Sunday links: Letters, and culture, and drug busts! oh, MY!

It’s been a bit since I’ve done a Sunday Links post. Which makes me sad. And I don’t like being sad.

(Well, unless being sad gives me an inner sense of justification about horking down a half of an apple, pear and craisin butter crumble pie in a single sitting.)

(In which case, being sad can be enormously satisfying.)

(As pie usually is.)

(At least at the moment.)

(Binging on pie is like that man you KNOW is bad for you but you call to come over anyway, only to wake up in the morning smelling of pie crust and SHAME.)

(Not that I would know about that from experience or anything.)

But I digress…

As usual, this is a list of links, snippets and scribblings I’ve come across on Ye Olde Interwebs that have tickled my fancy for one reason or the other.

Hope you enjoy. :)

LETTERS OF NOTE

I’m a little obsessed with the site, “Letters of Note”.  I could faff about in the archives for hours. One of my favorite places on the planet is the reading room of The British Library. Specifically, the Sir John Ritblat Gallery which contains original manuscripts of some of the most important documents in history. (Beowulf, aGutenberg Bible, Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, Thomas Malory’s Le Morte Darthur (King Arthur) Captain Cook’s journal, Jane Austen’s History of England, Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures Under Ground, Rudyard Kipling’s Just So Stories, Charles Dickens’s Nicholas Nickleby, Virginia Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway and a room devoted solely to Magna Carta.I WAS IN HEAVEN. (I risked life and limb to snap a flashless photo of AN ORIGINAL COPY OF ‘THE MESSIAH’. (I about passed out and died when I saw it, people. It’s my favorite piece of music to perform.) (More on that later.)

ANYWAY…this site has a similar feel. It has a whole bunch of very important letters on it.

This one hit me hard: “A letter to my widow”, written by Captain Robert Falcon Scott in 1912 to his wife and 9-month-old son as he was dying with the rest of his crew on an ill-fated expedition to the South Pole.

(To lighten the mood, this one from Steve Martin to a fan is HILARIOUS.)

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IT’S ALMOST HERE! (SQUEE!)

Remember this photo by the lovely Fancy Farm Girl? (Yes, I was in the midst of my robust and very loud “DONKEY LAUGHTER”

It seems like forever ago when my boss, Jo, and I went to Ree’s ranch to shoot her for the cover of our magazine. At the time, it felt like the launch was eons away, but the time has finally come!

Where Women Cook, the magazine I work/blog/social media for and have been SO excited about, hits stores in THREE DAYS! I finally saw a copy last week and IT IS GORGEOUS. (It would make a GREAT gift under the tree.) If you’re in the New York City area, we would LOVE to have you come to our launch and signing at Chelsea Market on Dec. 1oth from 2-5pm. The food people that are going to be there are impressive. And if you haven’t had a chance to get your cookbook signed by The Pioneer Woman, now is your chance. :)

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I TOTALLY KNOW WHAT I AM GETTING EVERYONE FOR CHRISTMAS

Everyone needs a “celestial soul portrait’, no?

Seriously, who could turn down this before and after work of beauty?

(My PERSONAL favorite is Iasos. That is one SEXY laser beam coming out of his forehead.)

I do not think I have ever, EVER laughed so flipping hard at an internet link before. (Ok, maybe I have. “You make me touch your hands for stupid reasons” was also REALLY high up there in the HA HA HA HA! factor).

I digress.

My friend, Catherine, is having this done. She’s filled out a “Soul Questionnaire” and everything. Stay tuned. I will let you know how her portrait turns out. You know, after Erial “meditates and “tunes into her”, to “get her unique essence” n’ stuff.

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FRIEND BRAGGING RIGHTS
(This isn’t really as much of a link as it is a “HOLY COW, does that deserve a mention!” sort of thing)

I’m not really sure what one says when in the middle of a conversation with a good friend on a regular Saturday and you ask how life is treating them lately and they casually say, “Well, I was part of the 2nd largest drug bust in US history a few weeks ago, so that was awesome“.

