Friday, August 26, 2011
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Poem du Jour: To Comfort
Do not stand at my grave and weep
I am not there, I do not sleep
I am a 1,000 winds that blow
I am the diamond glints on snow
I am the sun on ripened grain
I am the gentle autumn rain
When you awaken in the morning's hush
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled light
I am the soft star that shines at night
Do not stand at my grave and cry
I am not there; I did not die.
Anonymous
I am not there, I do not sleep
I am a 1,000 winds that blow
I am the diamond glints on snow
I am the sun on ripened grain
I am the gentle autumn rain
When you awaken in the morning's hush
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled light
I am the soft star that shines at night
Do not stand at my grave and cry
I am not there; I did not die.
Anonymous
Quote du Jour
"We read books to find out who we are. What other people, real or imaginary, do and think and feel is an essential guide to our understanding of what we ourselves are and may become."
- Ursula K. LeGuin
Friday, August 5, 2011
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Old Growth Forests
Old growth forests are considered an endangered habitat in Pennsylvania. However, just as with some endangered species, with care, effort, and enough time, forests can recover many of their old growth characteristics. While there is endless discussion about what exactly constitutes old growth, in general it means that a true old growth forest would be near climax and has suffered few, if any, intrusions by humans. It means that it would be as you would have found it prior to European colonization or perhaps even before Native Americans began imposing their imprint on it. Breaks in the canopy would be caused by falling trees, dying of old age or struck by lightning. "Tip-ups," the masses of roots turned up when a big tree falls over, would be common.
By that kind of a definition, there is virtually no old growth left at all in the Eastern United States, because disease has removed major components of most of our forests and extinction or extirpation have removed important contributions to the forest ecosystem. The chestnuts are gone, the passenger pigeons and the wolves are gone. The balance among the plants and animals is quite different than it was 500 or 1,000 years ago.
In spite of all that, there are still important forest remnants with old growth characteristics with much to teach us. They provide what we have left of the starting point, the bench mark against which our era can measure itself. Time and care can re-create what in the future will pass for old growth, in spite of its differences from the old growth of the past, so preserving future old growth sites is also an important work. That is why second-growth ravines such as those leading up to the plateau from Sinnemahoning Creek along Bucktail State Park Natural Area are included in this list. Such places are mature second-growth forests now. With time, they will become true old-growth.
Finally, it is also important to include representatives of different ecosystems in old growth, not only the typical hemlock-white pine or hemlock-beech associations of the well-known Cook Forest and Heart's Content. It is for those reasons that places are included in this tour such as Bear Meadows (a large ancient bog) and Cranberry Swamp, giving visitors a broader vision of the varied components of the entire macro-system. While it is true sometimes that "we can't see the forest for the trees," it is just as true that we should not confuse the forest with the trees. In other words, while we speak of old-growth forests in terms of the major tree species found there, old-growth is really a term describing entire ecosystems. The other plants and animals who live within the tree-defined framework are vital to the whole.
http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/forestry/oldgrowth/index.aspx
By that kind of a definition, there is virtually no old growth left at all in the Eastern United States, because disease has removed major components of most of our forests and extinction or extirpation have removed important contributions to the forest ecosystem. The chestnuts are gone, the passenger pigeons and the wolves are gone. The balance among the plants and animals is quite different than it was 500 or 1,000 years ago.
In spite of all that, there are still important forest remnants with old growth characteristics with much to teach us. They provide what we have left of the starting point, the bench mark against which our era can measure itself. Time and care can re-create what in the future will pass for old growth, in spite of its differences from the old growth of the past, so preserving future old growth sites is also an important work. That is why second-growth ravines such as those leading up to the plateau from Sinnemahoning Creek along Bucktail State Park Natural Area are included in this list. Such places are mature second-growth forests now. With time, they will become true old-growth.
Finally, it is also important to include representatives of different ecosystems in old growth, not only the typical hemlock-white pine or hemlock-beech associations of the well-known Cook Forest and Heart's Content. It is for those reasons that places are included in this tour such as Bear Meadows (a large ancient bog) and Cranberry Swamp, giving visitors a broader vision of the varied components of the entire macro-system. While it is true sometimes that "we can't see the forest for the trees," it is just as true that we should not confuse the forest with the trees. In other words, while we speak of old-growth forests in terms of the major tree species found there, old-growth is really a term describing entire ecosystems. The other plants and animals who live within the tree-defined framework are vital to the whole.
