Jingle Jackie!

Christmas is months away, but we're busy designing fun finds for the season.  First out of the chute?  Perhaps the first Jackie Kennedy "paperdoll" stocking ever made!  Now, Jackie's image has been used in thousands of ways, but this has to be a first.

The White House with a light dusting of glittering snow.

Will you dress Jackie in a suit of
jolly, red wool with matching
pillbox hat?

Or perhaps a turquoise coat
and hat set...

Or yet another option in this
bright yellow ensemble with
a charming straw hat?

Royal Occasions

The Prince and Princess of Wales
return to Buckingham Palace following
their wedding at St. Paul's Cathedral,
July 29. 1981.

It's hard to believe, but yesterday was the 30th anniversary of the wedding of Prince Charles to Lady Diana Spencer.  I don't know about you, but I remember the day, and the run up to it, quite well.  I was only seven in July of 1981, but all of the excitement surrounding the event served to increase my emerging interest in the Royal Family.

Of course, we know the outcome of that exciting day and, looking back at old footage and remembering the impact it had on the world, it seems rather sad.  But it also shows that despite all of the outward trappings, everyone faces challenges.  Theirs were just played out on a much bigger screen.

Much more auspicious was the wedding, three months ago, of Charles and Diana's son, Prince William, to Kate Middleton.  And then, today, yet another happy union was celebrated when William's cousin Zara Phillips married her rugby playing companion, Mike Tindall.  Despite the fact that Zara is barely a member of the "working" Royal Family - no title, no official duties - there was considerable interest among the British public.

The new Duke and Duchess of Cambridge
in the Throne Room of Buckingham Palace,
April 29, 2011.

Royal occasions seem to bring out some of the best qualities of the British.  There's the pomp and pageantry, of course, at which the Brits excel.  In fact, I don't think there is another monarchy, or republic for that matter, that can even come close.  Other monarchies tend to be a bit cozier, more approachable.  That's not a bad thing in and of itself, but it does take a little polish off of what kings and queens are supposed to represent.  Events such as this also unite the British people in a way that few others could.  When it comes to the Royal Family, it is the Queen who is at the center of every occasion.  Even if it's someone else's wedding, having the Queen there dresses things up a bit.  You have to have a fanfare welcoming her, and of course the National Anthem must be played - hard to ignore her when you are asking God to save her.  The Queen unites because she is steadfast and, seemingly, immovable.  She's been on the throne going on sixty years,  She's met just about every world leader since the late 1940's, and she's been a head of state for longer than our own president has been alive.  It's no wonder that when she meets today's presidents and prime ministers, it is they who are a little in awe of this tiny white-haired woman.

Barack and Michelle Obama
looking rather delighted to be
meeting the Queen and
Duke of Edinburgh.

For decades, successive governments, and even Buckingham Palace itself, have worried about what sort of reception the Queen would receive at various large-scale royal events.  In 1977, it was the Silver Jubilee that caused concern.  The British economy was in decline and the Empire on which the sun had never set was almost entirely gone.  By 1981, Britain was in ever more dire straits.  In London there were riots in Brixton and the Queen was shot at during the Trooping of the Color.  Hardly an auspicious moment for a hugely expensive royal wedding.  Twenty years later, the Royal Family was thought to be held in even lower esteem.  2002 brought the death of the 101 year-old Queen Mother and celebration of the Queen's Golden Jubilee.  At each one of these points, government ministers and royal courtiers were gravely concerned that there would not be enough interest and excitement to warrant the kinds of celebrations usually staged at such times.  The great British public had other ideas.

Ordinary citizens wait to pay their respects to
the late Queen Mother in Westminster Hall
during the "Vigil of the Princes".  Prince Charles,
the Prince of Wales, Prince Andrew, Prince Edward
and David, Viscount Linley - the Queen Mother's
four grandsons - each stand in homage at the
four corners of the bier.

The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh travel
to St. Paul's Cathedral in the Gold State Coach
on Jubilee Day, 2002.  The Gold State Coach
is only used for coronations or Jubilee celebrations.

The 1977 Silver Jubilee saw the entire country participating in celebratory street parties and crowds flooded London for the Jubilee weekend.  The Queen was genuinely touched and surprised by the outpouring of affection from her subjects.  The Royal Wedding of 1981 was not just an event of interest in the UK, but throughout the world.  Finally, and perhaps most telling, were the events of 2002.  Following the shocking events following the death of Princess Diana, it was hard not to worry that the Queen's currency had fallen.  It was even thought that the funeral of the Queen Mother might be lightly attended.  What happened was very different.  In fact, it proved that the monarchy was still at the center of the British nation.  Once again, London saw unprecedented crowds for the Lying-in-State and State Funeral of the Queen Mother.  So many people came to pay their respects and circle her bier that the doors of Westminster Abbey had to remain open through the night.  On the long weekend set aside to celebrate the Golden Jubilee, even more people came to the capital to show their loyalty to the monarch.  Two huge concerts, one classical and one rock, were held at Buckingham Palace, and the enormous crowds seemed to party non-stop for four days.  On Jubilee Day itself, the throng that descended on Buckingham Palace to see the Queen and the Royal Family on the balcony of the palace seemed to go on forever.  Such a sea of Union Jacks had never filled the space before Buckingham Palace.

Crowds gathered before Buckingham Palace on
Jubilee Day, 2002.

And then, of course, there was the wedding of Prince William.  While those who wanted to portray Britain as a forward thinking republic in the making tried to make it appear that the only real interest in the wedding existed in foreign countries, the number of people who lined the processional route and waited outside the palace belied that assertion.  If anything, the new Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have created a new and youthful appreciation of this ancient institution. 

I've been watching royal occasions for many years.  If I need to stay up all night to see the Queen Mother celebrate her 100th birthday with a parade through London, I'll do it gladly.  If I need to sleep all afternoon to be awake for a 2 am royal wedding, it's no sacrifice.  Royal occasions are fun.  They are colorful and exciting and, quite honestly, they are moving.  The music, the pageantry and brilliance of execution are wonderfully entertaining.  But, to see a person, such as the Queen, who represents so much to so many, who has been a steadfast presence in her people's lives for as long as they can remember, and who fulfills a duty, one that was not sought, so beautifully, is quite inspiring.

