Emo-pillar (181/365)

 
"There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it's going to be a butterfly."

R. Buckminster Fuller (American Inventor, Designer, Poet, Philosopher, 1895-1983)

TIME: 9:55 PM
PLACE:  Little League Fields (again!)
SUBJECT:  Caterpillar

We spent another night at the Little League ballpark.  MonkeyBoy's 8pm game was a winner this time: 14-5...yea!  Our Jeep was parked in the wrong spot apparently and got hit on the luggage rack area with a foul pop-up.  It only made a slight indentation and it's on the top of the car where you can't see it...those are the chances you take when you park in that section of the lot!  Oh well.  His last game is tomorrow night at 6pm.

StellaDella and DramaQueen found this caterpillar while playing during the game.  SD comes running over to me and tells me to take a picture of him.  Some of the ballplayers' little brothers tried telling SD that it was poisonous.  She didn't care - she picked it up and told the caterpillar that he was cute and fuzzy.  He looks a little "Emo" with his fur over his eyes.  Oh, did I mention that last night we had a little "incident"?  Apparently, one of the boys was giving SD grief much of the night and she finally had enough and told him "If you don't stop it, I'm going to kick your a--!"  He promptly came and told me what she said.  HandsomeHusband and I told her that if someone was bothering her, she needs to come get mommy or daddy - we would handle it and what she said was unacceptable.  Then she had to sit by us in the lawn chair for quite some time.  Sigh.  Am I a bad mom if I was amused by what she said?  I'm glad to know she sticks up for herself!

Waxing or Waning? (180/365)

 
"Slowly, silently, now the moon
Walks the night in her silver shoon;"

Walter De La Mare (1873-1956), British poet. Silver (l. 1-2). FaPO-. Favorite Poems Old and New. Helen Ferris, ed. (1957) Doubleday & Company.

TIME:  8:42 PM
PLACE:  Southwestern night sky
SUBJECT:  Moon

Where did this Monday go?  It felt like I accomplished nothing that I really wanted to today.  I did get some errands run and made spaghetti and meatballs with garlic cheese bread and a salad for dinner.  But the next thing I know, it was time for MonkeyBoy's 8pm ball game.  They played a challenging team tonight and lost 14-9.  Bummer.  But, it was a beautiful evening, with mild temperatures and a breeze.  The moon was lovely as well.   I'll be able to see it change the next 2 nights as MB has another 8pm game tomorrow and a 6pm game on Wednesday.  Got to make up all those rainouts!

BTW, waxing and waning are used to describe the moon as it looks between its full and new phases. Waxing is when the part of the moon that you can see is increasing (getting bigger) while waning is when the part of the moon that you can see is decreasing (getting smaller).  Tonight's moon is First Quarter - which means that 1/2 of it is illuminated.  The next phase is called "Waxing Gibbous" which means the lighted part will be greater than half.  The next Full Moon will occur on July 7th.

Sufferin' Succotash! (179/365)

"One cat just leads to another."

Ernest Hemingway (American novelist and short-story writer, Won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1954, 1899-1961)

TIME:  7:56 PM
PLACE:  My sister's house
SUBJECT:  Sylvester the cat

My sister, Cathy, just adopted another cat last week.  She already has one, Woody (named after the Woody Boyd character on Cheers).  This is Sylvester, named because he looks like Sylvester the Cat, naturally!  He is about 8 weeks old and my sister jokes that she doesn't think that he will ever learn how to walk...the kids carry him everywhere!  

Cathy had a "swing set put-together" party today.  My oldest brother Michael had given her his wooden swing set about 4 or 5 years ago and it has been in pieces since then.  Now, my niece and nephew will be able to swing and slide to their hearts content.  HandsomeHusband, I and the kids were not able to help as StellaDella had her last T-ball game at 3:30pm today.  But we went afterwards with a dish of green beans (with bacon and onions), that I prepared for the dinner.  I also brought fixings to make an alcoholic punch - 7-Up, lemons, limes, frozen lemonade concentrate and frozen limeade concentrate.  All I needed was gin, which was why I called my dad at 8:30 this morning to see if he still had a full bottle at his house which he could bring.  He did, some Gordon's London Dry that has been aging for about 30 years - it was still pretty darn good!

