the chit-chat corner

Come over here and talk about anything at all.

sweet story:
https://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/2018/10/25/shreveport-family-pays-fin...

His mother checked out Spoon River Anthology when she was 11 years old and never returned it. He paid the fine due from 1934.

$1,542.65! The man is a hero!

Found a copy of the 1959 Folio Society edition of Mansfield Park in an antique shop today. This just qualifies as TBSL, right? I bought it partly because it has illustrations by Joan Hassall.

Absolutely! I wish my mom had hung onto some of her People's Book Club editions from the 50's; wonderful (and exquisitely 50's-ish) inside and cover illustrations. Even before I was old enough to read, I loved looking at the pictures.

I can't find it now, but I think it was this group (or else it was Gardens & Books) where I spoke about daughter's family moving into a Victorian home in Cincinnati a year and a half ago.

Anyway, we did Christmas up nicely last year, with the tree set up in the front parlour (LR) and the pocket doors closed until Christmas morning. But it was kinda slap-dash, as she wasn't yet fully unpacked or situated with furnishings.

This year, Anne has a vision she's reaching for; and she knows to ask for support from me. She asked earlier this month if I had lengths of greenery.
Ahem! Of course I do. (I used to decorate the entire local library for a while, I know how to buy cheap and stash away.) I hauled out two huge bags stuffed with pine garlands. (Bought at $1 each on clearance) We spent Friday festooning the tops of doorways and windows with a crown of pine and down her carved staircase railing. We had enough to do foyer, LR and dining room. Just by itself, it's festive. But now I need to dig up in the attic for berries, fruits and ribbons. Time to move those treasures from my house to hers.

Oh, and I saw two boxes of younger daughter's tree ornaments as well, that I might now pass on. She has never done a full sized tree; but this year they have a baby and newly renovated space. They are not yet done with the renovations, so it might be another year yet.

But I have managed to move some of my favorite baby clothes and toys and books on.

Good grief. I couldn't live with Christmas decorations for a whole month. It'd drive me up the wall.

It's perhaps unfashionably old-fashioned these days, but our decorations go up on Christmas Eve and come down on Twelfth Night. I have had to accept that you can't buy a Christmas tree just in time for Christmas any more, so I'll probably buy that about a week in advance and hide it in the garden.

Still, each to their own. There's no other time of the year quite like Christmas for pitting one family's way of doing things against another's. My wife was brought up to expect pigs in blankets and cranberry sauce, otherwise it's not Christmas dinner. Both strike me as completely unnecessary. Also Advent calendars (plural, one for each child). My parents' Christmas dinner required bread sauce and brandy butter, neither of which my wife can stand. Oh yes, and a pantomime. Much as some families have to go to Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve or a performance of Handel's Messiah for it to be Christmas, mine had to take in a pantomime. My wife has a complete blind spot when it comes to pantomimes. A complete waste of time. So our Christmas dinner table groans under pigs in blankets, cranberry sauce, bread sauce and brandy butter, but the children and I go to the pantomime on our own.

It makes me wonder about the parental negotiations that went into the "traditional" Christmas we knew as children, and what our children take away as the essential elements of our family Christmas, as they enter negotiations with their partners. As long as I've inculcated a love of pantomime, I'm happy.

I could almost live with Christmas décor all year, except for the coming of spring, which requires a different set of colors and fabrics.

My parents had us do the decorating on Christmas Eve, but, oh man! What a chaotic evening! I'd much rather do it gradually.

In my household, we focused on preparation for the Nativity. Our creche grew to cover an entire wall - and we started with the Wise Men's travels on one end and the stable at the other end. When grandson came along, the camels got pretty rowdy and scattered the wood pile a lot. (I've always wanted to add a running stream, but haven't managed that yet.)

Reminds me of a game my (oh-so-long-ago!) 2-year-old son and I would play. The "shepherd" would hide behind the couch. The "angel" would appear suddenly and deliver, depending on who was whom, either an accurate or deliciously mangled version of "Fear not! I bring you good tidings of great joy for all the people..." From there, it was a free-for-all--first one to run to the manger wins!

