Yesterday's Sunset

Here's a shot of last night's sunset. I concentrated on getting the sun itself rather than the surrounding sky. My camera is a Sony DSC-H1 with a 12x optical zoom lense and it produces great photos.

Old Friends: Old Wine

Last night we had dinner with four of the people dearest in the world to us. Our friendship spans back several decades and even though we may not see each other for several months or several years, it survives. In fact, it seems like some wines; the older it gets, the better it is. We're so lucky.

Alec Baldwin: My Thoughts

I watched the Alec Baldwin interview on The View yesterday. I saw little regret and remorse but much rage and ego. Baldwin used that forum (and shame on Barbara Walters for letting it happen) to release another attack on his ex-wife, Kim Bassinger.

I know nothing about Bassinger. She may very well be a bad person and poor mother. I don't know. But I do know that Baldwin has lashed out in the past and directed rabid tirades at other people and in other situations. Unfortunately, his latest loss of control was directed at his own daughter.

He and Bassinger have made their daughter the bone of contention between them. Regretfully, the bone of contention in this case is a wishbone and they are both pulling it as hard as they can. Eventually, the bone will break and one of them will have the bigger piece. That really doesn't matter. The point is the bone is broken. That poor child.

On the program, Baldwin portrayed himself as a noble man capable of directing the rest of us in dealing with parental alienation. Step back, Baldwin, and look in the mirror! There you see the root cause of parental alienation. You'd better fix yourself before you try educating the rest of us.

P.S. Whadda I know?----I don't even know if his name is Alec or Alex.

A Mary Celeste Type Mystery

Remember the tale of the Mary Celeste back in 1872, when a "ghost" ship was found off the coast of Spain. Everything seemed normal except the lack of any humans on board. Rueters has reported finding a catamaran a similar occurance off the coast of Australia. The sails were up, the engine running, food on the table, a laptop was on but the three missing sailors were gone.

It's Not Polite to Stare---At the Chimps!?

AP reports that the Antwerp Zoo is asking that visitors try to avoid making eye contact with the chimps who reside there. They explain that one chimp was raised by a human family and they are now trying to have him bond with his own kind. Sounds reasonable to me....I think.

Virginia Tech Mixed Feelings

We share the disbelief and sorrow caused by yesterday's events in Blacksburg. At the same time, we are feeling relief and gratitude to learn that one of our friends, a professor of chemistry, is safe. His wife was one of my college roommates and matron of honor in our wedding. His e-mail this morning indicates his empathy for the parents.

Global Warning Exception

Here's a note from the National Weather Service local storm warning bulletin:

SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS OF 8 TO 12 INCHES WILL BE POSSIBLE OVERNIGHT...ESPECIALLY IN THE HIGHER TERRAIN . TOTAL SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS COULD WELL EXCEED A FOOT BY MONDAY EVENING...WITH 12 TO 18 INCHES POSSIBLE IN THE HIGHEST TERRAIN ALONG THE INTERSTATE 81 CORRIDOR.

I just read this as I looked out the window to nearly bare ground and sort of gloated about the bad weather missing us. Uhm......I suppose I could be wrong.

Happy Easter

I hope everyone's Easter was as joyful as ours. We spent it with my sister Nancy's family in Pennsylvania. I love Pennsylvania's colorful place names. For example, Nancy lives is a town called Shinglehouse and on a road called Horse Run.

The star of the day was Ava, my great-niece and Nancy's granddaughter. She held her own in a crowd of adults.

Construction Day Three

Here we are on day three. It's not quite done. The screens have to be put in, railings added on the exterior and more hardware installed. It's great and closed in just in time for more low temperatures and possibly snow. The installers have added some of their tools to the mix on the porch so the cats have been very nervous about going out. They'll love it tomorrow when it's all done.

Construction Day Two

Here's the update after the second day of work. One wall is completed and work has begun on the other two. The door going to the ramp has been framed in.....it's wider than the one we had which will make it better for scooters, etc. Hopefully, the job will be completed tomorrow.

Under Construction

This is today's view of our front porch, soon to be a sunroom. It has been stripped down to the floor, roof supports and roof. The workers will return on Monday and add doors, windows and knee walls. The pile you see in the center is the stack of furniture moved out of the way for constuction. The cats are very upset because they have always claimed the porch as theirs and without barriers to prevent them from wandering off, we are keeping them in the house.