Saturday's With Julia

Julia Child in later years.

I first became aware of Julia Child somewhere in the early 1980's.  By that time she'd already been a fixture on public television for over twenty years.  Julia came on each Saturday night at 7, her theme song at the time was a jazzy version of "These Foolish Things", and I loved every minute of that half hour.  Not only did she indulge my budding interest in cooking, but I just liked her.  She was cozy and dependable and funny.

My appreciation of Julia has never abated and, for many years, she remained a part of Saturday evenings.  When our oldest children were small, we had a sort of Saturday evening routine.  We'd watch our two favorite cooking shows on PBS from 7-8, Julia always occupying the second half of that hour, and then take in the Britcoms that followed.  There was Julia in the Kitchen with Master Chefs and Baking with Julia, later followed by Julia and Jacques: Home Cooking.  One always felt like a personal guest in her Cambridge, Massachusetts, kitchen (now enshrined in the Smithsonian's Museum of American History), with it's walls covered in pots and pans and the inevitable cat pictures (Julia always liked cats in the kitchen).

Julia's Cambridge kitchen - also the set for many
of her television programs.  The kitchen is now
in the Smithsonian's Museum of American
History in Washington, D.C.

Despite her training at the Cordon Bleu in Paris, Julia never lost the enthusiasm of an amateur.  Not a chef, but more of a skilled cook, Julia made good cooking approachable.  To watch her earlier shows is to see a woman with, perhaps, a little too much energy and, despite the education she received in France, a rather slap dash manner.  Even delicate pastries were sometimes thrown together rather heartily.  This was no Martha Stewart - perfection in appearance was far less important than quality of flavor and, quite frankly, having a lot of fun in the kitchen.  Julia looked like she was doing just that - having fun.  You got the impression that her cooking was meant to be eaten and enjoyed rather than being used as a tool to draw attention to herself and her skill.

I admired Julia Child, but I also liked her.  She was a sort of televised friend and, even today, I love to watch reruns of her old shows.  Her rapport with Jacques Pepin is delightful!  Julia was, at times, openly flirtatious with "Jack", as she called him, as well as some of her other, rather younger, guests on later programs.  She could also stand up for the things she viewed differently - her use of white pepper rather than black being most prominent. 

Julia Child and Jacques Pepin

Julia Child was also a woman who loved to eat and to eat well.  To Julia, good food was food that tasted good, not food that necessarily had any sort of illustrious pedigree.  She loved McDonald's french fries with a passion...  until they stopped frying them in lard.  She was also a staunch champion of butter and cream.  Low fat, nouvelle cuisine did not impress Mrs. Child.  If you ate lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, and balanced your diet with the common sense that we all forget we have, why not indulge and enjoy?  Funnily enough, today's diet news tells us just that.

Today's TV chefs can be entertaining and, truth be told, even I have a soft spot for Paula Deen, but there are no Julia's for the twenty-first century.  She was a truly American treasure - proud of her own heritage, but interested in seeking knowledge and understanding of a world far outside of her own privileged and conservative Pasadena upbringing.  As part of a panel of well-known cooks and chefs in her later years, she replied quite forthrightly to the question, "If you hadn't been a chef, what would you have been?"  While the others all gave idealistic and politically correct answers, Julia stated, "Well, I guess I could have married a Republican banker and been an alcoholic." 

And that was Julia...  witty, honest and a lot of fun to spend a half an hour with.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Learn to Make an Omelet with Julia



Canasta!

We're playing Canasta!  Who's
winning?

Card games seem to have gone out of fashion with my generation, and I think that’s rather sad.  I can remember my parents and grandparents getting together to play Pinochle almost every week when I was very small.  As I was growing up, my mother, grandmother and aunt taught me to play Cribbage, Hell and, my favorite of all, Canasta.  Of course, we know that the great families in history – the Ricardos and Mertzes, the Cleavers and, I’m making an educated guess here, the Brady’s – all played cards with friends and neighbors.

On at least one Saturday each month, my mother and I would drive the forty miles to Corvallis to visit my grandmother and aunt.  The day had a predictable routine – we’d start by playing a game, perhaps Aggravation (on a board that my late grandfather, a carpenter, had made, with marbles from a huge jar filled to the top with the little glass orbs).  We’d drink Pepsi, laugh until we’d cry and then have lunch, usually a microwave pizza (Grandma wasn’t much for cooking).  The second half of the day was often spent… drinking Pepsi, playing Canasta, laughing, again, until we’d cry and then having dinner, usually at the local Sizzler.  In my mind, there are few Saturday’s that were more fun. 

Canasta Central...  Playing cards,
rule books, score sheets and
snack plates...

 Canasta has been the go to game in our family for a long time.  My mom and I would play it frequently and, on at least one occasion, it was a pleasant diversion for hours spent in a hospital waiting room.  Now, I also get to play cards with my wife and a few of my children have learned – Thomas and Theodore being two that showed a remarkable ability to learn the complicated game at very young ages.  Teddy is the one who plays most now, delighting in beating his grandma, just as I did.  He trembles visibly just before he realizes that he’s going to win!

Canasta, and its cousins, Samba and Bolivia, took America by storm in the 1950’s.  They played it on I Love Lucy, Mamie Eisenhower played it in the White House and, if they were alive, our grandparents probably had a regular date around the card table.  It wasn’t just the game that made waves, but all of the accoutrements that came with it.  There were special scoring pads, playing cards, card trays, books and even pencils just for the game.  Canasta parties were all the rage, replacing Bridge in popularity, at least for a time.

An important part of the game...  which cards to use?

Canasta was so popular,
businesses gave out books of score
sheets instead of calendars.  And check
out the special Canasta pencils!

