Should a person be allowed to have this much fun?

Think of all the stuff you LOVE to do...the most rewarding stuff you can think of, m'kay?

Spending two days with little granddaughter was more wonderful than whatever you thought of, trust me. It was non-stop playing (lol), and watching her do all kinds of "big girl" stuff, like feeding herself, and letting me know what she did not want right now.



For whatever reason, her most-used "word" is Geesch...like geek with an sh instead of the k. It's an all-purpose word that means.................?



Her parents say we need to get used to calling her Big Girl 'cuz she won't be the baby after July, when we'll all realize just how MUCH she's grown after all. So, BG it is....but in this family, random nicknames can stick for the rest of your life...lol


Honest, she was leaning into me right then...but Da was taking another picture and NOT holding her!

Earlier in the day, she saw my camera on the end table and touched it with one tiny finger. I almost missed her saying "cam-ra", but she DID say it....it's remarkable partly because cameras don't all look alike, yet she knows what they are...(and of course she wouldn't say it again...lol) Cool, huh?





I'd post more pics, but everyone must be on-line tonight (same reason I quit trying Wednesday night)...I'll try to add a few more tomorrow, ok?

Todays best pic

Little granddaughter and I had a GREAT time playing together today...lol She seemed more receptive to the camera after I showed her that it plays a little jingle when I turn it on....and also when I used the no-flash feature.
She completely refused to take a nap today, which made me remember that her dad quit that boring ritual early, too...lol When I mentioned it to him, he recalled being surprised that naps were a part of the Kindergarten day. By then, he didn't remember EVER needing a nap...lol

For an hour or so this afternoon, she pretty much entertained herself...I was sitting on the couch and she was busy chattering and working on the toys. Back and forth to the deck windows, waving at the neighbor's dog out the front window, carrying whatever she had in her hand when the spirit moved her. She would 'check in' with me ocassionally, but it was perfectly ok that I wasn't involved.

She has about 15 words these days...none of which actually help her get me to understand....but when she runs to my knees and opens her arms, I know it means "Up!" and my Grandma heart does flip-flops...lol

It was around 40º today, so we've started going out on the deck again. She's as fascinated as she was last spring...watching for birds, trying the wind chime, seeing the branches dance in the wind. We were playing at whispering out there, and her little pointer finger went to her nose and she said "S-s-s-s-ss"...took me a minute to realize she was meant "Shhhh"....mom and dad beat me to that one!

"Pie" and a Pic

I don't know about you, but I've always felt that recipes were really just suggestions for a fairly good combination of ingredients....that if it calls for 2 cups of something, well, 1 3/4 probably works too, just like 2 1/2 cups would...lol

That's why, when I found a recipe for Banana Bread that called for the zest of one lemon, I figured I'd use the rest of the lemon for THIS recipe.

Sure, it calls for THREE lemons and a pie crust...but how 'bout most of one lemon, less sugar, and 4 eggs baked in the brown casserole bowl? It's in the oven right now...we'll see!

(Frankly, this attitude is most likely why my family thinks I'm only an "adequate" cook...lol...but they didn't starve, right?)

**************************************

Here's little grand daughter, asleep on my shoulder this week...it's tough to aim a camera at arm's length!


(I get to babysit again on Tuesday and Wednesday this week...I imagine we'll have MORE pictures then!)

A one-year-old's birthday party :^)

Wanna see pictures?


The birthday girl!





You know everybody wanted her to DIG IN to that cake. Instead, she very nicely fed herself bits of frosting, without a mess to speak of....lol

When her dad asked her how old she was, she held up one finger (more or less) and said "One!", and these days, she'll give you a kiss and a hug...what a sweet lil' girl!







The big blue thing is a fabric tunnel. With her dad on the other end, she crawled right to him...and then, back through it to mom...lol

(She's really into putting things over her shoulders. The green thing she's holding is a sleeper from another friend. It only ticked her off when she stepped on it and then couldn't move...lol)

Snowy Day pics for Rainy Dae...lol

Here ya go, Rainy--the flock yesterday about noon....


...and just now...lol

I'm truly loving it...being laid-off has definite benefits. I only need to be plowed out by tomorrow afternoon, as that's lil' granddaughter's first birthday party--whoo-hoo!


BTW, here's my driveway this morning--it WAS shoveled (barely wide enough for the truck to get out...lol), but I think I'll call the plow today. A nice clear driveway is as pretty as this is...lol
---------------------------------------
I understand, according to MPR, that Winona got some 30 inches...Sis could send pictures for our edification if she wanted to. I'd publish 'em here, really!

