solitude sunday

all or nothing: one chef's appetite for the extreme by jesse schenker is my current read. jesse recounts his love of food and cooking as a preschooler cooking with his great-grandmother, nana mae. one of his greatest personal achievements was cooking on the tv show, iron chef america and winning against iron chef geoffrey zakarian. oh, and jesse details his drug addiction that found him homeless and then jailed as a teenager. and his recovery to sobriety so that he could rise to beat an iron chef.

silly saturday

from robinsfyi.com:

Q: what does tweety bird say on halloween?
A: twick or tweet!

photo friday

eleanor

thoughtful thursday

thoughts of dog @dog_feelings:

today. is a snuggle day. please set aside. some quality time. for snugs.

whimsical wednesday

we are celebrating international artists day for whimsical wednesday! who is your favorite artist? why is this your favorite artist? what is your favorite piece they created? find out something you don't know about them! share your favorite artist with the whimsey project for whimsical wednesday!

henri matisse, french painter, sculptor, paper artist, was born december 31, 1869 and died november 3, 1954.  he was first introduced to painting when recovering from illness. his mother gave him a set of art supplies to occupy him. that was the beginning of what was to be his life long avocation.

matisse is my favorite artist because i am drawn to the vibrancy of the color in most of his paintings. the figures are simple and inelegantly drawn, which i find most whimsical. the mismatch of shapes remind me of early american patchwork quilting. the riot of shapes and colors should not work but work it does. his works that are most aesthetically pleasing to me are his interiors; rooms i would enjoy being in. a few of these paintings include "interior at collioure", "the red room", "the blue window", "the black table", "girl in the green dress", "two women", "the daisies", "the lute", "interior in yellow", "the black fern", "red interior, still on a blue table", "red interior".  it's quite impossible for me to have a favorite matisse.

what i did not know about matisse before my research on his for whimsical wednesday is that he dabbled in pointillism, the process of creating images with dots of color. a few of his pointillistic works were dots but the dots soon became most like smudges. this was actually more interesting than dots as the color smudges added a layer of interest beyond what dots could offer. 

when my artistically inclined daughter was in seventh grade i asked her to create a matisse inspired painting for me. she painted an interior with two girls (her sister and herself!) sitting at a table enjoying tea. that painting has always had a place of prominence in my home(s).

trivia tuesday

from onthisday.com:

on this date in 1971, harry drake shot the longest traveling arrow from a footbow at one mile, 268 yards.

miscellaneous monday

taking a peek inside the whimsey notebook for a favorite daily whimsical moment...   on monday, september 25th, i watched as leaves fell from trees into the lake. then the leaves glided across the surface of the water like wee boats.

are you keeping a whimsey notebook in which to record a daily whimsical moment? if not, consider doing so. if you keep a whimsey notebook, share a moment for miscellaneous monday. 

get ready.....

who is your favorite artist? be thinking for whimsical wednesday.

solitude sunday

trumbo by bruce cook. because dalton trumbo wouldn't answer questions before the congressional committee investigating un-american activities, he was found in contempt of congress. he was sentenced to one year in federal prison. all all appeals were exhausted, he served ten months in the federal prison in kentucky. 

silly saturday

from jokes4us.com:

Q: did you hear about the race between the lettuce and the tomato?
A: the lettuce was a head and the tomato was trying to ketchup!

photo friday

enjoy the scenery.

thoughtful thursday

elbert hubbard:

the greatest mistake you can make in life is continually fearing that you'll make one.

whimsical wednesday

we are celebrating inktober for whimsical wednesday! inktober is a month long, daily art activity using ink. created by artist jake porter, inktober has been going strong since 2009. for our whimsical wednesday activity we need a pen and a piece of paper or card stock no larger than 4x6 inches. we are drawing circles. the challenge within the drawing is draw as many circles as the card will hold. there's no boundary for what type of circles; large, medium, small. intertwined, circles within circles. after you have completed your circles, report your circle total to the whimsey project.

trivia tuesday

from @mental_floss:

dr seuss was the first person to use the word NERD. it appeared in his 1950 book, IF I RAN THE ZOO.  a noun used to describe one of his creatures, it later became an adjective in newsweek to describe a teenager that is a square or uncool.

miscellaneous monday

the mind circle is an awesome website! so much to be amazed by. here's a link to a post about street art:

http://themindcircle.com/incredible-pieces-of-street-arts/

get ready.....

get ready for whimsical wednesday! you'll need a pen or pencil and a 4x6 inch piece of paper or card stock.

solitude sunday

trumbo by bruce cook continues. trumbo spent two years in pursuit of cleo, a woman he met and decided to marry the first time he saw her. love at first sight on his part but not so much on hers. thus, two years. a persistent fellow, that trumbo.