One Woman's Trash... (178/365)

 
[at Professor Frink's yard sale]
Homer: (comes out of other side of matter transporter) Hmmm! Professor Frink: I take it from that little impressed noise that you are interested in purchasing that matter transporter, sir.
Homer: (not fond of the price, hearable in voice) Ummmmmmm... two bucks... it only transports matter... ummm... well, ah... I'll give you thirty-five cents.
Professor Frink: Sold! But I must warn you, this device carries a frighteningly high risk of catastrophic--
Homer: (annoyed) I said I'll take it!"

The Simpsons, Dan Castellaneta, Hank Azaria, Treehouse of Horror VIII, "Fly vs. Fly", Episode 5FO2, Original Air Date: 26-Oct-1997

TIME:  11:43 AM
PLACE:  The front yard
SUBJECT:  Yard sale treasures

Well, I made it.  And yes, it was immensely hot today.  I think the heat index rose above 105 degrees today.  I sat under an umbrella and had plugged a box fan in so at least I had a breeze blowing on me.  The kids sold snow cones, and were doing a brisk business until StellaDella dropped the grinding portion of the ice shaver and broke it.  Whoopsie.  Replacing that is going to cut into their profits. (I didn't get upset about it, and I won't extract payment from her either.)  I don't know how much I took in.  I do know that after all was said and done, I took the remaining crap stuff, placed it in the back of HandsomeHusband's truck and paid a visit to our local Salvation Army thrift store.  It all went (with the exception of 5 items), I got my tax deduction, I have a few extra dollars in my pocket and my basement is less full than it was yesterday.  I consider that a success.

Tree Bark (177/365)

 
"I knew, of course, that trees and plants had roots, stems, bark, branches and foliage that reached up toward the light. But I was coming to realize that the real magician was light itself."

Edward Steichen (American photographer, painter, and art gallery and museum curator, 1879-1973)

TIME: 7:28 PM
PLACE:  Little League Fields - by the Bantam Diamond
SUBJECT:  Tree Bark

As I was busy today getting ready for the big yard sale tomorrow, I have posted a picture that I took yesterday.  The weatherman informed me that tomorrow should be the hottest day of the year - with highs in the upper 90's and heat indexes of over 100.  That is just lovely.  Boy, do I know how to pick a date for a sale or what?   Sigh.  My cousin Kathleen called me and asked if I could her and our friend Michelle for a quick drink at a local bar tonight.  You know what...I think I just might do that!

Truffula Tree (176/365)

 
“Who gathers thistles, may expect pricks"

Proverb

TIME:  7:23 PM
PLACE:  West Monroe Street by the Richland Creek bridge
SUBJECT:  Canadian Thistle

A double-header tonight for MonkeyBoy - they've quite a bit of rainouts to make-up.  The only catch - it was still 95 degrees at 6pm when they started.  By the time they finished at 10:00pm it had cooled down all the way to 84 degrees!  Ah, well, they won both games so that was good.  

This is another noxious weed that I think is quite lovely when not irritating the farmers.  I think it looks like the Truffula Trees in the Dr. Seuss book, "The Lorax".  At the risk of being politically incorrect, I never thought the Lorax character was a hero - I always felt that he was too big on complaining about what was happening to the trees and way too ineffective in actually doing anything to help save them.  It was the Once-ler who saved the last Truffula seed and gave it to a child in the hopes of growing more.  I think that this post at Super Punch really hits the nail on the head.

Poolish Pleasures (175/365)

 
“Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air…”

Ralph Waldo Emerson (American Poet, Lecturer and Essayist, 1803-1882)

TIME: 2:00 PM
PLACE:  Millstadt Pool
SUBJECT:  Monkeyboy

Our field trip this week was swimming.  We went to the Millstadt pool with my sister and her kids.  My sister-in-law and nephew joined us shortly after we arrived.  They have a wading pool area for the little kids, however it was closed today due to an "incident", so everyone was in the main pool.  In the "deep end" with the diving board, they rotate between letting people jump off the diving board and letting people swim in the area.  This is MB jumping off the side during the swimming time.  The kids had a good time - even though we forgot our towels at home! Doh!  I made sure that tons of sunscreen was liberally applied before we ventured out into the sun.  Around 3pm, dark clouds and thunder rolled in...closing the pool for the day.