Why, yes, we DID get snow!

Ahhh...we've been waiting for "the other shoe to drop" here in Minnesota for YEARS. Every winter we hear that this time it'll snow like crazy, but then the storm waltzes right on by...I mean, who thinks of New York as a snowy state?? We're loosing our bragging rights and the snowmobile dealers have even closed-up shop around here...can you imagine?

BUT---


...we actually got a good FOOT or more yesterday. I woke up this morning because there was NO sound--and I live next to a 4 lane highway. Wha...?
LOL...it wasn't till I went outside for a little shovel-fun that I saw the huge muffler on the roof. Isn't that COOL?

Wanna see how deep it is?



Ok, that doesn't look like much and it's always deepest right there in front of the garage, but it reminded me of this picture circa 1955.

(Yes. You're right. There really was more snow when we were little...lol)


xoxo,
Bird

A tiny puzzle

What happened a YEAR ago this week? Click HERE for a fun way to find out...lol

Gopher

Once in awhile, you write to a friend and think--"Hey, this would make a good blog post, too!".
With apologies to Larry for its additions and double use... ;^)

There's a goofy store in St Cloud that's been there as long as I can remember. It's on the "bad" side of town, where all the sad industrial businesses are--Sally Ann, scrap iron, cut rate and salvage businesses--and this one: "Gopher Bargain Center".

Yesterday, we decided we needed an adventure, and since we found ourselves on the East Side, we had lunch at the Copper Lantern, and then stopped at Gopher.

It used to be all merchandise salvaged from fires or disasters, so lots of it had smoke damage, and the whole rabbit warren of a store always smelled of Pine Sol and smoke. These days, there's a huge wholesale Gopher-equivalent somewhere...and their merchandise is just ordered in (we asked...lol).

There are whole aisles of "brain fart" products that make you shake your head...lol...and hardly any evidence of smoke damage.

It always amazes me how such a peripheral-to-my-life place can call up such vivid memories: as a kid, going there with Dad and knowing that, if he bought something in bulk, it'd better be something for the garage, 'cuz Mom wouldn't use stuff from Gopher if she could help it.

It was always good for "scores" though--especially massive quantities of crafty stuff like pipe cleaners or "good enough" lace, ya know?

I think about the relative handful of "old" merchandise we have at Scenic, but in light of Gopher's REALLY old stock, it doesn't even compare. There's one whole area of Gopher that's from dead hardware stores, and it's gray, dark, and dirty--like nobody's cared since 1942 or so.

These days, the place is being tricked-out to look better, but it's like painting the roller coaster at a derelict theme park...one spiffy ride/aisle makes the ferris wheel/rest of the store look even more scruffy...lol You know it's fake, and won't last.

Why am I telling you about it? Dunno, except it was vivid...it's a place I always resist going to, but it draws me at the same time.

Yes, of course I bought stuff: a new toilet seat, two oven mitts, a big metal spoon, Speed Stick, and a filigree metal basket for the counter in the bathroom...for $18.36 total.

I didn't say I had high standards, only that I'm a bit conflicted about going there...lol No doubt the sibs and my kids have stories of their own to add...right?

Mr. Deity

I found a website yesterday that's hilarious. It's a tongue-in-cheek series of videos about "almightiness, one day at a time"....and watching 'em again is even better.

"Let there be Light" is a hoot (....although the Superbowl one left me scratching my head).

You'll enjoy 'em!

How can you NOT love this?

Awww....click HERE for a blast from the 60's (70's?)...and watch for the kid in the baby blue jacket. I've watched it four times, and he still makes me laugh....
xoxo

Life IS good!!

Babysitting is fun and exhausting...lol Lil' granddaughter is ALL movement--crawling, walking, clapping, chasing a ball, putting it in the big toy, watching it come out the bottom and cheering...lol She loves follow-the-leader, but it's on hands and knees, and she actually giggles as she crawls along behind.
(It occurs to me that "crawl" implies "slow"....so it really doesn't work here. SCOOT might be more descriptive, or TEAR AROUND, or ZOOM...lol)



She's fairly confident about walking as long as she doesn't think about it. See? She's on her way to get that yellow ball, and she did it with little problem--well, except for the pick-it-up-turn-around-and-come-back part. (She's too little to have large-motor skills yet, right? LOL...give her a week.)





TWO really amazing things happened last night:

1. We were at that part of the evening when she's suddenly EXHAUSTED and dissolves in tears...she wasn't happy being held, she wasn't happy being on the floor. Of course I held her, and tried boring her to sleep, but that skill went to another family member (snort!)

