Fine Words...and I Can Hardly Wait!

Short shrift today, I'm in a state of high anticipation (which is NOT the same as "in anticipation of being high", which hasn't applied for more years than you might believe). Oh - and a revelation. Since going to see the film on Pete Seeger I was doodlng around online as I am wont to do, and I went to You Tube. In the search window, I typed in "The Weavers". That was the band Pete played in for some time early on. I was rewarded -- with film clips of some of my favorite songs by The Weavers. I can see why Mr Dearling emerged from the study the other night declaring that he'd spent "hours!" on You Tube watching clips of his favorite bands. One of these days I'm going to make me a cuppa, settle in - and work my way through whatever comes up with Pete Seeger, Arlo Guthrie, Woodie Guthrie, the Weavers...Peter, Paul and Mary, Steeleye Span -- and anyone else I can think of. Don't tell me if you know there's nothing in there for any of the above; I'll find it out for myself and move on. THOUGHT: there should be a word for, when you look something up - in a dictionary, thesaurus, website...you get waylaid by surrounding material and wake up next Tuesday. Happens to me all the time in dictionaries. Beware, all ye who enter the OED, for ye shall spend vast bowlsful of hours.

Over the last few days, two quotations fell into my brain; I think one came out of NPR and the other somewhere on the telly. I liked them both and set them down here. I shamelessly do so without citing proper credit on account of, I have no idea what it is. Hopefully this will raise no ire, as I write them filled with admiration. So:

"Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want." and

"May your hives be filled with honey, may your fields be filled with wheat, and may all your black-eyed sheep bear twins."

While I'm at it, let me write my Life Philosophy, by Which I Live, Earnestly:

"It's never too late for a Happy Childhood."



Now then, (and this is the best part): Here you see the start of the second Punkin Hat for Grandson--in which I found a glaring error and frogged (hence wiggly yarn seen to its left) and which I have since finished. The third isn't that far along but IS on the needles.

I am writing this at 2:30 a.m. and if you could see me in five minutes of finishing this you would find me asleep (average bedtime, might I add). In the morning I shall tidy up my suitcase, check the knitting basket one last time, make sure all desired books and magazines are in the tote bag, (have you read "The Secret Life of Bees"? Just started it, it's delicious) and put Daisy (the laptop) into her on-wheels carryihg case.. The reason?

I will get up about 7:30 (average waking time), get dressed, put the above into the car, go collect the Lovely Daughter --and head to Minneapolis to see Crazy Aunt Purl in the genuine and for-real human and alive self! I have some Wisconsinoid items and hopefully a completely-appropriate inappropriate hug for her! Also two copies of her book which, even if she only signs one, will be terrific (the second is going to be gifted to my it's-a-privilege-for-me-to-be-her-friend, Virginia). It's also going to be one of those Mother-Daughter-weekend-bonding things, and the whole thing is just too-too and I'm getting VERY excited!

And there is one more thing about which I'm dancing from one foot to the other about:


The approaching completion of a replica Fur Trade Post at the Museum!! Mr Dearling and I began muttering about how nice it would be some time ago, but then of a sudden (well, moving in the time reserved for bureaucracy) we were told that it was going to be manifested. Here you see some of the items we have obtained, the Husband and I -- typical examples of some of the goods brought to Wisconsin by les francais to trade for the beaver pelts. You see silk scarves; twists of tobacco (we'll take them out of their cellophane wraps); magnifying glasses (which they taught the Indians to use for making fire instantly, in sunshine; fire steels (which, struck against flints, start fires at night or when it's not sunny); scissors and clay pipes. These are but a few of my favorite things the trade goods brought to improve and ease the lives of the Native People, in exchange for furs.

The Post itself is constructed of actual logs, and will have shelves for all of these things and space for much other stuff. It looks so GOOD! And today we were given some flyers to hand out, announcing the "grand opening", being a few days after the first of the year when Mr Dearling and I, in our French-Canadian Voyageur and Metis Indian Woman clothes, perform vignettes, scenes illustrating the exchange of goods and culture which were part and parcel (no pun intended, but it's pretty clever if I do say so) of the early days of Ouis-con-sin.

It's almost more than I can take. HOWEVER! Watch this space, as tomorrow I'll be writing from a motel in Minneapolis, probably still completely wired from meeting my idol, Crazy Aunt Purl (I'll take pictures and write all about it!)