THIS DAY IN HISTORY. . . .

There are many significant events that are linked with this day in history. Although we could have lived with out it, (along with many innocent French people) in 1792, the Guillotine was used for the first time on a highwayman.

DNA Day is a holiday celebrated on April 25. It commemorates the day in 1953 when James Watson and colleagues published papers describing the double helix structure of DNA.

The official Red Hat Society day is April 25 each year. "RHS" is a social society for generally woman over 50. "When I am an old woman I shall wear purple With a red hat that doesn't go and doesn't suit me," is their mantra. 

Internationally,  April 25th has been disignated as Malaria Awareness Day. Today, I am aware that it's wonderful to be Malaria-free.

Doesn't he look relieved!?!?

However, most importantly, on this day 21 years ago, I drove myself to the hospital to have my much anticipated #2 son, Kevin Clark. Oh, what a relief it was!!

 

BABY MAGIC KID

Heartstoppers Haunted House

Parents are like shuttles on a loom. 

They join the threads of the past 
 with threads of the future

 and leave their own bright patterns as they go. 

Wow!  Look at the bright pattern here!!

PASSAGES. . . .

  Big thinking precedes great achievement!

Dr. Karl Blume 1938-2013

 It is at this time of year that I celebrate life and my bone marrow transplant birthday. It was 15 years ago that I first met Dr. Blume at Stanford. I had relapsed after a very short remission from non-hodgkins lymphoma Stage 4. I  requested my HMO to have a consult with Stanford for a possible stem cell transplant. Fortunately, for me, I was given an appointment with the "chief" of the department, Dr. Blume. I like to think that it was because I was so special, but could have been that I just won the lottery for patient assignments for the day. Looking back, I did win the lottery, by getting to know this remarkable man.  He strode into the exam room with a broad grin on his face and greeted me warmly with his thick German accent.  In just a few minutes time, he explained that there was hope for my future and in fact, there was even a small possibility of cure. My husband said eagerly:"We'll do it" I remember turning to him and thinking "We will? I will???" (since as a nurse, I understood the potential risks with this extreme therapy!)

1st Stanford transplant 1987 David

 Dr. Blume started the Morrow Transplant unit at Stanford in 1987. A pioneer in the development of transplantation as a potential cure for people with leukemia and lymphoma, he was a "visionary". I have met the first patient and often wonder what it must have been like for him at his consult.  He was 34, and had an aggressive form of leukemia and if untreated,he would be dead in 2 weeks.  He understood the treatment was not yet proven effective in adult blood cancers,but he was offered that glimmer of hope and grasped it tightly with both hands! 

1st City of Hope transplant 1976 Jivani

Today literally, thousands of lives have been saved because of his research and work. Between the City of Hope, where he started in 1976 with the first successful transplant and Stanford, the count is over 15,000. 

  Even though he was the "founding father" of this program, he was always most proud of the patients he treated. He loved life and helping people. At our annual transplant reunion, he would greet us with warm hugs,always surrounded by several former patients. 

 

THANK YOU SO MUCH, DR. BLUME!!

YOU MADE SUCH A DIFFERENCE!!

I MISS YOU

 

My 10th anniversary

"Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality."

OVERDUE

With this title, you may think it pertains to writing a new blog, which I admit is long overdue, but alas NOT. Today, as I was listening to one of my favorite NPR quiz shows--Wait,Wait, Don't Tell Me  One of the questions in the lightening round was, "A man who returned his library book 69 years late, said he was not able to return it because of ______."  Now, I could make you post your answer in the comments and give you the answer next week. . . or at my rate of posting. . . next month.  But I know you are in  such suspense I will give you a little help. Was it: 

1.   He was waiting till he won the lottery so he could pay the late fees.
2.   He was married to the librarian and thought she'd divorce him if she knew he still had the book.
3.   He blamed a World War II aerial bombing that damaged the library for the late return.