We are experiencing a severe shortage of 2-year-olds in my family. I wouldn't mind playing a round again :)

We've had traditions come and go as the children grew. One which held up pretty well was the opening of stockings on Christmas morning. Last year was the first time that didn't happen since the children were born 30 years ago. Ah well. I try not to set stipulations and grand expectations for the holidays because as each child has found a significant other, they should focus on making their own traditions/memories. Also, the other halves of their new families might want to see them at the holidays too. Not sure my kids will be home this year due to that fact, but they will come home at some weekend even if it isn't "that" one. The "no pressure" at holidays was something my mother-in-law instigated 35 years ago when I married her son.

For a few years when the children were small, we would reenact the Posada, a ritual from Mexico (my husband's heritage) of Joseph and Mary seeking room at the inn. The children would go from door to door in the in-law's house and a different adult would open it saying "no room!" Or the Spanish version, which I forget. Until they arrived at the room where the food and party was to be held (including a piñata).

This year I am trying to make a small "book" tree, since our artificial tree died last year and I'm not eager to replace it. There will also be a Victorian Mouse House, our Mousiah, and a Nativity scene (or several). The Nativity used to be traditional, but lately my children's whims dictated whether it was populated by Lord of the Rings figurines, Star Wars characters or dragons. I suppose my years of doing a Nativity with mouse figures taught them to have some leeway with the traditions. :)

>5 2wonderY: Your daughter's house sounds lovely! Would she consent to your sharing photos with us when it is finished?

Condolences for your tree. Perhaps you'll find one on clearance that'll suit.

The Italians do up Nativity scenes right. They call them Presepio (I encourage all to google image search the word.), and they are always awesome and home set-ups can include elements of all stories past, present, future and fantasy. In my mind, that makes sense for the ultimate meaning of the story, eh?

We've collected human figures and animals from all over too, and our Holy Family has been served pizza from the dollhouse collection. I've re-homed our basic set to daughter's house, and the grands were surprisingly enthusiastic to build on. Locational questions and cats make the project more difficult.

I was spoiled as a child. My uncle was a priest, and he sent us a huge and elaborate set from Italy. It took up the entire DR buffet, and Mom baked a birthday cake for baby Jesus and we would sing Happy Birthday.

Hmm, maybe we'll try the Posada activity as well. Reminder to all of the reason for the season.

I'm sure Anne would love posting photos.

>8 gmathis: I assuredly agree with your position on two year olds. Not much is better in this world!

Love reading the Christmas traditions.

>6 Cynfelyn: my husband's family would put up an artificial tree right after Thanksgiving, but my side had the "get the tree and decorate on Christmas Eve" traditions.

My dad would drive Mom around from lot to lot trying to find the perfect tree. I remember how he'd bring each specimen up to the car, to display for Mom's approval (she never got out of the car). Once she made her choice and we got the tree home Dad would put it in his improved/modified tree stand (engineer!) and trim branches to make it more symmetrical. Mom would take the trimmed greenery and make a "spray" wreath, attaching blue and green metallic ball ornaments while the tree's lights were attached...those old fashioned HOT lights which we knew better than to touch! After the garland was added it was up to us, the daughters, to trim the tree with ornaments and tinsel.

The wreath was hung on the front door and the presents put under the tree while Christmas carols wafted from the record player. Before bed we would sit around the tree while my dad read from Luke 2. And then we'd open a few presents, one person at a time in order to enjoy the reaction of the recipient. When we lived in a house with a fireplace we'd often have a fire burning, too.

I thought for years that the reason we'd buy and decorate the tree on the 24th was because the trees were on sale, but since then I have discovered that part of my mother's Danish heritage included the traditions we grew up with.

>9 MrsLee: the stockings tradition continued with us, and we still stuff them for each other and our adult son who is living with us. The stocking design was from the stockings my grandmother made for her children, that her daughter made for her daughters, and that we continued with our own children. The little jingle bell from the top of my stocking was lost years back, and the floss hand-embroidered name disintegrated long ago, but I can still see my mother's handwriting, faintly showing on the top.

Anyhow, it’s mid-afternoon on a surprisingly pleasant although chilly Christmas Eve in southern England and I’m sat in our conservatory with a shot of rye and a book. Merry Christmas if you celebrate it, and have a fabulous day if you don’t.

What are you reading? Hmm?

I drove across Ohio today again arriving at daughters and noted no tree up. They have new dog and kitten and were concerned about tree disasters. I argued and we compromised with tree and lights only, perhaps some ribbon. It’s not glorious, but a step in the right direction.

A blessed holiday to my LT family!

