SevenSistersArts

Ya Gotta Have Heart...

2012-02-14T06:52:00.000-08:00

Happy St. Valentine's Day to all

Just a short post today - but I had to acknowledge Feb. 14th with a little something special...

A heart that loves is always young.

~Greek Proverb

... like this

and this...

If I had a single flower for every time I think about you, I could walk forever in my garden.

~Claudia Ghandi

Enjoy your day - more soon!

Unusual Weather We're Havin' Ain't It?

2012-02-03T11:11:00.000-08:00

A cinema classic: The Wizard of Oz (MGM image found on fanpop.com)

That's what the Cowardly Lion says to his companions after snowflakes wake him from a enchanted poppy field-induced nap alongside the yellow brick road in the 1939 MGM film "The Wizard of Oz." And that was also the topic of discussion on my friend Jen's blog a couple of days ago: Where is winter?

The winter of 2010-2011 saw record snowfall across the nation (and, if I remember correctly, the winter of 2009-2010 wasn't wimpy, either). There was so much of the white stuff that there was no place to put it. Now, here we are at winter's mid-point and it's unseasonably warm and there hasn't been much snow to speak of. And people are not happy about it.

As I commented on my friend's blog, I don't require a typical frigid or snowy winter to break up the seasons for me because I used to live much further south and, aside from an occasional hard freeze, never had any reason to celebrate the seasons.

Backyard shot from winter of 2010 (not as bad as 2011)

From the time of my birth in 1953 up until I moved north in 1986, I had a total of three interactions with snow and freezing temperatures (not counting opening the refrigerator). But I now realize that people have an affection for this time of year. Why, however, is a mystery to me. This used to be a time of hardship, starvation and death for many (and, for some, it still is).

So I started poking around on the Internet to see what people had to say about the seasons. Here's what I discovered: Some love winter because of skiing, sledding, snow-mobile riding and snowball fights; others love it (mostly women!) for the wardrobe opportunities. Many said they did indeed love winter - but hated the cold! - and there were a few who explained that winter's chill made them feel renewed and refreshed. There you have it.


2011 (drift caused by snowplow)

2011 (One car dug out, one car to go)

My conclusion: Sure, we need a little winter weather in order for some things to die off and then regenerate themselves (actually and metaphorically) so, okay, that's fine and dandy. So be it..

I'm sorry there hasn't been much snow this year. I feel badly that it isn't cold enough for some of you. For me, any amount of cold weather equals winter, period. But I am an anomaly, an outsider, a stranger in a strange land... even after a decade or two!

This week's controversy: Pennsylvania's Puxatawney Phil saw his shadow and forecast six more weeks of winter. However, Dunkirk Dave and Staten Island Chuck predicted an early spring because no shadow was seen.

Sigh. Que sera, sera, whatever will be, will be. Enjoy... whatever!

Florida Wildflower Festival - 2008

A Winter's Tale

2012-01-31T18:51:00.000-08:00

Celebrate Imbolc and the goddess Brighid this week (Feb 1 & 2)

(Note to readers: I realized that my earlier post was too long with way too much information - so this is a shorter, edited version)

Imbolc - the mid-way point between the winter solstice and the spring equinox - is considered a time of purification: Cleaning house is a good way to acknowledge and honor this tradition. Imbolc is the precursor to Candlemas and Groundhog's Day.

Brighid - also known as Brigit, Bridget, Brigid, Brig, Bride ("breed") and "the exalted one" - is a Celtic triple goddess long revered for her abilities as a blacksmith, healer and poet.

The Coming of Bride by John Duncan

How to honor Brighid and Imbolc:

Place a food offering - milk and cake or bread - out on the doorstep tonight to be blessed by Brighid and her beloved white cow (with red ears!). Also, hang a white ribbon outside for Brighid to bless as she passes; it can later be used for healing purposes.

Light a candle for the goddess (any color will do, but I'm burning a red one and a white one) and say: Brigit, Brighid, Bride: Oh goddess, burning bright, We honor you this night. Please bless my creativity and help me serve humanity. Renew my body and inspire my heart. Throughout my life, your wholeness impart. So may it be. (loosely inspired by the book "365 Goddess" by Patricia Telesco)

And there's this invocation from Susa E. Black's web page:

http://www.druidry.org

I kindle this candle in the name of Brighid,
Goddess of Smiths.
I sain this house in the name of Brighid,
Goddess of Healers.
I smoor this candle in the name of Brighid,
Goddess of Poets.
(kindle=light; sain=bless or protect; smoor=smother or smear)

A version of St. Brigid's cross (Wikipedia)

Making a "Brigid’s cross" will ensure bountiful blessings. This cross takes many forms, one of which resembles the ancient symbol for the sun.

According to Mara Freeman's web site Chalice Centre for Celtic Spirituality and Western Inner Traditions:

http://www.chalicecentre.net

A triskele made of straw brings good luck

"The crosses took shapes that are not traditionally Christian, but bear marked resemblance to symbols of the sun in cultures throughout the world. One kind was actually not a cross at all, but a figure with three legs, recalling the three-fold nature of the goddess-saint. It is, in fact, an ancient Celtic symbol known as the triskele."

(Some believe this three-legged "cross" could also refer to the triple deity aspect of Brighid.)

Triskele image from http://www.mcmahonsofmonaghan.org

Another interesting web site to visit is: http://www.sacredfire.net

"Brighid is the goddess of all arts and crafts, and as such she is the feminine principle of the Ildanach, the counterpart of Lugh. She represents the potential of all women for she is the eternal flame that burns in the heart and hearth of every woman of the Gael, 'moon-crowned Brighid of the undying flame'.

It is a common practise for the women of the Isles to hang rowan crosses over their cradles whilst reciting a charm or prayer to Brighid to invoke her protection."

A Rowan tree at Scorhill. The Rowan tree is linked to Brighid. (photo: TrekEarth)

I find it fascinating that so many of today's beliefs can be traced back to pagan traditions, or even further back, before recorded history. This ancient lore been told and retold in Greek and Roman mythology, and has survived down through the ages to be rewritten again and again until these tales now exist in many forms, including familiar Bible stories. I am always amazed at how far back these legends go!

I dedicate Feb. 2nd to Brighid and the ancient people who did good things in her name; I will honor Imbolc in my heart all month, especially on St. Valentine's Day! Happy February!

A Tree for All Seasons

2012-01-15T10:08:00.000-08:00

In a December post, I mentioned that we bought a new artificial Christmas tree (Martha Stewart brand, actually, with berries and pine cones and fake snow, permanently stuck into a plastic pot). It came pre-lit (a single string of, oh, maybe fifty white lights) to which I added two strings of multi-colored lights and a few ornaments at Christmas.

Now here it is, mid-January, and the decorations and lights have come down... but I could not bear to make everything go away. Plus a magazine article I read had photos of a "sweetheart tree" someone made for a St. Valentine's Day party. So I decided to redecorate our tree for every damn holiday I can think of and, since the tree sits in front of a window, I can share it with our next-door neighbor and anyone who happens to drive by our house. (Awwww - how sweet!)

Back when we had two craft stores in town (Joann's Fabrics and Frank's, both long gone) I would stop in after Christmas and buy strings of lights - green, red, green and red, green and blue, amber, teal, pink, amber/teal/pink, etc. - at ridiculously low prices. I have a few left from those days that still work (some still in their boxes), so after I took off the multi-colored lights I put on a string of pink and added a few small ornaments to create... a pink & white St. Valentine's Day tree. And I plan to change it to white, green and orange (the colors of the Irish flag) for St. Patrick's Day; then something pastel for Easter and eventually red, white and blue (or pink, white and teal)... and on and on, ad nauseum! It's a little tree so it isn't a lot of work (not like it used to be, with the six-foot tree we used to have) and it will cheer me up to see the lights at night.

To quote Ebeneezer Scrooge in Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" : "I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year."

Bah, humbug indeed!

Singing Scientists on YouTube

2012-01-14T18:03:00.000-08:00

When talking to my brother on the phone tonight, I was reminded (by him!) about a YouTube clip I had raved about a while back that he had always wanted to see. Then, last night, he told me he finally thought he caught it on TV. Although I'm not sure he saw the one I liked (there are, after all, nine of them), he probably did see one of the fabulous Symphony of Science music videos (it featured the late great Carl Sagan - I think he must be in every single one). If you have not seen these fun, innovative videos, check out the web site below. I highly recommend "Ode to the Brain" - it's so wonderful, you'll want to watch them all. The music is lovely, the topic is thought-provoking (pun intended) and you'll get to hear Carl Sagan and other well-known scientists "sing" !

http://symphonyofscience.com/

This Georgia O'Keeffe painting looks like many things, including a brain!

Walk In The Woods - A Pictorial

2012-01-13T18:16:00.000-08:00

Miniature rapids stubbornly rushing beneath tiny ice floes, impeded only by rough rocks and barren branches...

Frozen bubbles (refugees from the lips of sleeping turtles?) blooming underneath the icy surface of a lake, hollow reeds notwithstanding...

Traces of mysterious forces at work: a ceremonial ring and a cairn, primal reminders that humans passed this way...

A small island: safe haven for any creature who can reach it...

Peaceful and serene: unusually silent seagulls mingling with mouthy mallards and sanguine swans...

"I prefer winter and fall, when you feel the bone structure of the landscape - the loneliness of it, the dead feeling of winter. Something waits beneath it, the whole story doesn't show." ~Andrew Wyeth

No, it sure doesn't, Mr. Wyeth...

A mossy log provides the only color on the ground besides brown and gray - one must look up to see the white rows of lichen, the breathless blue of sky...

"Every winter,
When the great sun has turned his face away,
The earth goes down into a vale of grief,
And fasts, and weeps, and shrouds herself in sables,
Leaving her wedding-garlands to decay -
Then leaps in spring to his returning kisses."
~Charles Kingsley

How romantic, Mr. Kingsley!

Once Upon A Winter's Day

2012-01-07T20:21:00.000-08:00

This year, Christmas Day dawned bright and clear.

There is a pleasure in the pathless woods,
There is a rapture on the lonely shore,
There is society, where none intrudes,
By the deep sea, and music in its roar:
I love not man the less, but Nature more.
~George Gordon, Lord Byron,

Childe Harold's Pilgrimage

Coffee was made, waffles were eaten, gifts were given.
You can't be suspicious of a tree, or accuse a bird or a squirrel of subversion or challenge the ideology of a violet. ~Hal Borland, Sundial of the Seasons, 1964

As the day wore on, the weather was still fine, so we decided to go for a walk down by the ocean.

The sun, with all those planets revolving around it and dependent on it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as if it had nothing else in the universe to do. ~Galileo Galilei

It was a bit windy and cool, but as the sun went lower into the west, the colors grew deeper and more intense, a glorious end to a special day.

Those who dwell among the beauties and mysteries of the earth are never alone or weary of life. ~Rachel Carson

And I will be eternally grateful for that day, those moments, these images.

Photos: TJBGoogins/2011/iPhone using HipstaPrint app

2011 : A Good Year for Blogging

2012-01-05T09:41:00.000-08:00

I had decided not to blog today - and then I noticed the number of blogs I've posted since I started blogging here a few years ago. The first year (which started late, October, I think) I posted six times; the following year I didn't blog much - only a few more posts than the previous year - because I was too busy and not in the writing groove (I got married in Florida and moved back up north soon afterward); the next year I posted 22 times, which doesn't even average out to twice a month. Last year (drum roll, please) I blogged sixty (60!) times and I just want to say this about that: Either I had more to say... or more time to write... or more photos to post that needed words... *

Me and Jen a few years back...

(Have you ever noticed that, in photos with your friends, very often you are almost always in the same places, as we are here and again below? I'm usually on the left and she's on the right. Note to Self: Find out why! Or not...)

*...but mostly I think I was inspired to blog a lot more by my prolific friend Jen, who has a wonderfully written, thought-provoking and insightful blog and who posts at least two or three times a week. I don't pretend to have a large readership here at BlogSpot, but if you happen to read this, here's a link to Jen's WordPress blog, Random Acts of Writing, where you can see her fabulous photographs & artwork and read her lovely thoughts & quotes:

https://randomactsofwriting.wordpress.com/

Me and Jen at a Renaissance Faire - Huzzah!

Welcoming A Brand New Year

2012-01-04T08:59:00.000-08:00

Leonids meteor shower Nov. 2002 NASA (photo: Sam Cook)

Last night I decided to sleep downstairs in the living room, hoping that would make it easier for me to bundle up and go outside to see the first meteor shower of 2012... but, even though I did wake up twice (the first time at 3:30 and the second time at around 5 am) and although I did get up and peek through the windows before slipping back underneath my warm blankets (it got down to, oh, 14 or 15 degrees, I suppose) I did not stay up long enough to see any of nature's fireworks.

I wish I had gone outside, though - even if only for a few minutes - so this morning (feeling a bit guilty) I checked online (at the EarthSky web site) and found out when we can expect to see more meteorites during the coming year:

http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/earthskys-meteor-shower-guide

Children's book illustration ~ playing among the stars

May the days exceed your best expectations and your nights be full of shooting stars... HAPPY NEW YEAR

Trees Get No Respect

2011-12-31T06:38:00.000-08:00

A Royal Poinciana tree. Ours was much taller, but this looks like a great place to sit and think...

I have many wonderful early memories of trees... When we were much, much younger, my brother and I lived with our parents in a wonderful old neighborhood, perfect for a young loner like myself since there were no other kids around to torment me and, with only three other houses on our block, we were fairly surrounded by Florida underbrush and tall pine trees, one of which housed a nesting pair of bald eagles - plenty of room to roam and play. There was a giant white pine tree in front of our house where, with a little help from my mother, I would sit and survey my wild kingdom as I feasted on milk and Nabisco Vanilla Wafers. A decades-old Royal Poinciana tree shaded the entire back yard and in the spring would become festooned with giant red flowers. Yes, I have always been in love with trees.

Flowers of the Royal Poinciana tree

So when we got hit by a hurricane this summer, a tree came down in our back yard. This tree was part of a line of trees that sit between our house and the parking lot of an auto repair/gas station. During the summer, the young maples, staunch evergreens and a few deciduous trees leaf out and block the view of at least a dozen cars that are in various stages of being fixed; in the winter, we are forced to gaze on the parked cars and that's when I feel even more grateful to the trees for their gift of green.

Our poor tree after the storm

I've been complaining about the fallen tree still lying there, with several maple saplings crushed beneath it, for four months now. What I wanted was for the large tree to be put out of its misery and cut up into pieces, thereby releasing the maples and allowing them to be put back into the tree line-up. But that would be too ecologically sound. No: Instead, I looked outside last week only to see that someone had come while I was at work and cut them all up and took them all away, leaving a gaping hole that will allow me to see all the pretty cars and trucks behind us all year long. Thanks - no, really, thanks SO much.

The new view of the parking lot next door

This is what happens when you hire people who only know how to cut grass or someone who hacks off tree limbs for a living to do any intelligent landscaping or forestry management. They don't know that hacking up LIVING TREES just because they LOOK dead is idiotic (hey, they're maples - they lose their leaves in winter). Doing this takes away natural cover for wild animals and birds, as well as shade and oxygen, not to mention the fact that the roots soak up excess water, which we get in our back yard in abundance. And so ends another chapter of my new book, "WHY ARE PEOPLE SO STUPID?"

Some of the young maples just this past fall, after the storm

Something like this makes me want to go back to school and become a tree expert, or an arborist, or something! Then maybe I could convince people that we are abusing a very important element of our ecosystem.

The poor little stumps of what used to be a row of maple saplings

A couple of years ago, I decided to dig up a very invasive wild rose bush (it grows everywhere up here and, even though it put out sweet little pink flowers, it was annoying to have to cut it back almost daily) and, as I was huffing and puffing, the "yard monkeys" came to mow. One of them came up and, smiling (as if he was amused at my attempts to dig up anything) asked if I needed any help. I just looked at him and asked if he knew what plant I was digging up. He shrugged, and I asked if he knew what any of the plants in the yard were and he said, "Not really." That's when I said, "Then I don't guess I need any help." He smiled again and drove off on his very loud tractor mower (the one that leaves HUGE ruts in the yard each week, since the ground is too waterlogged to support the weight of him on his mechanical steed). Since we do not own our house or the property it sits upon, I can do little to change this lamentable situation.