I love playing Canasta, as well as other card games.  For kids, they provide a great opportunity to learn about counting, patterns and thinking ahead.  For adults, it’s a great opportunity for relaxation, while still keeping your mind sharp.  And, it’s a wonderful way to spend time doing something fun with people you enjoy spending time with.

Cards and drinks in place...  where are
the players?

So, if you want to try an alternative to an evening spent watching TV or playing video games, grab a couple of decks of cards, Google “Canasta”, pour yourself a nice, tall glass of Pepsi* over ice and have fun!

Don't forget some Canasta music!  We know the game
comes from Uruguay, originally, but we don't have
a Vacation in Uruguay record...  Or, you could
just put on some McGuire Sisters to get into that
1950's state of mind!

* My frequent references to Pepsi should not in any way be construed as a product placement for Pepsi…  You can substitute any cola of your choice, of course.  However, should Pepsi wish to contact me and arrange some sort of arrangement, well, I wouldn’t be too proud to accept their endorsement and any remuneration that they may wish to send my way, well…

Finishing What We Start

Once a clean and organized workspace, now
covered with nearly finished projects
for the Dapper and Dreamy Etsy store.

I am a master procrastinator.  This is neither a dapper nor a dreamy characteristic, but I have decided that, starting tomorrow, I will procrastinate no more!  Thankfully, every day has a "tomorrow".

Over the past few weeks, I've started many projects.  They've all been creative and fun and, for the most part, have turned out relatively well.  I've only wasted one yard of pure linen, and have used two packets of iron on transfer paper in an effort to find one that meets my needs (still looking!).  About a ream of watercolor paper has also gone into the recycling bin, and I've had to order three proofs of the book (I keep finding things I want to change).  I've designed about twelve Christmas stockings, a couple of Christmas ornaments, a calendar and some greeting cards.  Some pillows and a Santa mail pouch have also found their way into my design book...  we'll see how far those things go.  Now, I have to actually finish the design to production phase. 

A couple of stockings, including the Jackie Kennedy
"paperdoll" design, and a pillow with the
silhouette of Queen Elizabeth II - part of a pair
that includes the profile of Queen Victoria.  Perfect
to display in 2012, the year of the Queen's Diamond
Jubilee.

I have learned something very valuable, though...  I've finally found my purpose in life.  I really, really, love to create.  To write, design and to make.  I've never felt more in my element than I do now.  Although I've always known that I had this side to me, only recently was I willing to take the chance and try to create a life and living around it.  I'm so glad that I did.

There's still a long, long way to go.  And, I am sure that there will be challenges along the way, but here's a lesson for everyone...  don't procrastinate when it comes to living the life you truly want to live.  It may not be easy, but it will be so much more rewarding.  There's a lot to learn from a bit of struggle and, if you want to know the truth, facing and overcoming your own fears and uncertainty can actually be kind of fun.

A concept for a pillow illustrating our family's
favorite trip...  Still working this one out.  Any
ideas for REALLY good iron-on transfer paper?

Severine... It's almost here!

"A charming book written in an easy to read rhyme, "Severine" tells the delightful story of a young girl and her grandmother who live together in Paris.

One evening, while on a walk in the park, Severine and her grandmother, also named Severine, meet a long lost friend. The adventure begins as the young Severine fulfills her lifelong dream... to meet Jackie Kennedy!"


$11.95 through Amazon.com...  Coming very soon!

Chocolate Waffle Cookies

Yes, I am obsessed with this
book...

I love cookies.  Who doesn't?  (If you don't, please don't respond, it was a rhetorical question...)  I believe that I've mentioned that one of my favorite childhood pastimes was looking through the landmark 1963 Betty Crocker Cooky (yes, that's how it was spelled, and my Aunt Laurie has made it clear that she prefers it that way...  Since she is the source of my annual Spritz cookie fix, I should just go along with her, but I can't...) Book.  And, in that book alone, one can find a world of cookie wonderment!

Spritz, Candy Cane, Merrymaker (a big thank you to my sister, the only person in the world who ever made these cookies for me...  no small feat as they are comprised of countless colors of sugar cookie dough, all cut into different shapes and put together in jolly patterns - even I haven't attempted these!), Hermits, Jumbles, Jumanas, Ethel's Sugar Cookies, Mary's Sugar Cookies... the list goes on to number over 300!  I had once thought that I'd make every single cookie in the book, sort of a la Julie and Julia, but, I lost my nerve.  I couldn't possibly make every cookie in the book.  Some of them were just not to my taste, or anyone else's that I know of.  Far too many date-based treats, or things with Wheaties in them.  Ugh.  But, if nothing else, the book is filled with the most wonderful mid-century pictures.

However, it is my mother who has made the penultimate contribution to my expanding waistline.  How?  By introducing our family to the Chocolate Waffle Cookie.  My friends, this is the top of the cookie heap.

The humble, yet
perfect, Chocolate
Waffle Cookie

The recipe was acquired from one of my mom's grade-school teachers and they have been her particular specialty ever since.  Frosted with bright green mint frosting, these cookies are simply top drawer in my opinion, and everyone else's.  The only thing better than the cookies (always slightly underdone, and best if eaten after they've been stored in a tightly closed cookie jar for a bit) is the dough.  I am not kidding you when I say that I could easily eat the entire bowl.  Rather like a thick brownie batter, Chocolate Waffle Cookie dough is the perfect marriage of butter, melted baking chocolate, flour, brown sugar and vanilla. 

Chocolate Waffle Cookies, along with my mother's small, crisp Chocolate Chip Cookies, are the essence of all that was good about my childhood.  They bring back happy memories as they were made for every fun and important event (frosting colored to match the holiday...  even orange or black at Halloween!).  If you could convince mom to make them just because, you were supremely blessed!