Pretty soon, she pointed with her whole arm and said, "baby". Ah! This must be part of a ritual--so we went to look at her baby pictures on the end table.

Nope. She only smiled through her tears...and pretty soon, I was standing there rocking her again.

"Baby!", with the arm pointing downstairs, to the family room. Ah! It's darker down there...probably more soothing, too...so we went there...lol

"BABY!", the arm, leaning toward the big chair...Duh, why hadn't I thought of that?!

So we're sitting down. The chair's leather and has that comforting creak as it rocks...this is nice. We're settled, right?

"Baby.....", said in the most long-suffering, "working-with-you-is-exhausting" tone...the arm points wearily at the fuzzy blanket on the couch....one more mission to get the blanket and wrap ourselves in it.....ahhhhhhh, so sweet. With a HUGE sigh, she snuggled in and (we) slept...lol

~*~*~*~*~

Oh, and #2 is even more delightful:

Becky asked me if I had plans for my birthday...

How many people know what they'll be doing six months from now? How many people get to plan spending their 58th birthday at the hospital while a grandson is being born, huh?

Birthday presents just don't get better than that.

The familys first vice president!

Wow....this little girl is now a vice president of her company in New York City. She's my niece, Laurel, and we're SO proud of her (but then, we were last month, too...lol)--Congrats, Bid!

Now, fill in the blank: When did I have __________?
xoxo
:^)

Worlds' cutest grandaughter!

The munchkin is almost 11 months old already! Her mom sent these today....see those four little teeth?



Beck called the pictures "Sunshine on a snowy day".....and she really is.

But wait, look at THIS one:





She'd be adorable even if she wasn't my granddaughter...lol Can't you just hear her great grandma say, "Those EYES!"
xoxo

How 'bout another picture?

R&D at the FLORIDA AQUARIUM. Cool, huh?

"Rest assured"

Eww! I just heard someone use that phrase on MPR, talking about the water supply in Cottage Grove, Minnesota (if you're interested, read or listen to it HERE)

Literally, it means you can sleep confidently, without worrying. How odd.

And it ALWAYS make me doubt what's being assured. I suppose because it feels like a put-down: don't worry your pretty little head about that, darlin'...in a treacly, John Wayne voice...you're just too dopey to understand all the ramifications here.

For me, it's too Jesse Ventura. When he said we should rest assured, it sounded like he was selling snake oil. What a colossal embarassment he was for Minnesota. We honest-to-gawd elected a wrestler? Eww!

Epcot--it's all about us

IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth is the recipient of Amusement Today's 2006 Golden Ticket Award in recognition of being the top evening show in an American theme park

IllumiNations: Reflections of Earth
Check Show Times
Ratings/Reviews
Photos

Opened Oct. 1, 1999 Show length: 12 minutes, 32 seconds
A nighttime spectacular where thunderous fireworks and lasers fill the skies above World Showcase Lagoon. Video images are displayed across a giant sphere in the middle of the lagoon that tell the Earth's incredible tale. The sphere then blossoms like a flower, exposing a ball of fire and leads to the shows finale.
Fun Facts - 1,105 firework shells are fired during each show.There are 19 torches located around the World Showcase Lagoon. The inferno barge weighs 150,000 pounds with 37 nozzles that shoot propane flames upward.

(From THIS website)

Wow, I can't believe it was only 12 minutes long. The show inspires awe, and a sense that so much of what we humans do is amazing and benevolent.

Why is it that we only hear about the horrible stuff, when the flip-side is so stunning?

Hooray!

Disney IS amazing.

Everyone told me I'd like it because it's so perfect, and I kept thinking that 'perfection' would turn me off. But it's really NOT "perfect"--it's just very well thought-out, and most guest needs are anticipated....which I appreciate.

OK, should we get the obligatory Wally World pic out of the way?




That's R&D--good friends and my excuse to be in Florida in the first place. They insisted I'd love Disney, and they were right (again...lol)

If you ever need "How to be a Wonderful Host" lessons, check with them.

Florida!

I can't believe I can load pictures here!! FINALLY, it's working, but I needed Firefox to do it...gah.

This jolly woman was our server at the Prime Time Restaurant at Disney World last Monday...what a sweetheart! I think she liked me best cuz we're both left-handed...lol The picture was taken after we talked about all the cel phones being used in the place--something to do with E.T. and phoning home. I was just doing as I was told...lol

(The Prime Time is billed as "your Mother's kitchen"--and the staff tries to provide some of the angst of going back there. Who else can make you get your elbows off the table or give you a job to do before dinner? We had to grab a crayon and write down the eight presidents whose last name is one syllable. I still say asking other tables wasn't cheating, really, I was just being resourceful...lol And I DID get a flashing ice cube to take home, now didn't I?)

