Why Don't People Walk in Straight Lines?

Has this phenomenon captured your attention as well? I notice this the most in the grocery store parking lot. I'll be in my car driving slowly down one of the lanes trying to find a parking place. Inevitably a shopper will take off with their cart and cuts across right in front of my bumper! Do they scoot straight across which would be shorter and quicker? Oh,no. The path is always at an angle so I sit there having to wait longer for them to reach their destination. Why is that? Or they have gotten out of their vehicle and are walking towards the entrance. Once again they shoot off from the parking area across the two-way lane of driving traffic at a 45 degree angle stopping traffic with absolutely no thought for their safety, totally in their own little world, assuming the drivers forced to sit there are happy (Mmm..don't think so) to wait for them to saunter at their own pace towards their goal.
**(I should have been a sociologist. Betcha I could have applied for a federal grant for thousands of dollars to study this very thing!!!!)

Illustrations "say" it all.

I have a passion for beautifully illustrated children's books. I found that when the pictures tell a story on their own, the written words are more lively, vibrant. After hundreds of trips to the library and combing the shelves in the local bookstores, I have built a family collection that brings smiles just anticipating what is tucked between the bindings. Go to your favorite community book spots and browse between the covers of some of my favorites. I hope you're as amazed as I was when I discovered these "eye treasures". Enjoy.
Tom Thumb - Richard Jesse Walton 1989/Harcourt Brace
The Mitten - Jan Brett (any of hers are wonderful!) 1990/GP Putnam's Sons
Sleeping Beauty - Kinuko Y. Craft 2002/Raincoast Books
Tuesday* - David Weisner 1991/Clarion Books
Ship of Dreams - Dean Morrissey Mill Pond Press/Abrams
Bear and Mrs Duck - Elizabeth Winthrop 1991/Holiday Books

*has very few words thus allows you and the little person opportunities for wonderful conversations

Tiger Woods and the 2008 US Open

Were you as frustrated by the commentators for this tournament led by Johnny Miller as I was?? I cannot tell you how many times I wanted to push that whole bunch right over the side of one of those oceanside cliffs. They were mouthy, condescending, critical, AND pretentious. HEY! Guess what guys?? Your obnoxious behavior was pathetic and spoke volumes of your seemingly obvious envy for one golfer in particular.
It is so easy for some to sit in front of a camera or stroll the course carrying a microphone. Who among us can seriously belittle the game of Tiger Woods. Seriously. This man is truly amazing. Talk about a role model for all ages.
Let's examine his pro's and con's to make sure that I am being impartial about this sports figure.
PRO'S: plays injured, focused, honed his talents, practices, determined, gives back to the community, good father, good husband, professional, diplomatic, well spoken, businessman, great sense of humor, respectful, loves his mother, misses his father, intelligent, gentleman, humble.... Ok, I'll stop now.
CON'S: wins too much?? usually wears black and red on the final day?? Hmmm....guess that's all I can think of....
(Pssst! What's on your list?)

My Favorite Things: #1 Attached Garages

Didn't expect that one, did ya? I consider that feature a pure luxury. We lived in two apartments and one house with detached garages before we moved to this address. I was so tired of being rain soaked, snowed on, just plain inconvenienced. (Plus I caught fingers between two panels as the door descended one morning....not pretty. Lots of pain. A stream of very unladylike language. A necessary trip to the hospital.)
But now in this house if I need a map from the glove compartment or to plop a can in the recycle bin or the stack of work I left on the seat to do that evening, I can just run out and grab it. And you really want to know the VERY BEST PART?!? I can be in my skivvies !! Total privacy. LOVE IT. Doesn't take much, does it, to make this girl happy?! What brings a smile to your face?
Can't wait to share more...."Tune in" tomorrow!

