Second Blooming

RTT: Good TV, Birkin and Dog Cologne

 

I am better. I am not fully well, but at least I'm up and around. Thank you all for your well-wishes. Because I am weird, I located on the internet  THIS WEBSITE where you can go and click the "Hear a typical TB cough" link and you will hear just what my cough sounds like. Though I do not have tuberculosis. It's very pleasant. That was sarcasm.

____________________________________

During my lengthy confinement, I went crazy on Netflix and have to share TWO fabulous finds with you!

1. Top of the Lake

 

Damned good.

 

I LOVED this show. It's an amazing 7-hour mini series which takes place in New Zealand, and is directed by the great Jane Campion. Top notch acting and writing too. It stars Elisabeth Moss from MadMen, who does a flawed but pretty decent Aussie accent. It's a beautifully-shot whodunit, that kept me hooked until the very end. Holly Hunter is almost unrecognizable as a wise-but-weird androgynous guru woman...

 

Cool.

 

But the real star of the show is New Zealand. Which comes across as both shockingly beautiful, and frighteningly rough. Y'all MUST Netflix it.

2. The Fall

Another stylish whodunit starring an American actress doing an accent. This time it's Gillian Anderson, doing a posh London accent, which is also flawed but pretty decent. Another strong female character, another good mystery. I highly recommend it also.

___________________________________

My friend Amanda was saying something on Facebook about an Hermes Birkin handbag, so I started poking around on the internet to see just how much one of these goes for nowadays. Apparently, they are available for between $9000 and $150,000. For a purse. This one is available HERE for $65,000. (I put in the link just in case you're in the market)...

 

It's a $65,000  purple purse.

 

Now, my immediate thought was "What kind of person could possibly justify purchasing a handbag for $15,000 more than the median American household income?" I mean, how could you live with yourself? People are starving. Homeless. It's a purse!

But then I got to thinking...maybe I've just been living too close to the poverty level for too long. Maybe, I have simply never experienced a $65,000 handbag. That might be the most amazing handbag imaginable. That handbag might make its owner an ecstatically happy person. It might be something beyond imagining. I mean, I can see spending a couple of grand on a handbag. If I had the cash, I'd drop $2000 on a bag easy. So just imagine how much better a $65,000 bag might be.

What do y'all think?

____________________________________

Unfortunately...

 

 

That's it!!

 

__________________________________

Our little dog, Fancy, stinks. It's not her fault, she needs to go to the groomer. But since I've been in bed for a week, and Fancy wants to be in the bed with me, the stinking has become an issue. As in, she's been banned from the bed. Which makes her sad. So yesterday, Jude and I went to the Petco and purchased her a new shampoo and...I love this...cologne. Yes, her very own doggie cologne...

 

It's very pleasant.

 

So we gave her a shampoo and blow dry and spritzed her with her cologne, and now she's fabulous! And back in the bed!

___________________________________

That is the randomness for today! Go see Stacy and the others!

RTT: Trek Musical, Kelsi and Lara

 

I am feeling SOOOOO lazy! It is definitely the countdown to Camp Mama around here. Only one week and two days until summertime, summertime, summertime. But I think I can come up with a handful of randomness...

 

 

Oh yes...

 

 

--------------------------------------------------------------

Just in case you're looking for a refreshing summer salad recipe...

 

Oh my...

 

____________________________________

I love these photographs. An Austin photographer has commemorated her daughter's 5th birthday by dressing the kid up not as a Disney princess, but as real-life inspirational women...

 

Amelia Earhart

Susan B. Anthony

 

Go check out the other photos!  It's such a cool idea!

__________________________________

 

Gotta admire this girl's gumption.

 

___________________________________

An old friend of mine, Lara, needs your help. Lara is an artist, an activist, a small business owner and a lovely human being. I first met Lara through a theater we were both involved in, and when I adapted "Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret" as a stage play, she was my Margaret. Lara is also going blind. She is a young woman with severe cataracts, which can be helped with surgery, but her health insurance doesn't cover vision. Please watch the video HERE. Her friends have put together an Indiegogo site. which is raising the $14,000 needed for surgery to both of her eyes. So far, they have raised an amazing $8000. PLEASE donate to her cause. Even $5 makes a difference! Thank you SO much!

__________________________________

And then go see Stacy and the other randomers!