Now, I make them myself and, because I have all of the control in the kitchen, I can make them exactly as I like them - barely done!  But, they just aren't the same - even my wafflemaker is different. Mom has used the same wafflemaker since 1963 - the pink and white box that it came in still holds some of our family's most beloved Christmas ornaments, and I love to see it pulled out of the garage year after year, smelling of bayberry and pine.  I also don't have the right cookie jar.  Although we had one of those old jars in the shape of the terribly rotund monk, the real cookie jar was a very large, old Adam's Natural Peanut Butter jar with a bright yellow and red lid.  I hated that natural peanut butter (unstirred, oily, saltless, sugarless - the bane of every child's existence at one time or another) - my sister and I still laugh about it - but that jar has served our family well.  It's held thousands of batches of cookies and it's the jar that was always taken to the cemetery on Memorial Day, filled with water for the flowers to be placed on the graves.

Although I'll eat them anytime and anywhere (you can eat as many as you want, I've determined that the ones you eat standing up don't count,  the dough eaten while making them also can't really be considered "cookies"), I associate them with summer for some reason.  Maybe because they were at every summer holiday or picnic, and because mom always seemed to be more willing to make them during that season.  I especially think of Thursday nights, watching Mystery on PBS and eating Chocolate Waffle Cookies.

Chocolate Waffle Cookies are, perhaps, the Queen of the Cookie.  Fun to eat (one little square at a time), fun to make (you get to eat A LOT of dough sitting by that waffle iron), and the perfect gift to receive (are you reading this, mom?).  What are the Chocolate Waffle Cookies of your family?  We'd love to hear your own stories!

Bright Spots

Two very bright spots, indeed, though
 now a lot older...  Nick and Teddy
helping to plant our first garden.

Over the last few months, we've tried to move away from the barrage of media that we are faced with every day.  For example, we no longer have cable or even watch the major networks.  If we really want to see it, we either have it on DVD or can get it.  My main window on the world comes from the radio - NPR and the BBC - or online sources.  Unfortunately, the news that we are getting this weekend is tragic rather than just informative.  We are reminded that even in places that we might expect to be bastions of peace and tranquility, two words I've always associated with Scandinavia, there can be sudden events that sadden and shock.

So, what can we do when the news of the day, or even just events in our own lives, brings us down?  Look for the little bright spots that populate our lives every day.  I may sound like Pollyanna (a very exemplary and somewhat underrated individual in my opinion), but there really are so many things to be glad about.  When you find yourself wanting things that you can't possibly have (like a long, leisurely trip down the coast to Southern California, stopping along the way to sightsee, walk along a genuinely warm beach, visit the Steinbeck Festival...  sorry, getting carried away here...), look at what you have surrounded yourself with.

Just this morning, Melissa and I took a little break and drove to a nearby farmstand to buy raspberries.  It's a short drive, but it takes you along a winding country lane, past a few farms and a charming house or two, as well as the masses of blackberry bushes that my sons and I will visit in another month (they are master pickers!).  The raspberry canes and pastures are bathed in the warming sun, bees buzz and a gentle breeze blows.  You walk from the lane, through a fragrant herb garden, to the little stand where kind, friendly people offer you samples and smiles.  You buy one of the nicest things on earth- sweet, plump, red raspberries - and you eat them with your favorite person ever.  A bright spot in my day.

Our favorite raspberry stand on Beacon Drive
in Eugene, Oregon.

Just a little later, I drove four boys (two sons, one nephew and our baby, Max) to a local park to play.  On the way, Max fell asleep.  This gave me the perfect excuse to sit on a blanket reading, under a shady tree, with a sleeping baby next to me.  The park was filled with happy sounds, and a breeze coming up from the nearby river rustled the trees.  When Max awoke, he seemed ready for action, so I put him in his favorite swing and watched as his little mouth gave a most delighted, toothless smile, his hair tousled by the wind.  Another bright spot.

Thankfully, we all have things in our life that bring us happiness and joy.  Maybe it's a favorite walk, a special friend, a book or a movie, a picture or a room, a song, a blend of tea...  Whatever it is, there are days when it is especially important to recognize these little things and revel in them for awhile.  So often, these truly pleasure-giving things are free, they are easily accessible and, because of their familiarity and obviousness, are overlooked.

Finally, a real life example of just how easy it is to skim over the wonderful things around us...  When I walk through my house or my yard, I invariably look down.  I study the floor - the little bits that my many children leave on the carpet, the dirt tracked in, the scratches and chips on the painted wood floors - or the lawn - the weeds, the bare patches, the candy wrappers.  Each morning as I stumble into the kitchen, I notice the sugar that's been spilled (does LIFE cereal really need sugar?) on the floor.  The toast crumbs that have been brushed off the counter by a six year old trying to make his own breakfast and to "clean" it up.  The Strawberry Mini-Wheat that I’ve just crushed…  You get the idea.

There have been days when I have consciously decided to STOP looking down, but instead to look straight ahead.  You know, it’s a completely different view.  The kitchen is not just a messy floor, it’s sunlight streaming in through century-old windows, cheery red checked curtains and paint the color of green milk glass.  The living room isn’t carpets needing a vacuum and a floor that needs to be repainted, it’s books that I love to look at, pictures chosen for special reasons and views toward the woods or into the garden.  Just like life…  We spend so much time looking down at the imperfections, that we forget the beauty that surrounds us.

I hope you’ll take a moment to look around and see something soothing or comforting.  Something uplifting or enlightening.  Something that just makes you happy. 

Movie of the Week: The Women

Some movies are so good, they should never be remade...  The Women is one of those films.  Unfortunately, Hollywood couldn't leave well-enough alone and did remake the movie, twice.  But, if you don't ever listen to anything else I say, don't bother with the newer versions of one of the most entertaining films ever made.

The Women, starring Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Rosalind Russell, Joan Fontaine and Paulette Goddard, among many others, is certainly one of the best movies to come out of the golden age of Hollywood.  It also happens to be a women's picture in the truest sense...  Throughout the entire movie, you will not see one male face.  Even the photographs decorating the magnificent Manhattan apartments are of the women in the film!  Don't worry, men are the topic of much discussion, but it truly is the women who rule this picture.