>13 2wonderY: It was Word by Word by Kory Stamper. Terrific book—I loved it, but if you are a prescriptivist grammarian it will not please you.

I read A Christmas Carol last Friday, for the sake of the season.

That’s already on my wishlist!

Merry, merry to all of you! We are having a deliciously introverted Christmas--just three of us and the cats, all of whom (except me) are taking their pre-lunch naps. We've visited and connected with family in small doses on and off since Thanksgiving, so today's agenda is crammed with books (literary and coloring), favorite movies, and a luscious serving of idleness and stillness. Much needed here.

>16 gmathis: That sounds wonderful. After my kids left yesterday, I confess to a marathon with the TV and food. I was finishing up a series on Hulu (The Rookie), then saw that they had The Librarian series. I know my time would better have been spent reading (I'm in the middle of Lone Cowboy by Will James and The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud), but somehow I couldn't do it.

Anyway, I have hopes of finishing both of those books this week since I won't have to cook after work. There is a plethora of food left from the holidays.

Woo! Merry Christmas etcetera!

We did not travel, bless you all that braved the elements and traffic to go visit. We had a ham on Christmas Eve for dinner, so decided to postpone the Christmas turkey until today...possible as we’re all older (son is youngest one here at home, he’s 35), we were feeling a bit tired, and none of us get upset over a change of day...especially since everyone’s taken time off this week!

Dinner will be ready about 6pm ET, with aforementioned bird, sausage stuffing, sweet potato casserole, mac and cheese, gravy, mashed rutabaga, cranberry sauce, rolls, and pumpkin pie. The sauce, gravy, and rolls come from cans, but the rest is made from scratch.

A member recently added this great photo:


Bombardamento di Londra, la distruzione della Biblioteca di Holland House

Would this be us?

>19 2wonderY: I can't see that photo?

Oh! I wonder why.

Here:
http://www.librarything.com/pic/6701511

>19 2wonderY: It's a colourised version of a staged black-and-white photograph of the Second World War bomb damage to the library of Holland House, a privately-owned mansion in Kensington, west London.

There is more on the two versions of the photograph on the 'Books for Victory' blog, and more detail on the 'What are you reading for?' blog:
http://www.booksforvictory.com/2013/04/london-bookstore-and-library-bombed-in.ht...
https://whatareyoureadingfor.wordpress.com/2014/07/13/picture-book-holland-house...

Looks like the photos came straight out of the "Keep calm and carry on" playbook, treating the public like mushrooms. You remember, kept in the dark, and fed sh...

There is a photograph of the Holland House library, pre-Blitz, on Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holland_House

>20 MrsLee: I can see it...

>21 2wonderY: you made a punny!

I see the photo now. Must have been a temporary glitch for me.

Aaand I've just realised belatedly and shamefacedly that I've not put up a New Year greeting to my fellow TBSL-ers. So best wishes to you all for 2019 and may your year be filled with light, love, good times and great reading.

How is everyone surviving this odd January? I'm in furlough mode, and since the weather isn't good, sticking close to home. I'm working on several projects, but slowly. Main task is to reduce stuff. Focusing on paper and books, but also keep a small Goodwill bag by the door.

Here is my discard thread.

Another project is writing down some childhood memories. My mother shared hers with us at the supper table often, but I didn't follow suit. So I realize that my family has no idea about a lot of their history.

I found this in with my papers and it prompted the memory of mom bringing these decals home from the five & dime and applying them to both the crib (in constant use for 15 years) and the bed I shared with a sister.

>26 2wonderY: I remember decals like that!

Fighting a bad case of January blues with extra vitamin D, copious amounts of tea, and reading breaks whenever I can manage. (I used to pooh-pooh the notion of seasonal affective stuff; now I am the poster child for it.) I work in a 100-year-old much-renovated high school building, and some of those decals--maybe a little newer, as they are sunbonnet girls--are still on the tile walls in the cafeteria.

And hear, hear! to the notion of recording family stories. My mom did some of that, and I cherish the little "volume" she wrote for her grandsons. Wish I had more family lore left after my parents' passing than I did family "heirlooms." (Cut glass crystal candy dishes, anyone?) My sister has taken on the role of family genealogist, and has passed along some priceless bits and pieces, including a local newspaper article circa 1929 chronicling my grandparents' shivaree.

