Sunday, January 31, 2010

Leaves of Green

From the Elizabethan Gardens in Manteo, North Carolina, September 2009

Join TODAY'S FLOWERS # 77 to see the world in flower.

Monday, January 25, 2010

Puzzle Quilt

I am not compulsive. Repeat that three times please. 

I just like puzzles, love mysteries and I want to know the history of things. This quilt came from an estate sale this past spring. I loved the colors, but it was just a top I bought ($25) for a table covering. The colorful fabric included a red and blue plaids, geometric patterns, cute flowers and little people (vaguely 40's designs).


The first time I used it I found the back, which I had not really focused on, had newspaper stitched into the seams. When I washed it the paper started to pull off.

I could read some words, so I carefully picked off the larger pieces and like a puzzle (or a quilt) pieced them together.

I got enough to determine the paper was from Atlanta GA, 1942. The larger sections advertised a "full time classes, television technical (probably repair), G.I. Approved", 'Lotion 79 cents", comics..."Tarzan" title but no picture and one mentioned "World War".

So I'm guessing that solves the puzzle of when and where this quilt top was made.

While you are here let me direct you to  Eddie Ross and the Apartment Therapy Window Challenge take a look and vote for Eddie's  ELLE DECOR window.

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Looking for Spring

These images are from Spring 2007. 



Spring 2010 will be here soon.  Stop by TODAY'S FLOWERS # 76 for some great shots of flowers on floats.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

In the Red Zone

Here's a collection of reds for Today's Flowers # 75







Stop by Today's Flowers to see great shots of a cheerful yellow orchid.

Friday, January 15, 2010

News from Haiti

Our friend Maurice Geiger, Director of the National Rural Justice Center ...  (New Hampshire Bar AssociationNH Union Leader News article, Consortium for the Advancement of Haiti) ...  is currently in Haiti.  Happily he has been in contact with home and is OK.

I have not been to Haiti, but I have been to the Dominican Republic.  Here are some pictures from the country side taken in 2006.  They are not the best since I was on horseback at the time.  But I think they show the conditions up in the hills in the DR.  These were the "good" houses.  In the rain these roads are rivers of mud.  The poverty is striking, but I'm sure no where near what is found in Haiti in the best of times.












Can you imagine what Haiti was like...and is like now?

You can text 90999 with the word "Haiti" to donate ten dollars to the American Red Cross; the charge will appear on your phone bill.

Another friend works with Bill Clinton and his foundation.  You can text Haiti 20222 to donate ten dollars to the William J. Clinton Foundation.

Monday, January 11, 2010

Banana Peels and Fish Knives

This is Mind Your Table Manners Monday over at The Entertaining House  Take a look.  In that vein here's our manners experience.

Our country club has a "Your Manners are Glowing" series.  Three Sundays, three hours each, ending with a dinner.  Yesterday was the first session.  The little sponges came home soaked.  They had all the basics of meeting and greeting with eye contact, waiting for everyone before sitting at the table, napkins, Continental and American style eating, all the basics covered at The Entertaining House post.

However....here's how dinner went.

They learned to fold napkins in a Banana Peel style...











...  and they used them on the table. E hid the napkin rings inside the fold.

Then we got critiqued.  Now I try not to use every plate in the house.  But I try to set a complete table.  Good silver, place mats, napkin rings. We were having Beef Burgundy, a salad, bread and apple cobbler.  Three plates.  Everything fits in the dishwasher.  E insisted on adding a service plate, salad forks, dessert fork and spoon, full complement of wine glasses.  Since no one was having wine I talked him out of the glasses.

We sat down.  Perfect manners.  No elbows, no talking with full mouths, silverware at 4 o'clock (not 3:30, not 5:00).  No licking the dessert plate!

The bottom line came at the end of dinner when E went through the silver drawer inventory.  "Where are the fish knifes?"  Excuse me!  This is a kid who loves to fish.



But he's a catch and release boy.


In fact, his hyper sensitive nose detects when I have fish in the fridge.  Forget about on the table ready to eat!

I'm ok with banana peels, but sorry no fish knives!