... Snow

Snow, snow, snow, snow!!

{You have to read that the way it's sung on White Christmas. Which, by the way, I happen to go to church with the son of one of The Clooney Sisters. You know... the gals that actually sang that song with Bing and Danny. But that's a story for another time.}


Yes folks, here in Norfolk, VA we actually experienced snow. These shots were taken one week ago from today. The local papers told tale of this being the biggest snow storm in 20 years. To be honest, it's the only REAL snow I've seen here in the 13 years I've lived here.


The funny thing is, today it's snowing again. Part of what weather men across the nation are calling "The Storm of the Century".

What's the world coming to I wonder?

But back to the snow.


Since we have no children, most of our entertainment centered around our dog, Sidney.

She faithfully allowed us to throw snowballs at her. {She tried to either eat them in the air, or fetch them depending on how far we threw.}


She also let us chase her.


But mainly, we just sat inside peering out the windows at this amazing sight.


What a novelty.

Snow.

... Illogical Insanity

I don't work in the design or web marketing field, however, I truly love this website. It captures the frustration I sometimes feel when working with some of my clients.

Clients from Hell

Even those that don't work directly with their clientele will appreciate this site, I'm sure.

... Mr. Owl

Shortly after I found out I was expecting, my minds eye started scrolling through all the cute baby & children's crafts I've seen over the years. I was eager to make something, yet frustrated that I didn't know the gender of our child so I could start stitching immediately.

I ended up settling on a little stuffed owl to satisfy my itchy stichy finger. I copied the idea from a picture I saw online, using various textured fabrics making it fun to feel... and drool on too I suppose. I think he turned out kinda cute!

... the not-so-new-anymore glasses

Remember this debacle? The one that forced me to get new prescription sunglasses. Well, it turns out that you have to get your prescription updated every 12 months. And your eyes don't like it when they have sunglasses in one prescription and glasses in another. So that whole dang dolphin incident.... it made me have to get TWO new pair of glasses. Ouch!


But here they are. A little subdued compared to my last ones.

... the 41 of 2009

**** Pick it up from the library today!
*** Add it to your reading list.
** Eh, it was ok...
* Forget you ever heard about it.

Fiction

The Day the Falls Stood Still by Cathy Marie Buchanan - "The stone walls of Loretto Academy are so thick I can sit curled up on a windowsill, arms around the knees tucked beneath my chin." ****

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon -- "I still remember the day my father took me to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books for the first time." ***

Lush Life by Richard Price -- "The Quality of Life Task Force: four sweatshirts in a bogus taxi set up on the corner of Clinton Street alongside the Williamsburg Bridge off-ramp to profile the incoming salmon run; their mantra: Dope, guns, overtime; their motto: Everyone's got something to lose." **

The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson -- "Accidents ambush the unsuspecting, often violently, just like love." ****

Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout - "For many years Henry Kitteridge was a pharmacist in the next town over, driving every morning on snowy roads, or rainy roads, or summertime roads, when the wild reaspberries shot their new growth in the bramlbes along the last section of town before he turned off to where he wider road led to the pharmacy." **

Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian - "The girl - a young woman, really, eighteen, hair the color of corn silk - has been hearing the murmur of artillery fire for two days now." **

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson - "It happened every year, was almost a ritual." ***

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger - "Claire: It's hard being left behind." ***

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein - "Gestures are all that I have; sometimes they must be grand in nature." **

The Given Day by Dennis Lehane - "Due to travel restrictions placed on major league baseball by the war department, the world series of 1918 was played in September and split into two home stands." **

Shanghai Girls by Lisa See - "'Our daughter looks like a South China peasant with those red cheeks,' my father complains, pointedly ignoring the soup before him." ***

Daphne by Justine Picardie - "To begin." *

The Things that Keep Us Here by Carla Buckley - "It was quiet coming home from the funeral." **

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows - "Susanne Scott is a wonder." ***

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing by M.T. Anderson *

The Boat by Nam Le ***

Brick Lane by Monica Ali **

Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo ***

The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway ***

The Children of Men by PD James **

Serena by Ron Rash ****

The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery ***

Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald ***

The Lazarus Project by Aleksander Hemon **

The Likeness by Tanya French **

Mudbound by Hillary Jordan ***

My Sisters Keeper by Jodi Picoult ***

Netherland by Joseph O'Neil *

The Pig Did It by Joseph Caldwell **

The Plague of Doves by Louise Erdrich **

Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh ***

So Brave, Young, and Handsome by Leif Enger ***

The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski ****

Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri **

Non-Fiction

Annie's Ghosts by Steve Luxenburg **

The Hemingses of Monticello by Annette Gordon-Reed ***

The Island at the Center of the World by Russell Shorto ***

Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver **

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch **

Long Walk to Freedeom by Nelson Mandela ***

Tears of the Desert by Halima Bashir - ****

... The Reason for My Absence

... Farmers Market, Hawaiian Style

Morning of day #1 and what do we do? We immediately ferret out a local farmers market. I wasn't sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't this! The place was packed out with all types of people, a large variety of inviting fragrances, and colorful & exotic fruits & plants.



Acting like kids in a candy store, we scooped up as many fresh goods as our little arms could hold. Creamy Avocado, Juicy Tomato, Hot Bread, Sweet Papaya...

One of our more adventurous eats was some coconut juice. When you cut open a coconut, there is a watery fluid in there (it's not the milk -- that's made by scraping and pressing the pulp). It was interesting, not coconut-y or sweet, just a fruity flavored water. We went back afterward to have it cracked open and scraped so we could eat the meats. What a versatile nut.

Ahhh.... a well stocked farmers market, the perfect way to start our vacation in paradise!