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Leslee
Interests: health, food/dining, travel, writing, blogs, poetry, movies, books, ideas, relationships, astrology
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Oh, that sounds like a wonderful idea, Beth! Maybe it's because I remember and loved some of your stories way back when. And with your lovely illustrations, it sounds perfect.
Green Almonds, reprise
The following conversation with my father-in-law occurred almost a decade ago, but whenever I see green almonds in the market, they remind me of him, and I buy a few -- though I probably like looking at them more than eating them. This year, I drew and painted some. -- Green Almonds "Such...
These are lovely! You are such a talented artist. Funny about Pulsatilla. It's one of the first homeopathic remedies I had umpteen years ago (it is classically given to "blonde, blue-eyed females of a mild disposition" and very changeable - also called windflower). "The flower grows in clusters, indicative of how a Pulsatilla types are happiest around others." As these appear to be!
Glad your weather has warmed up, as here in Boston. Summer is so short - trying to savor every bit of it.
Catching up while nature steams on ahead
During the four days we were in Florida, two weeks ago, my garden exploded. The entire spring had been cold and rainy here, so the plants had emerged very slowly, and I got used to that pace. Not so after a weekend of 95 degree heat: everything from poppies to peonies burst into bloom, and fad...
These are wonderful!
The Mexican Printmakers - Part 1
Jose Chavez Morado, Escuela rural (Country School), 1936 Because I make relief prints, I was very happy to see original prints by of some of the Mexican masters of the early 20th century, in a show about the Arte Moderno movement (Modernism) and Mexican Identity at the Chapultepec Castle. In t...
Yes, I just found that out today at work because Europe is setting the clock back this weekend and we'll have a week of confusion until everyone (our UK and EU clients and colleagues) is the usual number of hours off from each other. Time - and snow, apparently, in some places - is flying!
October
Ah, where has the time gone? Busy with work, as ever. Avoiding sitting any more than already required for the job -- another impediment to blogging. However, I did just install a Varidesk sit-stand thingie in my home office, which means I can stand some portion of the time at my computer and I...
Thanks, Julia. Wish I were there right now!
Vacationland
We went to Cape Cod for vacation this again this year. Last year we tried a new place on the Upper Cape, which was nice but not a favorite. This year we went back to a place on the Lower Cape we'd been to before. It offered a shorter drive and a prime location overlooking Vineyard Sound and ad...
I thought your photos were fabulous. And I'm sure they still couldn't capture the place fully because how could they compared to actually being there? But anyway, I'm really commenting because you reminded me of the amazing bacon I had out for breakfast this morning. I almost never have it at home, and since D. doesn't get up until 10 or so we never go out for breakfast (although, brunch does sometimes afford the experience of bacon). But I stayed overnight at a friend's and this morning we went out for breakfast. Still remembering the bacon.
Iceland: The Land of Waterfalls and Bacon
I was so excited to share photos and details of my recent trip to Iceland, and I did - straight away with the promise of sharing more. I look at the photos now and just know that they do not convey the beauty of the place. But nothing could, right? Unless you determined yourself to get there. Th...
Thanks, Lucy. I suppose there are worse things than night sweats, but it's hard to have perspective when sleep deprived. ;-)
Julia: It's miserably hot and humid here right now, if that's any help! Will keep posting Boston pics...
Into the summer...
With all the swirl of swill that seems to be enveloping the world these days, there are also the long days of sunshine and warmth. And, alas, the long nights waking in sweat if I can even fall into sleep in the first place. The long holiday weekend was particularly challenging at D's as anothe...
Honestly, I think the only people who ever write comments to news articles have nothing better to do than troll. On the rare times I read comments anymore on an article I enjoyed, I come away disheartened and vowing never to read comments again. I thought it was a lovely article, and in the context of the sad incidents in the news lately completely understandable.
I slipped into the comments on a FB post my nephew "liked" recently, a simple expression of sorrow from Mitt Romney over one of the recent killings, nothing more (my nephew tends to the conservative). The ignorance and racism in the comments was shocking (not from my nephew, btw). I guess it's important to know about the blindspots or ignorance if not outright racism out there and not have my head in the sand, but I will still try to avoid peaking under the rock to read comments in the future. Hats off to those who patiently responded to the commenters trying to enlighten them.
