Winter's soft blanket

  

 From our front porch.

  

Snow-covered monkey grass.

 

 Snow on the trees and bushes.

From our bedroom window.

 

A blanket of snow covers our cars.

First Christmas in our little cottage

We have a real tree this year!

By the front entry.

Bookcase in the corner.

Bowl of goodies!

Holiday coffee table.

In the kitchen.

The "First Family" Obama Family Portrait

The official White House portrait of the Obama family by Annie Leibovitz was released today.  What a lovely family!

Getting into the spirit!

This weekend is homecoming weekend in my hometown, so I'm getting into the spirit of OSU, the university from where I obtained my graduate degree.  GO POKES! BEAT MISSOURI!

Growing up in Stillwater, I never really appreciated the uniqueness of my hometown until I became an adult and lived in several other places all over the country.  It wasn't until I moved back here in 2000 that I realized what a great place, Stillwater was/is.  I remember this time of year and how OSU homecoming always fell in October, just before Halloween, the walk-around on fraternity row, Theta Pond all lit up, marching in the Homecoming parade with the Stillwater High School marching band, (always right behind the OSU Marching band!), and the sound of the OSU marching band practicing on the lawn near the Seretean Center.  Now I live only blocks from the Seretean Center and on a clear morning I can hear the OSU drum line on Saturday mornings as they practice and the ringing of the library clock tower every fifteen minutes. These familiar sights and sounds are appreciated now so much more than they were when I was child. It's funny how we seem to come back around to the place where we began.

Don't wake me until noon

I had a completely lovely time at the Willow Manor Ball last night, and I danced until dawn with Herr Mozart (and several other tasty morsels). The room was filled with music, laughter, and revelry. But now my coach has turned into a pumpkin, my glass slippers have a broken heel, and my handsome prince is in his cups, so I am off to bed to dream of next year...

The Willow Manner Ball

Today is the day that I will be escorted by Herr Mozart to the 2nd Annual Willow Manner Ball.  I shall begin the day with a lovely breakfast of Belgian waffles with blueberries and whipped cream, a thick ham steak, and a cup of Earl Grey tea with sugar and cream.  Then I shall take a long luxurious lavender scented bath and afterward, my maids will begin to dress me for the ball.  I shall be wearing the following:

First my hair must be pinned and capped, before my wig can be put on.

 These are lovely necklace and ear bobs that I shall wear.

 Then, of course, my gown.

 Of course, a lady never leaves the house without her fan.

And I found the most lovely pair of shoes!  Aren't they simply elegant?

I can hardly wait!

What to wear? What to wear?

I have been invited to attend The 2nd Annual Willow Manner Ball, and once again, I shall be escorted by the ever-charming and delightful Wolfgang A. Mozart. Last year I wore a lovely 18th century gown made of raw, polished silk in butter yellow.

This year I am having a difficult time making up my mind what I should wear and I need your help.  The following are the choices.  Help me decide!

If I could be anywhere, doing anything...

 

...this is what I'd be doing.

20 Things I Would Love to Say

The most recent meme to resurface is the “20 Things I Would Love To Say” meme. You make a list of things you wish you could say to someone, but you don’t name names. The readers then either join in with their own lists of anonymous statements, or spend the rest of their day trying to figure out who the blogger was referring to, wondering if it was them. Passive-aggression at its worst, no? This can be fun, but it also carries the potential of turning really snarky and mean-spirited. I’ve decided to play along, with the disclaimer that if you’re reading this, I might very well be talking about you. (Thanks Steph!)

1. We're my favorite "us".

2. I know you lurk on my blogs thinking that I don't know you're reading them. I just want you to know that despite the fact that I think that you need to grow up and stop acting like such a brat, I really love and admire you. I always have, and I always will.

3. Your ability to look inside yourself and clean out the old stuff that was holding you back from reaching your potential has been such an inspiration to me! Your steadfast friendship, even when faced with rejection, means more to me than you can ever know. Thank you. (And keep on playing that recorder! I think you've found your niche!)