Mary Haines, played by Norma Shearer (a name that, sadly, is not all that familiar to moviegoers today), is the ideal wife.  She's charming, funny and seems to be game for just about anything.  She's also madly in love with her husband of ten years, Stephen.  Stephen, however, seems to be straying from his perfect family.  Rumor has it that he's taken up with a shop girl, masterfully played by Joan Crawford, before she took up roles in melodramtic pictures like Mildred Pierce, Sudden Fear and Harriet Craig (all of which are great movies...).  Crawford is everything that a wrong-side of the tracks floozy should be - brash, hard, mean and willing to do whatever it takes to get her "meal ticket".

If that weren't bad enough, Mary's big-mouthed cousin, played perfectly by Rosalind Russell, can't wait to stir up trouble in the Haines household.  Spreading the news all around town, Roz makes sure Mary hears all the seedy details, whether she wants to or not.

If you've gotten this far, you are probably under the impression that The Women is a dramatic and rather sad film.  You couldn't be more wrong.  This movie is funny, it's sharp, it's perceptive and it has subtlety, something you won't find in most movies today.  While there are plenty of risque references, you are left to figure out the details yourself (thankfully).  It's fast-paced, which means you have to be on your toes to follow along and get all of the inside jokes.  But, best of all, the ending gives you all the satisfaction you could ever want.

All the women of The Women...

To make matters even better, there's not a bad performance in the whole picture.  From the main cast members down to the character players who appear as servants and extras, everyone's part has purpose, and all of the actors fill those parts with their best offerings.  You'll especially like Lucile Watson who plays Mary's no-nonsense mother.  Watson is, like many of these actresses, largely forgotten today.  But, you can catch her charmingly overbearing mother roles in other movies like Watch on the Rhine and The Great Lie, both with Bette Davis.  She's a formidable character, but the sort of mother you'd love to be able to run back to for advice.

Also appearing is Marjorie Main, best known as Ma Kettle from the Ma and Pa Kettle series of movies.  Marjorie Main always seems to play the same part - no nonsense and no class but with a heart of gold and an inappropriate comment for every occasion.  A wonderful character actress who, in real life, was quite different from the characters she played, Main can steal just about any scene.

People may talk about the great actors and actresses of today, but films like The Women remind us that many more amazing talents were appearing on screen in those far off days.  It can also be surprising to realize what writers were available to Hollywood in the earlier part of the last century.  The Women comes from a hit play by Clare Booth Luce, former U.S. ambassador and wife of Time-Life's founder Henry Luce.  Other writers churning out work in the Hollywood of this time included F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Steinbeck, Anita Loos and countless other big literary names.

The Women is the kind of film you'll come back to again and again.  We watched it just this evening -in fact, we've watched it so many times that I've lost count!  But, it's never boring and you'll catch something new each time you screen it.

Other suggestions for the weekend?  Meet Me In St. Louis can't be beat.  We'll talk about this magnificent picture in our next installment.

Rainy Summer Days

The woods across the street from our house after a
cooling rain shower.

It seems like we spend a lot of time thinking about weather - talking about it and anticipating it.  Here in the Willamette Valley our climate has been quite remarkable over the last couple of weeks.  While the rest of the nation appears to be baking in a heat wave, we've had several days of cool, cloudy and rainy weather.  Before you offer any condolences for our delayed summer, let me assure you that they are not required.  At least, not for us.

With the exception of about four weeks between Memorial Day and the Fourth of July, I am happy to enjoy a grey, drizzly climate.  Of course, even here that's unlikely as the dog days of summer set in (we call that August).  For me, the last few days have been a sort of heaven.  No need to mow lawns or pull weeds, no need to sweep walks or to follow children around requesting (demanding!) that they pick up the bikes, shoes, dishes, clothes, tools (really anything that can be carried) that are often deposited at the base of our porch and patio stairways. 

Instead, windows are open allowing great, damp, mild breezes to billow curtains and rustle papers.  Warm, cozy lamps are lit and noisy air conditioners are silenced.  In their place are the sounds of Mozart and Schubert (a new favorite - introduced to us while watching a new Katharine Hepburn movie, Undercurrent - Brahms Symphony Number 3, Third Movement...  listen below), and little children playing with their toys (really!).

Rather than feeling lethargic and unenthusiastic, as we generally do in the heat, we've felt energized and excited!  Sitting for hours in the studio creating, reading books (for me, nothing dapper and dreamy, but some fun murder mysteries...  Melissa is the literati in our house this week, reading Jane Eyre, paged marked with a Louis Vuitton ribbon bookmark that she recently made), cooking and watching movies.  It's been a lovely run.  We are supposed to have one more day of dreary weather, and I intend to make full use of it.

Before you think we are crazy, imagine the sound of big, wet drops of rain hitting the parched earth after a long spell of hot weather...  Think of that glorious scent of summer rain refreshing gardens, lawns and cleaning dusty streets.  Summer rain is, in our opinion, dreamy!

Cozy Corners

A cozy bedroom corner, filled with vintage
baby items, embroidered linens and a giant
pitcher full of roses from the garden.

Although I like to take in the look of a whole room, I gravitate toward cozy corners.  It doesn't matter where I happen to be - in a restaurant it will be the corner of the booth, preferably in a corner of the restaurant.  In a bookstore, again, you'll probably find me holed up in a corner with a stack of books and magazines.  The same holds true for my own home.  I love nothing better than a well-decorated corner, preferably with a good chair or sofa to sit in.

Recently, we decided that we needed to work on a particular corner of our bedroom.  We had acquired all sorts of vintage baby things and had a lot of other bits and bobs floating around.  The result is shown above.  This corner was put together using only things easily on hand, none of them perfect or particularly valuable, just a few things that weren't being shown to best effect elsewhere.

A 1950's sewing basket filled with tiny
treasures - notions, tags, a little journal,
vintage wallpaper scraps, old black and white photos,
buttons and so much more.  So fun to go through
on a rainy afternoon - and we've had a lot
of those this summer!

