tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37212092012-01-31T23:30:12.328-06:00Oblique Housewhere nothing is quite parallel nor perpendicular and likewise not as bleak as it may sound......<br>
Observations of an opinionated
Catholic home-schooling mother/church secretary...<br>
<br>
<a href="mailto:ellynv@prodigy.net">E-Mail Me</a>Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.comBlogger35501100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-90534195506234531292012-01-31T23:29:00.000-06:002012-01-31T23:29:00.209-06:00I have worked in a beautiful house, not my own.
I've been drawn in by Downton Abbey, the first Masterpiece Theater offering that I have been addicted to since The Six Wives of Henry VIII back in high school. (Sorry, somehow managed to miss all of Upstairs, Downstairs) Unlike any other experience I have had with books or films about the English aristocracy, this series gives me many moments ofEllynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-88549298703357887802012-01-04T11:46:00.000-06:002012-01-04T11:46:25.756-06:00So, yeah, looks like I'm in a "cool workplace"
there are the "cool pop culture decorations":
I work for the Church - this is our pop culture
and the "cool" conference room names:
I should take comfort in the foosball table in the basement. Just in case.
And when we're ready for an office dog - Scrappy is prepared to do his part!
Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-56641931741744380262012-01-03T17:10:00.000-06:002012-01-03T17:10:16.167-06:00JOY, LOVE, BELIEVE
It's not all tutus, stray toes and bubonic plague at my house. Really. I've been giving some serious thought to the cognitive dissonance that I feel this time of year. But...there is that real love - believable love - that frees us so that we can find joy in a variety of moments, whether solemn or absurd.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-77101551402405735832012-01-02T22:17:00.002-06:002012-01-03T17:11:30.152-06:00To keep and ponder in my heart...
I am thankful that there are twelve days of Christmas...So much happens; so many happy moments. There is more than I could possible process in just one day. Early Advent may have found me in the doldrums but things were picking up by Christmas. Some of my job responsibilities of have changed, so that I was still busy at work but not quite as manic. I wasn't Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-27326891318767356862011-12-18T17:43:00.000-06:002011-12-18T17:43:14.662-06:00In hac lacrimarum valle:
My latest's for Fr. Barron's blog. It's been a wonderful week for the Word on Fire people. A Catholicism marathon on Channel 11 plus Fr. Bob was on the Today Show. Worth having to miss Wilco on the Channel 9 morning news.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-72998525578558761712011-12-18T17:26:00.000-06:002011-12-18T17:26:18.271-06:00I Think We Have a Problem
I surrendered in the battle of the Christmas tree. It is up - with lights and red beads, awaiting an appropriate decorating time. Festive. I'm not saying I endorse this early tree business, but it is festive. I'm not sure what Scrappy is going to do when the tree is fully decorated and presents are underneath. He insists on burrowing into the "tree skirt"* for his Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-67853898471745740362011-11-27T19:36:00.000-06:002011-11-27T19:36:44.138-06:00
More fun than a middle-aged lady should have.
The Day After Thanksgiving.
That's what I call it. Black Friday is acceptable as a description for those in retail. But promoting it as if it were a legitimate holiday - perhaps more important than that pathetically antiquated, barely profitable, useless hold-over, Thanksgiving - and something of a secular holy day, grates on my nerves sooo Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-20397509957722169532011-11-20T21:19:00.001-06:002011-11-20T22:03:46.481-06:00As of now, I am in control here...
The other day I had the honor/thrill/terror of running my first "Alexander Haig-I-am-in-control-here" style meeting. Well, that's what it felt like. Put in a position of having to call people together and make some announcements (none of which were cataclysmic) all I could keep thinking of was poor General Haig, his attention to duty and the way he's been Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-46485653085620583872011-11-19T14:25:00.000-06:002011-11-19T14:25:26.865-06:00Occupy Smith Avenue
or
Does my eye twitch bother you?
Hey, it's not easy to type while using one hand to press on my twitching eye lid. These are times that try our souls. And set some small facial muscles to twitchin'. I can beg for the grace of grace under pressure, hoping to take each day as it comes.
I remind myself that what I call pressure is not what much of the world would consider Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-21085666241661548592011-09-17T19:46:00.000-05:002011-09-17T19:46:27.899-05:00Last Week-End...
was a disaster that resulted in an ER visit and trips through 3 separate dental offices. I have little more to say than I am extremely thankful to be alive during the age of 'modern' dentistry and medicine. It's been said, somewhere, that when you look at crowd scenes in paintings of older times, there was a statistical likelihood of about half of the crowd suffering from some Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-30936519866803739882011-09-17T19:18:00.000-05:002011-09-17T19:18:50.871-05:00And Another Thing...
