July is Dressed Up and Playing Her Tune

There is nothing like an old song to bring the memories flooding back, is there?

Today's post really needs a soundtrack . . . but you'll have to click here to listen because I couldn't embed the video (any video). That is . . . if the title of this post didn't already conjure that song in your brain. Remember that song? Summer Breeze. Seals & Croft. It is just a major, major nostalgia tune for me . . . bringing back one of my best junior high school memories. C'mon back to 8th grade with me for just a minute, okay?

There I was. . . gawky in my Olive Oyl body, with braces on my teeth, and hair that was trying hard to be like Marcia Brady's (but not cutting it) (at all), quiet and concerned all.the.time about saying/doing/wearing something stupid . . . and wishing for so much more (like a teenage sitcom life). And then, one day after band class, Nick Mizell asked me to stop by one of the band practice rooms after school. What could he want with me? I mean . . . Nick was suuuuper cute. Very cool. A drummer with dreamy hair. So very far out of my league. But I went to meet him anyway, hoping it wasn't going to be some embarrassing prank. I played it really cool - just in case - and tried my best to look like I was just casually down by the band room, y'know . . . looking for some sheet music, after school (like one might do in a teenage sitcom life).

But, no. He did actually want me to meet him. He and a couple of other band guys (Steve and Jay) were all set up in this practice room with Nick's drum set. (Steve played an electric guitar, and Jay had his trumpet). They were practicing for the school talent show, and they wanted me to listen while they played (you guessed it) Summer Breeze. And it was so awesome! I'd never seen a drum set up close. Or an electric guitar. And it sounded so good, so . . . exotic! (Not to mention how exotic these boys were to me.) And you know what they wanted? They wanted ME to play my flute in their group for the talent show. Seriously. I thought I had absolutely DIED AND GONE TO HEAVEN. Like I was freaking Grace Slick or something! This was one of the highlights of 8th grade for me. (Right up there with the night Alan Richardson asked me to couple skate at the skating rink . . . and then skated with me the whole night long.)

Anyway. Big nostalgia for me . . . that song.
(Oh. We didn't win the talent show, but we did get far enough along that we got to play in the school assembly.) (And, unsurprisingly, Nick was only interested in my flute playing and ignored me for the rest of time after that.)

That's a long story. . . and not really what I was planning to blog about today at all.
But I've always loved that song!
And I heard it on the radio just as I started to knit this summer tank top.

Sweet days of summer, the jasmine's in bloom
July is dressed up and wearing a tune

Summer breeze makes me feel fine
Blowin' through the jasmine in my mind

It's kind of nice . . . when your summer knitting project brings a welcome song and fun memories for each stitch!

I can't play it on my flute anymore, but . . . 
Eat your heart out, Nick.

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For details and more photos, click here for my Ravelry project page.

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And don't forget to visit Kat to check out more Unraveled posts today.

Friday Question

This week, I'm asking you questions!

Today's question . . . is about playing favorites.

Let's say you can only choose ONE. What is your favorite flower?

As for me, it's the humble daisy! I've always loved daisies, ever since I was a little girl. They were one of the first flowers I could accurately identify and name (the other being tulips), and every garden I'll ever grow will have at least a clump or two of daisies.

Here's a sweet daisy story for you. . . 

Back in 1981, I lived in Fort Collins, Colorado with Tom, my then-boyfriend, who was in grad school at Colorado State University. I had graduated from college with a degree in Elementary Education, but didn't have a teaching job. So I worked at the local newspaper. (I was the newspaper "dummier." It was a stressful job, but kinda fun, too. Back in the day, nothing was digitized - and there were very few computers at the newspaper yet, so I "dummied" with graph paper and a pencil each day . . . solving the layout puzzle and negotiating between advertising and editorial . . . and working closely with typesetting and "the press guys.")

Anyway. One day, I looked up from my desk in the big, wide-open newspaper office and saw a flower delivery guy bringing in flowers . . . loads of flowers. In fact, some of the people who worked in classified ads were helping to carry the massive amounts of flowers coming in . . . 

To me.

They were all daisies.
Loads and loads of daisies!
Along with this card . . . 

