T Stands Robbins Farm Park

After lunch, we needed to walk off the pizza. Teague thought she would like to visit her uncle's house and the field she used to play in when she visited. The house was in Arlington, Massachusetts

The field was now a huge park and was filled with robins. So even though I saw my first robin, I lamented there were no robins in my own backyard.

This area of the town is called "The Heights" From the top of the hill you have a magnificent view of the city of Boston. You can see a much better picture of the Boston skyline from The Friends of the Robbins Farm Park webpage

Teague's uncle's house is the yellow house in the lower, right corner. She remembers rolling down the enormous hill when she was a kid.

At one time, the park had been a farm. The granite blocks mark the foundation of the farmhouse

This dog sculpture is a replica of a statue that stood guard over the Robbins farmhouse.

The park was a popular place. Across the street from a school, even on this cold, dreary, Friday afternoon, the park was filled with kids playing on the swings, enormous slides, and other equipment.

Teague said when she played there as a child, there were a couple of swings and a teeter totter, but not much else. Teague, her brother, and cousin just liked to run around wild and roll down the hill. Her parents liked the fact that the kids could burn off energy, not whine about being bored while visiting the uncle, and probably slept on the ride home.

My beverage ticket for this week is my tea cup as I edit photographs.

Drop by hosts, Bleubeard and Elizabeth's blog to find out what the rest of the T Stands For gang is up to. If you want to play, include in your Tuesday post a beverage or container for a beverage. Don't forget to link your blog to Bleubeard and Elizabeth's page.

Commission Piece

Sumi ink, gouache, 23 karat gold, framed a little larger than 8 in x 10 in.

I was asked to do a short quote to be given as a gift.

It doesn't matter where you go in life...
what you do...
or how much you have...
It's who you have beside you.

There was also a dedication to add to the little poem

I was unsure the best way to handle the dedication, but a friend said she makes the dedication part of the artwork so I included it as part of the vine.

The hardest thing about working on this piece was I was asked to have it framed. Usually, I don't get involved with that aspect, but I have done several pieces for this client before. Her instructions to me were they were an old-fashioned couple so they don't like the modern, black museum frames. A wooden frame, but nothing gaudy that would take away from the poem. Cost wasn't going to be an issue so I added non-glare glass. And the hardest part of the instruction, she trusts my judgement and taste.

This is what I chose at the framer's. What do you think?

How Does Your Garden Grow?

The honeysuckle vine has filled out creating a cozy bower for Mama Cardinal. The leaves are so thick it's hard to see her. She has been sitting in the nest for a week. I assume she's sitting on her clutch, but I haven't been able to get a peek inside the nest as the nest walls are too high.

New welcome knick knack. And the magnets that I use when I bring the garden flag inside look like eyes. 😺

A little bunch of daffodils popped up at the end of the walk.

A blustery Saturday felt more like March than almost May

Some  white violets

A dandelion all by his lone. I think all the rain we have had has drowned the plants.

Daffodils in the middle of the woods. Himself said when he was cleaning out the garden by the garage a year or two ago, he tossed pieces of bulbs in the woods.

Things not looking good for the mountain laurel. Someone on the town Facebook site said her rhododendrons had some sort of blight.

Inside, I planted the morning glory seeds I harvested from Reggie's morning glories last year.

Atticus stopped by for dinner.

How does your garden grow?

Saturday Afternoon at the Movies

This idea came from a Facebook meme:
Over 10 days, post your 10 all time favorite films. What movie has really made an impact on you or what films can you watch over and over and never tire of? Post either the movie poster, DVD cover or even a screenshot on your timeline. No need to explain.

Only I had a hard time picking out just 10 movies so my favorites over the next few hundred Saturdays 😸 in semi-alphabetical order:me favorite films. What movie has really made an impact on you or what films can you watch over and over and never tire of? Post either the movie poster, DVD cover or even a screenshot on your timeline. No need to explain.

Only I had a hard time picking out just 10 movies so my favorites over the next few hundred Saturdays 😸 in semi-alphabetical order:

The Great Gatsby (1974) Robert Redford 😻Redford, Mia Farrow

If you haven't seen this movie, it's available on STARZ or for rent on YouTube.

The Friday Five Good Things

Five good things that happened this week.

1. So nice that the peace lily bloomed on Easter.

2. We bought a new dehumidifier that has a pump that will automatically pump the water out. Himself fed the hose into the sump pump. No more lugging the heavy bucket.