The Open House also gave us the opportunity to participate in one of those black light/germ/handwashing experiments. (As if I didn't another reason to not want to see Contagion. And isn't that a lot like that Outbreak film that came out in the late 90s? Which I've finally managed to put out of my mind.) If I had it to do over, I wouldn't have massaged the GloGerm foam so Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-3810331013199963212011-09-17T14:09:00.000-05:002011-09-17T14:09:11.888-05:00Open House!
or
"Mother, please don't touch"
Part of my aim to act as normal as possible - and to stifle my extreme enthusiasm - was to not take my camera to Fran's Open House night at the nursing school. (What? Thirty year-old women don't want their mothers behaving the same way they did on the first day of pre-school? Oh, well.) Oh, the missed opportunities. It was so...Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-4329997384943882022011-09-06T17:46:00.000-05:002011-09-06T17:46:47.081-05:00
Inject-Ed
Another Ed in the House...
joining Physical Ed., Special Ed., and Religious Ed. (Three Faces of Ed?) is Fran's Inject-Ed. It's a simulator. For injections. Really cool and educational. We are all getting such an education by osmosis. Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-85666996762959441772011-09-05T22:01:00.000-05:002011-09-05T22:01:23.966-05:00Seriously Folks...
I'm not turning this blog into some sort of extension of the anti-Comic Sans movement. But there was one serious point I wanted to include in my discussion of typefaces etc. below. It escaped me at the time, but I as I was thinking about what awaits me at work tomorrow (Monday is a holiday, so Tuesday is the real Monday and I'll be confused the rest of the week) I rememberedEllynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-44095040333219827362011-09-05T21:29:00.000-05:002011-09-05T21:29:29.285-05:00This is for my sister....
The Hotel Crillon, today's pic on Paris Daily Photo. We've been to the Hotel Crillon. Calling a cab from the lobby counts, n'est-ce pas? That was a glorious evening!Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-60888784829471644602011-09-05T15:26:00.000-05:002011-09-05T15:26:28.544-05:00Just My Type: A Book About Fonts by Simon Garfield
There has not been a day since my father’s death in 1993 that I do not think of him. Reading Just My Type has given me an extra moment to feel loss and nostalgia. I wasn’t far into it before my first thought was, “Wish Dad was still around - I’ve found the perfect Christmas gift for him.” Early in the book Garfield talks about the way Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-32439493940613451772011-08-27T15:06:00.000-05:002011-08-27T15:06:49.517-05:00Looking for this Book!
It is somewhere in my house.
If you find it, I will give you a dollar.
[Knocking books on the floor and/or otherwise making things worse than they already are voids this offer.]
Back to woulda, shouldal, coulda...
Shoulda had a certain MLIS daughter help organize everything before she started having children. Now her visits include the services of two highly talented Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-89503964421389483712011-08-26T22:51:00.000-05:002011-08-26T22:51:05.811-05:00
Booksplosion!
I've Got to Admit it's Getting Better...
The low-grade depression that has hung over me most of the summer is suddenly lifting. (I've heard of people who get a variant of SAD in the summer, what with the heat, humidity and all, but I don't think that was it.) No energy, little inspiration, reading could be taxing though I also had week-ends when I would tear through a book Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-75259715689839162882011-08-26T22:02:00.000-05:002011-08-26T22:02:08.592-05:00Pied Beautyand why I should carry my camera with me. I saw a most fascinating caterpillar on the sidewalk in front of my office today. It had the body shape of a tomato worm and - Heimlich from Bug's Life notwithstanding - I find these to be the most disgusting little things. I saw one in my yard when I was about 5 years old and ran screaming into the house to find a parent to dispatch the "Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-15780745574323825402011-06-20T10:58:00.000-05:002011-06-20T10:58:54.439-05:00Tear drops on the city...
And maybe just one more time? Anyone seen the Asbury Park beach towel????Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-34965256915323749372011-06-12T14:22:00.000-05:002011-06-12T14:22:44.286-05:00 I Want it Dead. I want its Family Dead...
Well, if I'm on a tangent of movie quotes for any occasion, let me tell you about my fantasy charity dedicated to the eradication of the Cottonwood tree. Genus, species, family, whatever. Every spring these otherwise insignificant trees drown our neighborhood (and suffering neighborhoods like it, across the globe) in this messy, irritating and highly Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-57570346864641708732011-06-12T14:03:00.000-05:002011-06-12T14:03:00.350-05:00
Why, if were all wiener dogs our problems would be solved.
Just a thought.
I admire dogs. They "live in the moment." They sleep. They run down the street. Not a lot of time is spent wringing their paws over woulda, shoulda coulda.
It's turned into a less than refreshing week-end. (Though after sleeping about 18 hours I should be good for a while.) And I'm going through one of those Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-33052642679106955962011-06-04T22:15:00.001-05:002011-06-05T10:51:54.068-05:00And where has the week-end gone so far?
Besides walking around Bed, Bath and Beyond until my head was spinning? And spending over three hours traveling to the bridal shower? There was Diary. I read it too far into the night last night; not stopping until my eyes were positively dried out from reading in front of the very necessary fan in my bedroom. Finished it only a while ago. Better than Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-79293698165746103282011-06-04T21:53:00.000-05:002011-06-04T21:53:32.083-05:00Leaves of three...