RTT: Mothers, Buttons and Jackie Robinson

 

I had the LAZIEST Mother's Day. Jimmy and Jude allowed me to just dilly-dally in bed all afternoon - I watched tv, I played computer games, I read, I ate food that I didn't have to make off a breakfast tray. It was heavenly. I realize that most mothers want a nice brunch or dinner or something, but I was just too exhausted. I really needed the day to rest and recuperate. I hope all of you mothers out there had a beautiful day, and that you got treated with exactly what YOU needed.

Oh, and in honor of Mother's Day, here are some glamorous pictures of my two mothers...

 

Mama!

Mommy!

 

____________________________________

I have been loving the latest season of Game of Thrones. The other day I found this article 16 Games of Thrones Characters Who Are Giving You Major Deja Vu. You know, I watch a ton of British tv, and I always see the same actors over and over, but some of these blew me away. I mean, I knew that the women who plays Margaery Tyrell also played Anne Boleyn on The Tudors, and the actress who plays Osha was Tonks in the Harry Potter movies...

and Ser Jerah was the dastardly Sir Richard on Downton Abbey...

But I was totally blown away to realize that Littlefinger is the same actor who played Tommy Carcetti on The Wire!

 

Oh my God!

 

...I mean, I've been obsessively watching Game of Thrones and The Wire concurrently, and it never occurred to me ever! A testament to Aidan Gillen's abilities as an actor.

__________________________________

 

I personally would like to add "Please stop posting glamorous pictures of yourself and exaggerating your mediocre acting career." I realize that this doesn't resonate for most of you.

 

__________________________________

Jude and I finally went and saw 42, the movie about Jackie Robinson, and we both enjoyed it very much. He wasn't so sure if he wanted to see it, as he has decided that he isn't into baseball anymore now that he has discovered the joys of track and swimming, but I suspected that it would appeal to him and his innate sense of social justice, and I was right. He's been talking about it ever since. Yes, it is a little overly earnest, and sentimental, but it's really well-acted and extremely moving. I highly recommend that you all take your kids to see it. It's a great story of heroism and strength. Be warned that the language is a little rough, and there is repeated use of the n-word (at one point, Jude actually covered his ears because of it), but it certainly was historically accurate, and the word is never used casually - the hatred behind it is very impactful. And there's a little sexy stuff, but it's all sweet married people who love each other sexy stuff, so I was fine with it. Go see it!

 

Chadwick Boseman, who played Robinson also happens to be super cute. Just saying.

_________________________________

 

I stole this off a friend's Facebook page, and I'm fairly sorry for it - I don't know this woman, and she's probably horrified that a picture of her has gone viral - but really?

 

This is in a McDonald's. So wrong. On so many levels.

_________________________________

That's the random for today. Go see Stacy!

RTT: Time Suck, Chickpeas and Sketches

 

TIME SUCK ALERT:

Retronaut.  "See the past like you wouldn't believe." So cool. It's a website devoted to what I would define as "cool, old pictures". This one is totally up your alley Michele. You can search by era, category or topic clusters. It's a treasure trove. A few random items...

 

Marcel Proust playing air guitar on a tennis racket.

Letter from Mick Jagger to Andy Warhol.

Utah girls with perms, circa 1987.

_________________________________

I read a fascinating article the other day that said that a bunch of tobacco farmers in Virginia have decided to stop growing tobacco and instead plant...I love this...chickpeas. I guess hummus is now more profitable than cigarettes. They interviewed an old tobacco farmer who said that his wife had made him his first chickpeas the other day. His sweetly taciturn review? "They tasted pretty good." I love that.

 

Chickpeas. Pretty good.

 ___________________________________

This is kind of amazing. A Spanish anti-abuse ad that is only visible to children. The ads are made using something called lenticular printing, which shows a different picture depending on the angle from which it's viewed. From an adult perspective, the photo shows this...

With the caption "Sometimes, child abuse is only visible to the child suffering it."

but from a child's point of view, they see this...

 

And they see the caption "If someone hurts you, phone us and we'll help."

 

Pretty smart, right?

____________________________________

 

Yes.

____________________________________

Okay, this totally made me cry. What an amazing lesson for everyone!

 

___________________________________

Go visit Stacy and the other random thinkers!

RTT: Tea, Arrested Development and Engagement

 

I WANT SOME OF THIS! Adagio Teas has created a genre of Fandom Teas. Tea blends created by my fellow geeks around the world. There's a variety of Doctor Who teas including the Tardis blend (Earl Grey Bravo, blackberry and vanilla - it tastes bigger on the inside), Battlestar Galactica teas (the Laura Roslin - Valentines, Ceylon Sonata, vanilla oolong and rosehips - warm and sweet and stronger than you'd have imagined), Downton Abbey teas (The Lady Mary Crawley - Earl Grey moonlight, apricot and ginger - soft and sensual, with a hint of something spicier below the surface) and Game of Thrones teas (The Imp's Brew - oriental spice, caramel and apple - smart and unusual). It's the perfect gift for the Anglophile geek - ME!

___________________________________

 

Were any of y'all Arrested Development fans? The highly-acclaimed sitcom that aired for three seasons about 10 years ago? I'm afraid I missed it completely. I guess that Jude was a newborn, and I really wasn't watching much of anything except the Teletubbies about then. Anyway, Netflix is producing a NEW season of the show - yes, same show, same cast, 10 years later. And so, of course, I have been binge-viewing the original series. It's AMAZING. Hysterical. I'm completely addicted, and have a terrible crush on Jason Bateman.

 

Love.

 

I can't wait for the new season to start, May 26th. I highly recommend that you all binge on it at Netflix.

___________________________________

 

Just not the same.

____________________________________

 

Yesterday, I was watching something on CNN about the Boston bomber's legal issues, and they were interviewing a well-known lawyer named Tom Mesereau. He's made a name for himself as the defense attorney to wayward stars, including Robert Blake and Michael Jackson. Here's his Wiki page.

 

Mesereau

 

Interestingly, about 20 years ago, I took a comedy improv class with this man. Tom was very sweet and dorky and terrible at comedy. Why was he in this comedy improv class? He thought it would help him to think on his feet during trials. I guess it worked!

_____________________________________

11 Engagement Photos That Will Make You Happy You're Single. Too funny. A handful of faves...

 

Not sure what she's thinking...

Wow. Really uncomfortable.

Inexplicable. And somebody could use a little sun.

____________________________________

 

Before you leave, my wonderful friend Elizabeth, from a moon, worn as if it had been a shell, has had a brilliant prose poem published in an online literary magazine. Please enjoy...

When Bears Fall From Trees.

____________________________________

Go visit Stacy!

RTT: Roommates, Onion and Jumpsuits

 

I love this site - Hysterical Roommate Notes.

 

Good thinking, Ryan.

I need to leave one of these for Jimmy. Grrrr.

 

 

When I was in college, I used to label all of my food. "Gretchen's Pickles", "Gretchen's Mayonnaise". I even wrote "Gretchen's Egg" on all my eggs in Sharpie. I'm sure my roommates loved it.

__________________________________

 

This...

...is growing in my kitchen. It is an onion which, instead of rotting, has decided to sprout leaves. I realize I should probably throw the thing away, but I'm kind of fascinated with it. Do y'all think it would grow if I stuck it in a pot of dirt? I love a good science experiment.

___________________________________

TIME SUCK ALERT:

Oh my God. I got totally sucked into this one - Goodreads.

You sign up and then start rating books that you've read/want to read. Which is where I got sucked in. Then, they give you recommendations based on your ratings. I must say, their recommendations are spot on. It's sort of like going to a book store and rooting through the shelves.

___________________________________

When did "radicalize" become a word? They keep using this word over and over on the news in regard to the Boston Marathon bombers, like "Exactly when did these young men become radicalized?" I swear I've never heard this before. Is it a real word or did Anderson Cooper just make it up? I must say, I do love me some Anderson Cooper. I wish he was my younger brother. Okay, I just veered off topic from "radicalize", sorry.

___________________________________

 

Because I'm a weirdo, I looked up the address they gave at the bottom of this, and it's right around the corner from the pool where Jude practices swimming. Alas, Jumpsuits Ltd. is no more, it's now a Citibank.

 

I have nothing to say about these. Please leave your own caption.

_________________________________

Please, please go visit Stacy and the other Random Tuesday folks.

 

RTT: Hashtag, Batman and Helpful Hints

There was a huge panic on Twitter last week when Margaret Thatcher died. Apparently, folks tweeting about the death of the UK's former Prime Minister were using the hashtag #nowthatchersdead. But many people read this as meaning the loss, not of...

 

Baroness Thatcher

 ...but of... 

Goddess of Pop

 

Yes that's right instead of #now thatchers dead, people read #now that chers dead!

____________________________________

I want one of these desperately!...

...beautiful, right? Carved book landscapes. Imagine one of these on my mantel! Maybe when I finish my book and it's a big best seller? Hmmm...

___________________________________

___________________________________

Captain Dumbass posted this on Facebook, and I had to share.