A view of some trees at my mom's house in Florida, home to lots of wildlife

My mother's house in Florida sits on five acres of sand and scrub, with many tall pine trees and various deciduous trees that continually shed their leaves for new ones and drop copious amounts of inedible acorns every other year (I think those are the "live" oaks?). The dirt road that leads to the house is often impassable, and the people who live out there don't pay too much attention to cultivating fancy lawns or ornamental yards. My mom's property is home to at least one family of quail (or "bob-white") that cautiously emerge from the palmetto and wild blueberry bushes to forage for food; black bears pass through at night, heading to parts unknown; the squirrels are numerous and bold; turkey buzzards slowly float above the tree line looking for a quick meal; and the sandhill cranes fly somewhere overhead, piercing the humid air with their strange, rattling cries as they look for ponds and wetlands, their preferred feeding grounds.

My mom's back yard in Florida

By not becoming too developed, this area has become, in a way, a wildlife preserve. The wind blowing through the pine needles makes a soft, sighing sound and the trees help block some of the heat from summer's unrelenting sun. Humans living harmoniously with the environment - that's how it should be.

This post has rambled on long enough, but I plan to return to this topic again soon. I have some ideas about how to promote better treatment of trees and I hope to share some of those stories right here.

Looking Up

2011-12-28T19:36:00.000-08:00

Empire State Building basking in late-afternoon sunshine

The Empire State Building stands at silent attention on 34th Street and Fifth Avenue in New York City. Here's what Wikipedia has to say about this beautiful iconic landmark:

Empire State Building provides perspective for other skyscrapers

The Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark skyscraper and American cultural icon in New York City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. It has a roof height of 1,250 feet (381 meters), and with its antenna spire included, it stands a total of 1,454 ft (443.2 m) high. Its name is derived from the nickname for New York, the Empire State. It stood as the world's tallest building for 40 years, from its completion in 1931 until construction of the World Trade Center's North Tower was completed in 1972. Following the destruction of the World Trade Center in 2001, the Empire State Building once again became the tallest building in New York. Once the new World Trade Center is completed, it will be demoted to second tallest building in New York. The Empire State Building is designed in the distinctive Art Deco style, and has been named by the American Society of Civil Engineers as one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World. The building and its street floor interior are designated landmarks of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, and confirmed by the New York City Board of Estimate. It was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1986. In 2007, it was ranked number one on the List of America's Favorite Architecture according to the AIA. The building is owned and managed by W&H Properties. The Empire State Building is currently the third tallest skyscraper in the United States (after the Willis Tower and Trump International Hotel and Tower, both in Chicago), and the 15th tallest in the world. It is also the fourth-tallest freestanding structure in the Americas. The Empire State Building is currently undergoing a $550 million renovation, with $120 million spent in an effort to transform the building into a more energy efficient and eco-friendly structure. Receiving a gold Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating in September 2011, the Empire State Building is the tallest LEED certified building in the United States.

Empire State Building (special effects shot)

For more information, visit the ESB's official web site:

http://www.esbnyc.com

(The Day After) Christmas In New York

2011-12-28T07:17:00.000-08:00

A big city must have its big Christmas balls...

So, following the post about purported pickle propaganda, here is a photo essay of our day trip to New York City with our friends who valiantly drove up from North Carolina to spend Christmas with us...

Radio City Music Hall (obviously)

Rockefeller Center's giant Christmas tree

And, for the finale...

The Empire State Building at night - red, green, blue and silver, surrounded by golden skyscrapers - lovely!

I have some other cool shots that I will share in the next post, hopefully before or around New Year's Eve...

The Christmas Pickle

2011-12-22T22:00:00.000-08:00

The pickles were hung by the chimney with care

Oops - I forgot that I promised to relate the story of the Christmas pickle! From my hasty research, it appears that the tradition of hiding a glass pickle ornament is supposed to go back a few hundred years to Germany, the birthplace of blown-glass Christmas tree ornaments - but it seems few Germans have ever heard of this holiday past-time and it may have originated right here in the U.S. in the 1800s - click on these links to read about the mysterious Christmas pickle!

http://german.about.com/library/blgermyth11.htm

http://mymerrychristmas.com/2005/pickle.shtml

I bought two pickle ornaments this year to give as gifts, and this is what was printed on the package:

"It's Christmas, a time of jingle bells, stockings, presents under the tree and family traditions. Celebrate the holidays with a time-honored German tradition and have fun with your family for years to come! Following an Old World custom, parents waited until Christmas Eve to hide a small pickle ornament on the Christmas tree, tucking it out of sight among the branches. On Christmas morning, the first family member to spot the pickle was rewarded with a special blessing for the coming year and received the first present from under the tree."

in hopes that St. Nickolas soon would make relish!

An article in USA Today disclosed that many Americans are re-inventing Christmas with fewer (or no) gifts, more meaningful exchanges, borrowed Christmas trees, emails instead of Christmas cards - the sky's the limit - and yet, many people are still out there buying stuff (this year's Black Friday broke a few records, I believe). Ah, commercialism! One family drew their Christmas tree on brown craft paper and taped it to a wall; for gifts, they are writing letters to each other and reading them on Christmas morning. Merry Spartan Christmas!

Whatever your holiday traditions may be, enjoy them with family & friends and don't be afraid to invent new ones! Please pass the relish...

Winter Solstice 2011

2011-12-22T21:02:00.000-08:00

My faithful little fire pit reaches for the stars

December 21-22 marks the point in the year when days begin to get longer and the nights a little shorter. By the time June rolls around, we'll all be warm and happy again - let's take stock of the old year and plan to make some changes for the better in the year to come.

Be better organized

Be more forgiving

Bring about happiness

Be better prepared to receive good things

Try to accomplish simple goals

Santa checking his list for the 847th time

Enjoy the holidays - if you want to track Santa Claus, go to:

http://www.noradsanta.org/en/

Happy Holly-daze to one and all!

O Christmas Tree

2011-12-20T21:56:00.000-08:00

Our tree this year is the four-foot pre-lit artificial snow-with-berries-and-pine-cones Martha Stewart variety (we had to toss the older, taller tree because it had become too musty and moldy from living in the basement). When I say "pre-lit" I'm talking one string of about 50 white lights, to which I added two strings of multi-colored lights, one of which gently blinks on and off, and a few small ornaments (including a silver glitter star at the top and a glass pickle - more about the Christmas pickle in the next post).

Bottle-brush tree display

We're all about the trees - I have several tree ornaments hanging from our new tree, as well as a few bottle-brush trees and a metal tree with jingle bells on it, which is festooned with another very short string of multi-colored lights. Beside the new tree is a jar of white branches that I've designated as my husband's Red Sox tree for his special baseball ornaments (a short string of white lights is inside the jar and covered with white tissue paper to soften the glare); on the other side sits a lovely green-red-and-gold cardboard tree that consists of nesting sections in which there is a variety of chocolates and other holiday treats. Trees RULE (especially the real ones)!

A variety pack of aluminum Christmas trees!

I know I've already mentioned it, but... My favorite tree, kept in its original box at my mother's house, has to be my grandparents' aluminum tree that I remember from my childhood. The color wheel no longer functions, but the tree is in remarkably good shape. Here is some trivia about the space-age Christmas tree:

During the 1960s, the aluminum Christmas tree enjoyed its most popular period of usage. As the mid-1960s passed, the aluminum Christmas tree began to fall out of favor, with many thrown away or relegated to basements and attics. The airing of A Charlie Brown Christmas in 1965 has been credited with ending the era of the aluminum tree, and by 1967 their time had almost completely passed.

At the height of the aluminum tree's popularity, the trees were sold in the Sears catalog. Sears' sales pitch remarked:

"Whether you decorate with blue or red balls . . . or use the tree without ornaments - this exquisite tree is sure to be the talk of your neighborhood. High luster aluminum gives a dazzling brilliance. Shimmering silvery branches are swirled and tapered to a handsome realistic fullness. It's really durable . . needles are glued and mechanically locked on. Fireproof . . you can use it year after year." - Sears, 1963 Christmas Book

Aluminum Christmas trees have been variously described as futuristic or as cast in a style which evoked the glitter of the space age. A Money magazine article published on the CNN website in 2004 called the design of aluminum Christmas trees "clever". The same article asserted that once the trees overcame their cultural baggage, as icons of bad-taste, that aluminum Christmas trees were actually beautiful decor. The Space Age-feel of the trees made them especially suited to the streamlined home decor of the time period.

By 1989, it was not uncommon to find aluminum Christmas trees for sale in yard sales or at estate sales being sold for as little as 25 cents In recent years, however, the aluminum Christmas tree has seen a re-emergence in popularity. Collectors began buying and selling the trees, especially on online auction web sites. A rare 7-foot-tall pink aluminum Christmas tree sold on Internet for $3,600 in 2005.

(Thanks, Wikipedia!)

Here's one more Christmas tree...

Dale Wayne: Florida artist uses plastic soda bottles in her art & jewelry

Festival of Trees, Orlando Museum of Art

Same tree, other side - Dale Wayne, artist

Visit Dale Wayne's web site and you will see a link to her blog:

http://dalewayne.com

You can also find links to Dale Wayne and others who use recycled materials in their art here:

http://inspirationgreen.com

If Wishes Were Fishes...

2011-12-17T05:27:00.000-08:00

Taken at Universal Orlando - wish I'd framed it a little better!

“To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best day and night to make you like
everybody else means to fight the hardest battle
which any human being can fight and never stop fighting.”

~ e. e. cummings

Oh, the places I'll go!

Holiday Musings

2011-12-14T14:40:00.000-08:00

Everywhere you look you see holiday decorations and advertising, so I'm trying to remember how it used to be at this time of year, when I was much, much younger...

Up on the rooftop, click-click-click...

My brother and I were usually pretty excited about Christmas when we were kids. Back then, in the '50s, '60s and '70s, Christmas Eve was just another night of watching television, having dinner and trying to stay up all night to catch Santa Claus coming in through the back door - none of our houses in Florida had a fireplace - I always wondered if he was able to shimmy down through the little twirling roof vents, since we had no chimney. When we'd go to visit Meme and Poppie (my mother's parents) they had a small gas fireplace with fake logs. There was always a small plate of cookies and a little glass of milk that they left out on the mantel for Santa. I'm sure I wanted to put out a treat for the reindeer to nibble on.

Not our tree, but could be its twin!

I think we always got a real tree for our living room, but at my grandparents' house there was a lovely, shimmery aluminum tree that was about four feet tall with a floodlight that had a spinning color wheel attached to it with four colors: red, blue, green and yellow (um, I mean gold). My mother still has the tree - the light stopped working years ago - very retro and collectible these days: I read that one recently sold for $3,600! Here's some info:

http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/museum/artifacts/archives/001924.asp

My grandmother was a wonderful cook so there are food smells I associate with being at their place at holiday time. She would cook and bake and we all sat down at the table at the same time. My brother and I were "latchkey kids" and we rarely all sat down to dinner together at home. My mom was usually in charge of dinner but sometimes my dad would make something exotic, like chili or beef stroganoff or crabs. This is before I became mostly vegetarian.

Fond Christmas Greetings

Sometimes we got the presents we wanted, like a certain toy, but usually we got what our parents and grandparents thought we needed, such as clothes or a purse or a belt. One year I got a small portable reel-to-reel tape recorder (this was just before cassette tapes came out and way before CDs and all things digital). I wore that thing out!

Over the years, I've become more and more disenchanted with holidays like Thanksgiving, Easter and Christmas (birthdays also fall into this category). But I remember how the spirit of those festive times used to make me feel and, for that, I'll be forever grateful.

I'll have more to say about Santa and trees and other holiday trivia in another posting... there's so much lore to explore!

More to come...

What's Wrong With Me?

2011-12-13T18:41:00.000-08:00

Old advertisement for a miracle weight-loss plan!

Sad and alone...

Grrrr - it's the Gorgon within!

Could it be the "change of life" known as MENOPAUSE? Hmmm, let's see what Wikipedia has to say...
Skeletal

Back pain
Joint pain, Muscle pain
Osteopenia and the risk of osteoporosis gradually developing over time

Skin/Soft Tissue

Breast atrophy
Breast tenderness +/- swelling
Decreased elasticity of the skin
Formication (not to be confused with "forn-ication") itching, tingling, burning (a lot!), pins and needles, or sensation of ants crawling on/under the skin
Skin thinning and becoming drier

Psychological

Depression and/or anxiety
Fatigue
Irritability
Memory loss, and problems with concentration
Mood disturbance
Sleep disturbances, poor quality sleep, light sleep, insomnia and sleepiness

Wow. I never bothered to look it up before. Do any of these symptoms apply to me? Yep, every single one. Perhaps there is a disparity of hormonal levels - say, too much testosterone (more aggressive, hostile, argumentative) and not enough estrogen?
So, it appears that my efforts to maintain my inner calm and develop my mantra of cognitive happiness are both fleeting and precious. How would I describe myself these days: as a nihilistic optimist or a toxic psychic vampire? Maybe that's a bit extreme...
Seriously, though, I'm just sorry that those around me end up catching the shrapnel. I will try harder to make some improvements in my behavior in the very near future. Like, right away. As in, tomorrow morning. Maybe more meditation (not to be confused with "medi-cation")? Color therapy? In the meantime, please bear with me.
And here, Your Honors, I rest my case.

A Little Holiday Pep Talk

2011-12-11T11:51:00.001-08:00

Feeling sort of "Bah! Humbug" today, although it warmed up a bit and the sun is shining... I'll turn on the pretty lights & music, have a glass of wine & blackberry soda... there, that's better.

Merry... Happy... and to all a good night

Holiday cards? I sent one and that might be it...

Gifts? I'm trying to finish making them...

OK, here's a list of things I'm grateful for... yes, that will probably cheer me up.

Grateful for my very sweet husband... for having a place to live... for having a wonderful life, whether I've lived it well or not... for a loving family and true friends who are far, far away... for finding a reason to laugh...

Some days just don't live up to their potential - I'm sure there will be other days that will... right? Hell, yeah!

Hey, 2012:

Bring it.

An Autumn Afterthought

2011-11-02T19:13:00.000-07:00

A Hasty Haiku by T J B Googins (2011)

Listen to the wind

Leaves applauding as they fall

Autumn's destiny

I'm a little behind in celebrating the recent spate of autumnal "high holy days" such as All Hallow's Eve (Hallowe'en) and All Saint's Day, as well as a couple of obscure yet notable dates, which I will now reveal for your edification (Information courtesy of Patricia Telesco's book "365 Goddess") :

My friend, Mr. Jack O. Lantern

October 31 - Hallowe'en (Goddess: Nicneven; Themes: Protection, Ghosts, Divination, Peace, Winter; Symbols: Pumpkins, Gourds, traditional Hallowe'en fare) "In Scotland, Nicneven is the crone goddess of Samhain, which is the predecessor of modern Hallowe'en festivals. Nicneven governs the realms of magic and witchcraft and represents the imminent onset of winter. In magic and Celtic traditions, this is the new year, a time when the veil between worlds grows thin and spirits can communicate with the living. Follow the usual customs of carving a pumpkin or turnip for protection and to illuminate the way for family spirits to join you in today's celebrations." Well, naturally!

My fire pit busily chasing away negative forces.

According to this book, Samhain was a time when the Druids would rectify matters of dissent, so I wrote down some recent difficulties on a piece of white paper and tossed it into my fire pit as I asked Nicneven to help dissipate these problems. Of course, it will take more than that to fix some things...

Fire pit detail

Moving on to November! The book says wintery months seem to be a time for introspection and that one might use divination tools for foresight and preparation, to seek guidance within and to ask the Goddess for a special spiritual vision to carry us through the last months of the year. I have decided I need to learn to meditate - really meditate - and I want to be more focused and diligent in taking care of my mind, body and spirit. Well, as they say, it is a process...

