Wednesday Hodgepodge: The Sands Haven't Shifted Much Here

 

1. July 5th is National Hawaii Day...have you ever been to Hawaii? Any desire to visit or make a return trip? Pineapple, mango, or guava...what's your pleasure? 

Have never been, no plans to go, but we just started watching some vintage Hawaii 5-0 DVDs.

2. Last time you were 'thrown in at the deep end'? Explain. 

As in unfamiliar, uncomfortable, sink or swim? I have one of those coming up: a virtual meeting with (hopefully) friendly but mostly unfamiliar people, and I haven't been told much yet about what to expect. I am not exactly what Jan Karon calls She-who-loves-surprises, so I'm hoping some of it gets clarified before I have to take a deep breath and press "join."

3. Sun, sea, sand, salt...your favorite when it comes to summer? 

Right now we are settling for the nearby manmade lake.

4. Bury your head in the sand, the sands of time, draw a line in the sand, pound sand, shifting sands...pick one and tell us how the phrase currently relates to your life in some way.

Sands of time = sanding and waxing time. We recently found two antique oak chairs at a flea market, and we've been working to restore them.

The vendors had put cushions on the chairs to display them, but they didn't include them in the sale. Underneath the cushions were very old, sagging seats made of canvas webbing, which Mr. Fixit pulled out (there were a lot of nails!) We bought a piece of plywood, and cut two seat-shaped pieces to replace the canvas.

We gave the chairs a coat of natural-coloured Minwax, and then bought a can of oak-coloured for the next coat. They will get another wax touchup in a few days.

This is a good time of year to look for chair cushions, because there is so much patio furniture still in the stores. We didn't want something that looked too outdoorsy, but we did consider outdoor cushions because the chairs are a similar size to some patio chairs.

 However, we then got lucky at the local Homesense: these four feather-filled, made-in-England pillows were on clearance. Actually three of them were on the clearance rack, and then we found the fourth with the regular-priced pillows, so we asked if we could get the same discount for it, and they agreed. It never hurts to ask!

So now we have our Papa Bear and Mama Bear chairs in the living room.

5. On a scale of 1-10 (1 = make your own rules and 10=like a warden), how strict were your parents? If you're a parent where on the scale do you land? 

Not even going to land, just going to fly by that one.

6. Insert your own random thought here.  

Since our last Hodgepodge, we've celebrated Canada Day and our thirtieth wedding anniversary. And some other things I can't quite remember. Maybe I was burying my head in the sand.

Linked from The Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.

About a hundred dollars

The thrift stores re-opened here two weeks ago (again), so we've resumed our regular trips to look for stuff for Mr. Fixit to fix and other things just to use and wear and put on the table. Last week I found two wool/silk scarves for $2 each. The purple one is a pashmina, similar to a couple of others I own, but I was still not going to pass it up for $2. The other one also said wool/silk; it looked like a lovely sheer fabric in a denim-blue print. It also had a label that didn't mean anything to me. Until I looked it up this morning.

It turns out that it came from a boutique in Toronto that specializes in cashmere clothing. Scarves similar to that one sell for about a hundred dollars Canadian (about eighty U.S.).

Suddenly my scarf had a value attached to it.

Canadian politician Pierre Poilievre recently made a video showing his attempt to buy something at a coffee shop for a quarter, and all he came away with was a stir stick. In a similar vein, about four years ago I wrote a post about trying to figure out the difference in perceived value between a thrifted top and a similar-fabric, similar-colour dress bought new from a "conscious" clothing firm. There was really no conclusion; I supposed that trying to make comparisons between them was apples and oranges.

Let's say that I put the scarf on (it's been a bit chilly) and we went out to drink coffee on the Tim Horton's patio. (Because we're still not allowed to sit inside.) Let's say that the wind blew the paper cup over, and the coffee spilled all over the scarf, undoubtedly ruining it forever unless some dry cleaner knows how to get coffee stains out of blue cashmere/silk. Has this just been my most expensive (hypothetical) coffee stop ever? Or did I only ruin something that cost me just slightly more than Poilievre's coffee stirrer; a scarf that cost exactly the same as a polyester one from the dollar store, so it wouldn't even be worth cleaning?

Let's say that I had gone shopping in Toronto, had stopped in at that boutique (it's near my aunt's house), had fallen in love with this scarf, perhaps had some gift money in my purse, and had decided to fork over the hundred dollars plus tax. If I had somehow then left the package behind on the train coming home, I would most certainly (besides kicking myself very hard) have gone to great lengths to track it down. Would I have done the same for a dollar-store scarf? Probably not so much. But what about this one, where paid-value is much much less than retail-value? Where does respect-to-the-maker (or even respect-to-the-animals) come into that? And, finally, what about stewardship? If God provided the scarf, should what I actually paid for it even be a consideration, in terms of wearing it, storing it carefully, keeping it safe from streams of coffee and unintentional train losses?