It's A Good Thing (174/365)

 
"I never worry about diets. The only carrots that interest me are the number of carats in a diamond.”

Mae West (American Actress and sex symbol, 1892-1980)

TIME:  8:42 PM
PLACE:  Kitchen Counter
SUBJECT:  Carrot-Ginger Cupcake

I really was SuzyHomemaker today.  I ran several errands in the morning with the kiddos - Post Office, the newspaper to place the yard sale ad, City Hall to purchase a yard sale permit (our city requires one), the Library, Farm Fresh convenience store for our milk in glass bottles, the Farmer's Market for broccoli, carrots and nectarines, and the butcher for chicken breasts for dinner tonight.  Are you tired yet?  This afternoon, I went downtown by the library to meet a buyer for a Craigslist sale.  Then it was back home to make dinner.  We had Korean Grilled Chicken & Sesame Noodles with Vegetables.  For dessert I made Carrot-Ginger Cupcakes - the recipe courtesy of Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook.  The cream cheese icing is straight from my trusty Betty Crocker cookbook.  DramaQueen made a face when I was mixing it up, but she tried the batter and changed her mind quickly.  I'm sure there are no calories in these cupcakes, the recipe only called for 1-1/2 cups of vegetable oil...do you think that the oil counteracted the health benefits of the 2-1/2 cups of shredded carrots that were in there?
Nah, I don't think so either.

You Are An Obsession, You're My Obsession (173/365)

"My fantasy has turned to madness
All my goodness has turned to badness
My need to possess you has consumed my soul
My life is trembling, I have no control

I will have you, yes I will have you
I will find a way and I will have you
Like a butterfly, a wild butterfly
I will collect you and capture you..."

Animotion, "Obsession", Animotion, CD, Track 1, Mercury Records/Universal Music, 1984 

TIME:  9:19 PM
PLACE:  My basement
SUBJECT:  Vintage craft books

Confession time.  I have an obsession for collecting craft books.  Especially craft books from the late sixties and early seventies.  Especially craft books that make you go "What were they thinking!"  Especially when I can purchase said craft books at thrift stores, yard sales, estate sales, auctions, rummage sales or book sales for $1.00 or less each.  I see one and my heart pounds, the adrenaline starts to rush and I quickly snap it up.  Why?  I don't know.  I'm a freak.  Actually, I love looking at the older designs and dream about sewing, embroidering, or cross stitching something similar.  But, alas, I don't have the time.  Well, I guess I could have the time if I got my butt off my chair and away from this darn Internet.  It's all about priorities folks!  In any case, I have waaaaay too many on my bookshelves in my basement and I need to cull them.  That is why this particular stack of books is going in the yard sale this weekend.  Oh, and I have a ton of others in boxes already upstairs.  Yeah, it's a sickness.  That is why I shall be selling them and spreading the vintage crafty goodness to all! 

Half Shells (172/365)

 
“It was a bold person that first ate an oyster.”

Jonathan Swift (Irish Author and Satirist of prose, 1667-1745)

TIME:  8:18 PM
PLACE:  Broadway Oyster Bar, St. Louis, MO
SUBJECT:  Oyster shells and bottle caps on the wall

Happy Father's Day to all Dads, past, present and future!  I made breakfast for HandsomeHusband this morning and let him take a nap before he mowed the lawn in the heat.  That's the kind of wife I am. *wink*  This evening we took my father to dinner at  the Broadway Oyster Bar in St. Louis, Missouri.  We picked up another friend and then met 4 other folks at the restaurant.  HH and I first dined here together after an afternoon at Mardi Gras back in 1990.   They have great Cajun/Creole food.  HH ordered a bucket of crawfish, a dozen oysters on the half shell, Shrimp Remoulade and some gumbo.  I ate a couple of the crawfish and oysters - yummy!  My main course was a delicious Crawfish Etoufée.  Dad had linguini with a sweet Creole red sauce and crawfish.  Several people in our party had bread pudding for dessert...but I was too stuffed for that.