The word for the week: POISON IVY. And a rash so severe that it landed Fran in the ER. Now for the eradication. Fran wrapped herself up in a homemade biohazard suit to clean up the poison ivy that had been pulled with weeds and was waiting to be picked up. Oh, and the vines that were tossed in the fire pit. Inadvertently burning the poison ivy - that would have been Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-43120786271327421782011-06-04T18:20:00.000-05:002011-06-04T18:20:59.257-05:00
Alas, poor Ellyn. Time to pack up the Tchotchkes. Them bones are going to a new home.
Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-35516116722648187452011-06-04T18:16:00.000-05:002011-06-04T18:16:18.156-05:00
My wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death. One or the other of us has to go.
As Oscar Wilde found out, the wallpaper usually wins.
I am being moved to a 'new' office. After having been in the same location for seven or eight years. (I'm really not sure.) The wallpaper will not be missed. My little camera can not do its ugliness justice. But the office itself? The very fact that Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-71290434979175490412011-05-30T08:29:00.000-05:002011-05-30T08:29:22.311-05:00The Answer is "Checkers"!!!
Now what was the question? Had to take a moment to gloat at dinner last night. The girls were begging to Chuck to attend Trivia Nite with them next time, supplanting Mom as ringer-in-chief. Oh, you who attended the "one of the nation's best" high school. You who thought home-schooling was inadequate. Did you know the name of Nixon's famous dog? No, no you didn't.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-61630271613020317182011-05-28T17:49:00.000-05:002011-05-28T17:49:25.211-05:00 So Wrong, So Many Ways...An explanation of diverticulosis easily turns into prop comedy. We really must get this off the 'grill' before Lily and Madge come to visit. I don't want to be responsible for little people's nightmares. (Someone should check the Little Tikes picnic basket to make sure there isn't a stray kidney or some wayward phalanges. You never know. I did trip on an orange and aEllynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-36006000129149135202011-05-22T19:13:00.000-05:002011-05-22T19:13:01.147-05:00 All Hail the Birthday Queen!
Though Miss Madeline's first birthday is not for two weeks, today was her official 'in the park' birthday party. (Queen's are allowed to fudge the dates, of course. Though I don't think anyone stopped the clock until the guest of honor arrived. And, thank heaven, no one held up the party to wait for Gangy and Auntie Fran who were delayed by their forty-five minute Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-37629026312882262092011-05-22T18:53:00.000-05:002011-05-22T18:53:00.031-05:00Our "Quick" Trip
Four girls and their mother. A carfull of bad Catholic manic pixie dream girls hurling along I94 to the north woods; from the northern suburbs of Chicago all the way to that barely visible red dot in the upper left of the state (diocese of Superior for those who are interested.)
Passed this creepy cat ASAP. That truck had a sort of Stephen King feel.
Lots of talking, Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-37247379240731073762011-05-04T07:36:00.000-05:002011-05-04T07:36:37.745-05:00Why is this angel in my living room?
Because it doesn't look right on the front porch. In May. (Kinda like the Halloween decorations that appeared around Valentine's Day. Or was it Christmas? All I remember is that it was so wrong. Obviously the Belle Reve Homeowners Association doesn't consider me to be an arbiter of good taste.) I wish I had video of Fran grabbing it and yelling "Not Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-22760497270760425182011-04-28T14:56:00.000-05:002011-04-28T14:56:07.825-05:00 Let's Just Not Tell Daddy, OK?I'll have to come to grips with the cold facts later. Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-81448946908667435572011-04-27T17:32:00.001-05:002011-04-27T17:42:42.521-05:00Making Progress...
I think. Took a vacation day to get caught up on some stuff. Wound up going in to work for an hour before and after a funeral. I had an email last night requesting that I perform a small task and I decided it was easier just to show up and do it rather than try to delegate it or write a lengthy email back explaining about how I really, really needed some time off and could I Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-72839833223257991392011-04-15T09:59:00.000-05:002011-04-15T09:59:27.129-05:00"What makes us the right family? I beg to differ. We're a madhouse. We're chaos. There's no guarantee this is going to work out for us. Yes, please, those prayers--keep them coming!"
Wise words from Betty Duffy.
I do a lot kvetching about our madhouse, our chaos. But I don't think I could handle it if it were any different.
One of our family moments. Not even standing room only.
Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-39638324423803566562011-04-12T14:40:00.000-05:002011-04-12T14:40:26.229-05:00In which I do my best...
to alienate anyone who still might wish to attend my funeral.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-7734730565196563382011-04-12T14:34:00.001-05:002011-04-12T15:33:37.754-05:00Thanks for the memories...