There really aren't any remnants of the horizon-to-horizon forest that was encountered by the first European settlers. Most of that was cleared for farms. Most of the remainder was logged off by the 1920s. What we have left now as "old growth" were, with one or two notable exceptions, largely the inaccessible, steep slopes or accidents of boundary overlaps. It's those that we celebrate here. They give us a fascinating glimpse of the majesty and complexity that was Pennsylvania old growth forest.
http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/forestry/oldgrowth/index.aspx
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Boxerlovinglady's Quote du Jour
"The cure for anything is salt water; sweat, tears or the sea." - Isak Dinesen
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Friday, July 1, 2011
Wrangell-St Elias National Park and Preserve
Wrangell-St Elias National Park and Preserve is the largest unit of the U.S. National Park System and, with its trademarks of high peaks and massive glaciers, one of the most spectacular. Designated as a national park in 1980, Wrangell-St Elias sprawls across 13.2 million acres in the southcentral region of Alaska. It abuts against Canada's Kluane National Park and together their 20 million acres represent one of the largest wilderness areas left in the world, the reason the two parks were recognized by the United Nations as a World Heritage site in 1979.
At Wrangell-St. Elias four great ranges, Chugach, Wrangell, St Elias and the eastern end of the Alaskan Range, converge in an area the size of six Yellowstone National Parks to form a crossroads of the mountains. The St Elias Range merges with the Wrangells in the heart of the park and then arcs eastward past the Canadian border where it forms the highest coastal range in the world. Within the park's borders are nine of the 16 highest peaks in the country, including the second highest, Mt St Elias (18,008 feet), Mt Bona (16,421 feet), Mt Blackburn (16,390 feet) and Mt Sanford (16,237 feet). From its glaciated roof of mountains and peaks, the park's terrain descends to the north as treeless tundra and then boreal-forested uplands. To the south the glaciers extend from the mountains almost to the tidewaters of the Gulf of Alaska.
Wildlife includes Dall sheep and mountain goats in the alpine region, caribou around the Wrangell Mountains to the north and moose in the bogs and brushy areas of the lowlands. Bison were released in Copper River Valley in 1950 and along the Chitina River in 1962 and remnants of those herds remain today. Black and brown bears roam throughout the park. Within 60 miles of Chitina, the McCarthy Road ends at a foot bridge across the Kennicott River. On the other side is one of the park's most noteworthy features; the now-deserted Kennecott Mine town site, a National Historic Landmark. After copper was discovered in the area in 1900, a group of wealthy investors formed the Kennecott Copper Corporation (named when a clerical worker misspelled Kennicott), built the Copper River and Northwest Railroad including its famous Million Dollar Bridge, established the company town of Kennicott and from 1911-38 made more than $100 million mining some of the richest copper veins the country has ever known. Since no gambling or drinking were allowed at the company town, McCarthy quickly sprang up nearby as a place where miners would find 'wine, women and song,' in its saloons, restaurants, hotels, and pool halls. A number of the buildings from that era still stand in both Kennicott and McCarthy, making the area the best remaining example of early 20th century copper mining.
Beyond exploring the old mining towns, other activities include backpacking and hiking, mountain biking, birding, camping, sport fishing and hunting, horseback riding, whitewater rafting and kayaking, mountaineering and ice climbing, wildlife viewing and flightseeing. In the winter visitors arrive to cross-country ski, snowmobile and snowshoe.
http://www.travelalaska.com/Destinations/Parks%20and%20Public%20Lands/Wrangell-St%20Elias%20National%20Park.aspx
At Wrangell-St. Elias four great ranges, Chugach, Wrangell, St Elias and the eastern end of the Alaskan Range, converge in an area the size of six Yellowstone National Parks to form a crossroads of the mountains. The St Elias Range merges with the Wrangells in the heart of the park and then arcs eastward past the Canadian border where it forms the highest coastal range in the world. Within the park's borders are nine of the 16 highest peaks in the country, including the second highest, Mt St Elias (18,008 feet), Mt Bona (16,421 feet), Mt Blackburn (16,390 feet) and Mt Sanford (16,237 feet). From its glaciated roof of mountains and peaks, the park's terrain descends to the north as treeless tundra and then boreal-forested uplands. To the south the glaciers extend from the mountains almost to the tidewaters of the Gulf of Alaska.
