Two Girls and a Bunch of Books

Havalah and her friend Lily got out the whole basket of children's books and spread them on the floor.

Then they proceeded to read them all . . .at least, as much as they could manage until playtime was over.

The moment I heard Miss Halcombe's name I gave up. It is a habit of mine always to give up to Miss Halcombe. I find, by experience, that it saves noise.

-Frederick Fairlie, The Woman in White

"Strangers," Miss Boo said once, "are just your friends that you don't know yet."
-Time For Miss Boo

"We're free Narnians, Hwin and I, and I suppose, if you're running away to Narnia, you want to be one too. In that case Hwin isn't your horse any longer. One might just as well say you're her human." -Bree the Horse

Quotes from Nancy Drew Books

One of the first books I remember reading (outside of school books) was a Hardy Boys book. I liked it, but it didn't quite click with me. So I read The Secret of the Old Clock, the first book of many in the Nancy Drew series. I loved it. At the time, I thought it was a real mystery novel. It wasn't, of course, but I read every Nancy Drew book I could get my hands on. When I was twelve I read Sherlock Holmes for the first time and I realized that Nancy Drew books didn't even have a plot. Thankfully, it doesn't stop me from enjoying (even now) the quaint little stories. And I love Nancy Drew quotes. Mara Unni gave Qix, Exie and I a Nancy Drew Guide to Life booklet, from which all of the quotes below are taken.

If you are afraid of being followed when you leave your house, buy a new car and have it brought around to the back of the house for a sneaky escape.

          - Password to Larkspur Lane

If a guy's hunch results in a dead-end, don't flaunt your better judgment and intuition in front of him. Smirk secretly to yourself.

          -The Phantom of Pine Hill

When searching for important clues, anything labeled "Top Secret" might be a good place to start.

          -The Crooked Banister

Spend time at the gym to build upper body strength. Detective work may require fending off a vicious hair pulling.

          -The Thirteenth Pearl

A Visit from Jane Austen

 I remember that when Aunt Jane came to us at Godmersham she used to bring the manuscript of whatever novel she was writing with her, and would shut herself up with my elder sisters in one of the bedrooms to read them aloud. I and the younger ones used to hear peals of laughter through the door, and thought it very hard that we should be shut out from what was so delightful . . . I also remember how Aunt Jane would sit quietly sewing beside the fire in the library, saying nothing for a good while, and then would suddenly burst out laughing, jump up and run across the room to a table where pens and paper were lying, write something down, and then come back across to the fire and go on quietly working as before. 

-Marianne Knight

Things I Love ....

Pegasus Bridge. One of my new favorite bands.

My strawberry softlips chapstick. The fresh burst of strawberry always give me a bit of energy when I put it on at work.

My copy of To Catch a Thief by David Dodge. I absolutely love everything about the book. The way the outside cover reminds me of an elderly man wearing tweeds. The fact that chapters don't have titles or even numbers but rather are marked with a little star. Chapter one has one star, chapter two has two stars and so on. The faint whiff of mellow cigarette smoke I smell when I flip through the pages. That I bought it for one dollar at Half Price Books. And of course, the writing its self:

"The newspaper headline was: Has Le Chat Returned? Underneath there was a blurry picture of himself, taken in the courtroom of the Cour d'Assises in 1939. The article which went with the picture put a series of questions, only suggesting some of the answers. It was an American paper and had no right to insult the French Surete Nationale. The French papers did that later, when they reprinted the article."



This website about Emma Pillsbury from Glee. So cute and creative!

This golden snitch from Etsy which I want so badly.

This real life Up House. How cool is that?!

A jar of sparkles. I think it's the sweetest thing ever.

This recipe which I will be making for work this week.

This is Naive's, Lo-Fi travel guides . It makes me want to go exploring!

Guest blogging. This has been a fun experiment for me. Thanks so much for letting me share. :-)

This last video, because I love them all and it's just so hard to pick my favorite.

~ Mara

Troll sat alone on his seat of stone,

And munched and mumbled a bare old bone;

For many a year he had gnawed it near,

For meat was hard to come by.

Done by! Gum by!

In a cave in the hills he dwelt alone,

And meat was hard to come by.

Up came Tom with his big boots on.

Said he to troll: 'Pray, what is yon?

For it looks like the shin o' my nuncle Tim,

As should be a-lyin in graveyard.

Caveyard! Paveyard!