3. I found a dime in the front porch

4. Found some daffodils growing in the middle of the woods.

5. We had the first dinner of the season in the sun room.

How was your week?

Throwback Thursday - The Notebooks

To clear up some confusion, the Notebook passages posted on Throwback Thursday were written by my father and found by me after he passed away. They were his attempt to tell the family history. He was in his late 80s or early 90s when he wrote them. Today's chapter:

When the Boy was in his early teens, he asked Grandma (maternal grandma) if he could help her make her homemade macaroni. She gave him the task of dusting the pasta with flour to help them dry. She wasn't looking and he dumped the whole bag of flour on the macaroni. She got upset. I guess he spoiled the babysitting. When mother came home Grandma told her, "Marie, he's a niza boy, mut a somnabaitch.

[ed: The macaroni making and "somnabaitch" are two separate stories, but connected. Grandma had come to spend the week taking care of us while my mother went to work. It must have been a school vacation week. Yes, Grandma was upset when the Brother dumped the entire bag of flour (close to 5 lbs) on her macaroni. I guess he thought he'd try to speed up the pasta. She was upset because now she had to dust each individual little hat (cappalini or orichetti), and the flour couldn't be used so all that flour was wasted.  

 I was 7 or 8 years old making the Brother 13 or 14. I was in the kitchen with Grandma. It might have been when she was trying to teach me how to speak Italian and to count writing the numbers in Roman numerals Suddenly, there was a huge explosion. Ma had a cabinet over the counter filled with her stemware and some fancy dishes. All the dishes rattled. Grandma yanked the rosary beads she always kept in her pocket and began praying to every saint in heaven. The Brother had been in the garage lighting a can of hair spray to make a torch and the can blew up. Fortunately, he was not injured. 

When Ma got home Grandma told her she would never come to stay over to take care of us. She would come for visits, but would not stay alone with us. That's when she told Ma, "Marie, he's a niza boy, mut a somnabaitch." Grandma kept her word. Came to visit, but never stayed overnight ever again.]

When the Boy was a baby we were on our way home in Cambridge. On the bus, almost home when I felt my trousers get wet. Mother thought it was funny. Daddy didn't.

The Boy began to crawl and we got him a playpen. To keep him out of harm's way.

One Saturday, Mother went shopping, and I was babysitting and sitting by the playpen reading The Reader's Digest [ed: a yearly Christmas gift from Charlie] He was making sounds and in the area he was in I patted him on his head and went on with my reading without looking his way. I read a few more lines when it suddenly dawned on me that I had patted him across from me. I said to myself he was standing up.

I put my magazine down and gave him attention and encouraged him to stand up. He looked at me with smiles and making sounds. I don't know how old he was but earlier than most, to do what I thought he could. He grabbed the playpen fence and lifted himself up. He looked at me and began making his noises or talking with pride, baby talk, no words. Daddy got the message this time and I clapped and hugged him. I said Wait until your mother gets home. Is she going to ge a surprise!! He would sit down and I would wait and say "again. do it again." He oobliged.

Mother eventually came home and when she put her things down and took her coat off. I asked her if she would like to see something. She came over and at this time the Boy began playing with his toy. I got his attention  and said "Show Mama what you can do. Come on. He crawled to the fence and pulled himself up and his noises or baby talk translated to Hey, look at what I can do." Mother was in a mood of utter surprise, she saw but couldn't believe what she was seeing. She came to and not only was she proud she picked him up, kissed him, hugged him. And the she came down to earth and said, "Well, we will have to watch what is around and remove things he can reach!" 

It was a wonderful Saturday at home.

Wordless Wednesday

T Stands For You've Seen His Work But Don't Know His Name

After the cemetery siting, Teague had found some information on a small museum in the center of Arlington. Parking in Boston and environs can be a bear and expensive. Fortunately, Arlington had a municipal parking lot for 50 center per hour of parking and steps away from

The museum was housed in the 

 Jefferson Cutter had been a prominent mill owner. The house was moved to the current site to be used for the Cyrus Dallin Museum

Hand-carved door.

The Cyrus Dallin Art Museum was such a find. It's not a well known destination so not many people there on the day we visited. We got a private tour from one of the founding board members as the regular docent had called in and wasn't able to take a shift.  James thoroughly enjoyed his job of promoting Dallin's art and the museum. He also had some great stories.