----------------------
Answers:
1. Pierce
2. Hayes
3. Ford
4. Grant
5. Bush
6. Bush
7. Polk
8. Taft

For your Friday listening pleasure

Tutti Frutti_1203141712.mp3 (audio/mpeg Object)

LOL!

Moving a greenhouse

I spent Monday and Tuesday dismantling the annual house, piece by piece--60 six foot rails, 48 side pieces to hold the 48 sliding plexiglass panels (each panel required removing 6 wing-nuts), and endless chunks of re-usable serpentine wire that holds the plastic on to the frame....but DAMN, a structure like that is a marvel of engineering! You can tell every piece was thought out and improved over and over to make it work just right. There's hope for humanity after all...lol

And, YES, I did it by myself because the guys were preparing the space it was going, out front...a small matter of taking a tree down, removing old mulch and landscaping fabric, leveling and hauling in loads of class II and tamping it flat and solid...and THEN laying fresh landscaping fabric for the floor of the greenhouse. We moved three of the struts last night, and assembled the WHOLE rest of it today. Amazing what three people can do.

Here's something really cool:

Yesterday, I was at the point of loosening the last of the plastic covering. I had 99% free and was working on the far end, standing on a ladder...and thinking that I'd have to get one of the guys to help me pull the roof off (we're talking 1600 square feet of heavy-duty poly)--when a gust of wind came along and--slow-mo--lifted it into the air and nicely curled it off to the side! It was sooo beautiful to watch from above... a flurry of snow and ice chips popped off the plastic with the wind, so it seemed even more like a miracle...lol...and it sparkled in the sun, just like GLITTER!

See? The poly's gone--and it's ready to be moved strut by strut....

...to the front of the store. All that's left now is to put new poly on top, stake it down, landscape around it....and it's ready for spring!

Catching up here...

So, I just read somewhere that 18% of blog posts start with the word "So"...(they probably counted one or two of those posts right here on EF, hmm?)

What's been happening in my little Assistant Managers' life lately, you ask?

Lots! We "put away" the trees and plants for the winter last week--which involves taking all the perennials and covering them with straw and plastic:

LOL...what looks like a HUGE pile isn't really...compare it to the size of those cement blocks. It took us all day, and it was a fascinating process. Besides, it'll be like Christmas when we open it again in the spring.

Now that the grounds' more or less frozen, we're officially into our "off" season. Does this mean we'll spend our days in the Studio planning and thinking? Not so far...we have a greenhouse to move first.

Starting tomorrow.

It's the house with all the pots and fountains in it right now...(we'll start by moving 'em all to the perennial house for the rest of the winter)...but the IDEA of changing whole buildings around tickles me no end! The sibs will remember my joy in switching the furniture around at home when we were kids--somehow, it all seems new again--and moving the greenhouse will change the traffic pattern in the store and present WILD new opportunities for merchandising. I can hardly wait!

(But I have to say: Thank Gawd for flannel lined work pants!)

Oh, I suppose you want an update on the grandaughter, too, huh?

Her mom and dad had a party on the 2nd of December, and KQ was the centerpiece as far as I was concerned...lol She spent time gazing at all the people and glitter from the safety of J or B's arms, and sometimes my lap. Those huge brown eyes and tiny fingers seemed to prefer the sparkly button on my dress...lol

(HOORAY!! SHE LOVES GLITTER!!!)

Eventually, B asked me to take her to her room so she could safely crawl around for awhile (and frankly, I needed the quiet, too, by then...) Before long, Mog and E joined us, and KQ began to empty her sock drawer and the bookcase. Of COURSE we let her!

"Here, Sweetie, how 'bout these tights? They'll be FUN to throw!"

Can you believe she's 9 months old already? She's working on walking, and if she's anything like her dad, she'll find that walking's WAY too slow when she could be running...lol

We adults exchanged names for Christmas, but I have a feeling there'll be a small mountain of stuff for KQ to open....especially if it comes in boxes that look like drawers...

If you like jigsaw puzzles...

This is cool: try to finish a puzzle with who ever else happens to be on the site right now...click JIGSAW and join the game!

I wish I could write like this:

I found this piece by "Stumbling Upon" it...hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Think of it as a Thanksgiving gift, ok?