Uh…WOW.

TWENTY TONS of weed, people. (I think they said it was like 17 million joints. Heh.) A tunnel the length of 7 football fields.  DANG.

(I go back and forth on the issue of drug legalization, but that is a post for another day.) (THIS is a post about the fact that I have impressive friends and I like to brag about them on occasion.)  (Although, to make me feel like a super jerk, I didn’t even know that my friend of 5-years was employed by I.C.E.) (I know, right?!) (He doesn’t mention his job often. I just knew that he was in law enforcement in California and honestly thought that he worked for Vice.) (I was wrong.) (Shows me what I know.) (I should also mention that until about a week ago I had no idea what I.C.E. stood for.) (Again, I know, right?!) (I didn’t tell him that.) (AND now since I’m outing myself here anyway, and as he was super nice in letting me brag about him (anonymously, of course), I owe him a doughnut.) (Although, maybe that is cliche and stereotyping of me.)(Unless that is strictly a police officer stereotype and I can get away with it.)(And if it’s not, I’ll have to apologize and buy him ANOTHER doughnut for profiling him.)(I might have to buy him a third because of the ridiculous amounts of parenthesis I’ve used in this blurb.)

GOOD JOB, M! Well done, and I’m proud of ya! xo

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BAABAAZUZU

My fabulous boss, Jo, (seen up above in the photo with The Pioneer Woman and me doing snorting Donkey Laughter) gave me the BEST birthday gift this month: a hat, scarf and mittens from Baabaazuzu.com. I LOVE them. The are made from reclaimed woolen garments and are SERIOUSLY warm and ADORABLE. These are not the exact same as my items but they are close. (I’m also dying over her handbags.)

Cute, no? Because she uses reclaimed wool, no two things are alike. Also, the mittens are in the same color family but different on the fronts and backs. I am a huge fan. And man, do I need it in the cold Logan, Utah climate that I live in. LOVE them.

PROUD

My dear friend, Joanne C. Bamberger (aka “Pundit Mom”) is having a book published this fall:PunditMom’s Mothers of Intention: How Women & Social Media Are Revolutionizing Politics in America. And I have an essay included in it. I received the final edits of my silly scribblings she is graciously including in it this week and I grinned my head off all day. Of all the things that came of my visit to The White House, I think I am most proud of this one. Thanks for letting me be a part of it all, Joanne!

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IMPLEMENTING PHOTOGRAPHY INTO YOUR HOLIDAY TABLE

I LOVE this tutorial for a Thanksgiving table setting. (I’m also fond of the blog it’s featured on. What can I say? I am a proud mama, y’all. I’ll never get tired of looking at and writing for it.) While that particular holiday has passed you can easily use the same idea for any holiday.

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I WILL NEVER WHINE ABOUT HOW LONG IT TAKES FOR MY CABLE TO COME BACK ON. EVER.

I really never gave thought to what it would take to work on a major antenna. Seriously, there is simply NOT ENOUGH MONEY IN THE WORLD. I wonder how many people have been killed working in this job. The height and sheer danger of it make me nauseated.

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BEAUTIFUL

I have been blessed to know and read some outstanding things in my 5+ years as a blogger. It never fails to fill me with wonder and amazement at what words are able to pour from a mind and soul onto a page. This post by my friend, Laurie, took my breath away.

I tried to imagine her forgiving me for all that I didn’t do in the years that she was sick — all of the time I wasted on a man who would do nothing but find me inadequate and break my heart, and friends who in spite of varying value would never mean as much to me as she did.

She reached out her hand and told me to stop. She would never acknowledge my need for her forgiveness. She absolved me everything, never thinking she had to absolve me anything.

I wish that I was capable of writing something as moving as this, but for now I will be content to be able to read it.

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HANDBAG WUV

I needed a new handbag for my upcoming trip to NYC, and this one (Big Buddah Arlene) was everything I wanted: grey, cute, big, handles and a strap and on sale. (I am also a sucker for flowers on things.) I’m very pleased with the purchase. Woot.