The oyster shells and bottle caps are part of this mural on the outside patio.

A Dangerous Liaison (171/365)

 
"The sexual embrace can only be compared with music and with prayer.”

Marcus Aurelius (Roman emperor, best known for his Meditations on Stoic philosophy, AD 121-180)

TIME:  10:41 PM
PLACE: The house number plaque on the front porch
SUBJECT:  Humping Ladybugs

Yet again I waited until the last minute to take a picture for today.  That was why at 10:30 this evening, I wandered around the house trying my damndest to find something interesting to photograph.  I ended up with nothing.  So, I headed for the front porch thinking I could find a bug or two to capture.  This sight greets me as I survey the bugs gathering under the porch light.  I am shocked...shocked I tell you.  The nerve, the brazenness, the wantonness, the fact that these bugs are getting it on and I am worried about trying to take a picture for my blog when I would rather be upstairs waking up HandsomeHusband for a little tête-à-tête.  I was affronted, appalled and offended.  I took many pictures.  Does anyone know of a ladybug tabloid to whom I can sell this shot?  I don't think these bugs were married and I sense a nice juicy scandal in the making. 

That Frosty Mug Taste (170/365)

 
[the whale groans]
Dory: Okay, he either said, "move to the back of the throat," or he "wants a root beer float".

Andrew Stanton, Bob Peterson and David Reynolds, U.S. screenwriters, Andrew Stanton, director and Lee Unkrich co-director, Dory (Ellen DeGeneres), Finding Nemo (2003).

TIME: 7:39 PM
PLACE: Inside the Jeep, at the A&W restaurant
SUBJECT:  HandsomeHusband's free root beer float

A&W Restaurants celebrated their 90th anniversary today and to celebrate they were offering free root beer floats to every customer.  HH is a big root beer fan,  so after dinner we all piled into the Jeep and drove to the nearest A&W to partake.  Well, HH partook.  I have never cared for root beer so I got a hot fudge sundae instead as did DramaQueen.  MonkeyBoy and StellaDella just wanted vanilla ice cream cones.  Poor HH - it ended up costing him $11.  If only we all liked root beer floats!

Silly Rabbit (169/365)

 
""Now, my dears," said old Mrs. Rabbit one morning, "You may go into the fields or down the lane, but don't go into Mr. McGregor's garden. "Your father had an accident there; he was put in a pie by Mrs. McGregor."

Beatrix Potter.  The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Frederick Warne & Co. 1902

TIME:  6:25 PM
PLACE:  Across the alley
SUBJECT:  A rabbit

As I was putting some chocolate chip cookies in the oven to bake (don't be impressed, they were pre-made frozen dough from a school fundraiser) I looked out the window and saw a rabbit sloowly hopping from our garden to our driveway.  I'm sure he was in there nibbling away at our plants, so I thought I would shoot him...with my camera of course!  By the time I made it outside, he had hopped down the alley and into the yard across the way.  Thank goodness for a fence post to rest the camera and my optical zoom on my Canon PowerShot S2 IS.  I got him!  You'd better stay away from my tomatoes or I'll put you into a pie you furry rodent!

Any Alligators In Here? (168/365)

"I kneel down to peer into a culvert.
The other end seems far away."

Robert Bly, “Keeling Down to Peer into a Culvert” , l. 1-2 from The Man in the Black Coat Turns. 1981
  
TIME: 8:32 PM
PLACE: Little League Fields
SUBJECT: Culvert pipe

This was not the image I wanted to capture tonight.  There were a ton of fireflies and StellaDella was catching them during MonkeyBoy's late game (8pm).  I tried and tried to get a photo of a firefly while it was glowing but not luck.  Oh well, try, try again tomorrow.  This is a culvert pipe that you cross to get to the fields.  My mom had told us when we were little that alligators lived in these pipes so we should never crawl in them.  I have passed that little bit of false information family tradition to my kids.  It still works - they have never tried to crawl into one!