08.13.2006
permalink
An Offering Up
So, bumming around on a lazy Sunday afternoon, I decided to pull out my old Magic Circle… Any Camp Fire girls or boys out there who remember what a Magic Circle is?Ah, Camp Fire. Now there was a truly great organization (still is as far as I know). No separation of the sexes. No para-military drills. No 'troupes.' Nope. We had clans and councils instead. Interesting what a difference in mentality those words reflect. The clans were small groups who got together to do crafts and learn about living with nature. Some stuff we learned was pretty useful: how to make a fire, survive in the woods, recognize poisonous species, make strawberry jam, present a flag, pitch a tent. Some stuff was utterly useless: why would you ever want to know how to carve soap bars with a rusty pocketknife? And of course, nothing compares to the life education gotten via the social humiliation of trying to sell over-priced candy to strangers while dressed in homespun and moccasins. It's funny though, how all these things served to draw the group closer together, and how, no matter what cliques came and went at school, no matter how much you started out despising some of the other members, you always ended up appreciating each person for who they were and what they could contribute.Anyway, one of my favorite, and certainly longest enduring, Camp Fire traditions was the Magic Circle. I don't know where this got its name, or if all groups participated in it, but our leader encouraged us all to keep a collection of songs, poetry, stories, quotes, jokes, etc… whatever spoke to us, just put it all in a book or a box. This would be brought along to camp-outs and Council Fires. Then, late in the evening, when camp was made, colors retired, dinner eaten, and everyone sleepy, we would all sit around the fire to share. One by one, each person would sing a song, tell a story, or read a poem. As we went around the circle, others might join in if they knew the song, but it was each person's responsibility to be able to at least begin themselves. It was actually seldom that anyone consulted something written down. The first round went fast, with everyone eager to share. There was lots of laughter and grumbling when someone 'stole' someone else's intended offering, forcing them to have to wrack their brains for something else to offer. Gradually, it got harder and harder to remember or think up something new. It got quieter and more serious, with fewer knock-knock jokes, more reflection, greater attention. We knew that if someone failed, if just one person forgot or couldn't come up with an offering, the circle would be broken, and it would be bedtime for us all. Like all kids, we didn't want that to happen! But as the mood of the evening, the sense of the importance of this gathering, settled over us all, it became more than a parlor game. Sometimes, the youngest were allowed to fall asleep on someone's lap, or drift off to their tents, but normally the circle was reserved for older kids, an honor, and no one wanted to leave. It was especially reverent if some older adults were there, who would always come up with wondrous stories or songs none of us had ever heard. It was unspeakably beautiful. Thread by thread, the contents of our memories, our own Magic Circles, were woven into the tapestry of the larger community circle. And in those breath-held moments when we wondered how long we could keep this up, it wasn't too much of a stretch to picture our small circle of firelight, in its turn, weaving into the larger circle of the cosmos. The stars wheeled above, right overhead, and I remember leaning back often to look up, breathing in the magic of the night, steeping myself in the words being spoken, the silences between in which we honored each person's struggle to bring forth an offering. Or I'd stare intently into the heart of the fire, trying to summon forth a contribution from my own memory. I watched others do the same, as we settled more and more deeply into the rhythms of giving and receiving the gifts of song, word, knowledge, memory… Occasionally, I would catch the eyes of someone flashing across the fire and, stranger or friend, I could feel the tightening of the bonds that held us all. Within those intertwined circles of fire, before us and above us, meshing like the gears of a clock, time itself seemed another pattern we were integrating. Because for every song and story told, some passed down for generations, some newly created, there were unmistakably others present too: all but forgotten, quiet echoes waiting just at the edge of the firelight, just at the edge of memory, waiting to be re-remembered. You could tell when this happened: the prickle at the back of your neck as a ghost was resurrected, the sigh that went around the circle in recognition.Eventually, of course, the circle would close. Depending on the 'stakes' or rules, either one person would fail to remember, or a majority would, or a consensus would arise that it was time to turn in. The next day would come soon enough, bringing with it the struggle to recognize the person whose words the night before had touched your soul, so you could corral them into, please, singing that song once more, or writing down the words to this or that. Friends and strangers might approach you with the same requests, which is where the written collections came in. Barges, I would like to sail with you, I would like to sail the ocean blue. Barges, have you treasures in your hold, Do you fight with pirates brave and bold?That piece is still in my memory, all these years later. I don't think I have it written down anywhere. I do however still have two collections of what I think of as my Magic Circle, and it was these I was flipping through on a lazy Sunday afternoon. One, a binder, the other a sketchpad, both full of songs, stories, poems, quotations, photographs, collages, lists, artwork, articles, etc. The 'et cetera,' being also known as 'ephemera' (a word I love), includes: a poem written by my uncle at sea, more than forty years ago; an old map of Powell's Books in Portland, covered with quotations; a small pamphlet from the 1960s, put out by the UN, listing the word 'peace' in dozens of languages; a purple finger-painting of my two hands at age six. It got me to thinking, though, about the role that words and stories have played in my life. So many of them are so deeply burned into my psyche that there's no need for a physical reminder. I still remember the first poem I ever sat down to memorize, Jabberworky, by Lewis Carroll, from an ancient dusty poetry anthology found at the house of a family friend. The nonsensical nature of it delighted me, and I just had to commit it to memory. Since then, I haven't tried too hard to memorize things, but pieces here and there still tend to flit around my head like so many far-off echoes, sounding and resounding. More though, it got me reflecting on the nature of community. It's been a couple years now since I've sat around a campfire. There's always a powerful sense of community there, even when the talk is light or non-existent. Sometimes especially then. But really, how often do we get a chance to tell our stories? To sing our songs? How often do we really take an opportunity to share something as powerful as what ideas are near and dear to our hearts? How many people are prepared to listen?It seems like in America, with our emphasis on personal growth, and personal development, that we also focus more on personal relationships, rather than communal ones. And that can be a wonderful, rich blessing, the closeness of friendship and love. But I think that it is also important to share with strangers, with those we might not know so well. For as we age into our own personal nights, as the fires burn low, our memories seem to flicker, too. And our loved ones have heard all we have to share. We've listened to their stories many times. I think it is important to reach out, and to listen, to members of our outer circle as well: our community. I don't know how to do that. Is blogging a way? Perhaps. I just know I miss that feeling of closeness with other people, with humanity, that comes when you hazard yourself a bit, when you open up to share the good bits you've collected from life. I miss lifting up my voice in song to weave around the voices of many others. As an adult, the only times I've done that in this country were in Kundalini yoga classes: what a powerful resonance THAT creates! Some people get that experience in church. But what about all the humble, goofy songs of our youth? What about the stories of what we have learned or are experiencing? What about listening intently to our elders… not our priests, not our bosses, or our spouses, or our contemporaries, but our elders: sitting there on equal footing, sharing their wisdom and experience… what of that connection? What of listening to the stories of children, other than perhaps, if they and we are lucky, our own?That's the sort of connection I want, the sort of community I yearn for. Those are the stories I want to hear: elders' and children's and everything in between. Every age and race and creed. One at a time. Well into the night.