I am sure you probably guessed "WWII".  The man, now in his mid-80s, checked out the book on March 7, 1944, while Estonia was occupied by Nazi Germany. He did offer to pay a late fee on the book, which still had its original library emblem and serial code, but the library waived it. Let's see: 25 cents a day, over 69 years ... it would have been around $6,296.25. Wasn't that nice of them.



In my younger years, the librarians who treated the library as a SERIOUS BUSINESS tended to instill the fear retribution if you forgot to return your books. Your fines would build up, but you could loose your privileges if you got in arrears!! And if I couldn't check out books from the library, it would be the end of the world for me.  Remember this was long before Kindle, e-books, or Nooks.

After reading the story above, I did a search on the internet and found many similar stories:

"MAN RETURNS "A DOG OF FLANDERS" 

TO LIBRARY AFTER 76 YEARS"

"OVERDUE LIBRARY BOOK IN NEW YORK RETURNED 55 YEARS LATE WITH $100."  

"Overdue library book returned in Sacramento 74 years late"

"99 YEARS OVERDUE, MAN RETURNS LIBRARY BOOK" 

"Library Gets Back Stolen Book After 145 years"

There are also webpages of excuses!!

“My Labrador ate the cover off Toast with Jelly Side Up.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I have never checked out that book!”

A book on schizophrenia returned to the book drop overdue by about a month with a note stating,

"The voices made me keep it.” 
"Piles of overdue libraries books that I'd been meaning to return tipped over, blocking the front door to my flat. It took me two days to dig myself out."

These days, the library is still one of my favorite places and I still get my books returned in a timely manner, thankfully by my e-mail prompts! And I love the fact that I have a library where I can look, feel books and read the jacket cover to see if it is a book I want to check out.  LOVE, LOVE, LOVE, MY LIBRARY!!!

"Books contain the kinetic power of possibilities. Gathered on shelves, multiplied in old stores and stacked in libraries, unseen spirit emanates from each"

Check out this article and sketches that was in the paper this weekend. My sentiments exactly.  "KINETIC POWER"

  

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2013/03/17/5267206/shelves-harbor-unseen-spirits.html#storylink=cpy

  California Sketches

DEATH VALLEY--HOTTEST, DRIEST, LOWEST

Artist's Pallette

Death Valley is a land of extremes geologically and climate-wise.The landscape is truly unique. It's one of my favorite places here in California. Peaks topped with snow, sand dunes, alluvial fans, craters, rugged canyons, then the lowest point-the Badwater basin.

 Probably the best thing about visiting DV at this time of year is:

 THE WARM WEATHER!!

FLIP FLOPS!!  SHORTS!  SUNTAN LOTION!! 

Last month when the thermometer here at home was at the freezing point, Ernie got on the internet and made reservations for the "Valley". He couldn't have timed it better. 

Driving over, we traveled over the Sierra and dropped into 

IRON MAN IN "AFGANISTAN"

the Owens Valley. I feel like I am on a movie set with Mt Whitney as the backdrop and the Alabama Hills in the foreground.  Actually, I am in a movie set! The Alabama Hills are a popular filming location for television and movie productions, especially Westerns set in an archetypical "rugged" environment, including Django Unchained and Lone Ranger. When the boys were younger, they had a blast exploring movie road.

MOUNT WHITNEY

 This year, we were too early for the spring wildflower display.  However, we did manage to get it right on Spring break a few years past. It was truly amazing.  I couldn't stop taking pictures of the fields of flowers emerging from the sand and the rocks.

Returning home, we had to take the southern route to avoid any mountain passes THE WINTER STORM of the year that dumped a barrage of snow in the mountains, closing roads and stranding motorists for hours. 

Anyway, sure was nice being warm for a few days!

Hanging out at BADWATER

FINALLY,WE ARE IN PRODUCTION!!

 
  I did a blog awhile back "THEN THERE WERE NONE" about the attack and demise of all our chickens by a rogue possum.
 We started all over with baby chicks and finally they have grown up enough to start laying eggs. Helped by a light bulb in their coup to trick them into thinking the days are longer!!

 

Unfortunately, one of the Araucana hens that lay the green eggs turned out to be a ROOSTER!  He is a real brut in more ways then one but a Beaut with a very lusty crow. He has now found a new home!! After a short stint as poster boy on craigs list.