A Promise Fulfilled (167/365)

 
What did one raspberry say to the other raspberry?
"If you weren't so fresh we wouldn't be in this jam!"

Unknown

TIME:  8:22 PM
PLACE:  The Backyard
SUBJECT: A ripe raspberry!

Well the raspberries are just beginning to come in now.  There are about 4 or 5 of them that were totally ripe and after I took this picture, I ate them.  They were pretty tasty!

Would You Like To Buy A Yard? (166/365)

 
"Is it true that the only difference between a yard sale and a trash pickup is how close to the road the stuff is placed?"

Unknown

TIME: 10:00 PM
PLACE:  My basement
SUBJECT:  Yard sale stickers

This is what I was doing today.  Attempting to cull the crap treasures located in our basement.  I am feeling suffocated by the amount of stuff that we have.  I had a yard sale last July and suckered people into buying sold quite a bit.  How is there STILL so much piled in the basement?  Good gravy, I think that it must breed down there.  That has to be the only explanation.  Last year, I took a bunch of the remaining items to the Goodwill (thrift shop).  The rest of the trash goodies I placed on the front strip of grass between the sidewalk and the street and posted a Craigslist notice for "free stuff" - it was all gone by Sunday evening.  I plan to follow the same protocol for the yard sale next weekend.  If it doesn't sell, it ain't coming back in to the house, it's going!

Pigpen's Sister (165/365)

 
"I'm shakin' the dust of this crummy little town off my feet and I'm gonna see the world."

Frances Goodrich (1891-1984), U.S. screenwriter, and Frank Capra. George Bailey (Jimmy Stewart), It's a Wonderful Life, to Mary after the dance (1947). George says this, or a variation of it, a lot in the first part of the movie. additional scenes by Jo Swerling. Based on a story by Philip Van Doren Stern.

TIME:  4:35 PM
PLACE:  Little League Field - Bantam diamond
SUBJECT: StellaDella kicking up dust

I don't know what she likes to do more, falling down each and every play or kicking up dust running for the ball.  Whenever she made a move on the field today her feet were dragging.  She was dragging them so she could watch the dust puff up around her.  Whenever her team was on the field, she would fall down in the infield dirt on each and every play.  Her teammate would be on the other side of the infield making the play and SD would fall down.  She would be nowhere near the ball and down she would collapse in the dirt - she did it in empathy for her teammate I guess.  Sigh.  She has just 2 more games to play until the end of her T-ball season.

Let The Big Wheel Roll (164/365)

 
Rick: How can you close me up? On what grounds?
Captain Renault: I'm shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!
[a croupier hands Renault a pile of money]
Croupier: Your winnings, sir.
Captain Renault: [sotto voce] Oh, thank you very much. [aloud] Everybody out at once!

Casablanca (Humphrey Bogart, Claude Rains, Marcel Dalio,
Michael Curtiz-director, 1942)

TIME:  8:29 PM
PLACE:  St. Mary's Parish Picnic
SUBJECT:  The "Big Six" Wheel

According to the calendar, the official astronomical date for the first day of summer doesn't occur until June 21st.  However, I declare that the true start of summer began tonight with the first Catholic parish picnic.  About every 2-3 weeks from now until September, there will be one going on for you to attend if you so wish.  Tonight was our parish's picnic and we walked there to enjoy the beer, bingo and brats.  There was gambling (it's a Catholic picnic for heaven's sake!) with the Big Six wheel, a quilt/cash bingo and raffle tickets.   A cold beer stand is a given.  There were booths where you could take your chances to win a theme-filled baskets or a cake.  For the kids, there were several inflatables (a slide, obstacle course and bounce house) and a kid's game area.  As we were leaving, a band was beginning to play.  The best part this year was that they were selling margaritas on the rocks...very yummy!  

When I was single, before HandsomeHusband and the kids, my cousin Kathleen and I would make the rounds of the majority of the parish picnics.  We went for the cheap beer and the gambling.  We always made sure that we made it to our home parishes to meet and hang out with our friends from grade school.  Good times!