silly saturday

from squighysplayhouse.com

Q: what do you call a dog who always knows the time?
A: a watch dog!

photo friday

play ball.

thoughtful thursday

buddhist proverb:

better than a thousand hollow words is one word that brings peace.

whimsical wednesday

we are trying new apple recipes for whimsical wednesday! on monday, under the get ready post, a link was shared that offers a variety of tasty apple recipes; if you are in need of a recipe. otherwise enjoy making a recipe you already have. please report your results to the whimsey project!

trivia tuesday

from mental floss:

1946: when the first photograph of earth was taken from space; black and white, grainy, distorted.

miscellaneous monday

interesting, beautiful art is always grand to view but we can't see it all in person. however we can enjoy art all over the world via the internet. be thrilled by these sculptures from the mind circle:

http://themindcircle.com/fascinating-public-sculptures/

get ready.....

get ready for whimsical wednesday! apples are so tasty this time of year so we are trying new apple recipes. maybe you have one you've been meaning to try. if not, here's a link for apple recipe ideas:

http://fm.e.allrecipes.com/ats/msg.aspx?sg1=8e62cc6746d8688fe48e5784be0cf5128f31a406ff1d639bd44c8010f50969b4&prop26=whatscooking&prop25=9409799271&prop27=2017-10-09&did=178701-20171009&eaid=15028179&hid=ec5f4d6d64ce62deb155b0c68a16334df9375845

solitude sunday

bruce cook's trumbo continues. dalton trumbo was responsible for taking care of his family; father, mother and two sisters. this began at an early age and continued well into adulthood. he took his responsibilities and worked very hard, often at more than one job at a time, to keep the family going. through it all he wrote, wrote, wrote.

silly saturday

photo friday

windy, michael and jovey celebrated national taco day wednesday 10.4

thoughtful thursday

thoughts of dog @dog_feelings:

I'VE GOT. BIG NEWS.. i love you.

whimsical wednesday

we are on a treasure hunt in our homes for whimsical wednesday. look around your house. what is the oldest item therein? what is it? where did it come from? who did it belong to? tell the story of the oldest item in your home for whimsical wednesday!

the oldest item in my home belonged to my maternal great-grandmother; two pieces of ruby and clear cut depression glass. my mother said they were the only items of value that belonged to her grandmother and then mother. her mother gave them to her. she gave them to me for my daughters. when she gave them to me, years ago when my daughters were young, she wrote the family history of the pieces and tucked that paper in one of the pieces.

trivia tuesday

from national geographic:

a group of jellyfish is called a bloom.

miscellaneous monday

open culture is an amazing website! check out this particular post of the oldest song known:

http://www.openculture.com/2014/07/the-oldest-song-in-the-world.html

get ready.....

get ready for whimsical wednesday! it's very old day. you'll need your eyes and thinking cap!

solitude sunday

a new book begins. trumbo by bruce cook. the biography of an oscar-winning screenwriter who broke the hollywood blacklist. i read the forward by john mcnamara, the screenwriter of the movie trumbo featuring bryan cranston. and a few pages of chapter one.

silly saturday

from lunch box jokes for kids:

Q: how do leaves get from place to place?
A: autumn-mobiles!

photo friday

that look.

thoughtful thursday

alan watts:

every individual is an expression of the whole realm of nature, a unique action of the total universe.

whimsical wednesday

it's "what can we do with that?" for whimsical wednesday! september is national happy cat month, sewing month and piano month. for today's whimsical wednesday activity we'll be do what we can to celebrate one or two or all three of these. report your activity to the whimsey project! 

trivia tuesday

from amanda:

morgan calls spiders EEKS.

miscellaneous monday

the greatest handmade card arrived in my mailbox last week. one of my sister's "blast from the past" cards! this one featured a newspaper photo of the two of us in matching jumpers that mom had made. i am pinning a buddy poppy on her dress as she holds a basket filled with the poppies. we are announcing the soon-to-be VFW poppy sale; for the benefit of disabled veterans, widows and children of veterans. the photograph was taken in 1963.  i have the card on the television so i can look at it. as i have looked and thought i realize that i can vividly recall the day of the poppy sale. it it a good memory and the card is awesome!

get ready.....

get ready for whimsical wednesday. it's national sewing month as well as national happy cat month as well as piano month! we'll see what we can do with that for the last wednesday of september.

solitude sunday

solitude sunday is our day to spend time with a book. today's session finds me on the porch reveling in the fineness of a fall day; the perfect setting for reading. i continue with paris to the moon by adam gopnik. in today's chapter, mr gopnik recounted telling bedtime stories to his young son. the featured story was about american baseball, of which his son had no knowledge. thoughtfully, he also discussed, through baseball, what american ex-pats miss about home. e made connections i would not have considered; definitely worth thinking about.

silly saturday

from silly jokes for kids:

