Jack Frost

Someone painted pictures on my
Windowpane last night --
Willow trees with trailing boughs
And flowers, frosty white,

And lovely crystal butterflies;
But when the morning sun
Touched them with its golden beams,
They vanished one by one.

Jack Frost by Helen Bayley Davis

Quote du jour/Gladys Taber

We don't have much to say about what the new year will bring. We have learned to go on the best we can, and be thankful for whatever we have.
Gladys Taber, The Book of Stillmeadow

A January bouquet

This afternoon I visited a little flower shop and bought this beautiful bouquet of sweet peas and hellebores. They truly bring a touch of summer into the living room.

Suppertime

On this cold, cold winter night, I made a leek and potato soup and homemade bread, with a strawberry-rhubarb crisp for dessert. Good for the stomach and good for the soul.

Brrrr

4:45 pm

Ivy in winter sunlight

Today's poem - The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry

The Peace of Wild Things
Wendell Berry

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.


This poem expresses much of the essence of my country life. The wildness, the nature around me does truly give solace when my heart is heavy. The quietness calms the noise in my head. I receive the visits of deer and chickadees and wild turkeys and bears and moose as blessings. The one asparagus plant that always comes up reminds me that someone planted it oh, so many years ago. The Duchess apple tree has survived a long, long time and still bears fruit. The big maple out front has been here probably longer than my old house. We find chunks of coal and shards of pottery and old bottles and think about those who lived here before us. There is a feeling of permanence and of natural life continuing on, no matter what occurs in the lives of the humans who share this land. The swallows come back to the same birdhouse each spring, the robins fill the lawns and nest in the trees, the woodcock tells us winter is gone. These things are unchanging, and I am filled with peace.

Literary schemes

Occasionally on Virginia Woolf's birthday, January 25, I have begun one of her books. I am planning on doing so again this month, and I have added a couple other writers to this scheme. In June, the month of Thomas Hardy's birth, I plan to read the new biography. And in December, the month of Kipling's birth, I want to finally embark on reading something by him, and a book I own about him, called Rudyard Kipling in Vermont. I may come up with others as the year procedes, but these are the ones I'm committed to so far.

MacIntosh

In January 2000, I began reading P.G. Wodehouse for the first time, and when we got our Collie in April of that year, we named him after a Wodehousian dog.

Everything you may have read in the books by Albert Payson Terhune about Collies is true. All those traits we saw in the Lassie movies or tv show are real. They are the best dogs. They are true companions, they love children, they are loyal and trustworthy. MacIntosh is such a wonderful dog. He loves his family, but he also welcomes anyone who comes to visit. He still remembers the first two people outside the family he met when he was a pup, and always gives them special attention.

When he was younger, he developed epilepsy. He had a lot of terrible seizures before it was finally brought under control. He loves bread, and we have learned the hard way that fresh bread must be placed far back on the counter. He'll come from anywhere in the house if he hears us slicing it. He gets haircuts in the summer because he doesn't like the heat. He loves the snow and will happily lay in it for ages even on this snowy/sleety day, as you can see in the last photo I just took from the kitchen window.

Today's cd/Love Actually soundtrack

Love Actually soundtrack/2003

My 24 year old daughter is visiting, so I asked her to choose the cd for today. I didn't get to watch this movie during December, but hope to next year. It's one of my favorite movies, Christmas or otherwise. The album has a lot of great songs by a variety of artists. Here's one done by Wyclef Jean and Sharissa called Take Me As I Am that I just love.



And Joni Mitchell singing Both Sides Now as an older woman is just amazing.



And I think using the old Beach Boys song, God Only Knows was the perfect touch.



In the liner notes, the director of the movie, Richard Curtis says, "Without its music, Love Actually wouldn't work at all. I know – because I saw the film without the music, and it was a shocker. So this soundtrack isn't a few songs stuck together; it's the life and soul of the film."

A really great soundtrack album.

Quote du jour/Gladys Taber

It is a good thing to curl up with a book for a little while before bedtime. I like James Russell Lowell, saying, "Solitude is as needful to the imagination as society is wholesome for the character." We all need to spend some time alone; people who cannot bear their own company for a time have thin souls.

The deep part of winter gives most of us a little more time alone. The natural rhythm of time has changed from that of summer. But instead of dreading the dark winter days, we ought to savor them for what they can give. Now there should be time to reread old books, to absorb some philosophy, to play a whole symphony without hurrying. Meanwhile, I dip into Keats, or read a little of the magic of the Irish poets.