It's much the same question I asked that time I messed up a thrifted-but-originally-expensive skirt. Is the value of something based on how much or how little you paid, on its appraised or resale price, or on its usefulness or importance in your own life?

And if the answer to that is that we value all things equally because they connect us to the Giver...does that mean that a new two-dollar polyester scarf deserves just as much gratitude and care as one that inspires awe in me just for the mystery of how it can be wool and still let light through? Say if your kid bought the dollar-store scarf for you for Mother's Day?

I still don't know. Maybe.

Wednesday Hodgepodge (Better late than never)

 

1. Something you've seen recently that's 'cuter than a June bug'?

Well, it was going to be a photo of the nest of baby robins under our deck, but all I succeeded in doing was wildly annoying the parents.

2. Tell us something about where you were and what you were doing in June of 1988? If you weren't born yet, June of 1998. Or if that doesn't work, June of 2008. 

June 1988? Oh dear, that wasn't a very good time at all. I was between university years and taking a summer night course (4th year English course on Jungian symbolism and things like that), working other evenings at a bookstore (not as much fun as it sounds), and trying to get enough temp office work during the days to save some money for the fall, and I had just moved into a basement room which then got flooded out when a pipe backed up, and then they had to bring in cleaners and drywallers and carpenters and painters, which took ages, so I spent part of the summer sleeping upstairs in my landlords' living room, which didn't please them too much either, but they were a bit distracted at the time with a new baby who seemed to howl all night.

I think I got a C in that course. But I'm not blaming the baby, just the pipes. And the heat. And, let's be honest, not caring overly much about finding Jungian symbolism in Paradise Lost.

Actually none of the "8" years were times I really want to remember, aside from maybe 2018. Let's choose another number next time.

3. A place in your home or outdoor space where you feel 'snug as a bug in a rug'? 

Since I'm not a robin, I like open spaces a bit more. I have a desk and computer upstairs in the loft area between the bedrooms.

4. June is National Fresh Fruits and Vegetable Month. Do you normally get your 4-5 servings each day? What's a favorite summer dish you make/serve/like to be served-ha! made with one of your favorite summer fruits. A favorite summer dish made with a favorite summer veg? How do you feel about cooking in the summer months? 

Anything made with summer fruit is fine with me. Mr. Fixit is limiting his fruit intake (various reasons), so I am not as apt as I used to be to throw blueberries into the muffins or to make a peach dessert. But I do buy some just to eat.

We don't stop cooking in the summer--we just try not to use the oven much.

5. Do you have a summer reading list? If so share a title or two we can add to our own. 

Currently re-reading Five Red Herrings (Dorothy Sayers) and Love the House You're In (Paige Rien). Waiting for the thrift stores and libraries here to re-open (again), then maybe I'll have a longer list.

Linked from The Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.

Wednesday Hodgepodge: Randomistic pessimism

  

1. Realist, idealist, optimist, pessimist...which one are you? Elaborate. 

I am optimistic about my realistic pessimism.

2. What's something currently on your wish list? 

Optimistically or pessimistically?

I just bought a few wish-list summer things (posted about that here).

Besides that? Well, a haircut would be nice after half a year without one.

We need to get some new bedsheets and pillows.

I like the upcycled jean jackets at Six Ways to Sunday, but they're a lot out of my budget. Lydia recently gave me a free jean jacket from her closet purge, so that comes close. Who knows, maybe I could even change the sleeves up like the ones at Six Ways.

3. Three things on this week's shopping list? 

Mayonnaise. Baking soda. Another spaghetti squash to replace this poor victim of vivipary (a word I'd never heard before).

4. According to Trip Advisor here's a list of the top ten things to do in the US this summer-

Chicago Architecture River Cruise, Skip the Line Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island Tour, New York In A Day  guided sightseeing tour, Charleston's Old South Historic Horse and Carriage tour, Grand Canyon helicopter tour, Full day iconic sights of LA, Beverly Hills, Beaches and more, D.C. at Dusk guided night tour, Beneath the Streets Underground History tour (Seattle), New Orleans Swamp and Bayou Boat tour, Gangsters and Ghosts tour in Chicago...read more about each excursion in the link here. 

Of the ten attractions listed which do you find most appealing? Have you already experienced anything on this list?

Haven't done even one of those, unless you count the Charleston Old South Historic Airport Security Line tour. The "sights of LA, Beverly Hills, Beaches" sounds quite nice, makes me think of meeting up with Jim Rockford for tacos. But at this point I might even go for the swamp, if somebody offered it to me.

5. Besides home and work where do you spend the most time? 

Home = work. Other than that?