I may be one of the few women in the world who consistently wore Shalimar as my fragrance of choice when in elementary school. My dear Aunt Tommy - who spoiled me terribly, taking the place of the grandmothers I never knew - was in the habit of passing along the bottles of Shalimar that she received each Christmas from a business acquaintance in California. She didn'tEllynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-13743813767902823722011-04-10T17:09:00.000-05:002011-04-10T17:09:58.399-05:00Oh, to Bring Order Out of Chaos
Our library plans are moving along. Though it's not looking like what I had in mind. (I had envisioned something along the lines of the picture to the left; naturally I have set myself up for disappointment.) And as we try to weed, shuffle, consolidate and move the books they seem to be expanding. New shelves, books dropped off for the library sale and still Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-59858288923307992082011-04-04T12:09:00.000-05:002011-04-04T12:09:07.767-05:00Congratulations Frances!
The answer to all my Cherry Ames reading fantasies come true.
I figured she'd be admitted to the nursing program since she pretty much blew everyone else out of the water on the admission test. But it's nice to have be official!Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-43736191479301857912011-04-04T11:09:00.000-05:002011-04-04T11:09:29.777-05:00Students are Now Customers.
Just like you rarely find sales clerks. They're all associates, team members or co-workers.
Maybe the students should be called 'guests.' You know, like I'm a guest at Target. A paying guest.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-58857128266449319912011-04-04T10:47:00.000-05:002011-04-04T10:47:59.959-05:00Deja vu all over again...
as in a rechewing of some previous years' ruminations.
No kvetching, please.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-20630148557771931822011-03-27T21:25:00.000-05:002011-03-27T21:25:32.415-05:00 There are things that I prefer not to look at. . .my cracked molar, the scar on my leg, the ComEd bill. And I find that I go out of my way to avoid driving past my old school (or at least drive with eyes averted as much as is safe to do.) My first dorm torn down. General disrepair and sadness. But thank heavens the gaudy colored for sale sign has been toned down to maroon and white. Avoid Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-62230986140129197402011-03-23T14:22:00.000-05:002011-03-23T14:22:45.360-05:00Today in Home Arts!
Damask Duct Tape. The need will arise. Be ready. I am.
Toothpaste. It can bleach your clothes. (Plain ol' non-whitening, gingivitis discouraging toothpaste.) If you get a big blob of it on a new shirt, don't just dab it with a baby wipe, toss it on a chair when you decide to change and then go back to wash it two weeks later. You will be sorry. I was.
Dust. You can't Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-21985809483343898302011-03-23T10:23:00.000-05:002011-03-23T10:23:49.445-05:00Fr. Barron Goes to the Movies...
so I don't have to. (Or at least frees me up to see Gnomeo and Juliet.)
Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-13093117488323472512011-03-23T10:08:00.000-05:002011-03-23T10:08:46.347-05:00I'm Not Saying I Would...
In fact, I have met my two-day vacation objective of filling one bag of books to donate to the Friends of the Library Sale. (Please don't let me accidentally repurchase them this September) But, if I found myself at Modern Tattoo some night (everybody gets tattoos at night, right?) this would come to mind. Especially if I thought a spite-tattoo in response to my Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-76366677000827782172011-03-22T20:03:00.000-05:002011-03-22T20:03:06.099-05:00A Light Blue Birth Day
Hulu+ is one of those modern marvels that came upon me suddenly and now I take for granted. It enables me to watch TV shows of interest and greatly compensates for the lack of decent cable in my house. I was thinking - while ruminating about my birthday - that Hulu+ would have been a definite help to my parents, especially my Dad who took the night shift of walking and Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-59516464988443745482011-03-17T11:14:00.000-05:002011-03-17T11:14:03.947-05:00
Salute to Irish Princesses Present and Future...
Because I don't currently have access to Bridget's official contestant portrait (and princesses look cute even when sitting in a wash basket), here is Miss Bridget. And in twenty years or so, our next contender, Miss Lilyanne. Here mother is Irish; her father...isn't.
When I have time to collect my thoughts, I must really discuss my dismay withEllynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-42497241690154369382011-03-15T11:34:00.000-05:002011-03-15T11:34:55.645-05:00Having realized that the size of my personal library has become unmanageable... I am going to attempt to send some books to the library for the Annual Friends' Sale. (Let's hope I am do not accidentally buy them back.) But some books are definite keepers. Such as The Bad Catholic's Guides...Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-54283339942761999342011-03-15T11:26:00.000-05:002011-03-15T11:26:33.261-05:00Same as it ever was...
This has become a yearly lament. The paucity of excellent - OK, even not bad - pre-printed covers for our Easter schedule. I thought I had found one - but upon closer examination it, too, falls short. (And a little bit reminiscent of Lady Gaga's Grammy appearance pod.) Pastels: flowers, ribbons, clouds; trumpets; faux-naif drawings. It's Easter - not Pastel Fest. Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-30580448892210972302011-01-19T12:00:00.000-06:002011-01-19T12:00:57.650-06:00Regarding Spending New Year's Day In Bed with Patti Smith and Robert Mapplethorpe...
You all know what I mean, right?
And Keith Richards is still there, but I don't know if I'll be able to write much about it.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-14454012262021434152011-01-12T23:39:00.000-06:002011-01-12T23:39:18.875-06:00No!