4. Finding you again, after so many years, has been a joy. Please know that you are always loved. (And purple has always suited you perfectly.)

5. Even when we don't speak to one another for several days or even weeks, I always know you're there. You've always been by my side to offer encouragement, love, and even a shoulder to cry on when I needed it. You've loved and cared for me, even when you didn't understand. Your gentle, humble, spirit has always been a comfort and inspiration to me, even when we were children. I have always loved you, and I always will.

6. Who would have thought that after over twenty-five years, that you would emerge to become one of the most important and dearest people in my life? I so love our Saturday/Sunday morning Facebook chats and I can't WAIT until we get there and can hug you in person! (And I think your girl is THE BOMB!)

7. You have your place in my life. Yes, there were some good times, and I will always remember them fondly, but I really don't want to be friends. Friendship with you carries too many expectations and a lot of old baggage. I'm no longer the person you knew, and I don't want to go back there again. I hope you find happiness in your life. I really do.

8. I love your blog. I love the subjects you choose to write about. I like the music you like and I love all your "favorite things". And Libras are totally COOL!

9. I wish we could have known each other better when we were in high school. I always admired you, and the oboe has always been one of my favorite instruments.

10. I hope that one day you will come back to the blogosphere. I understand how emotionally draining a divorce is, but we miss you.

11. I have a really hard time understanding disloyalty. What did I ever do to you to deserve such a stab in the back?

12. I hope to visit you in Scotland one day, very soon. (I love your taste in music, BTW!)

13. One day you will come to understand that your self worth doesn't reside in fame nor in brushing up against fame. Your worth comes from deep inside you, from the person you are and will become. You are valuable because you bring a unique perspective into this mix we refer to as "humanity". Know and be secure in that.

14. Have I told you lately how proud I am of you?

15. I hope that one day you will realize how many friends you have, and just how much they love you.

16. What would I do without you? Just don't be surprised when you wake up one morning and find that little yellow slug bug sitting in your driveway.

17. Condoms in an empty Marlboro box???

18. I'll always be grateful to you for coming to my defense in the forum. Hopefully it won't be long before we meet again in Salzburg!

19. I feel a trip to Disneyland is in order.

20. I always knew you'd find that little boy again!

Plates: A family heritage

I first saw this over on Derrick's blog who got it from Willow, and I thought is would be fun. So here are my offerings! My plates are a reflection of Steph's and my combined family heritage. We both love to collect dishes and we have several sets, not all complete. We love to mix and match them, and on special occasions you will never see the same place setting twice. We hope to collect more in the future, as we are able to travel to different places around the world.

The dishes that my great grandmother used in her restaurant in Washington, Oklahoma.



Plates that belonged to Steph's mother. The bowl on the far left was Steph's mom's baby bowl.



The Lenox bone china that my father gave to my mother for their 25th wedding anniversary. It was passed to me when mother died in June of 2001.



The first dishes that Steph and I bought together. The blue pottery was purchased in an outlet store in Denver, Colorado, and the little floral plates were purchased in a boutique in Boulder, Colorado.


This pasta plate and tureen look like they came right out of Tuscany, but were actually purchased at a Hobby Lobby right here in Stillwater. (The champagne flutes to the right were our wedding flutes.)

Ten favorite movie characters

I found this meme on Willow's blog and thought it so clever that I had to play along!

Idgie
Tawanda!


Col. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain
Don't call me Lawrence.


Albert
Oh God, I pierced the toast!


Antonio Salieri
Can you recall no melody of mine?


Charlie Anderson
They don't belong to the state they belong to me! When they were babies I never saw the state comin' around here with a spare tit!


Lili von Schtupp
Let's face it fellas, everything from the waist down is kaput!


Sam
I want the Rootie-Tootie Fresh N' Fruity like at IHOP.


Elinor Dashwood
Marianne, can you play something else? Mamma has been weeping since breakfast. I meant something less mournful dearest.


