Wednesday, February 25, 2009

61

For age is opportunity no less
Than youth itself, though in another dress,
And as the evening twilight fades away
The sky is filled with stars, invisible by day.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Morituri Salutamus - 1825


61 coffee beans
61 paper clips
61 books
61 years

71 comments:

  1. Oh, Happy Birthday Nan. What a fine vintage you are, and a lovely photograph to prove it. May you have a wonderful day, and many, many more.

    Carole

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  2. Oh, my goodness, two comments already!! Thank you Carole and Katie. I like 'fine vintage.' That'll keep me going. :<)

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  3. Nan
    Happy Birthday to you.
    Love the sunset behind you.

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  4. Oh what a wonderful way to celebrate your birthday. All sorts of fun things like beans and paperclips and YOU!!!
    And, Longfellow...how is it that someone who lived so long ago understood so much?

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  5. Happy, happy birthday, Nan! 61 looks marvelous on you!

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  6. 61 wishes for a happy birthday!

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  7. And a beautiful 61 you are! Happy Birthday, Nan!!!

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  8. Happy, happy birthday, Nan! I remember you writing in your birthday post last year "I'm still me, just older!" :)
    At 7:59 central tonight, right after the kids are in bed and I plop down for Lost, I'll be raising a glass of vino to you, my dear friend, wishing you many more happy, healthy years!

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  9. I'm comin' up right behind ya Nan. Enjoy the day and the days that follow!
    - J.

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  10. Happy birthday from a fellow Pisces! (Mine is on the horizon.)

    From the photo, looks like you're having a delightful day.

    Wishing you many happy returns, and may the coming year bring many wonderful reads and all the joys of farm and garden.

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  11. Yipeee! It is your birthday!!! All of the planets were aligned on that fateful day to give the world a person as lovely as you!!! Hope you had lots of fun today!

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  12. Happy , happy birthday!!!!
    All those 61's make me smile!
    Spring is on it's way....we'll
    send some up to you from the south.

    Bonnie

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  13. Dear Nan...

    Love and wishes to you!

    Jeanie/KY

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  14. Happy Birthday Nan!
    and Many Happy Returns!!!

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  15. Happy Birthday, Nan. Sixty-wonderful!

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  16. Happy Birthday to you. What a lovely way to illustrate it. I hope your day is wonderful and I look forward to sharing the next year with you through your fun and informative posts. Stay warm.

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  17. Happy Birthday! It doesn't really look like too many years, when measured in coffee beans, does it?

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  18. Happy Birthday Nan. I hope you had a lovely day, and may you have many, many more.

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  19. Happy birthday! :)

    -Jenn (a usually non-commenting reader :) )

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  20. Happy Birthday Nan !
    A lovely blog, written by a lovely lady.....

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  21. Happy Birthday, Nan. 61 is such a nice number - just another way of writing 16. Have a wonderful day.
    Maureen

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  22. Many Happy Returns of the Day. Such a clever posting too. Look out for a cheap imitation in October!

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  23. Great post! I hope you had a lovely birthday, filled with 61 hugs, kisses and greetings from family and friends.

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  24. Happy Birthday, Dear Nan! We have a birthday in our family today. Here's to a wonderful year ahead!

    love and hugs,
    Aisling

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  25. Happy birthday Nan! I hope you have a great day, with all the family and friends giving you treats and fuss!

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  26. Happy birthday to you!
    Happy birthday to you!
    Happy birthday dear Nan ...
    Happy birthday to you!

    I hope you have a wonderful day filled with all the things you love to do. :)

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  27. Happy Birthday Nan! I hope you have a very special day planned and enjoy yourself!!

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  28. Happy, Happy, Birthday!

    Hope you had a wonderful birthday celebration.

    Wonderful photo (of you, of course) - thank you for sharing. Other photos were great too...

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  29. Happy birthday! I will be 60 this year, and I love everything you showed 61 in - the paper clips, coffee beans and YOU!
    May the next 61 be totally awesome :-)

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  30. Nan- Happy happy birthday! As you have shown 61 is not so very many which means you have many more happy years to look forward to. I know whereof I speak.

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  31. Happy Birthday! What a great picture of you!
    I thought we were the same age - now I know we are.
    Margaretha

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  32. What a teriffic post!! Happy, Happy Birthday to you, you lovely lady. I'm sending a chocolate cake your way. Or vanilla. Or whatever you like!

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  33. Remember....61 is 16 backwards. I've been following your blog for quite a long while, but this is my first time to leave a comment. Nice to read/see what another northerner is up to...especially in the winter. A snow blizzard going on outside my window as I type this. Happy Birthday, Nan.

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  34. Hi Nan and a belated Happy Birthday to you. How wonderful to put a face to the name after all this time. :)

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  35. Happy Birthday Nan. I hope this is is your best birthday yet and many more to come.