Q: what kind of coat goes on wet?
A: a coat of paint!

photo friday

spa day for lil mouse! 

thoughtful thursday

albert camus:

autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.

whimsical wednesday

it's red dot day for whimsical wednesday! red dot day you wonder? yes! we are counting all those little dots of light that our electronics emit. how many red (or other color) dots shine in your house? you can include the garage and your car(s) if you wish to be comprehensive. report your findings to the whimsey project. it is predicted you'll count more than you think there are!

i did a sweep of the house before sitting down to write this post. my house and attached garage contains 20 red dots shining brightly throughout my abode. they weren't all red. some of them were blue. there were dots on items i didn't even think about before beginning the red dot search.

trivia tuesday

from mother nature network:

the ruddy shelduck is the highest flying duck. it nests on both sides of the himalayas, thus flying over the mountains to each home territory.

miscellaneous monday

another milestone has passed for my family. our mother, grandmother, great-grandmother has died at the age of 92. if you recall, greetings were posted last miscellaneous monday to celebrate her 92nd birthday. she had been in decline for the last few months and when she got so close to her birthday we all hoped that she would make it. she did. then it was time for her to go.

get ready.....

get ready for whimsical wednesday! it's red dot day. no special equipment needed.

solitude sunday

we spend time with a book on solitude sunday. i am currently reading paris to the moon by adam gopnik. in the just read chapter, gopnik explores the meaning of haute couture; fashion being an important part of the fabric that is paris. his descriptions are most likely more revealing than the actual fashion shows he writes about.

silly saturday

from jokes4us.com:

Q: what do you call a mythical vegetable?
A: a unicorn!

photo friday

bountiful harvest from sarah's patio garden.

thoughtful thursday

dr seuss:

i like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living.

whimsical wednesday

we're sleuthing books for whimsical wednesday! we are finding books that have our names as the name of the main character. using your computer, type the following into your browser to search:

what books have the name (insert your name) as the main character?

this is likely to yield authors of that name as well. you can look at the bottom of the list on the first page to see refined search ideas.

report your findings to the whimsey project!

trivia tuesday

from mental floss:

the word pizza dates back over 100 years; found in latin text, italy, common era 997.

miscellaneous monday

happy birthday #92 to mom!

get ready...

get ready for whimsical wednesday! we're looking for books. you'll need your internet browser to do the heavy lifting!

solitude sunday

we read a book on solitude sunday. i'm currently reading paris to the moon by adam gopnik. mr gopnik discusses aspects of life in paris as an american. he summed up his social relationship with french society by quoting cioran, "it's hard for me to live in a country where everyone is as irascible as i am".

silly saturday

tweet!

photo friday

jacob's dog.

thoughtful thursday

trenchologist:

no alarm wake up, covered in cats, now it's teatime. good. good.

whimsical wednesday

an art challenge for whimsical wednesday! get out an index card, a pair of scissors, glue and magazine. after the materials are assembled, set a timer for 15 minutes. in that time frame, select a page from the magazine that appeals to you. cut the magazine page into strips. glue the strips in an any arrangements onto the index card. move steadily and keep yourself from thinking as you create; just focus on doing. when the timer rings, stop! resist the urge to tinker with the piece after the 15 minutes are up.  it will be beautiful just as it is!

trivia tuesday

from the audubon society:

indigo buntings are among the many birds that migrate at night. they use the stars to guide them.

miscellaneous monday

happy labor day! enjoy the traditional last day of summer!

get ready...

get ready for whimsical wednesday! get out a magazine, glue stick, scissors and an index card to prepare for our whimsical wednesday activity.

silly saturday

suzi got her ducks in a row!

photo friday

crescent shaped shadows cast by solar eclipse 8.21.2017

thoughtful thursday

unknown:

the needs of others are just as important as your own.

whimsical wednesday

it's puzzle day for whimsical wednesday! below are brain teasers to solve.  record your responses in the comment section in the order of the questions. correct answers will be posted thursday.

1. what do you call a frog with no legs?
2. what has six eyes but cannot see?
3. what can you catch but not throw?
4. two people go into a barn. ten cats follow them. how many feet are in the barn?
5. a red house is made of red bricks. a blue house is made of blue bricks. a yellow house is made of yellow bricks. what is a green house made of?

trivia tuesday

from onthisdate.com:

on august 29, 708:  japan minted the first copper coins.

miscellaneous monday

from mental floss: the best ice cream shops in all 50 states. enjoy the tour!

http://mentalfloss.com/article/86342/july-best-ice-cream-shop-all-50-states

get ready.....

get ready for whimsical wednesday! put on your thinking caps! it will be a puzzling day!

solitude sunday

paris to the moon. adam gopnik.

adam and his wife spent their first christmas season in paris adjusting to the christmas tree lights. lights came in a ring instead of a string. then there were how the lights blinked or twinked. and how they were colored. just goes to show that things that are the same are very different.