It Is Done

Our library is gone (or nearly gone). I just finished taking the last load of about 1100 books to the Salvation Army. This doesn't mean we'll stop reading. It just means we will stop accumulating books.

No Points for Deal Making

Yesterday I decided I couldn't swim in books any longer. We had a wall of floor to ceiling bookcases. All full. Even had a smaller bookcase in front of the bookcases. My computer desk was filled with books, the floor was stacked with books, one bathtub was filled with books, my husband's dresser was filled with books. In the living room,---well, you get the picture.

Anyway, I decided to start with the paperbacks. Because I need one hand free to support myself when walking, I packed the books in plastic bags. I packed and carried eighteen bags of books to the car---no small deal for me. My original intention was to take the books to our local Salvation Army. Some place along the way, my northern European roots came to the forefront and I wondered why I should just give the books away. With a quick phone call, I confirmed that a used bookstore in a town about 25 miles away would be glad to look at my books (meaning all eighteen bags would have to be carried into the store).

So with husband and books tucked in the car, we drove off to Wellsville. When we parked in front of the store, I noted with dismay the two-foot high mound of snow between the car and the sidewalk. Bravely, I attacked the snow only to discover I couldn't get through it without falling. So back to the car to get my cane. At this point, the shop owner came flying out of the store and announced that I shouldn't be doing anything and that she would unpack the books. We finally compromised. I stood on one side of the snow wall and she got the books out of the trunk and handed them across the barrier to me.

Then all eighteen bags were carried into the store and stacked by the owner's desk. One bag at a time, one book at a time, she selected the books she would buy. I carried the rejected books outside, waiting to go through the same dance to put them back in the car.

The owner selected 118 books and paid me------------eleven dollars and eighty cents. That's ten cents a book! When I told my husband, he dryly pointed out that would cover the cost of the gas. We went to McDonald's for lunch and that cost four dollars and change so lunch was covered too but the rest of my killing was too little for a bank deposit.

We drove back to Hornell and went straight to Salvation Army. I backed up to the Donations door and went inside to tell them that I had 100-200 books to be donated. A guy came out with a cart, loaded the rest of the books, thanked us and pushed the cart inside.

We went home where I decided to take the rest of books straight to the Salvation Army. By then it was pretty obvious that I had made no points for deal making.

Ryder's Bed

On my other blog (www.sirryder.blogspot.com), I just posted the same picture and the story of Ryder using this basket for his bed. He used it for years until I decided the sheepskin was too dirty and replaced it with a new piece. He never got in the basket after that. Now he sleeps on the floor or in a people's chair. And I feel guilty....

Forecast of Spring

Sounds like Panxsutawny Phil isn't any happier with his forecast that we are. And I'm always happy to comment on members of the current administration, even if I have to use a mouth piece.

Flower Power

I'm a so-so gardener, convinced that nature doesn't need a lot of help from me. I'm offering this photo as proof.

I have very small, easy upkeep flower beds that give us a lot of pleasure.

I'm looking for this year's blooms.

Reset Your Clocks

I hope everyone remembered to reset their clocks last night.

Speaking of clocks, the photo on the left is a picture I took of the display on a building across the street from our hotel in Paris a few years back.

Robin Sighting

I saw my first robins today. The photo is misleading because the robins were in a small grassy area surrounded by fields of snow left by the Valentine's Day storm.

We also saw flocks of wild turkeys and some deer. After all the snow, seeing anything else is exciting.

A Good Winter Read

I read Beverly Lewis' series THE HERITAGE OF LANCASTER COUNTY that chronicles the young adulthood of a girl who grew up in an Amish family. While some might consider this a religious book, I found it to be good fiction---a strong plot, well-developed characters and a style of writing that kept me turning the pages. I look forward to reading more of her books.

Let's Pretend

Remember when you were a kid playing with a sibling or friend? You wanted to play a new game and would say so. "Let's pretend to play school." "Let's pretend that we're in the jungle.""Let's pretend that I'm a giant." And so on. Most kids are very aware of what's real and what's fantasy.

Flash forward to adults. Which adult says "Let's pretend that this credit card is really cash."?Or "Let's pretend I'm sick so I can stay home from work." "Let's pretend I stopped at that stop sign." Notice how the labels are removed and the line between reality and fantasy disappears.

Move onward to the federal government. When they shout "Support our troops!" do they add "Let's pretend Walter Reed and V.A. hospitals take care of those who were harmed in the line of duty"? Guess not.

Once again it is Kids 1 Adults 0.