Yesterday, November 1, was Author's Day - which I did not know even existed - and it is dedicated to the Sumerian goddess Nisaba (Themes: Creativity, Communication, Excellence, Inspiration, Universal Law, Divination, Dreams; Symbols: Pens, Computers, Books, Snakes) "Since 1928, this day has been observed as a time to honor authors who have contributed to American literature and to encourage new writers." Snakes are the goddess' sacred animal and, as it happens, my Chinese horoscope is the Snake, so I suppose this is a giant hint to do more writing! As for honoring important authors, I would have to honor J.R.R. Tolkein, Jane Eyre, Mark Twain, Tom Robbins, and... oh, my - so many, too many... that list is going to be very, very long!

Laughter keeps the ghosts at bay.

Today, November 2, is All Soul's Day, following All Hallows Eve and All Saint's Day. (Goddess: Nephthys;Themes: Death, Ghosts, Rebirth, Devotion; Symbols: Sunset, Hawk, her sacred animal) "Just as Isis embodies life's energies in Egypt, her sister Nephthys is the force of death and reincarnation. Traditionally, Nephthys dwells in tombs, guiding and welcoming spirits into the afterlife. Her name means 'death, which is not eternal,' referencing the Egyptian belief in the soul's rebirth." The book continues: "In early times, children would go 'souling,' collecting small cakes believed to rescue souls from purgatory." (Sure sounds like Hallowe'en to me!) "Oddly enough, Romans announced engagements today (likely as a way of stressing life's continuance). So if you've been thinking of deepening a relationship, or making a commitment to a beloved project, this is one date that might suit the occasion." Now that's a good plan!

So - let's gather the firewood, pull down the winter blankets and clothes, stock the pantry, give thanks for what we do have and fix our sights on the things we want in the coming year. Stay warm!

Culinary Oddities

2011-10-05T10:50:00.000-07:00

Hen of the Woods - Photo: wildmanstevebrill.com

This morning I made myself breakfast (it's a day off - sunny, cool and breezy) and what a lovely breakfast it was! My co-worker (I'll call her "Miss J") has been adventuring into the woods lately, looking for edible mushrooms and, a couple of days ago, she found and took home a bountiful amount of a 'shroom called "hen of the woods" (Grifola frondosa, also known as Maitake or Sheepshead). Not to be confused with the edible "chicken mushroom," these lovely shelf fungi (a pinkish beige tinged with grayish brown) are thick and soft, sort of rubbery to the touch, but let me tell you this about that: Sliced and sauteed in butter along with onions and scrambled into an egg, they are absolutely delicious! I plan to add them to a yummy vegetable soup I am going to make, perhaps tonight...

Hen of the Woods - Photo: Tom Volk's Fungi

Here's more info about Hen of the Woods:

The clustered, overlapping grayish-brown, lateral spoon- or fan-shaped caps grow 3/4 to 2-3/4 inches wide, arising from short white stalks that branch from the base. The surface of the tiny pores under the caps is whitish. The spores are also white.

The mushroom grows throughout most of the US at the bases of deciduous trees, living or dead, often over and over at the same time every year, in the fall. It’s very common, although easy to overlook due to its camouflage colors.

Hen-of-the-woods (sold in health food stores under its Japanese name, Maitake, to fight cancer and strengthen the immune system) has a deep, rich flavor and chewy texture. The only downside is that it can be a pain to clean unless it’s very fresh. Grit gets ingrained in the dozens of little caps, and you have to cut it away with a paring knife.

Prepare this flavorful fungus any way you like—sautéed, simmered in soups, marinated, baked, or even pickled. It cooks in 15 to 20 minutes. (from Wild Man Steve Brill's web site - see below)

Miss J has been attending mushroom workshops (with, I believe, Wild Man Steve Brill himself), so she knows a thing or two about local mycology (the study of mushrooms). I once gifted her with a very informative coloring book all about mushrooms. So she collected these tasty polypores and carefully sliced and washed each piece, then lovingly dried them all and put equal amounts into three paper bags for me and our two employers. Miss J tells me (and now I have read up on them a little bit) that the mushrooms will grow back even after they have been lifted up out of the ground because there are still many spores that remain in the soil. As always, when dealing with wild edibles, especially mushrooms, double-check the plant's identity to be 100% positive it is not poisonous! Some tasty-looking plants, when touched or ingested, can make a person very unwell...

Also, I visited this web page:

http://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/nov2006.html

Grifola frondosa is an apt example of a well-documented traditional Chinese medicine. The first record of its use comes from Shen Nong Ben Cao Jing (Shen Nong's Scripture of Herbal Medicine [cited in Mizuno and Zhuang 1995]), which was compiled between 200 BC and 200 AD. This scripture states that Keisho (one type of medicine made with Grifola frondosa) "has been used frequently for improving spleen and stomach ailments, calming nerves and mind, and treating hemorrhoids" (Mizuno and Zhuang 1995). There are a variety of other Chinese medicines containing Grifola frondosa, ranging from cancer treatment to remedies for palsy, nerve pain, and arthritis. Other described uses of this mushroom include general treatments for immune stimulation and regulation of homeostasis. (Thomas J.Volk, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse)

For information about mushrooms and other wild edible plants (including recipes), visit:

http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/

(Spoiler Alert: It even includes a recipe for the very invasive, tastes-like-rhubarb Japanese knotweed!)

Bon apetit!

A Sign O' The Times?

2011-09-28T22:23:00.000-07:00

Zooey Deschanel

image of Zooey Deschanel courtesy of:

http://www.wolfgnards.com

(spoiler alert: this blog is funny, but followers' comments may feature "unsuitable language")

Since I don't seem to be making much money these days, I thought I should make an effort to save a little, so... I cut my own hair! It's not bad, but I definitely wasn't able to "style" it at all - I just trimmed my bangs and a little off the sides (it's uneven but you really can't tell from a few feet away) so I saved $20 ($15 plus tip)

Tomorrow I will color it (I have plenty of henna waiting to be plastered all over my new "do") and think of other ways to make/save a few more dollars

And so, to celebrate my cleverness, I went out for salad (healthy appetizer) wine and pizza with a friend - and spent $30! (One step forward, two steps back!) I can rationalize that, tho: I will have left-overs for lunch tomorrow

We decided that next time, though, we will share a meal at home with an already-purchased bottle of wine and it will probably cost less than going out (it will be a cozier setting, as well)

SORRY, Angie (hairdresser) and Marco (pizza) - when the economy improves we will happily darken your doors again

Until then, I leave you with this:

The term bangs, always used in the plural, is, as you know, the fringe of hair usually cut squarely across the forehead. According to etymology scholar Robert Barnhart, the term is strictly American in origin (the Brits call it fringe) first surfacing in 1878. It was believed influenced by the adverbial use of bang in the meaning of abruptly, as in hair cut bang off; some sources offer a relation to earlier bangtailed (1861) of a horse's tail that has been cut horizontally across.

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Etymology-Meaning-Words-1474/bangs-fringe.htm

First Day of Fall 2011

2011-09-23T16:27:00.000-07:00

Mid-Autumn Festival - Montreal

Mid-Autumn Festival - Viet Nam

In other news... Jupiter and the Pleiades can be seen rising above the eastern horizon tonight - as you know, I'm partial to the Seven Sisters, so I'll be out there looking (if I can keep the mosquitoes from sucking all my blood, that is)

Happy Autumnal Equinox!

This is from a blog entitled Daily Kos

At 5:05 AM EDT, the Northern Hemisphere passes from Summer into Autumn as the sun passes over the equator heading south to give the Earth's Southern Hemisphere its turn at Summer.
The Autumnal Equinox is also known as: Alban Elfed, Autumn Equinox, Fall Equinox, Cornucopia, Feast of Avilon, Festival of Dionysus, Harvest Home, Harvest Tide, Mabon, Night of the Hunter, Second Harvest Festival, Wine Harvest, Witch's Thanksgiving, and the first day of autumn

Pagans generally call the Autumn Equinox Mabon, though that's a fairly modern name, and some groups dismiss it. Neo-Druidic traditions call it Alban Elfed, and in some circles it's called Meán Fómhair (from the Irish name for September, "Middle of Autumn"). Others simply call it Second Harvest, or Mid-Autumn . . . and there's nothing wrong with just calling it the Autumn Equinox.

For those that observe the Oak King/Holly King duality, Mabon marks the ascendancy of the Holly King. Now he is the more powerful of the two, waxing stronger until he stands at the height of his power at Yule, the Winter Solstice.

For the rest of us, this is the time when the Goddess shifts from Mother to Crone, and it's in this aspect she's celebrated at Mabon rituals. The God grows old and tired, soon to die at the upcoming Samhain. The year is almost done. They move into old age, as they do every year. As the world does. As we all will.

Autumn, as I said, is an ominous season, and the specter of Death always looms large. The coming Winter symbolizes that inevitable turn of the Wheel, and the growing dark and the reaping of the crops are reminders of our journey towards it.

This should make us all the more mindful of what we have, and makes it all the more appropriate that Mabon should be a time of thanksgiving and joy. Gather with family and friends. Celebrate. Share. Feast.

"Once more the liberal year laughs out O'er richer stores than gems or gold: Once more with harvest song and shout Is nature's boldest triumph told." - John Greenleaf Whittier

Sunrise at Stonehenge

This is from the web site for The Stonehenge Tour Company

Each year on the 23rd September Druids and Pagans gather at Stonehenge early in the morning to mark the Spring Equinox and to see the sunrise above the stones.

It's an ad hoc celebration that brings together England's New Age Tribes (neo-druids, neo-pagans, Wiccans) with ordinary families, tourists, travelers - usually about 100 people!
For many, the impulse to arrive at Stonehenge in time for the Solstice and Equinox is a little like all those people drawn to the strange rock in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. It's akin to a spiritual experience. Anyone who has witnessed the crowd become silent as the sky begins to brighten can attest to that.

This is the third of the four ‘sky points’ in our Wheel of the Year and it is when the sun does a perfect balancing act in the heavens.

This is the point of the year when once again day and night are equal - 12 hours, as at Ostara, the Spring Equinox. The Latin word for Equinox means 'time of equal days and nights'.
After this celebration the descent into winter brings hours of increasing darkness and chillier temperatures. It is the time of the year when night conquers day.

After the Autumn Equinox the days shorten and nights lengthen. To astrologers this is the date on which the sun enters the sign of Libra, the scales, reflecting appropriately the balanced day and night of the Equinox. This was also the time when the farmers brought in their harvested goods to be weighed and sold.

Here in Wiltshire (as with the rest of rural Britain), it was traditional to drink dandelion and burdock cordials at this time, as these herbs help to cleanse the blood and are a good tonic for the body after its winter hardships.

The full moon nearest to the Autumn Equinox is called the Harvest Moon and farmers would harvest their crops by then, as part of the second harvest celebration. Mabon was when livestock would be slaughtered and preserved (salted and smoked) to provide enough food for the winter.

At the South Pole they will be celebrating the first appearance of the sun in six months. However, at the North Pole they will be preparing for six months of darkness.

During Medieval times, the Christian Church replaced Pagan solstices and equinox celebrations with Christianized occasions. The Autumn Equinox celebration was Michaelmas, the feast of the Archangel Michael.

The small group 'non-obtrusive' nature of this tour means you can have a real authentic experience, a great photo opportunity and valuable insight into ancient Britain.

Tonight, even though it's raining, I'm going to get a little fire going in the fire pit out on the back porch - I will burn some dead branches from the tree that fell during the storm... I will throw on some dried herbs (mugwort and the like) and say farewell to Summer... and some other things...

Visit both sites for some interesting information:

http://www.stonehengetours.com

http://www.dailykos.com

Photos: courtesy of Stonehenge Tours and Google Images for mid-autumn celebrations

An Ode To "Nothing Is Wasted On The Writer"

2011-09-22T09:15:00.000-07:00

I will never forget the day I was introduced to Crescent Dragonwagon - writer, blogger, animal lover, former restaurant owner and fellow human being - not because it was so unusual but just because it was, for me, a lucky accident. (Please understand: I didn't actually meet her; I suppose I should say that I "discovered" her one day.)

A few years ago, my husband and I were at a bookstore (probably Barnes & Noble) looking for a cookbook containing recipes for South American (specifically Peruvian) meals. One of his sisters was having a milestone birthday (turning 60, as I recall) and the family was planning a surprise dinner that would be comprised of some of her favorite foods. She had married a Peruvian and lived in Peru for 30 years before moving back to New England ten years ago to be near her children and grandchildren.

We weren't having much luck with our quest, but we kept looking, hoping to spot some lone title proclaiming "The Best 100 Recipes of South America, Featuring Peru!" when a little book with an attractive cover caught my eye. It said, simply, "Soup & Bread" and, being someone who loves soup and bread, I picked it up. After looking through it, I put it back thinking, "I'd better see who wrote this because I want to buy it the next time I'm here, or online, or something..." and that's when my jaw dropped. The author's name was Crescent Dragonwagon.

Seriously????

Yes. That is her name. Crescent Dragonwagon. For me, it was love at first sight, if one can indeed love a personal pronoun.

As soon as I got back home I looked her up on the Internet. I also found some pretty good Peruvian recipes online, which I could have done without a trip to the book store, but then I would never have "met" this woman, this writer, this troubadour of life. And although I still haven't bought her book about soup and bread, I am now a huge fan of her writing.

You see, she's written several cookbooks, quite a few children's books and she puts out a wonderfully and thoughtfully written blog called "Nothing Is Wasted On The Writer." This is a blog I would be proud to put my name to, especially if my name was as incredibly inventive as Crescent Dragonwagon. She chose the name for herself, back when she was younger and more rebellious.

On this blog is a FAQ where she addresses such questions as "Is that your real name?" and other marauding mysteries about herself. She comes from good solid writing stock, too: Her mother, Charlotte Zolotow, wrote children's books and her father, Maurice Zolotow, wrote interviews and notable biographies about such celebrities as Marilyn Monroe. She writes about the vagaries of life (mostly hers, which to me is mind-bendingly fascinating and heart-breakingly moving), as well as the wonders of nature, the whimsy of love, the joys of family, the pain of loss, the comfort of food and other seemingly tepid topics, only when SHE writes about them, it's done is such a way that it makes you want to examine your own experiences and write about them with as much openness and honesty and perception as she does.

Just below her blog title is this marvelous header:

"Cooking, eating, living, loving, writing, reading, thinking. Listening, tasting, sniffing. Cozying up to mystery at midlife. I think we're all part of the narrative life tells itself about itself."

One of my goals is to attend "The Whole Enchilada" writing workshop that she hosts every September. The event involves several days and nights of writing, talking, cooking, eating and many other succulent activities, and I really want to be a part of something like that. It costs several hundred dollars, so I really have to start saving up for next year (I've said that before, but this time I mean it) and some day I will be there, laughing and listening and learning how to really write and/or create, as in "learn how to unlock and unleash my muse."

Meanwhile, I'll just keep tapping away at the keyboard and sitting upstairs in my unorganized "studio" trying to figure out what the hell I need to be writing about or creating or doing in my spare time - as if that will ever become vividly apparent to me (as in "apparition" or "epiphany") or come to me in one of those sorts of revelatory "a-ha" moments we can only dream about.

Check out her blog. Live life to the fullest. And wish me luck!

http://crescentdragonwagon.typepad.com/

A Week (or two) of Anxiety & Sorrow

2011-09-14T21:31:00.000-07:00

There is just something sad about the last few weeks: earthquakes, floods, wind, rain... mayhem and destruction

Then there was the 10th anniversary of Nine/Eleven and I watched it happen all over again - I felt like I needed to remind myself of what had happened - planes crashing, buildings falling, people suffering

I've watched documentaries about the rebuilding and rebirth, how so many people are trying to piece their lives back together after the attacks

I was also worried about other things: Mom in the hospital, bleeding from some medication she was taking for her atrial fibrillation - my "new" car quit running and my husband had to pay $500 to have it fixed (never mind that I still owe him $1000 for helping me buy it) - and underneath it all a gnawing worry and fear when my lovely outside cat, my stray, my sweet Willie, my Mister Handsome has simply vanished in the wake of that stupid storm, Irene, a storm that caused so much damage and took away so much from so many - maybe it was no Katrina or Andrew but it still took its toll

Now, this cat is a survivor, he is savvy, he is streetwise - he has a white bib and a little white stripe on his nose and four white paws - plus he has six toes on both front feet, which is unusual - he has come to me for sustenance for several years now, ever since he was abandoned and left behind when his family moved away - he's come to me again and again, through rain and snow, blizzards and blackouts - and now, there's absolutely no sign of him - I know it's just a cat, but for me there's an emotional parallel with Willie not coming home and all those souls who, in essence, "vanished" when the Twin Towers fell, never to be seen again...

