A Thing-Filled Wednesday

Rain today, gentle and just what my newly planted containers needed. There are tiny signs of flowers coming up, and hair like fronds of chives, last year's cosmos pushing up tall, and I'm hoping for reseeding forgetmenots.

This morning was my annual physical, or what Medicare grandly calls wellness check. Which they start with a form to fill out and bring,  asking about depression and illegal drugs -- would anyone ever really fill out those details? -- and go downhill  from there.

My doctor is one of the good ones who seriously does the whole exam, not just pro forma.  And she was very impressed that a month out from joint replacement, I was driving, dressing and undressing with no dressing aids, climbing unaided onto the exam table, and feeling cheerful about life. I lost a bit of weight, from my already meager total but she says it's due to the general circumstances of surgery, fine. 

All good. And on the way out, I met a baby. The mom had just put down the carbed in the lobby, waiting for their car to pull around for them, and this little guy was not having it. 

Grumbling loudly, shoving aside the pacifier, looking around indignantly ready to call for the manager. I asked their age. One month!  I had never seen so alert a baby at that age. Lots of luck to them. I bet they're standing at five months like Handsome Son and walking soon after!

While I was at the medical building, I left ACLU  Know Your Rights cards in  the waiting room where caregivers might see them, and in the exam room, possibly cleaners might see. A lot of documented and undoc. residents not citizens in those jobs around this area.  So a little bit more sand in the gears.

Home again very pleased with my day, to soup and cheese toast. Then I continued reading the Grantchester stories.

Now here's how it goes. At one point there's a discussion of a disputed old painting, expert says it doesn't have the careless seeming virtuosity of a genuine Goya.  Then someone explains it as sprezzatura. 

So of course I had to look that up and see the etymology and origin. Turns out it was invented for the purpose of describing the ideal courtier in Castiglione's classic work. He said it described making the many skills and talents of the courtier, from combat to table manners, look unstudied and natural.

So I had to find and read a bit of the sixteenth century The Book of the Courtier.  And so it came to pass that he is now in residence on my Kindle, zero cost after credits were applied. 

You never know what rabbit is in wait down which rabbit hole. Speaking of which, go to She Who Seeks' blog for a great rabbit themed post today. 

 Finally I returned to Grantchester, enriched.

Happy day, everyone, get rich in events today! They're all over.

Flowers and fashion

 Happy Sunday! With flowers from the patio 

And a stroll down memory lane.

Here's a shot of London in the 50s, when you made your summer dresses, some of these very recognizable as Simplicity patterns. In fact I made dresses like these. I was a teen then.  

Then, way back, in the early 1900s, my  mom was about six when this movie was shot, very likely dressed like the pinafored little girl you see, far left, with her older sister.

Some changes. 

My birth order mirrored my mother's. Both the youngest, with three older sisters and three even older brothers. Both had favorite brother killed in combat. Both had one older sister with two children, one unmarried. But when it came to our own children, big difference. She had nine, I had one! In fact my entire generation of sibs had a total of nine children. So I guess replacement sort of factored in.

Happy day, everyone, but who's counting. This afternoon I'm taking part in an online political forum looking at the current US voting outlook, with insider people who know what's happening, and are there, seeing events around the country.

Meanwhile

Just like the August bank holidays of my youth. Grasmere is in the Lake District, Wordsworth country.

And today celebrates

If you're interested in goddesses and ancient mythology, go to the blog of Debra, She Who Seeks. She's very knowledgeable and definitely worth a follow.

Coda on birthday chocolate cake -- large slice went to Gary yesterday, he loves chocolate cake. He advised me about the valve handle, possibly simple fix, handsome son now on it, and the ongoing saga of the storage area doors. Stay tuned!

And if you're a US knitter or crocheter thinking about cool weather projects, consider this. I've done a lot of blanket squares for them, nice people.