Sunflower Interlude

Every once in a while I have to take a break-- like seeing the fields of sunflowers planted at Longwood Gardens this year.

This is my peaceful tribute to 9/11.

Waiting, waiting, and waiting...

This morning I had the maddening experience of getting in my car, turned the key, slight crank, and then dead battery! Luckily everyone was at home so I had no problem getting a jump start. Off to the Sears garage I went-- the man behind the counter: "New battery? No problem! 45 minutes." The waiting room was filled with all sorts of people over the age of 70. One poor lady had been there for hours and it seemed as though every 45 minutes the mechanics would come in to tell her that yet another thing was wrong with her car! She got pretty smart though because she walked right into the garage and stood there watching them work. As for me? Two and a half hours later, I had still not been pulled into the garage! Finally, after another 20 minutes I was free to leave. The worst part about all this? I didn't have my Nook with me, nor anything else interesting to read. Lesson learned? ALWAYS take the Nook or a book!!!

Knowing When to Quit

Remember my post about Freedom? It was one of my "obligatory" reads? Well, I've decided my time is better spent reading something I want to read-- something I like to read... so I've given up on Freedom after I heard a public radio review of the book. It appears as though Franzen has received critical acclaim for this book. Why I don't know. Critics have hailed it as one of the best works of American fiction. Many have argued that if this book, a fictional portrait of a middle-class American family falling apart, had been written by a woman, it might not have received so much attention. I don't know-- but to me, this book is one of those "forgettable" reads... I'm moving on to something else... time is my only non-renewable resource...

Discovering What the Rest of the World Already Knows

Honestly, how is it that I never knew about Corona and lime? We discovered a local Mexican restaurant and I ordered a beer. I know! It's not wine...but seemed to fit the place and menu better than wine. So I ordered a Corona and it came with a wedge of lime. I felt like I'd discovered something new but then my kids proceeded to let me know that the "rest of the world had already discovered this" eons ago...hmmm... it wasn't too long ago that I was teaching my kids how to cross the street and look out for traffic...

Oh well-- I do like Corona with lime, even if, according to my offspring, it's sooo "done", "over with", and not cool anymore because it tastes awful. I don't care-- sometimes you just have to stick with what you like because you really like it, even if the "rest" of the world has already tossed it aside.

Honestly "living" life is so much like marching to your own drum beat, and mine seems to have a different beat from most others'! Here's to beer and lime wedges everywhere :)

"Obligatory" Reading

Every once in a while I start reading what I think I "should" read, and that's usually something that may not have caught my attention in the first place. It may be a book that I feel I "should" read because "everyone" is reading, or perhaps because The President is reading it-- and I feel that I should read the same so as to know what words, ideas, and stories that are filling his mind. That's what's going on with me right now as I try to muddle through Jonathan Franzen's Freedom. I'm only in Chapter 2, so I should reserve judgment. The saving grace is that I'm reading it on my Nook-- that nifty little e-reader from Barnes & Noble (honestly, this is NOT a paid advertisement!). Sophia got me hooked on it as we shopped around before she went on her 100 mile hike. City girl that she is, she could sleep in the wild but needed her Nook for nightly reading while bears, and other wildlife, I'm sure were watching from afar! I didn't think I would ever like e-readers, but honestly, I love it! I've loaded several books on it waiting to be read, and I carry it around in my bag. It's great for travelling, and I've even loaded tons of pdf files (required reading for the dissertation). I'm hooked on the Nook-- so even if the Franzen book takes a while to read, at least I can "Nook-it!"

Belgium in Manhattan

Today we discovered a really neat little Belgian restaurant on the corner of 20th Street and 1st Avenue in Manhattan-- it's called Petite Abeille. We needed to take Sophia back to the city as she starts teaching Friday. On the menu was Croque Madame, which I have been dreaming about for the last few weeks and haven't had since Paris 2007! How random is that! My other accomplishment for the day was successful parallel parking on the streets of Manhattan without accidentally bumping any other cars! Life can be sweet... :)

Ice Cream & Contented Cows

Tonight was one of those wonderful, perfect summer evenings that we remember and long for in the dead of winter. While the day was hot and humid, the temperature dropped when the sun went down leaving that faint glow of daylight and summer day warmth. It was a perfect summer evening to go for an ice cream at Woodside Farms, a local ice creamery situated on a historic farm. Next to the historic farm house is a small ice cream house where customers line up to get their favorite ice creams. Mine is always the same: coconut and cappuchino crunch. I've tried other flavors, but these two are my favorites!

Fawn always loves going for an ice cream—and banana is her favorite! As soon as we ask "Do you want to go get an ice cream?" she bolts out the door and waits by the car. When we cross over onto Brackenville Road, and then over Limestone Road, she hangs her head out the window sniffing the air as if to follow the trail to the ice cream farm.

Tonight was a special treat because the cows were out in the field, and Fawn got up close to see them. After a thoughtful close look and sniff, she was ready to wait in line for her ice cream.