On the other hand, there are some bright spots. I heard a nice interview with the 3 smart women who founded Black Lives Matter on NPR today. Smart, determined, clear-eyed, persevering, optimistic that things are changing. Admirable.
Dual.
Champlain, NY An essay of mine appears in today's Montreal Gazette. I read some of the comments last night, and then stopped; I won't engage in a discussion in the newspaper's comment thread, but please feel free to weigh in if you go over there - and I'd be happy to hear your thoughts here. A...
Thanks, MM. Enjoy your summer as well!
Still here
Two months after my last post, checking back in. The news is unbearably sad or infuriating in turn these days here in the US. And yet there is still beauty and love. On Saturday, we walked down the street to the Boston Pride Parade, which was fun and joyful despite the drizzle. A very long par...
I love these photos. It's been a tardy spring here as well, and some of those early magnolia buds have browned in the cold. But at least we've had more of a start. It looks to be warming up in the upcoming days, both here and up north. It will be all the more joyous when it arrives!
April
Eliot insisted it was the cruelest month, and ever since he's been quoted repeatedly by the winter-weary, even though complaints about long-delayed spring were not really the thrust of the opening lines of The Wasteland. Here in Montreal, this has been a particularly cruel April -- not becau...
Thanks, Beth. We probably could all have a club, although getting online in the middle of the night's not conducive to sleep. Still, nice to imagine it, a psychic communing and commiserating! Yes, looking forward to spring weather.
April Fools
[Public Garden lagoon; April 10, 2016] Yes, February and March have come and gone, with no update here. Various uninteresting things have kept me from posting, including intermittent sleep problems and accompanying aches and pains and inability to focus (visually and otherwise) beyond what I g...
Thanks, Julia. Naps are great, though I can only manage them on weekends. I used to love yoga, but I have vertigo issues which prevent it now (sigh). I do try to get walks in or go to the gym and do my physical therapy exercises to keep up. You take care and be well also!
Marja-Leena: Sleep is such a wonder drug when you can get a good night of it in, but so elusive sometimes. Thanks, and be well yourself!
April Fools
[Public Garden lagoon; April 10, 2016] Yes, February and March have come and gone, with no update here. Various uninteresting things have kept me from posting, including intermittent sleep problems and accompanying aches and pains and inability to focus (visually and otherwise) beyond what I g...
Happy Blogday, Beth! Glad you're still blogging - I have enjoyed your posts this past year from your travels, and of course also following your blog over most of the 13 years. Best wishes for another year of splendid posts!
Birthday Bouquet
This is the thirteenth birthday of The Cassandra Pages, and what better way to celebrate than with some spring flowers (especially when the reality outside the window is snow on the ground, and 4 degrees Celsius.) This blog began during a grim time, as George Bush Jr. insisted that Iraq had ...
Will try! We do get an extra work holiday this year (Feb 15th), presumably to make up for the extra day.
Into February
The photo above is from last year, February 22, when we were finally able to get out of the house after 100 inches of snow fell, mostly all in the previous 3 or 4 weeks. We were so thrilled. We drove to Cambridge, just outside Harvard Square, found actual cleared parking on the street, and got...
Thanks! Yes, we are all enjoying the warmish weather and will be happy to take a pass on snowy weather if this continues.
January thaw
While Snowzilla hit the Mid-Atlantic states and Washington DC, we got away with just a few inches in the Boston area. D was still recovering from his cold (possibly bronchitis), so I brought him to my place in the 'burbs where we mostly hunkered down for the weekend. Unlike our usual city week...
It was amazing, and I hope not to see it happen again anytime soon. Thanks, and Happy New Year!
Year in Review: 2015
The big story of 2015 has to be the snow. Snowmaggedon. Snowverload. Snowmygod. It fell and it fell until we had more than 94 inches in the 30 days from January 24th to February 22nd, or 110 inches for the entire 2014-2015 winter season. It started out so mild. On the weekend of the January ...
