candice ransom

In my travels…

For two long weeks, I was sidelined from my voice lessons by a persistent cough and cooties. I couldn’t wait to sing again! And so it was that, ack! I showed up on my teacher’s doorstep a whole two hours early.

If ever there’s a place to be with time on your hands, Laguna Beach is it. I hiked toward the beach, a few short blocks away, reveling in the cloak of quiet afforded by the salty morning mist.

Inspired by Candice Ransom's recent blog entries, I ducked inside an Assistance League thrift store. Baubles and Handbags Sale! the sign announced, but that's not what drew my eye. There, in unfamiliar surroundings and with unexpected time on my hands, I was reunited with a dear old friend.

And boom! I was 9 years old again, sprawled on the floor of our neighborhood bookmobile, flipping through its pages.



Bookmobile Images via ark.cdlib.org

I paid $1.50 for this pleasure, tax included. 

As gentle waves lapped against the seashore, I reacquainted myself with the rhythms and rhymes between its covers. Some selections, if I’m remembering right, were instant favorites; others grew on me with time. I discovered some new friends, too, including a poem about hummingbirds, no surprise, and the last stanza of Song for A Blue Roadster…

Fly, Roadster, fly!

Leave Time behind;

Out of sight

Shall be out of mind.

Shine and Shadow

Blue sea, green bough,

Nothing is real

But Here and Now

~Rachel Field

…which is where I closed the book, leaving the rest for another Time.

Friday Five: April Fools

In honor of April Fool’s Day, I offer you four truths and a lie. Can you separate fact from fiction?

1. I received this beautiful package in yesterday’s mail. Note the crochet-inspired pattern on the wrapping paper, which I love. And isn’t that gift tag amazing? Would that I could be so crafty!

 I ripped that puppy right open, and lo, look what I found!

*squeals of joy* Thanks, Master Winchester, for drawing my name. And a million thanks, [info]candice_ransom , for hosting such a generous contest. I love my new journal, and I’m already thinking up new things to scribble & doodle on its pages.


2. This lovely gift came my way via a kindred spirit, [info]inknbeans . You might remember that I borrowed a similar scarf for my trip to Connecticut (tea for two–Jeannine Atkins and me– in Salisbury). I loved it so much…it was like wearing a warm hug–and I hated that I had to return it. Handcrafted crochet items remind me of my Nana. (For some reason, she rarely finished any of her projects. But boy oh boy, those hands were always flying!) So when Emjae sent me a scarf of my very own, in a color palatte customized for me, I wore it around my neck for about two weeks straight, no kidding. I’d be wearing it today, if it wasn’t already 80-some degrees outside and climbing.

Warm hugs back at you, Emjae. I’m grateful for your amazing gift, and for all that it represents.

3. I’ve got tickets to hear His Holiness, the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet, talk with us about "Compassion and Global Leadership."  Seats sold quickly, so I’ll be perched among the pigeons. Doesn’t matter. I’m glad for for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

4. I play an April Fool’s Day joke on my husband every year. And without fail, he falls for it. Hee, poor guy. This time ’round, I switched out his nondescript ringtone for "Soul Man" by the Blues Brothers. Then I cranked up the volume to its maximum levels, for the benefit of passers-by his listening pleasure. Well now! My husband is brilliant, but he problem-solves in a linear-sequential way. So as you might imagine, this switcharoo threw him for a loop. He turned the phone over and over in his hands, as if inspecting it for defects. "So strange," he marveled. "Sprint must have pushed out another upgrade." Fish in a barrel, folks. Fish in a barrel.

5. It’s supposed to snow here this weekend! Whoa, pretty random, right? An extremely rare occurance…a wonder to behold. White on white: a clever disguise for my camilias.

Happy weekend, everyone! I love you all, no foolin’.