Eliza Doolittle
...and what I say is, them as pinched it done her in


Mama Morton
In this town, murder's a form of entertainment.

High School Meme

I found this on Steph's blog and decided to play along. I wish that I had one of my senior portraits to upload, but I don't, so I'll try and find a picture of my old school to post.




1. Did you date someone from your school senior year?

Yes. His name was Eddie Bundy and he graduated the year before I did.

2. Did you marry someone from your high school?

No.

3. Did you car pool to school?

My freshman and sophomore years I carpooled with the kids across the road, but starting my junior year, I had a car so I drove both my brother and me.


4. What kind of car did you drive?

I had a 1976 yellow Dodge Colt.

5. What kind of car do you have now?

I have a 1996 Nissan Quest.

6. It's Friday night... where were you (in high school)?

In the fall I was playing in the band at the football games. In the spring, I was usually performing with the Madrigal somewhere.

7. It is Friday night... where are you (now)?

At home with Steph.

8. What kind of job did you have in high school?

I worked in a tuxedo shop, as well as for my dad in his veterinary clinic.

9. What kind of job do you do now?

I am a secretary/receptionist at a local real estate office and I teach private voice and piano.

10. Were you a party animal?

By no means. I was a good little Southern Baptist girl. I was very serious.

11. Were you considered a flirt?

Not at all. I was all about music and friends.

12. Were you in band, orchestra, or choir?

I played the baritone horn in marching band and the bassoon in the concert band as well as the orchestra. I also sang in the Concert Choir (2nd Soprano), as well as the Madrigal (2nd Soprano).

13. Were you a nerd?

I was considered a "music nerd".

14. Did you get suspended or expelled?

Never. I was a very good girl.

15. Can you sing the fight song?

Stillwater High united,
Working together,
We'll never, never fail you,
victory will be ours (Rah! Rah! Rah!)
Our school we will love forever,
True to the Bronze & Blue
March on you Pioneers for SHS!

16. Who was/were your favorite teacher(s)?

Steve Maison-Concert Choir, Madrigal
Charles Chessmore-Honors English
Ted Waterfall-American History
Kim Domnick-Speech/Drama

17. Where did you sit during lunch?

I usually went off campus for lunch.

18. What was your school's full name?

Then it was C.E. Donart High School. It was offcially changed to Stillwater High School several years after I graduated.

19. When did you graduate?

1978.

20. What was your school mascot?

We were the Pioneers and our mascot was a covered wagon.

21. If you could go back and do it again, would you?

Some of it I would. I loved the years with the Concert Choir and the Madrigal. I also loved performing and having leads in the musicals. (We did "The King & I" my junior year and "Guys & Dolls" my senior year.)

22. Did you have fun at Prom?

I went to the prom every year and had a great time!

23. Do you still talk to your prom date?

My junior and senior years I went to the prom with Eddie. I haven't seen him in nearly 15 years--not since his mom's funeral. One of my prom dates is now married to one of my best friends from high school and we do email one another once in a blue moon.

24. Who was your best friend?

Debi Butler--the "Frick" to my "Frack".

25. What did you want to be when you grew up?

A Broadway star!

26. Any regrets?

I wish I'd listened to my heart and done what I wanted to do instead of trying to please everyone else.

27. Biggest fashion mistake?

Double knit anything! YUK!

28. Favorite fashion trend?

I loved the large-legged, high-waisted trousers with the pleated tuxedo shirts. I really got into the whole tailored menswear look for women.

29. Are you going to your next reunion?

I'd like to.

30. Who did you have a secret crush on?

No one really. I was very picky.

31. Did you go on spring break?

In 1976 I went with my church youth choir to Washington D.C. for the Bicentennial celebrations. That was a lot of fun!