Gladys Taber, The Book of Stillmeadow

Sunday Seven/Favorite tv shows

In alphabetical order:

1. 24

2. Grey's Anatomy

3. House

4. LOST

5. Monk

6. NCIS

7. Numb3rs

Today's cd/Organic Vibes

Joey DeFrancesco/Organic Vibes/2006

There's a quote in the liner notes from the late jazz organ player, Jimmy Smith:

After Joey, nobody's close.

You may read more about this artist on his homepage.

Organic Vibes is just the right music for this snowy Sunday afternoon.

Crunchy Pecan Wild Rice

2 cups cooked wild rice
2 cups cooked brown rice (I cook them together)
1 cup chopped pecans
1 chopped onion
1/4 cup olive oil
salt to taste

Prepare rice. Sauté onion in olive oil, turn heat down and add pecans, and cook some more.
Stir in the rice, and cook together at low temp.

This is an incredibly delicious dish. It tastes great, it is very easy to make, and it is very nutritious. Who could ask for more?

Tools of the trade/Orange Juice

This is the season for Florida Temple oranges. They are a fine eating orange, but I squeeze them into the sweetest juice imaginable.

Quote du jour/Virginia Woolf

Seeing a lovely copy of Virginia Woolf's A Writer's Diary over at dovegreyreader scribbles prompted me to take my Signet Classics $1.25 paperback off the shelf and look through it a while. On February 18, 1922, she wrote in her diary:

I've made up my mind that I am not going to be popular.

I'm just shaking my head.

Three Dog Afternoon

Today's cd/Don't Give Up On Me

Solomon Burke/Don't Give Up On Me/2002

Wonderful, wonderful music by a truly great artist. You may listen or buy here.

There is a terrific video of he and Van doing Fast Train over at the Van Morrison News blog.

I sure wish I had been at that show!

Canned Goods

On this 9th day of January, in the middle of winter, I find myself thinking of the most wonderful Greg Brown song, called Canned Goods. Here are the lyrics:

Canned Goods

Well, let the wild winter wind bellow and blow.
I'm as warm as a July tomato.

There's peaches on the shelf, potatoes in the bin.
Supper's ready, everybody come on in.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Grandma put it all in jars.

Well, there's a root cellar, fruit cellar, down below.
Watch your head now, and down we go.

There's peaches on the shelf, potatoes in the bin.
Supper's ready, everybody come on in.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Grandma put it all in jars.

Well, maybe you are weary and you don't give a damn.
I bet you never tasted her blackberry jam.

There's peaches on the shelf, potatoes in the bin.
Supper's ready, everybody come on in.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Grandma put it all in jars.

Oh, she got magic in her, you know what I mean.
She puts the sun and rain in with her beans.

There's peaches on the shelf, potatoes in the bin.
Supper's ready, everybody come on in.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Grandma put it all in jars.

What with the snow and the economy and everything,
I think I'll just stay down here and eat until spring.

There's peaches on the shelf, potatoes in the bin.
Supper's ready, everybody come on in.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Grandma put it all in jars.

When I go down to see Grandma, I gain a lot a weight.
With her dear hands, she gives me plate after plate.

She cans the pickles, sweet and dill,
And the songs of the whip-or-will,
And the morning dew and the evening moon,
I really gotta go down and see her soon.

'Cause the canned goods that I buy at the store
Ain't got the summer in 'em anymore.
You bet, Grandma, as sure as you're born,
I'll take some more potatoes and a thunderstorm.
There's peaches on the shelf, potatoes in the bin.
Supper's ready, everybody come on in.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Taste a little of the summer.
Grandma put it all in jars.

[As sung by Greg Brown on "One Night" (1983), "One More Goodnight Kiss" (1988),
and "The Live One" (1995).]

You may hear a bit:Canned Goods.

