THE PIANO GUYS...

and their favorite audience.

All those music lessons... these guys are amazing. 

This is my one of my granddaughters. Although she is only two she knows all about the Piano Guys and loves them.         

She watched a clip of them playing "upside down" and the next time she came to my house she went straight to my piano and said to her dad... "We play upside down like the piano guys!" The crazy part was my son figured out a little melody.

Happy Monday!

FEELIN' BLUE...

OPTION #1

DENIM JACKET Sundance Catalog $148.00

LUCKY HANDBAG Dillards  $218.00

SANDALS Nordstrom $78.95

SKIRT Northstyle $59.95

OPTION #2

FLORAL TANK Sundance Catalog $148.00

UNION JACKET Sundance Catalog $158.00

Nestled at the base of Mt. Timpanogos in the heart of Provo Canyon, Sundance Ski resort is a fun place to visit no matter what the season. There is a great gift shop with artisan jewelry and very unique clothing. Its worth a visit or browse their online catalog...

www.sundancecatalog.com

 CHERRY TREES...
and two persistent women

Thursday, March 20 through Sunday, April 13

In the Spring of 1885 Mrs. Eliza Scidmore returned to her home in Washington after visiting Japan. During her time there she had seen the cherry trees in full bloom and was smitten. She approached the U.S. Army Superintendent of the Office of Public Buildings and Grounds, with a proposal to plant cherry trees along the Potomac waterfront. Her request fell on deaf ears.

For the next twenty-four years she would petition every new superintendent but with no success.

What's better than one determined woman trying to make something good happen? Two women, one with a lot of clout!

Eliza finally decided to raise the money
herself, purchase the trees and gift them to the city.

Before doing so she outlined her plan and sent it to the new First Lady, Helen Taft.  Mrs. Taft who had lived in Japan and was familiar with the beauty of the cherry tree, immediately responded.

Dear Mrs. Scidmore,

"Thank you very much for your suggestion about the cheery trees. I have taken the matter up and am promised the trees, but I thought perhaps it would be best to make an avenue of them extending down to the turn in the road... the effect would be very lovely on the long avenue. 
                                               

Let me know what you think about this. "

Sincerely yours,

Helen Taft

The day after Mrs. Taft's letter the Japanese chemist, Dr.Jokitchi Takamine, who was visiting Washington, heard about the cherry trees. He asked if Mrs. Taft would accept a gift of an additional 2,000 trees and suggested they be given in the name of the city of Tokyo. Mrs. Taft graciously accepted.

There was great disappointment when the trees arrived and it was discovered that they were severely infested with bugs. To protect American growers it was determined that they should be burned.

Now the threat of a diplomatic disaster must be avoided. The Secretary of State personally expressed his deep regret to the Japanese Ambassador and there was great relief when the parties involved met the news with good will  Subsequently, the mayor of Tokyo offered a second donation.

3.020 cherry trees in 12 varieties arrived in the Spring of 1912 and the planting began. Years later there would be an additional gift of 3800 trees given in behalf of Lady Bird Johnson, First Lady to President Lyndon B. Johnson.

Each year Washington DC welcomes the arrival of spring with the National Cherry Blossom Festival, a three week event showcasing the magnificent blooming cherry trees along the Tidal Basin.

The Festival with its profusion of pink, its heady scent and the euphoric walk along the corridor would not be available except for the determination and persistence of  Helen Taft and Eliza Scidmore... two remarkable women in history!

SOMETIMES IT TAKES A WOMAN...
even if she's small!

There is something formidable about a women when her mind is set.  A woman on a "mission" can't be talked out of it or distracted or convinced to walk away.  The world is a better place because of women like this.

This is not Eva but the hair is similar

I've read the histories of such ladies and have known a few personally, but the other day in the library I saw one who was still very young, a "formidable woman" in the making.  I will call her Eva.

Eva is a "woman" with a purpose.  She is going to be a reader. Every morning she comes up to the library and hands me her finished book. She points out that not only has she finished her book but she's scored 100% on her comprehension quiz.  I smile and congratulate her. She gets a new book and literally skips out of the library, her long dark brown naturally curly hair bobbing up and down. She is adorable.

Her little face is full of light and the look in her eye says... "I know where I'm going and what I have to do to get there!"

Eva has this look in her eyes

The other day I saw a bigger piece of Eva's personality when her whole class was in the library.  We have two big doors, one east and one west.  For whatever reason the younger kids struggle with the doors.  Let me explain...

When a child asked me to use the bathroom I NEVER say no. I just point to one of the doors and say hurry back.  Nine times out of ten they can't open the door because they are pulling on it instead of pushing. I have given multiple mini lessons on push/pull but the struggle continues.

One day last week a boy in Eva's class was struggling with the door as Eva was standing in front of me at the circulation desk. I said to him. Push on it, don't pull.  That just made him pull all the harder.  Before I could stand up to go rescue him Eva let out a big sigh and headed for the door.

