Tag Archives: postaday2011

Diana or Dino?

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I have never been a great fan of exhibits that chronicle a person’s life with glass cases full of their favorite things. For some reason, I feel a disconnect in thinking that I learn a whole lot about someone from looking at say, his or her old clothes or shoes.

I am thinking about this because Diana, A Celebration has come to Kansas City. Coinciding with a major royal wedding this spring, the event handlers are hopeful for record attendance.

With the sound of Candle in the Wind/Goodbye England’s Rose in the background, the exhibit has a collection of personal effects that highlight Diana’s life. There are school report cards, toys, family photos, the wedding-dress-with-10,000-pearls-and-the-25-foot-train, a dozen or so designer gowns and a tiara or two. Sorry but the

Celebration doesn’t hold a candle to the recent Dinosaurs Exhibit. Now there was something: the huge loud dinosaurs, the full size skeletons, and the eggs from 245 million years ago.  If it’s between a garage sale and Jurassic Park, where would you rather be?

Wowsa

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How can anyone not like a Wayne Thiebaud painting? And to know that he is alive and well and painting in California kinda makes life a little more worth living.

Here is his favorite model, his wife — Betty Jean. I don’t know whether this is her favorite picture.

But it sure is one of mine.

Step up

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If you are going to be a door mat, why not be a really outstanding one? Check out the whimsical collection at ArtMats.  And another thing, if you’re going to be a door mat, why not be a big one? They come in a number of sizes including a respectable 4′ x 6′.

And who says if you’re going to be a door mat, you can’t be a colorful one?

Hello

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The 100 Word Challenge from Velvet Verbosity invites writers to tell a story in exactly 100 words based on a one word prompt. This week’s word is voice. 

Sam jumped slightly when the phone rang.  “Hello?”

 A woman asked in a hopeful voice. “Hello. Is Teddy Powers there?”

 “Who?”

 “Teddy – Ted Powers.”  

 “No –“

 “Sorry, I dialed the wrong number.”    

 Sam hung up and picked up the newspaper. When the phone rang again, he thought – betcha it’s for Teddy. “Hello.”

 “Hi, may I talk to Ted Powers?”

 “You dialed the wrong number again,” he told her.    

 Her voice rose, “Well, is this 543-2001?”   

“Yeah,” Sam said. “It’s 543-2001.” She repeated the number after him; her voice sounded flat and disappointed.     

“Sorry,” he said. “Listen, my name is Sam.”

I Need You for Something

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Hey, this is kind of exciting. I have been randomly selected – along with several thousand other bloggers – to test new technology. It’s called Scentinology X, the transmittal of scents via broadband connections.  

Right now if you have the right equipment you can see and hear whomever you are interacting with on your computer. Scentinology X takes that interaction a few steps forward; it is a specialized device to allow you to smell what you see.  

Scentinology X technicians have installed a temporary device through the WordPress platform and downloaded a program linked to the bloggers who agreed to take part.  When my blog post is opened, sensors replicate smells, bind them to expulsion cells and then slow releases them.

Please take a couple of whiffs. And then complete the survey. Thanks for your help.

Mornin’

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I take my time picking out an address book because I keep it for a very long time. Counting the one I’m using now, my lifetime total stacks up to three.  

But my book is getting worn.  I see the spine is separating from the cover. Some of the tabs are dog-eared; QR is missing all together. ‘Course XYZ is still as stiff as when the book was new. No matter. There is only one address stored there; blank pages from XYZ migrated to denser neighborhoods years ago.

Despite its declining condition it never disappoints. It is not so small that adding an address is a chore. It is not so large that taking it along is a hardship. The botanical print on the front is timeless and modest. The binding is still sturdy.

Open the book and memories swarm like starlings coming in to roost for the night. They jostle, flit, and flutter before huddling companionably against the chill.  And I am reminded of the steady march of time.

Take a Look

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This is the last day for a spectacular quilt exhibition sponsored by the American Folk Art Museum in New York. It is a private collection of 650 red and white quilts, no two alike. What sets this exhibition apart, however, is the inventive display.

Grounded by a small circle of chairs each draped with a quilt the collection spirals upward into a vast industrial space. The thoughtful installation showcases the quilts in a manner that would surely please their creators.

If this leaves you wanting more, visit the International Quilt Study Center and Museum online. Located in Lincoln, Nebraska the museum specializes in quilt restoration and has an extensive data base of quilt collections.