Friday, April 26, 2024

Lesson 844: Spring


Happy Friday, Readers.
What a beautiful spring week we've had.


Moon sent his love to Earth on her Earth Day on Monday!
Now, 
if we humans would just do the same.


I've reflected on how far we've come
in solving some of Earth's problems
as I watched this squirrel 
as we shared our noonday meals.


We still have plenty of work to do.
Keep at it.


We've played a lot of baseball again this week.


Huskies are on a roll!


Oh, how we love to be outdoors!
We even had some fans from Frederick, Maryland tonight!


Baseball is a great sport for me.
Just the right pace for Old Eloise.


If I'm proactive 
and use my morning right,
I manage to get it it all done.
My goal every evening 
after we come rolling in from baseball
is to get set up for the next day
and make a little time for reading.

The busier I get,
the more I flitz around with my books.
I just counted--
I have five going at once.

This book is killing me:


Racial injustice.
Terrible.
Horrible.
No Good.
Very Bad.
Racial injustice.

It's well done, 
but I can only take it in small doses.

When I'm working through something heavy,
I turn to fantasy
to escape into another world.

These Other Worlds 
have plenty of injustices of their own.
Yet, 
the process of World Building
 in the reading of fantasy
is an escape that I need when I feel stress.
Even fictional stress.

So,
I made the leap this week
into The Shires of Middle-Earth,
which is far away from 
Turk in Small Great Things.
 
I'm reading The Hobbit 
for the first time!


I've tried it two other times before,
both while pregnant and resting 
with no luck.
I started it the other night,
and the third time is the charm.
I love it!
Prepare yourself 
for pins like these:


It's the end of Autism Awareness Month
and the annual walk is tomorrow.
It would be terrible of me 
not to make mention of 
a world that we entered against our will 
twenty-five years ago.




Somehow,
through the uncertainty
and heartache
and the downright exhaustion,
we have build a world
in which beauty blooms.



I don't have hard data for you
or stats about increasing numbers.
But what I do have is a story,
which hits home a point 
with far more emphasis than with a list of statistics.

Sam and his friends were hanging at our house tonight, 
celebrating the night's win.
They were heading out to The Double Dipper
for ice cream.

Says Heath,
the high school quarterback
and pitcher with a rocket of an arm:

"Hey, Natalie--you want to come with us?


Pure,
unprompted,
full-inclusion.

It works,
and everyone benefits.



Enjoy your weekend.
If you are looking for me,
I'll be in Middle-Earth.

Eloise










Friday, April 19, 2024

Lesson 843: Alias

 Good evening, Readers.

Eloise welcomes you to the 

eight hundred and forty-third lesson

from The Lamp Post.

Eloise.

A pen name.

A pseudonym, to sound fancy.

An alias?

Not quite.

So what is the difference?

Here is what Mr. Google says:

Is a pseudonym an alias?
Alias derives from the term “alias dictus,” which means “otherwise called.” An alias is a pseudonym, nickname, or alternative name for an individual (alternative to their legal name).While the word 'pseudonym' is a neutral term; 'alias', at times, carries a negative connotation
Nothing negative here at the Lamp Post.
I try to keep this a positive blog,
843 weeks and counting.

I got to thinking about the word alias
from this book  
that I snagged from the high school library,
on the way out the door last Friday.


I had a weekend of basement cleaning ahead of me,
and sometimes I'll use a book to keep me moving.
30 minutes of work
equals 10 pages of a book.
I can work at that pace for hours on end.
(It worked!  Basement organized!)

The girl's scarf made of piano keys 
first caught my attention.
Then the subtitle:
A True Story of Outwitting the Nazis.


The story is just incredible.
Two sisters survived the horrors of the Ukraine
during WW2.
The story's beginning,
along with the end notes and photos
make it all the more special.

After you read the story
(or listen to the audio copy that is narrated by the real-life Amy),
check out this YouTube
to meet Journalist Greg Dawson
and listen to him tell his mother's story.
Consider it your long-term homework assignment.


If I were assigning a grade to the week,
I'd have to give it a B--
books,
basements,
birds,



and baseball.


The Huskies are on a roll!
4 wins to begin the season.

Extra credit awarded
for giving my student a follow.
He's Harbor Creek's first ever baseball commentator.
Alex is just starting out,
and he did an excellent job.






With four games under our belts
and three of them away games,
Eloise finds herself 
a Tired Typist tonight!

There's an alias for you--
The Tired Typist.

My eyes are crossing--
time for bed.

I'll leave you with this nighty-night thought:
The Tired Typist



Friday, April 12, 2024

Lesson 842: Whiskey and Vegan Pizza


Hello, Readers.

I have an earthy blog for you tonight

given all the attention to the natural world this week.

The full solar eclipse gets top billing.

This was a fairly decent shot,

and the only one I quickly snapped--

aim--turn away--shoot!

I was afraid of wrecking my camera,

which is expensive,

and my eyes,

which are priceless.

Eloise loves celebrations!

We celebrated with Sun and Moon themed drinks and snack--

Blue Moon Beer  and Sun Chips!

So did Six Mile Cellars,

the winery across the street from the Lamp Post,

with wine and eclipse cookies!



It was just as fun to watch everyone looking up!




and of course,

Ellen, out in Edinboro--

looking up in the wrong direction.


                                                These kids are looking in the right direction--

by learning about nature 

at Thank A Farmer Night.







The kids celebrated the bounty of their little corner of the world
by learning about the benefits
of drinking milk
and eating fresh vegetables.

I even shaped my sourdough 
into the shape of the state of Pennsylvania
that evening.

It was fresh, hot sourdough and coffee 
for Eloise most of the week.


April 3rd, 
Dr. Jane Goodall celebrated her 90th birthday.


I watched and read many updates of quiet Jane,
with her simple ponytail 
and gentle ways.


What a life has led!


This is my favorite photo of Jane 
in her younger years.
Here is a video link to the Jane Goodall Institute.
                                                         Jane Goodall Institute CLICK HERE

To learn about Jane's life 
in my favorite way,
click on this link.
Scroll down to find a children's book titled
Me....Jane
by Patrick McDonnell
This is the description:

Dr. Jane reads 'Me...Jane', taking you back to her childhood and her dreams of Africa.

In his characteristic heartwarming style, Patrick McDonnell tells the story of the young Jane Goodall and her special childhood toy chimpanzee named Jubilee. As the young Jane observes the natural world around her with wonder, she dreams of "a life living with and helping all animals," until one day she finds that her dream has come true.

The best thing about this link,
is that Jane reads the story!
I will never get over the joy
of someone reading a story to me!
As far as famous people reading me stories go--
Jane, 
Jimmy Carter
and Robin Williams
 would be my top three.


I need to find this book:



My favorite piece on Jane this week
was her Today Show interview.
Take a look and listen on the link below
and you will see her food and drink of choice
for celebrating her birthday.

                                                    Jane Goodall on Today CLICK HERE

Enjoy your weekend 
celebrating the earth--
rains and all.

Eloise