I'll see your two ducks and raise you a frog

I've received so many great cards in the mail lately and it's about time I showed you some of them!

I'm going to start with a beautiful art card I received just today from Danielle in Omaha. This is an 1864 painting entitled "Caprice in Purple and Gold No. 2: The Golden Screen", by James McNeill Whistler. His most famous painting is "Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1", better known as "Whistler's Mother". His mother offered to pose for "Caprice" as well, but James decided on a younger model. Once his mom got down on the floor, she had a heck of a time getting back up.

I've never actually seen any large dinosaur skeletons like these at the Smithsonian, but it must be amazing to stand underneath one and look up - and realize those creatures really did exist. I'll bet they really went through the kibble.

Speaking of old dinosaurs, take a look at this "Colossus Computer" that was operational at Bletchley Park, England during WWII. This is the computer that was used to break the famous German "Enigma" code. I sure am glad computers have gotten a lot smaller. This would definitely not have fit in my office.

So what's this duck and frog stuff anyway? Well, it was a great week because I got TWO cards with illustrations by Kaj Stenvall. I just love his ducks!

And finally, such a frog I have for you! This guy's had too much caffeine, I think.

I still have lots more to show you, so come back soon!

How's your garden?

I hope you don't have any pesky pests like this in your garden! Malcolm (previously mentioned throughout this blog, and proud of it) doesn't care much for carrots but he is an absolute fiend for cantaloupe. He practically turns himself inside out if we slice into a cantaloupe. Watermelon he has no interest in, which is good because I'd hate to have to fight him over it. 

Don't forget to take care of your skin during these sunny months. A good mud bath is very refreshing and will leave your skin soft and smooth.  The girls below have just finished their mud baths and see how fresh and bouncy they look?

The two women below have obviously not had a mud bath in years, but are discussing the possibility. Their hats have not been off in years either, which is the main thing keeping them from a good mud bath.

 

To bathe or not to bathe. The decision is extremely difficult, with "don't know" currently winning.

Whooooaaa! Do you love me, now that I can dance?

Huh?

Best Frog of June announced!

A Zen moment. Never make plans because nothing works out quite like you imagine. It's best to just be spontaneous, except in the case of combustion.

Upon awakening this morning I decided to spend the day reading. Something frothy and mindless, with no redeeming qualities. It is now after 3 pm and I haven't read a word. Instead, I have been engrossed in laundry, swapping CDs on the internet and doing various other essential and non-essential "stuff" on my computer.

And then there was that delicious, but very limp, pizza at lunch. It's hard to read while eating pizza when the slices hang vertically when held. It was definitely a two-handed pizza.

Now here I am writing a blog entry. Yes, I will read later.  For sure. Or maybe tomorrow.

This will be a spontaneous blog posting. I have planned nothing so as not to disappoint myself. It will be a surprise for all of us.

Look! It's a post card of an old British book cover. I haven't read this book but if it's about time and wrinkles, I am pretty ticked off at both and don't really want to read about them.

Although June is not over yet, I have already chosen this month's "Best Frog Of The Month". You can see he was pretty certain he would win and so just went ahead and crowned himself.

Here's a state capitol for you: Topeka, Kansas. Topeka means "to dig good potatoes" in the languages of the Kansa and the Ioway. Really.

What interests me about this card is the shape of the state of Kansas. Perfectly rectangular except for the far northeast corner. It's like someone plowed into the cartographer just as he was finishing his rectangle and made him mad so he just left it that way. Perhaps he was drawing the map in a rowdy saloon. Maybe the map had beer spilled all over it. There may be another reason for the wiggleys but I like this one.

This card is called "The Many Hats of Seattle". I don't know. I've been to Seattle several times and I've never seen people like this. It's very common in Portland, of course, but not Seattle.

A popular spectator sport in Montana: watching bears chase joggers. Go Bears!

I'm going to end today with this very interesting aboriginal art from Australia.  Uh-oh, I feel another "art card" post coming soon.