I put a few flyers up - I've listed him as "lost" on the local animal shelter's "Found and Lost" web page - I've called four veterinary clinics to see if anyone brought in an injured cat - and nothing yet

But I still won't give up on him, not quite yet - I want him to know that I will always be here for him, my sweet William

Harvest Moon

2011-09-13T06:39:00.000-07:00

Last night was a Harvest Moon

and a waxing gibbous moon

and a full moon in Pisces

Now that's what I call a busy moon phase!

I saw it as it was just clearing the tree line on my way home from work last night - it was the palest gold and quite large as it rose - later on, as it moved higher, it was exceptionally silver and bright - I wanted to stay up and stare at it, but I was dog-tired - my husband made a lovely dinner for us and we watched a movie - The Conspirator - excellent movie but I was so tired that I fell asleep a couple of times (courtroom drama will do that to me, on occasion)

(This photo courtesy of EarthSky web site - see below)

In the days before electricity, farmers counted on the lamp of the Harvest Moon to gather their crops. Making up for the autumn season’s waning daylight, the Harvest Moon faithfully provides several nights of dusk-till-dawn moonlight. This bonanza of moonlight remains the legacy of the Harvest Moon!

http://earthsky.org/

http://earthsky.org/tonight/legendary-harvest-moon-shines-on

Just a short post this morning - have a nice week!

Nine Eleven Update

2011-09-11T22:51:00.000-07:00

I watched the wonderful "World Trade Center: Rising" series on Science Channel tonight (directed by Steven Spielberg and narrated by Ed Harris) and it was about the memorial site at Ground Zero - indeed there are two waterfall/pools (each one about an acre) built inside the footprint of each fallen tower; 400 trees were planted; and the walls around the pools are inscribed with the names of all who perished on that day (including the airplane passengers, the people at the Pentagon, the brave souls in Pennsylvania and those who didn't survive the 1993 WTC bombing) - the goal was to have it all ready by 9/11/2011 so the families could have a place to mourn and find closure and peace... it all looks wonderful. The office buildings are being built to honor the victims, too - it's all about new life where there was so much death, or as the memorial's creators say, it's about "Reflecting Absence"

http://www.wtc.com/about/memorial-and-musuem

I think this will surely help many to heal - I certainly hope so

Here is a shot of what it will probably look like in a few years...

Another Day That Will Live In Infamy

2011-09-11T13:53:00.000-07:00

Yeah - I know - it's everywhere... Nine/Eleven...

But there's no avoiding it, really, so I've just embraced it - I watched some of the newer documentaries on TV last night and checked out some links I saw on Facebook this morning - oddly enough, one of the most moving was a Budweiser commercial that only aired once (on YouTube - the Clydesdales pull the beer wagon to Ground Zero and then - music swells - they bow...) Yeah, I cried

My brother said he was going to put the flag out, and I thought that was very appropriate, even though it's not an actual national holiday, like Memorial Day or Veteran's Day or the Fourth of July - so I put out my little $1.00 flag, too - it's waving nicely, even though I have to go outside every once in a while and untangle it

He also told me about the memorial at Ground Zero - I couldn't verify whether or not it's actually been completed - and that it consists of two pools where the towers used to be ("The design strives to make visible what is absent." - Michael Arad, architect) They're also building a new World Trade Center skyscraper there, but it will only be about as tall as the Empire State Building - I think that's also very appropriate - and it will be followed by two or three more office buildings (after all, office space is at a premium in New York City)

Check out the new USAToday 9/11 web page (I have a friend who works there - a lot of work went into this tribute)

http://www.usatoday.com/news/911

Let's stop the hatred...

Let's shed a tear;

Let's make it better -

Let's end the fear.

TJBGoogins

"You may say I'm a dreamer... but I'm not the only one."

John Lennon

Rest in peace - and may the rest of us be allowed to go in peace

Goodbye To Summer

2011-09-09T20:31:00.000-07:00

For me, September is a time for looking back at summer (which feels like it's still here - hot & humid) and all the lovely plants that grew, flowered, fruited and are now beginning to thin out and look scraggly...so here are some shots of spring & summer in my yard

Here is my lovely comfrey with its giant, fuzzy leaves, and over here, a huge swath of mugwort, which was growing everywhere this year (at least, this was the first year I knew what it was)

Wild white morning glory with a bee being busy inside... next is spotted jewel weed, also wild, used to counteract the itch of poison ivy...

Here is yarrow alongside a volunteer kale plant gone to seed...

And here are wine berries, growing wild (I've never tried one, I just leave them for the birds and creatures to eat)

Luscious little black raspberries that return every summer... I pick a few and leave hundreds on the bush for the blue jays and mockingbirds to take back to their young ones

Here's a blue morning glory growing amongst weeds next to a large bed of mint

There are more photos, but this is already quite LONG... I just love my little microcosm of plants and animals, it nourishes my soul... so let me leave you with a little information about September:

Wikipedia says...

September's birthstone is the sapphire. The meaning is clear thinking.
The birth flowers for September are the forget-me-not, morning glory and aster.

... and elsewhere (see link at the end)

September is National Chicken Month.

It is also Cholesterol Awareness Month in America.

The very first comic strip was printed in an American newspaper on September 11th, 1875

The famous leader singer of the classic rock band Queen, Freddie Mercury was born on September 5th, 1946 on the island of Zanzibar.

The poem “Mary had a Little Lamb” was published September 1st, 1830.

World War II began September 1939, when Hitler invaded Poland.

The US Treasury Department was established 1789.

September 5th, is National Cheese Pizza Day.

The 1st Continental Congress was called to order on September 5, 1874.

September 9th is National Teddy Bear Day.

September 16th is National Play-Doh Day.

September 19th is “Talk Like A pirate Day” around the world…an International event.

The first airport opened on September 29.

September 24th, 1789 — the US Supreme Court was established.

On September 18, 1851 the infamous New York Times newspaper published it first edition.

Native American Day is always celebrated on the 4th Friday of September.

September 12th is National Chocolate Milkshake Day

The 4th week of September is National Dog Week

The Great Fire of London happened September 2, 1666.

George Eastman got his patent for the roll-film camera, in September of 1888 and the Eastman-Kodak company soon was off to becoming one of America’s major corporations.

On September 5th, 1961, President John F. Kennedy signed a hijacking bill, making air piracy a crime punishable by death or imprisonment.

Former President Richard M. Nixon was given an unconditional pardon, for his role in the infamous “Watergate” fiasco by President Gerald Ford, September 8, 1974.

Stay tuned for a post celebrating the end of Summer and the beginning of Autumn, which can be such a lovely time of year depending on location, wind and weather, of course - stay well

Goodnight Irene - I'll See You In My Dreams

2011-09-05T13:29:00.000-07:00

The storm has passed... we were luckier than most (we lost power for six days - but at least we had running water)

My outside cat Willie (the stray I've been feeding for the last six or seven years) is missing in action but I am still looking...

Oh - and Barry the betta fish up and died.

We lost one tree but it didn't crush anything - see? - it wasn't a very big one ( you can see it in the other photo, the one slightly leaning to one side in that space back there behind the clothesline)

Our basement flooded a little but we managed to bail it out.

Hope to have more news when I have a chance to post again. Until then, stay safe and be grateful for the little things.

Butterflies Are Free

2011-08-18T05:58:00.000-07:00

I only ask to be free. The butterflies are free. ~ Charles Dickens

Last week, I tried to capture a shot of this butterfly in my yard (for a photo essay on gardening yet to come) - this one, to me, is "cabbage-white" because there's just a tinge of greenish-yellow throughout its wings. Summer is winding down - I aim to enjoy what's left of it, because I do not care for winter!

The butterfly, a cabbage-white, (his honest idiocy of flight)

Will never now, it is too late, master the art of flying straight.

~ Robert Graves

Here's more about the butterfly (there's no proof that the word is derived from "flutter-by"):

As author and etymologist David Feldman once asked, “who put the butter in butterfly?” The English common name did originate from the relatively simple combination of “butter” and “fly,” there’s a written old English citation for buttorfleoge, but the literal origin is lost. Some sources have erroneously suggested that the excrement of butterflies is thought to resemble butter. The problem with this, of course, is that other than to void excess water, butterflies do not excrete! Caterpillars do because they are the active growing stage, although a simple consideration of what they eat will make you wonder why anyone would consider that it, commonly called frass, resembled butter! More likely origins include considering that the males of the common brimstone butterfly (Gonepteryx rhamni, Pieridae) of England are butter-colored, or that, as author Samuel Jackson suggested, butterflies and the churning of butter are the simultaneous harbingers of spring, or that the word derives from the old myth that witches and fairies stole butter in the night, in the form of butterflies.

http://www.aworldforbutterflies.com/etymology.htm

Thanks for fluttering by today!

Of Old Friends and Goldfish

2011-08-10T14:36:00.001-07:00

Okay - so, as promised (last month), here is a rough draft of some cobbled-together art for a story I wrote a few years ago...

Since making the mermaid paper doll, I've decided that I will create my own art for the book and photograph it and either distribute it electronically or print it out and bind the pages together as a "book" - so, here is just a quick version of a "scene" from my book about a little girl named Tessa and her friends - ta-da!

What I intend to do is create a "scene" to go along with sections of the book that I've written... I'll "cut and paste" the text alongside the artwork (incorporating the paper dolls and background art...) and each page will exist on its own - I will reveal it on this blog or print it out and somehow bind it together as a book to give as a gift to those people who have small children who will hopefully appreciate it

So - this isn't an actual "scene" from the book but it's sort of a prototype - now I have to come up with backgrounds appropriate to the story on which to pose little paper dolls of Tessa and her friends (more to come in future posts)

Tessa's story is about accepting who we are - little and loud, quiet and proud - and being true to ourselves and our friends... yeah, that's right - friendship is key!

It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Time it was and what a time it was...
A time of innocence,
A time of confidences;
Long ago, it must be...
I have a photograph.
Preserve your memories,
They're all that's left you."
Paul Simon ~ "Old Friends"

Feels So Good

2011-08-07T13:36:00.000-07:00

Today started out rainy and cool, my favorite kind of day... Now the sun is out, it's nearly ninety degrees and I feel like I just took a bath in melted butter. However, I still managed to get a few things done, mainly housework like cleaning the cat boxes, washing dishes and - finally - cleaning the fish bowl. Let me tell you, Barry (short for Barracuda) is a happy fella - nice, clean, normal pH levels and an air stone to play in - what more could a fish ask for? Oh, yeah, and some flakes to nibble on as a reward for not jumping out of the little container while I cleaned his home! So here's a shot (taken after I brought him home, actually) of Barry in his bowl on the mantel. Lots more to do, though - I want to plant two plants (a hydrangea and a sunflower) and then I have to get ready to go to Staples to buy some ink cartridges for my printer and then I am going to go to a crystal bowl meditation class with Randeane Tetu who's a holographic sound healing master. Randeane is a really sweet wonderful person and I love listening to her chanting/singing along with the two crystal bowls she plays. I'm going to wear the small covellite piece I wire-wrapped to assist me in exploring my past existences, if possible... and I'm wearing my new dress I just bought that's a lovely mix of blue, green and purple with pretty fish and starfish hand-painted all over it. Enjoy your life - enjoy your day - enjoy your self!

Somewhere Over The Rainbow

2011-08-02T20:21:00.000-07:00

Philosophy will clip an angel's wings,
Conquer all mysteries by rule and line,
Empty the haunted air, and gnomed mine -
Unweave a rainbow.
~John Keats, "Lamia," 1819

Photo: TJBGoogins/8-1-2011

When you see an intense storm approaching and suddenly there's wind and rain, thunder and lightning, and then it's passed over and you realize there's a sunset in progress and it hits those tiny water droplets that are still hanging in the air way up there... well, it can make you gasp, or smile, or shout out loud...

... or take a photograph to share with everyone. Enjoy!

Addendum(s)

2011-07-31T19:19:00.000-07:00

It's the last day of July and it was a hot one! I met up with some friends for a couple of hours and we talked about our experiences with healing modalities - very insightful - I offered reiki to two people and someone used quantum touch on my sore knee - I also borrowed some tuning forks and used that on my knee - I can bend it a little bit more now than before, plus I am able to put a bit more weight on it now - :D

Then I went to a friend's house for dinner - another friend was there - we shared a wonderful meal and listened to a Brazilian singer sing songs in French and looked at old photographs...

Here's a final photo of the jointed paper doll mermaid I made last week - I decided (last minute) to add two tattoos before giving her to my co-worker for her birthday - she's beautiful! I must admit, the rubber bands (although a bit too orange) work pretty well - I still want to buy some mini brads, though...

Must get to work on the book illustrations...

Hello, August!! Stay cool, y'all

Siren of the Sea

2011-07-25T04:28:00.000-07:00

I created a jointed paper doll yesterday... instead of using mini brads (which I didn't have) I used rubber band pieces and tied knots in them (as I mentioned before, ribbon and string didn't work since the head and arms just flopped around and wouldn't stay posed)

She's kinda lovely, if I do say so myself...

Here are the appropriate credits and a few mermaid facts (I ended up having to use Wikipedia - again!)

Photos:
Mermaid Painting by John Waterhouse (1900)
Jointed paper doll mermaid by TJBGoogins, made possible with a template by Kimberly Crick
To see her jointed paper doll template (it's free - if you use it, just give her the credit) and see her other offerings (great rubber stamp sets and other art supplies) visit her web site:

www.theenchantedgallery.com

MERMAID

(source: Wikipedia)

The word is a compound of mer, the French word for "sea", and maid, a woman. The male equivalent is a merman.

Much like sirens, mermaids will sing to people or to gods to enchant them, distracting them from their work and causing people to walk off a ship's deck or to run their ship aground. Other stories depict mermaids squeezing the life out of drowning men while attempting to rescue them. They are also said to carry humans down to their underwater kingdoms. In Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid, it is said that mermaids forget that humans cannot breathe underwater, while other stories say they drown men out of spite, while still other fables portray mermaids as benevolent toward men.This singing chant is probably a curse to the mermaid as well.

[There are many accounts of mermaids in Greek and European mythology, and these creatures are also featured in several stories from One Thousand and One Nights.]

The sirens of Greek mythology are sometimes portrayed in later folklore as mermaid-like; in fact, some languages use the same word for both bird and fish creatures, such as the Maltese word 'sirena.' Other related types of mythical or legendary creatures are water fairies (e.g., various water nymphs) and selkies, animals that can transform themselves from seals to humans.

In some ancient fairy tales of China, the mermaid is a special species whose tears can turn into priceless pearls. What's more, mermaids can also knit an extremely valuable material which is not only slight but also beautiful and translucent. Because of this, fishermen longed to catch them, but it's difficult for them to survive, for mermaids' splendid singing can simply put them in a coma. In other Chinese legends, the mermaid is a wondrous creature -- deft, beautiful, and versatile, and fishermen who wish to catch mermaids are a symbol of negative character.

Mermaids were noted in British folklore as unlucky omens – both foretelling disaster and provoking it. Several variants of the ballad of Sir Patrick Spens depict a mermaid speaking to the doomed ships; in some, she tells them they will never see land again, and in others, she claims they are near shore, which they are wise enough to know means the same thing. They can also be a sign of rough weather.

Some mermaids were described as monstrous in size, up to 2,000 feet (610 m).

Mermaids could also swim up rivers to freshwater lakes. One day, in a lake near his house, the Laird of Lorntie went to aid a woman he thought drowning; a servant of his pulled him back, warning that it was a mermaid, and the mermaid screamed after that she would have killed him if it were not for his servant.

On occasion, mermaids could be more beneficent, teaching humans cures for disease.

Some tales raised the question of whether or not mermaids had immortal souls, most implying they did not. The figure of Lí Ban appears as a sanctified mermaid, but then she was a human being transformed into a mermaid; after three centuries, when Christianity had come to Ireland, she came to be baptized.

Mermen were noted as wilder and uglier than mermaids, but they were described as having little interest in humans.

