Matthew: A Rear in Verse

In,

Out,

or peering through doors.

Playing the green,

or checking the scores.

 A stroll through the mound

or by water that's flowing

on colorful ground,

and near things that are growing.

sometimes clear,

and sometime blurry.

Sometimes he's moving in such a big hurry!

down,

up,

 while having a chat,

  

heading for school,

or with a boxed cat.

 Quite often, it seems, I see Matt from the rear,

at times he is far, 

and others he's near.

I'm not sure of much, but one thing I know...

I hate to see him leave, but I love to watch him go!

(Thanks for being a good sport, my love! And thanks for your derriere extraordinaire!)

GOOD LUCK TODAY!!!

Where I been?

I've taken a mini break from  my blog, and now I'm back. Anyone interested in all the Happy things that kept me from my online responsibilities? Well, here they are:

First, Matt and I have had a visit from one of his closest friends, and they let me tag along to a Martin Sexton concert. I think this is the sixth or seventh time that I have seen "Marty" live and this show was one of the best. He rocked the El Rey Theater! If you haven't heard of this guy, check him out. You'll be happy you did.

I've also been reading a few of the books we checked out of the library for our Burns Supper. I realize that I appreciate the poems more if I figure out their meaning with the use of a Scots-English dictionary, and then reread them a few times to get the cadence and rhythm.

And I've been eating.  A lot. I'm trying to keep to an all natural diet for the month of February. Can't talk too much about it, since I am only a few days in and I don't want to jinx myself. So far, so good though. No gluten, no dairy, (no meat, of course), no alcohol, no refined sugar and no processed foods. So... these kiwis are a go!

But this pie isn't. I did make it though, and sent it off to be eaten without me. I've made it once before, its a blackberry/apple pie with a crumble top. I will post the recipe some day, because it is a little too delicious to keep to myself. 

And, yesterday was Super Bowl Sunday, which for me means two things...

1. The halftime show- had to check out Madonna, who despite the haters I have read online I thought did a great job. I mean, it was what it should have been- showy, short and full of songs we all know backwards and forwards... (I had to keep reminding myself that she's in her 50s! Amazing!) and...

2. The Puppy Bowl. Freaking awesome. So. Incredibly. Cute. And I loved how much they promoted Petfinder.com and pet adoption. (This year's game belonged to Fumble!)

I wrapped it all up with an episode of Downton Abbey.

And I've made some leaps and bounds in my knitting, but I can't share any pictures of that, yet. Hope you all have enjoyed a Happy week!

Our Burns Supper

Saturday evening Matt and I hosted our second annual Burns Supper, and it was a damn guid time. In classic fashion, we failed to take many photos- too busy talking and eating and reading and all... But here are a few to share the essence of the evening!

Good people.

Good drinks.

Good food (although, we did not get a picture of the main course- which was vegetarian haggis*, tatties & neeps)

and plenty of Burns!

And the morning after, Alex made us a delicious breakfast of pan-fried haggis leftovers, topped with fresh tomatoes and an egg, sunny-side-up. 

(* I might post my recipe for vegetarian haggis, as I made up my own this year and it turned out better than I expected)

OK, I did post it. Here it is- my version of vegetarian haggis.

The Birthday of Robert Burns

Today is the day of Robert Burns! People all over the world are gathering to raise a glass and feast on haggis, tatties & neeps in honor of the Scottish Bard (although, it is perfectly acceptable to wait until the weekend, right?)

I shall post again about ol' Rabbie Burns, to share the highlights from our celebration, but for now, I say Happy Birthday, Mr. Burns!

And if you don't much have a clue about Burns, or the tradition of the Burns supper, you can watch this little video. It's only a few minutes and it summarizes nicely, although there is some concern over the authenticity of the Scottish accent of the voice over.

And if you really want a treat, listen and watch this version of Tam O'Shanter- one of Burns' most loved poems. It's a bit longer- about 10 minutes- but it just might raise the hairs on yer arms!

Until Saturday!

Today is Poe's Day

source

Happy Birthday to Edgar Allan Poe, who would be 203 years old today if he didn't mysteriously die at the age of 40... It's days like today (and only today, really,) that I wish I were in Baltimore, where Poe fans will gather at nightfall around his grave for readings and an honorary processional. We'll have to come up with our own way of celebrating the macabre author... perhaps a late-night reading of Spirits of the Dead and a controversial toast of absinthe.

Read a lovely and thorough biography of the man from the Poe Museum's website. And visit Poe Stories for a online resource of his complete works.  

Scottish Is...

