Erika's #37- pinhole cameras-women-china- & of course, politics

First on the list--Jim & Sonya gifted Erika with a fancy but well worn, silverplate-patina-almost-gone, antique, dressingtable hairbrush & hand mirror. So--does anyone have mother's? I hope so. If it was thrown away or put into a box for giving away, I wonder even more if someone we don't know is treasuring it.

After my crabcakes & rasta pasta & French fried sweetpotatoes dinner at Anntony's Caribbean, cards & gifts opening, candles-blowing out, and a group photo-op, at this "locals" celebration of Erika's birthday there was a lot of talk to blog about. Kathy Schmid arrived about 8:45 for a first hand, live report on her sports gig of the afternoon--she had been hired as a personal assistant to Marv Albert at the oh so exciting Davidson loss :-(

Some threads and quick-shots of chatter and "deep conversations:" Have you seen Renaissance Man Alex Powell's Award winning photo of the Getty at Sunrise? It's gorgeous. (The Getty is one place that I'd live in LA just to be near--but now that the Satchwill's are in Davidson, maybe I can get them to take me along to visit again.) I digress--here's the point: if you haven't already done so, find Alex on Flicker and check it out.

Carla, Jim & Kathy & Rosemary Schmid also were into a wonderful chat/informal workshop of shared learning--about Carla's college photoclasses, to the ongoing debate of "is it cheating" to select a sky from this photo and a sunset from this photo, to the "good old days" of dodging the print in the developing trays in the darkroom techniques to an artist using a photograph so he can capture the sunrise in paint. Cheers to visual images and artists and choices and opinions.

Oh--and then Carla brought up pinhole cameras--so of course I was thinking of Jon's wonderful Sunday afternoon with Bill Krider/Dad/Grandaddy, making a pinhole camera and capturing a picture of Nanki Poo (or some Siamese relative) to create the beginning of his Regional Award Winning GMS Middle School History Day project. (That's why the photo of dad is my find and share of the day)

As we often do, for birthday ice cream, cake, & coffee I enjoy our heritage Haviland & Wedgewood china. That lead to more discussions of history which led to the question from Jay about how long ago his Great, Great Grandmother might have gotten married, and how much did she have to save to buy this China, which led us to the Bible and falling out clippings to read & stories to tell from Jim's trip to Cooperstown to reportcards (as you might imagine--some revealing history there, folks!!)--and yes, finding the actual date, June 1, 1909, for Tillie & George to have married.

Then, this morning's TV News Shows--and BookTV and more pictures and words and historical perpsectives and now I'm blogging, blathering and eager to go out and buy the book "So Damm Much Money" (I won't though--will wait for the Library!). The CNN Crawl says Kathleen Sibelius is indeed top-of-the-list for the Daschle position at HHS. Good on 2 counts--woman and outside the Washington/Congressional Corruption at the expense of citizens.

Speaking of women in government and really grassroots political activism--Pat Summit reached 1000 wins (cheers for lobbyists who made Title 9 happen & Cable TV for being desperate and telivising women's sports), and a tip of the family traditions hat to Marijo, editor of the LHS Dark Star that was "BANNED in the BURG" for criticism of the basketball disparities.

More blog topics I could blather on about because they are all good news and worth mentioning: Triple plays winners news of Sean, Sam & Jay's grades; I fun-chatted on Skype with JaneE in Cincy, tried to get Bob in Swissland, (wish I could jet to Vegas while they're here in the US); Did get online & videocam with Ann Satchwill's son Nate & hubby Ben Caplan in Georgetown, DC; got an updated series of photos on the demolition of the Greendale Middle School from Satchwill 2nd cousin once removed, Carolyn Blevins. Oh, and a lovely, handwritten thank you note from Carla's Grandma Irene. Carla had a fun-in-the-CITY--weekend to celebrate Grandma Irene's 90-something b'day amidst all the other FEB celebrations--which ain't over yet!!

Whew. Everything's all connected, isn't it? Women, men, marriage, family Bibles, sports, money, gifts, silverplated hairbrushes, DNA, photography, politics, lobbyists, TV, money--and words for my blog. How could I not paraphrase to act on Mother's admontions? "Since I have so much good stuff to share--I will say a lot!" Thanks, Betsy, for insisting I blog, and Susan Baker for setting a frequency standard.

So--Sunday musings over... I'm off to the mall for some shopping--it's friggin 72 degrees outside! And Eva's Kohl's peel off sticker is worth the max 30% off! Life's good.