Yep. It was Tom's proposal! He had gone in to a flower shop, knowing I loved daisies and intending to order a little bouquet for me of only daisies - to be delivered to me with his card. But . . . daisies are cheap. And in order to "qualify" for a delivery, he had to order MANY daisies. ALL the daisies, in fact. So he did! So many daisies that I needed to share them -- making a little bouquet of daisies for every desk in the newspaper office. With still plenty left over for me.

(I said yes, of course!)

So you'll always find daisies in my garden.
(And now you know why.)

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I can't wait to hear about your favorite flower!

Thanks so much for playing along with me this week as I . . . ask questions. It's been so much fun to read your responses that, well . . . we're going to have to try it again another week.

Enjoy your weekend, and I'll see you on Monday.

 

 

In the Garden

In 1987, Tom and I bought our first house. (A real fixer-upper, let me tell you. . . ) I was so excited to be able to plant some flowers and maybe start a little vegetable garden in the backyard. (I wasn't a gardener yet, but the seeds had been planted.) What I didn't understand then . . . was that the house we purchased was situated in a town that, at one time long ago, had been a river bed. The entire area was a muck field -- with incredibly dark and rich organic soil perfect for growing . . . pretty much anything. This soil assured my early success in gardening. (I thought it was me; it was the muck.)

But that's all a story for another day.

Today, I have a different early gardening story.

The other day, as I was weeding in one of my garden beds (Front Door North, if you're interested), I noticed the big guy in my photo above . . . crawling around in my sedum. He was a really lovely toad. Bronze and shimmery. Sizable. Probably irritated that I was making him move when he'd really rather not. I love gardening with toads. 

And that got me thinking about the first time I discovered a toad in my garden . . . 

It was back at that first house . . . in the muck fields. Our first spring there, I brought home a flat of red geraniums to plant in the little foundation beds in front of our house. I was so excited! I had my flat of flowers, a little trowel (the one I still use, by the way), and my little gardener's kneeling pad . . . and I dug in. After planting the first few red geraniums, I found my gardening groove. And then, as I dug into the soil to plant another geranium, it . . . moved.

I had disturbed a BIG ol' toad!

I freaked out! 

I shrieked. I threw the trowel and the geranium up in the air and over my head into the yard behind me. I leaped up and back into the yard in one fluid movement. (It must have been quite comical . . . ) 

I wasn't actually afraid of the toad. I was just . . . surprised . . . by the toad. Really surprised. I had never considered that I might encounter something live like that . . . right there in my front yard foundation garden! 

Since that day, I have encountered many, MANY toads while gardening. Sometimes they still surprise me (they camoflage themselves so well, just sitting there in the soil), but never like that first time. I love sharing my gardening space with . . . creatures. Toads and garter snakes. Frogs. Insects. Birds, bees, butterflies. Squirrels and chipmunks and groundhogs and rabbits and possums . (Skunks . . . I'm more leery of. But I know they're out there.)

I make my garden a friendly place . . . for flowers and plants -- and for all the creatures that call my garden "home." And it all started with that one toad, so many years ago.

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I hope you all have a restful weekend, with plenty of time in your garden (if that's your kind of thing).

38 Years Later

A week ago today, Tom and I celebrated our 38th anniversary with a quick trip to Chicago (yeah . . . we saw Hamilton again . . . ) and then had a bit of a "pub crawl" the next day on our way home.  (I say "a bit" because we only stopped at 2 places - Three Floyds in Munster, IN and Greenbush in Sawyer, MI . . . and one of us was the designated driver.)  (That was me.)

Anyway.  We had a great time.

Yesterday I pulled out my trusty salad bowl to use once again, and it got me thinking about our wedding -- because my salad bowl was a wedding gift.  I was thinking about how often I use this particular bowl, and what a perfect gift it was.  

Tom's childhood neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Ratliff, gave us the bowl.  It wasn't intended to be a salad bowl, actually -- just a lovely wooden bowl for display.  But over the years, it's become my go-to bowl for pretty much any salad I throw together.  I use it all the time, as you may be able to tell by the worn edges around the rim.  (That wear-and-tear has made the bowl all the more beautiful, actually.  I'm happy it's not one of those "pretty things" I just packed away and never used.) It is a much loved item in my kitchen, and I actually think about it being a wedding gift every time I use it.  