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

When we moved in here almost two years ago, the back deck had some fake green leafy stuff twined through its end wall. We could have taken it down, but decided to leave it as it was; it added a bit of privacy between us and the busy road. But after this winter, it was showing its age, and Mr. Fixit decided to take the leafy stuff down and bag it up for garbage day. He tied up the bag and left it on the deck. Yesterday when he moved it out front for pickup, he came back and told me there was something moving inside the bag. Really? Like what? Like maybe some little animal that had been nesting in the green stuff, a mouse or a baby chipmunk. I looked too, and it did look like something was moving in there, but it was also a bit windy so it was hard to tell for sure what was moving the plastic bag around. I guess we will never know, because the next time he looked at the garbage bag, there was also a nicely-chewed exit hole in the side. Memo to Mr. Mouse: I'm sorry we destroyed your habitat, but I'm glad you didn't chew your way out indoors!

Linked from The Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.

A Georgian Bay Summer Suitcase

Arthur Lismer, A September Gale, Georgian Bay (1921)

The weather, finally, is getting dependably warm. She knows she could get along all right without buying many clothes for the summer. Maybe a pair of shoes. But one day she sees that one of the mainstream Canadian women's clothing stores is having a very good online sale. She's trying to shop more sustainably, but getting a few summer things she likes at a good price also seems reasonable. When the fall clothes come around, it's more likely that she'll find something that pulls a bit more sustainable weight. Or at least that she'll be able to browse the thrift stores again.

The first thing she chooses is a pair of blue chambray pants, with some pleats and waist detailing. These give her a bit of happy nostalgia, as she owned a similar pair about thirty years ago, the summer that she and her future husband were first dating. Strangely enough, The Vivienne Files also decides to do a story featuring chambray blue and pastels. So this feels like not a bad choice for this year.

How about two summer-top versions of September Gale? 

Here's the water:

And here are the rocks (shown with some jewelry she already owns):

(She also buys some pajamas, but you don't need to see those.)

Read the rest of the post here.

Wednesday Hodgepodge: Going, Growing, maybe Throwing

 

1. It's like my mama always said, "______________________________________________." 

Go clean your room?

Our youngest Squirreling did a final move-out recently, which involved a lot of getting rid of stuff. Inspired by her energy, and also by the fact that she gave me a bunch of things she didn't need and that I had to find room for if I wanted them, I also did a good cleanout of clothes-and-stuff-that-gets-stored-with-clothes. It actually all turned out very well, and I am now the second owner of a countertop cosmetics organizer (plus some stuff to put inside it), an extra jean shirt, a handy cardigan, a slip dress, about three bottles of bubble bath, and a couple of books that were on their way to the thrift store. Plus I put my prescription sunglasses in a place where I will remember to take them when I go out instead of somewhere in my bottom drawer.

2. May 11th is National Eat What You Want Day. What will you be having by way of celebration? 

That was yesterday, wasn't it? Right...well, Mr. Fixit made chicken paprikash with noodles.

I ate some green olives in oil and basil from the gift box that my oldest daughter sent for Mother's Day.

Oh, and we stopped and got a couple of doughnuts (the really plain non-messy kind) and coffee while we were out driving around after supper. What we were driving around for was trying to find an outdoor garden section that was open, so we could buy a couple of flower baskets. However, the weather was so rotten out there that I think it would have been more pleasant to stand looking at geraniums in the middle of January, so we gave up and cruised around, picked up the doughnuts, parked by the lake and had a snack in the car.

3. Describe your idea of a perfect spring day.

Finishing the last of a package of mini cinnamon buns for breakfast, photographing violets in the postage-stamp back yard, working on the computer for awhile, stopping for a coffee break with my husband, having a package delivered (see #5), eating leftovers (#2) for lunch plus a piece of chocolate also from the box my daughter sent me for Mother's Day, going back to work while he goes out to pick up a couple of flower baskets to ornament our outdoors (the weather's better today), having little or no idea of what we're going to make for dinner and being okay with that all the same.

Oh yeah, that was today.

And you will notice I didn't say anything about the things we're not doing.

4. Success, fulfillment, growth, achievement...pick one and tell us how it relates to your life in some way, either currently or in days gone by. 

Growth? Babies grow into children grow into adults. We ourselves and the ones we produced. The one who had the butterfly birthday right after we started this blog has spread her poster-board wings and flapped her way out of the Treehouse (see #1).

5. I saw this going around on various social media sites and thought it would be fun to answer here. The last thing you bought on Amazon is your weapon in battle. How will you wield it?  (if you're not an Amazon shopper, then the last thing you bought online anywhere)

A pair of  summer pajamas, teal with a palm tree print.

Ways I could use them as a weapon:

a) Letting the enemies laugh themselves silly

b) Turn the pajama pants into a stone-flinging catapult

c) Soak pajamas in flowery detergent and give the enemy an allergy attack

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I think that's been random enough already.

Linked from The Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.

Fashion Revolution Week: An Act of Defiance

 This is Fashion Revolution Week, hosted by FashionRevolution.org.