Quote du jour/Alan Titchmarsh

A man may be the master of his own house, but only if he doesn't have animals.
Alan Titchmarsh

Ben

This is the very first photo we have of our Ben. His story has a hint of the miraculous about it. In the 25 years we have lived out in the country, only one stray animal, a kitten, has ever made it's way to our home, until the night of March 5, 2004. In the weeks before, we were having our downstairs bathroom changed over into a bathroom/laundry room. The old fan was turned into an outside light that shone out into the north pasture. The very first night we turned it on, I was downstairs alone around 10 pm. Suddenly, I saw, sitting in the glow of that light, a black dog. Once he saw me, he followed me from window to window all around the house, ending up on the front terrace. I went out to visit him, and it was like we were long lost friends. I could tell right off that he was a wonderful dog. The evening was mild for March, so I put a blanket down on the porch with some water. I thought, we'll see if he's still here in the morning and he was waiting at the door when we got up. We let out our other two dogs, and they were all fine together. Then came the hard part. We called the police in the two nearest towns, and the vet to see if anyone had reported a dog missing. No one had, thank goodness. We waited a few days, and then brought him up to the vet for a checkup and shots. Other than being a bit thin, he was in good shape, and they thought he was probably under two years old. He had been neutered, so someone had taken care of him. Who knows his story, but we find it a wonder that the light went on and he came to it. We call him the "wise dog" following the light.

Our daughter was married at home a couple months after Ben arrived, and he was the "wedding dog". He is in a lot of the wedding pictures, including the one of the whole family which was our Christmas card that year.

[addendum: the marriage ended in divorce in 2007.]

He is the fellow who takes care of us. If I should have even the slightest sound of sadness or upset in my voice, Ben is there beside me, putting his head in my lap and looking up at me with those brown eyes. If one of the dogs is outside wanting to come in, Ben lets us know. He is such a great dog, and in many ways, the very best we've ever known. At the time of his arrival, we were watching all the dvds of Friends, and his name came from Ross' baby son.

Today's cd/Fire in the Kitchen

This album is a terrific collection of music done by Canadian musicians, joined by The Chieftains. Many of my favorites are here, including Great Big Sea and Ashley MacIssac. This is the perfect music for a dark and rainy day. The song playing is Lukey, done by Great Big Sea.



You may listen to more selections or buy it here.

Sunday Seven/The next books I want to buy

I thought I might start my own little list and post it on Sundays instead of doing a Thursday Thirteen each week. Sometimes, it is hard to come up with 13 items. :<) So, here is my first Sunday Seven, a list of the next books I want to buy, in no particular order.


Leonard Woolf: A Biography by Victoria Glendinning

Thomas Hardy by Claire Tomalin

Heirloom Baking with the Brass Sisters by Marilynn Brass and Sheila Brass

American Bloomsbury by Susan Cheever

Rumpole and the Reign of Terror by John Mortimer

Mrs Miniver by Jan Struther, from a used bookstore

Beatrix Potter: A Life in Nature by Linda Lear

An uncommon January day

As I walked today, I decided to photograph this unusual winter. There have been a couple little snowstorms, but mostly we've had mild temperatures and bare ground. Today the temp is in the low 40s with bright sunshine. There have been many January days in my life when the thermometer read 60 degrees colder than this. I decided to change my "Winter" photo to a picture I took today to give a more realistic view of what this 2006-2007 is like.




These are a couple of the nests of summer. The one on the barn is used every year; sometimes they build on the top of the provided wooden nest box, and other times they use the inside. Here is a mid-May photo of a robin on the outside nest.

Little Christmas

Today, on Twelfth Night, also known as Little Christmas, I re-read this wonderful little book. I love the story which first appeared in a publication called Farm Journal in 1947. A woman is thinking about the Christmas just past. Her grown children have been back home but it has not given her the joy she expected from the holiday. She decides to make an old-fashioned, familiar Christmas for herself. She gets the tree a neighbor is taking down, and she brings out all the old decorations and books.

Tonight she would light the candles and have a fire, and do all the things she always wanted to do at Christmas. Perhaps in the very doing of them she might find some sort of refreshment and wisdom to take up again tomorrow the cares that lay upon her heart.

Her cares are variations on the ones all mothers of adult children have. Will my child's marriage last? Will my other child find a good partner? Is the youngest going to succeed in college?

Through the process of decorating the house and remembering the happy times when her children were little, she creates an atmosphere that brings about changes first in her, and then in her relationships with her three children, and then in the childrens' own lives.

When they had left, Margaret came back into the pine-scented, fire-warmed, candlelit room, her heart melting with joy! New wisdom and understanding had come to her along with hope and relief. On this, the anniversary of the holy night when the Wise Men had come to worship the baby in the manger, her own children had been given back to her, safe from the perils which threatened them. They were all one now, as in the past, close and secure in the circle of love.

