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image credit: vintage english christmas card
Dec25
happy christmas.
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image credit: vintage english christmas card
Author Archives: beth
Dec24
“holidays are here. take special care.” – cliff richard
to all of those who are special to me
south of the equator
way down under in australia
it is already almost christmas day for you
enjoy it as only you can
with
santa catching a wave on a sea reindeer
wearing board shorts and sailor hat
hot blue skies shining overhead
and
christmas carol swimming nearby.
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photo credit: the queenslander magazine cover, 1934
Dec23
“how many cares one loses when one decides not to be something but to be someone.” ― coco chanel
my class was interested in learning about snow
they knew that it:
comes from up there
falls down to the ground
is cold
tastes like peppermint
and
you can make stuff out of it.
they wanted to learn about snowplows
so we invited our school’s snowplow driver
over for a visit
everyone put on their winter gear
headed outside
where he
showed them his truck
put on the lights
moved the plow up and down
and
pushed the snow around the circle
then
we invited him into our room
to ask him questions
and learn more about him
he told the kids
to call him roger
he was very gentle and kind
he has been here for 28 years
this is his last snowplow winter
he answered every single question
listened to every single comment about snow
they asked him what he does
when he’s not plowing
they were surprised
he lives on 20 acres
has fainting goats, black swans and an aviary of 500 exotic finches
decorates peoples houses for the holidays
is a father and grandfather
and
a horticulturist
who helped to create the children’s garden at our school
he is more than what they saw
when they saw him plowing the snow
now they know him as a person
now they will wave to each other
now they know how he helps our community
now they know how much more there is to his story
when he was finished
and it was time
for him to go back to his work
the children gathered around him and gave him hugs
they know a good person when they meet one.
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“i hope I didn’t bore you too much with my life story.” – elvis presley
Dec22
today we are on our way back towards spring.
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credits: pinterest – finland 1950s, word porn
Dec21
on the solstice.
“snow was falling,
so much like stars filling the dark trees
that one could easily imagine
its reason for being
was nothing more than prettiness.”
— mary oliver
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credits: Faerie Magazine – ‘The Meeting Point’
Original painting in mixed media by Kerry Darlington
Dec20
extra.
The “floating Christmas tree” sits atop the water in Glen Lake.
Drivers cruising along M-22 near Glen Arbor are being treated to a little holiday magic this year: A floating Christmas tree in Glen Lake.
The 12-foot-tall Frasier fir is secured inside a small fishing boat anchored about 600 feet off the shore. At night the tree lights up (thanks to a timer and two solar-powered, 12-volt batteries) and appears to be magically floating atop the water.
It’s the third year in a row that Glen Arbor resident Frank Siepker Jr., who lives on the lake, has pulled off this charming and decidedly Up North-y Christmas display. “People dress up their yards for Christmas; the lake is kind of our yard,” he said. “Everybody gets a kick out of it.”
The tree is visible along the east side of M-22; the best spot for viewing it is at the bridge that divides Glen Lake into “Big” Glen Lake and “Little” Glen Lake (a spot sometimes referred to as “the narrows”).
Siepker said how long the tree will remain in the lake depends on the weather. If too much ice doesn’t form, the tree will stay up until New Year’s Day, at which point Siepker will put on his waders, walk out into the frigid water, and bring the display back to shore.
In the meantime, he said the tree continues to delight his two young children — as it no doubt does many who happen to see it while driving by.
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“christmas is doing a little something extra for someone. “
-charles m. schulz
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credits: mlive.com, emily bingham, jeff rabidoux (photo)
Dec19
magnify.
compliment people.
magnify their strengths,
not their weaknesses.
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*credits: https://www.facebook.com/HydestileResidentAnimals
*Please check out Hydestile Resident Animals Facebook page to support this lovely animal sanctuary and all of their good works
Dec18
a day late and a trifle short.
imagine my surprise
when i found out
that the party i was going to tonight
at my sweet irish friend’s house
had already happened last night
and
when i stopped over today
it looked like
a great time was had by everyone
especially those who were there on the right night.
i think this may have been a trifle.
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“it gets late early out there.”
-yogi berra
Dec17
liquid assets.
Cuba offers rum to pay off $276m Czech debt
Cuban rum is a popular tipple in the Czech Republic. Cuba has come up with an unusual way to repay its multimillion dollar debt to the Czech Republic – bottles of its famous rum, officials in Prague say.
The Czech finance ministry said Havana had raised this possibility during recent negotiations on the issue.
Cuba owes the Czech authorities $276m (£222m), and if the offer is accepted the Czechs would have enough Cuban rum for more than a century. However, Prague said it preferred to get at least some of the money in cash.
Havana’s debt dates back from the Cold War era – when Cuba and what was at the time Czechoslovakia were part of the communist bloc. Cuba now does not have much money but it does have lots of rum – hence this unusual proposal, says the BBC’s Rob Cameron in Prague.
The Czech finance ministry said repayment was possible either with rum or pharmaceutical drugs. But Cuban drugs lack EU certification, so repayment with a more traditional medicine – popular in the Czech Republic – may be easier to arrange, our correspondent adds.
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“the best solutions are often simple, yet unexpected.”
-julian casablancas
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credits:bbc news, reuters,
Dec16
closer.
pre-kinder decides to see what’s in front of her.
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“sometimes the most beautiful things are in front of our eyes,
and we don’t even notice because we’re either too busy or too afraid to take a closer look.”
― katja michael
I didn't have my glasses on.... 