Wildlife includes Dall sheep and mountain goats in the alpine region, caribou around the Wrangell Mountains to the north and moose in the bogs and brushy areas of the lowlands. Bison were released in Copper River Valley in 1950 and along the Chitina River in 1962 and remnants of those herds remain today. Black and brown bears roam throughout the park. Within 60 miles of Chitina, the McCarthy Road ends at a foot bridge across the Kennicott River. On the other side is one of the park's most noteworthy features; the now-deserted Kennecott Mine town site, a National Historic Landmark. After copper was discovered in the area in 1900, a group of wealthy investors formed the Kennecott Copper Corporation (named when a clerical worker misspelled Kennicott), built the Copper River and Northwest Railroad including its famous Million Dollar Bridge, established the company town of Kennicott and from 1911-38 made more than $100 million mining some of the richest copper veins the country has ever known. Since no gambling or drinking were allowed at the company town, McCarthy quickly sprang up nearby as a place where miners would find 'wine, women and song,' in its saloons, restaurants, hotels, and pool halls. A number of the buildings from that era still stand in both Kennicott and McCarthy, making the area the best remaining example of early 20th century copper mining.
Beyond exploring the old mining towns, other activities include backpacking and hiking, mountain biking, birding, camping, sport fishing and hunting, horseback riding, whitewater rafting and kayaking, mountaineering and ice climbing, wildlife viewing and flightseeing. In the winter visitors arrive to cross-country ski, snowmobile and snowshoe.
http://www.travelalaska.com/Destinations/Parks%20and%20Public%20Lands/Wrangell-St%20Elias%20National%20Park.aspx
Favorite Place du Jour:
http://www.travelalaska.com/MyAlaska/News/July%202011/geography.aspx?utm_source=MAN_JUL&utm_medium=email
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the population of Alaska is 710,231 as of April 2010. That might not seem like a lot in relation to its sheer size, but various communities in the state buzz with the energy of any city in the Lower 48. Anchorage, for example, is the largest city in Alaska with a population of 291,826. It’s a main hub for airline travel, and boasts an excellent dining and shopping scene along with farmer’s markets, art galleries and cultural centers. A little more than 300 miles north of Anchorage is the city of Fairbanks, the heart of Alaska’s Interior. Fairbanks and the surrounding area is the second-most populated city in Alaska, at 97,581 residents. Fairbanks serves as another main transportation center for travel to and from the state, as well as a prime location from which to venture into the Far North region.
Nestled between Anchorage and Fairbanks is Alaska’s third-place finisher for total city/borough population, the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. The Mat-Su Valley has 88,995 residents who mainly live either in Wasilla or Palmer (the Alaska State Fair celebrates its 75th year here this summer). Many visitors might be surprised to learn Alaska’s capital city of Juneau ranks fourth largest in the state, with 31,275 residents. Juneau has an international airport of its own and is a highlight on any visit to the Inside Passage region of the state. It’s also a main port of call on cruise itineraries.
Alaska is home to more than 3,000 rivers, the biggest of which is the Yukon River. The Yukon is almost 2,000 miles long, making it the third largest river in the United States. It flows west from Canada through Alaska’s Interior and Far North regions before emptying into the Bering Sea in Alaska’s Southwest region. During the gold rush era and for thousands of years before, it has been an important connection between remote communities. Today, visitors can embark on a variety of activities in and around the river, including fishing, rafting, hiking, kayaking and gold panning. Other popular rivers for recreational activities include the Kenai River, accessible from Cooper Landing, Kenai and Soldotna; the Copper River from Cordova or Gakona; the Chena and Tanana rivers near Fairbanks; the Stikine River near the Inside Passage town of Wrangell; and many, many more.
