the best and so is telling about vivid dreams :)

Here is the one I had last night - I was riding in a car. I was the passenger, but I'm not sure who was driving. We were going down a street that is familiar to me, residential, but long. We looked to our left, the driver and I, and saw a big truck...like a tractor trailer, barreling past. It was on the wrong side of the street and looked like it was out of control.  The street seemed very wide and the truck was going the same direction as us, but far against the other curb. It was approaching a stop sign at a high speed and I remember saying something to the driver of the car, that it looked like he was going to go right through the intersection. Right before the truck reached the intersection it braked hard and suddenly just sort of rolled over on its side, crushing a couple of small cars parked next to the curb.

I was momentarily surprised, but then felt relieved almost immediately. A small group of people gathered around the cab of the truck and there didn't seem to be any alarm. Everyone just began talking animatedly. The people looked sort of unusual. They were dressed in very bright colors and had sort of kooky hair, oddly colored and stiffly styled.  I started to comment on how unusual they looked to me, when all of a sudden the entire intersection was filled with similarly styled people  roaming around and greeting one another animatedly. I realized then that they were filming a movie. The whole thing had been set up, but for some reason they were letting regular traffic through too.

I remember being very excited at this realization and I wanted to get out and find out more about what was going on...but that is all I remember.

Interestingly (a relative term, of course) this is the second of only two dreams I have posted on this blog. The other one involved the street too. Don't know why these particular dreams remained so vivid upon waking. And couldn't say for sure why I brought them here for analysis. But here we are.
So...any thoughts? Do tell.

His Message Was Brutal

Choose and Defend Wednesday has come back around, finally. Sometimes weeks seem so, so long...and this is one of those weeks for sure.

I had to ponder this week's question for awhile. I know most of them are less than stellar, but they still take some  thought. Part of it is because I've been doing it for awhile now, part of it is that I might not be that creative :) Have I ever mentioned that suggestions are welcomed? They are.

Anyway, this week you get a new skill! But which one will you Choose? And how will you Defend your choice?

Would you rather be able to -

Fly 10 mph

OR

Run 100 mph

So? What will it be? Choose and Defend!

This Musical Message is For You Make Me Testify

I Was a Vision in Another Eye

Today is Saturday. Today is a work day. Those two sentences never go together properly in my mind. Still, every other week, there I am :) At least I have Saturday Scavenger Shots to console me.

Today's word is WING. I chose it because I thought it would lend itself well to Spring. Or maybe I just chose it because I was hungry for chicken. Who can say? Anyway, here are a couple of WING photos I took with my very own phone. You're welcome.

This is a cute little slap bracelet featuring a dragonfly with shiny WINGs. We must have over-ordered those at some point, because I feel like we've been giving them away for ages. The kids always love them though...such a cute WINGed creature to adorn their tiny wrists.

 

Here is my inspirational butterfly WING. I might have shown you this before. This WING features my favorite section of Max Ehremann's "Desiderata" and I have it at my desk. I find the sentiment very soothing and calming. Here is a link to the full text, if you are not familiar with it...or even if you are and just want to enjoy it again.

 

And now we travel on, into the remainder of the weekend, carried by a WING and a happy thought for peace and beauty and fun and relaxation. We want it all!

 

Now for the tag...I guess it goes, in it's circular fashion, to Jasen. And a new adventure is created :) 

Immune to Your Consultations

Happy Wednesday to you! Thanks for coming by to check out this week's Choose and Defend. Today, I decided to give you a chance to experience something new...temporarily. Which new experience would you most like to have (Choose) and why (Defend) ?

For one week, would you rather live as -

A Different Species (of your choice)

OR

The Opposite Gender

What do you think? Tell me all about it! Choose and Defend. (^.^)

With the Feelin' That I'm Gonna Love You 'Til the End of Time

BUBBLES, y'all. It was the Saturday Scavenger Shots word...and a fine one, indeed, chosen by our own Tara @ Eclectic Spaghetti. I was raring to go on BUBBLES, with a couple of fine examples...or at least a couple of adequate examples. However, I ended up not getting to it in a timely fashion. I took last Thursday - Sunday off work and commenced to neglect most of my internet obligations :) It was lovely. But here I am! Back! And here are my BUBBLES -

You can't actually see these BUBBLES, but I promise that they exist within the can of cola. Sweet, sweet BUBBLES!

Here are some little containers of solution to make BUBBLES. They are going to be one of our Summer Reading Program prizes. BUBBLES for everyone!

Here are some BUBBLES in a sink full of dirty dishes. Clean, magic BUBBLES, clean!

As you can see, I have BUBBLES coming out the wazoo! Figuratively. If I meant it literally, I'd probably be in some other line of work by now.

I hope you enjoyed my late Saturday Scavenger Shots. Now, I must go around and see if anyone else got BUBBLES on the brain this weekend. Buh-buh-buh-bye for now!

This Musical Message is For We Were Nothing Like the Rest

See, I Reckon You're About an Eight or a Nine

Hey there. Do you Choose and Defend? If you do, we should go steady. If you don't, you should. As it is that special day of the week, it is time for Choose and Defend Wednesday! 

This week I thought we could focus on our health. We all like being healthy, right? But sometimes it is a struggle to do the right things for our precious temples (that would be our bodies, dear.)  What if you only had to choose one path to healthy righteousness? Which of these things would you prefer to do in order to try and maintain a healthy lifestyle?

Eat Healthy

OR
Exercise Regularly

I will admit, I am not consistantly the greatest at either one of these things...but one is easier, or more enjoyable, for me to maintain as a lifestyle choice.

So, how about you? Choose and Defend, you healthy creature!

Another Celebration

I hope you all had a nice weekend...a nice Easter if you do that sort of thing. Most of my family went to my dad and stepmom's house for the afternoon. My son Secret Agent Man had to work, as usual. And unfortunately, DR was indisposed and couldn't join us.  Still, it was a nice day.

Here are the little bunnies and their major loot. Of course the Easter Bunny had visited their home, as well as Great Grandpa and Grandma's place...so Easter was good to those chickadees.

 

After lunch, the kids wanted to hunt eggs in spite of the drizzle. The plastic eggs had been hidden earlier, so it was no trouble for them to go ahead and hunt. I stayed dry, up on the front porch :)  You can see here that the girls gave Little Prince a head start.

 

 

My parents gave us all a very nice lunch of ham, scalloped potatoes, cucumber salad, rolls, and more. We also had news of something I'd suspected for a bit, but it was confirmed that Kick Back Dude and his baby mama Princess Diva are attempting couplehood again. They've had their troubles, but if they can work things out it would be wonderful for the kids...and for them too, really.

 

Even though DR didn't join us on Easter he did give me a gift the day before -



Skelanimal - Because dead animals need love too. Good golly.

 

 

Now onward into the week! I took a couple of days off at the end of the week, so I am actually having a three day work week. Nothing wrong with that, eh?