Gold Mine of Great Ideas

Rachel Ashwell's latest blog entry (she is on the sidebar under Shabby Chic) mentions Dusty Lu's website. I went there to check it out and not only are her photos and blog entries wonderful, she has DOZENS of equally lovely blogs on her blogroll. I told Little Man's Father that he won't see me for months! You can check it out at dustyluinteriors.blogspot.com.

Huber

This handsome boy showed up in November last year at Little Man's Grandfather's shop. (got that?) We tried to find out if he was someone's lost pet but no one claimed him and he is now quite at home in his new chosen domicile. When he is not on the desk demanding attention or tagging around looking cute and hoping for more food, he can be found lounging on the lift truck seat. He is a love bug - can't get enough petting and attention - and would be content to be carried around like a baby all day if possible.

Why I Love Dick Francis

Here's the opening of "Straight":

I inherited my brother's life. Inherited his desk, his business, his gadgets, his enemies, his horses and his mistress. I inherited my brother's life, and it nearly killed me.

Here's the opening sentence from "Nerve":

Art Mathews shot himself, loudly and messily, in the center of the parade ring at Dunstable races.

Here's the opening from "Reflex":

Winded and coughing, I lay on one elbow and spat out a mouthful of grass and mud. The horse I'd been riding raised its weight off my ankle, scrambled untidily to its feet and departed at an unfeeling gallop.

Here's the opening sentence from "Risk":

Thursday, March 17, I spent the morning in anxiety, the afternoon in ecstasy, and the evening unconscious.

Nothing like reaching out, grabbing you by the throat, and dragging right into the middle of the story! I have my favorites among his works, but a bad Dick Francis is still better than most reads. The last few works were collaborations with his son Felix. A lot of people criticized them, but I still enjoyed them.

For years now, I have gotten my required dose of his books from audio recordings. Tony Britton is my favorite, but the other readers (Simon Prebble, David Case, Martin Jarvis) aren't bad. Our library system has all of them, either cassette or CD, and I just keep taking them out whenever I need a fix.

If you've never read Dick Francis, any of the above books would be a great place to start. I also especially like "Bonecrack" and "For Kicks".

Kelsey's Essentials

Here's another cooking show that I am really enjoying - Kelsey's Essentials. She features basic cooking recipes and techniques and lists her tools and ingredients. Then she talks about possible variations. It is what I think a cooking show should be - how to cook!!! She also has a blog which I added to the sidebar.

Groundhog Day - Imbolc - Candlemas

I have never seen the word Imbolc before. Today I saw it twice in less than 5 minutes! So, I went a-googling and read all sorts of interesting things about February 2nd. It is halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox and 40 days after Christmas. There are all sorts of pagan and Christian traditions tied to this date, which I am much to lazy to list. (see the wikipedia listings for Imbolc and Candlemas as a great place to start your research.) Bottom line - Spring is coming again. The writer of "Living Water from an Ancient Well" (see link on the sidebar) has a lovely liturgy for today that really glorifies God and His creation.

On a different note, I read somewhere a while back about re-visiting New Year's resolutions throughout the year following a pattern of Feb. 2, March 3, April 4 etc. I thought that was a good way to keep up the momentum, so I'll be doing that later today.

Meanwhile, we are getting snow and freezing rain today, so I can justify staying inside and playing on the computer!