Saturday, March 30, 2013

Hi-jinks, and a Rehearsal, of Sorts . .


The day before the wedding dawned clear and beautiful.

Friends and family from all over were gathering to help with preparations . . .

Lots of young uns . . .

The bride took the kids for a ride . . .
 
Lights were strung, flags festooned . . .

 A bridesmaid got a haircut . . .

Friends and family came from afar . . .

It was kind of a zoo . . .

But in a good way . . .

The rehearsal was held outside, in spite of a light rain . . . 

Enlivened by a surprise skit based on the marriage scene from "The Princess Bride"

And engineered by the officiating pastor -- who is also the father of the bride.

After which there was lots of food, engineered by the mother of the bride.

And tomorrow . . . a wedding!
 
Posted by Picasa

Thursday, March 28, 2013

An Amateur Marriage


Anne Tyler never disappoints me. Her books are quiet, closely observed depictions of ordinary people living ordinary lives -- even boring lives -- but just as closeup photography 
reveals new facets of everyday objects, Tyler's precise characterizations reveal the unexpected complexities in the most mundane of humans.

The Amateur Marriage (and aren't they all?) follows Michael and Pauline from their whirlwind infatuation with one another, just after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, through the years of their marriage and beyond.  Two mismatched souls, struggling for happiness in the confines of their ill-fitting partnership, these characters come alive on the page.

I'm baffled to explain just why I was so entranced by this book-- but I will say that when I crawled into bed last night, I had every intention of beginning a thriller by Lee Child. I'd picked it up at the library along with the Tyler book.  The thriller was on the bed beside me but before I turned to it, I picked up The Amateur Marriage, just to have a look.

Around a hundred and fifty pages later, it was past midnight and I reluctantly put the book down and turned off the light.  Lee Child would have to wait.      
 
Posted by Picasa

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

From My Window


Yesterday it snowed almost all day. The sun cane out briefly and much of the snow melted but by nightfall it was still snowing.

I saw this turkey from an upstairs window... I think he was looking for spring...

So am I.
 
Posted by Picasa