This many a year has Tim been gone,

And I thought he were lyin' in a graveyard.'

'My lad,' said Troll,' this bone I stole.

But what be bones that lie in a hole?

Thy nuncle was dead as a lump o' lead,

Afore I found his shinbone.

Tinbone! Thinbone!

He can spare a share for a poor old troll,

For he don't need his shinbone.'

Said Tom: 'I don't see why the likes o' thee

Without axin' leave should go makin' free

With the shank or the shin o' my father's kin; 

So hand the old bone over!

Rover! Trover!

Though dead he be, it belongs to he;

So hand the old bone over!'

'For a couple o' pins,' says Troll, and grins,

'I'll eat thee too, and gnaw thy shins.

A bit o' fresh meat will go down sweet!

I'll try my teeth on thee now. 

Hee now! See now!

I'm tired o' gnawing old bones and skins;

I've a mind to dine on thee now.'

But just as he thought his dinner was caught,

He found his hands had hold of naught.

Before he could mind, Tom slipped behind

And gave him the boot to larn him.

Warn him! Darn him!

A bump o' the boot on the seat, Tom thought,

Would be the way to larn him.

But harder than stone is the flesh and bone

Of a troll that sits in the hills alone.

As well set your boot to the mountain's root,

For the seat of a troll don't feel it.

Peel it! Heel it!

Old Troll laughed, when he heard Tom groan,

And he knew his toes could feel it.

Tom's leg is game, since home he came,

And his bootless foot is lasting lame;

But Troll don't care, and he's still there

With the bone he boned from its owner.

Doner! Boner!

Troll's old seat is still the same,

And the bone he boned from its owner!

Sam, recites this poem in The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

If there is anything disagreeable going on,

men are always sure to get out of it.

-Persuasion

          

Food and Books

When I eat food, I eat it in a certain order. First I start with the vegetables because although they're not yucky, they aren't exactly my favorite thing on my plate (and you don't want to finish a meal with a bad taste in your mouth). Then I eat my mashed potatoes and meatloaf, usually a couple bites of one and then a few of another. After that comes the dessert. The dessert is sweet and tasty, and I savor it as I eat it. And I leave the table feeling full and satisfied and content.
That is also how I read books. The first few chapters in a book are the vegetables, because they are (in a sense) the pilot episode, they set you up and get you ready for the story while also letting you decide whether you want to continue reading or not. Then I finish those chapters and move on to the meat of the book, which is wholesome and fulfilling. After that comes the dessert, the ending of the book. The ending can be the best part, or it can be the worst. It's either a wonderfully tasting buttermilk pudding or a sour buttermilk pudding, because the buttermilk wasn't used before the expiration date. And then the book is done and I sigh. If I disliked the book, it's an exasperated sigh, an I can't believe I wasted my time reading that sigh, and I hurriedly reach for another book to get the bad taste out of my mouth. But if I liked the book, it's a contented sigh, and over the next few days I think about the wonderfulness of the book as I go about my daily routine.

A Baby in the House

A couple days ago I babysat my neighbor's 11 month old baby girl. She is the sweetest little thing who never cries and always goes right to sleep when I lay her down in her crib. While babysitting her, I thought about a little booklet of poems I have in my room entitled Rhymes of Childhood. It's by Edgar A. Guest and I love every poem. They're all so sweet and I go through and reread them every now and then.

A Baby in the House
Something to talk about, something to do,
Something to laugh at the whole day through,
Something to look at with pride and with glee,
Something for friends to come in just to see;
Oh, you can't sum up all the wonderful things
Of joy and delight which a new baby brings

There's a smile that is brighter than sunbeams of May,
A wave of farewell as you're starting away,
A glad time of frolic which no one can steal,
A thrill inexpressible, lovely to feel.
There's something to boast of and something to tell
When a baby has come to the lace where you dwell.

There's never an hour that is lonely and drear;
The days are filled up to the top with good cheer.
You have someone to play with and someone to sing to,
Someone to romp with and someone to cling to;
And always you're finding some pleasure that's new
When God has sent down a glad baby to you.
                                                           - Edgar A. Guest

Anthony's 5 Year Old Sibling

As I have previously mentioned, Mom frequently visits Half Price Books. One afternoon, she picked up a copy of A Child's Garden of Verses. Inside this book was a handwritten note by a young child. It is too adorable, so I just have to post it (complete with spelling and grammatical errors!).