Click here for the Amazon page for BIC Cristal for Her, and read the reviews. Brilliant!

 

Just for her...

 

 ___________________________________

Okay, this might be the best helpful hints site I've EVER found. I kept scrolling on and on slapping my forehead and shouting "Why didn't I think of that!" at every one. Some of my favorites...

 

_________________________________

That's it. Was that random enough for you? Go check out Stacy et al!

RTT: Dollies, Tween and Clifford the Big Red Dog

 

Spring Break is over here at Second Blooming, and I can't say I'm sorry. Jude went away on a fabulous vacation to Palm Springs with some friends, leaving Jimmy and I home alone. Doing nothing. Which I had thought would be all freeing and relaxing, but it was not. We missed him so much it's crazy. I have no idea what I'm going to do when he goes to college. I will be completely lost. It's a good thing I have 8 years to prepare myself. I did manage to get quite a bit of writing done, but I was all discombobulated and didn't know what to do with myself. I kept thinking things like "Wait! When's swim practice?!!" before realizing that the child was in another city, and I had absolutely nothing to do.

___________________________________

I desperately want one of these dollies...

Aren't they beautiful? They're from this site, Cozbi. They're all handmade by an artist woman in Brooklyn. If any of you just happen to have $1200 laying around that they would like to spend on a dollie for me, I'll accept.

___________________________________

I forgot to tell you about the nutty thing I did a couple of weeks ago. On the Wednesday night before Easter, I woke up at 3:00 in the morning in an absolute panic. I actually sat straight up in bed looking around frantically. I was convinced that I had forgotten to hide the Easter eggs. I had failed my bunny duties. I ran into the bathroom and threw on my robe, then ran into the office closet, where the eggs were hidden, and it wasn't until I got in there that I realized that it WASN'T EASTER YET. I was so crazed with all my Easter singing and planning that damned track meet, that my subconscious must have been worried that I'd drop the ball on the most important thing I had to do all week!

__________________________________

Here's another wonderful time sucking website - Young Me/Now Me. It's pictures of people long ago, side by side with current pictures in the same location. The website won't let me steal their pictures, so you'll have to pop over and see them for yourself. Here are some favorites - HERE and HERE and HERE. It's another site that inspires me to recreate some old photos!

__________________________________

Jude has suddenly become...a tween. No, he doesn't turn 10 for another month, but he has suddenly (and really mean suddenly - like...yesterday) become obsessed with listening to music on his iPod. He has never before had ANY interest at all, but yesterday he made me download a bunch of music into it, and he's been constantly walking around with the thing clutched in his hand, rocking out. He dances around and plays air guitar - real white boy dancing too, I'm afraid. And it's funny music that he's chosen - The Beatles, a bunch of Queen, a random Coldplay song. I must say, he has pretty good taste. And part of me loves it, but the other part is all "Ewwwww, teenager time!"  I guess it was around his age when I got my first record player...

 

I loved it. It was portable and battery operated. Imagine the sound quality.

I guess we're going to have to get him a sound dock for his birthday. Any ideas of a good/cheap one?

__________________________________

You must, must, MUST watch this - Louis C.K. on Clifford the Big Red Dog...

 

_____________________________________

And that's my random for today. Go see Stacy and the others...

RTT: Easter, The Giving Tree and Ironic

It is Spring Break here in Second Blooming World. Which means I survived Holy Week and Easter. Not an easy feat, as I'm supposed to sing with my choir in 4 church services, including a 3 hour Good Friday service, and a 2 1/2 hour Holy Saturday mass. I ended up missing the Holy Thursday mass, because I was at Jude's track meet for SEVEN HOURS and missed it.

Easter Sunday was quite lovely. It started with what may well be Jude's last Easter egg hunt. He still believes, but just baaaaaaaaarely. And maybe only because he wants those eggs. He did suggest to me that next year we leave a note for the bunny, asking him to hide the eggs better, so he'd have more of a challenge.

 

"Lame" egg hunt

 

The view from the choir loft before church.

Choir with hats.

Jude with Lynn and Darren's daughters.

Then after church, we went to an excellent brunch at The Hungry Cat and gorged ourselves on seafood and eggs. After which, I curled up in my bed and played Farmville and watched Absolutely Fabulous on DVD.  Which I consider an excellent end to a busy week.

You'll all be happy to know that my tiny virtual Farmville farm survived my Lenten games sacrifice without any loss of tiny virtual life. I know you were all worried.