Love these farm fresh eggs.  Taste so much better and whip up nicely for cooking.  In fact, I had to whip up my favorite Lemon pie with my first fresh eggs and some Meyer lemons!  SWEET!!!

Lemon Cake Pudding was one of my dad's favorite deserts, so I was thrilled when I found this recipe for Lemon Cake Pie. I was perusing an article THE DESSERT COLLECTOR--"Baker Susan LaRosa rescues vintage cookbooks and cherished family recipes in search of forgotten favorites." 

 
This recipe is vintage, easy and just delicious!!  The pie has a lemon custard pudding layer which is topped with lemon cake.I have 'tweaked' the recipe a little. (don't need a cup of sugar as called for in the original!) Here is my version:

LEMON CAKE PIE
1/2 cup sugar
2 T flour
2 Tbl butter, melted
Zest of 1-2 lemons
1/4 cup lemon juice (5 Tablespoons) MEYER LEMONS ARE MY FAVORITE!
2 large eggs, yolks and whites separated
1 cup milk

MEYER LEMONS

• Heat oven to 425 degrees F. with rack in the lower third. Stir together flour, sugar, butter, zest, lemon juice, egg yolks, and milk. In a separate bowl beat egg whites to stiff peaks and fold into lemon mixture.

• Pour into crust and bake 10 minutes. Reduce oven to 350 degrees F. and bake until a knife inserted into center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. If top of pie gets too dark, tent with foil. 

"BON APPETIT"

BRASSICA OLERACEA GEMMIFERA. . . EVERY CHILD'S WORST NIGHTMARE!

“We kids feared many things in those days -

 werewolves, dentists, North Koreans, Sunday School - 

but they all paled in comparison with Brussels sprouts.” DAVE BARRY

I was at my local Trader Joe's and found this fabulous stalk of brussel sprouts. Tis the season for this vegetable.  I was literally struck by the beauty of it. 50 shades of green! The stalk was beautiful.  If only I was an artist, I would try to capture this on canvas. When I was a kid, sure, I hated them.  The dreaded brussel sprout that might sprout up at any meal. But now, I have found, that if cooked and seasoned properly, they are quite tasty. 

 

As a member of the cruciferous family of veggies (which includes broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage) they have some seriously potent anti-cancer properties—plus loads of fiber and few calories. But it seems that Brussel Sprouts get the brunt of ridicule and hatred.  

 

There was an English post today:

A Royal Navy captain has banned Brussel sprouts from his warship,  because he loathes them so much, 

 and labelled them the "devil's vegetable".  

Now you would think he might ban aspargus in his ship because of the odorous flatulence. . . but no, he goes after misaligned Brussel Sprouts. 

When I googled brussel sprouts, I found some great recipes, even a brussel sprout pesto! So hopefully, if you have been prejudiced against brussel sprouts, I hope you will think out of the box and give them a chance.

 

  

I tried some of my own artwork with photoshop:

 

  "I'm told it was a beautiful Belgian day. . .

The smell of waffles and brussel sprouts

 filled the air."

BLOWIN' IN THE WIND . . . . OR. . . A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT!

 
 This last weekend brought us a series of storms, "cells", high winds, flooding and power outages.  Surprisingly,our power was never an issue.  However,  in the morning, when I looked out the window on my front yard, I was surprised to see that "a river ran through it!
Fortunately, it is designed for the seasonal creek.

The wind did a great job in shaking "autumn" out of the trees. E just sees it as more vacuuming, but I see it as a beautiful carpet of leaves and tell him to just leave it for a while.


Not a great time for the California Marathon. I felt no guilt that I had not volunteered. . . Maybe next year. . .

If they had just postponed it a few hours, there would have been sun. 



As this week has passed, the weather has settled down. Gentle rains, gentle winds, even some gentle sun.

The leaves will be vacuumed up or perhaps. . . 

just

courtesy Owen Burgess

blow away.