There are a few other wedding gifts that we still have and use regularly.  A lot of things were much appreciated back in 1981, but they simply did not hold up or stand the test of time over the long haul.  Since it's a Thursday, I thought it might be fun to share 3 more wedding gifts we're still using . . . 38 years later.  

Here they are:  Three Wedding Gifts with Staying Power.

1 - The glass-and-chrome "relish tray"

As a 22-year-old, I remember unwrapping this gift and just thinking . . . what the heck will we ever do with THIS????  It is super shiny and totally not my style (then or now).  And yet . . . this particular relish tray has made an appearance at every single party or get-together we have hosted since 1981!  Ugly?  Yes!  But oh so useful!  The elevated chrome "tray" rotates.  The little glass "dishes" lift out separately for easy filling and even easier washing.  The middle "dish" is perfect for holding dips or hummus or what-have-yous, and the outside "dishes" are great for veggies or fruits or cheeses or crackers.  I mean . . . this bright and shiny hideosity turned out to be a PERFECT party serving piece and I will be forever grateful to my mom's former co-worker Mr. Dolence for this gift.  (I think of him and chuckle whenever I pull this tray out for a party.  I'm sure he wouldn't remember me or this relish tray even if tortured.)

2 - The Pyrex mixing bowl set

If you were lucky enough to receive a Pyrex mixing bowl set for your wedding, you quickly realized . . . you were pretty much set for life when it came to mixing bowls.  Four sizes.  Super versatile.  An ultimate git-r-dun kind of kitchen tool.  Until I got my KitchenAid Stand Mixer about 10 years ago, every single batch of cookies, every cake, every meatloaf I ever made . . . was mixed in that big bowl there.  (Thanks Jeri Cay Boulden, Tri-Delt sister!  I'll bet you had no idea you'd live on in my memory forever because of these bowls.)  The smallest sized bowl - sadly - cracked only last year.  I miss it still.

3 - The remaining 2 items from the 6-piece kitchen utility set (with special veggie motif handles)

Yep.  The potato masher and a very sad (but much used) strainer are all that remain of this set -- which at one time included a little hanging rack (also with veggie motif) and matching spatula, ladle, fork, and mixing spoon.  I don't actually remember when the other utility tools met their ends (except for the spatula) (the plastic handle made contact with a hot burner) (it wasn't pretty), but these guys still have a place in my utility drawer --even making it through multiple Kon-Marie's of my kitchen.  I don't actually recall who gave us this particular gift, but I'm betting they'd be surprised that it's lasted this long.  (By the way, that veggie motif?  Sticker!)

38 years later.  
Still going strong!

There are a few other long-lasting wedding gifts around -- a few random steak knives, a sterling silver tray, the "happy mushroom" motif potholders (I'd share a photo, but they're in the cabin kitchen up north), a wedding clock that doesn't work any more (but is still quite pretty), a coffee table book about Idaho (there was a connection), and a Corning Ware cutting board (we remember the giver with much fondness).

How about you?  Do you have any gifts - wedding or otherwise - that have really stood the test of time?

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Last reminder -- please let me know by today at 5pm Eastern time if you're interested in this month's stash giveaway.

 

A Brief Trip Down Memory Lane

When I was around 10, there were three books that I especially loved.  Although I never owned them for myself (owning books was such an extravagance back then), I checked them out again and again from my library, and read each multiple times:

1 - A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

2 - From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg

3 - The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

I adored these books!  (Just seeing those familiar book jackets again gives me a warm, happy feeling deep in my soul.) 

I've been thinking about my childhood favorites again, now that the new Wrinkle in Time movie is due for release in a couple of weeks (click here for the trailer).  The movie looks pretty cool -- and I know the effects will be more than anything I could have imagined when I was reading the book as a 10-year-old.  But, still.  I'm not quite sure I want to see it.

What do you think?  
And what were your favorite childhood books?

