The Queen of California

I recently discovered this song by John Mayer.  Love this video version of it.

Friday Favorite Photo: Preston Lights

My cousin, Anthony, sent me this photo a few months ago.  It is a photo of the showroom for a business that my grandfather owned in London in the late 1960:  Preston Lights.  They look to be circular florescent lights that you hung from your ceiling somehow.  I had never heard anything about this.  My grandfather died in 1970 and I never knew him.  My cousin also sent me this:

To blog, or not to blog....

I have not been posting to this blog for quite a while and I have been thinking of giving it up. The main issue is the time it takes - time I could so much better use for some other pursuit.  But, there is also the time I've already spent creating this blog so far and I hate to just let that go down the drain.   So...   I've decided to keep it going, only with shorter blog posts.  For now, at least.  And yes, this image accurately depicts  almost exactly how I look when I blog.

The top ten reasons I hate Christmas:
1. It’s stressful
2. It’s expensive
3. It’s fattening
4. It’s disappointing
5. It celebrates a religious myth I don’t believe
6. Giant inflatable lawn ornaments
7. Unbridled consumerism
8. Incessant ads
9. Christmas carols everywhere, ALL MONTH LONG
10. The question, “So, are you ready for Christmas?”

 Five things I enjoy about the holidays: 
1. Receiving cards in the mail
2. Ornaments
3. Lights
4. Wrapping presents
5. 24 hours of A Christmas Story

In Treatment

I'm hooked on the HBO series In Treatment. I found the whole series on DVD in my local library and have just finished watching the first season. It's like nothing I've ever seen  on TV before. Each 1/2 hour episode takes place mostly within a therapy session and all are incredibly well written, well acted, character studies.

I came across a criticism of the show online that said, "it's like a series of off-Broadway one-act plays." Which to me is no criticism. That's praise! I love this show and I'm in love with the lead actor, Gabriel Byrne, who won a Golden Globe for his role as the therapist, Paul.

Every time I think my interest in some of the characters on this show might wane, they reveal yet another fascinating layer, or take an unexpected turn.  Mia Wasikowska, who plays Sophie, is just one of the amazing actors on this great show:


 

Now What?

So.  I graduated.  The two years of my creative writing MFA program went by lickity-split & I now have a master's degree. But I'm having a hard time feeling as if I've accomplished something.  Getting the degree won't mean much to me if it doesn't lead to something.  And by something, of course, I mean actually seeing my words in print.

Not that that's the only reason I subjected myself to the rigors of the program and spent all the damn money.  I might have actually learned a thing or two during the process, and that's certainly worth something.  I think I'm a better writer because of the program.  I met a lot of fabulous people.  And the MFA gives me a certain bit of credibility as a writer and a teacher.  It's all good.  But it's not over.  I'm not done.   Yet.

I got great responses to my manuscript from my faculty advisors, high praise in fact.  But they all agreed that it still needs a little work.  I still have at least one more revision to do.  Even though I have the degree, my work is not yet complete.  I have one more draft to write and I'd love to have it done by the end of this summer - in spite of all the distractions of summer.  That's what.

Blue moon

I made a new photo collage that I think is pretty cool:     

Sans umbrella in the suburbs

It  rained here today in the suburbs of Detroit and so, of-course, I took my umbrella along with me when I went out to do errands.  I opened my umbrella each time I got out of my car to walk into a building -which included the post-office, the grocery store, and the library.   But I was the only person using an umbrella at each of those places!   Everyone else just ran through the rain, or waited in their cars for it to stop.

I've noticed this trend for a couple of years now.  I guess most people are too cool to own an umbrella.  Or else they just don't think they need one because everyone drives to where they're going in the suburbs.  And I think this is too bad.  There's something so civilized about umbrellas.  There's also something about being in your own little world below your umbrella that those without them miss out on.  It's also fun to have an umbrella that expresses your personality or fashion sense.

I love my Mona Lisa umbrella - a gift from a friend many years ago.  It's not something I would have ever bought for myself, but I love to use it on rainy days.  I love the smiles I sometimes get because of it.  I took this photo of my grandson, Ben, with my umbrella last year:

Barbie's make-over

Barbie's hair was looking a bit scraggly so she went into the hair salon today to have the ends trimmed.

Here is Barbie's hair "before"

And here it is "after"

Here's a photo of Barbie at the salon. My stylist seemed to take the request in stride. "I do this for my daughter all the time," she said.

Barbie is looking pretty good, thanks to her haircut and some new spring clothes. Her new blue top came from an Etsy shop. I am amazed at all of the really great Barbie clothes and accessories there are to be had on Ebay and Etsy.

 I've only purchased a few essentials so far: Jeans, tops, shorts, shoes, a bathing suit, etc... I haven't spent much money, but I can see how someone like me could easily get carried away. It's so much fun building a wardrobe for Barbie that reflects my aesthetic.

But it's not just the wardrobe that I dream of building... I'd like my Barbie to have some furniture, too. I loved dollhouses when I was a kid, but I never had one.  And, surprisingly, that urge to create a little world  is still with me. My desire, at MY AGE, to "play" with a Barbie doll, might seem strange, but it's an interest I'm sure I share with many. In addition to the ton of stuff on sale online, there are Barbie photo sharing sites, blogs, and lots of stuff on You-tube, like this: