MONDAY'S FAVORITE THINGS

I can tell you that time is passing quickly. I know this by the frequency each Monday rolls around. When I had first posted my Monday's favorite things, I didn't realize that I would have such a never-ending choice of favorites right here in my house. Well, maybe I did since I am such a collector, especially of things from my family.

Today I am sharing with you something that is very precious to me since it was a baby gift for me around sixty years ago. Yes, I said 6 - 0!! This sweet little dish was handmade for me by a friend of my parents. It says "This is Meryl's dish" because Meryl is my first name (after my mother).

What astounds me are the things I have that are breakable and have survived all these years. My mother was protective of these things , as I am. I think it is a female thing: to treasure and to protect. After all, we do this with our parents, our children and with our friends. It is our most important "job" in this world.

Thank you for visiting, dear friends.

More Worthy Causes

Hi, Everyone,

The craziness around here has calmed down since the two auctions are over. The Realtors' Auction on Thursday was a big success, as I posted earlier. Friday night was a Red Balloon Bash Hoedown which was to support the Wellness Center for cancer survivors and patients. My friend Suzanne is the chairperson for the event and a group of us were there to support her. We all dressed in western wear and the food was great and there was a DJ and square dancers. There was an auction of home baked goods for which I contributed a cake (orange butter cake with orange coconut frosting). My cake raised $60! Not bad for a doctored-up mix (I hope it tasted okay).


Yesterday my friend Abbey and I (sans the guys) went to a "pig roast" (and chicken) at the James Farm Ecological Preserve on Indian River Bay to support the Inland Bays in this area. Another very worthy cause. Here are a few photos to show you the beauty of this area. Here is also a photo of two beautiful women (LOL)! (Abbey on the right, me on the left) You can click here for more information on the Center For The Inland Bays.















Thank you to everyone who is responding to my 105th Post Giveaway. The drawing will be held at "the witching hour" on Wednesday night. I have been reading everyone's comments and then heading over to your blog to meet you. What a great community we are. This blogging adventure has added a surprisingly new dimension to my life and I would guess you are all feeling the same way. Sometimes there is not enough time in the day to be with everyone, don't you agree?

Take care, everyone. Hubby and I are now heading out on this beautiful summer-like autumn day to enjoy the natural beauty of the Delaware coast.

A Worthy Cause

Thursday night, 11:30. I am bushed. Tonight was our Realtors' Auction for needy children and, as I told you in a previous post, I was on two committees for this. I hate to admit this, but I am glad it is over. It is for a very worthy cause, but what a lot of work. Our company's theme for one item was "Don't Be Chained To Your Desk -- Take Your Business On the Go". We had a mannequin sitting at an old messy desk with a chain wrapped around her and then next to that were the latest in an IBM Laptop Tablet, Scooter Desk, Digital Camera and Apple I-Phone. The mannequin was hysterical. I had to drive way out to a little town to get her (her name is Della). One arm had to be taped on -- she was very vintage and looked rather alarmingly seductive, but she was loaned to us for free. I dressed her in some old business attire of mine. (This is a picture of Della, but not in my clothes). She sat on my sofa for a day and drove poodle Beau crazy. He kept barking at her and even the cats strolled by a few times to watch her suspiciously.

The other item our company had for the auction were two beautiful bicycles with all the attachments, zoom binocular cameras, nature trail and birdwatching books and maps, travel vests and hats and lots of things to enjoy biking and exploring the many trails in our area. The highlight in this package was a $1000 gift certificate to a large Hyatt golf/spa/marina to rest and recuperate.

The entire auction went well. There were a total of 30 packages from various real estate offices in the live auction and a lot of silent auction items. I am sure we raised a lot of money for the needy children in our county.

I have another big auction event tomorrow night which I will fill you in on later. This one I am not working on so I will get to relax and enjoy it.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz, good night everyone.

P.S. Thank you to everyone who is responding to my 105th Post Give-Away. I can't wait to stop in to visit all your blogs.

MONDAY'S FAVORITES

The days are just flying by. I am sure I just posted my last Monday's favorites, which means today should be Tuesday, but that was a week ago! October is always a very busy month, isn't it?

Today's post will be short and sweet since I am writing this at 11:00 at night and I have been going strong all day. This Thursday is our Realtors' Auction which is a very big affair. I am on the committee that plans the auction itself and I am also on the committee for my particular company. Each company presents its own auction item and tries to win the most money for the event. This is a huge fundraiser for the Realtors in our county to provide Christmas for the needy children and also grants and funds for emergency situations for children throughout the year.

My favorite things for this week are very simple and here they are:

Need I say more? My dear, sweet grandsons -- Cooper, 11 years old and Ian, 7 years old. This was taken on their first day of school this year (6th grade and 2nd grade). These are by far the dearest things in my life (and, of course, my daughter Beth).

Good night fellow bloggers,

Violetlady (somehow my signature didn't print this time!)

THAT'S WHAT FRIENDS ARE FOR...

The past few days here in Rehoboth Beach have been busy. This is the time of the annual Rehoboth Beach Jazz Festival. Yesterday I went to see performers doing a tribute to Marvin Gaye and Motown music. Last night Miss Dionne Warwick performed. She was spectacular!! She sang all the good songs we remember. Remember these words?

"Keep smiling, keep shining, knowing you can always count on me, for
sure.
That's what friends are for.
In good times, in bad times, I'll be on your side forever more,
that's what friends are for..."

I love those words -- isn't this also what blogging is all about? Love you all,

I HAVE RECEIVED AN AWARD -- YEA!!!!!

I just received the above award from Cindy over at Rosehaven Cottage. The "Change Begins At Home" award originates from Bean Sprouts and is given to bloggers who live what they preach, who try to make the changes in their own lives that they would like to see in the world.

This is a very special award because it really does epitomize what I firmly believe--change really does begin in the home. I am so touched that someone has recognized that through my efforts in blogging.

Violetlady would like to pass this award on to the following bloggers who truly live the spirit of this award through their blogs:

1. Lynne at Lynne's Little Corner Of The World

2. Kris at Gardens By The Lake

3. Kookiejar at Fraternity of Dreamers

For those named above, just click on Beansprouts (Oct. 5 post) to read the guidelines of what to do to pass your award on to other deserving bloggers.

MONDAY'S FAVORITES

Another Monday. Where does the time go? Today my favorites are three things that are in my personal "family museum" that I fully expect my daughter to carry on. Beth, are you listening?

This is my mother's wedding dress. Mom and Dad were married January 10, 1944. Dad was in the Army and was waiting to hear if he would be sent overseas. My mother's sister, my Aunt Esther, handmade this dress for her. It is ivory in color, ankle-length with a small slit in the front. It has slightly padded shoulders and beautiful "diamonds" hand appliqued on the bodice. There is a handmade slip that goes with it. There is also a belt, totally handmade. Aunt Esther was an excellent seamstress and made most of her own clothes back then.

The shoes were the shoes Mom wore that day. They are a size 6 which was a size smaller than she wore. Mom told me that she squeezed into the shoes, which killed her feet I am sure. But she loved them and it was her wedding day! They are beautifully made. I always loved these sweet shoes.

Here is a wedding picture taken by a photographer at their very small wedding luncheon after the ceremony. We have the actual photograph, but this was enlarged and hand-tinted. I was going to try to clean it and the frame up, but have decided to just let it be. Doesn't Dad look like Errol Flynn? Mom looks so happy and Dad has that bemused expression on his face that he often had.

Many weddings were short and sweet during WWII because the boys were so unsure where they were going or when. Mom and Dad were married in the office of Dad's minister with a few witnesses and family. Dad died a few days after their 51st wedding anniversary.

I hoped you enjoyed seeing these very special "favorites" of mine.

LA VIE EN ROSE

Tonight I saw the movie "La Vie En Rose." I have been waiting for this to come to our local theater and was afraid it wouldn't because it isn't exactly mainstream. It was in French with subtitles, but was easy to follow. The actress (Marion Cotillard) who played Edith Piaf was absolutely incredible. She needs to get some kind of an award. Her similarity to Piaf was so striking that it was hard to believe. At first I thought the singing was dubbed in authentic Piaf, but other people did the singing and that singing was dubbed. The extreme tremor (for lack of a better word) that Piaf had to her voice was not there, but it was still hauntingly beautiful and if someone did not know her voice well they would not have noticed this. The movie jumped around quite a bit with different periods of her life, but somehow it all worked. The film was two and a half hours long and usually by that time I get restless. Not with this. I was glued to my seat and you could hear a pin drop in the theater. I strongly recommend this movie, especially if you are a francophile like me.

Bon soir, mes amis.

THEY AREN'T JUST GREY -- THE GREYHOUND WEEKEND

I have a poodle named Beau. Beau was almost a greyhound. Every October there is an event in Dewey Beach called Greyhounds Reach the Beach and people from all over the country bring their rescued greyhounds. There are events going on all weekend -- seminars, meetings, places to buy dog things, greyhound get-togethers on the beach where they can meet other greyhounds and to just parade their beauty. One year when this event had first started and I didn't know about it, I was driving down the road and saw a few greyhounds and then I saw a few more, and then more. I thought I was hallucinating.

To rescue a greyhound from a bitter end when it retires from the racetrack is a very special thing. You are giving a new life to a very grateful animal. Contrary to appearances, they are docile, quiet, friendly and true couch potatoes. Owners say they are like potato chips. You can't stop with one. In fact, you often see them in multiples in one family. They like nothing better than to relax with you at home. They do not need to run miles for exercise. I did a lot of research on this and was almost ready to do the adoption and then something happened to my brain and I became poodle-ized. Beau owns the house and us and now I can't get a greyhound. He just would not let it happen. Anyway, here are some pictures of these wonderful dogs just doin' their thing at the beach. I didn't have my camera with me everytime I saw the dogs and I was working all weekend, but I did borrow these images which were taken at the event from the web. Thank you to whomever did take these shots.

106 BOOKS MOST OFTEN UNREAD by LibraryThing Users

I found this on Musings of a Bookish Kitty. Looks like fun.

The below listed books are the top 106 books most often marked as being unread by LibraryThing users.

The instructions are simple:

Bold what you have read, and italicize books you have started but couldn’t finish. Add an asterisk* to those you have read more than once. Underline those on your TBR list. The ones marked in red are books I am considering reading one day but do not have on hand.


Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell
Anna Karenina
Crime and Punishment
Catch-22
One Hundred Years of Solitude
Wuthering Heights
The Silmarillion
Life of Pi: A Novel
The Name of the Rose
Don Quixote
Moby Dick
Ulysses
Madame Bovary
The Odyssey
Pride and Prejudice
Jane Eyre*
A Tale of Two Cities
The Brothers Karamazov
Guns, Germs, and Steel: the Fates of Human Societies
War and Peace
Vanity Fair
The Time Traveller’s Wife
The Iliad
Emma
The Blind Assassin
The Kite Runner
Mrs. Dalloway
Great Expectations
American Gods
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius
Atlas Shrugged
Reading Lolita in Tehran
Memoirs of a Geisha
Middlesex
Quicksilver
Wicked : The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
The Canterbury Tales
The Historian
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
Love in the Time of Cholera
Brave New World
The Fountainhead
Foucault’s Pendulum
Middlemarch
Frankenstein
The Count of Monte Cristo
Dracula
A Clockwork Orange
Anansi Boys
The Once and Future King
The Grapes of Wrath
The Poisonwood Bible
1984
Angels & Demons
The Inferno
The Satanic Verses
Sense and Sensibility
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Mansfield Park
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
To the Lighthouse
Tess of the D’Urbervilles
Oliver Twist
Gulliver’s Travels
Les Misérables
The Corrections
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-
TimeDune
The Prince
The Sound and the Fury
Angela’s Ashes
The God of Small Things
A People’s History of the United States : 1492-Present
Cryptonomicon
Neverwhere
A Confederacy of Dunces
A Short History of Nearly Everything
Dubliners
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Beloved
Slaughterhouse-Five
The Scarlet Letter
Eats, Shoots & Leaves
The Mists of Avalon
Oryx and Crake: A Novel
Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed
Cloud Atlas
The Confusion
Lolita
Persuasion
Northanger Abbey
The Catcher in the Rye
On the Road
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Freakonomics
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
The Aeneid
Watership Down
Gravity’s Rainbow
The Hobbit
In Cold Blood
White Teeth
Treasure Island
David Copperfield
The Three Musketeers


I have read 26 of these -- probably not a good record -- many were read a long time ago. There are a few that I think I read, but can't remember. A few I started, but never finished and a few I plan to read if I ever make a TBR list. SO MUCH TO DO!

COBWEBS ON MY BLOG

Another beautiful day here in coastal Delaware. I had big plans to house clean today, but so far I have not accomplished anything. I am a night person and would rather clean this evening.

I have two questions for the blog world: (1) How do you cross things out in a post or a list (such as books) and then show the ------'s? I have seen them used so many times, but I can't figure it out.

(2) I have one of those maps at the bottom of my blog that shows how many people checked it out and where they were from. Some days it is very few, but one time it was over 50 and then each day it diminished. The day I entered a blog contest was the day it indicated 50+. How do people get so many people commenting and visiting? I think one answer is consistency in posting and visiting other blogs, but are there more reasons?

Here are a few pictures of Beau who is such a happy guy.

MONDAY'S FAVORITES

Good morning, everyone!! In keeping with my plan to make Monday the day that I show you a few of my favorite things, not just at home, but out and about, here goes:

The Shirley Temple cup belonged to my grandmother. She may have bought it for my father or uncle. Somehow, I ended up with it. It is now over 70 years old.

The watercolor of the Spanish lady lay unframed in the bottom of a cedar chest which originally belonged to my grandmother and then down to my parents. When I claimed the picture many, many years later I had it framed. I often look at it, wonder who she was, who the artist was and where did it come from. I estimate it to be about 70 years old. (Sorry, I couldn't get the flash out)

The pink stucco cottage did not belong to my grandmother! It is a cottage in Rehoboth Beach that I always thought to be interesting since it is so unlike everything else in the town.

Also, this is my mother's birthday. She would have been 89 today. She was a wonderful lady. We still miss her and always will. Sometimes when I laugh, I can hear my mother's laugh in mine. Happy Birthday, Mom.

I hope you enjoyed my favorites for this Monday. It is a glorious day here on the Delaware coast. Wish you were here!

FALL INTO READING CHALLENGE 2007

I just read Katrina's new Fall Reading Challenge at her blog Callapidder Days. I have signed up for this one and maybe this is one challenge I will finish. Actually, it is only the second one I have joined. As I have said before, I am not much of a challenge reader.

I am getting my list together now. See my sidebar for what I have so far.

Click on the link above to see Katrina's site and the guidelines for this challenge. Oh, c'mon -- I know you want to join in.

What Do You Love About Your Home - Party!!

It was coincidence that I wrote about my favorite things yesterday and today I came across Karla's blog and her blog party. Check it out -- today's the party. She has a lovely blog and a nice little store also. Just click on Karla.

THESE ARE A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS...

For lack of something new to write about, I took a hint from another blogsite and have shown you some of my favorite things. Some things I have inherited and, as my family teases me, these will go in the "Hollingsworth Museum."

The silver tea set belonged to my grandmother. I tried to polish it, but gave up and will let it age gracefully, along with me. The picture of the boy and girl are "Peter" and "Charlotte" -- I have seen these prints in antique stores, but these belonged to my parents and always hung by the front door. The snow globe of "Rudolph" was given to me when I was a very young girl. I have moved many times since then and always carry it wrapped carefully in my handbag for the move. The rooster belonged to my grandmother and I have treasured this for years and when she died, it became mine. The little yellow lovebirds were a wedding present to my parents. The Buddhas belonged to my parents and I think my grandmother before that. They sit in front of a cloisonne lamp that has the same provenance.

Maybe I will make this a Monday theme -- my favorite things. I have to start getting rid of the clutter around my house, but these are things with which I will never part. What are your favorite things in your house?

MIDDLE NAME MEME

iI was tagged by Meg for this "Middle Name Meme":








K for Kris Kringle -- a character in one of my favorite movies: "Miracle On 34th Street."


R for Ranger -- one of the male hotties in Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum novels. See my previous blog.


I for Imagination -- it is a gift we all have and should remember to use it.