_____________________________________

So, what is Jude doing for Spring Break? He'll be going to a fabulous resort in Palm Springs for 4 days of rest and relaxation. What are Jimmy and I doing? Nothing. That's right, the child is going with his friends, and not us.  I'm so jealous I could spit. I'm hoping to use the time to catch up on my writing and various other tasks that I have let fall behind. Though I'm more likely to waste all of my time on my aforementioned tiny virtual farm.

_____________________________________

My friend Juliet told me this story the other day, and it's so terrible and yet hilarious that I knew I MUST share. Her daughter is in the CCD class at the church affiliated with Jude's school. The class is preparing for their first communion. The priest who leads the class (who shall remain nameless) decided that for a treat, he would show them a video of Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree, which he located on YouTube. Unfortunately, he failed to watch the video before showing it to a church full of 7-year olds. Please enjoy...

 

Oh yes, he did. Apparently, the poor priest managed to get the video turned off before things got really ugly, but not before freaking the crap out of all the children!

_____________________________________

Y'all should check this out - Where Should I Shop?

It's a site which lists and gives links to top shopping sites around the internet, divided into 39 categories, from Alcohol to Weddings. I like it because it not only gives the usual Amazon and Etsy links, but also lesser-known sites like AbeBooks and Coriandr. Pretty handy.

_____________________________________

 

Hehe.

___________________________________

 

Becky, the Suburban Matron [I must insert here that just then, when I typed the word Suburban, I accidentally wrote Subourbon - which was almost certainly a Freudian slip, and would make a great title for something] posted this on Facebook last week, and I COMPLETELY identified.

Do y'all do this? I probably refer to my kid as "Dude" as often as I do by his name. I can't stop myself from saying things like 'sup and yo, which sounds completely idiotic coming out of the mouth of a middle-aged white woman. And I keep using silly rhyming phrases like "Easy peasy" and "Awesome Possom". What stupid slang words did you start out using ironically, but now just use like they're real words?

____________________________________

That's it. GO see Stacy!

RTT: Vandy, Maya and Tinkle

 

I have, rather indulgently. been celebrating my birthday aaaaaaaaaaaaall week with lots of girlfriend fun.

First...Vandy J and The Testosterone Three came to visit!!

Vandy and I on the beach in Santa Monica!

I can't tell you how much fun we had! Vandy is every bit as nice and fun and easy-going as you'd think from her blog. We never stopped talking for the entire day. It was like we were old friends. And her boys were absolutely darling! They were all extremely good sports when I got us all hopelessly gridlocked in traffic.

Turbo digging for crabs.

Bruiser with rake we begged off a lifeguard.

Look at that smile!!

Seriously, I wanted to take both boys home with me! Jude would love a couple of brothers! Can't wait for them to come back again, and we can get Turbo and Jude together.

___________________________________

Next, my college roommate Lannyl came to town from New York and stayed with us a couple of nights...

Lannyl is someone who I can not see for 6 months, and when we're together we pick up right where we were as if we saw each other yesterday. It always amazes me how alike our lives are on their opposite coasts! She is also welcome back any time she wants!

____________________________________

Then on Friday, Lynn and I celebrated our birthdays (Lynn's was Tuesday!) by meeting for high tea at the Polo Lounge in the Beverly Hills Hotel. Veeeeery swanky. Tea, finger sandwiches, scones and clotted cream, pastries. Oh yes, it was good. Celebrity sightings: Warren Beatty (looking pretty old, I must say) and Maya Rudolph who is very pregnant. Here's a shot of our pastries and the back of Maya's head...

 

Honest to God, Lynn wasn't trying to take a picture of Maya Rudolph, just of our pastries. The woman has priorities.

____________________________________

 

I am fairly obsessed with this website - Archetype Me. Basically, you take a little quiz and then the website decides which archetypes you most resemble, the archetypes being - Advocate, Athlete, Caregiver, Creative, Fashionista, Intellectual, Queen/Executive, Rebel, Spiritual and Visionary. I am a Caregiver/Intellectual/Creative. Which does, in fact, pretty much sum me up in neat stereotypes. Then you check out articles and websites chosen to fit your particular archetype types. It's pretty fun, I must say. And...a time suck. So...warning.

____________________________________

 

I laughed.

 

__________________________________

I LOVE these. A photographer father uses his 5-year old daughter to recreate classic paintings. These are truly amazing portraits, not copies of classic paintings, but more...inspired by them.

Definitely worth checking out!

__________________________________

 That's all the random for today. Go see Stacy for more fun!