Lost forever, no pie for me and road trip

- Update:  I never did find my lost glove, which I blogged about here.  This photo (taken from ebay) are the ones I purchased from a seller to replace them.  I don't think I'll ever really like them - they don't fit perfectly like the others did (and aren't exactly like the others), but they are warm and it won't break my heart if I lose one.  That's what makes it a good thing.  :)

- This is the lol cat I had saved to post if I had found my glove.  :)  It would be just a waste not to post it anyway - it's so funny.

- I'll be looking at this view by the end of the day today - the Emerald Coast of Northwest Florida.  Sigh.  How I've been dreaming of this trip.  And I loved being able to announce my contribution to the road snacks - in the back and forth texting / planning stages all week - "four boxes of Girl Scout cookies!"

Happy weekend, y'all!

Unexpected view, the cookies are here and special gift

- Photo of the Georgia State Capitol building taken from a window inside Central Presbyterian Church (founded in 1858!) in Atlanta.  I was there for a meeting of the Presbytery of Greater Atlanta last Saturday.  As I was walking up a stairwell, I spotted the view of the capitol from a window.  The building was completed in 1889 and the dome was gilded with native gold leaf from Dahlonega, Georgia in 1958.  I think it's beautiful and always love seeing it from a distance from highways leading into Atlanta. 

- The Girl Scout cookies I bought from two sisters arrived with politely written thank you notes.  I loved that the elder sister completely sold me on the Thin Mints by suggesting I could put them in the freezer.

- Grannie Annie commented a few days ago, after reading my blog post about a book on CD, that she had some that she would send to me.  She emailed at the end of last week and said she was putting them in the mail via the "media mail" rate and couldn't imagine when they would arrive.  But they came on Monday!  It's always so delightful to get a parcel, isn't it?  And this parcel will provide endless hours of commuting entertainment.  Thanks Annie!

Curio cabinet, happy ending and goldfinches

 - The story of my new cabinet:  My sister and I walked by a newly opened antiques shop in Thomasville, Georgia on the day after Christmas.  She said that building had been a hardware store for years.  A hand inside the window waved at us, so we went in.  While my sis talked to the very nice lady who had waved, I walked around and browsed.  Tucked away in the corner was a lighted curio cabinet with a "Sale" tag of $50 on it.  I thought, "$50????  Hmmm...how could I get that home?"  I knew just the spot for it in my dining room.  We left and I mulled it over while we walked around town.  I mentioned to her that I thought I might like that cabinet and she said it would fit in the back of her SUV, so we went back, only to find the shop had closed for the day.  I snapped a photo of the telephone number posted on the door and finally called about it during the last week of January.  The shop lady said she was very sorry, she was using it as a display case now.  Well shoot.  I cajoled and made my case, but no, she was firm - it was no longer for sale.  (It's in the photo above - found on their facebook page. Click to enlarge.  Far left corner in the back.)

- As you can see from this photo, this story has a happy ending - here it is in the corner of my dining room with contents from around my home in place.  I adore it.  :)  Here's what happened:  My sister and I were talking on the phone about her upcoming trip to visit me in Atlanta on the first week of February and I told her my tale of woe about the cabinet, adding "I should have bought it on the spot when I saw it."  She said, "I'm going to Thomasville tomorrow (she lives about 30 miles away in northern Florida) and I'll see what I can do."  She walked into the shop and pleaded my case again for me, by saying that she was coming up for my birthday and would love to surprise me.  She walked around the shop browsing and the shop lady thought about it, "It's her birthday?  Really?"  My sister called me while I was driving home that afternoon, "You owe me $53.50!" :)  The very nice lady had acquiesced.  Here it is and I adore it.  We need to send my sis to Washington, I think.

- Sara says my birds from the last post might very well be goldfinches.  How about that?  And perfect that I am reading the book, "The Goldfinch" right now.  I can hardly put it down at this point.   Click on the red link for Stephen King's review in The New York Times Book Review.  If he liked it, that's good enough for me.

Thanks for coming by!  Have a great weekend!

Wren party, in flight and coming home

- It's been a regular wren party on my back porch the last several days.  I took about 20 photos on Sunday, trying to get a good one, but they are constantly in motion.  I like this one of them in silhouette.

- You would need to click to enlarge to see the bird in flight here.  My dad gave me this feeder years ago to foil squirrels getting to the bird seed.  I don't really have the right kind of seed in this - it's Niger seed, but they love it.  They probably need it, too - it's unseasonably cold here this week.

- It was great entertainment since I have been a bit under the weather with a nasty cold and stayed in a lot last weekend.  If you click to enlarge, you can see one fellow perched on top waiting for a spot.  :)  I think these are wrens (or perhaps goldfinches) and wonder if they are from the families who build nests in the birdhouse there in the spring.  I like to think so.