"In an age of ugliness, a work of beauty is an act of defiance" – Sir Roger Scruton

The above quote was used in a video about the ugliness of contemporary buildings (such as monster apartment towers),  by Paul Joseph Watson. He said,

"We are witnessing the uglification of the world. The Globalist goal is to make the whole planet identical in its atomizing dreariness. By dulling our senses they hope to dull our very life essence. This is all inherently totalitarian, but in an age of ugliness, a work of beauty is an act of defiance.”

You can think anything you want about globalism and what "they" want, that's not the point here. Or, rather, that is the point, that no matter where we stand on the political spectrum, there is one common aim: to promote and celebrate a special kind of beauty:

• the beauty of our world, when we haven't polluted it through the excesses of industry
• the beauty of natural fabrics and dyes that lessen that pollution 
• the beauty of colour, and not just the same few colours that a handful of marketers have decided to sell us this season
• the beauty of human beings who are treated as such in their places of work
• the beauty of clothes, shoes, and jewelry that are well made, not slapped together
• the beauty of traditional arts, especially in fabric and jewelry design
• the beauty of things thoughtfully designed, that don't "make the whole planet identical"
• the beauty of things cherished and cared for.

We don't have to dress like teenagers or celebrities to promote this kind of beauty. We don't even have to dress in ways that stick out. We can find it in style that appeals to the more mature among us, to those who like things plain, and to those who love to shine. We can find it in imaginative application of colour, and creative uses of a small wardrobe. We can find it in designs that show the beauty of different shapes, sizes, and physical needs; and in clothes that will hold together and look good for a long time. 

Don't ask just "who made my clothes," but "who chose my clothes?" 

All this can be the work of beauty. It can also be our act of defiance.

Fashion Revolution Week: Siege Mentality

Back when her kids were young and she homeschooled them, she found out that she was good at two things: turning yard-saled books and random "stuff" into a coherent curriculum; and reading ancient history with them. Now that she's an empty-nester, she's turned her history lessons into a series of books that get other people's kids interested in the Peloponnesian Wars. And her gift for organized-randomness still gets her called on, now and then, to talk about "stuff." (It also helps her find interesting clothes in thrifty places.)

Recently she has been reading about a Spartan general named Gylippus, who was sent to help defend another city that was besieged by the Athenians. Why did the Spartans choose Gylippus? Because he had a knack for seeing potential in situations where others saw only problems. A kindred spirit, perhaps? Well, not entirely: after all his military success, Gylippus was run out of town for embezzlement. Nobody's perfect.

Still, she finds his attitude inspiring, and thinks about it as she contemplates her next closet cleanout and some plans for warmer weather (she's between writing projects at the moment). What did Gylippus actually do to break the siege? First of all, he stopped the Athenians from their usual routine of building a surrounding wall, by building his own wall to cross it. (Reminds her of some board games she used to play with the kids.) Instead of just breaking down the enemy's walls, he built his own, literally forcing things to move in a new direction.

His second strategy was to get all the help he could from neighbouring states.

Finally, Gylippus pulled out the big guns...well, spears and arrows and things like that...in a major battle in the harbour. He used all the strategies, weapons and resources at his disposal, and defeated the Athenian fleet.

What does this have to do with  #fashionrevolution and her own clothes? Well, she's not quite sure where the next while is going to take her. As a matter of fact she's finding the world quite confusing right now, and clothes are no exception. What has happened to her favourite tunic tops and skinny pants? "Styles have changed a great deal in the past two years," says one article, pointing to trends like wider jeans, tucked-in sweaters,  and comfortable shoes. She's happy about the shoes, but iffy about the big jeans, and the current bra-as-top thing is definitely a no. Should she ignore the trends and keep wearing her skinnies, or stick to classic clothes and neutral colours? "I have a tiny wardrobe," says a well-dressed,  younger-than-her You-tuber, "but I don't bother with boring basics, just things I really like." 

She appreciates reversals like that: they're a reminder that, like Gylippus or a really good yard sale (whenever yard sales might reappear on the radar), it pays to look at things from unexpected angles.

Fashion Revolution Week: Mean Business, Make Waffles

This is Fashion Revolution Week, hosted by FashionRevolution.org.

First, a bit of an "imaginary heroine" story from The Vivienne Files:

"She returned [from her vacation] to a madhouse. Drinking at lunch, crying in the bathrooms, shouting in the halls – it had all of the elements of a bad soap opera, without the romance…

"So she decided that it was finally time to take over.  She’d considered it before, but wasn’t really all that interested in management. But when she saw how absolutely miserable her co-workers were, she started to plan."

Do you notice something that's not going on in that office?  The drinking, crying, shouting employees aren't doing anything to improve the situation, no matter what their qualifications or skills are supposed to be. As the story continues, the heroine assumes the role of ad-hoc manager by managing.

Here's an older story: the 1921 novel Re-Creations, by Grace Livingston Hill. During her senior year of college, Cornelia is called home due to family needs. At first she is annoyed, but then she realizes how desperate things have gotten and how badly the household needs someone to take on an adult role. (The mother has been hospitalized, apparently from overworking and undereating.)

