My dad finally emailed me these pictures from Grandma’s 95th birthday party, She turned 95 January 11, 2006. I thought they were fitting pictures to post on mothers day.
She’s amazing. The day after these pictures were taken she set off on a road trip across the states.
I hope I look that good at 95. I hope I have that much energy.
I read The Da Vinci Code when it first came out. I bought the book and sat down and read it cover to cover in a day while I was on vacation. Then I read it again. The second time I read the book I was near a computer so I took the time to look up the art and some of the concepts referenced in the book. (There’s a newer version out now, with pictures of the referenced art work – I recommend the newer version if you can get your hands on it.)
It’s a good book. I read it cover to cover in a day and I need a riveting plot to get that done. But the plot is the best part of this book. It’s the plot that made it a best seller; the prose is ham-handed and he could have really used some help with line editing. But a good plot makes up for that – and should make for a good movie as you can breeze past the excessive use of adverbs and adjectives and just show what happened.
Controversy? Of course there’s controversy. And that helps with selling books. I read Satanic Verses because of the fatwa imposed on Salman Rushdie (excellent book, by the way). I read banned books. Controversy is the best way to get read.
Here’s what I think:
I mentioned in an earlier post that I had come up with (what I think is) a brilliant idea for Bebe’s birthday – a book celebrating Bebe and the number four.
So I’ve been calling around to get people to submit photos for this project. My dad apparently had a great deal of fun coming up with somthing to submit for the book – he submitted the following:
For this picture, the caption will say:
“Grandpa has four hands.”
His next submission for the project was this:
I still haven’t figured out what the caption will be…
Any suggestions?
How scary is that orange wall?
I got out of class early tonight and on the way back home, Mr. H and I were both trying to think of ways to get out of preparing dinner. Then Mr. H confessed that he got paid today – and we veered left into the parkinglot for Chihuahuas.
We live near Chihuahuas – and have for years, but for some reason we have never bothered to give the restaurant a try. How sad that we lived this close to such a good restaurant and didn’t know it.
I had the tortilla soup – the chicken was grilled to perfection, lots of vegetables, fresh avacados and the broth was very savory. I only got half way through the bowl and I was stuffed.
Mr. H had the fish tacos, and judging from the effort I had to exert to try to get a bite, they were pretty good. (I did eventually get a bite, but it was only the tiniest corner and mostly cabbage.) Mr. H was also quite pleased that his O’Douls was delivered with a frosted mug.
The flan did not live up to the standards set by the rest of the meal, but it was good nonetheless. We’ll be back.
I really enjoyed this quiz – the questions were thought provoking and the measurement tools were interesting. Give it a try.
My Personal DNA Report
How you view yourself
You are an Inventor
*Your imagination, self-reliance, openness to new things, and appreciation for utility combine to make you an INVENTOR.
*You have the confidence to make your visions into reality, and you are willing to consider many alternatives to get that done.
*The full spectrum of possibilities in the world intrigues you—you’re not limited by pre-conceived notions of how things should be.
*Problem-solving is a specialty of yours, owing to your persistence, curiosity, and understanding of how things work.
*Your vision allows you to identify what’s missing from a given situation, and your creativity allows you to fill in the gaps.
*Your awareness of how things function gives you the ability to come up with new uses for common objects.
*It is more interesting for you to pursue excitement than it is to get caught up in a routine.
*Although understanding details is not difficult for you, you specialize in seeing the bigger picture and don’t get caught up in specifics.
*You tend to more proactive than reactive—you don’t just wait for things to come to you.
*You’re not one to force your positions on a group, and you tend to be fair in evaluating different options.
*You’re not afraid to let your emotions guide you, and you’re generally considerate of others’ feelings as well.
*You tend to do things on the spur of the moment, not sticking to a set schedule.
If you want to be different:
*Try applying your creativity to more artistic arenas, and letting your imagination take less practical forms.
how you relate to others
You are Benevolent
*You are a great person to interact with—understanding, giving, and trusting—in a word, BENEVOLENT
*You don’t mind being in social situations, as you feel comfortable enough with people to be yourself.
*Your caring nature goes beyond a basic concern: you take the time to understand the nuances of people’s situations before passing any sort of judgment.
*You’re a good listener, and even better at offering advice.
*You’re concerned with others at both an individual and societal level—you sympathize with the plights of troubled groups, and you can care about people you’ve never met.
*Considering many different perspectives is something at which you excel, and you appreciate that quality in others.
*Other people’s feelings are important to you, and you’re good at mediating disputes.
*Because of your understanding and patience, you tend to bring out the best in people.
*You’re not one to force your positions on a group, and you tend to be fair in evaluating different options.
*You’re not afraid to let your emotions guide you, and you’re generally considerate of others’ feelings as well.
*You tend to do things on the spur of the moment, not sticking to a set schedule.
If you want to be different:
*You spend a lot of time taking care of others, but don’t forget to take care of yourself!
*Sometimes you can get overcommitted, and when you sacrifice spending time with those close to you, it can make them feel unimportant.
This painting is by my favorite artist: Nasser Ovissi. He was born in Iran and educated in Tehran and Italy and has shown his work around the world. If you want to buy me a gift (hint, hint, Mr. H), click on the link above to go to his site 🙂
If you are interested in other Persian artists, check out Evolving Perceptions