One piper piping, glorious dish and happy V day!

- The sanctuary of my church last Saturday morning, after we hung tartans in preparation for our annual Kirking of the Tartans service on Sunday.  Tartan carriers would carry those tartans on the left and right in a solemn procession up the aisle on Sunday morning, accompanied by a piper playing Highland Cathedral.  That's the piper above (click to enlarge) and his proud parents, both recording his practice on their phones.

- How could I not show you the glorious dish of fried lobster I had on Saturday night at my favorite Thai restaurant?  I've always wanted to try this, but wasn't expecting the lobster shell to be on top.  :)  I almost took it home! 

- I'm ignoring that today is Friday the 13th and wishing you a happy day tomorrow with these camellias from my sister's garden.  Happy Valentines Day, y'all!

And hope you have a happy weekend, too!

Feather catchers, unexpected and a perfect gift

- That's the side of my fireplace wall, just beside the sliding glass door that goes out onto the back porch.  I don't think I've ever posted about my feather catchers before.  (Click to enlarge if you can.)  They are wonderful pottery faces that are hollow inside.  The potter named them "feather catchers."  So when I spot a pretty feather on my walks, I bring it home because I have just the place for it.

My sisters and I all bought these at a wonderful shop in Dillsboro, North Carolina over the period of a few years.  The green one above was one of the last ones the potter made - I was told by the owner of the shop that she had a terminal illness and was not expected to live.  And indeed - there were no more in that shop again.  I'm sorry I don't know her name.  And an internet search never brings up "feather catchers" like these, only the Native American "dream catchers."  So it seems we have something truly unique. 

- My sister Jo brought me a beautifully wrapped little gift when she arrived last Thursday evening - unexpected because we generally do not do birthday gifts, except the gift of each others visits.  She was in a shop called The Mole Hole in Pensacola, Florida, where niece Abby and her family live.  She spotted something that goes so perfectly with our feather catchers, that she just had to get one for both of us.

- The face is a little ghoulish, but I love it.  :)  It is known as a "leaf spirit" and was made by a potter who lives in NW Washington State - Nana Thebus.  Somehow it has the same spirit as the feather catchers I already have, so of course it fits right in.  It reminds Jo of how grandson Monroe loves to peek out at her through tree branches.  A perfect gift.

Happy heart, raspberry elegance and good things

- It was my birthday on Wednesday.  I think it's lovely to have your own special day, but I resist special attention to it usually.  However, on Wednesday - I was greeted with this printed out message on both computers (I have two cubicles at the printing company), the welcome sign up front and inside the restroom door.  :)  Friend and coworker Bren did that - it made me start out the day with a happy heart.

- And then there was cake!  A "Raspberry Elegance" cake - so good that I had two pieces.

- And there was much needed laughter with friend Leisa, who went with me to dinner to celebrate.  I had filet of regionally caught trout, sauteed, and topped with pesto butter and sugared pecans.  Served with white cheddar grits and roasted brussel sprouts.  YUM.

AND my sister Jo has come to visit and will be with me until Sunday for sister time.  I'm so happy.  (For someone resisting attention to her birthday, I sure have called more attention to it now, I guess.)  

Bonus good thing:  the beautiful "Snow moon" this week that was still beautiful Thursday morning on my drive to work.  Incredibly beautiful.

Have a great weekend, y'all!

Hubba hubba, latest obsession and sentimental value

- I forgot to take my own shopping bag in to Whole Paycheck Whole Foods last night and was amused by the expression of excitement, "hubba hubba" that they put on the bag.  If you click on the link, there is a good article about the origin and meaning of hubba hubba.  And I did grab a whole bunch of healthy - my sister is coming to town on Thursday evening to spend the weekend with me.  I'm making Peanut Chicken Stew - a Southern Living recipe that starts with a sweet potato broth that you make yourself.

- Speaking of recycling (yes, I'll recycle that bag) - my two and a half-year-old great nephew, Monroe, loves his present I got him for Christmas.  A Green Toys rocket made from 100% recycled plastic milk jugs.  His mother sent a text the other night saying he is "OBSESSED" with the astronauts that go inside it and plays with them all the time.  I reply that if he turns out to be an astronaut, I'm totally taking credit.

- My other reason for going to Whole Foods was to check the lost and found for my lost black glove.  Those gloves were a gift from my late parents several years ago and I loved them because they were a longer length and kept my lower arms warm, too.  That's why they chose them - because I'm always having to scrape ice off my windshield and they wanted me to be warm.  There were all manner of black gloves at the Whole Foods lost and found, but not mine.  I have two more places to check, but I'm thinking it's gone, so I ordered some that are similar.  The moral to this story is what makes it a good thing - I want to remember to never minimize the importance of a gift and what it might mean to someone.  It was the sentimental value more than anything.