Stuff I've been thinking about:

• Wondering what would it be like if I were in a different profession.
• Remembering when I had really long hair.
• Wondering how I can best help my kid succeed and be happy in life, and, now that I write that out, wondering which is really most important to me, deep down. I hope that I want contentment, not actual happiness, and that success is measured in making a difference as well as financial self-sufficiency.
• Wondering what really can help people break the cycle of poverty, and why more people don't think about that. I have actually heard people I love and respect say "the poor will always be with us", but does that somehow validate doing nothing to help?
• Wondering if my body is up to the task of working full-time and keeping an active lifestyle. Heh, as if anyone would call my current life "active." LOL
• Thinking about how I'm going to be tested, probably in the next year, to see if my belief that "home" is about people and not about place as my parents are planning to move out of the house I grew up in. I can't even imagine them in any other dwelling since we moved there when I was an infant.
• We are "of an age" when our friends are dealing with serious, life-threatening medical conditions people are losing parents, aunts, uncles to death. There seems to be so much death around us lately, including colleagues and former co-workers.

What kinds of things have been on YOUR minds lately?

Great American Aran Afghan

I've long admired this collection of cabled squares made into an afghan, and in January, using gift credit from my darling MIL, I decided to purchase the book of patterns and get cracking! My goal is to make about one square per month, which means it will take nearly 2 years to complete the blanket.

I'm using Knit Picks Bare, superwash merino. It's great yarn, feels good and squishy, and I think it will wear well. I apologize in advance for the color quality of these pics. I'm not my husband!


Each square was designed by someone different, and each one is unique.



Some are knit from one end to the other.










Some knit from the outside edge to the center. I found this technique to be really fun!







One square I've done has a center panel knit one end to the other and then you pick up stitches all around the edge as you knit the border on - very cool.


All in all, it is shaping up to be an interesting project. I like the variety of patterns, and I'm enjoying being able to knit one square at a time and move on to other things in between.

I'm currently on my 5th square, which is right on schedule, really, since we're almost to May. I might even finish this blanky earlier than expected, but I'm not going to push it. The process is enjoyable this way!

Jane in June

The Book Rat is doing a celebration of Jane Austen in June - care to join?

filler

Yea, so I got sick of my daily poems. You too, I imagine! I'll post again soon with some real-life content - this time I'll put some pix of Simon in the show that was this weekend. It's been a very busy week!

Childhood Joy in the Sun

A few years ago I was fortunate enough to volunteer to help out COSI for the festivities when the OSU studios were moving to share space with them. Part of the family days included storytimes by a few librarians like me. The big, fancy event the night before, however, included one of my heroes, Caroll Spinney, who created Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch. I got to speak with him at that event, but the next day noticed that he and his wife actually observed about 10 minutes of my storytime! I was thrilled out of my gourd!

The ladies who were my contacts at COSI knew what a crazy fan I was and told him I'd love to talk to him again, so they waited around a bit. I told him what a huge influence Sesame Street had on my life, my creativity and even my career because they always thought about what children really needed so that they'd be motivated to pay attention to the parts that would be informational. It is so entertaining that children don't even realize they're learning. I also told him that we sing the song "I Love Trash" (one of Oscar's hits) at our house, and he said "Let's sing it together now". This first picture was taken when we were singing together. You can see that I totally became a kid again with him (I know, not a stretch to imagine).

Imagine playing the most recognizable character in the world (Big Bird) and never being recognized on the streets. He is an amazingly down-to-earth and kind man, just the way you hope he'd be. I will never forget that brush with fame, that day when my hero took time to make me feel special by singing with me . . . in public . . . about trash.

Do you have a favorite song from your childhood? I have hundreds, but the bright, beautiful day outside makes me think of this one:

Sunny Day! composed by Joe Raposo


Sunny Day
Sweepin' the clouds away
On my way to where the air is sweet

Can you tell me how to get,
How to get to Sesame Street

Come and play
Everything's A-OK
Friendly neighbors there
That's where we meet

Can you tell me how to get
How to get to Sesame Street

It's a magic carpet ride
Every door will open wide
To Happy people like you--
Happy people like
What a beautiful

Sunny Day
Sweepin' the clouds away
On my way to where the air is sweet

Can you tell me how to get,
How to get to Sesame street...

How to get to Sesame Street

How to get to...

Poem of the Day

Haiku 4/5/11

He missed the school bus!
Hurry hurry get yourself dressed!
Drive the kid to school!


Yup. It's one of those days.

Morning Rush

daily routine, 4/4/11

dreams interrupted
grumbling acceptance
stumbling descent
awaken youth
mumbling engagement
bumbling breakfast
grateful acquiescence
rushing preparations
obligatory kiss
dreams pursued

Hoppity

Hoppity
Christopher Robin goes Hoppity, hoppity, Hoppity, hoppity, hop. Whenever I tell him Politely to stop it, he Says he can't possibly stop. If he stopped hopping, He couldn't go anywhere, Poor little Christopher Couldn't go anywhere... That's why he always goes Hoppity, hoppity, Hoppity, Hoppity, Hop. Alan Alexander Milne Many thanks to PoemFinder for this, one of my favorites from childhood.

National Poetry Month

I'd like to pretend that I didn't write and post a poem yesterday for some deep, meaningful reason, but honestly I just didn't get around to it, even though it was my day off. So here is yesterday's extemporaneous poem:

4-1-11
I had a Princess Day
My sis and I did play
we had ice cream
like in a dream
and time was whiled away!


Today's poem:

4/2/11: haiku for you

serving the people
#Saturdaylibrarian
all day on the desk