And you can hold the ghost stories.

(edited 2006.08.14; reinsertion of truncations)
Tagged with: camping, community, memory, stories, camp fire, magic circle
Access: Public Type: Blog 4 Comments
posted by Tsuya
08.07.2006

(Here's the link to her blog: http://tsuya.zaadz.com/blog)

Jus' gotta blog!

Well, here we are again...with another exciting update of Ephemeral Florist. How 'bout I post some of the pictures that I intended to post way back when...?

We both want mopeds for Christmas because riding 'em was so much FUN that day. Hey, I could ride to work pretty easily! And no, it wouldn't have to be blue....

I think I mentioned that Bayfield pretends it's a tropical seaport, with flamingoes almost everywhere...this one's just off the main drag. That's my kind of humor!

Ha! There were still leaves on the trees when we were there.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Remember this picture from last February? Just look how much she's GROWN:






xoxo

A bread-bakin' kinda day

It's 30º here right now. It was 14º when I got up this morning, and it's a Saturday in November....what more do you need to know?

The Persistent Sister­­® seems to want to know what's been going on in my life lately. Evidently her phone dial is broken, and perhaps her fingers, too, since the only communication from her is semi-snarky remarks here on EF...


Ok! Today, I have time...

Things at work are going well...we're all but closed for the winter and we're planning for next season. All the cool displays outside are gone or moved indoors for the winter, but here's what I'm making these days:



(When you see "Spruce Tips" advertised, that's what they mean--pine arranged in a plastic pot to drop into your urn. Gazing ball, birdhouse and cobalt pot not included!)

Still, by Thanksgiving we'll be done outside altogether, and then the serious planning and ordering starts. The funny part is that THREE couples at Scenic are expecting babies this fall--one was born on Thursday, another's due soon, and the other at Christmas. This could seriously mess with our winter schedule...lol

~*~*~*~*~

The grandaughter is growing like a weed--I was there last night, and she's crawling as far and as fast as she can...lol Her adults have to be super-vigilant or she'll tip a plant over on herself. It's almost like she's been planning what to see at floor level all her life! What a dolly!

