Author Archives: beth

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About beth

Ann Arbor-ite writes about enjoying life with all of its ironies and surprises.
Jun7

deer crossing.

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IMG_0713it began with the random choice of my reindeer shirt

the obvious selection for a springy-summery day

IMG_0708 i wore it on a visit to my daughter

as we sat in her yard

i saw something

out of the corner of my eye

 i looked over

to see this guy standing there

looking at me

he must have seen me

out of the corner of his eye

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 i headed over to

the hidden and understated

hard to find

artisan oasis

known as

motawi tiles

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where i came across this beautiful

handcrafted tile

and i knew

this was the one i was meant to own

all signs pointed me clearly in this direction.

—
“signs may be but the sympathies of nature with man.”
― charlotte brontë, jane eyre

Jun6

believe in yourself and believe in magic. – theophilus london

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 sitting outside

waiting for her mom

for the last time this year

with

 my second grade friend

and

fellow writer

and

i realized

how just far

she had come

when she

signed her own shirt

with

three words

a mighty powerful message

filled with

unlimited magic and possibility

and

a hint at

her future.

Jun5

my crown is called content, a crown that seldom kings enjoy. – william shakespeare

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and so it began

another summer

had arrived

and

it was kicked off

in a larger than life way

with

martha reeves and the vandellas

giving a free concert

outisde on the street

and

it brought people of all kinds together

to

dance in the streets

and

sing

and

remember

and

celebrate

the season

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and later

i had the chance to see

my co-worker from school

in a very different role

acting in a

powerful production

of one of my favorites

‘rent’

held in a beautiful old theater

with voices booming and tears flowing

Full Cast for weband i couldn’t have asked for a better way

to be welcomed into summer

but with music and passion.

Jun3

“and all the colors i am inside have not been invented yet.” – shel silverstein

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as our year together

comes to an end

sharing

an oval rug

a room

a building

the great outdoors

the community around us

we venture into new territory

making the leap

across snake rock

something new

and not so scary

with big kids

to lead the way

and

teachers

standing by

quietly watching

as

they grow into

their next adventure

with little fear

 with great excitement

and

just a few tears.

—

“ listen to the mustn’ts, child,
listen to the don’ts.
listen to the shouldn’ts.
the impossibles, the won’ts.
listen to the never haves.
then listen close to me—
anything can happen, child,
anything can be.”

– shel silverstein

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Jun1

farmers only worry during the growing season, but townspeople worry all the time. – e. w. howe

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our opinions become fixed at the point where we stop thinking.
– ernest renan

May31

ah, sunday –

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and i’m in my happy place.

—

image credit: tickld.com

May30

how wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world. ~anne frank


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unnamed

grandies j and b

get ready for the big race

their first 5k

as a family

following in the footsteps

of mom and dad

making me proud

all to raise money

and awareness

for the

hope water project

a human cause

that helps bring

clean water to africa

something so many of us

take for granted

each and every day.

checklist:

sweatbands

numbers

water

shorts

smiles

shoes

enthusiasm

hope

empathy

compassion

blanket

ready.

—

every cause produces more than one effect.
– herbert spencer

—

https://www.hopewaterproject.org

May29

to say what your disguise is would be foolish. john mcAfee

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i realized

after leaving this note

just how strong

nacho the cat not the food’s

potato fetish

has become.

when it comes to the point

that i feel the need

 to disguise a raw potato

so that he does not sneak off with it

secreting it away

for his eating pleasure

things may have gotten out of hand

and

someone has a problem

but i’m not saying any names.

May28

i see the whole world as a story.

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thank you in advance

to all those who

i may cross paths with.

you could find yourself

smack in the middle

of my blog

one day

or seven.

family, friends,

random strangers, animals

and

those who cannot be categorized.

i am

endlessly fascinated by your stories

and

never judge you for them

but

instead

always learn something

from you

because of them.

—

image credit: google images

May27

wolverines, bulldogs, trash-talk, cowbells and popcorn.

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on a beautiful night

at the university of michigan

home of the wolverines

and the women

of the winning softball team

went head to head

with the georgia bulldogs

worthy adversaries

in the second game

of the ncaa regionals

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and we were lucky enough

to have seats directly next to

the alumni marching band

loyal, spirited, musical, happy

as they

jumped up

cheered

played

and

very

enthusiastically

trash-talked

the rivals

and

called the plays

 as everyone got in on the act

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and

desmond howard

and sons

sat in

on cowbell

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and in the end

the wolverines

were victorious

earning a spot

in the college world series

and

all the trash talking

 music

 hard work

 sweat

and

talent

paid off.

—

people are going to talk no matter what you do,

so you might as well give them something to talk about.

– author unknown