A number of travelers to Alaska have set their sights on one thing: viewing a colossal, glittering glacier. Five percent of the state is covered with glaciers, and before you consider that number small, note that five percent of America’s largest state equals around 29,000 square miles and an estimated 100,000 glaciers! The largest of these is the 850-square-mile Malaspina Glacier, North America’s largest piedmont glacier. It’s located at the northern end of the Inside Passage region, inside Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. Visitor bureaus in communities throughout Alaska can provide travelers with a list of the most spectacular glaciers to see on a trip to any region in the state, many of which are accessible right off major roadways. Tours that offer guests access to these icy dazzlers include activities like glacier trekking or flightseeing and are widely available in communities throughout the state.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the population of Alaska is 710,231 as of April 2010. That might not seem like a lot in relation to its sheer size, but various communities in the state buzz with the energy of any city in the Lower 48. Anchorage, for example, is the largest city in Alaska with a population of 291,826. It’s a main hub for airline travel, and boasts an excellent dining and shopping scene along with farmer’s markets, art galleries and cultural centers. A little more than 300 miles north of Anchorage is the city of Fairbanks, the heart of Alaska’s Interior. Fairbanks and the surrounding area is the second-most populated city in Alaska, at 97,581 residents. Fairbanks serves as another main transportation center for travel to and from the state, as well as a prime location from which to venture into the Far North region.
Nestled between Anchorage and Fairbanks is Alaska’s third-place finisher for total city/borough population, the Matanuska-Susitna Borough. The Mat-Su Valley has 88,995 residents who mainly live either in Wasilla or Palmer (the Alaska State Fair celebrates its 75th year here this summer). Many visitors might be surprised to learn Alaska’s capital city of Juneau ranks fourth largest in the state, with 31,275 residents. Juneau has an international airport of its own and is a highlight on any visit to the Inside Passage region of the state. It’s also a main port of call on cruise itineraries.
Alaska is home to more than 3,000 rivers, the biggest of which is the Yukon River. The Yukon is almost 2,000 miles long, making it the third largest river in the United States. It flows west from Canada through Alaska’s Interior and Far North regions before emptying into the Bering Sea in Alaska’s Southwest region. During the gold rush era and for thousands of years before, it has been an important connection between remote communities. Today, visitors can embark on a variety of activities in and around the river, including fishing, rafting, hiking, kayaking and gold panning. Other popular rivers for recreational activities include the Kenai River, accessible from Cooper Landing, Kenai and Soldotna; the Copper River from Cordova or Gakona; the Chena and Tanana rivers near Fairbanks; the Stikine River near the Inside Passage town of Wrangell; and many, many more.
A number of travelers to Alaska have set their sights on one thing: viewing a colossal, glittering glacier. Five percent of the state is covered with glaciers, and before you consider that number small, note that five percent of America’s largest state equals around 29,000 square miles and an estimated 100,000 glaciers! The largest of these is the 850-square-mile Malaspina Glacier, North America’s largest piedmont glacier. It’s located at the northern end of the Inside Passage region, inside Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. Visitor bureaus in communities throughout Alaska can provide travelers with a list of the most spectacular glaciers to see on a trip to any region in the state, many of which are accessible right off major roadways. Tours that offer guests access to these icy dazzlers include activities like glacier trekking or flightseeing and are widely available in communities throughout the state.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Quote du Jour:
"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.""Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure... than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat."
- Theodore Roosevelt
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Quote du Jour
"I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer."
- F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby
Friday, June 10, 2011
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Japan beats Summer heat with clothing?
http://www.usatoday.com/money/world/2011-06-05-japan-dress-cool_n.htm
Japan asks workers to dress cool to save energy
By Tomoko A. Hosaka, Associated Press
Updated 5m ago
TOKYO — The Japanese government wants the country's suit-loving salarymen to be bold this summer. Ditch the stuffy jacket and tie. And for the good of a country facing a power crunch, go light and casual.
Japan's "Super Cool Biz" campaign kicked off Wednesday with a government-sponsored fashion show featuring outfits appropriate for the office yet cool enough to endure the sweltering heat.
This summer may be especially brutal. The loss of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant, crippled by the March 11 tsunami, means electricity could be in short supply around the nation's capital during especially hot days.
To prevent blackouts, the government is asking companies and government offices in Tokyo to cut electricity use by 15%. It wants companies to limit air conditioning and set room temperatures at a warm 28 degrees Celsius (82 degrees Fahrenheit).
The campaign isn't new. "Cool Biz" was introduced in 2005 by the environment minister at the time, Yuriko Koike, as part of the effort to fight global warming.