silly saturday

it's national dog day.  from @cuteemergency

photo friday

light (white) and dark (chocolate) cake! it was yum!

thoughtful thursday

italian proverb:

one may have good eyes and still see nothing.

whimsical wednesday

we are celebrating happiness happens day for whimsical wednesday! how will you make happiness happen today? share your experiences with the whimsey project.

trivia tuesday

our solar eclipse picnic was awesome! approximately 30 of us gathered at the home of my nephew and his wife in marion, illinois. besides the great food and fun time together, we saw the majesty that is the universe. we watched as the moon moved across the sun. at total eclipse we took off the protective eye ware and looked at the corona. it was gloriously intact for more than two minutes. a few times light clouds crossed the sun's path. however, that only made it more amazing. according to the local television station's tracking, before the total eclipse it was 92 degrees and immediately after the sun began to reappear from behind the moon, it was 87 degrees. we felt that change. during total coverage, the earth went dark, the wind picked up and the insects that are usually noisy at dusk were chirping away. it was more of an experience than words can express.

miscellaneous monday

it's total solar eclipse day! we are very excited to be traveling to attend a solar eclipse picnic. it will be well attended. much fun is expected to be had by all as we witness this natural event. enjoy your solar eclipse experience if you plan to participate in observing.

get ready.....

get ready for whimsical wednesday!  we are celebrating happiness happens day. begin to think how you will make happiness happen for yourself and/or others.

solitude sunday

adam gopnik. paris to the moon.
during a nationwide strike, american adam was worried about the turkey he ordered for thanksgiving arriving in time for the celebration.  it did.

silly saturday

photo friday

boop!

thoughtful thursday

thoughts of dog @dog_feelings:

i'd slide. across. a million. hardwood floors. for you

whimsical wednesday

for whimsical wednesday we are preparing for the once-in-a-lifetime event on monday, august 21st! there will be a full solar eclipse. do something to get ready for this event that will be like no other in our time. if you haven't thought about doing something or the eclipse, doing so for whimsical wednesday is a great time to start! share your plans and preparations with the whimsey project!

trivia tuesday

from mental floss:

cats are unable to taste sweetness. the dna on the gene that allows for the tasting of sweetness is defective.

miscellaneous monday

a look into our notebook of daily whimsical moments for miscellaneous monday! for those who don't know or haven't participated, a daily whimsical moment is a place to record a moment from each day that makes us smile because it's a particularly whimsical moment. from my whimsey notebook: on monday, august 7th, i wrote in my notebook that i saw two butterflies dancing.

get ready.....

get ready for whimsical wednesday! next monday, august 21st, there will be a solar eclipse. on whimsical wednesday, make your plans and preparations for this historic event.

solitude sunday

book reading for solitude sunday was enjoyed on the porch this morning. what a lovely way to begin the day. adam gopnik discussed finding an apartment in paris in the chapter just read. as typical, it all had to do with who you know and messy politics. when we read about other cultures, it is verified that things are pretty much the same everywhere.  "paris to the moon"

silly saturday

git up there horsey!

photo friday

boxed water?

thoughtful thursday

unknown:

some dreams are just dreams.

whimsical wednesday

we are writing in our journals for whimsical wednesday. we do so once in every month that contains five wednesdays.  if you don't keep a journal, consider beginning one today. options include:
*personal journal
*themed journal; i keep one about the farm i live on
*notable notebook in which to record neat stuff such as quotes
*memory notebook in which to record random memories
*hobby journal
*art journal

write away...

trivia tuesday

definition from merriam-webster:

poltroon. noun. pahl-troon.
a spiritless coward.

miscellaneous monday

names can be tricky or funny or confounding. follow the link to the funniest named town in your state and read about others as well!

http://mentalfloss.com/article/502251/funniest-town-name-all-50-states

get ready.....

get ready for whimsical wednesday. we are writing in our journal(s). line them up, gather your pens or pencils. get ready to write.

silly saturday

from hilarious jokes for kids:

Q: why do bees have sticky hair?
A: because they use honey combs!

grin, giggle, guffaw....

photo friday

fdr, eleanor and tr kitten kitties.

thoughtful thursday

lao tzu, tao te ching:

it is exactly because she does not contend, that nobody can contend with her.

whimsical wednesday

we are celebrating national coloring book day for whimsical wednesday! we have colored in a coloring book before but never have we celebrated national coloring book day! how should we celebrate? buy a book, gift a book, color in a book, look at the detail in the drawings in a book, make your own book. follow the link to learn more about national coloring book day:

http://www.coloringbookday.com/

as always, please share your doings with the whimsey project!

trivia tuesday

from mental floss:

one of the earth's first flowers bloomed over 125 million years ago.