Candlelight And Cake (163/365)

 
“Most of us can remember a time when a birthday - especially if it was one's own - brightened the world as if a second sun has risen.”

Robert Lynd (Irish Essayist and Journalist, 1879-1949)

TIME:  8;03 PM
PLACE:  The dining room
SUBJECT:  MonkeyBoy & his birthday cake

When this picture was taken, we were singing (quite off-key and it sounded like we were singing a funeral dirge!) "Happy Birthday" to MonkeyBoy.  I'm so glad the cake is hidden in the dark.  I ended up making the cake myself.  I took MB to the bakery to pick a cake out, but as we were looking at the available cakes, MB told me that what he really wanted was for me to make him a "plain cake", he did not want any of the "fancy ones" we saw.  "Just cake and icing Mom."  OK, if that is what the birthday boy wants, I will bake him a cake.  Well, it ended up turning out very CakeWreck-y.  But he was happy with it and it tasted good, so I guess that is all that really matters, huh?  He really cleaned up gift-wise - that boy took in over 150 dollars!  In addition to the cash, he received a Wii game, a game for his Nintendo DS, a coin counting bank and some walkie-talkies.  Before he went to bed, he hugged and kissed me and told me that it was the "best birthday ever!  Thanks Mom!"  You know, that makes it all worthwhile.    

Itsy Bitsy Spider (162/365)

 
"The spider's touch, how exquisitely fine!
Feels at each thread, and lives along the line."

Alexander Pope (1688-1744), British poet. An Essay on Man (Fr. Epistle I). . . Poetical Works [Alexander Pope]. Herbert Davis, ed. (1978; repr. 1990) Oxford University Press.

TIME:  7:42 PM
PLACE:  Maggie Moos
SUBJECT: Spider

Today is Monkeyboy's 10th birthday.  He was quite excited about turning the double digits...his family party (Grandpa, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins) is going to be tomorrow night.  Tonight, HandsomeHusband, DramaQueen, StellaDella, MB and I went out to eat at Olga's, then went to Maggie Moo's for dessert.  While we were outside, enjoying our ice cream, MB noticed a tiny spider hanging out under the wrought iron table.  It moved pretty quick and ended up on a napkin on the top of the table.  DQ and SD moved to another table, but I whipped out the camera and voilà!  I have no idea what kind of spider it is.  And can you see the blue on the napkin in the background?  SD had to have cotton candy ice cream again.  We used quite a number of napkins this evening.  But no matter how many we tried to use, they were of no help...I think her mouth, fingers, arms etc. will stay blue from the dye for the next 24 hours or so.

Under The Lights (161/365)

 
I objurgate the centipede,
A bug we do not really need.
At sleepy-time he beats a path
Straight to the bedroom or the bath.
You always wallop where he's not,
Or, if he is, he makes a spot.

Odgen Nash (American poet, author, lyric-writer, 1902-1971), "The Centipede"

TIME: 8:01 PM
PLACE:  Little League Field - Bantam Diamond
SUBJECT:  Light Pole

This is my second attempt at taking a picture of the light pole at the Little League fields.  I was not happy with this one that I took at StellaDella's ball game on May 9th.  In fact, I will be the first to admit that it was rather boring.  I think this one is just a titch more interesting.    I'm definately getting a centipede-like vibe from it due to the climbing pegs.  BTW, MB's team ended up losing tonight's game, by 6 runs.

Yatsuhashi (160/365)

There is a land of the living and a land of the dead and the bridge is love, the only survival, the only meaning.

Thornton Wilder (American, Playwright & Novelist, 1897-1975)

TIME: 10:03 AM
PLACE:  Missouri Botanical Garden - The Japanese Garden
SUBJECT:  Yatsuhashi - "eight bridges"

We embarked on our first "field trip"of the summer this morning.  We met up with my sister, her two children and her mother-in-law at the Missouri Botanical Garden or "Shaw's Garden" in St. Louis, Missouri.  We arrived when they opened at 9am and went to the Climatron first.  We then made our way to the Japanese Garden.  This zig-zag bridge is located in the southwest lakeshore of the Japanese Garden.  The Missouri Botanical Garden website states that it is "...called Yatsuhashi, a name meaning “eight bridges” and referring to a place in Mikiwa Province, Japan, where in the 10th century a single river branched into eight channels. Each channel was crossed by a bridge around which grew masses of irises. This ideal is emulated in Seiwa-en by soil-filled iris planters placed on both sides of the bridge."  My sister and I both remarked that the irises were just beautiful.  The sister then observed that we sounded just like two little old ladies.