DOOKY BAUCHLES, DROOG-DROOGLE AND DEATH OF A DIALECT

CROMARTY FISHER FOLK

I was listening to NPR on my morning drive, last month.  Yeah, that's the radio station that gives you the "real" news, but according to a certain billionaire running for president. . . has to go.!?!? There was a very interesting story about the passing of a dialect.In the tiny fishing village of Cromarty on the tip of Scotland's Black Isle, the last speaker of the local dialect has died. Bobby Hogg was 92 years old when he passed away, taking with him a language that had existed for some 600 years. (I wonder if he ended up talking to himself?) The dialect is believed to have arrived in the area with fishing families that moved there in the 15th and 16th centuries. The families were thought to be the descendants of Norse and Dutch fishermen. In this small area, there were at least 3 maybe 5 different dialects.They were all very distinct, Avoch, Fortrose and Cromarty fisher folk had their own dialects. Then there was the Cromarty town dialect and the farmers' dialect.


 While few people may mourn the demise of Cromarty dialect specifically, it’s another example of one language that dies every two weeks. Half of the globe’s 6,000-plus languages are expected to die off by the end of the century. 

"BOB"

 Fortunately, hundreds of words and phrases are documented.This one must have been very useful with the fishermen: "A'm fair sconfished wi hayreen; gie's fur brakwast lashins o am and heggs" – or "I'm so fed up with herring, give me plenty of ham and eggs for breakfast." That phrase survives in print, but it will likely never be spoken again, unless you serve me too much herring. "Bauchles" are old, ill-fitting shoes, which kind of sounds like an old, ill-fitting shoe.  They actually had a word for doing heavy work in wet weather - droog droogle, which kinda sounds like a wet, rainy day. 

I love this word droogle.  I think I could easily fit it into the English dialect.  I also liked another word: dooky--"a tidy". If someone says your "dooky", it means your attractive, hot, sexy,cool, or sweet. Yeah, I am dooky "foamin for want"--desperate for tea.
  
 Our words shape how we think and how we understand the world around us. Cromarty can't go back and it won't. It has been said the loss of each language or regional dialect leaves the world poorer than it was before. "The more diversity in terms of nature we have, the healthier we are. It's the same with language." Without diversity the world is a poorer place.

"It's one less little sparkle in the firmament. One little star might go out and you might never notice it, but it's not there anymore."

I will try to keep Cromarty dialect alive with a few choice words, like dooky, droogle, and foamin for want!!

 Now where did I leave my bauchles?

 DOOKY BAUCHLES

listen to the dialect here 
 

DYSFUNCTIONAL HAIR? PROGRESSION OF AN AGING COUNTRY SINGER? OR HAIR DISABILLITY?

Took a few orange juice cans,teasing, spray to make this do!!
 but that flip could hold all the class pencils!

I am sure that most of you have never given your hair a 2nd thought!!  It, basically, just hangs, RIGHT? So I, having naturally curly hair all my life, with a short period of NO HAIR, am always having to struggle to keep the hair in order.  So when I made my trip to the North land. . . My diva cuz gave me NO MERCY and laid hands on me to try and tame my unruly locks!! She never knew me during those tumultuous 60's when straight long hair was popular.  I did get out the iron and "curl free", to try and be fashionable, but it lasted maybe minutes. I finally have put together a collage so my fans can see that the years have been very difficult for me!!

When I showed this to to the Prima Diva-here was her response:

I guess your hair is 'your cross to bear'. Sorry, but I now realize that you have a hair disability and I have been cruel when actually you need therapy and counseling and understanding to overcome your handicap. I feel with patience and practice you can become 'hair capable' and can learn to use a flat iron just like the rest of us.

Next time we are together I will work with you within your limitations and hopefully we can overcome the obstacles to your success. There is hope...there is always hope. 

The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries or the way she combs her hair. --Audrey Hepburn--
WHAT A RELIEF!!

"Life is an endless struggle full of frustrations and challenges, 

but eventually you find a hair stylist you like"

HAIR BY PRIMA GINA (WITH LIBATIONS!)