This book is one of my treasures.

Calendars

For a person who doesn't pay much attention to the passing of time, I have an incredible amount of calendars. Two were gifts, but the other four I bought for myself. The only one I really "need" is the desk engagement calendar. All the others are simply delights in my life. I get to read a bit from For Better or For Worse each day. I also find out about a new book the first thing every morning. I bought the Susan Branch wall calendar because I love her art and her way of looking at life. The beautiful quilt one is a present from a dear internet friend, and the Pug calendar from much-loved cousins.

Today's cd/Hopes and Fears

Keane/Hopes and Fears/2004

Truth be told, I could happily play this cd every single day, and never, ever tire of it.

Recently a local radio station asked listeners to send in their top ten favorite albums of all time. A very daunting endeavor. Some results were very important historically, but my choices were strictly personal loves. The newest one on my list was Hopes and Fears. If you are wondering about the others, here they are in alphabetical order:

Barenaked Ladies - Gordon
The Beatles – A Hard Day's Night
Keane - Hopes and Fears
Bob Marley & The Wailers - Legend
Van Morrison - Days Like This
Van Morrison & The Chieftains - Irish Heartbeat
Oasis - (What's The Story) Morning Glory
Paul Simon - Graceland
Zoot Sims Quartet - That Old Feeling
Bruce Springsteen - Born In The USA

Anyway, back to Keane. I sometimes describe music as "achingly beautiful" and the description fits here. I love this album.



The song playing is Everybody's Changing.

Literary characters as friends

Janet over at Joyful Jottings: http://joyfuljottings-janet.blogspot.com/

made a list of literary characters she'd like as friends for her Thursday Thirteen offering yesterday. I'm hoping a lot of people will follow her example and post their own lists. I'm not going to wait till next Thursday. I'll call mine Friday favorites.

These are not in any particular order.

1. Beth in Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

2. Emily Pollifax in the Mrs. Pollifax series by Dorothy Gilman

3. Horace Rumpole in the Rumpole series by John Mortimer

4. Bertie Wooster in the Jeeves and Wooster books by P.G. Wodehouse

5. Archie Goodwin in Rex Stout's Nero Wolfe mysteries

6. Mrs. Dalloway in the book of the same name by Virginia Woolf

7. Mrs. Miniver in the book of the same name by Jan Struther

8. Venetia in Hens Dancing, and Summertime by Raffaela Barker

9. Isabel Dalhousie in the Sunday Philosophy Club series by Alexander McCall Smith

10. Mma Ramotswe in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series by Alexander McCall Smith

11. Dave in Stuart McLean's Vinyl Cafe stories

12. Morley in Stuart McLean's Vinyl Cafe stories

13. Rob Fleming in High Fidelity by Nick Hornby

Today's cd/One More For The Road

Toots Thielemans/One More For The Road/2006

Recently I heard a song on a late night jazz show, a rendition of One For My Baby, and I thought, wait a minute that's Jamie Cullum, but who is playing the harmonica? When the dj announced it was Toots Thielemans, I realized how much I still have to learn about jazz. I've done some reading since, and of course I bought the cd, and have done a lot of listening. He is utterly fantastic. And this cd is perfect. You may get a taste of it here.

I'll be buying a lot more of Toots Thielemans.

Quote du jour/John Mortimer

People have suggested that I'm a little overweight. They've hinted that from time to time. But do I let it worry me? Do I decline the mashed spuds or the fried slice with my breakfast bacon? I do not! I let such remarks slide off me like water off a duck's back.
Horace Rumpole
in Rumpole and the Angel of Death by John Mortimer

Thursday Thirteen/Favorite Books of 2006

For a few days, I've been trying to think of how I wanted to go about making a list of favorite books for last year. Do I choose ten for a top ten list? Do I list all my A+ books (31), which must mean they were my favorites?

So then I thought I would use the Thursday Thirteen format. I reviewed those thirty-one books to see which of them created a perfect reading experience for me: a book I hated to put down, a book I thought about while I wasn't reading it, a book I couldn't wait to get back to, a book I was totally absorbed in. And these are the thirteen I came up with.