Ah, family stories. One of my "goals" is to write down those I heard from my grandmother, grandfather, father, etc. Have done some, but not in a formal organized way. When I retire, I am hoping to make "stories" of my family history, using events of the times and places they lived to pad out the details and a good dollop of fiction to make it fun. Don't know if I am up to the task, and I have this nagging feeling that I shouldn't put it off until retirement, but where is the time to do it now?

As for January, it is going along.

>29 MrsLee: Do a little at a time. I said to ask questions now to my family as I am 80 and not getting any younger. I have so many questions I wish I had asked my family.

This is really really off topic.

Daughter shared this short video, and I wonder how real it is:

Mother died in child birth . The heart of the mother was donated to the man in the black shirt.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqOHxCaaRvs

It's beautiful photography anyway.

eta - I found a choppy short reference that seems to indicate it is a Chinese ad campaign, probably to encourage people to sign as organ donors.

Happy Spring! all those in the Northern hemisphere. Here's hoping for the correct amount of rain for your location this season.

My sister sent me an email containing oversized nature pictures. Does this look real to you?

I think they are huge but I live in Florida and I have never seen one. 🤷‍♀️

Never met a live moose personally, but I've seen taxidermy models that are indeed that size.

I never met a purple moose, I never hope to see one
But I can tell you anyhow, I'd rather see than be one!

(apologies to Gelett Burgess)

I remember (or maybe I don't and I'm just making it up) mom and big sister reading that little dairy ditty to me from an old Childcraft volume with bright orange covers. Thank you for the little jaunt down memory lane.

>36 gmathis: you're so welcome. My mother used to say I had a million of 'em... ditties, doggerels, etc. They just pop into my head.

:)

I used to have a little dog-eared volume of Ogden Nash bits and pieces that I cherished. Alas, it perished.

>38 gmathis: aw.

I've picked up most of my Ogden Nash books through used book sales. One was a gift, but it's the only "new" copy I ever acquired.

Sharing this lovely Mother's Day incident.

Second daughter is a new mother this year. Theia is 9+ months old. Rose is so in love with her and astonishingly patient as well. I didn't see them this weekend, but Rose called me all emotional, full of reflection and love. She made the connection: If she feels like this towards her daughter, it's likely that I feel the same way towards her. She said she wanted to jump through the phone and hug me.

This from my normally reserved and self-contained young one.

I've been hoping for this moment.

>40 2wonderY: thank you for sharing.

Some of us understand, have experienced something similar in our lives.

A Pinterest quote:

"Floor: The largest shelf."

>42 2wonderY: I like it.

>42 2wonderY:: I use it! :)

>42 2wonderY: hahahahaha!

>44 gmathis: So do I. And then I have to get down on my knees when I'm looking for an item at the bottom of the pile. No wonder they are in bad shape.

GAH!!! October 1 is the day all of our borrowers submit their proposed budgets for the next calendar year. I am swamped with paper and emails and supplemental documents. And questions. And I have to turn around with an analysis and check their accuracy and their maths right away. I'M DROWNING!

>47 2wonderY: first day of the fiscal year here, too. Glad I'm not in accounting or human resources.

Oh right! I'm also timekeeper for half the state.

Um...Happy New Year! (I've lived on an academic calendar since kindergarten, so I always want to break out the confetti and party hats in mid-August.)

Well, that was an interesting fun half hour.

My agency and this building in particular is having a rash of interior doors locking without notice. At the moment, we have two office doors that are frozen in the locked position. An office mate walked out of her office to go to the copier, the door swung shut and locked. Virginia's purse, keys, phone etc. were all inside.

We do have a landlord, but response time is not fast; and no onsite maintenance person. So, after exhausting a key search and an unsuccessful lock picking, we took it upon ourselves to go through the ceiling from one side of the wall to the other. Of the four females here today, I have the most appropriate body type and athleticism to accomplish it. It was either me volunteer or watch Sarah try. She was bound and determined. And much much shorter than me. I was barely long enough to stretch down to find a foothold from the top of the credenza file.

Turns out the interior lock wasn't even pushed in. But the exterior handle is still frozen in the lock position.

Last month, an employee at another of our offices found herself locked inside the restroom... and there was nobody else in the building that day. She was rescued the next morning by the janitor.

Our lady's room door did the same thing last year, but thankfully, there were others in the building at the time.

It's beginning to feel like a curse...