I haven't seen this man - and I wasn't driving the getaway car. Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-59681275392001700922011-01-12T23:13:00.000-06:002011-01-12T23:13:23.307-06:00There's little comfort...
in the realization that I am as good a babysitter now as when I was a teenager. I was a terrible babysitter. My mother became tired of having to 'rescue' me and advised that I get out of the business. (The deciding event being my calling for help when I was trying to subdue a very hefty naked toddler so that I could pin on a cloth diaper. As with most things, Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-36987193743771539442011-01-03T21:46:00.000-06:002011-01-03T21:46:03.690-06:00Simple Sign of Contradiction
20 + C + M + B + 11 Time again to find the blessed chalk! Starting a new year with the house blessing - not just a blessing, but a daily reminder of our call to live as a sign of contradiction. And a bit of a tool for evangelization - "What does the equation above your door mean?" "Well, . . ."
It's funny how some people can find this so odd. (And, in fact, how Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-84894550055995936862010-12-14T23:49:00.001-06:002010-12-14T23:51:36.572-06:00As the pre-Christmas stress ramps up...at work and home:
some of us need our quiet time.
Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-77689187881156418002010-12-14T23:07:00.000-06:002010-12-14T23:07:57.328-06:00To be honest, I'm surprised it took this long...
It has been nine days since our glittery ornament making extravaganza. Oh, the tourmaline, garnet, and lapis lazuli. Everywhere.
Despite our best efforts to return all excess to their respective bottles, a lot of glitter escaped. (That's the funny thing...very little glitter can be a lot.) We're seeing in everywhere. One of the girls Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-5088612712784162882010-11-27T17:36:00.000-06:002010-11-27T17:36:08.585-06:00Gangy's Big Ethnic Gaff of the Week*
The Thanksgiving dinner table is exquisitely set. New gold damask table linens, delicate old china, the Waterford, the Madam Jumel. Exquisite but not particularly sensible for the 23 month old diner. In response to Emily's request for a non-breakable plate for Miss Lilyanne, I return to the table with a melamine Chinese restaurant plate.
Nothing personal.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-41186579525561649762010-11-27T16:08:00.001-06:002010-11-27T17:40:36.326-06:00It's Show Time, Folks!It's that time again. Conflicted feelings. Advent anticipation; flop sweat dread. If that explains my flat affect when given the run down on the family white elephant gift exchange. At this point, facing the first Sunday in Advent, it's all too much a problem to be solved rather than a mystery to be lived.
Although...the day to day work logistics do take my mind off of Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-19700979878607004622010-11-02T21:29:00.000-05:002010-11-02T21:29:42.416-05:00I've been blogging about eight years...
so, yeah I have something to say.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-32929113121456549332010-11-02T21:20:00.000-05:002010-11-02T21:20:47.527-05:00Requiem ÆternamorHave I Forgotten the Holy Souls?I've certainly done my part - work wise. We have a list and I check it more than twice. Sending personal letters to those families bereaved in the past year; inviting them to the All Souls Mass. Double check details. Go over the list again to let those reading the names of the deceased know the proper pronunciations - to the best of my ability.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-5657328812152900812010-11-02T15:49:00.000-05:002010-11-02T15:49:10.936-05:00Missing:
Maternal Mojo
The tofu cookie baking, cloth diaper changing in the dark (with pins, my friends, no diaper wraps for me!) mega mother has disappeared. I took a vacation day to babysit Lily and Madge while Emily drove her mother-in-law to the hospital for outpatient surgery. The best I can say is that no children were damaged in the process.
Not only am I an un-fun grandma - I'm Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-60918733375592803392010-10-23T14:46:00.000-05:002010-10-23T14:46:52.355-05:00Classic Avoidance BehaviorMove the Madam Jumel to the kitchen, put the Rogers silverplate in a box in Fran's hope chest, move the Bruckmann silverplate to a drawer in the dining room. Because, clearly, this is important. Finish laundry, read a book, take a nap. Clearly - I must be avoiding something.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-90971089373659827632010-10-17T16:57:00.000-05:002010-10-17T16:57:03.204-05:00Perhaps I should give Madeline's other grandmother...
a copy of "Madeline." The word on the street (a street in Chinatown) is that she didn't understand the faux appendectomy scar. A disconcerting surprise when she changed Maddie's diaper. Em had a bit of explaining to do. Explaining the original Madeline story. And explaining her mother's sense of humor. Oops.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-23153552271976188042010-10-17T16:47:00.000-05:002010-10-17T16:47:06.978-05:00
End of Mad Men season....and I had developed such a nice routine of downloading Mad Men on Monday morning (because we no longer have cable access to AMC) and watching Mad Men on Monday night (because we no longer have access to Intervention or Hoarders or any of those other guilty pleasures that kept me glued to the tube.)
Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-71140825433498198622010-10-16T21:43:00.000-05:002010-10-16T21:43:51.149-05:00 Where is the wonder?
