Blond

Someone I met while bicycling yesterday in the fields near our town. Betsy, is this the shade of blond your neighbors had in mind??

More Signs and Stuff

Every once and awhile I put up photos of signs I appreciate. One sign is at the entrance to our friendly neighborhood graveyard (it instructs dogs to stay outside). Guess they don't want to take any chances with dogs getting into the bones...



















Mr. Mais (the corn guy) welcomed guests to a recent Wurstfest in Bad Durkheim. Now he's someone I wouldn't want to encounter in a dark alley. He's grinning a little too widely...or is he gritting his teeth? Slightly crazed look.

Just Clarifying...

Well, guess I need to clarify, since Beth asked--the previous photo taken at Schwetzingen Schloss is of David and Anna. This is a photo of David and me, taken on the castle grounds. I have a few pounds on Anna...but we do have a similar smile, at a certain angle! Anyway, I have a phobia about posting pictures of myself most of the time. Here's your photo for the year.

Schwetzingen Schloss

Toward the end of August, David, Anna and I visited the Schwetzingen Schloss--it's close to our little town and rivals Versailles. We had fun strolling the grounds, staying away from the predatory swans (no joke), and finding new hideaways in the maze of paths and shrubbery.

First Lines

I've been searching the books on my shelves, trying to pick out authors who've started with what I consider some attention-getting first lines. Here are a few I've found so far:

There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it. -- C. S. Lewis, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

When I was little I would think of ways to kill my daddy. -- Kaye Gibbons, Ellen Foster

If I could tell you only one thing about my life it would be this: when I was seven years old the mailman ran over my head. -- Brady Udall, The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint

"Where's Papa going with that ax?" said Fern to her mother as they were setting the table for breakfast. -- E.B. White, Charlotte's Web

When the lights went off the accompanist kissed her. -- Ann Patchett, Bel Canto

My coming to faith did not start with a leap but rather a series of staggers from what seemed like one safe place to another. -- Anne Lamott, Traveling Mercies

Also, if you're so inclined, American Book Review has listed what they consider the 100 best first lines from novels. Ha Jin's sentence certainly qualifies!

Every summer Lin Kong returned to Goose Village to divorce his wife, Shuyu. -- Ha Jin, Waiting

Festive, Hand-knit Hats For Dogs

This you've got to see. Dooce has a daily link on the left side of her page to festive hand-knit hats for dogs. I wonder how Murphy would look, dolled up in one of these? I can definitely see him going for this one...

See Below

See below for Tick Tack, Cuckoo. Couldn't figure out how to get my post to today's date, if I saved it as a draft on a prior date. So much for my blogger know-how.