This year, as Japan deals with an ongoing nuclear crisis and the aftermath of a magnitude-9.0 earthquake and tsunami, officials decided they needed to take Cool Biz one step further.
A model displays summer office casual wear that might be too 'cool' for some Japanese.
"When we started Cool Biz in 2005, people said it was undignified and sloppy," Koike said at the fashion show held at a Tokyo department store. "But this is now the sixth year, and people have grown accustomed to it."
Surveys by the Cabinet Office indicate companies are gradually jumping on board. In a 2009 nationwide poll, 57% of about 2,000 respondents reported that Cool Biz had been implemented in their workplace. The figure stood at 47% two years earlier and at less than a third in 2005.
So what's different with Super Cool Biz?
First, the dress code. Polo shirts, Aloha shirts and sneakers are acceptable now under the environment ministry's guidelines. Jeans and sandals are OK, too, under certain circumstances.
Men might even carry a fan or try a pair of tight pedal pushers like one model wore, though whether such fashion extremes would actually catch on is another matter.
Notably missing from the environment ministry's dress code are specific rules for women. But despite the omission, Wednesday's fashion show included ensembles for women.
Khakis, white pants and airy polyester dresses are all apparently acceptable.
For retailers selling casual clothes, Super Cool Biz could provide a much-needed boost after the disaster, which led consumers to cut back spending. Chains like Fast Retailing's Uniqlo have stockpiled polo shirts and chinos in anticipation of strong demand.
Officials also hope to spur energy-saving creativity with the campaign, both in and out of the office. To deal with the heat, the ministry suggests using gel sheets or consuming foods that cool the body. It also encourages employees to limit overtime, consider working from home when appropriate and take two weeks of summer vacation.
"This is not just a temporary measure to survive this summer," said Ryu Matsumoto, the current environment minister, who joined Koike and two other predecessors at the event. "This is going to be a big event to change the way of life in Japan and people's lifestyles."
Japan's tropical southern islands of Okinawa may offer some inspiration.
On the catwalk, models donned "Kariyushi" shirts, Okinawa's version of the Aloha shirt. Worn untucked, they are light and feature colorful prints of traditional island designs.
Kariyushi shirts are commonly worn by Okinawans in the summer, even in formal settings like business and political meetings. In 2000, the Kariyushi shirt jumped onto the global stage when heads of state, including former President Bill Clinton, wore them during the Group of Eight summit in Okinawa.
For society to truly embrace the Kariyushi shirt and Super Cool Biz, leadership must come from the top, said Keiichi Inamine, a former governor of Okinawa who attended the fashion show.
"It's important for people with standing in society to wear it," he said, referring to the hierarchical nature of Japanese society.
The country's leaders, however, may have had other things on their minds Wednesday.
Prime Minister Naoto Kan wore a traditional dark suit in parliament as he faced opposition lawmakers calling for his resignation. Opposition leader Sadakazu Tanigaki also wore a suit, though to be fair, it was an unusually chilly day for June.
*****************
Can anyone say "California" clothes? Seems like that's been the dress-down style for the past few decades.
Japan asks workers to dress cool to save energy
By Tomoko A. Hosaka, Associated Press
Updated 5m ago
TOKYO — The Japanese government wants the country's suit-loving salarymen to be bold this summer. Ditch the stuffy jacket and tie. And for the good of a country facing a power crunch, go light and casual.
Japan's "Super Cool Biz" campaign kicked off Wednesday with a government-sponsored fashion show featuring outfits appropriate for the office yet cool enough to endure the sweltering heat.
This summer may be especially brutal. The loss of the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant, crippled by the March 11 tsunami, means electricity could be in short supply around the nation's capital during especially hot days.
To prevent blackouts, the government is asking companies and government offices in Tokyo to cut electricity use by 15%. It wants companies to limit air conditioning and set room temperatures at a warm 28 degrees Celsius (82 degrees Fahrenheit).
The campaign isn't new. "Cool Biz" was introduced in 2005 by the environment minister at the time, Yuriko Koike, as part of the effort to fight global warming.
This year, as Japan deals with an ongoing nuclear crisis and the aftermath of a magnitude-9.0 earthquake and tsunami, officials decided they needed to take Cool Biz one step further.
