last day of august

It's so hard to capture just how gorgeous my garden is at the moment. The zinnias are blazing right now, a whole corner of them in full bloom. Along the driveway are more zinnias, a different variety called "green envy". And I love the ruffly cosmos I planted this year with their hot pink, red, light pink, and white colors, like candy.

I let the dogs out at 9 a.m. this morning and the light was so perfect I had to run back inside for my camera. Here are my favorite photos.

longing for england

We had our annual art show at work today. Last year I displayed mainly portraits of children, so this year I decided to go through my photos from England and Ireland and choose my favorites. And here they are:

1. View from the top of Blarney Castle; Cork Co., Ireland.
2. Ruins at Glastonbury Abbey; Somerset, England.
3. Leeds Castle; Kent, England.
4. One of the gardens at Hampton Court Palace; Surrey, England.
5. Highgate Cemetery; Highgate, London, England.
6. Rievaulx Abbey; North York Moors, North Yorkshire, England.
7. Hiking near Bath, England.
8. Hampton Court Palace; Surrey, England.

All those photos made me really miss England. If I was kicked out of the United States for some reason (a reason that would probably have a really great story involving beer, angry pomeranians, and Donna), that's where I would live - in a little cottage in the country. And I would raise sheep for wool. And I would knit stuff and sell it. Let's just say, that's my backup plan.

I love the history, the landscapes, the ocean, and the beer. Also, outside of New York, London is my favorite city. I want to marry an Englishman who lives in America, has family in England, and likes to make frequent visits back home, taking his lovely wife (me) with him. That's backup plan #2. Anyone know of any single Brits in the Detroit area? Let me know. You know where to find me.

I'm suddenly aching for another trip to England. Rosanne? You ready?

sarah on today!

My beautiful, sweet, and articulate friend Sarah, whose wedding I attended last year, was on the Today show this morning with Matt Lauer.

Sarah comes in around the 4 minute mark. That's her, below, (I don't know why the preview captures her making such a wierd squinchy face). Then she does a voiceover as the piece ends.

She works at the Tenement Museum on the lower east side in Manhattan. Donna and I took a tour there last year and loved it. It is so interesting and gives you a glimpse of what life was like for immigrants. If you're in the area, it's a must-see. Find Sarah and tell her you visit Lymie's blog.



She did an outstanding job, and I couldn't be more proud. I would have been all, "Uhhhhh, I don't know Matt, ummmmmm, huh, yeah. I like your shirt."

yes, it's real

Here it is! I've been waiting for the grand unveiling until after it was all healed and smooth. I got it when my mom was here taking care of me after my surgery. I had been wavering back and forth, not sure if I wanted to take the plunge. I knew I wanted a lime slice, because Lyme disease has been such a battle I am proud to be overcoming. But it's just so permanent. My mom has wanted a tattoo for the last twenty years, and planned for us to get them together. I told her I just wasn't sure, and she said, "Oh, stop being such a wussie! You're getting a tattoo whether you want to or not!" It was a strange moment in our mother-daughter relationship.

My mom got a shamrock on her right ankle, since her birthday is on St. Patrick's day. I got the above lime slice also on my right ankle. The tattoo guy said that in his 20 years of tattooing people, he'd never done a lime. He drew this for me, so it's one-of-a-kind. I absolutely love it! I love the bright colors, the squirt, the shadows and highlights. And I love it because it has meaning for me - it's a symbol of strength and courage (and a bit of humor) to get through something so dark and horrid.

I am glad my mom forced me to get a tattoo. See, even that sentence sounds wierd.

camera phone retrospect

So I just upgraded to a new phone, this cool LG Chocolate in Blue Ice. On my Verizon plan, I get a free phone very two years, and this is the one I chose. Before activating it, I downloaded all the photos off my old Motorola Razor.

I love camera phone photos. They capture a quick moment in time, nothing scripted or thought out. You usually don't set up a shot, or worry about making a great artistic photo - you just point and shoot and save it to your camera, so later you can go back and flip through all the nifty memories.

Here are my favorites from the past two years. Included are a trip to Chicago; an evening at Comerica Park; Vermont; business trips to Washington D.C. and Ft. Lauderdale; holidays; dogs; a Morrissey concert - plus other exciting shots of me making strange, delirious faces. Please enjoy.

here and everywhere

Jim, at his league's All-Star game today.

I'm not exactly sure where I've been. Easing my way back into work when I could have used a few more weeks at home. Hobbling around my house, trying to get things done, battling an unexpected dip in my mood (now addressed with increased meds). I wanted to keep up the momentum of my peaceful, positive mood of the past month or so, but that just didn't happen. I had a doctor's appointment, and he assured me that these peaks and valleys are normal at this point. I'm on the very lowest dose of my medication, with tons of room to build it to where I need to be. I'm climbing my way back up again, and will be patient while that happens.

But I'm enjoying the Olympics! The opening ceremonies were amazing. I've been watching the events nonstop since it started - it's always on in the background while I'm doing other things. My favorite event is gymnastics, and I also like diving, swimming, rhythmic gymnastics, synchronized swimming, and trampoline. I love all the drama and the back stories of the athletes and how they've arrived at this point.

I also find the Chinese culture fascinating, so I'm enjoying that aspect of it, too. I'm reading Lost on Planet China: The Strange and True Story of One Man's Attempt to Understand the World's Most Mystifying Nation, or How He Became Comfortable Eating Live Squid by J. Maarten Troost, which I highly recommend. Run out and buy it now! It's a humorous and interesting book.


I also got to see Wicked! I met Beth and her friend Shelly in East Lansing, and we had a great dinner at PF Chang's before seeing the show at the Wharton Center on the MSU campus. The show was fantastic. I had read the book and was wondering how they would bring it to the stage. Well . . . the show is nothing like the book! I mean, there were basic plotlines and characters, but the book is sooooo dark with no happy endings. It's hard to watch a movie or show based on a book, because you're constantly comparing and thinking ahead, and keeping a tally of what was changed or dropped.

At intermission, I got out my trusty Blackberry and did some research on Wikipedia. I read that yes, the the musical is loosely based on the book. Which was fine, and knowing this, I could sit back and enjoy Act II with no expectations. So if you read the book and then expect to see the musical version, or if you see the show and then read the book, in both cases you'll be thinking WHAT???!!! Now, beyond all that, the show itself was great! It's coming to Detroit this winter, and I plan to see it again.

My foot is much better. I have more movement in my toe every day, and faithfully do my toe stretches to keep the muscles from tightening up. I'm still wearing the nifty velcro shoe, probably for another week. I have some swelling and walk with a bit of a limp, but the incision has already healed to a pink line. I miss my shoes!