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To read more Three on Thursday posts, head on over to Carole's!

 

Party Like It's . . . 1979!!!

We usually do . . . something . . . to celebrate New Year's Eve.  Sometimes parties.  Sometimes just staying home.  Usually going out for dinner.  (That's our recent MO:  a special dinner with friends at Food Dance - one of our favorite Kalamazoo restaurants.)  Whatever we do . . . we always watch the ball drop and count down to the new year together.  

Nice . . . in that kind of quiet and predictable way.

But.  It wasn't always like that!

Let's just send the clock back to . . . 1979 . . . shall we?  Back when this guy (looking a bit Luke Skywalker-ish) and this girl (with her Farrah-'do and oh-my-god-painter's pants) were A Thing.

Yep.  Tom and I were reunited for Christmas break (he was a senior at Boise State University; I was a junior at the University of Wyoming) -- and we were headed off to San Francisco for the New Year.

Because . . .  why not?  

A friend of ours - Steve - was headed to San Franciso for a medical school interview.  And he needed driving help.  (Isn't this how many adventures happen???)  Tom and I and another friend - Dave - were only too happy to oblige.  It became our most memorable New Year's Eve ever.  

We drove through the night, made a stop in Reno (where the boys all had fun gambling and I got kicked out of every casino we visited -- because they were all 21 - but I was not), and ended up in San Francisco.

While Steve interviewed, Tom and Dave and I took in the city. 

We visited Golden Gate Park (in the fog).

We climbed Coit Tower and enjoyed its exquisite views.

And this land-locked Illinois-to-Wyoming girl saw the ocean for the first time in her life.  

This is Seal Rock -- (where we actually did see seals).

And we spent some time on Baker Beach.*  (The waves kind of freaked me out -- because it was cold and I didn't want my shoes to get wet.)

And then - best of all - we celebrated New Year's Eve with the crowds (throngs) on the streets of San Francisco.  

It was SO AWESOME -- and so adventurous -- to welcome 1980 this way.

I'll never forget . . . me and the boys . . . on the streets of San Francisco.  No other New Year's Eve party or gathering will really compare.

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*How do I remember - after 37 years - exactly where we were in San Francisco on that trip?  Why . . . because I made sweet little notes on the back of each trip photo.

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This post is part of Think-Write-Thursday.  Be sure to read other New Year's Eve stories here, and sign up for the weekly prompts here.

 

Cheers

When I was a little girl, my mom took a ceramics class.  I was thrilled when she made this for me:

A snowman mug . . . with a candy cane handle.

Oh, man.  I remember that milk tasted so much BETTER out of this mug!  (And hot chocolate with marshmallows?  Oh, yeah.  The BEST.)

Of course, my mom made one for my sister, too.  And, being a wise, thinking-ahead kind of mother, she painted our initials in the candy cane handle, so we could make sure which mug belonged to which sister.

This year, I dug my mug out of the back of my cupboard.  I stuck a bunch of candy canes in it -- and I put it on my desk.  Right there - where I can see it every day.  It reminds me of the excitement and magic I felt as a child at Christmastime.

We're in the countdown week now; the Big Day is almost here.  I hope you all have a chance to slow down, take a deep breath, and remember the special-ness of the season.  Cheers!

Jiving Us That We Were VooDoo

"I always had a repulsive need to be something more than human.  I felt very puny as a human.  I thought, fuck that - I want to be superhuman."                                                                                                                         ----- David Bowie

Like many of you, I was shocked and sad yesterday . . . when I turned on my computer and learned that David Bowie had died.  He was such a vibrant part of the music and culture of my growing-up years, and I feel so very grateful to have "come of age" in the time of David Bowie.  (While my parents didn't "get" the Beatles . . . they REALLY didn't "get" David Bowie!) 

This week, Carole has us talking about our Ten Favorite David Bowie Songs.  I imagine the lists will be quite similar -- with a few surprises here and there.  

 

Mine . . . 

1 - Space Oddity - Ground control to Major Tom!  When your husband's name is Tom . . . and he's a bit of a head-in-the-clouds scientist . . . Well.  You just gotta love this one.