Heaven

I have two profoundly different mental pictures when I ponder what this incredible place must be like. Visualize this: A vast celestial space the color of the darkest sapphire. To your left is a large angel chorus poised, floating en masse singing praises that are so incredible beautiful in a language only those chosen admittance to this glorious realm comprehend. You must understand it is absolutely soundless in this place except for this reverent, hushed continuous music. To the right is Our Father. The pulsating brilliance of the blinding blend of white and yellow light surrounding Him is excruciating. All those who are in His presence must bow their heads and hold up their hands to cover their eyes from His intense glory. You can actually feel the heat generated from His radiant magnificence on your skin.
Then there is the second concept. Imagine a city newsroom. Say one in New York City. Tumultuous constant motion because of all the activity with folks running in and out, scurrying to follow all of the erupting events they need to cover 24/7. Energy exploding in this space as they scurry to investigate and report on this constant flow of information. Now change those human news staffers into angels. Can you hear their voices as they announce,"This just in!!! Drought in Spain!!!" or "Just received a prayer from Mrs. Smith in Dayton needing guidance in her relationship with her teenage daughter!!" or "Shooter in Texas!!" or "Prayer of thanks from the family in Cleveland for the successful kidney transplant!!" on and on and on. And the Lord sits at His desk watching all the commotion, calmly dispatching angels to thousands of locales around the globe, knowing every activity, thought, prayer will be taken care of. And yes, He occasionally rests His chin in His hand, rolling His eyes and shaking His head, thinking, "Humans......."

Endora, Cleopatra and the Duchess of Windsor

I know what you're thinking. What the heck do these three women have in common??? (Hear that lilting Sesame Street tune skimming through your mind...."which of these things belong together?"...) I would be more than happy to answer that question for you!

Eyeliner. Yep. Eyeliner. In my humble, but accurate, opinion one of the greatest inventions of all time. Why, you ask? Let me enlighten you. I know you'll agree.

First, let's examine Endora. Agnes Moorehead played that fabulous character. Her eyeliner was applied so that when she would raise her eyebrow while delivering an insulting comment to "Darwood" (in her dripping, condescending tone) that upswept line of black accentuated the disdain for her son-in-law in a totally nonverbal fashion. (C'mon. You know you've wanted to intimidate someone at some point in your life with just one look. Yea, you have.) Loved it.

Then there was Elizabeth Taylor. Whether she was playing the femme fatale in film or on the stage or whether she was marrying her sixth (or was it seventh??) husband, eyeliner was always her best friend. Picture her in her role as Cleopatra opposite Richard Burton. Sexy, sassy, feminine. I'm telling you the eyeliner is what put her over the top. Men fell at her feet. (And she has the jewels to prove it,too.) Right??!?

Last,but not least, is the Duchess. Now there was a determined woman. Check out photos of her and the Duke on their wedding day in 1937. Whoa. Must have been her personality that won him over. Not so much the face. But flash forward to the late 60's. Yep, she discovered the miracle of eyeliner and it was worth a double take. No longer did the camera lens capture a woman who needed a makeover. Sophisticated, sharp, lovely.

So there are my examples and I believe I have proven my theoretical hypothesis beyond a shadow of a doubt. Without eyeliner this world would be a very different place.

So Here We Are....

Hey! Thanks for joining me. Ever have that little voice inside yourself talk to you? I know you do. Do you listen? And if you listen, do you act on the message? Sometimes "yes" and sometimes "no" is what I'm sure just went through your mind.
Me, too. If it is a reminder of something-I-should-have-done kind of thing I either write it on my list, take care of the "whatever" immediately or just plain forget about it again. Like making a doctor appointment or cleaning the lovely build-up off the shower door or sending the RSVP card back for the next wedding.
But when the those thoughts that enter your consciousness about a friend you haven't spoken to in a while, the relative who lives out of town, an older neighbor who lives alone or someone recovering from an illness or perhaps the loss of a loved one I have found from past experience that you should NEVER wait to react. Those messages are sent and felt in your heart for a reason. Make that call , write that note, send that email. Putting in on the to-do list will cause regret later that you don't want to deal with. That inner urgency is telling you that now is the moment to act. It only takes 10 minutes. But it will make the difference in the rest of someone's life.