In Scottish mythology, there is a mermaid called the ceasg or "maid of the wave."

We will have lovely, sweet cool rain today - wishing you happy mermaid dreams!

The Grass Is Always Greener

2011-07-24T15:05:00.000-07:00

I finally planted some wheat grass in small plastic pots I had lying around... Now my cats can graze a little bit, since they never get to go outside (cars, ticks, wild critters - too dangerous). As you can see, Miss Silver is very interested and ended up getting in the shot - in a few days, the grass will look very chewed up and I'll have to plant some more (I should do that right now... but it's so hot) I'm sure I don't know WHY I decided to buy a hydrangea AND a sunflower today (I had grand plans of putting them in the ground pronto... but it's so hot) It tried to rain all morning and afternoon - now it's six o'clock and the sun is out again... sizzle

My new obsession: I've been cutting out a jointed paper doll - tried to put it together with ribbon and string instead of the traditional mini brads... but it isn't working too well, so I'll have to make a trip to some store or other to see if I can find some (but it's so hot...).

I hope to do a little writing and/or jewelry-making and/or card-making today before dark (but it's so... )

So Crafty...

2011-07-17T22:00:00.000-07:00

This is a pretty little pendant I gave my friend Jen for her birthday (it's on a white rubber cord) - what's cool about it is that this little piece of sea-green sea glass was picked up along the shoreline on a chilly walk with Jen and another friend (who also got a tiny wrapped piece of glass from this expedition as a present) so, rather serendipitous, I'd say...
And here's a hanging votive I made a few years ago (wrapped the glass votive holder in heavy copper wire after I painted it with several shades of glass paint/tints - a second one is similarly wrapped but in shades of orange, red and yellow...) Look: There's a little bug clinging to the top there... some kind of small, delicate flying insect - cute!

Last, but not least, I finished making a small wind chime out of reclaimed mollusk shells (with natural holes) and glass fish beads, small Swarovski crystals (to catch the sunlight and throw tiny rainbows) and a piece of tumbled glass ("twice-tossed" I believe it's called, not natural but man-made) It makes a nice tinkly sound and I'm going to send it to some folks I know who will surely appreciate it... I hope to make another one (or two, or three! It makes such a nice sound, I hate to give it up, but... I must, yes, off it goes!)

I also got some writing done on a children's story I'm working on... AND I created my first piece of original art for another children's story I wrote ages ago... I'll share that in a future posting - all in all, a "productive" day off! Hope this will fuel a creative & productive week - have a good one, y'all!!!!

Art Is Everywhere

2011-07-15T21:09:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post (it's late - must get some rest so I can work tomorrow) to remind myself that art IS everywhere... Here are a couple more photos from my recent trip to New York City/Brooklyn with my friend Jen where we walked across the Brooklyn Bridge (today we went to an art festival, but that's another story)

We're planning another trip soon where we might go uptown to the Museum of Natural History or perhaps go over to Lincoln Center or back downtown to Union Square and Chinatown... At any rate, there's a lot to see and do and it's always more fun to go on adventures with friends!

Enjoy the full moon tonight - and be particular!

Here's a little factoid about this month's full moon:

The Full Buck Moon – July
July is normally the month when the new antlers of buck deer push out of their foreheads in coatings of velvety fur. It was also often called the Full Thunder Moon, for the reason that thunderstorms are most frequent during this time. Another name for this month’s Moon was the Full Hay Moon.

For more information about the full moon, go to:

http://www.farmersalmanac.com/full-moon-names/

Also click on:

http://www.space.com/12303-full-moon-july-2011-names.html

Good night!

There's A Storm Coming... I Know

2011-07-13T15:27:00.001-07:00

A day off...

Thinking about things, about making changes

Doing things, researching, wondering about things...

What things?

Right now, I'm watching a storm roll in (or roll by, not sure which) the cats and I can smell the rain

I love rain and distant thunder...

I love a good breeze but high winds scare me a little...

I'm fascinated by lightning but don't like tempting fate...

There's definitely some weather moving through here - hopefully we won't lose power but it's high summer here and the trees are laden with leaves, which means they'll catch a lot of wind and that's what pulls them down - I love being home when it rains!! Here's some things I've written about weather like this:

A day of wet and windy weather
washing my soul clean...

Tall trees still dripping
After a night of rainfall
Damp air smelling clean

PHOTO: tjbgoogins/2011

One of my Facebook friends posted a link to a group of wonderful blogs - the first one I looked at featured microscopic photography of beach sand at different places around the world - incredible close-ups of shells, sea creatures and precious gemstones - just amazing! The book is called:

A Grain of Sand - Nature's Secret Wonder
The Amazing Microphotography of Dr. Gary Greenberg

This site is GREAT - there's a section on natural swimming pools that is very inspirational - if you click on the box showing Dr. Greenberg's photography (there's even a video) at the very bottom there are several more boxes to look at - I really loved the art made from moss...
The other blogs are just as stunning: Functional items and art made from old books, Christmas trees made out of plastic bottles (and lit up - beautiful); bicycle art; a thousand men made from all kinds of car parts and other trash; chairs and art made from cardboard and rubber tires (car and bicycle) - it's made me feel like creating - check it out!

www.inspirationgreen.com

It's raining now and I'm so in love with it - have a lovely rest of the week!

For A Friend

2011-07-07T19:15:00.000-07:00

"New York, New York, it's a wonderful town; the Bronx is up and the Battery's down; the people ride in a hole in the ground; New York, New York - It's a wonderful town!"
Music and Lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green

Yesterday I went to New York City with a friend who wanted to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge on her 45th birthday.

We took an early train to Grand Central Terminal and then rode the subway downtown where we walked more than a mile across the bridge on the pedestrian/bicycle path that perches above the traffic, took photographs, enjoyed the hospitality of a couple of friends of mine at their lovely Brooklyn home and got back at a fairly reasonable hour. (We probably walked closer to three miles by the time we got to my friends' house),

Although I lived in Manhattan and Brooklyn for several years, I never walked across any bridges, never went to the World Trade Center - but I did visit the Statue of Liberty and I've been to the Museum of Natural History and the Planetarium and I've been to either the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) or the Metropolitan Museum of Art, I can't remember which (maybe both?) I've been to Central Park and Riverside Park and Prospect Park and Tompkins Square Park and Columbus Circle and Union Square and South Street Seaport... and so much more but it's all just a blur now. I'm looking forward to showing my friend some of these memorable places when we go back.

At any rate, our day in the sun (well, there were some clouds and lots of haze - we could just make out the Statue of Liberty off in the distance) went well, even if we were very, very tired and hot and sweaty by the time we arrived at our Brooklyn oasis. And to top it all off, we were able to find an appropriate refrigerator magnet as a souvenir, as well as some very nice artsy postcards at a lovely shop inside the train station (lovely Grand Central, that is) in fact, I'm buying lots more of 'em on our next trip... I love postcards!

The wonderful book & stationery store we went to is Posman Books - a second store is located in the Chelsea area of Manhattan ~ here's a link:
www.posmanbooks.com

Yes, we are planning future trips to see more of the sights and hear more of the sounds and eat wonderful meals and wander the streets of the City alongside all the fabulous denizens of Manhattan. That means more wonderful photos and delirious details to come in a future post!

Happy 4th of July

2011-07-04T06:11:00.000-07:00

Red.

White.

Blue.

It's all about the flag and backyard cookouts and fireworks today. I actually have the day off, which is pretty unusual! Today is sort of quiet, except for the way-too-loud motorcycles and other idiots speeding down my little street towards the ocean... Last night I heard some backyard fireworks (the loud, annoying ones) and worry (as I always do) about the poor critters cowering in the surrounding woods who haven't a clue about what's going on with the human element of their world. I missed the town fireworks, which were last Saturday (June 27) but the small image on the right is from last year's display...

I'd like to share a few fun facts about our Independence Day - for more info, click on this link:

http://www.usa.gov/Topics/Independence_Day.shtml

Here's an excerpt from the Declaration of Independence from this site:

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress unanimously adopted the Declaration of Independence, announcing the colonies' separation from Great Britain. The Declaration, with its eloquent assertion "all Men are created equal," is equally beloved by the American people.

Philadelphians marked the first anniversary of American independence with a spontaneous celebration, which is described in a letter by John Adams to Abigail Adams. However, observing Independence Day only became commonplace after the War of 1812. Soon, events such as groundbreaking ceremonies for the Erie Canal and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad were scheduled to coincide with July 4th festivities.

By the 1870s, the Fourth of July was the most important secular holiday on the calendar. Congress passed a law making Independence Day a federal holiday on June 28, 1870. Even far-flung communities on the western frontier managed to congregate on Independence Day. In an American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1940 interview, Miss Nettie Spencer remembered the Fourth as the "big event of the year. Everyone in the countryside got together on that day for the only time in the year." She continued,

There would be floats in the morning and the one that got the [girls?] eye was the Goddess of Liberty. She was supposed to be the most wholesome and prettiest girl in the countryside — if she wasn't she had friends who thought she was. But the rest of us weren't always in agreement on that…Following the float would be the Oregon Agricultural College cadets, and some kind of a band. Sometimes there would be political effigies.

Just before lunch - and we'd always hold lunch up for an hour - some Senator or lawyer would speak. These speeches always had one pattern. First the speaker would challenge England to a fight and berate the King and say that he was a skunk. This was known as twisting the lion's tail. Then the next theme was that any one could find freedom and liberty on our shores. The speaker would invite those who were heavy laden in other lands to come to us and find peace. The speeches were pretty fiery and by that time the men who drank got into fights and called each other Englishmen. In the afternoon we had what we called the 'plug uglies' — funny floats and clowns who took off on the political subjects of the day…The Fourth was the day of the year that really counted then. Christmas wasn't much; a Church tree or something, but no one twisted the lion's tail.

"Rural Life in the 1870s,"
Portland, Oregon,
Walker Winslow, interviewer, December 15, 1938.
American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1940

Down South the celebration was much the same. Ninety-six-year-old Dr. Samuel B. Lathan recalled the Independence Day celebrations of his South Carolina childhood:

The Fourth of July was observed at Caldwell Cross Roads. The military companies of infantry would assembly here from the surrounding counties making up a brigade. A drill and inspection were had, and a dress parade followed. There was an old cannon mounted on the field. The honor of firing it was assigned to Hugh Reed, who had been in the artillery of Napoleon's army at Waterloo and afterward emigrated to South Carolina. A great barbecue and picnic dinner would be served; candidates for military, state, and national offices would speak; hard liquor would flow; and each section would present its 'bully of the woods' in a contest for champion in a fist and skull fight. Butting, biting, eye gouging, kicking, and blows below the belt were barred. It was primitive prize fighting.
"Dr. Samuel B. Lathan,"
Winnboro, South Carolina,
W. W. Dixon, interviewer,
ca. 1940.
American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers' Project, 1936-1940

No matter how you celebrate this national holiday, we should remember that any country is only as great as the people who live in it... We should be proud of our accomplishments, but not prideful... ready to defend, but not to blow everything to smithereens... I had wanted to post something I'd read in a local newspaper about the Pledge of Allegiance, but... oh, well, that's enough patriotism for today!

Happy Fourth of July, everyone!

Nature's Fireworks

2011-06-30T19:11:00.000-07:00

This evening I was amazed at how many fireflies were in my backyard. Usually, in June, I only see a half-dozen or so on any given night, but tonight there were easily dozens floating about, blinking easily, lazily... it was such a beautiful sight!

I sat outside and eventually it became fully dark - it was like watching little UFOs zigging and zagging about in their flights of courtship making the most of their brief lives. This photo belongs to the same web site shown below. Read on!

Source:

http://www.lifeslittlemysteries.com/fireflies-synchronous-flashes-are-booty-calls-study-reveals-0921/

Fireflies' Synchronous Flashes Are 'Booty Calls,' Study Reveals
By Remy Melina, Life's Little Mysteries Staff Writer
08 July 2010

The beautiful, but seemingly random, blinking patterns of fireflies have been decoded. Turns out, it's all about love.

Scientists have been attempting to understand the purpose of large groups of fireflies' mysterious synchronized flashes since the 1930s. A new experiment, the first ever to create a virtual environment for fireflies – using LED lights as artificial males – has revealed how the female firefly's nervous system processes visual signals, as well as the role that male flash synchrony plays in the responsiveness of the female.

Fireflies, which use bioluminescence for sexual selection, synchronize the flashing of their neon-green lights as large groups in order to help female fireflies recognize potential mates, according to the findings.

"There have been lots of really good observations and hypotheses about firefly synchrony," said lead author Andrew Moiseff of the University of Connecticut. "But until now, no one has experimentally tested whether synchrony has a function."

Flash flirting

Flashing together makes it easier for members of the species of Photinus carolinus fireflies to locate appropriate partners for mating, the study found. In firefly mating rituals, the males cruise by, flying around and flashing their signals to let the ladies know that they are looking for love.

Meanwhile, female fireflies wait in the leaves, observing the males’ flashes. Each waits for a specific pattern of blinking light – sequences are unique to each species. When they spot a pattern that they like, they flash the same signal back at the male as an invitation to come on over.

Scientists estimate that, of the roughly 2,000 species of fireflies around the world, only about 1 percent synchronize their flashes in large groups. However, flashing Photinus fireflies are very common, especially in North America. They evolved to flash in synchronizing patterns as a solution to specific behavioral, environmental or physiological conditions, said Moiseff.

A group effort

Also known lightning bugs, fireflies are very goal-oriented: after living underground as larvae for about two years before emerging, Photinus fireflies spend their brief, two-week-long adult lives courting and mating. In fact, they are so dedicated to finding a mate and reproducing that they don't even stop to eat.

With literally only one thing on their minds, and in the midst of fierce competition over female attention, why do male fireflies partake in synchronized flashing as a large group?

Synchronous species of fireflies are often found in high densities, making it hard for female fireflies to see and register a lone male firefly's signal. This suggests that there is a problem in the female's information processing, which group synchronized flashing seems to compensate for, according to the study.

By flashing the same pattern simultaneously, male fireflies are sending out a clear, unified declaration of their species to the females, Moiseff said. Using LED lights, researchers tested this hypothesis on female fireflies, noting that they responded to flashes in perfect or near perfect unison more than 80 percent of the time.

The bug bachelorette

But once a female sees the mass synchronized signal and responds, how does she decide who in the group is to be her paramour?

"In the field, under natural conditions, we find that a responding female Photinus carolinus attracted several males," Moiseff told Life's Little Mysteries. "These males then cluster around her and interact among each other, as well as with the female."

Researchers do not know whether the female's initial response is directed at a single male within the synchronous group, or whether she is responding nonspecifically to the group as a whole. But because her response flash attracts many males, it appears that she isn't communicating with any individual male, Moiseff said.

"Ultimately, however, she selected a single male to mate with," Moiseff added. "The effect of this is that female choice is occurring separately from initial species recognition and attraction."

I never could have thought of it,
To have a little bug all lit
And made to go on wings.
~Elizabeth Madox Roberts, "Firefly"

We all walk in the dark and each of us must learn to turn on his or her own light. ~Earl Nightingale

Turns out, many of us are nostalgic about running and catching fireflies in our youth. Go ahead, find the fireflies and you will find your own light ~ Good Night!

A Circle of Healing

2011-06-26T19:37:00.000-07:00

Today I decided to take part in a healing circle - where people gather together and send out loving, healing thoughts and energies to those who need them. Several individuals (including me) are certified Reiki practitioners (more about Reiki in a moment) and it was nice to be able to be in a comfortable, serene setting with people of like mind who share a similar, positive goal: to offer a non-invasive healing touch therapy to help reduce stress and promote self-healing and a sense of well-being.

Here is some information on what is known about the history of Reiki and the man who is credited with discovering it.

www.petersreikipages.co.cc/history.html

This site is written by Peter Bailey, a Reiki practitioner - among other things - who lives in Great Britain. I have corrected a few typos and grammatical errors. This information matches nearly all of the texts I have read (to date) about Dr. Mikao Usui and the history of Reiki.

Reiki History Lesson

During the late 1800s in Japan, a Buddhist academic named Mikao Usui began a quest to rediscover the secret of the “Buddha’s Healing Touch.”