~*~*~*~*~

Well, gang, APHC is on the radio from Hawaii, and I have birds-nests to make!
xoxo

The Birdie video

Oh dear! I was clicking around online and "Stumbled Upon" a cute cartoon of birds sitting on a wire. Big deal, right?
Well, I intended to send it to one person...but the options were not all that clear, so it got sent to my entire yahoo address book...friends, business associates, relatives...even people who don't necessarily KNOW me as Birdie...gawd. Have you ever had one of those moments where you BLUSH like crazy when you realize what just happened??

Sheesh....at least it wasn't tacky...lol

Swirling pictures!

I found this on J-walk blog, and it's cool!

"Javascript In The Address Bar

Try this:

Highlight the (green) text below
Press Ctrl+C
Press Alt+D
Press Ctrl+V
Press Enter

javascript:R=0; x1=.1; y1=.05; x2=.25; y2=.24; x3=1.6; y3=.24; x4=300; y4=200; x5=300; y5=200; DI=document.getElementsByTagName("img"); DIL=DI.length; function A(){for(i=0; i-DIL; i++){DIS=DI[ i ].style; DIS.position='absolute'; DIS.left=(Math.sin(R*x1+i*x2+x3)*x4+x5)+"px"; DIS.top=(Math.cos(R*y1+i*y2+y3)*y4+y5)+"px"}R++}setInterval('A()',5); void(0);

Refresh the page to get back to normal. It works with IE and Firefox, and it works for any page that has images."

Whaddya think?

Is it OK to eat dried apricots that taste and smell a little "wine-y"?
LOL

ANOTHER butterfly

Beck sent these today...lol Have you EVER seen a cuter butterfly?

Awwww....

Something cute I just found....click HERE

xoxo

An icecicle fountain

LOL...this was Thursday morning--damn, I love winter!

Maybe now?

Let's try one more time, shall we?

Ahhh...I KNEW you'd enjoy this last, non-winter picture of the flamingoes. And as we say to people who ask about their fish--"Yes, they can over-winter right where they are!"

I figure I'll take 'winter' pics of this scene for your comparison ALLL winter long, 'K?

Mmmm, I dearly love the "cartoon" feature on my photo program, and birch trees seem to be grown for it's use, doncha think?

Hey, hot damn! It's working!!!

A whole NEW idea!

Hmm. Here's something to think about:

Blogging can be fun. Blogs are fun to read. ANYONE can blog...and ANYONE can comment (as both of you know).

Somehow, I've picked-up the reputation among family and friends as a 'computer trail blazer' just because I've (more or less) maintained a blog for two years, when what it actually only means is my attention span is finally getting longer....lol

Daud got the hint over a year ago and started her own blog. Ahem--NOW, it's time for a sibling or two to do the same...I mean, I'd love to add YOUR blog address to my Favorites list. I'll check it everyday, promise. I'll even comment...lol

Go to: blogger.com and dig in...who knows, maybe YOU'LL be able to post pictures.

I'm waiting.....

A "temporary condition"

OK, I know both of you are wondering why I deleted my own picture...but it's part of a marketing thing....if you use blogger (a free service)...you get what you pay for.

I tried to create a sample blog for the store today, but when you already HAVE a blog on blogger, almost any messing you do with one transfers to the other, but in the weirdest ways!

I posted a picture of the SS crew on the other page, and it didn't show up here. Fine. Then I saw that my iris picture appeared on the OTHER blog, so I went there and deleted it. Came back here and it was gone...sigh.

So anyway, the meeting I need it for is Tuesday morning, and stuff should be back in order HERE Tuesday night or so.

(OK, it took til Wednesday...so sue me)...lol

Pictures STILL don't work...

Ok, I've tried a few times to post pics (again), and the screen freezes when I get the picture here on the 'dashboard'. It's making me nuts! I have some GREAT pics of Bayfield and Madeline Island, but I can't show you!
Gr-r-r-r...

Still, the leaves were BRILLIANT and the weather cold--> I was happy...lol
On Madeline Island, we rented Mopeds (!) and buzzed all over for an hour. At one point, a small flock of birds flew along with us for a bit, and we saw deer before they saw us....lol

Bayfield trys for a 'nautical' theme in town, often tongue-in-cheek: there are bright pink flamingoes in every store or restaurant, and a STATUE made of pink-painted metal downtown...the pics of Mog kissing the flamingo are to die for, but YOU can't see them...neener-neener!

Sorry about that!

A fall trip to Lake Superior

We're off this morning to Bayfield, Wisconsin. You KNOW I'll take pictures, and we'll see if Blogger lets me post 'em.
Doncha just love a mystery?