Just around the bend from this bridge is another bridge were for a mere 25 cents, you could feed the Koi.  This I believe, was the highlight of the trip for the 5 children.  I spent about $2.50 in quarters feeding the fish.  We wandered a little more, then went to the Children's Garden so the kids could play for awhile.  We left a little after noon.  About 3 hours is all they can handle.  I'm thinking that I need to come back sans children and with my tripod, in order to get some really good flower shots. 

There's A Storm A Brewin' (159/365)

 
"Time and the bell have buried the day,
The black cloud carries the sun away."

T.S. (Thomas Stearns) Eliot (1888-1965), U.S.-born—British poet, critic. "Four Quartets 1: Burnt Norton," IV. lines 1-2, 1935

TIME:  5:25 PM
PLACE:  Looking Northwest off the Back Porch
SUBJECT:  Storm clouds

More rain arrived this morning.  Around 10:30am, it stopped and the kids and I left to spend big bucks at the grocery store, the farmer's market and the milk store (where I like to buy our milk in 1/2 gallon glass bottles-it just tastes better in glass!)  The sun peeked out for a little while this afternoon and then another storm front moved in.  This front arrived just in time to cancel MonkeyBoy's baseball game.  We had a tornado watch in effect as well.  I was hoping to capture some lightning, but did not have any luck.  

Sleepover Scene (158/365)

 
“The essence of childhood, of course, is play, which my friends and I did endlessly on streets that we reluctantly shared with traffic.”

Bill Cosby (American Actor, Comedian and Producer. b.1937, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA)

TIME:  11:04 PM
PLACE:  The living room
SUBJECT:  DramaQueen, her BFF and various Little People

DramaQueen asked to have her BFF spend the night.  I agreed and they have giggled, whispered and banished StellaDella from playing with them...eliciting a waterfall of tears from SD and a lecture from me about being nice and would they please include the little sister for 30 minutes; and then an explanation to SD about how sometimes older kids need time alone to play with their friends.  Here, they have unearthed all of our Little People figures, houses, garage, farm and other accessories from the basement and have set up an elaborate scene in the living room.

Dragon Boat Races (157/365)

 
From yonder o'er
The high seas, fast encroaching:
Here Come The Dragons.

Jess C. Scott, Viking Longship, Dragonsinn, 12 Dec 2007/6 Jun. 2009, <http://www.dragonsinn.net/Poetry/haiku.htm>

TIME:  10:09 AM
PLACE:  Creve Coeur Lake, St. Louis MO
SUBJECT:  Racing Dragon Boats and StellaDella

Well, I survived the races today!  We were losers...4th place in the second to last consolation division to be exact!  But it was a good time, the weather was beautiful, the kids behaved and I'm not too sore.  I've posted more pictures at my other blog if you have a hankering to see more from the day.  Now it's late and I'm off to bed!

All Sins Cast Long Shadows (156/365)

 
“Baseball is a slow, sluggish game, with frequent and trivial interruptions, offering the spectator many opportunities to reflect at leisure upon the situation on the field: This is what a fan loves most about the game”

Edward Abbey (American Writer whose works, set primarily in the southwestern United States, reflect an uncompromising environmentalist philosophy. 1927-1989)

TIME: 7:36 PM
PLACE:  Little League park, Bantam field
SUBJECT:  Shadows of HandsomeHusband, me and DramaQueen

Monkeyboy had one of his make-up games scheduled this evening.  He was batting clean-up tonight.  At his first at bat, he smacked one way out in center field.  He is a fast runner and it should have been a triple, but he misunderstood the third base coach, who was yelling "Round (the bag) and hold!"...MB thought he said "Run for home!" so he did.  Luckily the throw at the plate went over the catcher's head; MB slid into home plate; and he was safe.  He was pretty proud of himself.  After the inning was over, the coach took him to the side and had a little talk about what he actually said and how he needs to listen while base running.  He was lucky this time.  I'm still proud of him though!   

