i absolutely love
the toledo (ohio, usa) museum of art’s
creative announcement of their good news:
Cheers to the new year—and free parking!
Parking at TMA is now completely free.
Plan your next visit today: https://toledomuseum.org/visit
Man with a Wine Glass, Velázquez (Spanish, 1599–1660). c. 1630. Oil on canvas.
Lotus Lamp (shade), Tiffany Studios (American, 1902-1932). about 1905. Glass, and bronze.
—
‘creativity is contagious. pass it on.’
-albert einstein
‘i’ve said this before, and i’ll say it again.
bagels can be an enormous power for good or evil.
it is up to us to decide how we will use them.’
-daniel pinkwater
—
in honor of national bagel day
which i somehow missed yesterday
but am happy to celebrate today
—
art credit: bagel sunflowers by laurel greenfield art
—
fun fact: the first printed mention of bagels is found
in the community regulations of kracow, poland, for the year 1610
stating that bagels would be given as a gift to any woman in childbirth.
-leo rosten
i finally tiptoed my way back into doing jigsaw puzzles at home
with a planned delay after having pete the cat come to live with me
he’s a rowdy teenaged cat who loves to jump and play
i started out by trying a 100 piece puzzle sent by my friend
i could work quickly and cover it if needed
that went pretty well
he jumped up on the table
laid down on it and grabbed a piece but put it back when i ‘suggested it’
this was the gateway opening wide for me
i knew a 1,000 piece puzzle
would take up too much space and time
so i went for a 500 piece
quietly got it out
sorted, made the frame
he jumped up to check it out
suddenly i had an idea
he loves to play, especially laser chase games
i love to solve puzzles, especially jigsaw and crosswords
so i armed myself with a laser pointer in my left hand
while i worked on the puzzle with my right hand
each time he jumped up
i aimed that pointer across the room and he took off running
i had a couple of minutes to work on the puzzle again
then he would jump back up and we did this all over again
i assumed he’d tire after 5 or 6 jumps
but no
pete the cat had energy to burn
we must have repeated this close to 20 times
finally i finished by puzzle
he went to take a nap
a win for both of us
while my team may have come in very last
in our recent jigsaw puzzle competition
i have taken it to a new challenge level
two-fisted gaming
‘jig-laser-tag-puzzling.’
—
“let perseverance be your engine and hope your fuel.”
—j. jackson brown, jr.
.
what an utterly brilliant idea
—
‘adventure is worthwhile, starting right from the airport.’
– insta quote
updating, saving, copying, forgetting
doing most anything with my passwords
never fails
to lead me on a trip down the rabbit hole.
this play-by-play found online describes it perfectly:
‘She died as she lived, clicking “Forgot password,” then checking her inbox for a code, then putting in that code, then setting up two-step verification, and then waiting for the text message that doesn’t come, and then calling the 800 number, and then downloading an authenticator app, and dying.’
-author unknown
in the neighborhood
seeing bits of festive cheer
brings light to the day
—
“indeed there is an eloquence in true enthusiasm that is not to be doubted.”
-*washington irving
*washington irving was an american short-story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. best known for his short stories, including “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”.
This letter from Charles in response to a 5th grade student who had written to him as a class assignment to ask, “What Makes a Good Citizen?’
The student, Joel, still has this letter framed at his home,
and the link to the story is below:
https://www.kqed.org/arts/13852729/charles-schulzs-letter-about-democracy-discovered-50-years-later
—
Another take on virtue:
Moral beauty can be summarized in one word: virtue. The moral virtues include love, justice/fairness, compassion, wisdom, kindness, honesty, courage, forgiveness, self-sacrifice, etc. It is the enactment of such virtues, the display of them in behavior, which comprises moral beauty. Moral goodness can be noticed through cool cognition, but moral beauty is perceived by a warm heart. Noticing moral goodness may not motivate a human toward prosocial action; but the perception of moral beauty is highly motivating and often leads to prosocial and altruistic behavior. Engagement with moral beauty is the cause of many self-transcendent emotions, but in particular it is cause of the moral emotion of elevation.
-Rhett Diessner, Encyclopedia of Heroism Studies
—
image credit: Charles Schulz, American Cartoonist/Author, Peanuts
tempting.
—
‘the secret joys of living are not found by rushing from point A to point B,
but by slowing down and inventing some imaginary letters along the way.’
– douglas pagels
—
image credit: tom gauld
i recently wrote a post about
my dear friend and author, breeda kelly miller
who researched, wrote a play, performed, and presented
her family’s heritage story:
https://ididnthavemyglasseson.com/?s=kelly
she continues to perform the play on stage
had the play aired on pbs,
and presents her story all over the world.
above is the companion book she has written
which includes more details, background, quotes, photos, and inside jokes
fully rounding out her family’s tale.
this book was a lovely read
it was a pleasure to follow along with the story
of the kelly family’s journey
from ireland to canada, and ultimately, the united states
their tale is told through the eyes of a daughter
with stories from the generations before her
sharing the true life eccentric characters and situations
that carried all of them through life.
it’s a story of love, humor, grace, loss, and acceptance
the photographs make it easy to imagine the people she writes about
their brave and challenging moments
along with their glories
as they made the best of situations presented to them
gained personal strength, learned as they went
finally finding their place in the world
a place they came to call home.
This book takes you through the ebbs and flows of their lives
while sometimes just treading water
but they make it through and inspire us to do the same.
What a beautiful legacy gift Breeda Kelly Miller has created for her family
and for all families
who can all imagine bits of themselves and their own stories in this book.
every person, every family, every place, every choice, has a story.
looking back and learning about our past
how we came to be who we are, where we came from, bringing us to where we are now
helps us to understand and make sense of our lives.
I hope that you enjoy the Kelly family’s journey as much as I did.
Sláinte!
—
“life, like a poem, is a series of choices.”
Dame Maggie Smith
—
Mrs. Kelly’s Journey Home is now available for sale at the two sites listed below:
https://breedamiller.com/products/mkjh-book/
https://www.amazon.com/Mrs-Kellys-Journey-Home-American/dp/1956465235
I didn't have my glasses on.... 