[A funny, completely unrelated, musical sidenote - The two numbers make me think of the Offspring song, Pretty Fly (For a White Guy):
Now, he’s getting a tattoo, yeah, he’s gettin’ ink done
He asked for a 13, but they drew a 31]

My thirteen favorite books of 2006, in alphabetical order by author:

1. The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog by Dave Barry, 2006, fiction

2. The Quiet Hills by Iris Bromige, 1967, fiction

3. The Day The World Came To Town
9/11 in Gander, Newfoundland by Jim Defede, 2002, non-fiction

4. Christmas Remembered by Tomie DePaola, 2006, non-fiction

5. The Elusive Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman, 1971, fiction

6. Evenings At Five by Gail Godwin, 2003, fiction

7. A Common Life by Jan Karon, 2001, fiction

8. Light From Heaven by Jan Karon, 2005, fiction

9. Dear Mr. Jefferson: Letters From A Nantucket Garden by Laura Simon, 1998, non-fiction

10. Espresso Tales by Alexander McCall Smith, 2005, fiction

11. The Right Attitude To Rain by Alexander McCall Smith, 2006, fiction

12. Stillmeadow and Sugarbridge by Gladys Taber and Barbara Webster, 1953, non-fiction

13. A Three Dog Life by Abigail Thomas, 2006, non-fiction

Seeds of hope

Yesterday I spent the day perusing online catalogues and ordering my seeds for the coming growing season. The above images come from one of my favorite sources, Renee's Garden. From there, I ordered a favorite we grew last summer for the first time, Ronde de Nice squash.


I also ordered from Seeds of Change, High Mowing Seeds, and Johnny's.

Every year we have gardened, we've sown old favorites, and new choices. This year I am really excited to grow a squash I saw for the first time this summer at the farmer's market, called Zephyr. In addition to an excellent taste, it is so beautiful to look at.


Last year we tried two new (to us) tomato varieties, and liked them so much, we'll probably always grow them. The cherry is called Peacevine, and the full size are St. Pierre.



Hope for the future is at the heart of all gardening.
Marina Schinz

Today's cd/$hake Your Money Maker

The Black Crowes/$hake Your Money Maker/1990

One night a few years ago we were out at a local nightspot listening to our future son-in-law's band, and suddenly they played a song that really caught my attention. I loved the pace, the music, the words. He told me it was Seeing Things by The Black Crowes. You may hear a bit of it at Amazon.

I find it hard to shed a tear
You brought it all on yourself my dear
Wrong, yes I may be
Don't leave a light on for me
'Cause I ain't comin' home
It hurts me baby to be alone
Yes, it hurts me baby

A hundred years will never ease
Hearing things I won't believe
I saw it with my own two eyes
All the pain that I can't hide

And this pain starts in my heart
And this love tears us apart
You won't find me bent down on my knees
Ain't bendin' over backwards baby
Not to please

'Cause I'm seeing things for the first time
I'm seeing things for the first time, oh yeah
I'm seeing things for the first time
In my life, in my life

I used to dream
Of better days that never came
Sorry ain't nothin' to me
I'm gone and that's the way it must be
So please I've done my time
Lovin' you is such a crime
You won't find me down on, on my knees
Won't find me over backwards baby
Just to please

'Cause I'm seeing things for the first time
I'm seeing things for the first time
Seeing things for the first time
Oh I'm seeing things for the first time
Yeah, seeing things for the first time
I'm seeing things for the first time
Yeah, I'm seeing things for the first time
In my life, in my life


The song playing is Hard To Handle, the old Otis Redding number. The (16!!) year old lead singer does this in the movie, The Commitments. It is one of my personal all time favorite songs.



I'm new to The Black Crowes, but now I'm a big fan.

What's in bloom

The kalanchoe was a Christmas gift and should be in bloom for a while.




The clivia is one of my treasured plants. This is the second time it has bloomed in six months. What color!

My January TBR Challenge choice

For my January book, I've chosen Dandelions in a Jelly Jar by Traci DePree.

Today's cd/Songs for Swingin' Lovers

Frank Sinatra/Songs for Swingin' Lovers/1955

I can't think of a better way to spend the first day of the New Year than listening to Sinatra! Many of his great love songs are here: You Make Me Feel So Young, Too Marvelous For Words, I Thought About You, How About You. I'm a huge Frank Sinatra fan, and this is a wonderful cd. The photo is from Amazon since I bought this one at iTunes.

The song playing is You Make Me Feel So Young.