A Missed Opportunity

I saw an incredible sight yesterday but didn't have a camera so it makes for a much less effective blog post. But. . . while walking at Charlestowne Landing, I saw a huge 6 or 7 foot alligator sunning on the bank of the pond right in front of a huge, variegated and in full-bloom Camellia. The alligator was brown/grey blah colored, scaly, inert and prehistoric looking -- they are so ugly. And this Camellia was tall and wide and just full of blooms. It was truly beauty and the beast.

On the scintillating topic of weather; yesterday was beautiful; sun was out, temperature was in the 70s. Azaleas are blooming all over town along with quince, daffodils and the camellias. But today, the temps are dropping and it's supposed to get rainy and very cold again. I think it is winter's last hurrah. Signs of spring are everywhere.

Much later -- Joan Perry posted this wonderful photo of 2 alligators at the pond at Roper St. Francis. Duncan and I saw 3 on a recent warm Saturday walk. Joan is a great local photographer and does the Charleston Daily Photo blog. I always enjoy seeing what she's seeing.

Story Quilts

Our presenters at the Fiber Guild's meeting today were Cookie Washington and Catherine Lamkin, 2 incredible quilters who make art quilts reflecting their experience as African-American women. They and other local AA quilters were featured in a fall issue of Charleston magazine -- and several of them were asked to make quilts for a special exhibit in Washington DC celebrating Obama's inauguration. Catherine Lamkin is a health educator with DHEC by day, and this incredible, powerful artist on the side. The quilt above is her contribution to the exhibit in Washington. Wow! Her quilts include a lot of "embellishments" -- cowrie shells, beads, postage stamps, photo transfers -- and often remember historical events -- some personal like the one celebrating her aunt getting a driver's license back before I-95 between SC and NY was completed (-- did you know the traffic light was invented by an African American?) or more pubic history like the one below, honoring Rosa Parks.

Cookie Washington is also an amazing quilter and also a doll maker. Below is a picture of her with a mermaid doll she has made for a friend but first it's going to the exhibit currently at the Avery Research Center called Mermaids and Merwomen in Black Folklore. I definitely want to get over there and see the whole exhibit.

I was very moved at the creativity and beauty that just pours forth from both of these women. It was a treat to get to see their work in such an intimate setting.

Full of love

I'm a little slow on the draw for Valentine's Day. After bragging in my last post about "I'm so healthy. . . I never even get colds. . ." I came down with a big head cold Tuesday night. I am one pitiful puppy when I can't breathe.

Debbie sent a wonderful e-mail to Mom and me -- sort of on the fly, but she heard a piece on the radio about Rogers and Hammerstein's love songs and she was just remembering how much we heard all those songs from the all the Broadway musicals when we were growing up and remembered how much Daddy really liked them. He used to tell us about seeing South Pacific in New York and the actress who sang "I'm gonna wash that man right outta my hair!".

How did we hear all these songs often enough to now know them in our bones as if they were hymns. . . . Some Enchanted Evening. . . Nothing Like a Dame. . . Oh, What a Beautiful Morning. . . Getting to Know You. . . Bali Hai. . . If I Loved You. . .This Nearly Was Mine. . . If Ever I Would Leave You. . . A Wonderful Guy. . .

Debbie says ". . . I love thinking about that part of our shared lives, and I especially love that Daddy's such a lively part of thoses memories. . ." I think this is more in the spirit of Valentine's Day than anything Hallmark has to offer.

25 Random Things

1. I am definitely a cat, not a dog, person.
2. I like all things organizational -- lists, calendars, boxes baskets, files, bins, cubbies, anything color-coded. You can Christmas shop for me at Office Depot.
3. I have always been very healthy. No broken bones, major illnesses or surgeries. I don't even get colds very often (knock on wood) but when I do, I am very pitiful.
4. I can fold fitted sheets into perfect rectangles. I told you it would be random things.
5. Sometimes, Chinese takeout is the very thing.
6. Daffodils are my favorite.
7. Oprah and I share a birthday.
8. I do our taxes.
9. I have a good family and they are all important to me, but I don't know what I would have done all these years without my friends.
10. I believe there are two kinds of people. Those who turn the TV on and leave it on all the time, and those who turn it on to watch something specific and turn it off when that show is over. My theory is that these people ALWAYS marry each other. Eventually, one of them turns into the other kind.
11. I am a Bob Dylan fan. Old Bob, new Bob. Admittedly, there was a bad stretch in the 80s.
12. In my mind, Rainy Sunday Afternoon=Nap.
13. I would like to cook up an economic theory that supports eating out all the time over grocery shopping and cooking at home. The high value of time makes it impractical to use it shredding cabbage, fishing spoons out of the garbage disposal and sorting good food/bad food in the refrigerator.
14. I think people should say what they mean and mean what they say. Spit it out!
15. I cry more when things are incredibly wonderful than when things are sad. Well, I cry at sad things too. OK, I cry easily.
16. I think one of the reasons women don't run the world is because they take a month off every year to decorate for Christmas.
17. The "Dancer Pose" continues to elude me.
18. On recycling collection days, I've noticed our neighbors dispose of more beer, wine and liquor bottles than we do. Significantly more.
19. Usually I think the book is better than the movie.
20. I think planning who is going to bring what to a potluck dinner is ridiculous.
21. I have noticed the things I worry about are not the things that happen.
22. One of the things I miss since I've moved to Charleston is -- gossip. I still don't know enough people well enough to get the real low-down. And if I ever did, the likelihood of running into someone else who would care is remote. Your secrets are safe with me.
23. I cannot believe I am not working.
24. Whoever designed the envelope Netflix are mailed and returned in was very clever. I'll bet she or he did origami as a child.
25. I love playing Scrabble, Scramble and Word Whomp.