"It was no use whatever to sit here and cry about it when such a mountain of work awaited her. The lady on the train had been right when she told her there would be plenty of chance for her talent...At least things could be clean and tidy. And there should be waffles!"

What needs to happen to make this family's world better can only be done by doing, and Cornelia has to be the one to get the ball rolling.

So what are we talking about here? Bossing people around? Washing sheets and making waffles? Not exactly...more like...if the mess is all around you, don't wait for somebody else to clean it up. If you have people around you, of any age or relationship, you're modelling behaviour for them, like it or not.  So start somewhere. Stay calm. Use your talents. Make a plan. 

Act (and, if necessary, dress) to show you mean it. In the case of the Vivienne Files heroine, getting people to take her seriously meant dressing up; but for Cornelia, who had a house to scrub down, dinner to cook, and curtains to stencil, it was the opposite.

Ask for help and co-operation, but make sure your helpers get waffles (or pizza, or whatever).

And what might this have to do with Fashion Revolution Week? Simply this: if you're troubled by little or big problems (like fast fashion), decide to be part of the solution; and then do something to show that you mean business. 

People will notice.

What happens when someone takes this advice to heart? Part Two will be posted on Tuesday..

From the archives: what we were doing ten years ago

First posted April 2011. Edited slightly.

The weather here is still on and off--mixed snow, rain and general gloom.  Sore throats and general malaise have several of the Squirrels not up to doing much this week. 

However:  so far we have managed to:

make a quart of yogurt (this is a good home ec lesson for days when you don't want people sneezing all over the ingredients--just one person has to actually handle the milk and starter)
make a pot of pepperoni-lentil-beef broth-carrot soup, good for what ails you
start a jar of lentil sprouts
make a big pan of orange-coconut-almond granola (we're short on boxed cereal)
bake gingerbread
wash a bunch of laundry
fold a bunch of laundry
iron some grab-bag fabric for sewing
read half of Plutarch's Life of Solon (that was Mama Squirrel)
listen to a good chunk of the audio book of Number the Stars (that was Ponytails)
read several fairy tales from The Fairy Ring (that was Crayons)
turn more plastic spoons into little people (Crayons)
keep reading The Book of Three (Mama Squirrel and Ponytails)
finish Daddy-Long-Legs (Mama Squirrel and Crayons)

"But there is a different kind of virtue, the kind that children know about, the feeling of self-worth and happiness that comes from purely personal achievement.  The kitchen is just about the only place in the house where a whole family can re-learn this kind of virtue, where there is comfort, joy and enormous pleasure in doing something simple together, and then enjoying it together."--James Barber, The Urban Peasant

Wednesday Hodgepodge: Killing it on the keyboard

 

   

1. What is something you currently find 'taxing'?

Going to leave that one aside this time. The big things are the too-obvious ones, and the small ones are too personal. Or the other way around.

2. I've seen this question asked in various forms on several social media sites...you can only keep three-

coffee, jewelry, tacos, wine, books, dogs, chocolate, Netflix, make-up, leggings, cheese, cats

Which three do you keep and how easy or hard was it for you to decide? 

Would anybody not say "books?" I mean, over cheese and leggings?

Cats and dogs in general, those with whom I am acquainted, or those which I might host myself? Since I don't have any of the third group, and know very few of the second besides my daughter's chihuahua, I'd probably cross them off. I mean, if we're talking in terms of a "no pets" apartment or something.

I don't drink wine, and don't care especially about tacos. Netflix I can take or leave.

So I guess that leaves coffee, jewelry, and makeup! Coffee stays. And I'm getting older...makeup should probably stick around. Apologies to my earrings.

P.S. Oh, I forgot about chocolate. I'm with Joyce on this one: it would be pretty hard to cross off the list of life's good things. Somebody invent a chocolate that doubles as lipstick, okay?

3. Tell us something you know or have learned about forgiveness? 

“Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.”
― Oscar Wilde

4. What's something you'd recommend that is often overlooked and under appreciated? 

Vanilla ice cream.

5. Give us a favorite word that starts with letter K and tell us why this is the one you chose. 

Keyboard, as in computer. Because you never appreciate one fully until you've had to do an entire blog post using a touchpad.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Paul Klee did a "priorities" game one time too. This was his conclusion:

"First of all, the art of living; then as my ideal profession, poetry and philosophy, and as my real profession, plastic arts; in the last resort, for lack of income, illustrations."   —Paul Klee.

(Gualtieri Di San Lazzaro, Klee. Praeger, New York, 1957

Linked from The Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.

From the archives: Or we can keep on...

First posted April 2006 (which makes it fifteen years ago); edited slightly. The Apprentice was fourteen, still homeschooling that spring, but later in the year she started part time at the local high school. Ponytails was eight and a half. Crayons/Lydia was almost five.