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A BAND OF (AND FOR) BROTHERS

One of my favorite mini-series was Band of Brothers. It was an excellent book and has one of the loveliest orchestral scores ever, in my opinion. I have endless admiration for those men (and all veterans). I was saddened to read about of the impending passing of Dick Winters (the much loved and revered commander of Easy Company during WWII). An 11-year-old near Dick Winters town of Hershey, PA, is selling “Hang Tough” wristbands to erect a statue of Lt. Winters, now 92, on Utah Beach. It’s a $1 per band, and I already made my purchases for stocking stuffers for my boys and husband. Please consider spreading the word online, if the spirit moves.

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GREAT IDEA FOR YOUR LAUNDRY ROOM (Especially for you types that are great with a camera)

My long-time bloggity pal, Angella, redid her laundry room a few years ago. It’s an old post but this idea remains one of the most clever and adorable things I’ve seen online over the years. She framed photos she snapped of her children (like the one below) and put them on her wall by the washer and dryer. Adorable.If I ever GET a laundry room, I would love to copy it.

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NO. JUST…NO.

Effervescent bacon-flavored Drink tablets, anyone? I love bacon as much as the next person, but dude…I draw the line at bacon-flavored Alka Seltzer water. (They would make a kick ass white elephant, though!)

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RANDOM ACTS OF CULTURE

(If you click on only ONE thing in this post, please let this be it.).

Saving the best for last, I found this GEM earlier this week on Facebook.

Remember how I mentioned that my favorite piece of music to perform is The Messiah?  Well, it is. I’ve done the Mezzo role in it countless times and it is during that role that one of my favorite performing photos was taken of me, waiting in the wings to go on:

So, I was almost leaping out of my chair yelling , “BRAVO!” when I saw this video:

The description says it all.

“On Saturday, October 30, 2010, the Opera Company of Philadelphia brought together over 650 choristers from 28 participating organizations to perform one of the Knight Foundation’s “Random Acts of Culture” at Macy’s in Center City Philadelphia. Accompanied by the Wanamaker Organ – the world’s largest pipe organ – the OCP Chorus and throngs of singers from the community infiltrated the store as shoppers, and burst into a pop-up rendition of the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s “Messiah” at 12 noon, to the delight of surprised shoppers. This event is one of 1,000 “Random Acts of Culture” to be funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation over the next three years. The initiative transports the classical arts out of the concert halls and opera houses and into our communities to enrich our everyday lives.”

I mentioned I was snagging it and Susan emailed and was kind enough to let me in on the history of it and a bit about the building:

“This isn’t just a regular Macy’s department store, in a regular old mall. It’s the old flagship John Wanamaker’s department store in downtown Philadelphia. The Macy’s corporation bought it when it purchased Wanamaker’s some years ago. The building is gorgeous and huge (envision any of the grand old-school NYC department stores, occupying an entire city block…but in Philly) and contains one of the most spectacular and largest pipe organs, anywhere. There are daily recitals and seasonal concerts, so it wouldn’t have been at all a shock for shoppers to hear the music start. But on the flip side, since it’s such an exceptional instrument, and an exceptional space for such an event, I can’t imagine how majestic that choir was in person.”

Seriously, can you imagine being in the center of one of the largest pipe organs in the world and a 650-member choir singing The Hallelujah Chorus when you’re shopping for shoes at Macey’s????

I LOVED that they didn’t just focus on the performers but that they filmed the people experiencing it. Seeing SO many people singing along (and the right parts even!) MADE MY LIFE. There is not enough culture in this world, and so seeing this sort of restored my faith in humanity.

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THE END.

WHEW.

I need to post this more regularly so I don’t kill you all when I do, no?

It’s been a blast, people.

As always with posts like these, you are ALWAYS welcome to comment, but I post links to share the love, show you what I’ve been up to online in the week and so you can spend some time browsing on other sites. (Or just to torture you with the idea of effervescent bacon beverages.)

xo,

Loralee

(Ms. Tunes, if you’re nasty.)