YouTubing my Big Sister

needed to upload this video to You.Tube so 

with new phones and computer crashes, i could be assured i would never lose track of it.

this makes my heart so happy. even if she is stuck in a box.

hot water happiness

i may not have hot water for the fifth time this month  .. but i'm still a happy girl. 


here are five simple reasons. 

1. today a sizeable box waited for me patiently on my doorstep. 
Full of BOOKS. Read.Alouds.. . writing books and of course, books about food -  glorious food. 


2. this month, i got a lot of sister.. . family. time. 
Surprise 70th for my dad and then a family wedding this past weekend in Ohio. 




in the city @Eataly..  pure food heaven
.all senses come alive when you step through the doors

Could Aidan, my nephew be any cuter? 

Writing his well wishes to the bride and groom.

i love him to bits, pieces.. . little dustlets.

3.   my hair hitting my collarbone. 
      year after year.
      cut it, grow it, cut it, dark, light, dark.. . back and forth.  
      my hairdresser won't be seeing me any time soon. 
      i'm enjoying this growing season.

4.  this sound 

     these words. 

You were waiting at the door. 

I let you in. 

my sister is mean

saw this commercial a month or so ago.
loved it for a variety of reasons which i won't detail here and bore you.

nonetheless. 
i went about a search for the video on the inter.world. galactic net and this blog post came up
A Car Commercial That Humors Your Shitty Art World Dreams.
it made me laugh .. . quite a lot.
[you must read]


and now i'm stuck in a quandry.
which side do i stand on?

do i need to choose a subaru side anyway?
i think not.
my sister would say i was a loser for even posing that question.
thanks, alli.

We Four Brothers and Sisters

the week before school ended, 

i went out to michigan to see my niece graduate from junior school. 

this september, she will be a freshman in high school.

i still remember my mother's frantic phone call telling me my sister was in labor. 

and now she's .almost. the real deal, full live grown up. 

it can't be.

now that there are four. 

my sister and brother in law have been busy. 

it's a job, getting a successful photo of all of them.

.here are some helpful hints.

1. whistle We Three Kings.. . ? WHAT?? why? 

2. March through the camera shot kicking your toes up backward

3. repeat Pop's tongue twisters

and then maybe, just MAYBE you be able to get a few classy ones like these. 

the never before seen preview

forget trying to get one good shot
it will never work.

here's the result
a preview of the blockbuster coming out this summer

Expression of the Sisters


check this gif maker

My Posse

We all know the Lumineers from Ho Hey

.. . and if you don't, well, you've got some learnin' to do.

I stumbled upon Stubborn Love of theirs today.

I'm loving how the video starts, 

as if I'm peering from the inside out and must find my way toward them. 

Cause that's basically what has happened.

Wish I had a posse like this.

Swig me some hard cider 

and sing it up in the corner 

with my boots clanging on the hard wood floor.

I'm down with that.

WAIT.. .

I have these guys.. .

That works? right?

.Love 'em.

picture story

I went to Starbucks today - in hopes they would have the new Mumford my sister had told me about a few days ago.

I wanted the real thing. Not some electronic - i.phonic. I.tunic. musical download. 

low and behold it was there along with the new Avett brothers. 

.Picked a pumpkin Latte to boot. 

sisters and twisters

this is my sister

this is her one true fear

this is the town she lives in 

this was last night. 

{the .Dexter mill. is seconds from where she lives} 

read her twister story here 

.Dorothy, we are not in Kansas anymore.

listening to right now

found this a song on Parenthood. ..
catching up on my .DVR.
sucks doing that alone
without. you.




more fitting of the past few weeks.. .
lucky to have a week away. starting tomorrow.
looking forward to seeing Big Sis. and getting some extra Loving.

del posto 35

one of the top.ten.best nights of my life

:these little things made me happy today.

1. found this video from a trip to my sister's a while back. 
uploaded it. 
already watched it five times.
silly how absolutely. out of this world. happy this makes me... 
or is it? 
i guess it's sillier when you think about what else makes people happy. 
i'd rather have my big sister right here, Right now.

2. there's something about kina. 
love her lyrics. her voice. . . all of the above. 

Delicate

you said, "be careful, it's delicate
things can just crumble apart."
but it's not the same for me
it's not the same for me

so i kept treading so carelessly
thin lines that splintered my ground
but i closed my eyes to them
i closed my eyes to them

how did you know that i couldn't be what everyone wanted me to be
and how did you know that i wouldn't see when everything falls away from me
when everything falls away from me

one day i woke in the rubble
knee-deep in damage i'd done
and i was ashamed of it
how did it come to this?

how did you know that i couldn't be what everyone wanted me to be
and how did you know that i wouldn't see when everything falls away from me
when everything falls away from me

how did you know that i couldn't be what everyone wanted me to be
and how did you know that i wouldn't see when everything falls away from me
when everything falls away from me
when everything falls away from me

the two of us

This is my first time participating in

kind of ironic since I plan Writing Workshop lessons 

for my students every day during the year. 

I'm on the opposite side of the desk now.

Writing Prompt #4 i chose.. .

Post a picture and a description that fits into this quote for you: 

"How far to heaven? Just open your eyes and look. You are in heaven" -Shankar

Absolutely anywhere with my sister.

Could be... eyes glaze over boring _ with her  _ it will surely become hysterical. 

Guaranteed silliness. 

for sure good food.. . even if we need to scrounge the corners of the cupboards. 

and endless loving _ i will hug upon every inch of her. 

{My sister surprised us all last year. appeared at my classroom door while i was teaching; my parents' house during the day, catching my mom off guard. At least, we got my dad on tape here as record of all her surprise efforts. .. }

.. all old photos from Martha's Vineyard summering .. 

.wait a month or so for a slideshow of our new venturings.

the countdown has begun.

Harry Belafonte's Lasagna

"You never remember anything good about when you were little? Do you?!"" This phrase echoes from my mother's lips countless times as we sit around the living room. It is not entirely true. My memory beyond five years ago is hazy - this is the cause of the problem. I have many special memories that I know I will share with my own kids, but I can't necessarily remember specifics like my sister. She could tell you the phone number of the pizza restaurant we placed our orders and the birthdays of every family member, including Aunt Rita who we met three times. What I can tell you about my family, from childhood to today - two things that remain constant are the love of food and music.

Those few strong memories stem from here. Dancing around the dining room table faster and faster to Harry Belafonte's Hava Nageela with Matthew, the Basset Hound. The Lasagna, that I loved more that life itself. Today, I find myself still attached to these things. I gravitate toward food and music to comfort myself. My sister and I joke about how Ella Fitzgerald's - Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered is the theme song to my life. It very likely may have been. Past tense.

This song I stumbled across by Mikeschair - Let the Waters Rise
It certainly was a comfort to me.

Don't know where to begin
It's like my world's caving in
and I try but I can't
control my fear
Where do I go from here?

Sometimes it's so hard to pray
when you feel so far away
But I am willing to go
where you want me to
God I TRUST you
There's a raging sea
Right in front of me
Wants to pull me in
Bring me to my knees
So let the waters rise
If you want them to
I will follow you
I will FOLLOW YOU

I will swim in the deep
Cause you'll be next to me
You're in the eye of the storm
and the calm of the sea
You're NEVER out of reach

God you know where I've been
And you were there with me then
You were faithful before
you'll be faithful again
I'm holding your hand!There's a raging sea
Right in front of me
Wants to pull me in
Bring me to my knees
So let the waters rise
If you want them to
I will follow you
I will FOLLOW YOU

God Your love is enough
You will pull me through
I'm holding on to you
God your love is enough
I will follow you
I will follow YOU

There's a raging sea
Right in front of me
Wants to pull me in
Bring me to my knees
So let the waters rise
If you want them to
I will follow you
I will FOLLOW YOU