When watching an episode of Mad Men several weeks ago, I was knocked off balance by noticing a plastic nativity scene from Sears, circa early 1960's. It was the same creche from my childhood, with plastic figures in a cardboard shed with small pieces of hay glued to the roof for special effect. The night sky, with stars was pasted to the back wall - and I'm sure it hadEllynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-44210265172296094552010-10-16T16:37:00.002-05:002010-10-16T22:10:29.394-05:00
Yes, it was Gangy's idea!
It Just Wouldn't Be Madeline....
without the appendectomy scar. Don't worry, Mom, it will wash off soon.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-69802205836878505002010-10-15T20:35:00.000-05:002010-10-15T20:35:04.635-05:00This was going to be a funny post. (If I hadn't waited 'til today to write it.)
I took some pictures of Fran and Bridget's extreme Halloween decorating job. Mostly to show my friends and perhaps to write a little something like "Friends don't let friends decorate..." The jackpot of holiday accoutrements that the new people across the street pushed to the curb (and, thereby, into the back of myEllynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-6678261929123021812010-10-01T10:22:00.000-05:002010-10-01T10:22:45.340-05:00You've Gotta Have Heart Update:
A life size (or maybe a little larger?) plastic kidney almost slipped into the toaster while I was making breakfast this morning. We've gotta get those organs under control. Nobody wants a breakfast of burnt plastic spread with Nutella. I know I don't.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-40868088019568587042010-10-01T01:05:00.000-05:002010-10-01T01:05:22.877-05:00It's Nice to Know Someone Who Knows Someone
I spend next to nothing on beauty products. This might be a good time to make a pitch for Lansinoh, the multi-purpose high grade lanolin. That's as close as I come to a beauty secret.
Bridget has a client who does something with photography with some newspaper. And she is extremely generous with gifting Bridget with lovely things that she is allowed Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-51929826528761845342010-10-01T00:27:00.002-05:002010-10-01T00:31:21.632-05:00You've gotta have heart
Miles 'n miles n' miles of heart
Oh, it's fine to be a genius of course
But keep that old horse
Before the cart
First you've gotta have heart
Every day is still a learning experience. Fran's been using my bedroom as a quiet study zone. So if I'm working or chilling I get to absorb a lot of info by osmosis. The interactive 3-D dvd of the cardiovascular system was Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-51887903111755486012010-09-30T23:04:00.000-05:002010-09-30T23:04:01.118-05:00"That's Why We Can't Have Nice Things"
I was looking for something else on the camera and found this reminder of the great couch disaster. Words escape me. All I can say is...you can fix a lot with duct tape and creative cushion flipping.
This is not the perp. He's just an innocent bystander.
Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-74793770440475803142010-08-25T14:36:00.000-05:002010-08-25T14:36:00.922-05:00This Funky Local Animals Thing Has Run Its Course
[I won't even mention the dog who almost killed me 2 different ways just this morning, except to say it involved a puddle at the top of the stairs and a later attempt to pull me over backwards on the concrete as I hooked up one of her little canine confreres to his run. That is all.]
For the time being: No turkeys, no Asian carp, no turtles, noEllynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-66658070232008850542010-08-25T00:20:00.000-05:002010-08-25T00:20:12.592-05:00Just to prove it's not all about the walkabout turtles and galavanting gators....
another little thing I wrote for the Word on Fire blog.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-22103873178005108622010-08-25T00:01:00.000-05:002010-08-25T00:01:55.673-05:00One last word...before this site deteriorates into some sort of animal life blog:
The Chicago River Alligator has been captured.
The turtles are still on the lam.
The turkey is incommunicado.
And I hear some sounds of displeasure over a dog's behavior...what started out as an exercise in not making sure my boys were not deprived of the typical 'American boy and his dog' scenario has devolved Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-63949752303500941132010-08-22T21:13:00.000-05:002010-08-22T21:13:38.730-05:00I Do Not Care Much for Turtle Soup...
Now that the turkey has been relocated, we must have a new animal realm crisis upon which to focus. Don't look at me.
The wildlife center curator thinks they may have pedaled on down the road. I think.
At about the same time that Mr. Carmichael noticed the turtles were missing, he also realized that a new Trek mountain bike was stolen off his front porch (Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-47704705363725537002010-08-12T11:42:00.000-05:002010-08-12T11:42:16.378-05:00Somewhere Between Crate and Barrel and a Bridal Shower...
I managed to write this. Which was just a coincidence. I am not anti-wedding. Really.
Now if I could only have found a way to work the cake topper disaster pics into it....
Yes, I know I re-post these about once a year, but they make me smile.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-85343583312936535862010-08-09T17:55:00.000-05:002010-08-09T17:55:36.378-05:00Pearl Ring? Sandy Beach? Fleur de Lis?
I am thinking of changing my name.
There are too many Ellens where I work. Three is too many. No one can keep us straight. Some people are given our phone number and told to ask for "Ellen." Specificity, please, people!