 "Mom makes us work too hard." "Not another book!" "School is hard." If my children were talking Barbies, they might echo that unfortunate doll (who had her conversation chip yanked for saying that math is too hard). Yes, the Apprentice and Ponytails do complain about school, lest you think that these Shakespeare-reading progeny do everything excellently without ever needing to be prodded (that's only true of other peoples' children, right?). After all, The Apprentice isn't planning on going to university anyway...she alternates between interests in hairdressing/cosmetics, photography, and computer information systems (maybe she'll figure out a way to do all of them). Why does this stuff matter?

[2021 update: The Apprentice did a hairstyling apprenticeship first, but also studied science/math at university, and now works in computer information systems.]

So I have some alternatives. I could buy a fill-in-the-blanks homeschool curriculum instead of boring them with Thomas More or Winston Churchill. (Jane Austen and Charles Dickens don't get the "boring" face, for some reason.) I could let them follow their own interests completely. I could buy some of those prepared novel studies, comprehension workbooks, language textbooks, and spend a lot more time teaching them to write five-sentence paragraphs. (Squirrelings, that's not meant to be a threat--some homeschoolers spend a lot of time on those things because that's just the way they do school, and it works for them.)

I could send them to public school, so that they could develop the the following characteristics of current university students. (This list comes from the story "Educating the next wave" in a local newspaper. I'm only including some of them.)

* "Doing" is more important than "knowing." In other words, what you know is less important than knowing where to get the answer. "You don't have to master the subject anymore," Sharpe said. [Associate Professor Bob Sharpe of Wilfrid Laurier University, who led a seminar about preparing for the next generation of students.]
* They have zero tolerance for delays. When they send an e-mail to a professor, they want an answer immediately.
* They're consumers rather than producers of knowledge.
* They blur the lines between consumer and creator by sampling information on the Internet and producing new forms of expression. (That last one, in particular, intrigues me. It sounds like one of those creative report card comments that really means "He cheated on his term paper.")

Or we can keep on reading writers who are much wiser and better educated than we are, taking what we can from their thoughts, and making our responses to their books a central part of Treehouse homeschooling.

In spite of the grousing, there are those moments when I know that what we're doing is what we're supposed to be doing. Like when Ponytails asked for a James Whitcomb Riley poetry book at a booksale last year, or The Apprentice kindly found me a volume of Tennyson at this year's sale. Or when I found The Apprentice reading her Canadian history book without being reminded, or saw Ponytails poring over a map of Narnia. Or when The Apprentice found a creative way to make her science experiment work even though somebody discarded the plastic pop bottle she was hoarding. (Sorry.) Or when Ponytails was genuinely sad at finishing a biography of Galileo. Or when Crayons read me back part of the Charlotte's Web chapter we'd just finished together.

We'll try to understand that delays happen...there are disappointments...and that not everything's fun (though something can be enjoyable in its own way without being fun). Maybe the Squirrelings will be strange enough to think that knowing something is even more valuable than knowing where to look it up (or where to copy it from the Internet). Maybe when we've read Utopia and How to Read a Book and Whatever Happened to Justice, there won't be so many blurry lines. Maybe they will be subversive enough to think that they can be producers as well as consumers of knowledge.

If they turned out like that, I wouldn't mind at all.

Frugal April Closet

Why call it frugal?

Because most of the clothes and accessories shown here were thrifted, some of them for a dollar apiece. The two scarves shown were, strangely enough, not thrifted, but one of them was a gift. A couple of things came from consignment stores and vintage clothing sellers. One purse was bought new a couple of years ago.

Why do frugal?

It's a budget-friendly way to shop sustainably. Plus you can find things nobody else has!

I've used this poster before as wardrobe inspiration. This time it came up kind of after the fact, but there's definitely some "Sonatina Per Due" going on here again.

It might be this scarf:

Or this one:

Or this blouse from the thrift store's dollar rack:

Or this taupe top, also a dollar...

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An Overly Hodgepodgeish Wednesday

 

1. March 9th is National Get Over It Day...what's something you need to 'just get over already'? 

Do you want a serious answer, or not so much? I mean, there are things that are very difficult to get over, and rightfully so.

But on the less serious side...I've never been happy about the way they messed with Canadian Smarties twelve years ago, and made them all healthier colours and not so shiny. Some things should have stayed the same forever.

2. Something you're currently 'over the moon' about? 

Nothing huge. Small victories, small gratitudes. Warmer weather.

3. What's something you're 'chewing over' these days? (meaning-thinking over carefully)

Plutarch's Life of Pyrrhus.

4. The last thing you cooked or ate that was overdone? 

Well, when I make chocolate microwave cake in a mug (which we share between the two of us), I usually manage to give it a few seconds too long, so I should really remember that or write it down somewhere ("underdone is okay"). But Mr. Fixit says he likes the edges a little hard.

5. In celebration of hitting volume 411 in the weekly Hodgepodge, give us the 411 on something happening in your life in the next 30 days. 