I had no clue who Dallin was, but I was familiar with this iconic work. 

The Appeal to the Great Spirit (1909)

This statue is at the entrance to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. I've driven by it or walked by thousands of times, but thought it was done by Daniel Chester French or Augustus St. Gaudens, two other prominent New England artists.

If you've visited Plymouth, Massachusetts, you've seen the statue of Massasoit.

If you seen or been to the Mormon temple in Salt Lake City, Utah or driven along Route 2 in Belmont, Massachusetts, you've seen Dallin's The Angel Moroni

 Cyrus Dallin came to Boston from Utah. As his fame as an artist grew, he was contacted by members of the Mormon Church to sculpt the angel for the steeple of the temple. Dallin refused saying he wasn't religious, didn't believe in angels and other numerous excuses.

The church leaders turned to Dallin's mother. As a young woman, she had been promised as 27th wife to Brigham Young while traveling by wagon train to Utah. She had met a young man, fell in love, didn't want to marry the older Young or be his 27th wife. The young couple left the wagon train, got married. I wasn't sure in the narrative whether Dallin's mother remained a Mormon after rejecting Young. Anyway, Dallin did the sculpture because of his mother's request.

Out of all the beautiful statues and paintings (he was quite accomplished as a painter, too. Having studied art in France and having some of the French impressionists as companions) This was my favorite piece. Of course. 

Dallin had been working on a sculpture of his 3 sons. You can see a photo of the sculpture behind the cat. The  youngest, Lawrence, age 6. Didn't like sitting still for the composition. After an hour or so he bolted from the studio with the request to sculpt the cat. According to James, the cat statue was on the dining room table when Lawrence returned from playing outside. 

In the photo, the older brother has his hand resting lightly on his middle brother's shoulder, but has a firm grip on Lawrence to keep him from running off while the statue was finished.

I was shocked to learn another iconic sculpture in the city, Paul Revere was done by Dallin. It took some 70 years for Dallin to get recognition for his work. Originally done as a competition, there was some sort of politics that played into the prize money not being given to Dallin as he was an unknown artist at the time. I also suspect that the Boston Brahmins didn't want to award the prize to Dallin as he was also not originally from Boston or New England. We Bostonians can be such snobs.

Undeterred,  Dallin went to Paris to study art, won another sculpture competition, and became an internationally known artist.

There were four other poses of Revere before Paul Revere, No. 5 was chosen. The title reminded me of the House of Chanel's perfume, Chanel No. 5. Which has absolutely nothing to do with the Revere statue.

After visiting the museum we were hungry for lunch. James had told us there were lots of restaurants in the area. We didn't have to walk very far along Massachusetts Avenue

Most of the restaurants we saw served foo-foo food. I'm not adventurous in my eating, and I don't like hot and spicy.

We ended up at a small pizza shop. Teague had a root beer, and I had water. I would have preferred an ice tea, but the selection was fruit flavored, and I thought would have a lot of sugar. I wanted to try not to go too far off the Keto rails.

We ordered a small, plain cheese pizza and could watch it baking in the fire, brick oven.

Pizza with its traditional crust is not Keto friendly (Keto is no carbs, no grain (wheat, rice, rye, etc.) but it was sooooo good.

Drop by hosts, Bleubeard and Elizabeth's blog to find out what the rest of the T Stands For gang is up to. If you want to play, include in your Tuesday post a beverage or container for a beverage. Don't forget to link your blog to Bleubeard and Elizabeth's page.

The Peace Lily

bloomed on Easter Sunday. 

How Does Your Garden Grow?

The Easter Bunny has been visiting this week.

Mama Cardinal has been sitting on her nest. If you look closely, you can see her. Look 1/3 of the way up, just past the center, and you'll see an orange dot. That's her beak. She leaves the nest a couple of times a day, but I haven't quite timed it so I can get a picture of the inside of the nest to see how many eggs she laid.

Thursday. Red sky in the morning. Sailor take warning. It's been raining on and off since.

The daffodils don't seem to mind the rain.

A crop of day lilies

Snowball bushes ready to avalanche

Buds on the Japanese maple

We've had so much rain, the ground can't support the rain gauge.

The forsythia bush popped this week.

Himself gave me a New Guinea Impatiens for Easter.

Happy Easter, Happy Passover, and Happy Sunday

How does your garden grow?