So many spots in our homes could use this kind of individual attention.  The best decorators are masters of detail.  They can, indeed, decorate a whole room in a way that is generally pleasing.  But, they can also create tiny vignettes within it, so that regardless of where your eye rests, there is something interesting and lovely to look at.  I think of it as I do a well-stocked bookcase.  When carefully arranged, whether by color, size or subject, a bookcase can really e quite beautiful.  It can add a great deal to a room in general.  Now, when you step closer to the bookcase, you can see each book, each title, and it's purpose for being in that particular spot.  It tells you a great deal about the people who live in that house.

None of this "goes together", but
they are all things that go with us.
A Carl Larsson print (no other artist
comes closer to inspiring our personal taste),
a picture of the White House worked in
needlepoint - a Christmas present from
Melissa - and books...  never ending books!

Every spot in your house tells a story.  The stacks of books all over our living room will tell you that we have too many books, first of all, but also that our interests are far too varied for any bookcase to contain.  The shelves devoted solely to favorite children's books will tell you that we have a lot of children but also that we, the parents, use our children as an excuse to read lots of our own old favorites.  The knicks and scratches and smudges on our "pristine", white woodwork will also attest to the number of small people about, and also the losing battle we face as we follow them around with magic erasers and white paint!  And, finally, the little arrangements of bits and pieces in corners and on tabletops, will tell you that we love royalty, fresh flowers, scented candles, little books, ancient LP's, magazines, framed photos and incense.

Books to pick up and read, good lighting,
tiny movie posters from favorite
film classics, paper roses in an
old china teacup...  this corner tells you
a lot about the people who live in this
house (that would be us!).

Your home is all about you.  Don't be afraid to surround yourselves with the things you love, whether they are perfectly harmonious or not.  The one thing that they should all have in common is that you really, really love them.  Following this formula, you'll have a house full of interest, character and warmth.

A combination of thrift store finds, homemade crafts
(you've got to love that button box and the
watercolored anniversary card!), vintage linens
and fresh flowers makes a jolly display.

Movies of the Week... The Sissi Trilogy

If you've ever heard the true and sad story of the Empress Elizabeth of Austria, you might be surprised to find the Sissi films, a trilogy of brightly colored, beautifully costumed pictures from the mid-1950's.  These three pictures capture the life of the Empress from just before she met Emperor Franz Joseph at the age of fifteen, until her triumphant visit to Austria's protectorates in Italy.  They also demonstrate the powerful role Sissi played in securing the relationship between Austria and Hungary, culminating in the dazzling coronation of the newly titled King and Queen of Hungary in Budapest.

Historically, the series will surprise some with the depiction of the early married life of the Emperor and Empress.  Rather than the depressed, turgid Elizabeth that she later became, Sissi was, in fact, deeply in love with her husband when they married.  It was only later that the melancholy, the martyr complex and the endless travel to find some sort of happiness occurred.  There is no hint of that Sissi in these films.  Rather, we see a girlish, joyful and sometimes jealous girl who wants assurance that her husband is, indeed, in love with her.

The downsides of the series are relatively few.  Entirely in German, the English subtitles can be diverting.  But, one also gets a better sense of the story when it is delivered in it's original language.  Also, certain characters, particularly an aide to Sissi, are overly comical, and can seem incongruous at times.

Regardless of the story line and dialogue, the Sissi films are beautiful to look at.  The mid-fifties color is rich and vibrant, the costumes are beyond dazzling and the locations are genuine - filmed at many of the real locations in Vienna and other arts of the former Austro-Hungarian empire.  Perhaps most dazzling are the Emperor and Empress's triumphal entrance into Venice in a parade of enormous gondolas, festooned for the occasion.  This is the culmination of the series.

Elizabeth of Austria
a famous portrait by
Franz Winterhalter

The three movies in the Sissi trilogy include Sissi, Sissi:  The Young Empress and Sissi:  The Fateful Years of an Empress.  All of these films are available through Netflix, and the trilogy can be bought in the Dapper and Dreamy Bookshop  One word of advice...  Avoid at all costs the 1962 Forever My Love, a heavily edited combination of all three films, horribly dubbed in English with a painful theme song.

Spur of the Moment Trips, Part 1... and Lush Cosmetics

Can YOU imagine taking
THIS on vacation?

I wasn't sure whether to post this article on Dapper and Dreamy or The Wide World of Jake.  I try to keep D&D, well, dapper and dreamy.  On TWWoJ, I can be a little more wide-ranging.  However, there were enough dapper and dreamy elements to post here, so off I go!

For our family of ten (yes, ten...  all human, two parents, eight children...  all ours...), taking a trip can be quite an experience.  An experience in chaos!  And fun... of course.  But, planning for a trip is absolute murder.  It goes something like this...

"What about a trip to Disneyland next month, or sometime this year?"  I say jauntily, to my wife, in the privacy of our bedroom.

"Do you remember how I wanted to jump out of the car several times between Weed and San Francisco?" she responds doubtfully.

"Hmmm, I forgot about that.  You didn't really feel like jumping, did you?

"I had my hand on the door handle all the way."

Now, what you don't know, and I didn't know, is that my ten year old son, Teddy, heard the first sentence in this brief discussion and, actually, only the first six words at that.  He has since run around the house telling his sister and brothers that, "Dad says we're going to Disneyland!"  Now seven very opinionated children throng our bedroom (Max can't walk or talk...  thank goodness.).

Our daughter who, at seventeen, believes that missing any school whatsoever will disqualify her from every scholarship, grant or academic award for the rest of her life if she misses school, absolutely refuses to go.  There is no way she is missing school for family time.  School is important...  having fun and enjoying life is not.

Jack, our eldest son who has travelled to Washington D.C., New York City, Philadelphia, Boston, various California destinations, Canada and Taiwan in the past two years (this kid knows how to network), would rather stay at home.  Not because of school, but all those little brothers...  dude.

The rest of the kids are beside themselves.  They've done the Disney thing before and, rather than being jaded, are ready to leave NOW.  All I can hear is a jumble of words like, "Grizzly River Run", "Mulholland Madness", "Splash Mountain" and "churros"!  I should note that Nick, a very laid back twelve year old, does chime in with memories of car sickness and throbbing toothaches somewhere on the road in the Central Valley, but this is somehow forgotten by the others.