The writings of Buddhism said that it was possible to use techniques that would cause the Healing of Mind and Body, and Mastery of these techniques was essential to the Path Of Enlightenment.

To aid his quest Dr. Usui learned to speak Chinese and the ancient language of Sanskrit (a language of symbols). He knew that most of the ancient Suntras or teachings would be in those languages.

After years of searching and traveling, he managed to find the Suntras that described the healing techniques used by the Buddha, but as his research continued it became apparent that these ‘methods’, were exactly that, a mechanism for manipulating the Healing Energy, what was actually missing was the Energy itself!

After long discussion and deliberations with respected Buddhist scholars, he decided to take some time to meditate on the matter in the hope that he may be enlightened as to what to do. Usui retired to Mount Kuri Yama, near Kyoto in Japan and began a three-week meditation and fasting period, similar to the Native American Indians' ‘Vision Quest’.

Gathering 21 stones to act as his calendar, Usui set about to meditate, each day discarding a stone just before dawn. As he came to the end of the period he saw a strange light coming towards him. Usui records that he felt a combination of fear yet certain in the knowledge that this was what he had been waiting for. He stood on the deserted mountainside and let the light engulf his forehead (the region where the 3^rd eye is located). Over the next few minutes he ‘saw’ many strange Sanskrit symbols, with each vision remaining with him just long enough for him to remember them exactly.

When the experience had ended, he descended the mountain. He reports that in his haste to descend he stubbed his toe, causing it to bleed. Instinctively he covered the injury with his hands and within a few minutes, the toe was completely healed. At this, Usui was certain his quest was over.

Dr. Usui decided that the best use for his new-found healing ability was with those most in need, so he spent the next seven years working on the poorest people of Kyoto, in the hope of giving them a new lease of life by healing them. One story says that he spotted someone whom he had healed several years before in the beggars' quarters and asked him why he was still in this place. The beggar replied that he had indeed gone out and got himself a job, but it was too much responsibility and hard work, so he had returned to the beggars' quarters to live an easier life.

It was around this time that Usui realized that simply healing the physical aspect of a person’s life, was not enough! He realized that in order for them to respect their new-found health they had to be healed on a mental, emotional and spiritual level, too. From this understanding he defined the five principles of Reiki.

After much deliberation Dr. Usui came to realize that there was a need to look for people who would honor his teachings with their heart and soul, but also to have a desire for change. He met a remarkable man in Dr. Chujiro Hayashi, a retired naval officer and an aristocrat. Dr. Hayashi was keen to assist in healing, having been a first-hand witness of the tragedy of wars.

He was initiated into Reiki and opened and set up the first real Reiki Clinic in Tokyo. He also structured the healing system, recommending certain hand positions.

As Usui’s life was drawing to an end, he recognized Dr. Hayashi as Master of Reiki and charged him with keeping the essence of the teachings and the attunements pure and intact.

On a particular day in 1935 a young lady of Japanese-American origin named Mrs. Hawaya Takata, came to visit Dr. Hayashi, she was riddled with various ills, one of which was a tumor for which she was scheduled to have an operation soon after. Mrs. Takata had lived in Hawaii until just recently when her husband passed away, leaving her with two children and very grief stricken. The grief had created such illness in her that it had formed into a tumor.

When she returned to Japan for the operation, a voice inside of her kept telling her: ‘There is another way!’ She was directed to Dr. Hayashi’s clinic and underwent treatment for 8 months by which time she had completely recovered.

She had become a dedicated student working in the clinic, but unable to learn Reiki as Japanese tradition meant that women were not allowed to be Masters. Over the years Mrs. Takata showed such a commitment to healing than Dr. Hayashi broke with tradition, and initiated her in to the First Degree.

As the Second World War broke out and began to mount, Dr. Hayashi realized that Japan could soon be invaded, and that meant that Reiki could once again be lost, He therefore attuned and taught Mrs. Takata in order that Reiki healing would begin to spread around the world.

Mrs. Takata’s biggest influence on Reiki was that she soon came to realize that it was virtually impossible to teach materialistic westerners the concept of understanding the respect for Energy, so she concluded as Usui had many years before, that an Energy Exchange must take place in order to maintain the respect for Reiki and to maintain the Energy Balance, i.e. what you take you must also give. To the West, the only energy transfer they would understand would be that of money!

The result of this was that she set fees for Reiki training to be: $175 for Reiki1 (about £100), $500 for Reiki2 (about £330), $10,000 for Reiki Master (about £6600). It is still possible these days to find Masters who still will not consider you a Master unless you have paid $10,000 for your Mastership. Today, however, few take this view, though the ideal still holds true; the west is now less materialistic than it was and much more spiritual, and it is therefore logical that Reiki should be available to all.

Nevertheless, both Dr. Usui and Mrs. Takata had a very valid point. Even today the view seems to be that of something given for nothing has no value. The Energy Exchange today is that of something which is of value to you personally given in exchange for healing or teaching. Today, it does not have to money anymore; the exchange can be that of knowledge and skills or anything that is of value to you personally, that you have put effort into creating.

Unfortunately in the so called “real world” of today, the energy exchanges have been somewhat tainted by our Western world, as our now natural instinct of materialistic needs and wants coupled with commercial influence and pressure have soured what was the ideal to a certain extent.

The Reiki levels are there so as one may grow in wisdom and energy level simultaneously so as to maintain balance within the healer and let them grow with each step, it is also for this reason as to why Reiki Symbols are kept secret. (It is not for the fear of people who might try and heal themselves and therefore not needing us anymore, or through ego, where those at the top want to stay there at all costs - far from it: it is done so as to not let people harm themselves).

Our goal is to purify something of invaluable worth before it is totally tainted by rampant commercialism and downright lies. They suffocate one of mankind’s greatest chances to learn to heal one another, worse still, in my understanding, also what could be our last path to enlightenment on a personal basis, away from any religious ascendancy, as Reiki neither promotes nor denotes any other path or religion.

Image: Photo by Elizabeth Carmel

One of the best books ever written about Reiki is Diane Stein's Essential Reiki. Here's the link to her web site:

www.dianestein.net

I want to share with you an affirmation that I came across today: Today I perceive the light of unity in the people I meet. I am tolerant, kind and friendly in my interactions with others today. I am a benevolent presence as I move through my day. I feel good and I am happy to be alive. Have a great week, everyone!

Pretty Little Things

2011-06-25T05:19:00.000-07:00

I've been making a few things for belated birthday gifts - here's one I recently finished. This necklace consists of common pink opal, a focal piece, which is some kind of fancy jasper (perhaps spiderweb jasper) some freshwater pearls and Swarovski crystal beads with a sterling silver S-hook clasp. As with all my jewelry, it's tempting to keep it for myself, but I have so many things I don't even wear anymore, I just don't need another one - I will take some joy from the fact that hopefully the person for whom it was made will wear it and enjoy it - so there!

I've also been making some small sea glass pendants from pieces that I actually picked up walking along the shoreline, wrapping them in sterling silver then adding a little freshwater pearl and small Swarovski crystal bead - small, simple and sweet - here's one I already sent to a friend (belatedly) for her birthday...

There are some other things I'll photograph and post in the near future (I made a bracelet out of one of my talented brother's guitar strings, for example) and I am going to wrap some interesting stones and fossils for my friend's kids who have a birthday in July - so I need to get busy upstairs, even though I have still not organized and purged like I said I was going to - oh, no, not even close - in fact, it's probably a little worse up there, because of course I've moved some things up there to relieve the clutter downstairs, plus I opened up the futon to sleep on when we had company a couple of weeks ago and haven't put it back into the "sofa" position... sigh - sometimes just thinking about all the stuff up there keeps me from getting a good night's sleep!! Anyway, I must feed cats and get ready for work now - have a good weekend, y'all

Bon Midsummer Day

2011-06-24T07:43:00.000-07:00

Soon after celebrating the solstice with a few of my female friends, I am thrilled to be able to celebrate yet another lovely seasonal tribute to Midsummer! We read poems and beat on a small drum and tossed in some mugwort and sage leaves, along with some sacred Hawaiian incense. Some of us had a sip of elderflower cordial I had on hand.

It's been raining for two days now (yesterday it came down in buckets) and will probably do so again today - however, I will pull my fire pit under the back porch a little bit further and light another small fire to celebrate Mother Nature and the planet.

(Image: Midsummer Eve ~ Edward Hughes ~ 1908)

Here are two short passages about Midsummer:

Midsummer’s Eve is, as its name implies, the night before Midsummer Day. A national holiday in Nordic countries, this holiday celebrates what was formally the longest day of the year, June 24 (Midsummer’s Day).

According to ancient European traditions, this is a time for fairies and fortune telling. Today, each Scandinavian country celebrates this tradition in their own unique way. According to the website Genuine Scandinavia the Swedes dance around a maypole, a symbol of fertility, that is trimmed with garlands of flowers. The celebrants join hands and dance around it to tunes played on an accordion and a fiddle. In Finland, "midsommar" is known as Juhannus and is celebrated with a bonfire by the lakeshore with dancing into the morning hours. Juhannus is also Finland’s Flag Day.

In Norway and Denmark bonfires are an important part of the celebration. The customs date back to pagan times when tribute was paid to the powers of the sun god with bonfires signifying the defeat of darkness. The Norwegians form processions early in the evening, usually led by a musician.

Source:
www.holidayforeveryday.com

Midsummer’s Eve, Swedish Midsommar, Finnish Juhannus, Danish Sankt Hans Aften, Norwegian Sankhansaften, holiday celebrating the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, the summer solstice (June 21). Midsummer’s Eve is observed in several countries. It is a national holiday in Sweden and Finland, and the official holiday is typically observed on the third Friday in June to allow a three-day weekend. During this time many Scandinavians travel to rural parts of the country. Midsummer’s Eve activities in Sweden include gathering around a flower-festooned maypole (majstång) to sing and dance, an ancient custom probably related to fertility rites. Before the holiday Scandinavians thoroughly clean their houses and decorate them with flowers and other greenery. In Denmark holiday traditions include singing “Vi elsker vort land” (“We Love Our Land”) and building a bonfire where a symbolic straw witch is sacrificed in remembrance of church-sanctioned witch burnings in the 16th and 17th centuries. Traditional foods, such as pickled herring, smoked fish, new potatoes, and strawberries are served, along with beer and schnapps.

The celebration predates Christianity and is likely related to ancient fertility practices and ceremonies performed to ensure a successful harvest. The holiday was later rededicated to honour St. John the Baptist in Christian times. Although the meaning of the holiday has changed, some pagan customs still persist, such as the bonfires, which originally were believed to ward off evil spirits, and the focus on nature, which harkens back to when plants and water were thought to have magical healing powers on Midsummer’s Eve.

Source:

Encyclopædia Britannica

www.britannica.com

The Seven Sisters

2011-06-23T06:06:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if I ever explained my fascination with the Seven Sisters (the constellation known as the Pleiades). If I have, please forgive and read on!

Image:
Pleiades - Elihu Vedder - 1885)

For one thing, I love to look at the stars - the universe is an amazing place to me, as is planet Earth - but I'm not good at picking out the constellations, even the big, identifiable ones... however, for some reason, even though it's tiny and far away, I can always pick out that little cluster of seven stars (actually there are eight visible to the naked eye, but the eighth one is very hard to see).

Seven has always been my favorite (and lucky) number - three of my four names have seven letters; my parents were married for seven years before I was born; and, as it turns out, other people have also noticed that seven is an auspicious number (seven colors in the rainbow, seven energy centers, or chakras, in the body, etc.). Other folks may prefer the number 8 or even 9 (depending on if you fancy even or odd) but for me it's always been 7.

For a while, I realized that I had six really, really good female friends. That number has gone up and down over the years, but I felt that the seven of us could weather any ordeal and accomplish any quest if we had each other. So I created my little pseudo "company" - something I could call myself and whatever I might create... So here, for your edification, is a lovely painting of the Seven Sisters by Elihu Vedder in 1885 - and the Nebra sky disc, an amazing artifact that features what is believed to be the earliest depiction (3,500 years ago) of the constellation Pleiades.

I offer some information (there are many more myths that I won't subject you to - click on the links to learn more) as I prepare a blog post to commemorate the Summer Solstice (which I celebrated with friends just this week) and the upcoming Midsummer's Eve. Happy stargazing!

The Nebra Sky Disk is a bronze disk of around 30 cm diameter, with a blue-green patina and inlaid with gold symbols. These are interpreted generally as a sun or full moon, a lunar crescent, and stars (including a cluster interpreted as the Pleiades). Two golden arcs along the sides, marking the angle between the solstices, were added later. A final addition was another arc at the bottom surrounded with multiple strokes (of uncertain meaning, variously interpreted as a Solar Barge with numerous oars, as the Milky Way or as a rainbow).

The disk is attributed to a site near Nebra, Saxony-Anhalt in Germany, and associatively dated to c. 1600 BC. It has been associated with the Bronze Age Unetice culture.

The disk is unlike any known artistic style from the period, and had initially been suspected of being a forgery, but is now widely accepted as authentic.

The disk is possibly an astronomical instrument as well as an item of religious significance. The blue-green patina of the bronze may have been an intentional part of the original artifact.

If authentic, the find reconfirms that the astronomical knowledge and abilities of the people of the European Bronze Age included close observation of the yearly course of the Sun, and the angle between its rising and setting points at summer and winter solstice. While Stonehenge and the Neolithic "circular ditches" such as the 5th millennium BC Goseck circle were used to mark the solstices, the disk is the oldest known "portable" instrument to allow such measurements.

Another view is that the Nebra disk can be linked to the solar calendar reconstructed by Alexander Thom from his analysis of standing stone alignments in Britain. MacKie has argued that several aspects of the disk support this view, following up the work of Prof. Wolfhard Schlosser. The first is that the Mittelberg – the hill on which the disk is supposed to have been found – is so situated that when the sun sets at two distant mountain peaks in the north-west, both midsummer and May Day are accurately marked (and therefore also the old Celtic harvest festival on Aug. 2nd); these are three important dates in the 16 'month' Thom solar calendar. The second feature is the two golden arcs on either side of the disk which subtend angles of about 82 degrees; this is the angular distance between sunrise and sunset at midsummer and midwinter at the latitude of Mittelberg. This surely implies a detailed knowledge of the yearly solar cycle on the part of the disk's designer. The third feature is the 32 golden 'star spots' on the disk. Although Thom found really clear evidence for only sixteen subdivisions of the solar year (of 21 or 22 days) in the standing stone alignments, there were some indications of a further subdivision into 32 parts of 10 or 11 days.

Greek mythology

In Greek mythology, the stars of Pleiades represented the Seven Sisters.

Norse mythology

To the Vikings, the Pleiades were Freyja's hens, and their name in many old European languages compares them to a hen with chicks.

Western astrology

In Western astrology they represent coping with sorrow and were considered a single one of the medieval fixed stars. As such, they are associated with quartz and fennel.

In esoteric astrology the seven solar systems revolve around Pleiades.

Celtic mythology

A bronze disk, 1600 BC, from Nebra, Germany, is one of the oldest known representations of the cosmos. The Pleiades are top right. See Nebra sky disk

In Japan, the Pleiades are known as Subaru, and have given their name to the car manufacturer whose logo incorporates six stars to represent the five smaller companies that merged into one. Subaru Telescope, located in Mauna Kea Observatory on Hawaii, is also named after the Pleiades.

For more information on the Pleiades, click on this link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pleiades_in_folklore_and_literature

To the Bronze Age people of Europe, such as the Celts (and probably considerably earlier), the Pleiades were associated with mourning and with funerals, since at that time in history, on the cross-quarter day between the autumn equinox and the winter solstice (see Samhain, also Halloween or All Souls Day), which was a festival devoted to the remembrance of the dead, the cluster rose in the eastern sky as the sun's light faded in the evening. It was from this acronychal rising that the Pleiades became associated with tears and mourning. As a result of precession over the centuries, the Pleiades no longer marked the festival, but the association has nevertheless persisted, and may account for the significance of the Pleiades astrologically.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Brownies and Palmer Cox

2011-06-22T10:40:00.000-07:00

I was looking at some blogs this morning and noticed that someone posted a photo of something that someone had cut from sheet metal to greet people at their front door that looked exactly like one of these little fellows - I have been a fan of Palmer Cox for a long time (although for several years, I thought these Brownies were created by Howard Pyle, another illustrator from the last century). Anyway, here they are - enjoy this historical footnote about product branding in marketing, featuring Palmer Cox and his famous Brownies.