I received a piece of mail from the State of Illinois - the State now thinks I am the person in charge of HR at my office. Which Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-54732027250498038122010-08-04T19:28:00.000-05:002010-08-04T19:28:12.335-05:00For the Book Fiends in Your House...
the ALA has a poster generator.
Make one for the librarian you love.
It will all be forgiven by the next ALA Conference and you will certainly be her guest. Certainly.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-24878550322899018932010-08-04T18:19:00.000-05:002010-08-04T18:19:06.318-05:00Lake Bluff turkey interrupts traffic, but wins hearts...Yeah, it's been a slow week here.
24 hour a day turkey talk.
I am torn between wanting to check on him and a fierce desire to avoid getting into some sort of poultry related automotive catastrophe. Martha and I saw the man with the big net on Sunday and figured the situation would be resolved by the next time we passed through the Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-46820094463182901082010-07-28T10:26:00.000-05:002010-07-28T10:26:19.739-05:00Finally, Blogger will Let Me Post Again!
but what I really want to say is
If You Don't Believe Me About the Turkey...
Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-90149357336646312872010-07-13T17:07:00.002-05:002010-07-13T17:25:25.672-05:00Quinn: Catch Asian Carp, send them to ChinaThat sounded rather culturally insensitive to me. But it appears that the people of China are interested in eating thirty million pounds of the invasive bane of Illinois' waterways. Sounds mean though, like they're being deported.I wonder if they are any good or if they are 'gamey.' Or would you say fish-y. My father used to catch carp in the Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-4019265555956103952010-07-07T20:29:00.005-05:002010-07-07T20:58:07.507-05:00Red Egg and GingerLast Sunday was baby Madeline's big day. The baptism was in the early afternoon, then we went to a local park for a little party - the road to the park providing some of our friends with their first exposure to the loitering turkey. Then, when rational people might call it a day, we headed to Chinatown for the traditional one month red egg and ginger party.There was a moment Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-36654221370053873862010-07-07T19:39:00.004-05:002010-07-07T20:27:27.786-05:00And...while I was not dodging a turkey trying to throw itself under the wheels of my car. Or avoiding making eye contact with Ducky the husky. And looking for that misplaced $1000 face cream for the actinic keratosis on my forehead. (Yes, 0ne thousand dollars. That's half of what we paid for the Jeep! If only the box that the cream comes in would be half the size of the Jeep. [OK, $957, Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-56780028244350456892010-07-07T13:34:00.010-05:002010-07-07T19:34:54.771-05:00This was not [event of your choice].This was a Shouts & Murmurs essay.A charming post by Rod Dreher - Boris and Natasha at Costco - re: the hapless suburban Russian spies.And the tagline for the year is born!I've used it several times already regarding the kids, the dogs, the suicidal loitering turkey, the telephonic cacophony at work. It is obvious; we're living in a Shouts & Murmurs essay. Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-12049155145386962372010-06-23T20:57:00.005-05:002010-06-23T21:10:15.904-05:00Free to a (our) Good Home!What kind of people leave a perfectly good torso on the curb? My new neighbors, that's who. (Actually, 2 torsos, a skeleton, an assortment of Halloween decorations and decorations for other holidays.) These had been left behind by the old owners and were now dragged out to the street for garbage day.Which makes wonder what is wrong with the new people. Don't they Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-9804262908039011212010-06-22T11:46:00.005-05:002010-06-22T12:16:52.229-05:00Speaking of Lady Gaga...My family knows I've been speaking of her a lot. That would explain my prolonged viewing of those videos. Here's what I have to say. And many thanks to Fr. Barron for offering me the opportunity. Next topic? We'll have to see...Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-25060135256525785222010-06-22T11:14:00.003-05:002010-06-22T11:19:10.593-05:00The Anosognosic's DilemmaSo, like, if I walk around talking about how stupid and incompetent I am, then I'm not. Right?[And as someone who has succumbed to the temptation of a lemon juice facial - for exfoliation and skin 'brightening' purposes only - yeah, I know enough to keep the juice away from my eyes.]Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-26757816306964289972010-06-19T10:09:00.005-05:002010-06-19T10:41:50.264-05:00My Chaos Usually Makes Sense to MeBut right now I wish I had prevailed up a certain young lady with a Masters in Library Science to help me get my scattered bookshelves in order. Now she has two tiny bookworms of her own and no time to help her foundering* mother. On occasion I have tried to have designated bookshelves for certain topics but that quickly goes awry. The need to squeeze books Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-8788925474203932282010-06-18T20:22:00.004-05:002010-06-18T20:34:48.700-05:00Time for some serious blogging.I know some serious blogging is on the horizon because I abruptly gave up the idea of long, glamorous fingernails*. Fingernails that can slow a girl down. And cause some unfortunate typos; at home and work. On any and all keyboards.I've taken inspiration from my sister and decided to document an inspiring view through the seasons. She stops her car at an Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-15760291359124711622010-05-19T21:00:00.003-05:002010-05-19T21:02:56.030-05:0021!No fussy fondant for this fellow. Another Fran masterpiece. Happy Birthday Charles!Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-91997601424053412662010-05-19T20:32:00.006-05:002010-05-19T20:57:47.159-05:00Stuff My Dogs Ruined...I feel a certain solidarity with the parents who submit their 'disaster' pics to S**t My Kids Ruined. Those were the days...vaseline on the walls, Sharpie Marker everywhere, children acting as their own barbers. I'm a bit past that phase, so it's all quite funny to me. But...the dogs are filling the void and marking time until Lily and her little sister are able to Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-12001090681606756782010-05-09T16:53:00.002-05:002010-05-09T16:57:43.220-05:00And our award for greatest show of maturity goes to...the Venus Flytrap, which ate its first fly on Friday. We are truly amazed.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-48702409950211486322010-05-08T12:40:00.004-05:002010-05-08T13:01:30.385-05:00Pirate Radiohas set me off on another Philip Seymour Hoffman kick. His performances never fail to disappoint - even when the movies he is in challenge (Synecdoche, New York), depress (Love Liza) and horrify (Happiness).Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-20511762377119189072010-05-06T14:09:00.007-05:002010-05-06T14:51:12.865-05:00Things the World Should Toss OutChocolate toddler formula? Slasher movies. Flat sheets as a first layer of bedding. Over-sized showy luxury SUVs. PCs. Pepsi-Cola. A lot of the songs in the OCP 'hymnal.' The Kardashian media franchise. The high school diploma. The penny. Christmas decorations, songs etc. before Thanksgiving. 90% of all cell phone usage. Prolonged political campaigns. "Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-55232289652745990632010-05-05T22:02:00.002-05:002010-05-06T14:52:51.344-05:00"Can You Pick Up a Bag of Ice?"Those forlorn words...muttered by my husband about once every thirty-six hours...so iconic of the zeitgeist of household disrepair that someone once made it Dad's cellphone ringtone...Now the ice issue has become part of the 'continental undrift' of my work and home lives. The identical French working glasses that I and a few other people in both locations think Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-33566164645485748102010-05-05T12:49:00.005-05:002010-05-05T13:00:02.608-05:00"What's next, genetically modifying moms to produce chocolate breast milk?" (Hey I'm just quoting the article...)Shouldn't chocolate be for grown-ups and occasionally for very good children who are beyond toddlerhood? Hmmm? I have extreme reservations about this, even in cases where a parent may be legitimately concerned about a toddler who is not getting adequate nutrition. I still stand by myEllynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-19164865313205656862010-05-04T07:57:00.002-05:002010-05-04T08:14:24.822-05:00Is Originality Just Too Taxing?Is it so hard to develop and sell a musical that is not based on a movie or vintage TV show? Little Miss Sunshine? Must we?The only thing I find remotely amusing is the mental composing and staging of numbers. Of course, Grandpa's "f*****g chicken" soliloquy has great potential. And "Mom? Dad? Grandpa Won't Wake Up" could be a heart wrenching solo. A little soft Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-80446973670152861512010-05-02T17:44:00.003-05:002010-05-04T10:33:18.928-05:00So...the chipmunk has left. There were witnesses to his panicked dash out the door to the deck. Fran filled a few of the potential breeches in out 'security' with some clever expanding foam stuff.Fabulous stuff.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-25586139492165973602010-05-01T15:54:00.005-05:002010-05-02T17:44:46.978-05:00My Daughters Went to the Massive Presbyterian Church Rummage Sale...and brought me a (fine large poster of the) Delphic Sibyl and a black Coach handbag in excellent condition. So why would I have even entertained the idea of going?These events no longer have the appeal that they once had. Or perhaps I've become misanthropic. It's just one of those days. Chipmunk in the house. Dog had a Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-66659048741130936622010-04-29T09:38:00.003-05:002010-04-30T11:22:23.550-05:00Waning Gibbous...*The House of Wittgenstein - my new best friends for when I need to escape the house of Huben.*a bad moon on the way out. That "bathroom on the rise" was one way to get the bathroom floor finally washed. Many thanks to the kind reader who did the mopping. You know who you are. Frances. Frances Louise...Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-67224844434276185682010-04-21T16:54:00.001-05:002010-04-21T16:57:00.247-05:00"Dust Me!"But actually we're making progress. I found the cord for uploading photos. And three pairs of 'lost' glasses under my bed.Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3721209.post-90029224652070040472010-04-21T11:54:00.002-05:002010-04-21T12:10:44.550-05:00More vacation notes...Not much to see here folks. Unless you're looking for the pathos of a mediocre homemaker trying to store a winter comforter in one of those vacuum sealed "Space Bags" - only to find a tear in the bag. (I believe that is why the Lord has given us duct tape!) If you really want to read something besides the shouts, murmurs and worse of the local version of the Cursing Ellynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11553189251750677842noreply@blogger.com2