"Look" she said... "you're pulling not pushing" Then she took over, turned the handle, pushed the door open and stood there to let him walk through. Then she let out another sigh and rolled her eyes. I couldn't even laugh, I just starred with my mouth open. The thought went through my head... "Sometimes it just takes a women, even if she's small."

Little Eva... I suspect you will be a formidable woman one day.  You might even change the world!

POPCORN POPPING...

It is still cold and dreary in my neck of the woods. Then a got a surprise as I was driving to work yesterday. I saw an apricot tree in full bloom. It took my breath away. They are the first to "pop" each year and it is a real sign of Spring. What a thrill. 


There is a funny little song that the children at church sing every Spring. Complete with actions it is at least three generations old. Here are the words...

Apricot Chicken Wings

3lbs chicken wings
1 1/2 c. apricot preserves
3 TBS vinegar
2 tsp. hot sauce
1 tsp chili powder
1 glove garlic minced

Put your chicken wings in a deep pan, cover with water and bring to a boil.  Remove immediately, drain and arrange the wings on a cookie sheet.


In a mixing bowl combine all of the ingredients for the sauce. Pour over the chicken and toss. Cover with foil and marinate overnight. Bake in a 300 degree oven, tossing the wings about every 20 minutes.  Cook slowly until the sauce and the wings become caramelized. About 2 hours. Serve with celery.

"The secrets in the sauce!"

THE RINGING OF THE "BLUE-NOTE"...

The valley where I live

As a very young mother I remember facing the daunting task of toilet training my oldest child. He was almost three. I had put this off for a long, long time because I had no idea what I was doing and was doubtful that I could succeed. Imagine my surprise when after a couple of frustrating weeks ... IT WAS DONE!

During the struggle, I was desperate to find some humor and this little poem bubbled to the surface. Its silly and anything but profound but it helped me lighten the moment. The interesting part was that I didn't exactly write it. It was like it was just there and I was the scribe.  Even in this insignificant moment there had been a spark of inspiration.

A POEM FOR JEREMY

My mother says today's the day,

She's going to throw the pins away,

The diaper pail and the diapers too,

In fact, my mother says she's through...

With diapering, she'll take a chance

And put me in a "training pant,"

And hope that I don't wet or soil it,

But do my duty on the toilet.

(note - there were no disposable diapers back then)

So what is the "blue-note?"  In artistic circles it is referred to as the moment when creativity begins to flow. We struggle, and quite often find our resources empty. Then suddenly, on a whim of its own, there will be a moment of clarity when all of the elements come together and pure inspiration flows. It is "magical"

Some have described its playing as if the drapes to a great dark hall have been drawn aside, and ideas like an explosion of sunlight, flood into the room.

When Fredrick Handel composed THE MESSIAH, He locked himself in a room for ten days to jot down the music playing in his head.

When Mozart wrote THE MAGIC FLUTE, he was not trudging his way through the rules of music theory to a logical conclusion. No, he heard the finished piece and wrote it down.

"Creativity is a partnership, a dance between ourselves and the muses."

I have heard the ringing of the blue-note many times. Most people think of it as it relates to art, literature and music, but it is not confined to any genre. I had a cookie decorating business for 12 years and it was there among the tips and bags and frosting. And more recently I have experienced its clarity while teaching math.

I have sixteen 5th grade students and we are studying 6th grade math. We are into algebra and geometry. They have known for a long time how to find the area of a rectangle but last week I taught them how to find the area of a parallelogram.

Base x Height = Area

It took a minute... they didn't get it.  Where does the height come from? We went through it several times and reviewed it for several days. Finally, although they didn't completely understand it, they could recite the formula and get the answer.  Then... about a week later I was suppose to teach them to find the area of a triangle. I drew a triangle... we measured the base, made a right angle and measured it and then we multiplied.

Base x Height = Area

                             2

All went well until I said ... now divide by two.

"WHAT?  Why do we divide by two... I don't get it."

I started to say. "It's OK if you don't understand the concept, just follow the process"  But then I stopped... I had a "flash"

I drew a parallelogram on the board.  Then I drew a line from one corner to the opposite corner and said... "What do we have?"

TWO TRIANGLES

You would have thought it was the 4th of July as lights were turning on all over the room. Again and again I heard...  "I get it, I get it. There's two triangles so we divide by two."

There was laughing, there were sighs of relief, there was excitement. The blue-note had rung in math.  It was a moment when real learning and clarity had occurred.

I love teaching. I love it when my students see with "new eyes" and the transfer of information and understanding is complete. IT IS MAGIC!

I treasure the times when I have heard the soft ringing of the illusive "blue-note"... I believe it is truly heaven sent.



ON THE WILD SIDE ...

One jacket two looks! 

Fell in love with the jacket first... now I'm crazy for the accessories. Oh, the sandals. ENJOY! 

Option #1

JACKET from Pendleton $189.00

CHINO PANT from White House Black Market  $58.00

HANDBAG from Zappos  $195.00

SANDAL  from Dillards $129.00

LEOPARD WATCH from Dillards  $125.00

Option #2

MICHAEL KORS Sandals from Dillards $145.00

STRAW Hobo from Dillards  $69.00