A model displays summer office casual wear that might be too 'cool' for some Japanese.
"When we started Cool Biz in 2005, people said it was undignified and sloppy," Koike said at the fashion show held at a Tokyo department store. "But this is now the sixth year, and people have grown accustomed to it."
Surveys by the Cabinet Office indicate companies are gradually jumping on board. In a 2009 nationwide poll, 57% of about 2,000 respondents reported that Cool Biz had been implemented in their workplace. The figure stood at 47% two years earlier and at less than a third in 2005.
So what's different with Super Cool Biz?
First, the dress code. Polo shirts, Aloha shirts and sneakers are acceptable now under the environment ministry's guidelines. Jeans and sandals are OK, too, under certain circumstances.
Men might even carry a fan or try a pair of tight pedal pushers like one model wore, though whether such fashion extremes would actually catch on is another matter.
Notably missing from the environment ministry's dress code are specific rules for women. But despite the omission, Wednesday's fashion show included ensembles for women.
Khakis, white pants and airy polyester dresses are all apparently acceptable.
For retailers selling casual clothes, Super Cool Biz could provide a much-needed boost after the disaster, which led consumers to cut back spending. Chains like Fast Retailing's Uniqlo have stockpiled polo shirts and chinos in anticipation of strong demand.
Officials also hope to spur energy-saving creativity with the campaign, both in and out of the office. To deal with the heat, the ministry suggests using gel sheets or consuming foods that cool the body. It also encourages employees to limit overtime, consider working from home when appropriate and take two weeks of summer vacation.
"This is not just a temporary measure to survive this summer," said Ryu Matsumoto, the current environment minister, who joined Koike and two other predecessors at the event. "This is going to be a big event to change the way of life in Japan and people's lifestyles."
Japan's tropical southern islands of Okinawa may offer some inspiration.
On the catwalk, models donned "Kariyushi" shirts, Okinawa's version of the Aloha shirt. Worn untucked, they are light and feature colorful prints of traditional island designs.
Kariyushi shirts are commonly worn by Okinawans in the summer, even in formal settings like business and political meetings. In 2000, the Kariyushi shirt jumped onto the global stage when heads of state, including former President Bill Clinton, wore them during the Group of Eight summit in Okinawa.
For society to truly embrace the Kariyushi shirt and Super Cool Biz, leadership must come from the top, said Keiichi Inamine, a former governor of Okinawa who attended the fashion show.
"It's important for people with standing in society to wear it," he said, referring to the hierarchical nature of Japanese society.
The country's leaders, however, may have had other things on their minds Wednesday.
Prime Minister Naoto Kan wore a traditional dark suit in parliament as he faced opposition lawmakers calling for his resignation. Opposition leader Sadakazu Tanigaki also wore a suit, though to be fair, it was an unusually chilly day for June.
*****************
Can anyone say "California" clothes? Seems like that's been the dress-down style for the past few decades.
Friday, June 3, 2011
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Etsy: History of the Cheap Dress
http://www.etsy.com/storque/read/the-history-of-a-cheap-dress-12751/?ref=fp_blog_title
When growing up and I used the word, "cheap", my dad used to tell me "inexpensive".
There *are cheap things and there are inexpensive things.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Friday May 20 Favorite URLs du Jour
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9OcPzjpXnk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5wg6zjnfo8&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E4FRtrD9aQ
Nobody puts Baby in a corner.....LOVE this dance scene:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SLWzZoDmhg&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5wg6zjnfo8&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E4FRtrD9aQ
Nobody puts Baby in a corner.....LOVE this dance scene:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SLWzZoDmhg&feature=related
Kenny Loggins' 1991 concert at the Grand Canyon. Please Celebrate me Home:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRu-eAdZ050
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Boxerlovinglady's Quote and Photo du Jour
"When I cannot bear outer pressures anymore, I begin to put order in my belongings....As if unable to organize and control my life, I seek to exert this on the world of objects..." - Anais Nin
Friday, May 6, 2011
Some Madeleine L'Engle Favorite Quotes
"Our truest response to the irrationality of the world is to paint or sing or write, for only in such response do we find truth."