My brother Anthony can read book now, but he won't read any to me. He plays checkers with Bruce from school. But when I want to play he says Go away or I'll clobber you. I let wear my Snoopy sweat shirt, but he won't let me borrow his sword. Mother say deep down in his heart Anthony loves me. Anthony says deep down in his heart he thinks I stink. Mother says deep deep down in his heart, where he dosn't even no it, Anthony loves me. Anthony says deep deep down in his heart he still thinks I stink. When I'm six I'll fix Anthony. When I'm six a dog will follow me home, and she'll beg for me and roll over and lich my face. If Anthony tries to pet her, she'll give him a bite. When I'm six Anthony will have the German measles, and my father will take me to a baseball game. Then Anthony will have the mumps, and my mother will take me to the flower show. Then Anthony will have a virus, and my grandfather will take me to the movies. I won't have to save popcorn for Anthony unless I want to. When I'm six we'll have a skipping contest and I'll skip faster. Then we'll have a jumping contest and I'll jump higher. Then we'll do eeny meeny miney-mo and Anthony will be o-u-t. He'll be very m-a-d. When I'm six I'll read The new york Times. Anthony will still be reading ABC Who are you voting for Anthony? I'll ask him.

The Thanksgiving Story

As it is November, our family is starting to get in the Thanksgiving spirit. Recently, Dad read to us a book about the first Thanksgiving. As it is a familiar story, Dad would often pause in the midst of a passage and wait for us to supply the missing word. So it would go something like this -
Dad: While the settlers were exploring the woods, they came upon an Indian. His name was -
Us Kids: Samoset!
Dad: Samoset told the Pilgrims that the Indians wanted to make friends with the white people. He also told them there was another Indian who knew more English than he did. This Indian's name was -
Us Kids: Squanto!
After we'd got the name right (it was so easy because the story was so well known) Dad would continue reading. After reading a couple passages like this, it became a race to be the first person to get the name right. One incident went so . . .
Dad: Because the Indians and settlers wanted to be at peace, it was necessary to sign a peace treaty. William Bradford and Chief -
Esther (excitedly jumping up and down because she knew the answer) MASSACHUSETTS!

Reading the book came to a complete stop for a full five minutes because of all the laughter. Chief Massasoit, please accept our sincere apology for getting your name wrong. We assure you it won't happen again (maybe).

Half Price Books

Every other Wednesday, we have harp (Moxie) and piano lessons (Qixi and Moxie). While we are playing away on our instruments, Mom shops around.
She always ends up at Half Price Books.
And every time we get in the car, Mom says, "Guess what books I found?!"
We squeal, and then spend the ride home looking at the new books. Mom always visits the Nostalgic section, where she gets stuck looking at all the books, and eventually tears herself away an hour or two later and purchases a pile of books.
Being a book addict is fun, but it can get rather expensive. Some of the books Mom has found are;
Girl of the Limberlost
Les Miserables
Cranford
Lorna Doone
Samantha at Coney Island and a Thousand Other Islands
Cheaper by the Dozen
Bells on their Toes

If you haven't read any of these books yet, check them out! They're all great!

Grandma gave Mom a book that had been in the family for awhile. It had been given to our great, great, great aunt somewhere around the 1930's. The book is titled 'Shakespeare Birthday Text Book.'

Here is what is written for Moxie's Birthday;

July 29.

More inconstant than the wind who wooes
Even now the frozed bosom of the north,
And, being anger'd, puffs away from thence,
Turning his face to the dew-dropping south.
                                           Romeo and Juliet, Act i.

Qixi's Birthday;

August 20.

Chaste as the icicle
That's curdied by the frost from purest snow
And hangs on Dian's temple.
                    Coriolanus, Act v.

Is she not passing fair?
Two Gentleman of Verona, Act iv.

A Few of My Favorite Quotes

'Food for thought requires a mind with teeth' - Two Princesses of Bamarre

'It really is a hard life. Men will not be nice to you if you are not good-looking and women will not be nice to you if you are.' - The Man in the Brown Suit

" . . . but I'll try and find a more agreeable piece of news . . . . Old Margery is dead. " - Wives and Daughters

'Small applause is better than no applause, even when it is a little Lacking In Smack.' - Eeyore

'Sam is an excellent fellow, and would jump down a dragons throat to save Frodo if he did not trip over his own feet first.' - The Fellowship of the Ring

'If there is anything disagreeable going on, men are always sure to get out of it.' - Persuasion