S for my favorite food -- spaghetti.

T for "Tripod" - the three-legged pet raccoon in one of my favorite author's novels (James Lee Burke).


I for Imagination --- again.


N for "Nanny" -- what my daughter and nieces and grandsons called my mother.


A for Apple -- one of my favorite fruits -- I try to eat one a day.

Well, that was fun. Thanks, Meg. Instead of tagging others, if you read this and haven't been tagged yet, consider it done!

WHAT CLASSIC MOVIE ARE YOU??

I saw this on Tristi's blog and since I love old classic movies...................

What Classic Movie Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

What Carnival Ride Are You?

***You Are a Ferris Wheel***

Deep down, you are a fun, whimsical, and easygoing person. You often enjoy life for what it is, and the littlest changes in course can be quite thrilling. In relationships, people tend to feel what you feel. It can be liberating at first...But after a while, the people closest to you end up feeling a little trapped.
Your life has perfectly normal cycles of ups and downs. However, you can't help but sometimes feel that you're missing out on the most exciting aspects of life. You only are happy when you're experiencing the highest of highs.Your low points just make you feel depressed, restless, and bored.
At your best, you feel on top of the world with a great sense of perspective. You believe that anything is possible, and that you are happily looking down on everyone else. At your worst, you feel like your life is going in circles. You often feel like you're not going anywhere. This is sometimes psychologically disorienting. And sometimes it brings on a sense of hopelessness.

What Carnival Ride Are You?http://www.blogthings.com/whatcarnivalrideareyouquiz/

People closest to me feel trapped??! I don't THINK so! I don't like carnival rides anyway.

Beware Of Crocs!!

I recently read something online that said that despite their overwhelming popularity, crocs are causing accidents on escalators in Japan. Beware!!

IS TIME OF THE ESSENCE?

" Always late: thus I make you the prisoner of my freedom." - Mason Cooley

"Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!"- The White Rabbit - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

We had our weekly sales meeting today, for which I was late. I find it so difficult to get anywhere on time. You know the old adage about being late for one's own funeral? Well, that is me. Somewhere I read that people who are consistently late are subconsciously doing it as an act of rebellion. I wouldn't be surprised if sometimes that is the case with me. I was pretty rebellious when I was young.

I keep going back to reading the "What Color Green" post from a few days ago. That really is me, but warts and all, I like me (I really don't have warts), which is a good thing since at my age I won't be changing anything.

Stephanie Plum Overload

I think I am morphing into Stephanie Plum. I have read all of Janet Evanovich's books featuring this bounty hunter extraordinaire up to and including #11. I am now on one of the "between the numbers" books and then I will start #12. I am starting to feel like a place should be set for me at the Plum dinner table with Mom and Dad and Grandma Mazur waiting for the pineapple-upside-down cake.

I have removed my non-fiction challenge from my sidebar. I am a failure at challenges apparently. I would rather read what I want to read when I want to read it, and in life -- I would rather do what I want to do when I want to do it. Oh yeah, I am responsible and adult and all that mundane stuff. But, wouldn't it be fun to just, well, BE A BOUNTY HUNTER!!??

In someone's past post, the question once was Morelli or Ranger? If you read these books you know "whereof I speak." At that point I said Morelli. I am now leaning towards Ranger. Way towards. Stephanie Plum is nothing like me. I have always been and am still much more of a wimp. But really -- if I use my imagine I could see myself dressed in "Rangeman" black, including the utility belt with stun gun, pepper spray, and cuffs. Of course, it would be all about the outfit and the proximity to Ranger -- not the weapons. As the series continues and evolves, Ranger divulges more and more of his mysterious persona to me - I mean, to Stephanie. He is just so, so cool.

My daughter will read this and Beth, I guess you are saying in horror, "Oh, Mom, really!" as you wonder if this may be your dear mother's alter-ego. Don't worry -- it's just that life is so ORDINARY lately. Day in day out, same old, same old. I am still the same old Mom and Grammy for you and the boys, though.

I think I am reading way too many Stephanie Plum books, don't you?

School Days, School Days, Dear Old Golden Rule Days...

