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Friday, September 4, 2020

it's cooler now... and other things






Sitting here at my laptop with my Dunkin Donut Mocha coffee thinking about what to post about today. With this 'sheltering at home' - there's not a lot of 'new' going on.

I'm sure summer isn't over here in Texas, but this week we're cooler... in the 70's in the mornings, going into the 80's in the afternoon and evenings. And we also have rain! Makes for a nice break. 

Other things:

Finished "The 5th Wave" and decided to try to finish "Educated"... which I read part of a while back and lost interest. It's a very 'strange' story. Continuing it last night only confirms this belief. But I will keep reading. 

Has anyone out there read "The Reckoning" by John Grisham? Finished that not too long ago too and was very disappointed at the ending. Anyone else feel that way?

My favorite books are Irish trilogies, home-town cozies (like Jan Karon's), cozy themed mysteries, and some historical fiction (Lady of Hay by Barbara Erskine and Galway Bay by Mary Pat Kelly). But if push comes to shove, I will read almost anything.



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A change of subject

I like rocks...

I have 2 favorites: this green and this flat black

I have no idea where the green one came from - but it feels so wonderful to rub my fingers across


and the flat black one I found on a beach on the Dingle Peninsula in Ireland:








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Question: Has anyone ever looked up the old house they grew up in? I'm sure many of you have.  I recently did this and was astonished that it was still around... and had been re-structured as such.

It was a a small house right off of Canal Street in New Orleans. It had a ceiling fan and a floor heater and one of those 'in the wall' gas heaters in the one bathroom. It wasn't shotgun, like many - but more of a double shotgun... with front room, dining room, and kitchen all following each other on the left... then a bedroom, bath, and 2 more small bedrooms. Dad built a long den across the back.

Anyway, it's still there... and the asking price is unbelievable. It is in a great location - right off Canal St with the streetcar lines still running and only about 10 minutes to downtown and the French Quarter. But still...

The house my dad built after that one was out by the lakefront... not on Lake Pontchartrain proper, but only a short bus ride down to it. In high school, my friend and I used to ride down there after school sometimes and do our home-work by the water. That house is no longer there. Katrina was the end of it. But I believe another was built on the same lot since then. 

I do miss being close to water. We had Lake Pontchartrain and the Mississiippi... and of course we had/have family who live in Waveland and Biloxi (only a short ride away) so we spent a lot of time on the Gulf coast in the summers. Good memories.

Hope I didn't bore you too much with my reminiscing...

I'm going to close this with 2 things; a new crochet weave pattern I'm trying  and an old Irish saying that I like.







This new blogger that was forced on me today is giving me fits...
(couldn't figure out how to make the crochet pic larger or how to add labels... oh well, at least I can insert this: 😝😡)

But thanks for visiting anyway. Hope you are having an easier time of it. Could be that I just don't need one more frustration these days.

Hugs (virtual),
Rian






14 comments:

  1. Thanks for a lovely post that inspired me to post about the past. I love the basket crochet, would like to give that a go, can you point me in the right direction for pattern.
    Briony
    x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I like the basket weave crochet pattern... tried it first with some yarn that was too stiff. This pic is using baby soft yarn. I'm thinking of using it to make squares of different color baby yarn that I have leftover... and then putting them all together.
      Briony, if you email me I can send you a pic of the instructions.

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  2. The basket weave pattern is beautiful. It would definitely make a lovely baby blanket.

    Love hearing your memories. It must have been special growing up in NOLA - especially just off Canal Street. The house I grew up burned down several years ago. My parents had sold the farm including the home. It had been cobbled together over the years, with additions of bedrooms when we kids came along. The house was heated with oil burners and the chimney had gotten clogged up causing a fire one night. Luckily the new owner was able to escape with only his laptop and a 22 shot gun. He's since rebuilt and now heats with geo-thermal. Much safer!

    Take care and stay well!

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Growing up in New Orleans was 'different' - didn't realize it so much until we moved away after college graduation. Mom didn't drive so when I was young she and I rode the Canal Street streetcar downtown to have lunch and shop. I rode 3 buses and the St. Charles streetcar to and from high school. And we usually ended up in the French Quarter having coffee and donuts after dates...
      Glad to hear that the new owners of your old house escaped the fire without injury.

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  3. I don't think there is a vacation I've had that didn't end with at least three or four wonderful rocks in my suitcase. Rocks and shells and skip the souvenir shops.
    I just went to see the house where I grew up last June and was surprised and pleased to see that the wooded area I was so sure would have been lost to development was still there.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glad to hear that I'm not the only person who likes rocks. Shells are nice too... and I love to comb the beaches, but rocks are the best.
      Also glad to hear that the wooded area around your old house was still there. Hard to believe sometimes.

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  4. I looked up my old house. It was very run down the last time I looked, but has been totally rehabbed, as have the other houses I could see, and the street if beautifully paved. Woo hoo.

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    1. And it's still there! I saw mine several years ago... and it looked so sad. Now it's been done over and looks a bit better.

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  5. I didn't have a single place to grow up, being an Air Force brat, as we were called back then. And I recently finished a book I loved: "Dear Edward" by Ann Napolitano. I will re-read it, I enjoyed it so much. :-)

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    1. DJan, my cousin (mama's oldest sister's child) was an Army brat. She also moved around a lot... and joined the Peace Corp when she was old enough. She's back in New Orleans now. We Skyped yesterday. And I'm going to check out "Dear Edward" - sounds like a good read.

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  6. Years ago I visited my Grandmother's former house in Key West where we lived for a couple of years. I knocked on the door and told the young man my history. He asked me in and I was stunned. It was now House Beautiful worthy but unrecognizable. The interesting thing is that my Grandmother sold it for $12,000 years ago and it is now worth a million five. Location, location, location.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Hard to believe that these houses we grew up in (if they're still around) can be worth so much. But you are right about location, location, location.

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  7. I'm one of the only people I know who doesn't particularly like John Grisham. I didn't like Harry Potter either (read one and thought, what's the biog deal?). So I'm a weirdo. Does that explain why I did like "Educated"? A fascinating story that had me riveted the whole way through.

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    1. Tom, I don't normally read John Grisham, but know he has a big following. I did LOVE Harry Potter, but not necessarily for the story - but the imagination involved. As for 'educated" - probably too real and too strange to be an enjoyable read for me. But I can agree it was an almost unbelievable story.

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