2 - Changes - This song was my introduction to David Bowie -- back in 7th grade.  I loved it then; I love it now.

3 - Ziggy Stardust - In 8th grade I knew all the words to this one -- which I sang at the top of my lungs with my swim team pals.  (And you know which lyrics we sang the loudest, don't you?)

4 - Suffragette City - Another big favorite among my swim team pals!  Wham, bam, thank you ma'am!

5 - Young Americans - David Bowie's Young Americans album defined my junior year in high school.  I can remember driving "the strip" on Friday nights with my friends, singing this song.  Loudly.  And with David Bowie-worthy theatrics.

6 - Fame - Oh, yes.  (See Young Americans, above.)

7 - Golden Years - This song came out slightly later in my junior year of high school.  I remember we loved the distinctive beat.  (David Bowie was very intertwined with my high school years.)

 

8 - Under Pressure -  Okay.  So, technically, this is a Queen song (and, truth be told, I've always thought of it as a Queen song), but I'm including it anyway.  I always loved this one - and it has the double-bonus of reminding me of Brian's high school hockey games -- because it was a staple of the hockey arena soundtrack during tense moments.

9 - Modern Love - Okay.  So I kind of loved the 80s.  This one reminds me of Tom's grad school years and early M-TV.

10 - Let's Dance - Put on your red shoes and dance the blues!  Oh, yeah baby.  

 

Now Ziggy played guitar. . . 

How about YOU?  What are your favorite David Bowie songs?

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Join the fun.  Read what other bloggers have to say here.

 

 

 

A Bit of Pomp and a Whole Lot of Circumstance

 

When it comes to graduations, I've been through a few.  You could say . . . I have a lot of commencement-experience.

This picture-of-some-pictures (because scanner not feeling cooperative today) . . . shows a couple of early graduations:  Tom's college graduation, undergraduate from Boise State University . . . and mine, undergraduate #2, from University of Texas at Austin.  (Hook 'em!) 

I don't remember much about either of those ceremonies.  Except that they were long.  (Really long.)

I don't remember any of the speeches we heard that day, either.  (I do, however, remember that at Erin's graduation - four years ago - there was talk about some sort of acorn, or maybe it was a walnut, taking root and growing into a tree.  And I also remember that at Brian's graduation - last year - the speech started strong, but went on and on and on for far too long.  There was one "theme word" that the speaker used over and over and over.  I can't remember it anymore -- I have purged it from my mind.)

This week, Carole asks us what you would say if giving a commencement address.  Me?  Well, first, I'd keep it super brief.  Then, I'd say . . . 

1. Congratulations on this most wonderful of accomplishments.
2. As you move out into the world, you can apply the lessons you learned in college nearly everywhere you go:  read the syllabus, pay attention to deadlines, figure out how to prioritize, and show up.
3. (Drinking games and college songs will also serve you well in the non-academic world.)
4. "Graduation" is not the end of anything; it is the "commencement" of the next phase of your life.  The next phases won't be as neatly mapped out as your course requirements for graduation were, though, so you'll just have to wing it.
5. Speaking of wings . . . be sure to spread them!
6. Try new things.
7. Make mistakes.
8. Learn from those mistakes.
9. Live big!
10. And don't forget to thank the people who got you this far.

How about YOU?  What would you say if you were giving a commencement address?

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As I was looking through old photos of graduations yesterday, I spied this little box that I keep up in my bedroom.  (That's my high school graduation tassle there on top.  I keep it in the little box, along with other little mementoes of earlier times.)

When I graduated from high school, the local furniture store (Grier Furniture in downtown Cheyenne, Wyoming) gave each girl graduate a mini cedar chest just like mine.  I think that used to be a Thing.  Anyone else get one of these from their local furniture store?

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Christmases Long Long Ago: Dear Santa

Not long ago, as I was going through some files, I found this . . . 

Erin's letter to Santa dated December 2, 1995!  Erin was in first grade that Christmas -- missing her front teeth and everything.

Lucky Girlie!  Santa delivered -- and Erin found Kirsten under the tree on Christmas morning. 
(And, really . . . how could he resist, since she "bin good" and all???)