The Barrister's Dream

• by Lewis Carroll
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  • They sought it with thimbles, they sought it with care;
  • They pursued it with forks and hope;
  • They threatened its life with a railway-share;
  • They charmed it with smiles and soap.
• • But the Barrister, weary of proving in vain
  • That the Beaver’s lace-making was wrong,
  • Fell asleep, and in dreams saw the creature quite plain
  • That his fancy had dwelt on so long.
• • He dreamed that he stood in a shadowy Court,
  • Where the Snark, with a glass in its eye,
  • Dressed in gown, bands, and wig, was defending a pig
  • On the charge of deserting its sty.
• • The Witnesses proved, without error or flaw,
  • That the sty was deserted when found:
  • And the Judge kept explaining the state of the law
  • In a soft under-current of sound.
• • The indictment had never been clearly expressed,
  • And it seemed that the Snark had begun,
  • And had spoken three hours, before any one guessed
  • What the pig was supposed to have done.
• • The Jury had each formed a different view
  • (Long before the indictment was read),
  • And they all spoke at once, so that none of them knew
  • One word that the others had said.
• • “You must know—” said the Judge: but the Snark exclaimed “Fudge!
  • That statute is obsolete quite!
  • Let me tell you, my friends, the whole question depends
  • On an ancient manorial right.
• • “In the matter of Treason the pig would appear
  • To have aided, but scarcely abetted:
  • While the charge of Insolvency fails, it is clear,
  • If you grant the plea ‘never indebted’.
• • “The fact of Desertion I will not dispute:
  • But its guilt, as I trust, is removed
  • (So far as relates to the costs of this suit)
  • By the Alibi which has been proved.
• • “My poor client’s fate now depends on your votes.”
  • Here the speaker sat down in his place,
  • And directed the Judge to refer to his notes
  • And briefly to sum up the case.
• • But the Judge said he never had summed up before;
  • So the Snark undertook it instead,
  • And summed it so well that it came to far more
  • Than the Witnesses ever had said!
• • When the verdict was called for, the Jury declined,
  • As the word was so puzzling to spell;
  • But they ventured to hope that the Snark wouldn’t mind
  • Undertaking that duty as well.
• • So the Snark found the verdict, although, as it owned,
  • It was spent with the toils of the day:
  • When it said the word “GUILTY!” the Jury all groaned,
  • And some of them fainted away.
• • Then the Snark pronounced sentence, the Judge being quite
  • Too nervous to utter a word:
  • When it rose to its feet, there was silence like night,
  • And the fall of a pin might be heard.
• • “Transportation for life” was the sentence it gave,
  • “And then to be fined forty pound.”
  • The Jury all cheered, though the Judge said he feared
  • That the phrase was not legally sound.
• • But their wild exultation was suddenly checked
  • When the jailer informed them, with tears,
  • Such a sentence would not have the slightest effect,
  • As the pig had been dead for some years.
• • The Judge left the Court, looking deeply disgusted:
  • But the Snark, though a little aghast,
  • As the lawyer to whom the defence was intrusted,
  • Went bellowing on to the last.
• Thus the Barrister dreamed, while the bellowing seemed
• To grow every moment more clear:
• Till he woke to the knell of a furious bell,
• Which the Bellman rang close at his ear.

Oh what fun! I recently added this book to my collection after finding it in the same fantastic little bookshop that I found my Field Guide to the Little People, (Downtown's The Last Book Store).  This book is full of Carroll's 'nonsense poems' and fantastic illustrations by Aldren Watson. Watson's woodcuts are wonderful-- I would hang his works on any wall in my home-- and they fit Carroll's wacky words to a T (or maybe to a W).

I have a peculiar relationship with the works of Lewis Carroll. I acknowledge the genius. I appreciate the whimsy. I adore the culture. But I am not truly devoted to them. (You can visit this idea more in my post about Alice). There is something distinctly not warm and fuzzy about Carroll's writings, something that unsettles me. I think that is why I find his style so suited for topics like lawyering and banking-- both topics in The Hunting of the Snark and both utterly not warm and fuzzy. 

Regardless, this gem of Lewis Carroll's has brought me more happiness than I thought. And I admit that I have chortled more than once!

Daffodils

I wandered lonely as a cloud

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine

and twinkle on the Milky Way,

They stretched in never-ending line

along the margin of a bay:

Ten thousand saw I at a glance,

tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they

Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:

A poet could not but be gay,

in such a jocund company:

I gazed - and gazed - but little thought

what wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie

In vacant or in pensive mood
They flash upon that inward eye

Which is the bliss of solitude;

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the daffodils.

-William Wordsworth

Where Tartan is King!

Ode to Tartan!

I never called it tartan,

I only called it plaid-

And didn’t know of uses

Except for flannels worn by J & dad.

But then a lady named Minerva

Used this fabric for her cloak

So I gave tartan another look

Because Minerva, she’s good folk!

But my true love for tartan

Didn’t fully bloom

Until I traveled to its homeland

O’ve this last past June

The lovely land of Scots

Is covered in lines and checks

Even the seats on city buses

Oh yes, indeed, both decks!

Its all around in clothing

That clads both gals and guys

From pipes to kilts and cozies

It’s a stay true source of pride.

But to me it just seems homey

So charming and so warm-

Perfect for a picnic

Or to use to cuddle doon!