>51 2wonderY: Sounds like the beginning of a horror story. I wouldn't use the elevators, maybe, just in case....

>51 2wonderY: carry a screwdriver with you at all times, to remove the door if needed.

>51 2wonderY: What a nightmarish scenario!

>53 fuzzi: Sound advice! I just checked my Swiss army knife and find I need to bring the other one from home. That one has a screwdriver...

>53 fuzzi: "carry a screwdriver with you at all times, to remove the door if needed."

Depending on your privilege, be careful.

Certainly in the UK, a young adult male carrying a screwdriver is likely to be charged with carrying an offensive weapon quicker than you can say "Evening, Officer".

Our doors are fairly tamper-proof. I've examined the hinges and specialty tools are required:

How do you remove a pin from a commercial door hinge?

1.Remove the hinge's threaded pin security plug at the bottom of each hinge pin space, using a 3/32 inch Allen wrench. Turn the plug clockwise until released.
2.Tap upward on the bottom end of the hinge pin with a nailset or awl and a hammer. ...
3.Insert the tip of a screwdriver under the lip of the hinge pin's top cap.

>55 Cynfelyn: thanks for the warning, but we can carry them here.

It's a sad commentary on society that a perfectly normal and helpful tool could be deemed illegal.

>51 2wonderY: Oh dear. Ghosts? Brownies? Poltergiests? I'm thinking you should invest in some inexpensive rubber wedges to keep the doors open.

>53 fuzzi: You think of carrying tools, I was thinking to carry snacks!

After all this,I can probably fess up about the time I got stuck in a toilet in Salzburg Castle. In the end they had to take the door off—some problem with the latch. Since we were on a day trip it was inconvenient.

>58 MrsLee: ha! I'm my father's daughter: as a child I went with him to hardware stores, and I still "like" tools. I've even got a multi-purpose tool I carry with me to work...

>59 haydninvienna: ack.

>60 fuzzi: Not long after I got married (many years ago) my mother-in-law gave me a Swiss army knife. Apparently she never went anywhere without hers. So not me ...! Fortunately she knows me better now.

>61 NinieB: Ha! My mother-in-law gave me a washboard.

But my husband gave me a Buck knife as a wedding present. His nickname was Buck. I have carried that knife with me for ... *doing the math* ... 42 years.

>62 2wonderY: my father-in-law's nickname for his son was also Buck.

>62 2wonderY: Ummm, I'll take the Swiss Army knife, please!

Since illustrators seem to be a cherished topic here (Wind in the Willows and now Beatrix Potter)... this group may be interested in an article I found today on Harry Potter books illustrated by Jim Kay...

https://www.wizardingworld.com/news/first-look-at-jim-kays-illustrated-edition-o...

Of interest to all of us who love old books:

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/mar/04/documentary-the-booksellers-antiqua....

>66 rhinemaiden: That is very interesting. I watched the trailer and skimmed the article. I will read it in detail later. I will be interested in watching it when it comes out. I like the comparison they make between the traditional book dealer and the younger ones.

>66 rhinemaiden: page doesn't exist... 🤔

>68 fuzzi: let me try again:

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2020/mar/04/documentary-the-booksellers-antiqua...

>69 rhinemaiden:
Working for me.

>70 pgmcc: thanks!

>69 rhinemaiden: thank you!

Have you seen this image floating around on the internet yet?

Clever and there are even some nice dust jackets.

That had to have taken hours!

Back before I bought my ridgetop getaway, I spent my spare time and money on antique button collecting. There are regional and national shows every year and dealers who carry their stores with them to each. There are competitions and rules and an all-round great group of people.

Stuck within these walls, I'm coming across stashes of buttons that never got cataloged or put where they belong in the collection.

One of my favorite categories is livery buttons, especially the ones with just the crest depicted, as the details are fun and satisfying. The entire coat of arms buttons can be fun as well. I have a whole card that displays some really odd shield supporters (fish!).

The animal kingdom (both real and fantastical) is well represented, but the plant kingdom not so much. I find I have an oak tree. Now, how can I be sure on a 7/8" button? There are two giant acorns hanging from the tree.

>76 2wonderY: first I've heard of antique button collections! Somewhere I have a small glass Skippy peanut butter jar of my mother's that was filled with odd buttons, from the 1950s onward. I wonder where it is...

