Friday, June 27, 2008

Round Up

If I were a bird I think that I would have to move into one of these temple birdhouses.

I just found out the other day that Tasha Tudor passed away on June 18, 2008. She was 93 born the same year as my dear Gran who passed away 5 years ago. Tasha Tudor was a children's literature illustrator and author. She also had a very interesting lifestyle. Here is a website about her. Here is another.

Another documentary to add to my list of must sees-The Listening Project.

Want to find out about green practices for your library: Going Green at Your Library has some great ideas.

I'm crushed. My blog didn't make Time's list of 50 Best Websites for 2008.

Also, Tech Time's 50 coolest websites.

I love these pillows by Norajane on Etsy.

Fun visual search engine: Search Me.

I think we all have done the experiment of attempting to fry an egg on the sidewalk on a steamy, hot summer day. This woman has taken this to the next step. She bakes cookies in her car. Very eco-friendly.

I may have posted this before, but I get excited every time I see a different version of my beloved periodic table. This one is of dessert. Yum!!!


A More Perfect Union from Andrew Sloat on Vimeo. The Preamble to the Constitution spelled out by 40 people in a New York gym.

As I have indicated previously, I love outdoor art. You can stick just about anything outside and it captures my attention moreso than it would if the object were inside. The di Rosa Preserve is thought to be the most significant collection of Bay Area art. Read the history and peruse some the art . It's incredible.

Want to publish your own magazine. Look at MagCloud.

I think the next bottle of wine that I give as a gift will have to include one of these Popptags.

Have a great weekend.

"What a wonderful life I've had! I only wish I'd realized it sooner." - Collette

Friday, June 20, 2008

Round Up

I am so glad that the Texas GOP did something about this. I never thought I would ever be glad about anything the Texas GOP or the GOP did, but here I am.

Now this is what I am talking about. Book trucks with some style.

If you are in the DC area and you have not visited, the new and improved (IMHO)
U.S. Botanic Gardens, you must. It is absolutely gorgeous. And I love the exhibit One Planet Ours: Sustainability for the 21st Century Exhibit. The globes are awesome. The gardens now has a Lady Bird Johnson feature. I've indicated before that I have this heart-swelling admiration for Julie Andrews and Judi Dench. Well, I have the same admiration for Lady Bird Johnson. I think there are some people who are just born with grace and dignity, and for me these 3 women are the epitome of both of those qualities. And by grace I mean an elegance of spirit, a way of moving about the world. I also felt that way about Benazir Bhutto. Grace and dignity.

Nice Mother Goose index.

Once again, A. doesn't know about this. I am cheating on him. I seem to be spending so much time with Marc. Or Marky Mark as I call him in those early morning hours that we have been spending together. I am so totally smitten with Marc, or as he is more formally known, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus, or Marcus Aurelius. I don't know what to do. I've been reading his Meditations. They are incredible, and I find them to be a soothing balm for my more angst-ridden days. I am reading them, but they are also available online. I'm willing to share my second sweetie with everybody.

Love this Literary Stamp blog.

I haven't tried any of Biggs & Featherbelle Soaps yet, but I love their name and their website.

Shelfari, is the premier social network for people who love books.
You can create a virtual shelf to show off your books, see what your friends are reading and discover new books - all for free! Seems to be a bit like Library Thing.

Loving all of these online state encyclopedias. Here is the Online Nevada Encyclopedia.

Gravescape, will place flowers on your relatives graves when you are unable.

Sticklebook, the invisible bookshelf.

I started collecting these a couple of years ago. Now, I've got a burr under my saddle about this lovely
Quistgaard Dansk Pitcher. Can't you just see some a beautiful bouquet of flowers taking center stage in this gorgeous pitcher. Hmmm.......


I must say that I for one am enjoying this cooler weather. I know it's just a respite, but I am loving it. Enjoy your weekend.


Grace was in all her steps, Heav'n in her Eye, In every gesture dignity and love” John Milton

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Round Up

This weekend is the SilverDocs, the Silver Spring, Maryland documentary festival. The festival is from June 16th-June 23rd. Here is the film list. Oh my, I wish I could see them all.

Urawaza is a Japanese term for everyday tips and tricks to make life easier. Lisa Katayama has written a book, Urawaza: Secret Everyday Tips and Tricks from Japan. Lifehacker has an excerpt from the book.

Look at these lovely literary pendants from Tartx.

To all of my teenage girlfriends who used to make fun of me for reading Jane Austen, I hope you have finally come around. See how popular she is these days. Told ya!!!!! Look at this handy-dandy Jane Austen timeline.

And guess what Sense and Sensibility, the 1994 Ang Lee production is on YouTube.

Love this memory trick. 2 cups in a pint, 2 pints in a quart, 4 quarts in a gallon. And so two "C's" fit inside a "P," two "P's" fit inside a "Q," and four "Q's" fit inside a big, enormous "G."

The New York City Public Library blog has an excellent post about Charles Dickens (it's the June 10, 2008 post). I totally identified with this post. It's like me and lavender. I should like lavender. It's purple, one of my favorite colors. It's beautiful. It's a plant. The scent is said to cure a host of ills. WHY OH WHY DON'T I LIKE THE SCENT? I feel the same way about Charles Dickens. Why can't I like this incredible author?

I'm glad someone thought to have Wishbook, The Christmas Catalog Archive. I can remember spending hours perusing the Sears Catalog when I was a kid. Where I grew up having this catalog delivered to your mailbox was big excitement. I always felt sorry for Pat our mailman (our RFD mailman of approximately 20 years-when he was sick his wife would drive the route)when he had to try and get the catalogs into all the boxes. And speaking of that everyone always would leave cookies and homemade goodies for him in the mailbox during the holidays. Oh, how I miss things like that. Anywho, I digress. When we first moved to the country, we were about 5 miles from the nearest town and the town quaint though it was/is, there weren't many stores. They also hadn't built the 2 malls, Laurel Mall and Uniontown Mall yet, so the catalog was in a way a necessity. Unless you wanted to drive the 40 miles to Pittsburgh to shop.

I am so envious. 60 Minutes went to the Doomsday Seed Vault. (i'm a bit paranoid about embedding the video here so I'll just provide the link).


I can remember making a clorox bottle piggy bank when I was a Girl Scout. These masks are such an improvement. Love that folks are using recycled products to make art. There's much more on the Folk Art South Africa website.

That's all for this week.

"Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves; vanity, to what we would have others think of us." Jane Austen