kinders watch
to see when the birds will come
to eat the treats
they’ve made for them
and hung up high in the trees
so they don’t go hungry in the winter’s snow.
—
“be grateful for luck. pay the thunder no mind – listen to the birds. and don’t hate nobody.
-eubie blake
before he was an astronaut,
john glenn served as a military pilot during world war II and the korean war.
before leaving for combat missions, he always told his wife annie,
“i’m just going to the corner store to get a pack of gum.”
she always replied, “don’t be long.”
—
” the return makes one love the farewell. “
-alfred de musset
–
farewell john glenn, one of my heroes.
—
credits: cnn.com, mental floss, washington post
grandies wake up in the cottage
and run downstairs
to take in all the magic
of the new morning snow
and
perched atop piles of books
eagerly await the arrival
of their cousins
who will soon help them bake
a team of sweet gingerbread reindeer.
—
“always be on the lookout for the presence of wonder.”
― e.b. white
The Historic Parisian Bookshop Where Aspiring Writers Can Spend the Night for Free
Shakespeare and Company opened its doors back in 1951, and ever since then, it’s hosted aspiring writers for free. And it’s not always just for a night, sometimes, guests stay for months, and they don’t have to pay a penny. The Parisian literary hub may be the only bookshop in the world of its kind.
More than 30,000 guests have stayed at the bookshop since American expat George Whitman opened it over six decades ago, and many of them have even gone on to become international best sellers.
Molly Dektar, who lived at Shakespeare and Company in January and June 2013, wrote about the experience: “I aimed to read a book a day but it wasn’t entirely possible. Still, the goal is spiritually important and should be taken seriously. One minute I was a visitor just like any other,” she added, “and the next minute I was welcomed in to this huge, historic community of writers and expatriates.”
Now, 65 years after the bookshop opened, the owner, Whitman’s daughter Sylvia, has released a memoir documenting its long history. Whitman was inspired by American expat Sylvia Beach, who owned a bookshop by the same name at another location, which existed between 1919 and 1941.
Beach’s bookshop had been a popular and frequent gathering place for legendary writers like Ernest Hemingway, F Scott Fitzgerald and T S Eliot. She had also been the first to publish James Joyce’s Ulysses in 1922.
Whitman had called his version of the bookshop a “spiritual successor” and it quick became the center of expat life in Paris for the book writing crowd. As he’d been the recipient of the generosity of strangers while traveling the world, he decided that he wanted to do the same for other travelers. Since the start, his store has hosted overnight guests he refers to as “Tumbleweeds.” Instead of paying for their stay, the “Tumbleweeds” are just required to help out in the shop for a few hours, write a one-page autobiography for the archives and “read a book a day.” Quite the deal!
While Whitman passed away five years ago, his daughter Sylvia is continuing to carry on the tradition and runs the bookshop with her partner, David Delannet.
Today, as many as six Tumbleweeds can sleep in the bookshop each night, but it now also hosts an adjoining cafe, a literary festival and a publishing arm of Shakespeare and Company, which just released a book on the history of the company.
Of the book, Delannet said, “This history offers readers a unique perspective on Paris, as well as an insight into the life of the literary traveler in the second half of the 20th century and a feel for a bookshop whose motto is ‘Be not inhospitable to strangers lest they be angels in disguise.'”
—
credits: earthables, molly dektar, buzzfeed
—
image credit: purple clover
when the pre-k friends meet up with their second grade friends
there is much to celebrate and talk about.
—
“friendship is the only cement that will ever hold the world together.”
-woodrow t. wilson
headed off to the puzzle house
to try out an ‘escape room adventure’
just going in was a bit scary
and i thought
we might have to escape right away
but
eight of us
ventured in
and
read a story
memorized details
then used
codes that we had to translate and crack
black lights
a laser
a microscope
a tangram puzzle
a piñata head
hidden and found things
boxes
math
logic
wild guesses
opinions
ideas
sweat
spiders
stars
moons
crystals
locks
a lot of darkness
and a little bit of wit
we had one hour and made it through two rooms
never got into the third
but
what an adventure
and
eight of us ventured back out.
—–
“there are always wonderful mysteries to confront.”
-david e.
a couple of enterprising 5-year olds
create the raised walkway
many 3s, 4s and 5s
try it out
for quality control
offering their suggestions
when
they
or
the boards
fall down
rebuilding as they go.
—
“in most vital organizations, there is a common bond of interdependence,
mutual interest, interlocking contributions, and simple joy.”
—max depree
and what exactly does 3am smell like?
i imagine a pungent blend of
stale liquor
smoke
24-hour diner grease
sweat
breath mints
and
marker ink from a phone number hastily scrawled onto a cocktail napkin?
—
“the fabled musk deer searches the world over for the source of the scent which comes from itself.”
-ramakrishna
it’s december 5th
happy national comfort food day
make the most of every minute.