Best wishes for your mom's continued recovery - and your health as well. Have a happy and healthy New Year!
December
On Friday night, a rare cold night this oddly warm holiday season, we stood outside watching the Mayor's Celebration of Lights projected onto the Boston Public Library (a Nutcracker scene above). D and I tried singing along to The Twelve Days of Christmas, although despite the visuals clearly ...
Thanks, Marja-Leena. I hope you're enjoying your holidays as well - and have a happy and healthy New Year!
December
On Friday night, a rare cold night this oddly warm holiday season, we stood outside watching the Mayor's Celebration of Lights projected onto the Boston Public Library (a Nutcracker scene above). D and I tried singing along to The Twelve Days of Christmas, although despite the visuals clearly ...
Thanks! I hope you both have a lovely Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year.
December
On Friday night, a rare cold night this oddly warm holiday season, we stood outside watching the Mayor's Celebration of Lights projected onto the Boston Public Library (a Nutcracker scene above). D and I tried singing along to The Twelve Days of Christmas, although despite the visuals clearly ...
Thanks, Lucy. I walked this afternoon and found carpets of leaves around, very pretty. I'd shuffle through and kick them around if I wasn't afraid of stirring up allergens. Anyway, I'm glad I don't have to deal with them myself - one benefit of being a tenant instead of a homeowner.
Season of fallen leaves
[Cemetery wall; 11/4/15] We've gone from the season of lustrous fall foliage to the season of fallen leaves, dead and paper-dry. A few bright amber stars cling to catch the late light, but even their days are numbered. [Shorn trees, St. Pat's cemetery] [Leaf shadows] Dead leaves fall in th...
Aha! I knew a homeowner, particularly one with a big yard, would know about this. Well, good to know!
Season of fallen leaves
[Cemetery wall; 11/4/15] We've gone from the season of lustrous fall foliage to the season of fallen leaves, dead and paper-dry. A few bright amber stars cling to catch the late light, but even their days are numbered. [Shorn trees, St. Pat's cemetery] [Leaf shadows] Dead leaves fall in th...
Thanks, RR. I think that tomb stone fell asleep a very long time ago, seeing the wear. As for the leaf trash, I've never had a yard (well, not since I left my childhood home) so I'm not sure why it's not all mulched or composted. Seems like a better idea to me.
Season of fallen leaves
[Cemetery wall; 11/4/15] We've gone from the season of lustrous fall foliage to the season of fallen leaves, dead and paper-dry. A few bright amber stars cling to catch the late light, but even their days are numbered. [Shorn trees, St. Pat's cemetery] [Leaf shadows] Dead leaves fall in th...
Amazing photos, and the lovely writing makes it all the more vivid.
Road Trip 7: Jökulsárlón, the Ice Beach
The North Atlantic at Jökulsárlón is monochromatic, but full-range. The volcanic sands, in various stages of tidal wetness, shade from absolute black to medium grey; the sky is the color of doves; the ocean, mercury; and against these shades the whiteness of the waves is of an almost-blinding ...
Yes, breathtaking and astonishing! And we're just looking at your gorgeous photos. I can't imagine how much more so to be there. Transformative, for sure.
Road Trip 6: Jökulsárlón, the glacial lagoon
By noon of the second day, we reached our furthest-east destination: Jökulsárlón, the glacial lagoon at the head of the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier, part of the Vatnajökull ice cap. aerial view from Encyclopedia Brittanica This glacial lake, 200 feet deep, developed relatively recently (in th...
What an amazing trip! Just catching up here - couldn't really appreciate these on my little tablet screen when I was away. Gorgeous photos, all of them. But I really love that last one.
Road Trip 5: Skeiðarársandur and Vatnajökull
The palisade of Lómagnúpur forms a corner pillar at the far western edge of Öræfi, dominating the view as you approach, but preventing any glimpse beyond. But when you pass it, what awaits stuns you into silence. To the left (middle and right in the picture above) stretches the huge expanse of...
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