"I will have nothing to do with a God who cares only occasionally. I need a God who is with us always, everywhere, in the deepest depths as well as the highest heights. It is when things go wrong, when good things do not happen, when our prayers seem to have been lost, that God is most present. We do not need the sheltering wings when things go smoothly. We are closest to God in the darkness, stumbling along blindly."
"The great thing about getting older is that you don't lose all the other ages you've been."
"Just because we don't understand doesn't mean that the explanation doesn't exist."
"It might be a good idea if, like the White Queen, we practiced believing six impossible things every morning before breakfast, for we are called on to believe what to many people is impossible. Instead of rejoicing in this glorious "impossible" which gives meaning and dignity to our lives, we try to domesticate God, to make his might actions comprehensible to our finite minds."
"We are all strangers in a strange land, longing for home, but not quite knowing what or where home is. We glimpse it sometimes in our dreams, or as we turn a corner, and suddenly there is a strange, sweet familiarity that vanishes almost as soon as it comes."
"I am still every age that I have been. Because I was once a child, I am always a child. Because I was once a searching adolescent, given to moods and ecstasies, these are still part of me, and always will be... This does not mean that I ought to be trapped or enclosed in any of these ages...the delayed adolescent, the childish adult, but that they are in me to be drawn on; to forget is a form of suicide... Far too many people misunderstand what *putting away childish things* means, and think that forgetting what it is like to think and feel and touch and smell and taste and see and hear like a three-year-old or a thirteen-year-old or a twenty-three-year-old means being grownup. When I'm with these people I, like the kids, feel that if this is what it means to be a grown-up, then I don't ever want to be one. Instead of which, if I can retain a child's awareness and joy, and *be* fifty-one, then I will really learn what it means to be grownup."
"Don't try to comprehend with your mind. Your minds are very limited. Use your intuition."
"Stories make us more alive, more human, more courageous, more loving."
"I will have nothing to do with a God who cares only occasionally. I need a God who is with us always, everywhere, in the deepest depths as well as the highest heights. It is when things go wrong, when good things do not happen, when our prayers seem to have been lost, that God is most present. We do not need the sheltering wings when things go smoothly. We are closest to God in the darkness, stumbling along blindly."
"The great thing about getting older is that you don't lose all the other ages you've been."
"Just because we don't understand doesn't mean that the explanation doesn't exist."
"It might be a good idea if, like the White Queen, we practiced believing six impossible things every morning before breakfast, for we are called on to believe what to many people is impossible. Instead of rejoicing in this glorious "impossible" which gives meaning and dignity to our lives, we try to domesticate God, to make his might actions comprehensible to our finite minds."
"We are all strangers in a strange land, longing for home, but not quite knowing what or where home is. We glimpse it sometimes in our dreams, or as we turn a corner, and suddenly there is a strange, sweet familiarity that vanishes almost as soon as it comes."
"I am still every age that I have been. Because I was once a child, I am always a child. Because I was once a searching adolescent, given to moods and ecstasies, these are still part of me, and always will be... This does not mean that I ought to be trapped or enclosed in any of these ages...the delayed adolescent, the childish adult, but that they are in me to be drawn on; to forget is a form of suicide... Far too many people misunderstand what *putting away childish things* means, and think that forgetting what it is like to think and feel and touch and smell and taste and see and hear like a three-year-old or a thirteen-year-old or a twenty-three-year-old means being grownup. When I'm with these people I, like the kids, feel that if this is what it means to be a grown-up, then I don't ever want to be one. Instead of which, if I can retain a child's awareness and joy, and *be* fifty-one, then I will really learn what it means to be grownup."
"Don't try to comprehend with your mind. Your minds are very limited. Use your intuition."
"Stories make us more alive, more human, more courageous, more loving."
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Friday, April 22, 2011
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Boomers Selling Their Stuff......Nobody is a Lone Ranger
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/downsizing-boomers-looking-to-sell-their-stuff-1301517395843
OR
http://www.smartmoney.com/personal-finance/retirement/downsizing-boomers-looking-to-sell-their-stuff-1301517395843/
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
TEXTILE ARTWORK ON ETSY TREASURY
http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4d9b31430b3d6d9107b77428/textile-artwork-on-etsy?ref=pr_treasury
Etsy Fine Art du Jour: Snow Train
This gorgeous photograph is among other exquisite artwork in this Etsy shop:
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