Category Archives: Uncategorized

Early Bird Catches The Baby Smiling

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Introducing my second blog Grandmotherly.blog and here’s a post about who made me a grandmother. ❤ ❤

Grandmotherly.blog

I gave birth to my second blog,Grandmotherly.blog, in June of this year. I decided I wanted a second blog to write about my experiences as a new grandmother. Today’s prompt words fit in well with this blog so I wanted to write my post here. I haven’t written very much about being a grandmother for a bit. My grandson came home about 3 weeks ago from the NICU. He was born very early and had to stay in the hospital until he was big and strong enough. He’s been a fighter from his birth until now, through ups and downs. Things have been hectic at his house as he and his parents have been getting used to the new routine. My daughter in law told me it would be better if I visited him in the mornings when he is most energetic and happy. So today I went over about…

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The Flat

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“In life, a person will come and go from many homes. We may leave a house, a town, a room, but that does not mean those places leave us. Once entered, we never entirely depart the homes we make for ourselves in the world. They follow us, like shadows, until we come upon them again, waiting for us in the mist.”
― Ari Berk

The last flat¹ we lived in in San Francisco had a little room off the kitchen where there was a sink with a window over it, and there were counters and shelves on each side of the sink. I thought of it as a pantry but it was probably more like a scullery, “since the scullery was the room with running water, it had a sink…”². Scullery³ sounds like a place to store sculls, catacombs. There were no skulls in our pantry.

800px-DJJ_1_Catacombes_de_Paris by djtox on Wikipedia.

Catacombs of Paris by Djtox

The kitchen had a built in breakfast nook with a vinyl covered U-shaped banquette, like a booth in a diner. My mother loved the nook. Flats are like large apartments. Ours had a kitchen, den, two bedrooms, living room, 1¼ bath. I say ¼ bath because there was a small room in the hall with a second toilet. The rooms of the flat were bigger than a typical modern apartment in the US. Our flat was on the top floor. You had to walk up a flight of stairs to get to the front door and another flight once you got inside. My mother did not lock the front door. You were not afraid living in The City in those days. Flats seem more like homes than apartments.

10754345204_a0846b68e7_zThe Mission District by Ken Lund on Flickr

Mission District by Ken Lund

This (above) looks something like the flat we lived in, only nicer. Below image is not too far from my old neighborhood.

800px-CastroAnd20thStreetInSanFranciscosCastroDistrict via wikimedia

2oth and Castro Street

footnotes:

1.flat: A set of rooms forming an individual residence, typically on one floor and within a larger building containing a number of such residences.-Oxford Living Dictionaries

2.Pantry-Wikipedia.

3. Etymololgy of scullery: Middle English squilerie, sculerie department of household in charge of dishes, from Anglo-French esquilerie, from escuele, eskel bowl, from Latin scutella drinking bowl-Merriam-Webster Dictionary online.

One Liner Wednesday is hosted by Linda G Hill. Featured image The Scullery Maid  painting by Giuseppe Maria Crespi via Wikimedia

 

Talk of Sealing Wax

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“The time has come,” the Walrus said,
“To talk of many things:
Of shoes–and ships–and sealing-wax….-Lewis Carroll

In the BBC film version of Pride and Prejudice (1995), Mr. Darcy stays up all night writing a letter to Elizabeth Bennet in an effort to clear himself of unjust charges by Mr. Wickham. He seals the envelope with sealing wax stamped with his signet ring. This letter writing scene was not in the original book by Jane Austen. In Pride and Prejudice, letters were the way of conveying information from a distance. Or in Darcy’s case, a way to speak from the heart without speaking face to face. The people in the story had to wait to find out what was happening with their friends and family. There was no texting, emails, or phone calls. I remember, not so long ago, this was the way we communicated. There was something special about receiving a handwritten letter. There was the anticipation built up of when the letter would come and the excitement of its arrival.  There was noting the choice of stationary and the handwriting of the sender. Sometimes it could be hard to read some of the words depending on the penmanship. There could be cross outs. You saved special letters in a box. I remember I liked my writing to be clear and hated to cross out words so I would end up throwing out cards or paper and starting over. You wanted your lines to be straight inside and on the envelope, and you might pick out special postage stamps. I remember my mother in law, my husband’s aunt, and I addressing my wedding invitations by hand. For my daughter-in-law’s rehearsal dinner I picked out special postage stamps with images of wedding bands. I have a Montblanc fountain pen that I have to fill with ink. Texting or emails just can’t compare. How romantic to receive a handwritten letter sealed with wax with impression of a signet ring. I miss letter writing and receiving handwritten letters.

4022418729_513a95839f_z

Stream of Consciousness Saturday is hosted by Linda G Hill. The prompt words are sealing/ceiling. Featured image of illustration from Pride and Prejudice by C. E. Brock via wikimedia. Image of letter with wax seal by Charlotte Gilhooly via Flickr.

A Friend In Trouble

A sweet lady Irene (IreneDesign2011) is in need of our good thoughts. You can send good wishes in the comment section of AnyRose’s post.

Petals Unfolding

I was just notified this morning that a good friend of mine, Irene (IreneDesign2011), is very ill in a hospital in her city.  Her daughter, Claire, requested help from me to get the word out that her Mother needs prayer, Light and Energy, good thoughts, sent now.  If any of you know Irene will you please reblog this post and assist me to get to as many of Irene’s friends as possible so they know about this situation?

The following is the exact message Claire, Irene’s daughter requested I write in this post:

“I am not sure who is reading this but I hope it is read by Irene’s friends and followers.  I am her daughter, my name is Claire, and would like to give you an update on this story.  As I cannot guess her password to the computer, I cannot write a separate post for you to receive…

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Ring Dancer

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Cassini Spacecraft Dives Between Saturn and its Rings!

 

The Cassini Spacecraft is going to dive into the rings of Saturn and send back data before the end of its mission.  First dive is today. Go Cassini!