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  36. Fabulous post - many happy returns of the day .... this is late because we were away celebrating my brother in law's 60th birthday

    Love the dog in the snowstorm, too

    Joanna

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  37. Oh my gosh, it is so worth it to be this age just for all these wonderful comments. I just got a chance to publish and read them today, and I'm so touched. You are very kind and thoughtful. I'm quite sure this post has the most comments I've ever gotten! Wow! Thank you to old friends whose names I know so well, and new friends who left birthday greetings. I had a great birthday with many cards and many calls and then a great spaghetti supper at our daughter's house. Thank you all. Your comments mean more than I can say.

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  38. Thanks, Joanna. I had just posted my thank yous when yours came in. I thank you, too, so much.

    Oh, and to each of you - I'm not 'quite' as huge as the coat makes me look. :<) It belonged to Tom's late stepfather, and though it isn't a color I usually wear, and is big enough to wear another coat underneath, I love it so much; partly because it was his, and partly because it is cotton filled with down -very warm and cozy no matter how cold it is outdoors.

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  39. So glad you had such a lot of birthday tributes! I think you need to update the link to my blog to http://callmemadam.livejournal.com/

    Nothing but pictures of building works and flowers at the moment but I might manage books tomorrow.

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  40. Call me madam, I changed it. Thanks for letting me know. I love seeing how your renovations are coming along. And the crocus!

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  41. You're gorgeous! Happy birthday. I hope you stay happy and healthy until your last day on this earth, and I hope your last day on this earth is far in the future.

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  42. Happy Birthday, Nan! Fancy you having old Alan Titchmarsh on your New England bookshelves and Wodehouse, too. Any reason why these two chaps are together on your shelves, other than W following T in the alphabet?
    Margaret Powling

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  43. Thanks, Chartroose!

    And Margaret P., there is no rhyme or reason to my bookshelves, other than an author's books are all together. I love Wodehouse, and Alan's autobiographies are among my favorites. I'm not so big on his fiction except for Animal Instincts which I've read a few times and love. I did a book report on Nobbut a Lad just about a year ago, if you'd like to see it:

    http://lettersfromahillfarm.blogspot.com/2008/03/book-reportnobbut-lad.html

    And his Christmas book here:

    http://lettersfromahillfarm.blogspot.com/2007/11/book-reportfill-my-stocking-2005.html

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  44. Happy birthday, dear one! I'm out of town in the wilds of Oklahoma (well, not really the wilds, but...) and have just started looking at my usual blogs. I knew it was coming soon. Love the post. Love the coat. Love you!! Hugs and kisses!

    And, my word, 50 comments! Totally deserved!

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  45. Oh1 Sorry this is late for your birthday, but I hope it's one of those longish kinds with lots of lingering sweet surprises.:) Best of everything to you and thanks for making your blog a cozy place to visit...Blessings, Debra

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  46. Thank you, Debra and Kay so much!!

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  47. Happy Belated Birthday wishes. We're not so far apart! I'll celebrate my 58th on Monday, though I feel more like 35. Bless you as you begin another year! --Catherine Mary

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  48. Beautiful!
    ♪ Happy, happy birthday, dear Nan! ♫

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  49. I'm sorry this is late but Happy Birthday Nan. What a clever post. I am a couple of years ahead of you!
    Patricia in Australia

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  50. Happy happy Birthday Nan! Missed the day I'm afraid, but wishes still heartfelt.
    What a lot of Pisceans I know and love (son no 2’s b-day today).

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  51. A belated Happy Birthday to you, Nan!

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  52. Catherine Mary-you're a Pisces! Thanks so much.

    Thanks for the song, Colleen! How do you do that?

    Patricia, thanks so much for coming by.

    Paula and Cath, thank you very much.

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  53. I'm back to give you your #61 comment!! :)

    Love the coat!! It looks so cuddly warm.

    Have a fabulous year.

    Love, Les

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  54. I'm back again, because at present you've got 60 comments (!!) and it seems appropriate that you should have at lesat 61.

    Or more!

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  55. Thanks Les and Margaret! Some of those comments are mine!! :<)

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  56. Drat. I'm late.
    But no less sincere in my wish for a most Happy Birthday to you, Nan!! Many, many more!

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  57. Thank you, Pamela, and I love late birthday greetings and presents! They draw the day out longer. :<)

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  58. Happy Birthday Nan, Belatedly! 61 years, congratulations! 65 comments, imagine that!

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  59. Oh, Mibsy, thank you! (some of those comments are mine)

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  60. A very happy birthday to you, Nan! I hope it was a wonderful day.

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  61. Thank you, Robin, it was! My birthday always falls during school vacation week, so we see a lot of people during this time.

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  62. A belated Happy Birthday Nan. Those years don't look like a hill of beans for sure. You look like a young whippersnapper.

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  63. Oh, I am sorry to have missed the 'very day' celebration but congrats and my husband tells me 61 was a good year. I have a few to go to get there but let me say 'You look marvelous'! Happy and marvelous and I hope you are still celebrating.

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  64. Thank you, Layanee! Good to hear those words from your husband! I don't have many older friends.

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