Right now it seems wiser not to plan more than a few days ahead. Things change too quickly.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

We were at an antique market on the weekend and found a framed print we both liked...and it was on sale, too, so we brought it home and hung it in our dining area. This is Falls, Montreal River, painted by J.E.H. MacDonald in 1920.

Linked from The Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.

Let's Think Spring (Clothes)

 When I started shopping my closet for spring, I came up with clothes in navy, off-white, grey, denim blue, pink, green. Plus a pair of old-faithful I-think-they're-khaki pants.

All fine, but a lot the same. Even this new-to-me pullover, nice as it is, seemed a bit dark.

Then something caught my eye on a blog post about "business casual" clothes, although I don't need business casual, just really casual.  First of all, a pink shirt...I had a blouse like that a couple of years ago, downsized it around the time we moved, but miss it now...okay, I could probably find another similar one. (Haven't found one yet, but I'm looking.) But the use of light yellow...I'm a chronic yellow-avoider, with traumatic memories of 1970's warm yellows and golds, but I liked the way that the yellow in these photos broke up the dark blues, greys, wines. It reminded me of the light colours in the foreground of Houstoun's painting. I decided that I could use a little yellow in my life, or at least in my closet.

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Wednesday Hodgepodge: On the March

1. Is March coming in like a lion where you live? Aslan, Simba, Elsa, The Cowardly Lion...your favorite 'famous' lion? 

Yes, so far we've had strong winds and we still have lots of snow. Not unusual, but tiresome.

2. In what way do you 'march to the beat of your own drum'? 

Well...that could take awhile. 

I have never, ever had a gym membership, and don't intend to get one.

I drink plain coffee without all that extra coffee shop stuff.

And I still have a blog.

3. What item that you don't have already, would you most like to own? Any chance of that happening soon?

A new couch. The one we have was in the basement at our old house, then we moved it upstairs to the living room, then  to the apartment four years ago, then  to the townhouse almost two years ago. It has a spring that would be popping out of its back if it weren't against the wall. Last winter we were starting to browse local furniture stores for possible replacements, but that got put on hold; and right now we have other financial obligations. But maybe later this year.

4. March is National Flour Month...are you a baker? Cookies-cakes-or pies...your favorite sweet treat to bake? What's the last non-sweet thing you made that called for flour?

When the girls were young, I used to bake all the time. Now, not so much.

Last non-sweet thing: deep-dish pizza dough. 

5. There are 31 days in the month of March...where were you and what were you doing when you were 31? If you haven't hit that milestone yet, then tell us where you were and what you were doing 31 months ago? (if math is not your thing, that would be August 3, 2018)

The year I was 31 was almost a quarter-century ago. I was busy  homeschooling a kindergartner, having a baby, and moving to a new neighbourhood. 

August 3, 2018? Consignment-store shopping. That store was around for years, but it never re-opened after the first lockdown here last year. Much missed.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Do you prefer paper notebooks, journals, scrapbooks, or some electronic version? My life seems to have a mixture of both. I will send people birthday e-cards because I know then they don't have to deal with more paper; but a friend of mine sent me a very springy-looking paper card today, and it was delightful. Paperless isn't always the way to go.

Linked from The Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.

Wednesday Hodgepodge: Penny Post

1. This week's Hodgepodge lands on Ash Wednesday which signals the beginning of Lent. Do you mark this season in some way? If so tell us more. Did you grow up 'celebrating' Lent? Is attending church part of your weekly routine? Are churches open for in-person worship where you live? 

Lent, currently, yes. Church, currently, no.

2. When is the last time you sat beside a 'real' fire? Do you have a fireplace in your home? Wood or gas logs? Favorite thing cooked over a fire? 

Don't have one, and can't recall the last time. Can candles and oil lamps substitute?

3. Something that's currently got you fired up? 

Getting close to finishing the book I've been working on. So I can earn an honest penny.

4. February 17th also happens to be National Cabbage Day. Who knew? Do you like cabbage? Is cabbage on your menu Wednesday? Of the following cabbage dishes which is your favorite-coleslaw (mayo or vinegar?), sauerkraut, cabbage rolls, cabbage soup, kielbasa and cabbage, grilled cabbage, bubble and squeak, kimchi, or haluski?

It would be hard to be part of this squirrel family without saying sauerkraut. We like the made-in-store cabbage rolls from the European butcher/grocery, but we haven't bought any or even been to that store for weeks. Shopping lately is complicated.

5. Do you hang on to pennies? What do you do with them? Last thing you purchased for $1.00? Last thing you purchased for $5.00? 

The last Canadian pennies were distributed in February 2013, and the stores don't take them anymore, so they're pretty much gone from our lives.  I don't know how Canadian schoolchildren are supposed to learn place value without pennies, much less sing Canada in my Pocket.

Things I bought for a dollar? Besides grocery items? That would be several of the things I thrifted before Christmas,  after which the thrift shops here were shuttered along with most other stores and services. 

 6. Insert your own random thought here.

On Valentine's Day, my husband discovered a bag of Christmas cookies hidden at the back of the freezer.