Palmer Cox (April 28, 1840 – July 24, 1924) was a Canadian, best known for The Brownies, his series of humorous verse books and comic strips about the mischievous but kindhearted fairy-like sprites. The cartoons were published in several books, such as The Brownies, Their Book (1887).

The Brownies

The Brownies is a series of publications by Canadian illustrator and author Palmer Cox, based on names and elements from Celtic mythology and traditional highland Scottish stories told to Cox by his grandmother. Illustrations with verse aimed at children, The Brownies was published in magazines and books during the late 19th century and early 20th century. The Brownie characters became famous in their day, and at the peak of their popularity were a pioneering name brand within merchandising.

Due to the popularity of Cox's The Brownies, one of the first popular handheld cameras was named after them, the Eastman Kodak Brownie camera.

Brownie is the name of a long-running and extremely popular series of simple and inexpensive cameras made by Eastman Kodak. The Brownie popularized low-cost photography and introduced the concept of the snapshot. The first Brownie, introduced in February of 1900, was a very basic cardboard box camera.

Biography
He was born in Granby, Quebec, son of Michael and Sarah (Miller) Cox, and became a carpenter and car builder. He moved to San Francisco via Panama as a railroad contractor, and he lived in there from 1863 to 1875. In 1874, he began to formally study drawing and contribute illustrated stories to such publications as Golden Era and Alta California. After 1875, Cox lived in New York
(Pine View House, East Quogue, Long Island). During this time he regularly contributed editorial cartoons to Oscar Hammerstein's United States Tobacco Journal.

The earliest publication of Brownie characters took place in 1879, but not until the February, 1881 issue of Wide Awake magazine were the creatures printed in their final form. In 1883, Brownie stories appeared in St. Nicholas Magazine and as their popularity rose, they were featured in publications such as the Ladies' Home Journal.

Cox's Brownies were little men who had mischievous adventures together. Each Brownie had a distinctive physical appearance: for example, one, Cholly Boutonnière, wore a top hat and monocle, another was dressed as a stereotypical Chinese peasant, yet another was dressed as a Red Indian chief in war bonnet. Cox's text was quite crude, and did not develop individual personalities for the Brownies, aside from the "ethnic" ones speaking in stereotypical dialect. Cox's illustrations tended to show a crowd of Brownies jumbled together, with specific Brownies recurring from one illustration to the next, but with no Brownie occupying a predictable location in the picture.

Cox died in his home, Brownie Castle, on July 24, 1924. His tombstone, decorated with a Brownie figure, reads: In creating the Brownies he bestowed a priceless heritage on childhood.

Homages in other works

Richard F. Outcault referenced Cox and The Brownies in a February 9, 1895 cartoon of Hogan's Alley
.
In the children's novel Rufus M, by Eleanor Estes set during World War I, young Rufus Moffat and his older sister Jane have a contest involving Palmer Cox's Brownie books: each new illustration, they compete to see who first spots the Brownie in the top hat.

Sources

Palmer Cox bibliography of published works

Footnotes

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Hell's Bells

2011-06-13T20:17:00.000-07:00

It's June! Lots of rain, humidity, everything's green - but soon it will be beastly hot and everything will get brown and crispy...

(Image: "The Pirate and the Mermaid" by Scott Gustavson)

My husband's birthday is in a couple of days... tonight we saw the latest "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie - I liked the script and the new characters (the mermaids were a great idea) and the scenery was great (lots of aerial shots, underwater, computer-generated stuff looked really good) Depp is always wonderful to watch and Geoffrey Rush is brilliant, as usual - Ian McShane is terrific, too... Now I'm waiting for the Green Lantern movie - also might go and see the new X-Men flick - speaking of x-men, we saw a trailer for a new Hugh Jackman movie about a giant "rock 'em sock 'em robot" that looked like it could be good...

I am looking forward to next Tuesday (June 21) - it's the Solstice, so I will have to blog about that - will do some sort of ceremony to welcome Summer in all its glory

Oh - okay, here's something random:

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hell's Bells can refer to:

"Hells Bells" (song), a 1980 song by Australian hard rock group AC/DC
Hell's Bells, a song by English jazz band Bruford, from their 1979 album One of a Kind
"Hell's Bells" (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Hell's Bells (TV series), a British comedy series starring Derek Nimmo
Hell's Bells (1929 film), a part of the Walt Disney Silly Symphonies animated series
Hell's Bells: The Dangers of Rock 'N' Roll, a 1989 Christian documentary film about rock and roll
Hells Bells, the original name for the Nintendo game Deadly Towers
Hell's Belles, a fictional super villain team in the Marvel Comics Universe, composed of female mutant terrorists
Hell's Belles (film), a 1970 biker film
Hell's Belles (band), an all female AC/DC cover band, originally from Seattle, Washington
HellsBelles, a heavy metal band from Great Britain active from 1983 to 1987
Datura, a hallucinogenic plant sometimes known as Hell's Bells
Hell's Bells (play), a comedy play in three acts written by Barry Conners

Not quite what I was expecting... but wait, what's this?

Hell’s bells is an interjection, an expression of surprise and disappointment. It was shortened from the original "Hell’s bells and buckets of blood." Although this expression’s exact provenance is not known, it is believed to have originated aboard 17th century pirate ships.

Wow - now that's more like it, right? This makes perfect sense, given the movie we just saw and the image I found to go along with it

It's late - time to wrap up - I'm also plotting some future blog posts about more mundane things... kicking around a few ideas, including sharing some jewelry I've been making, perhaps a poem or two my mother wrote more than 60 years ago, some interesting web sites, pet peeves, random insights... so, stay tuned, be safe, have fun and enjoy the Summer!

The Birthday Series: Part Four (final)

2011-05-29T20:37:00.000-07:00

It turned out to be a nice day after all (it started out cloudy, then the sun came out and it ended up being rather nice - a little humid and buggy but all in all pretty pleasant)

My friend Jen spent the majority of the afternoon here at the house... We snacked and sipped and laughed and actually touched on some serious topics, too - nice to share the day with a good friend, just taking it easy

Here are some birthday sentiments, courtesy of:

www.useful-information.info

Inside every older person is a younger person - wondering what the hell happened.
- Cora Harvey Armstrong

Oh to be seventy again.
- Georges Clemenceau, upon seeing a pretty girl on his eightieth birthday

Old age isn't so bad when you consider the alternative.
- Maurice Chevalier

Getting old ain't for sissies.
- Bette Davis

When I was younger, I could remember anything, whether it happened or not.
- Mark Twain

I'm at an age when my back goes out more than I do.
- Phyllis Diller

A diplomat is a man who always remembers a woman's
birthday but never remembers her age.
- Robert Frost

If I'd known I was going to live this long (100 years),
I'd have taken better care of myself.
- Ubie Blake

Men are like wine. Some turn to vinegar, but the best improve with age.
- C.E.M. Joad

My birthday!--what a different sound
That word had in my youthful ears;
And how each time the day comes round,
Less and less white its mark appears.
- Thomas Moore

Age is a high price to pay for maturity.
- Tom Stoppard

If we could be twice young and twice old we could correct all our mistakes.
- Euripides

Growing old is like being increasingly penalized
for a crime you have not committed.
- Anthony Powell

I want to take this time to thank everyone for their good wishes and salutations marking this special day...

My mother and brother... my husband... my friends... my cats... and those who were here in spirit

Thanks a lot - let's do this again next year!!

Birthday Series: Part Three

2011-05-29T18:47:00.000-07:00

I'm here with my friend Jen (and my husband, Greg) still celebrating my birthday

and the kitties...

but it's getting near the end - it's late, we're tired (that happens)

there was cheese and crackers - and wine - and champagne - and sun shining down on us - and now we're tired and sleepy and it's almost time to call it a day

so I'll try to post once more but I'm not promising anything!

A good time was had by all...

even tho we're fading away, I got some nice comments on my Facebook wall from old friends and I have people who care about me - and my mom called to wish me a happy birthday - what more can I ask for?

Life is good - yes????

Enjoy your birthdays - you only get one a year - and make them count!!!!

Happy new year - to me!

The Birthday Series: Part Two

2011-05-29T08:41:00.000-07:00

Image: Leo Reynolds (from his Letters & Numbers series on Yahoo's Flickr)

More on those "red-letter days" :

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A red letter day (sometimes hyphenated as red-letter day or called scarlet day in academia) is any day of special significance.

The term originates from Medieval church calendars. Illuminated manuscripts often marked initial capitals and highlighted words in red ink, known as rubrics. The First Council of Nicaea in 325 decreed the saints' days, feasts and other holy days, which came to be printed on church calendars in red. The term came into wider usage with the appearance in 1549 of the first Book of Common Prayer in which the calendar showed special holy days in red ink.

Many current calendars have special dates and holidays such as Sundays, Christmas Day and Midsummer Day rendered in red colour instead of black.

On red letter days, judges of the English High Court (Queen's Bench Division) wear, at sittings of the Court of Law, their scarlet robes (See court dress). Also in the United Kingdom, other civil dates have been added to the original religious dates. These include anniversaries of the Monarch's birthday, official birthday, accession and coronation.

In the universities of the UK, red letter days are called scarlet days. On such days, doctors of the university may wear their scarlet 'festal' or full dress gowns instead of their undress ('black') gown. This is more significant for the ancient universities such as Oxford and Cambridge where academic dress is worn almost daily; the black undress gown being worn on normal occasions as opposed to the bright red gowns. Since most universities now only use academic dress on graduation day (where doctors always wear scarlet), the significance of scarlet days has all but disappeared.

In Norway, Sweden and South Korea and some Latin American countries, a public holiday is typically referred to as "red day" (rød dag, röd dag, 빨간 날), as it is printed in red in calendars.

Red letter day is a special day of the year, marked by red color in calendar

Red letter day may also refer to:

Companies and organizations:

Red Letter Days (company), a UK company owned by Theo Paphitis and Peter Jones

In music:

Red Letter Day (band), a band from south Florida
Red Letter Day (album), an album by the band of the same name
Red Letter Days (album), an album by The Wallflowers
Red Letter Day (EP), an EP release by The Get Up Kids
A Red Letter Day, a single from the Pet Shop Boys

Wow - who knew? Well, obviously, someone knew... and now you do, too! More soon...

The Birthday Series: Part One

2011-05-29T08:15:00.000-07:00

"I am born." So begins Charles Dickens' novel, "Great Expectations" and isn't life just a plethora of those? I mean, don't our parents and grandparents and friends and relatives have loads of great expectations for us and then we take over and create our own list of hoped-for achievements? There will be disappointments and there will be red-letter days (What does that mean? More in the next chapter) and today I will check in and write several installments on what this birthday means to me and what I might have to look forward to... So, bring on the peacock feather cakes (or is that roast bird wrapped in pastry?) and soup tureens (or whatever else is on the table there) and help me drink some champagne and "celebrate fifty-eight" today!!

Not Enough Time In The Day

2011-05-25T20:04:00.000-07:00

No matter how I try to plan (and I am the worst at managing my time efficiently) I can never get everything done during one day off...

So I try to get a few things done and try to relax a little bit and just call it a draw

I have lots of topics I am determined to blog about but can't seem to get around to writing any of them down

So perhaps I need to focus more on what I want to achieve, especially since I'm looking down the hideous maw of another birthday...

Today, though, I did get my driver license renewed (take a look - it does say "driver license" not "driver's license") and I planted a few flowers and bought a few more to plant on Friday

I'll put the little flag out for Memorial Day on Monday (the local fife & drum corps will wake us up early in the morning - they march right past our house and have a little ceremony at the cemetery around the corner)

So let's try to enjoy our time off, get a few things done and relax for the rest of it - we deserve it!

Short and Sweet

2011-05-11T16:37:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post - here's a photo of the fire I had going on May 1 (Beltane - see blog post 05/01/11)

And, last week, I snapped this shot of a little pink dogwood tree in the parking lot behind the building where I work.

So far I have planted one tomato plant and one basil plant (both in large pots) and some spring lettuces, as well as a French tarragon, Greek oregano and some flowers (did I already blog about this? Oh, probably...)

Anyway - I am now going to clean the fish bowl (here's a photo of the new blue betta - his name is Barry, which is short for barracuda because he is always hungry!!!!)

Have a nice week - hope to have something a little more thought-provoking next time!

TJBG

Happy May Day/Beltane

2011-05-01T15:03:00.000-07:00

Today is May 1, an unusually auspicious day, according to the calendar: It's Labor Day (in Mexico)... Holocaust Remembrance Day... and May Day (Beltane), to only mention a few. I will not go into all of them here, but I do want to toss in some fascinating details about Beltane, a day when we can shrug off winter, plant vegetables & herbs and welcome the sun back into our lives.

Here's an article from www.witchvox.com written in 2000 by Christina Aubin

Beltane is the last of the three spring fertility festivals, the others being Imbolc and Ostara. Beltane is the second principal Celtic festival (the other being Samhain). Celebrated approximately halfway between Vernal (spring) equinox and the midsummer (Summer Solstice). Beltane traditionally marked the arrival if summer in ancient times.
******************************************* The Maypole dance as an important aspect of encouraging the return of fertility to the earth. The pole itself is not only phallic in symbolism but also is the connector of the three worlds. Dancing the Maypole during Beltane is magical experience as it is a conduit of energy, connecting all three worlds at a time when these gateways are more easily penetrable. As people gaily dance around and around the pole holding the brightly colored ribbons, the energy it raises is sent down into the earth's womb, bringing about Her full awakening and fruitfulness.
******************************************* Water is another important association of Beltane, water is refreshing and rejuvenating, it is also imperative to life. It is said that if you bathe in the dew gathered before dawn on Beltane morn, your beauty will flourish throughout the year. Those who are sprinkled with May dew are insured of health and happiness. There are other folk customs such as drinking from the well before sunrise on Beltane Morn to insure good health and fortune.
******************************************* The central color of Beltane is green. Green is the color of growth, abundance, plentiful harvest, abundant crops, fertility, and luck. White is another color that is customary, white brings the energies of cleansing, peace, spirituality, and the power to dispel negativity. Another color is red (I wore red today!) who brings along the qualities of energy, strength, sex, vibrancy, quickening, health, consummation and retention. Sun energy, life force and happiness are brought to Beltane by the color yellow. Blues and purples (Sagittarius energies: expansion, Good Fortune, magic, spiritual power, Success), and pinks (Venus energies). Beltane is rich in vibrant color, lighting the eyes and cheering the Spirit as we leave the dreariness of winter behind.
******************************************* It is customary to bake a colorful fruit and spiced filled bread for festivals in the Celtic lands, traditionally this festival bread is sweet dough made with sweetmeat and spices. In Scotland they are the bannock - Bonnach Bealtain - for Beltane, in Wales - Bara Brith, Ireland it is Barm Brack and in Brittany Morlaix Brioche. For Beltane this bread was made the eve before Beltane day, is it said that the bread should not allow it to come into contact with steel during preparation (steel is harmful, deadly to the faery folk).
****************************************** On Beltane eve the Celts would build two large fires, Bel Fires, lit from the nine sacred woods. The Bel Fire is an invocation to Bel (Sun God) to bring His blessings and protection to the tribe. The herds were ritually driven between two needfires (fein cigin), built on a knoll. The herds were driven through to purify, bring luck and protect them as well as to insure their fertility before they were taken to summer grazing lands. An old Gaelic adage: "Eadar da theine Bhealltuinn" - "Between two Beltane fires".

Lots of great ideas for celebrating Beltane: Tonight, if my husband will help me move my little fire pit outside, I think I will bake some cookies (my substitute for bannock) and toast the end of winter with a glass of wine sitting beside a few tiny flaming sticks.

Happy First of May, everyone!

A Friend's Passing...

2011-04-25T04:26:00.000-07:00

photo: My HipstaPrint "Fairy-Angel" by TJGoogins

I got a call from my friend Donna's husband this morning - I was already awake, got up before my alarm went off, which was set for seven a.m., so it was kinda early - but he had already phoned me a couple of days before to prepare me for this call...

