Lucky Day!

I had a lucky day today! It was kind of a perfect day. First, let me start by saying that these pictures have nothing to do with this blog entry! I had no pictures of my own to post; so I went on Google Images, typed in vintage dresses and these are some of the lovely fashions that popped up.
How I was lucky today: I found a poem on a fellow blogger's blog, Bookgirl's Nightstand. It is by Billy Collins. Here it is:

Why do we bother with the rest of the day,
the swale of the afternoon,
the sudden dip into evening,

then night with his notorious perfumes,
his many-pointed stars?

This is the best –
throwing off the light covers,
feet on the cold floor,
and buzzing around the house on espresso –

maybe a splash of water on the face,
a palmful of vitamins –
but mostly buzzing around the house on espresso,

dictionary and atlas open on the rug,
the typewriter waiting for the key of the head,
a cello on the radio,

and, if necessary, the windows –
trees fifty, a hundred years old
out there,
heavy clouds on the way
and the lawn steaming like a horse
in the early morning.

~Morning by Billy Collins

Isn't that delightful??? It inspired me to go to the library tonight to look for a book of his poems. I never read poems, but if there are poems like this I am a convert!

Next, lucky thing, my friend Jane went on a road trip this weekend and brought back some Fitz's root beer. It is from the St. Louis area but she found it in her old college town of Carbondale, Illinois.

Next I was lucky because we had Taco Bell for dinner, my favorite meal ever!

Then I was lucky because we went to the library and I found a ton of books that I wanted to read!!!!!

Losing Kei by Suzanne Kamata
Belong to Me by Marissa de los Santos
Apples and Oranges by Marie Brenner
Without a Map by Meredith Hall
Picnic, Lightning by Billy Collins
Happy Family by Wendy Lee
Now I would be really lucky if I could be shipped off to a cabin by a lake and sit on a porch and just read, read, read!!!!!! I guess I know what I will be doing every night after work this week........so much for cleaning (as if!)

Potpouri

Here is a post about several things. First up, above and below are finds from our weekend in St. Louis a few weeks ago. Don't you just love this little drum majorette figurine!
Here is a tin that Jane found. She called my name across the entire store and said this was right up my alley. She was right!
Last Saturday we had a mini girl get together. My friend Trish came over with her Mary Kay wares so that we could explore skin care, eye color, etc. Before we get to that; please note the book above. It was Trish's Mom's book when she was little and she gave it to me!
It has such sweet poems and illustrations! I might be favoring you all with one of the very sweet fairy poems sometime soon.
Here are my Mom, Jane and Trish. All with glowing and beautiful skin! I really like this Mary Kay stuff. It works, it is affordable, and everyone looks beautiful.
After Mary Kay time we commenced to fooling around with our stamps, papers, etc.
Upcoming I will have a post about my current form of art therapy; making little books for myself. I convinced Jane to try one for herself. This is the cover!!!!! Screams of delight!!! So cute!!! Also love the shape of this little book; there are tags inside to decorate!
Above is Trish's work area. I love those stamps of hers, "Dream Big" and "Find Your Passion."
Here is my Mom working on a card. She is using a very sweet image from a collage sheet from The Little Pink Studio.
Miss Jane holds up what promises to be a future masterpiece. She has such a way with color, ribbons, paint and vintage images. I am sure I will be going ape over this when she is done.
ooops, this is a blurry picture of Trish.....

Lastly, here is my Mom after her Mary Kay skin session. She looks radiant don't you think??? In case you want to know more about Mary Kay products, here is a link to Trish's site; she would be most pleased to help you.

Pure Magic!

Last night I was lucky enough to spend the evening with my husband, watching our big new great TV and watching the Opening Ceremonies of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. It was stunning and moving; and all of the great things that the human spirit can bring to fruition. It was like watching a great opera, reading a great book, and seeing a great movie all rolled into one!
This is one of my favorite images; each child represents one of the 57 ethnic cultures of China. They carried in the Chinese flag.
This is a human recreation of the bird's nest; the building where the opening ceremonies took place.
This picture is of people holding signs up with pictures of the children of the world. A real plea for peace and harmony.
The lighting and movement of people was stunning.
Basketball player Yao Min who plays in America, but who is from China was the flag bearer for the Chinese team. Marching alongside him was this darling 9 year old boy. He survived the terrible earthquake in China earlier in the year. He crawled out of the rubble and then went back in to save two classmates. When asked why he did that he told people that he had to because he was the hall monitor and he was in charge.






So much fun........wish the sentiments of hope, peace, and harmonious living could become a reality. I guess all we can do is each do our part every day to make our own lives as hopeful, peaceful, and full of goodwill as possible.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

Totally Extravagant!

We have been watching a bit more TV around here! We purchased a plasma screen TV that is BIG! As Mike says, the picture is so gorgeous and clear that it is "redonkulous!" Oh my, the movies on DVD! I feel like I am at a theater! Tonight we watched the National Geographic channel. They had a program about the construction of two new buildings in China for the Olympics. Above is the main stadium. I love it!
It has been nicknamed the bird's nest. Can you see the similarities?
This is what the swimming stadium will look like! Next Friday night are the opening ceremonies! I guess my TV and movie watching will increase! Never fear though, we went to the library today and got a ton of books! Some things never change.