Imagine now how difficult it is to explain that, no, Dad did not say we were going to Disneyland, just that someday, somehow we might.  Maybe.  Fortunately, in my present state of freelancing poverty, we needn't have this discussion at all.   You see, planning trips just doesn't work at our house.  In fact, the two most successful vacations ever have been those with virtually no planning.  They were also among the most memorable.

Several years ago, when we only had six children, we heard about an exhibition on Mr. Rogers at the Children's Museum in Portland.  Only two hours from our home, we jumped in the car around 1:00 in the afternoon and thought two hours with the man in the zip-up cardigan and denim Keds would be plenty.

Somewhere, about half way through the Land of Make-Believe, I mentioned to my wife that we'd never been to Victoria, B.C. before and wouldn't that be fun.  She agreed, we talked a little more, and as soon as we'd said goodbye to Mr. McFeely (I think this is a completely inappropriate name for a character in a children't program, but I suppose they were more innocent times), we headed to Victoria.

Of course, Victoria was another seven hour drive along a dark, winding road, plus another hour on a ferry...  the next day.  We had no luggage, not enough coats for everyone and it was rush hour in Portland.  Oh well, why not?!

We made it to Port Angeles...  much, much later.  The final hour on the road was punctuated with songs like, "Voulez-Vous Couchez Avec Mois"... crackling from the radio...  Anything to keep me awake.  Personally, I was so tired I would have stayed anywhere, but we chose a moderately priced, and very dull, Red Lion.  As is our normal practice (if you are a hotel employee, please skip this part), I checked in, leaving the family hiding in the car, and then surreptitiously snuck the seven children into a hotel room with a fire marshall-approved capacity of five...  not five children, five people in total.  It's best to find hotels with entrances other than the one that passes by the front desk...

As we were about to tuck in for the night, my wife had a sudden realization...  She had forgotten her purse.  This also meant that she did not have her driver's license or any form of useful identification.  This can be a problem when trying to cross international borders.

The next morning dawned wet and gloomy, but we were determined.  Port Angeles itself is hardly worth a perilous, eight hour drive, and we wanted to go to Canada.  A call to the ferry company didn't prove encouraging.  We could sail with them, but they weren't guaranteeing we'd see more of Victoria than the dock at which they berthed.

Fueled on maple bars and orange juice, a rather distasteful combination, we took courage and decided to give it a try.  What's the worst that could happen?  Spending eight hours in the ferry terminal in Victoria?  On reflection, that does sound pretty dismal...

The Coho in Victoria, BC, Canada

The passage over was calm and everyone seemed to enjoy the boat.  No seasickness and no complaining or wondering if we were, indeed, there yet.  At last, we sailed into the lovely Inner Harbour, welcomed by the floral greeting, picked out in yellow primroses on the side of a slight slope, "Welcome to Victoria".

Victoria's lovely Inner Harbor, watched over
by the Empress Hotel.

As we left the ferry and approached customs, I could see that some of the ship's staff were looking at us, probably watching to see what would happen.  The smartly dressed Canadian customs agent also looked at us, somewhat surprised at the size of our group, and asked our reason for visiting Canada.  We answered, went through a few more questions, and he finally asked for identification.  We told him the whole story of our spur of the moment decision to take a trip and my wife's purse.  He looked at our trail of children again, and decided that it was unlikely that anyone would travel with so many small people unless they absolutely had too, therefore none seemed to have been kidnapped by us.  I also think that an image of all of these kids, and their grouchy parents, sitting in his ferry terminal for eight, long hours went some way in persuading him to let us in.

It was a lovely day, and here's where the dapper and dreamy part starts to appear...

Victoria, B.C., is a marvelous place.  It is, they say, more English than England, and every experience I've had there seems to bear this out.  There is a civility that is evident everywhere, from the fabulous Empress Hotel to the Taco Time in the city's mall.  You know that you are no longer in the United States.  Everything is immaculately kept - the streets, the endless pots and hanging baskets filled with flowers, the gracious tea rooms and some really delightful little shops selling everything from chocolates (you have to buy Victoria Toffee at the Empress) to needlework to a year round bonanza of Christmas decorations.

Victoria's Provincial Parliament Buildings
illuminated at night.

At the same time, civility isn't friendliness, and it was here that we received more disapproving looks than anywhere else we've visited.  Generally, there are people who will ask about our family: "Are they all yours?", "They are so well-behaved!" (my favorite) and, "Do you know what causes that, yet?"...  (You can find more of these reactions on TWWoJ!)  But, not in Victoria.  Shopkeepers seemed concerned and fellow tourists seemed somewhat put out.  Even so, everyone was in good humor and we had a thoroughly enjoyable day.

We also discovered Lush.  If you haven't heard of Lush, you have been missing out on the most fabulous bath and body products you could ever imagine.  While there are only a few things for men, this store, and their online division, provides me with absolute, no-fail gifts for my wife and daughter.  Fizzing bath bombs, massage bars, meltingly creamy bath bars, shampoo, hennas...  The whimsical, and sometimes risque, names (Sex Bomb, Rock Star, Christmas Pud'...) only make you want to buy more and more.  I don't think my wife and daughter are ever happier with a present than when they open something from Lush. 

Inside a typical, and very fragrant, Lush store.

The shops are great fun.  We've visited the Victoria, Portland and Carmel locations, maybe a couple of others as well, and each time the people are friendly and the prices reasonable.  Frankly, even if they weren't, it would still be worth it! My own favorite product is a shower gel introduced at Christmas called "Glogg", after the Scandinavian holiday tipple of the same name.  Although it is purported to smell of sugar and spice, to me and my sons, it smells exactly like Pepsi!  Loving Pepsi, I also love Glogg in all it's foamy cleanliness.

And now, back to the trip... 