Well, back to school and the excitement is in the air, even if you aren't returning yourself. The yellow school bus is picking up in our community and I can almost smell school bags and pencil boxes. I guess school bags are now backpacks and pencil boxes (with the little drawer that pulls out) may be long gone, but in the days when school bags were made of leather the smell in the store was unforgettable.






My first school was an old military surplus quonset hut because we lived in a community built as post-war housing primarily for veterans. (Quonset hut: a structure made of corrugated metal still in use today) We called it the "Tin Castle." The photo is not of my school, but is the closest photo I could find that looked vaguely similar. The schoolyard was cinders -- nothing more. My first grade teacher was Mrs. Park and my best friend Ruth and I were teacher's pets. Ah, those were the days.

Two of my most vivid memories were that of Mrs. Park coming home to lunch at my house sometimes and that I felt very special as we ate our chicken noodle soup and sandwich. The other memory was of a terrible day when Mrs. Park bound and gagged a poor little girl in her chair because she was disruptive. Her mother came to get her and there were hysterics and general horror for all of us first graders. I remember they were very poor and spoke little English and the little girl had some type of behavioural or mental problem. A far cry from what would happen today. So much for education in 1950.



My grandsons started school today in Massachusetts. They both carry their lunches. Cooper (sixth grade) took a turkey and lettuce wrap with potato chips, strawberries and an energy bar. Ian (second grade) took spaghetti-o's in a thermos, chips, strawberries and an energy bar. These were their choices for lunch. This is a step up from last year when Cooper would only take bologna sandwiches and Ian would only take peanut butter sandwiches. I remember my daughter Beth always took Boursin cheese on a bagel -- her choice -- for the first few years of school. She didn't like peanut butter sandwiches or anything most kids took for lunch.



Speaking of school lunch -- I wonder if my friend Lynne remembers the day in elementary school when our friend Rita had just too much teasing from a boy and dumped her plate of spaghetti over his head. School days, school days, dear old golden rule days.

WHAT COLOR GREEN ARE YOU?

***You Are Teal Green***

You are a one of a kind, original person. There's no one even close to being like you. Expressive and creative, you have a knack for making the impossible possible. While you are a bit offbeat, you don't scare people away with your quirks.Your warm personality nicely counteracts with strange habits you may have.

Yep, that's me all right!

What Color Green Are You?http://www.blogthings.com/whatcolorgreenareyouquiz/

MR. BEAN'S HOLIDAY

I admit it: I like slapstick comedy - Buster Keaton, Jerry Lewis, etc. If you appreciate this humor also (and even if you don't), you have GOT to see Mr. Bean's Holiday. It is rated "G", so take the kids. I laughed so hard I had tears running down my face and at one point I think I was actually howling. I plan to go see it again and I seldom say that about a movie.

I knew Rowan Atkinson's character, Mr. Bean, from PBS's British broadcasts. He is too, too, funny -- a lot of physical humor, funny faces and sounds (Mr. Bean seldom speaks). And to make it even better, the movie took place in France! Mr. Bean wins a vacation to the south of France and the misadventures that get him there are priceless. The finale is the best and sit through the credits and see the cute final ending.

I mean it -- you really should see this film.

TO MARKET, TO MARKET.......

My husband and I took Beau with us and went to the local farmers' market on Saturday morning. The cool bike is one that was being raffled off and, unfortunately, I did not win it. Look at the hippy van -- it is so totally me. The gentleman comes every week with a guest chicken or rooster and if you get there early enough he has wonderful colored guinea fowl eggs for sale. He is a wealth of information for anyone who wants to raise some chickens. I wish I could. I am sure it would be a no-no in my community.

This week there were some plein air artists on site displaying their artistic techniques. What talent. The window filled with lovely things is the museum shop. The market is held on the grounds of the historical society.

We had a lovely three day weekend holiday and I hope you all did, too. Tonight we had dinner with friends who just returned from a three week trip to France (a week of which was on a river boat). I am so jealous. Abbie brought me back a photo she had taken of Edith Piaf's grave at the famous cemetery in Paris where so many well-known people are buried (Oscar Wilde, Simone Signoret, Chopin, Jim Morrison, etc.) Edith Piaf is a favorite of mine.

Bon soir, everyone!