Bonus.

Linked from The Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.

Wednesday Hodgepodge: Short-answers edition

I'm twenty thousand leagues under the writing sea right now, so this week's entry in the Hodgepodge is going to be brief.

1. Something little you are loving right now? 

Our current hamster. His name is Alcibiades.

2. Red roses or pink peonies? Red wine or pink lemonade? Red lipstick or pink polish? A cotton candy colored sky or a fiery red sunset? A book-movie-song you love with the word red or pink in its title? 

Roses, lemonade. Pink lipstick. Sky pictures, I like them all.

3. What's something you currently have your heart set on doing-going-seeing-or experiencing?

Story here.

4. Who would you most like to have a heart to heart with right now? Is that possible? 

Only virtually.

5. Write an acrostic for the word L-O-V-E. 

Lasagna

Or

Very

Easy Takeout Burgers: Which would you rather have for Valentine's Day dinner, honey?

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

That doesn't involve complaining about whatever?

Well, no legislator or bureaucrat can stop the sap rising in the maple trees. Spring will be here soon.

Linked from The Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.

Ten Years Ago: A Homeschooling Day

 First posted February 2011. Ponytails was in Grade 8; Crayons (Lydia) was in Grade 4.

9:00 a.m.: New hymn (see video), Tennyson's poems, and several pages from Marva Collins' Way, which we are reading parts of both for Black History Month and for some character building/academic inspiration.

9:20 a.m.: Crayons do math and Bible Geography with Mom. Ponytails work on independent math and other work.

9:50 a.m.: French: We are supposed to be reading from Les Insectes, but the book has temporarily disappeared so we may have to do something else. Also: French Bible copywork.

10:10 a.m.: Crayons take a break, Ponytails work with Mom.

10:30 a.m.: Ponytails take a break, Crayons do English with Mom. Review the parts of speech, and read two pages about how to make the most of watching educational "T.V. specials." Which shows how old that book is.

10:50 a.m.: "Educational T.V. Special." To be decided...we were going to watch a Christian dinosaur video that Mama Squirrel picked up from a freebie box, but after checking it out online it appears that there were issues with this movie, so we will choose something else.

Lunchtime: Ponytails work with Dad.

1 p.m.: Crayons do geometry (from Math Mammoth Grade 4) and finish a chapter from George Washington's World. Ponytails finish independent work and do any needed work with Mom.

2 p.m.: Group reading from Bulfinch's Age of Fable. Homemaking lesson: read several pages from the Food chapter in Hidden Art of Homemaking, and do some baking together.

3 p.m.: Teatime.

Wednesday Hodgepodge: Over and Over

1. Feb 2nd is Groundhog Day in the US of A. Tell us about one day you wouldn't mind living over again, and why you chose that day. 

The temptation is to choose a "perfect day," one where nothing went wrong, a day when the weather was great and nothing bad happened in the whole world. If you think about the premise of the movie, though, the point was that the things that happened to Bill Murray...over and over and over...were more like challenges to overcome. Maybe the day chosen to live over again should be one where you made a choice you've regretted ever since. Maybe just a small one, as small as not phoning someone; or signing up for the easier math instead of risking a university-prep course; or not trying hot peppers on pizza. Because you never know, it might have been your favourite.

But I think I'd go a different direction, if I had a choice. Recently I was thinking about a rainy weekend at a rented cottage, when I was about four, sitting at an oil-cloth-covered table with my grandmother. I had brought along a set of paper dolls, not the teenage fashion-model type, but (as I recall) sort of a large baby doll, along with a smaller "mini-me" version. The paper doll book must have provided some clothes, but Grandma decided to extend the possibilities by cutting outfits for them out of colourful magazine pages, first for the big doll, then matching outfits for the little one. I kept those dolls and clothes for years afterwards, out of memory for the time that we spent together making them. If I could, I'd go back and spend another few hours making paper-doll clothes with Grandma while the rain fell outside.

 2. Something you know beyond a 'shadow of a doubt'? 

That there is no shadow of turning with Thee.

3. Give us an example of history repeating itself in some way, in your own life or the lives of your children.

Our own Groundhog's Day movie, so to speak?

Well, we've had offspring get part-time jobs at the same places my husband worked when he was younger; and right now one of them lives about a block from the student house where I lived when I first moved here. There are probably other things, but I can't think of them right now.

4. Snowed under, snow job, not a snowball's chance, snowbird, on thin ice, snug as a bug in a rug, tip of the iceberg, snowball effect, run hot and cold....choose a wintry idiom and tell us how it best applies to your life right now. 

Laura Ingalls Wilder, The Long Winter. Except we have food.

5. Random thoughts:

The giant-mart store here has already replaced its don't-fall-on-the-snow-salt and shovels with spring barbecue and garden items.

This is Ontario, people. We get snow here in February. March. Usually April. Sometimes even May.

Think about it.

Linked from The Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.