>76 2wonderY: Two of my prize tchotchkes are jars of my mom's buttons (many of which were her mom's) and of her wooden thread spools.

It's a not-very-deep cozy mystery, but Buttons and Foes centers around button collectors and the murderous pains they take to acquire them. One of a series featuring dry cleaner Mandy Dyer.

>78 gmathis: Is that the one where murder was committed over one or more George Washington inaugural buttons? If so, the author came to one of the Ohio shows.

>79 2wonderY: It's been a long time since I read it, but I think so!

I’ve got one. ‘Course it’s a reproduction.

>77 fuzzi: I have my mother's buttons also. My granddaughter has "claimed" the container".

A NEW DAY HAS DAWNED FOR RUTH!

My retirement Social Security claim was approved. I'm shocked because I haven't been able to deliver original documents they required from me because of the Covid closings. I sent old old Xerox copies.

I turn 66 on Friday.

Huh. There's nobody here in my household to party with. I've already shrieked to daughters and sisters and now …
Perhaps it's time for a nap!

It's party time! Sorry don't have any gin for the tonic tonight, but a little party.

>84 MarthaJeanne: Oh YES! I knew I could count on you.

>83 2wonderY: congratulations! I am hoping to head down that path in a couple years...

Congratulations! I'd supply the champagne if I had any.

Here's to your milestone!

>88 gmathis: I read that as millstone at first.
I'm presently threatening my adolescent grandchildren to move in and set them straight. I could be their millstone.

Sounds like a great time for a change of career ;)

Happy Birthday, Ruth.
Leona

Congrats!

Thanks. Today is supposed to be the day I contact HR and begin the separation process. Or at least get some questions answered. It's a surprisingly tedious event.

>93 2wonderY: Many congratulations for you! That is a date I dream of, but am a few years away from.

>76 2wonderY: I have at least two tins of buttons from various forebears. That was one of my favorite rainy day activities as a child, sorting the buttons. My children strung them up for necklaces, too. I have no idea if any are of value, probably not, but I do love the sparkly "gem" filled ones, and some of them are jet or imitation jet, which I also love.

Rex Stout had a mystery which featured a special button as a clue, The Mother Hunt.

We too played with Mom's buttons. It was when my sister acquired Nana's buttons that things got serious. For some reason, she felt guilty, so started buying jars of buttons for me. We would pour them out and find treasures - picture buttons! Then we discovered the hobby and the NBS and shows.

I've competed in Ohio and at Nationals. Since buying my ridgetop, I've stopped going as I had other focus. You can examine competition trays here:
http://www.ohiobuttons.org/WinningTrays/WinningTraysPage.html

Here's one of my favorite trays:
http://www.ohiobuttons.org/WinningTrays/2007_Winners/Trays/Tray1037.jpg

Buttons are fascinating.

Darn tootin', they 're fascinating! Thanks for sharing the links. I could stare at those for hours!

>96 gmathis: Did you see the three peas in a pod faces?

Missed that one (an excuse to play some more!) but oh, wow ... those cat faces!

How about a butterfly picture from this weekend?


American Lady on Milkweed

I was going to share my daughter's latest photo of Eliza, but I need to check with her first. She doesn't like photos of her children posted "on the internet" unless she pre-approves. I can't say I blame her.

Beautiful butterfly! And what a great photo. I find they always move before I can get a shot.

Great shot. Very pretty.

>100 Sakerfalcon: they do!

I take lots and lots of shots, most are blurred or empty. The key I have found is to plant very appealing flowers and, when the butterflies show up, start taking shots from a distance and move in slowly.

I took like 20 photos to get that one.

>101 mnleona: thanks.

I catch up on Stephen Colbert’s show once a week or so. This past week, he interviewed Ronan Farrow. Farrow seems to like full bookcases, and his background this time appeared to be entirely comprised of tattered tomes.

https://s1.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/rFvAhF6_SX.8pUNCALmEuA--~B/Zmk9ZmlsbDtweW9mZj...

>103 2wonderY: ooh!

>103 2wonderY: It's wallpaper. Check out, for example, the banded volume on the right-hand edge of the picture to the right of the bell, and the book behind his right thumb, and the adjacent books. I think the same pattern may also be repeating on the shelf above the binoculars.

>105 Cynfelyn: I see what you mean. How terribly disappointing! My esteem for him comes down several notches.

