Thursday, January 31, 2013

DOUBLE TAKE


Did you do a double take like I did upon first seeing this dog??  The doggie isn't wearing false teeth--it's a ball decorated with "teeth" - and a dentist gives them out to patients' pooches.

Whoever the dentist is, this is a really cute idea.

Monday, January 28, 2013

DOWNTON ABBEY




   
I don't make it a habit to promote TV shows, movies, etc., but I just have to say a few words about Masterpiece Theater's DOWNTON ABBEY, which comes on 9:00 p.m. EST on Sunday nights in our area. 

In fact, this latest blog background is entitled "Downton," in honor of this program I enjoy so much.  Every character is truly a "character," and last night's episode did not disappoint.  It was sad, but so very believable.  The servants are equally as engaging as the family, with everyone knowing his/her proper place in the scheme of things.  I enjoy the friendship displayed between Carson and his lordship, for example--one of mutual respect.

They just don't make shows like this one very often these days.            






TIGER CUB = CUTENESS PERSONIFIED


My family and friends know how much I adore tigers, and this cub is just about as cute as anything I've seen.  Is he looking at a bug upon which to pounce?  Kudos to the photographer, whoever it might be.

Saturday, January 26, 2013

TYGER, TYGER, BURNING BRIGHT . . .


Who's with me in thinking that the tiger is THE most beautiful animal of all of God's creations?  The coloring, markings, eyes, and graceful movements are stunning.

The poem below, also one of my favorites, has one flaw: the poet didn't seem to know Who created the "tyger."  The Creator of all things created the tiger beautifully, of course.

Enjoy.

The Tyger

Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes?
On what wings dare he aspire?
What the hand dare seize the fire?

And what shoulder, and what art
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? and what dread feet?

What the hammer? what the chain?
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?

When the stars threw down their spears,
And watered heaven with their tears,
Did he smile His work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb make thee?

Tyger! Tyger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?

--William Blake, 1794


  "'The Tyger' is about having your reason overwhelmed at once by the beauty and the horror of the natural world. 'When the stars threw down their spears / And watered heaven with their tears' is the most difficult section of 'The Tyger.'" In the creation story in 'Job,' the stars sing for joy at creation, a scene that Blake illustrated . . . Blake greatly appreciated the explosion of scientific knowledge during his era. But there is something about seeing a Tyger that you can't learn from a zoology class. The sense of awe and fear defy reason. And Blake's contemporary 'rationalists' who had hoped for a tame, gentle world guided by kindness and understanding must face the reality of the Tyger."
 -- from "Understanding William Blake's 'The Tyger'" by Ed Friedlander, M.D.

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

THERE'S A FORM FOR EVERYTHING!


I literally laughed out loud when I saw the form that a friend posted on Facebook.  Since we have forms for everything else in life, why not an apology form, right?

My favorite part is the "I feel . . ." with all the suggestions underneath.  What a hoot!

Enjoy :).

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

HAPPY 12TH BIRTHDAY, SHADOW!



Today marks the 12th birthday of my granddawg, Shadow!  He is, of course the dachshund "author" of my series of books written from his viewpoint, THE DACHSHUND ESCAPADES.

I'm looking forward to my third book, DACHSHUNDS FOREVER, to be in publication soon.  Shadow (as Sarge in the books) relates more of his interesting tales about his zany family, notably Papa Duke, his favorite person in the entire world.

Join me in wishing Shadow a wonderful birthday today!


Monday, January 14, 2013

TRIBUTE TO MY MOTHER: THE PURPLE IRIS

We lost my mom last week, January 8, 2013, after a long and debilitating illness.  I'd like to share the poem we included in her funeral program:

God's Garden
God looked around his garden
And found an empty place,
He then looked down upon the earth
And saw your tired face,
So He put His arms around you
And lifted you to rest.
God's garden must be beautiful,
For He always takes the best.
He knew that you were suffering
He knew you were in pain.
He knew that you would never
Get well on earth again.
He saw the road was getting rough
And the hills were hard to climb.
So He closed your weary eyelids
And whispered, "Peace will now
Be thine."  It broke our hearts to lose you,
But you didn't go alone,
For part of us went with you
The day God called you home.
And below is the Mother's Day tribute I wrote for her on Mother's Day, 2011:

"After Dad retired from the military and they settled in North Carolina, on visits home when we lived out of state and many hours away, (if during flower season), she so loved showing off her flowers and plants in the yard--they were like her friends, or at least family members :). Her favorite flower has always been the purple iris, and I will always think of her when I see irises."

My mom is 83 years old, and I am so thankful to still have her with us! Although her mind is clear, she has numerous health issues that affect her quality of life. Always a fighter in spite of those, she now spends much of her time reading inspirational fiction at her skilled nursing facility only a few miles from our home. She's always loved crossword puzzles, too.

With advanced COPD, diabetes, neuropathy, congestive heart failure (to name a few), she is not able to do much physically these days. In younger days and better health, she was always busy, and could work rings around me! She loved to garden, tend to her flowers, sew (she made most of my clothes as I was growing up), cook, and read. She often said that there were not enough hours in the day to accomplish everything she wanted to do, as her mental curiosity knew no bounds. There were boxes of recipe clippings attesting to the fact that she loved to try new recipes (and our family, the recipients of those efforts, always enjoyed that!).

As mentioned, she made most of my clothes, but she still sewed when our daughters were young, making them sundresses, rompers, Easter outfits--she even made our oldest daughter's piano recital dress, a floor-length yellow semi-formal gown, when Holly was ten or eleven. She had tackled making neckties for my late dad years ago, and he enjoyed wearing them. For those of you old enough to remember men's leisure suits, she made one for my brother as a young man, in blue to match his eyes. She also made my wedding dress in white velvet, trimmed in lace and chiffon. She made her own apparel for the wedding, too: a dress and matching coat, as well as the bridesmaids' white muffs and rose headpieces (it was a December wedding--their dresses were dark red velvet).

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