Speaking of Alan Rickman

Well, I've seen several friends' posts lately regarding Alan Rickman, and thanks to Erika who sent this to me, I am sharing this YouTube clip from the Family Guy that I just LOVE! It is so hilarious.

And Kate, I also love that man!! :-)




Here is the original blog link that Erika sent me: http://theparkbencher.blogspot.com/2009/07/nerd-man-of-month-alan-rickman.html

Ladies, we are not alone!!

Also, he was absolutely fabulous as Snape - he MADE the 6th movie.

Still my favorite book

"The Salinas Velley is in Northern California. It is a long. narrow swale between two ranges of mountains, and the Salinas River winds and twists up the center until it falls at last into Monterey Bay.
I remember my childhood names for grasses and secret flowers. I remember where a toad may live and what time the birds awaken in the summer - and what trees and seasons smelled like - how people looked and walked and smelled even. The memory of odors is very rich.
I remember that the Gabilan Mountains to the east of the valley were light gay mountains full of sun and lovliness and a kind of invitation, so you wanted to climb into their warm foothills almost as you want to climb into the lap of a beloved mother. They were beckoning mountains with a brown grass love. The Santa Lucias stood up against the sky to the west and kept the valley from the open sea, and they were dark and brooding - unfriendly and dangerous. I always found in myself a dread of west and love of east. Where I ever got such an idea I cannot say, unless it could be that the morning came over the peaks of the Gabilans and the night drifted back from the ridges of the Santa Lucias. It may be that the birth and death of the day had some part in my feeling about the tow ranes of mountains."

- East of Eden , page 1. John Steinbeck

This is one of those books that just sticks with me, and as I read it, I find myself thinking about the layers that Steinbeck has carefully built and it truly is a joy uncovering each one.

Wine Tasting in NC

Today Christina, Emanuel, Bronte, Hywel and I went to the RayLen Vineyard just outside of Greensboro, NC. We had a wonderful time - the sun was shining, there was music playing and a nice breeze. Good times! I made headbands from the clover flowers that Bronte picked!

Dogs using the Metro!

I just saw this post as I was surfing the internet (I know, shame, shame.). Anyway, check this out! I think it is kind of cool. Here is the link to the original post.

Who are you lookin' at???

Apparently dogs in Moscow are using the metro to travel into the city to search for food and then travel back out to the suburbs at night. Amazing!

The biologist in me thinks this is so cool to see how these dogs have used their cognitive behaviors to "hunt" for food. They have adapted to the system.

My animal friendly side is concerned about all of these stray dogs; that I am sure are not spayed and neutered. Yikes! Some of them don't look too healthy. :-( Why are all of these dogs just sleeping??

Not to mention the part of me that thinks about my non-dog-loving friends (you know who you are) and how this might terrify them in a public space!

Then I think - you know, I went to the park yesterday, and even on the park you had to have your dogs leashed. Interesting - two very different worlds!

Anyway, I thought this was good food for thought. :-) Enjoy!

This man doesn't seem bothered in the least!

Protesting in Silence today in Tehran

I'm sure you've all been reading and hearing about what is going on in Iran right now, but I thought this video was a moving reminder about what it means to have free speech.

Federal Hill, Inner Harbor and good friends!

View of the Inner Harbor from Federal Hill in Baltimore

Flag on Federal Hill

Stephani and Matt

On Sunday Stephanie and Matt visited B-more. They came for lunch - we had chicken salad, fruit salad and tomatoes, basil and mozarella. We had a nice lunch, then they showed me their wonderful videos from Greece and the video Stephanie made of their new house! It was great to see;I feel like I've been there! Thanks Stephanie!

We decided to go to the Inner Harbor and walk around. It was a gorgeous day, sunny, 70's, light breeze. Just fabulous! We stopped and got some ice cream and found a shady spot to side and chat. It was lovely to just sit, people watch, and catch up. Then we decided to walk up to Federal Hill and check out the view. 105 steps up to the top and the view was just fabulous. There is a park at the top with benches, a swing set and large trees. I took the picture of the flag, the light was shining just right!

All in all, it was a fabulous day. I feel so blessed to have such wonderful friends. What a weekend and a great start to summer!

Longwood Gardens

Last Saturday I picked up Jami in the morning and we headed up the road. I was taking her on a surprise hijacking to Longwood Gardens for her birthday (June 18!). She had no idea where we were going, it was so much fun to surprise her! She was a good sport.

We got to Longwood about 1pm and had lunch in their formal dining room. We had drinks and great food and it was just what the doctor ordered. After lunch we set out to explore the grounds. Longwood is set up with many different types of gardens - perennial beds, vegetable gardens, orchards, meadows, woods (with a tree house!), rose gardens, topiary gardens and the "Idea" garden. The rich colors, the inspiring setting, and the promise of vegetables, fruits, and flowers was very uplifting. It made us very happy to be out in nature all day, taking our time, walking through these carefully manicured gardens as well as the natural woods and meadows. Below are a few pictures from the day.

Somebody was taking a nap! :-)

Look who else we saw (and heard! He was loud!)