At the end of our day, the real test came.  While the Canadians were likely to let us in, we were told that it was the Americans that were trickier.  My children and I had no trouble, but when it came to my ID-less wife, things got a little sketchy.  Deciding to quiz her on her knowledge of American history and geography, Melissa did quite well until they asked her to name several southern states.  Her answers of Arizona and New Mexico weren't wrong, exactly, but I think they were expecting the more traditional Georgia's and Louisiana's that all normal (sorry, honey) Americans  would have chosen.  My children still like to needle her about this when the subject comes up.

Our trip to Victoria was not our most expensive vacation, nor our longest.  It was not punctuated with thrilling rides or fabulous food.  But, it lives in our memories because of the little mishaps, the adventure of deciding to do something without preparation, and because we all had such a great time together.  I suppose that, really, I think that spending happy times with my wife and children is about as dapper and dreamy as can be!

America's Former First Ladies - An Appreciation

Former First Ladies at the
Ronald Reagan Library dedication in 1991
Front row, l-r, Lady Bird Johson, Pat Nixon, Rosalynn
Carter and Betty Ford.  Back row, Nancy Reagan
and Barbara Bush

It's probably one of the most demanding unpaid jobs in the nation's govenment.  It has no job description and no official designation.  And yet, scutiny and performance expectations are extremely high.  What's the job?  First Lady of the United States.

With the passing of Betty Ford, one of America's most exclusive clubs has grown even smaller.  Called "the sorority" by many, this sisterhood of wives of former presidents now includes only Rosalynn Carter, Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush, Hillary Clinton and Laura Bush.  Known to be an extremely close-knit group over the years, presidential spouses can relate to one another in a unique way.  All have experienced the slings and arrows of round-the-clock press coverage, all have lived in the gilded fishbowl that is the White House, and each has had to chart her own course in the challenging post-presidential years.

Lady Bird Johnson compared her first night back at the LBJ Ranch to the story of Cinderella, where the carriage had turned back into the pumpkin at the stroke of midnight.  Used to a life where one's every need is met and an army of staff members are available to help with any situation, Lady Bird found herself faced with a mountain of luggage and packing boxes, momentos of decades spent as an official wife in Washington.  Every former president and his wife can surely relate.

Lady Bird Johnson
1912-2007

Things have improved somewhat over the years, the life of an ex-president and first lady now comes with Secret Service security and a budget for offices and staff.  However, the expectations have grown, too.  Former first ladies such as Betty Ford and Rosalynn Carter have raised the bar with their non-stop advocacy during what were once considered the quiet retirement years.  While Bess Truman, Mamie Eisenhower and Pat Nixon kept a low profile, Mrs. Carter, Mrs. Ford and even the two Mrs. Bushes have logged countless hours on the lecture circuit for their favorite causes.  Betty Ford, as we are being reminded this week, might have outdone them all, engaging in work that has touched many thousands of people with her personal story of recovery and the namesake substance abuse treatment center she founded in 1982.

Betty Ford and Mamie Eisenhower:
Two very different first ladies,
both in and out of the
White House.

The work that first ladies engage in was once revered.  Responsibility for social life at the White House was used to be seen as a real and valuable part of the presidency.  While some continue to understand the importance of such things, it's also true that many see official entertaining and, correspondingly, the role of first lady as frivolous .  In no small part because of this, first ladies are expected to choose a cause to champion during the White House years, something that will play well in the press and appear to give value for money.  Increasingly, former first ladies are facing the same expectations.  It's interesting to see what each has done in the post-White House years.  Lady Bird Johnson continued her work for beautifucation, served on the Board of Regents for the University of Texas and started a world class wildflower research center that bears her name. 

Betty Ford showcased substance abuse treatment and continued her committment to women's rights.  Mrs. Ford also showed the country that just because she was the wife of an Amercian president didn't mean that she couldn't, or wouldn't, speak her mind, regardless of the ensuing controversy.

Rosalynn Carter has shown a high profile in her work with Habitat for Humanity, as well as international advocacy with her husband through the efforts of the Carter Center. 

Rosalynn Carter speaking at her
friend Betty Ford's funeral,
July 12, 2011

Nancy Reagan has mostly stayed close to home, in large part due to the illness of her late husband, but served as a very public example of the strength and committment required to personally care for a loved one struck down by Alzheimer's Disease.

Barbara Bush continued her work for literacy while, perhaps most famously, Hillary Clinton has served as a United States senator, run for president and has served with distinction as America's Secretary of State, proving that being the wife of a president in no way bars a woman from her own high-level government service. 

Finally, Laura Bush has kept a relatively low profile, making appearance to promote her autobiography and continuing to work for causes related to books and women's rights in Afghanistan.  Time will tell what her ultimate post-presidential impact will be.

Former First Ladies return to the White House
during the Clinton administration.
L-r, Nancy Reagan, Lady Bird Johnson,
Hillary Clinton, Rosalynn Carter,
 Betty Ford and Barbara Bush

In almost every case, America's former first ladies have continued to use their unique position to help improve the lives of other Americans.  If nothing else, their own examples are a testament to public service and the power of example.  These days we may shy away from the idea that we put our leaders and their spouses into a special class, but the fact remains that we view them differently than ourselves.  Nothing proves this more clearly than the accolades and tributes we see given to our former presidents and first ladies on their deaths.  I'm not just talking about the media or members of official Washington, past and present.  Photographs of ordinary citizens, regardless of political affiliation, crowding Southern California's teeming freeways and overpasses, even stopping opposing traffic to bid farewell to Ronald Reagan.  Downtown Austin crowded with throngs of Texans saluting Lady Bird Johnson, a woman who had not been in the White House for over forty years and whose husband had left office under the cloud of Vietnam. 

Thousands lined the streets of Austin, Texas
as Lady Bird Johnson's funeral cortege made
it's way back to the LBJ Ranch in 2007.

Citizens silently watch
as the hearse bearing
Ronald Reagan drives along a
deserted stretch of a California freeway
in 2004.

It's the same in nearly every case, Americans seem to surprise themselves with the deference and appreciation they show their presidential couples in death.  In part it's an appreciation of the service they've given, and in part it's a chance to look back at the times they represent - and the times of our own lives.

Betty Ford
1918-2011