The group's really quiet lately. Is everything okay?

All is well with me. Well, I haven’t been reading much in the way of physical books because my eye sight has deteriorated. Considering cataract surgery this summer. Saw the surgeon yesterday for the first time.

Otherwise, I’m still moving from WV to KY. The bulk is done; but I’m still traveling back and forth once every few weeks, picking at the carcass of the old house contents. Trying not to fill the new house with too much stuff. I just finished a second listen of Decluttering at the Speed of Life.

The other two things keeping me occupied are:
- grandbaby. I take the 2, almost 3 year old, for at least three days a week. Loving it!
- gardens. The new property had no plantings at all besides two giant maple trees in the back yard. Establishing beds, buying new plants and digging stuff out of my old gardens for transplanting is taking up my spring. Toddler Theia carries her adopted plants around and caresses them. She’s my volunteer waterboy. I had to make a rule, no touching the young peaches on the tree, fearing they’d fall off before big and ripe. So she strokes the trunk and worries it has enough water.

Would love to hear what everyone else is up to. Let’s catch up.

We bought a backyard sofa today. It's not beautiful, but I will be able to go outside for afternoon lie-downs this summer. It's a three seater with one end able to be raised. It was quite an adventure getting it home, as it couldn't fit in the car. We finally closed the back down onto it with bunjy cords. The car objected to that, beeping any time the car moved. But we made it. Not the right day for shopping. We had ordered it online, so no real problem for us, but the shops were very full. Monday was our first day out of lockdown. Yesterday was a holiday, so lots of people had to work Mon-Wed, but took today off to get a four day weekend.

All is well in SW Missouri--it is "banana season" at the day job (closing out one school year and prepping for next August) which tends to leave me drooling tired of an evening. Comfort reads only at the moment--just finished a No. 1 Ladies' Detective installment and I'm (sniff) nearing the end of Patrick Taylor's "An Irish Country Doctor" series.

The outdoor couch sounds lovely. I have to fight my cats for possession of the backyard glider--they've moved outside for the season and that's their happy place.

It's been cooler than normal here this spring, so being able to garden when I get home is refreshing, and wonderful. I've been tucking annuals in here and there, mainly vinca, portulaca, and petite marigolds. I also cleaned and reorganized our main shed, and re-stained our porch.

So busy doing household things, garden things, work things and family things, not much time for talking online. Mostly I check the groups here at odd moments from my phone, but since I hate typing on my phone, I don't respond or contribute much to chit-chat.

>109 MarthaJeanne: Got rid of the packaging today. The recycling centre was also overrun.

Is this group dying? :(

>114 toast_and_tea: this thread looks fairly active...?

I started a LT group if any of you are interested? :)

https://www.librarything.com/ngroups/23426/Antique-Books

Someone posted this Washington Post article elsewhere. Since I no longer subscribe, I was pleasantly surprised to be able to access it.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/why-bother-organizing-your-bo...

Why bother organizing your books? A messy personal library is proof of life.

Discuss.

I admit that the piles around the bed are slowly growing. But the couch and even the entire living room have managed to stay clean. Ulp. Don’t look under the coffee table... oh, and please ignore that short pile in the corner...

>117 2wonderY: but I need some organization or I won't be able to find a particular book!

I suspect that it depends a lot on how many books you have around the house. 20, 30, even 130, you can probably manage without organizing. But not a few thousand.

And if you have a few thousand, there are still probably those dozens not yet in the organized shelves, or not back there since the last reread.

I didn't read the article, as I object to personalized ads, but so many people who write that kind of thing seem to think that a hundred books would be a lot to have around the house.

>119 MarthaJeanne: "...I didn't read the article, as I object to personalized ads, but so many people who write that kind of thing seem to think that a hundred books would be a lot to have around the house."

Bwahahahaha! A hundred? ::chuckling::

I have 1425 listed as in my "library", though it does include some e-books.

Which is why you and I have at least some organization to our books.

Didn't read the article, because I should be in bed, but I have several layers of loose organization going on in my books. There are the "read" and "to be read" shelves, sometimes in the same bookcase, and in my fantasy shelves, the TBR books are on their sides amongst the "read" books. As for the books I've read, there is the mystery, fantasy, scifi room. Then there are the food related shelves of books. I also have a room with Western and War books. My bedroom has favorites in fiction with an American author shelf, a British author shelf, and some mixed up. Also a shelf of seafaring favorites. Other than that I usually shelve books I've read and am keeping by other books I think they would enjoy being next to. Oh, then there are the children's books. I spent a lovely morning getting all my children's books out of a cupboard and onto shelves last weekend. After all, my grandson is being born this Friday, I have to be ready!