The Pagan origins of Easter

The name "Easter" originated with the names of an ancient Goddess and God. The Venerable Bede, (672-735 CE.) a Christian scholar, first asserted in his book De Ratione Temporum that Easter was named after Eostre (a.k.a. Eastre). She was the Great Mother Goddess of the Saxon people in Northern Europe. Similarly, the "Teutonic dawn goddess of fertility [was] known variously as Ostare, Ostara, Ostern, Eostra, Eostre, Eostur, Eastra, Eastur, Austron and Ausos. Her name was derived from the ancient word for spring: "eastre." Similar Goddesses were known by other names in ancient cultures around the Mediterranean, and were celebrated in the springtime. Some were:
Aphrodite from ancient Cyprus
Ashtoreth from ancient Israel
Astarté from ancient Greece
Demeter from Mycenae
Hathor from ancient Egypt
Ishtar from Assyria
Kali, from India
Ostara a Norse Goddess of fertility.

An alternative explanation has been suggested. The name given by the Frankish church to Jesus' resurrection festival included the Latin word "alba" which means "white." (This was a reference to the white robes that were worn during the festival.) "Alba" also has a second meaning: "sunrise." When the name of the festival was translated into German, the "sunrise" meaning was selected in error. This became "ostern" in German. Ostern has been proposed as the origin of the word "Easter".

From Religious Tolerance.org

An Easter Funny

The way it should be

Judgement: Letting go of the past

Basic Card Symbols

Angel, trumpets, graves with people rising from them, often water or an ocean.

Basic Tarot Story

As the Fool leaves the garden of the Sun, he feels that he is near the end of his journey, ready to take a final step. But something is keeping him from doing this, holding him back. He gazes up, hoping to find guidance from the Sun; instead he sees above him a fiery angel, beautiful and terrible.

"You are right," the Angelic figure confirms, "you have only one last step on your journey, one final step to completion. But you cannot take that step until you lay your past to rest." The Fool is perturbed. "Lay it to rest? I thought I'd left it behind, all of it," he says. "There is no way to do that," The Angel observes. "Each step wears down the shoe just a bit, and so shapes the next step you take, and the next and the next. Your past is always under your feet. You cannot hide from it, run from it, or rid yourself of it. But you can call it up, and come to terms with it. Are you willing to do that?"

The Angel hands the Fool a small trumpet. The Fool is hesitant, but he knows that this is a final decision. Either to go forward, or stay where he is. He blows, and the trumpet's song echoes across the sky, its vibrations seeming to crack open the Earth. From under the Fool's feet, memories rise. Images of his innocent youth, challenges, loves, failures, losses, success, disillusionment and wisdom.

For the first time, he does not try to leave them, ignore or forget them, but accepts them. They are, he sees, nothing to fear. They happened, but they are gone now. He, alone, carries them into the present. With that understanding, the memories vanish. Though they remain in his mind, they no longer have any power over him. He is free of them, reborn, and wholly in the present.

Basic Tarot Meaning

With Fire as its ruling element (or Pluto as its ruling planet), Judgement is about rebirth, resurrection. The idea of Judgement day is that the dead rise, their sins are forgiven, and they move onto heaven. The Judgement card is similar, it asks for the resurrection to summon the past, forgive it, and let it go. There are wounds from the past that we never let heal, sins we've committed that we refuse to forgive, bad habits we haven't the courage to lose. Judgement advises us to finally face these, recognize that the past is past, and put them to rest, absolutely and irrevocably. This is also a card of healing, quite literally from an accident or illness, as well as a card signaling great transformation, renewal, change.



Judgement is often a hard card to read; it usually signals just a big change, one that involves leaving something old completely behind and stepping into something completely new. Like closing the door on an old job, and opening the door to a new and very different career. But it's also about making a final decision, to take that plunge into the new career, to forgive your family, to leave an abusive spouse, to make a new life. To heal and renew. It's a very hard card to read, in part because it deals with very hard and final decisions. And it means facing something that most Querents don't want to face. You can't hide any longer, this card says, all the dead have risen and are out in the open. Face what you have to face; make that decision. Change.

From Aeclectic Tarot