"She passed away around five o'clock this morning," he said

"Were you there?" I asked. I knew how devoted he was to her, how much he loved her, how much he didn't want to lose her but knew she couldn't last too much longer.

He told me the nurse had called him from the house, so he left work and got home just as Donna was taking her last few breaths. Although I knew that was a difficult moment for him, I also knew he could take some small comfort from being there when she departed.

We talked for a few minutes, both of us feeling very much relieved that her fight with cancer was finally over and she would feel no more pain.

"She's dancing now, Robert - dancing and laughing." And telling jokes, I meant to add.

Donna was my boss nearly 30 years ago but we became good friends and stayed in touch even when we moved from one place to the next. I was her "straight man" and she was my personal chef. She was small and I was tall. We were both May babies but she was a year older than me. She had a hard life and worked her behind off for most of it but she always knew how to have a good time until this ugly thing came to torment, weaken and eventually consume her. She was a tough, wisecrackin' Boston-born girl who kept giving Mister Death the finger until the very end.

I stopped to see her last month when my husband and I drove South for our vacation - it had been more than ten years since I'd visited her - and we both got to meet each other's husband. Although I didn't want this to be my "good-bye" visit, I think I knew it would take a miracle to get a second chance at this; she looked so pale and frail and yet she was still cracking jokes.

So, rest in peace, 'Mo (she called me 'Bo - or was it the other way around? - but that's another story). Stay in touch, ya hear? And make the angels laugh, dear friend, make 'em laugh.

Easter Is So Pretty

2011-04-24T17:38:00.000-07:00

These lovely
Easter images
courtesy of:

http://vintageholidaycrafts.com/

Easter is late this year - but no matter: It was a lovely day - warm, a little rain late in the day, pretty flowers blooming... my kale plants overwintered and are putting out new leaves, while the yarrow and mint and lemon balm from previous years are coming in strong!

Last night i tried to watch The Ten Commandments, but was only able to watch a few scenes...

Today I tried to watch King of Kings, then The Robe - no luck with either one...

I finally caught the end of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang - then I watched Mary Poppins, followed by The Sound of Music - now I'm watching Titanic - not typical Easter fare, I know, but there you have it!

Holidays are a time to spend with friends and family - my husband had to work, so I spent it by myself, which was fine - I just took a much-needed break

Back to work tomorrow - soon April will end and May will be here - the trees will finally have leaves and more flowers will bloom - I will plant herbs and perhaps a couple of vegetables (lettuce? tomatoes? peppers?) I don't have anywhere to plant them - I had hoped to join my town's community garden, but I have not done it yet... there's still time, though!

Here's what www.history.com says about Easter:

The exact origins of this religious feast day's name are unknown. Some sources claim the word Easter is derived from Eostre, a Teutonic goddess of spring and fertility. Other accounts trace Easter to the Latin term hebdomada alba, or white week, an ancient reference to Easter week and the white clothing donned by people who were baptized during that time. Through a translation error, the term later appeared as esostarum in Old High German, which eventually became Easter in English. In Spanish, Easter is known as Pascua; in French, Paques. These words are derived from the Greek and Latin Pascha or Pasch, for Passover. Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection occurred after he went to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover (or Pesach in Hebrew), the Jewish festival commemorating the ancient Israelites' exodus from slavery in Egypt. Pascha eventually came to mean Easter.

Easter is really an entire season of the Christian church year, as opposed to a single-day observance. Lent, the 40-day period leading up to Easter Sunday, is a time of reflection and penance and represents the 40 days that Jesus spent alone in the wilderness before starting his ministry, a time in which Christians believe he survived various temptations by the devil. The day before Lent, known as Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday, is a last hurrah of food and fun before the fasting begins. The week preceding Easter is called Holy Week and includes Maundy Thursday, which commemorates Jesus' last supper with his disciples; Good Friday, which honors the day of his crucifixion; and Holy Saturday, which focuses on the transition between the crucifixion and resurrection. The 50-day period following Easter Sunday is called Eastertide and includes a celebration of Jesus' ascension into heaven.

In addition to Easter's religious significance, it also has a commercial side, as evidenced by the mounds of jelly beans and marshmallow chicks that appear in stores each spring. As with Christmas, over the centuries various folk customs and pagan traditions, including Easter eggs, bunnies, baskets and candy, have become a standard part of this holy holiday.

Easter Bunny

The Bible makes no mention of a long-eared, short-tailed creature who delivers decorated eggs to well-behaved children on Easter Sunday; nevertheless, the Easter bunny has become a prominent symbol of Christianity's most important holiday. The exact origins of this mythical mammal are unclear, but rabbits, known to be prolific procreators, are an ancient symbol of fertility and new life. According to some sources, the Easter bunny first arrived in America in the 1700s with German immigrants who settled in Pennsylvania and transported their tradition of an egg-laying hare called "Osterhase" or "Oschter Haws." Their children made nests in which this creature could lay its colored eggs. Eventually, the custom spread across the U.S. and the fabled rabbit's Easter morning deliveries expanded to include chocolate and other types of candy and gifts, while decorated baskets replaced nests. Additionally, children often left out carrots for the bunny in case he got hungry from all his hopping.

Easter Eggs

Easter is a religious holiday, but some of its customs, such as Easter eggs, are likely linked to pagan traditions. The egg, an ancient symbol of new life, has been associated with pagan festivals celebrating spring. From a Christian perspective, Easter eggs are said to represent Jesus' emergence from the tomb and resurrection. Decorating eggs for Easter is a tradition that dates back to at least the 13th century, according to some sources. One explanation for this custom is that eggs were formerly a forbidden food during the Lenten season, so people would paint and decorate them to mark the end of the period of penance and fasting, then eat them on Easter as a celebration.

Easter egg hunts and egg rolling are two popular egg-related traditions. In the U.S., the White House Easter Egg Roll, a race in which children push decorated, hard-boiled eggs across the White House lawn, is an annual event held the Monday after Easter. The first official White House egg roll occurred in 1878, when Rutherford B. Hayes was president. The event has no religious significance, although some people have considered egg rolling symbolic of the stone blocking Jesus' tomb being rolled away, leading to his resurrection.

Easter Candy

Easter is the second best-selling candy holiday in America, after Halloween. Among the most popular sweet treats associated with this day are chocolate eggs, which date back to early 19th century Europe. Eggs have long been associated with Easter as a symbol of new life and Jesus' resurrection. Another egg-shaped candy, the jelly bean, became associated with Easter in the 1930s (although the jelly bean's origins reportedly date all the way back to a Biblical-era concoction called a Turkish Delight). According to the National Confectioners Association, over 16 billion jelly beans are made in the U.S. each year for Easter, enough to fill a giant egg measuring 89 feet high and 60 feet wide. For the past decade, the top-selling non-chocolate Easter candy has been the marshmallow Peep, a sugary, pastel-colored confection. Bethlehem, Pennsylvania-based candy manufacturer Just Born (founded by Russian immigrant Sam Born in 1923) began selling Peeps in the 1950s. The original Peeps were handmade, marshmallow-flavored yellow chicks, but other shapes and flavors were later introduced, including chocolate mousse bunnies.

Easter Parade

In New York City, the Easter Parade tradition dates back to the mid-1800s, when the upper crust of society would attend Easter services at various Fifth Avenue churches then stroll outside afterward, showing off their new spring outfits and hats. Average citizens started showing up along Fifth Avenue to check out the action. The tradition reached its peak by the mid-20th century, and in 1948, the popular film Easter Parade was released, starring Fred Astaire and Judy Garland and featuring the music of Irving Berlin. The title song includes the lyrics: "In your Easter bonnet, with all the frills upon it/You'll be the grandest lady in the Easter parade."

Enjoy nature - live life well - be kind - Happy Easter!

Today is Earth Day

2011-04-22T05:06:00.000-07:00

Earth Day 2011 Is Celebrated

By Mark Dunphy - Fri Apr 22, 12:17 pm

Millions of people around the world will today take place in special events commemorating the 41st annual Earth Day.

The first Earth Day, on April 22, 1970, activated 20 million Americans from all walks of life and is widely credited with launching the modern environmental movement.

Eco-minded celebrities have this year joined Earth Day Network’s Billion Acts of Green Campaign, along with millions around the world, proving that people everywhere are eager to act in unity to support a sustainable future.

Leonardo DiCaprio, Jewel, Ed Begley, Jr., Sienna Miller, Matthew Modine, Maria Menounos, Edward Norton and Ian Somerhalder are among the many who have “committed” more than over 100 million Acts of Green since the campaign kicked off last Earth Day during the Climate Rally on the National Mall in Washington, DC (participants included Sting, The Roots, Joss Stone, James Cameron).

“The tremendous influence of these notable activists is an inspiration and a reminder that we all have a responsibility to contribute our time, talents and voices to preserving the planet we all call home,” said Kathleen Rogers, President of Earth Day Network.

The following celebrities have registered their Act of Green at www.billionactsofgreen.org in hopes of inspiring others to do the same:

Leonardo DiCaprio – An avid environmentalist, DiCaprio pledged $1 million to World Wildlife Fund for urgent tiger conservation. DiCaprio and the WWF teamed up to launch www.SaveTigersNow.org, where supporters can learn more about the rapidly dwindling tiger population, why tigers are important to the planet and humanity, and how to take action to prevent this species from going extinct.

Jewel - Volunteered to perform at a benefit concert for the Clearwater Project to raise funds to provide education to people in developing countries about their right to have access to clean water.

Ed Begley, Jr. –Chooses to ride a bike when weather and fitness permit and takes public transportation if available to cut down on traffic and pollution and lessen our dependence on foreign oil.
Sienna Miller – Visited India as a Green ambassador for Global Cool to help raise awareness among the people of India about the harmful effects of global warming.
Matthew Modine- A well known environmental activist, Matthew has most recently designated that all the proceeds from opening weekend of the new, animated film MIA AND THE MIGOO will support Earth Day Network’s Canopy Project, which is part of the Billion Acts of Green Campaign. The movie opens in theaters on Earth Day, 4/22/11.
Maria Menounos– Her commitment to organic gardening and carrying the message forward in her book, The EveryGirl’s Guide to Life. Last year, Maria also spoke at the Earth Day Network’s Climate Rally in Washington, DC about the health and cost effectiveness of greener living through things such as home gardening.
Edward Norton – Ran the New York City Marathon with a team of Maasai warriors in support of the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust, raising over $1 million through his site, Crowdrise.com. Crowdrise is a place for online fundraising, event fundraising, volunteering and having the most fun in the world while doing it.
Ian Somerhalder – Created the IS Foundation to educate and collaborate with people and projects to positively impact the planet and its creatures – the organization recently collaborated with Conservation International to save over 300 acres of forest.
Kelly Preston – Chosen to highlight her work with The Earth Organization as her addition to the Billion Acts of Green Campaign for Earth Day 2011
Brandi Carlile – Established The Looking Out Foundation to financially support causes and organizations including many environmental groups. She pledged to continue offsetting the carbon emissions from her tour.
Leilani Munter – Pledged to “continue to adopt an acre of rainforest for every race I run, which I have been doing since 2007. Represent green companies on my race car and spread environmental awareness to the 75 million race fans in the USA.”

For more on Earth Day 2011 see earthday.org.

www.irishweatheronline.com

*****************************************************************************

Here's another article written by John Roach for

National Geographic News

and published on April 6, 2010

From not-so-humble beginnings in 1970, when 20 million participated across the U.S., Earth Day has grown into a global tradition, with a billion expected to take part in 2009. Find out when it is, how it started, how it's evolved, and what you can do.

When Is Earth Day?

Every day, the saying goes, is Earth Day. But it's popularly celebrated on April 22. Why?

One persistent rumor holds that April 22 was chosen because it's the birthday of Vladimir Lenin, the founder of the Soviet Union.

"Lenin's goal was to destroy private property and this goal is obviously shared by environmentalists," the Capitalism Magazine Web site noted in a 2004 article perpetuating the theory.

Kathleen Rogers, president of Washington, D.C.-based Earth Day Network, which was founded by the original organizers of Earth Day, scoffs at the rumored communist connection.

She said April 22, 1970, was chosen for the first Earth Day in part because it fell on a Wednesday, the best part of the week to encourage a large turnout for the environmental rallies held across the country.

"It worked out perfectly, because everybody was at work and they all left," she said.

In fact, more than 20 million people across the U.S. are estimated to have participated in that first Earth Day.

(PICTURES: The First Earth Day--Bell-Bottoms and Gas Masks.)

Earth Day is now celebrated every year by more than a billion people in 180 nations around the world, according to Rogers.

Mad People and a Frustrated Politician

Earth Day's history is rooted in 1960s activism. The environment was in visible ruins and people were mad, according to Rogers.

"It wasn't uncommon in some cities during rush hour to be standing on a street corner and not be able to see across the street" because of pollution, she said.

Despite the anger, green issues were absent from the U.S. political agenda, which frustrated U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin, whose campaigns for the environment through much of the 1960s had fallen flat.

First Earth Day "Took off Like Gangbusters"

In 1969 Nelson hit on the idea of an environmental protest modeled after anti-Vietnam War demonstrations called teach-ins.

"It took off like gangbusters. Telegrams, letters, and telephone inquiries poured in from all across the country," Nelson recounted in an essay shortly before he died in July 2005 at 89.

"The American people finally had a forum to express its concern about what was happening to the land, rivers, lakes, and air—and they did so with spectacular exuberance."

Nelson recruited activist Denis Hayes to organize the April 22, 1970, teach-in, which today is sometimes credited for launching the modern environmental movement.

By the end of 1970, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency had been born, and efforts to improve air and water quality were gaining political traction.

"It was truly amazing what happened," Rogers said. "Blocks just tumbled."

Earth Day Evolves

Amy Cassara is a senior associate at the World Resources Institute in Washington, D.C., who analyzes global environmental trends.

She noted that, since Earth Day started, environmentalism has moved from a fringe issue to a mainstream concern. "As many as 80 percent of Americans describe themselves as environmentalists," Cassara said.

Environmental issues today, however, are less immediate than dirty air, toxic water, and a hole in the ozone layer, she added.

For example, the impacts of global climate change are largely abstract and difficult to explain "without coming off as a doomsday prognosticator," Cassara said.

"As we become more industrialized and our supply chains become less transparent, it can be more difficult to understand the environmental consequences of our actions," she noted.

Earth Day Network is pushing the Earth Day movement from single-day actions—such as park cleanups and tree-planting parties—to long-term commitments.

"Planting a tree, morally and poetically, requires taking care of it for a really long time, not just sticking it in the ground," Earth Day Network's Rogers said.

To help make the transition, the organization is aligned with a hundred thousand schools around the world, integrating projects with an environmental component into the year-round curriculum.

"They announce the results on Earth Day, so Earth Day becomes a moment in time," Rogers said.

Cassara, of the World Resources Institute, said her organization uses Earth Day to convene with leaders in the movement and assess progress in their campaigns.

"[Earth Day] doesn't raise awareness among the general public in the same way that it used to. But it still provides a benchmark for reflection among those of us in the environmental community," she said.

What to Do on Earth Day?

For those whose inner environmentalist speaks loudest on April 22, Earth Day Network's Rogers encourages them to make a public commitment to take an environmental action.

"We are headed for a billion commitments to do something green," Rogers said. "And that doesn't mean think about it—it means do something."

Commitment ideas promoted by the Earth Day Network include pledging to educate friends and family on global warming or buy green products such as energy-saving compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs).

The commitments are part of a yearlong initiative called the Green Generation, which leads up to the 40th anniversary of Earth Day in 2010.

(See pictures of quirky Earth Day stunts.)

According to Rogers, everyone is part of this generation, which marks the transition from the industrial revolution to the green revolution.

"It is also about the green generation of energy and the generation of green jobs. ... The name [Green Generation], whenever I say it to people, they have their own idea of what it means, which is exactly what we want."

So there you have it - Earth Day 2011

As for me, I will drive my old Volvo to work today (which is only 3 or 4 miles away) and I plan to generate waves of positive energy to help our planet and all living things heal and feel good today and every day - let's be good to this marvelous big blue marble we call home!!!!

HAPPY EARTH DAY!