Waiting for Mog to get here, I noticed a fairly large bird on the cement block on the corner of the square flowerbed outside my office window. ('Fairly large' means about twice the size of a robin--his beak and feet are tucked in, and he's perfectly centered on the block--the only movement is when the wind ruffles his feathers a bit). What's remarkable about that? Something about him makes me think "hawk"--the fearlessness and serenity of sleeping 2 feet above the ground, out in the open--

Ok, she's here!
See ya later...

Beta

I'm trying this new beta program from blogger. Evidently, it now goes through my google account, which seems to have bugs of it's own.

I tried to post a photo three times already...just to see if it works...no go. The page freezes when I click "post".

Soooo, we'll try just words, and see if it greases the skids lol

There's even caramel in my hair

The last three days have been BUSY here in EF Headquarters-land.

Thursday morning, we drove down to Rochester, Mn for a 2 day trade show. The idea was to place orders for a good part of our merchandise mix for next season, and MAN, it was fun! On Thursday, we scoped the place out, getting an idea of what was offered and picking up brochures...then back to the hotel to decide.
In the morning, we had a stack of vendors to visit, place the order, and get on to the next vendor. OMG, that was so cool!
"We need two of this...one of these...a case of this...you have a deal on three cases? Hmm, ok--three. And how do these come? Lots of six? Ok, six of these, these, these and these..." LOL...see?

The ONLY problem with being three hours from home was that Saturday was the opening day of our Fall Sale, and MUCH needed to be done yet. The crew really tried, but with regular customer traffic (PLUS those wanting a pre-sale deal), it's difficult to get merchandise marked and displays set up.

We made it back by about 4:30 on Friday, and dug right in...lol Set up corn shocks on the lawn to cover that bare spot where a big pot was....place signs everywhere....run a cord to the table for the caramel heater and check if the apple corer would actually work there...get the bobcat and haul out pallets of bagged potting soil and mulch...place bales for display and seating...then go home and rest up for the craziness tomorrow!

Whew. Saturday morning, I drove out to Collegeville Orchards to pick up the Paula Red apples--three bushels--when Curtis called to ask that I bring my coffee grinder, too. As he would say, "Done and done!" lol

It was a PERFECT day! Cold and sunny, with wind from the north...geese flying over...the rustle of dried corn, smell of straw and fresh air, and the nearby farmers' last cutting of alfalfa...hot caramel out front, and inside, rich fresh-ground coffee. Mmmm!

When I opened the gates at 7:55, there were six or seven cars waiting to get in, and it stayed that way all day....! A parade of cheery people delighted to be outside for a reason. I really believe that EVERY customer yesterday bought something...lol...and most bought more than that!

Oh, yes! I DID get pictures...don't worry. Dar, the apple server, took lots between chopping apples and pumping hot caramel. Thanks, Dar!
But of course, blogger/my computer isn't cooperating this morning...so click these....
DAR SERVING CARAMELED APPLES

THE CREW

WORKING HARD

BTW....the caramel in my hair? I have no idea HOW it got there, but now I know why that wasp liked me so much!

WOW!

Now THIS tickles me:
CLICK HERE!
LOL

Certain people have been bugging me about updating here...what can I say? It's no longer a florist blog, so I feel "untrue" about keeping the name.

On the other hand, daud says it isn't my problem that web crawlers cherry pick or that I'm listed when someone Googles "rubrum lily". (Hi, rubrum lovers! Thanks for clicking Ephemeral Florist...feel free to scroll around, but be aware that it's more of a 'grandaughter' and 'landscaping' blog these days...the 'florist' stuff is PRE-October 2005...lol).

On the third hand, it's neat to know that both of you CARE whether I blog or not. I could write this stuff in an e-mail, and one cc would suffice, but then, what would late night insomniac random ("Click for next blog") surfers do when they need to sleep?

So, OKAY. You haven't exactly said you LOVE this drivel, but I guess that you want it is good enough....lol

We're having a "Fall Fiesta" at SS next Saturday--the kick-off to a "rest of the season" sale featuring buy-two-get-one-free trees, and twofer shrubs and perennials...(what doesn't sell has to be overwintered), as well as half price fountains, pots, garden tools, etc. AND, there'll be seminars on
Putting Your Pond To Bed For The Winter and Landscaping with Icecicles...(kidding!)

So, this weekend, I made a scarecrow for my displays, and a few crows to go with him.
Wanna see?






















(My sister helped with the crows, which you'll have to imagine, so she gets her picture here.)

xoxo to you all!