MEXICAN TRAIN

Miss Polly taught me to play Mexican Train on Sunday. I have played every night since then. Rachel and I are addicted. Spike wishes I had never heard of it. He wants me back on the couch like usual!

USELESS INFO TUESDAY

Special shout out to Lisa Tutb who sent today's useless info! Thanks!

~ Windmills always turn counter-clockwise - except for windmills in Ireland.

~ Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur.

~ You will eat 35,000 cookies in a lifetime.

~ Thomas Edison, light bulb inventor, was afraid of the dark.

...and last but not least....

~ There is a town in Newfoundland, Canada named Dildo.

GOODBYE OLD FRIEND...

...It was nice knowing you.

Yes, the lighter that was given to me by TCW and Btut 1 year ago has flicked its last bic. TCW brought this back to me from their trip to Florida. He got us lighters that were easily recognizable, and ones that no one else would have, so we could always keep up with them. It worked! I will miss my Bishop!
Visitation will be tonight from 7-8. A private burial will be held for family only.

SOUTHERN FRIED THURSDAY

The following information is courtesy of Cotton Country Cooking...

In 1820, President James Monroe ordered that a site be set aside near a great river and named for the War of 1812 hero, Commodore Stephen Decatur. Thus, Rhodes Ferry, nestled peacefully in a lush, green valley next to the mighty Tennessee River, became Decatur, Alabama.

Modeled after George Washington's inaugural site in New York, the Old State Bank Building is one of Decatur's earliest landmarks. Constructed in 1832, it survived the Civil War and served as a hospital and garrison for both Federal and Confederated troops.

TA-DAAAAAA

Here's the moment you have all been waiting for......
...Andrew Lloyd Webber (Andy) in all his painted glory! Yes, the portrait has arrived! Believe it our not, I think it is really cute! It is not quite as big as Purple Cat (4x3), this is 3x3. I know it is hanging crooked and needs to be lowered, but she is waiting to get her Lifesaver Church Bus. Then she will invite Ms. Jacobs over to move these around and hang the bus. Nothing like having a good friend who can hang art well.

And what is this, you ask, hiding behind the couch and the table?

Why, it is Purple Cat waiting patiently to go to his new home! Yep, you guessed it - on Pennylane! Thanks Mom!

USELESS TUESDAY

~ Fido means faithful in Latin.

~ France was the first country to use the terms "right" and "left" to indicate a persons political preference. In 1789 when the National Assembly was convened, conservative delegates representing the nobility sat to the right of the presiding officer, while delegate who were commoners sat to the left.

~ The primary source of the earth's oxygen is algae.

~ The song "It's a Hard Knock Life" from the Broadway musical Annie inspired Rapper Jay-Z's version "Hard Knock Life" which is built around the borrowed line, "steada treated/we get tricked/steada kisses/we get kicked."


~ The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. (This sentence uses every letter of the alphabet. Are you going to check and make sure like I did?)

GOT ART?

...Polly does! My Mom has a wonderful and eclectic collection of art in her home. As I mentioned Friday, her walls are pretty covered. I thought I would take some pictures and share.

Here you see a grouping over her TV. We have a Picasso ad, Monet, Matisse, Kelly Bradford. that last one is funny...the two faces on the right are by Kelly Bradford (aka Jacobs). The clay sculpture above the Picasso ad my Mom did in school. When sitting up right, it represents a mountain.
This is a David Hockney print called Mulholland Drive. It is hanging above the fireplace. You can see to the left just a little bit of a log cabin by folk artist Jimmie Lee Sudduth. You can read more about him on Wikipedia.

Opposite wall from the TV. Various artists including me! I cross-stitched the woman in the black frame with the red mat on the upper left side.

I took a picture of the blank space above the door because her latest purchase will hang here. She bought a painting by Susan Estes that is showing in the Carnegie this month. It is of an old school bus painted to look like a roll of lifesavers. The bus can be seen at a church on the way to Tunica. Mom painted the abstract on top of the book shelves when she was in college.

Of course this is my favorite. It is over the piano in the living room. It is a portrait of my baby around 6 years old. Marion Howard is the artist. She captured Rachel perfectly...her hair, facial expression, hands, even her feet bring back memories of when my baby was young!