Best Library Ladder

“Books to the ceiling,
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I'll have a long beard by the time I read them.”
― Arnold Lobel

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Organized Work Space

This is the first of a 13-photo slideshow of the same work space rearranged. Make sure to look by clicking here. Miss Vu has the magic touch, doesn't she?

Purple Pollen Rain Anemones

Beautiful photo by Magda Indigo I love Anemones and so do the deer so it's a losing battle at my cottage.

Ivy Covered Gatekeeper's Cottage

Boston Ivy covered Gatekeepers Cottage, Dartmouth Park, Sandwell England. via

Beautiful Spring Scene

This is a lovely spring scene - somewhere, isn't it? via

Big Yawn from Webster

We worked outside today and we're both tired. Goodnight. my iPhone photo

Nice Greenhouse

Let the lusting begin. via

Wild Violets, Cropped.

This closeup of my wild violets is my original photo cropped to show how beautiful they really are.  I did not know they were called Viola Sororia or that they're the state flower of New Jersey. How nice.

Wild Violets in my lawn.

They're back in all their glory doing their appointed job of keeping me from mowing the grass. I took this iPhone photo very late in the day after supper last night. Don't you love their pansy-like faces? HAPPY EARTH DAY!

The Owl and I Say Goodnight

See you tomorrow. via

Crime-solving quartet premiers tonight on PBS in 'Bletchley Circle'

BLETCHLEY CIRCLE

A new miniseries premiers tonight on PBS @ 10pm in my area. Set in Britain in 1952, this review says it's supposed to be smart and highly suspenseful. I have already set my DVR. When the sisterhood of four detectives gets together to discuss a case, it is under the cover of a book club. I like it already!!!

The story of The Migrant Mother

“Migrant Mother” was one of thousands of pictures Dorothea Lange took on assignment for the federal government, documenting the poverty of the Dust Bowl. Before it had that iconic title, the 1936 photo was captioned “Destitute peapickers in California.” But this was the one that stuck, coming to symbolize all those suffering in the Great Depression. Later, Lange would rage, “People think I haven’t made anything else!”

As you all know, I am a huge fan of NPR and rarely listen to anything else on my radio. I watch a little morning tv while I'm having coffee and then it's NPR all day until the evening news and the tv goes on again. I listened to the story behind this iconic photograph this morning on Studio 360 and then listened to the podcast again on my laptop while I was unloading the dishwasher. It's very interesting in case you want to tune in when you have 9 minutes to spare -- or you can just read the article. Podcast and article at Studio360.org. There is also a slideshow with 5 more views of this migrant worker's camp featuring Florence Thompson and her family.
This photo never fails to move me. It has become the symbol of hard times but has been exploited by the advertising industry to sell products from perfume to luggage. That should make you want to listen and I hope you will.

Beautiful Home Library

I hope there's a nice comfortable club chair and ottoman in this room somewhere. It looks like a very nice home office or study but comfort is needed in a reading room. via The Belding Group in Landrum, SC.

Wonderful clothing label

What size do you wear? Happy medium. Love it. via

Cat pulling Toy Cat

My cat never plays with anything. This is adorable. via

Queen Elizabeth II morphed from infancy to Diamond Jubilee in 2012

Click here if you cannot see this fabulous video. The link will take you to YouTube. You will love seeing our favorite royal grow more beautiful through the years. Thanks to Sandy Lawrence for mentioning it. I can't believe I have never seen it, have you?

Rainbow Pancakes

What a great birthday breakfast. I think the whole world needs rainbow pancakes, don't you? Click below to watch the delightful tutorial video from Oh Joy!

Here is the recipe she used for the pancakes.

Wear The Crown

via

Lazy Dog

Let sleeping dogs lie or find comfort wherever you can. This dog is doing both. via

Kitchen Cabinets for A Tudor

The millwork on these cabinets is beautiful. The gothic touches on the doors are very appropriate for a renovated kitchen in an old Tudor style home. Casa Verde Design in Minneapolis. via

Owls in a Hollow Tree

This photo is so full of gorgeous tones and texture. Someone named it fifty shades of brown. I'm with the left owl who is ready for bed. See you tomorrow. via

DIY Kitchen

Nothing is built-in, everything is free standing. I can't figure what that blurry thing is on the sliding track, can you? Anyway, I like this simple kitchen. via

Communal Spring Cleaning, pen and ink by W. Heath Robinson

Hilarious. I was watching the British Antiques Road Show and fell in love with this artist, W. Heath Robinson

Extraordinary Ampersand

WOW. This is so creative and really beautiful in every way. via 

Iced Coffee

Iced coffee is a favorite summertime treat of mine but never in the morning. I require HOT coffee to wake me up. How about you? 

Photo by Amy Johnson

Pink Climbing Roses on a Stone Cottage

Such a lovely image. I wish I could smell them. Roses always remind me of my grandmother. via

Great Kitchen Island

A real cook would love this island. I wonder if it gets moved around? I love anything with wheels, don't you? via

Stonehedge Farm by Catalano Architects

Everyone loves the previous photo of the foyer at Stonehedge Farm in Massachusetts. This is the view from the top of the stairs. Your wish is my command; click here for a complete house tour, inside and out. Photo Credit: Brian Vanden Brink

Elegant Foyer and Staircase

Oh.my.goodness. This is simply stunning. I love the restraint. Just enough decorating to allow the architecture to shine through. via

Primrose and Robin.

John Wainwright - “Primrose and Robin” 1864. This painting is so very beautiful.

(c) Royal Albert Memorial Museum; Supplied by The Public Catalogue Foundation via

Great Antique Bench

Just inside the front door of a lovely home. It was the perfect piece for the space. my iPhone photo

Paying your Taxes the Old-Fashioned Way

click photo to enlarge

Pieter Brueghel the Younger (1565–1636), Flemish painter. Oil on panel circa 1620. USC Fisher Museum of Art, The Armand Hammer Collection. I always publish a photo of this painting on April 15th. I'm staying away from the post office today because of the lines to mail income taxes. I'll check my box tomorrow. I mailed mine on Friday.