Nevermore (155/365)

"Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
`'Tis some visitor,' I muttered, `tapping at my chamber door -
Only this, and nothing more.' "

Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849), U.S. writer, poet & literary critic. The Raven, (L. 1-6),
first published in 1845

TIME: 1:31 PM
PLACE: Public Library (Downtown)
SUBJECT: "Raven" - by Dale Rogers, Massachusetts & MonkeyBoy

My kids, especially DramaQueen, love to read.  Our library has a summer reading program each summer.  We went today, but found out that the program does not start until next week.  That's ok...we usually go to the library on a weekly basis during the summer months.  So we will definitely return next week to sign them up.

A new sculpture was recently installed in front of the library in conjunction with our city's "Sculpture in the City" program.  A local law firm was the sponsor of this particular piece.  Of course I had my camera with me.  MonkeyBoy gladly posed with it for me.

Boating Weather (154/365)

 
Wild Nights - Wild Nights!
Were I with thee
Wild Nights should be
Our luxury!

Futile - the Winds -
To a Heart in port -
Done with the Compass -
Done with the Chart!

Rowing in Eden -
Ah, the Sea!
Might I but moor -
Tonight - With Thee!

Emily Dickinson (1830-1886), U.S. poet. Wild Nights!—Wild Nights!, The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson. Thomas H. Johnson, ed. (1960) Little, Brown

TIME: 6:20 PM
PLACE:  Creve Coeur Lake
SUBJECT:  Moored dragon boat

Back in 2007, I participated in a Dragon Boat Race with my dad and his company.  Last year, we (HandsomeHusband, the kids and I) were on vacation in San Francisco and I could not share in the race day experience.  This year, Dad roped called me into service again.  Tonight was our team training exercise.  It lasted for about an hour.  I had forgotten how physically challenging it is to paddle in a 400 meter (1/4 mile) race.  I am quite certain that my arms, shoulders and whole body will be hurting tomorrow.  Hopefully, I will be recovered by race day on Saturday. 

Beating The Clock (153/365)

"Thank you Mario, but our Princess is in another castle."

Mushroom Retainer, Super Mario Bros., Nintendo, 1986

TIME:  10:57 PM
PLACE:  Kitchen table
SUBJECT:  Rentals to be returned

We rented these games and movies last week and they were due tonight by midnight.  I ended up going out and returning them at 11:00pm so we wouldn't be charged a late fee.  Before I did that, I took a picture because I didn't have a photo for today.  Sorry for the borrrrring picture...I'll do better tomorrow!  

A View From The Top (152/365)

 
"I can't forget
How she stood at the top of that long marble stair
Amazed, and then with a sleepy pirouette
Went dancing slowly down to the fountain-quieted square;"

Richard Wilbur (b. 1921), U.S. poet. Piazza di Spagna, Early Morning (l. 1-4). . . Oxford Book of Short Poems, The. P. J. Kavanagh and James Michie, eds.
Oxford University Press.

TIME:  5:56 PM
PLACE: Hesse Park
SUBJECT:  My feet and a slide

School's out for summer.  I "twittered" earlier today that Monkeyboy lasted about 2 hours before the phrase "I'm bored" spewed forth from his mouth.  Sigh.  He had an away baseball game tonight.  We arrived about 35 minutes early, so I took StellaDella to the playground at the park.  She watched another girl play a "follow the leader" game with her mother and then decided that we needed to do that as well.  Her idea of "follow the leader" was dictating directing me in various exercises around the structure.  Here I am at the top of the tallest slide on the playground (don't look too close at my toes, I need a pedicure very badly!).  If I was rating the slide speed, I would give it an 8.5/10 - it was pretty fast.  I was extremely happy that my fat ass lovely derriere didn't hinder my decent by scraping the sides as I glided to the bottom!