La Bloggatrice Squillante Returns

Wishing you all a wonderful day!

For dadi !!!

My first impulse was that I would like to see Maria Callas perform live, but at least I have heard many of her recordings and seen some video. So instead, I choose Adelina Patti. She was the Maria Callas of her day, and no recording exists of her singing, except when recording was in its infancy and she was long, long past her prime. So I choose Adelina! Specfically I would want to hear her sing Amina in La Sonnambula.

I left a message for my agency today saying Hello?  Any news on that job I just had a final interview for last week?

No response.

I guess I should just write this one off, but really until I hear a definite No, I will think there's a shot.  Agh.

Steelers play tonight!  Go Get' Em Steelies!!!!

I'm ready for some football!

So I have been very good with this self challenge of reading 2 books before I can watch any tv.  I just finished Lady MacBeth on the way home from work and now I am more than halfway through this really cool book that I had bought a while ago but never got around to reading:  Thirty-Six Immortal Women Poets

In addition to the wonderful ancient Japanese poetry, it has gorgeous illustrations like this one:



This sort of illustration always reminds me of being in The Tale of Genji in Saint Louis and Japan.  Very nice memories, indeed!

So reading this book as my second book is a little bit of a cheat, because a lot of the pages just have an illustration, but I want to finish this book and get other things accomplished before Tony gets here at 4. 

The Japanese poems are really short and yet full of imagery and emotion.  Here's one that stood out for me:

mishi hito no
keburi to narishi
yübe yori
na zo mutsumashiki
shiogama no ura

Since that evening
When the man that I had known
Became no more than smoke,
How its name brings memories --
The Bay of Salt-cauldrons

-- Murasaki Shikibu  973(?) - 1014(?)

My cat, Petunia.

Happy Birthday   profrobert  !!!

I'm pretty sure I got the date right this year....  Hope you have a wonderful birthday!!

I am meeting up with my cousin Diane and her friend in town today.  The plans aren't set but I hear her friend wants to see the Statue of Liberty.  I might try to steer them toward Mimi's tonight - it's a piano bar on the East Side that I haven't been to yet, but the Taci crowd raves about it. 

That's about it.  No Tony this weekend!  Whaaaah!  He has to do some work-related stuff and also will be glued to the football draft.  I care about what happens regarding the Steelers in the draft but am not going to sit through the whole thing.  It was a shame last year when the Evil Ray Lewis (Who is Getting Very Old) broke our first round draft pick's collarbone early on last year, taking him out for the season.  Bastard.  Ray Lewis sucks.  Grrr.

Anyway, have a great day, all!  Enjoy the sun.
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www.nhlcyberfamily.org/special/happydance.htm

Hoping for a big Steelers win today!!! This is so exciting!!!

Here we go, Steelers! Here we go!

I seem to have written that a long time ago - August 16th, 2008 - but it bears repeating!

That is all.

Over and out.

Give it a chance. Once you get over the WTF initial reaction, listen to her musicianship. It's actually very, very nice and very, very musical.

I just spent 2 hours on the phone with my aunt Ronda, who has been working on our family history since the mid-90s.  Get this - she already knew we were related to George Washington and had only told her daughter and her family.  Ronda makes no genealogy claims until they can be verified through records and family bibles, so unless this is a fraud that goes way back, I am the direct descendent of the half brother of Mary Ball, George Washington's mother.

Some genealogists, amateur and otherwise believe there is a blood relation between George Washington and some British royalty, including Lady Catherine Grey and Jane Seymour, both of whom were married to Henry VIII.

The funny thing is that my main two historical interests have always been Tudor England and the American Revolution.  This was the very reason I especially wanted to go slow with the George Washington connection - I wanted it to be true but it had to really BE true and not a puzzle where I forced the pieces to fit.

I think this all makes George a very distant cousin, because his mother would have been my Great x ? Aunt.

Very Freaking Cool!

Seems too good to be true.

GO Obama!  And Whoo Hoo STEELERS for beating the Redskins on Monday Night Football!!!!!

If you like my Obama cartoon, I link it here:



My champagne is officially on ice.