The Post doesn't seem to allow you the option of refusing all cookies, so I didn't read it either. I have 2130 books in "Your Library", and I have no organisation of them at all. Not even a "to read" shelf (which would probably be several shelves). I keep telling myself I'm going to do it Real Soon Now. But then of course I would have to keep to it.

>122 MrsLee: Oh, that is marvelous news!! We don’t keep up with each other here as much as we used to. Congrats, grandma! And I hope you come back and report as soon after he is born as you can.

>122 MrsLee: Wishing you, your grandson and all involved the very best for Friday.

>124 2wonderY: & >125 pgmcc: Fifteen more hours! Give or take. :D

>126 MrsLee:
Thinking of you all.

My grandson was born today at 1:47 pm. 8 lb. 5oz. He is healthy, but in the NICU because he isn't breathing quite as well on his own as they would like. He was taken 2 weeks early. I won't be able to visit until Tuesday, but happily we can have phone conferences, etc.

I am not announcing on FB until his mom and dad announce.

>128 MrsLee: Congratulations! Hope those little lungs are pumping better soon!

>128 MrsLee: Yay! Babies are wonderful; your own grand babies are exceptionally so.

>128 MrsLee:
Congratulations on the arrival of your grandson. Wishing him, the mother and father, and the grandparents every best wish. Keep us informed of his progress.

>128 MrsLee: congratulations! Hope he gets up to speed soon.

Geoffrey is off of the machines, snuggled on his mommy. He still has some hurdles to jump, but he is doing very well. As are mom and dad. Thank you all for sharing my joy!

>133 MrsLee: Great to hear Geoffrey is off the machines. Happy Grandparenting. It is great. You get to hand them back to the parents after you have filled them up with sugar. :-)

Congratulations, MrsLee! I wish you and all your family, especially Geoffrey, all the very best.

>133 MrsLee: good news! Thank you for sharing.

Here is the newest love of my life:

>137 MrsLee:
::waving hello back::

>137 MrsLee: Hi! Geoffrey. Welcome to The Green Dragon.

>137 MrsLee: Oh! He already knows to wave! Hi, baby!!

What a sweetie. Thanks for sharing the picture!

>137 MrsLee: 1...2...3... "AWWWW!!!!"

>143 fuzzi: Here! Here!

>137 MrsLee: Welcome to the world of reading!

>137 MrsLee: Late to to the party, but welcome to the world, little Geoffrey!

Congratulations to you, MrsLee! Please let us know how he is doing.

Also, out of curiosity, which books are ready to go, on the shelf you prepared? As a children's lit person, I would love to know...

>146 AbigailAdams26: Thank you. :)
As for the books, his mother counted a few days ago and said he had 42! I have tagged the ones I bought for him (and 3 which were duplicates from the baby shower) in my library with GMS. Then there is the shelf of children's books in my house waiting for him to visit and be old enough for a bedtime story. I will try to come back tomorrow and list some of my favorites here when I'm on a laptop. My phone makes it a chore.

>147 MrsLee:

Forty two. The answer to the question of life, the universe and everything. A good foundation for a personal library.

>148 Cynfelyn: Agreed!

Seen today:

My body is a temple. But it’s one of those temples in Thailand where they let the monkeys have free rein. (reign?)

>150 2wonderY: “free rein”, I think, the metaphor being from horse-riding (I think).

Works either way.

Love it!

Just wanted to jabber about a (too new to be tattered) series I just discovered. Have you encountered The Millwood Hollow Series by Patricia Hickman? Depression-era Arkansas; a ne'er-do-well on the lam from attempted murder charges picks up three unwanted children and poses as the new minister in a small town. His new role turns his heart inside out and upside down. I actually started with the second of the series, loved it, immediately hunted down the first one and ate it like a box of chocolate in January. Titles in order:

Fallen Angels
Nazareth's Song
Whisper Town
Earthly Vows

I haven't read #3 and #4 yet, but there's an Amazon gift card on the quilt stand that I'm using as my carrot-and-stick motivator to get a writing project finished soon!