If Tomorrow Comes

Bishop recommended this book to me and I finally finished it the other night. It was damn good. When Bishop was in his teens he would take the train from 30th Street Station in Philly down to stay at his grandfather’s home in Jacksonville, Florida. One Summer he brought If Tomorrow Comes and when he'd call home to his mother they'd chat about where they were in the book and how fantastic it was. "Girl," Bishop warned me, "it's a page turner. You won't be able to put it down." The only other Sidney Sheldon novel I knew of was The Other Side of Midnight. My mother read that when it came out in the 70s and said, "I stayed up until two o'clock in the morning! I couldn't put it down! Couldn't put it down" I gotta agree, that Sidney Sheldon is a helluva writer. He sure knows how to build the suspense and keep you on the edge of your seat, literally.

My Kinda Thursday Night

After working nineteen days in a row and pulling ten hour shifts during the week, tonight I plan on settling in for some Rockford Files. Man, I love this show.

(Ha! Looks like Mr. Swayze photo-bombed this pic!)

(post-post script - it's 4:30 in the morning on Friday and I'm still up and onto disc three. I'm never gonna get any sleep!)

Bee Paddy!!

Spotted this near Dublin Castle and thought it was the cutest thing in all of Ireland.

Love, Kimmy

Look what arrived in my mail-slot last night all the way from Sweden! 

(is it just me or does kimmy's handwriting bear a striking resemblance to lisa o'donnell's??)

Smithfield Cabinet

Cars and Films

Jesús Prudencio created the below film posters, among others, for a series entitled Cars and Films. I think they are clean, simple, and absolutely outstanding. They're also available on etsy. The ones for sale no longer show the film title; they just simply state Cars and Films. I prefer the ones with the title, as seen below.

(first two posters kidnapped from laughingsquid)

Saturday Out and About

This afternoon I picked up Zach (and got to see my sister-in-law and Jax for a bit) and headed out for our lunch together. We had made these plans before I decided to do a 30 day juice reboot. I didn't want to cancel our lunch date, so I decided to compromise. We went to Heart Beet Kitchen (where else would I go?) and Zach got their zucchini noodles with eggplant meatballs (which smelled incredible - one whiff with my eyes closed and I would have thought I was in an authentic Italian kitchen) and I scored a truly yum-yum delicious smoothie. I picked their Sweet Green which consists of kale, banana, apples, cinnamon, chia seeds, dates, protein powder, and almond milk. It was very filling and tasted like a homemade holiday chai tea. The grub was good, but getting some one on one alone time with Zach and daydreaming about building me a Tiny Dream House was the best thing ever.  

(my silliness is contagious, so watch out!)

(only a truly confident and cool thirteen year old will use a flip phone and not give a f**k what anyone else thinks - man, this guy is the bee's knees.)

(i really feel so grateful that all of my nieces and nephews are so open minded when trying new foods and i absolutely love when they try something healthy and vegan and dig in voraciously all the while saying "mmmm....." and "ohmigod, this is so good...")

(i debated whether or not to include this pic of my smoothie, as it looks kind of horrible, but this is my friggin' blog, and honestly, i'm one of maybe three people that read this thing, so i'ma do what i want! - also, i'd like to note that in an effort to stop using plastic throwaway cups and straws, i brought my own and they were very happy to accommodate without looking at me like some weirdo.)

Welcome to Happiness

Quirky with a capital quirk. Brendan Sexton has been my favourite actor for the past 22 years and he just gets better and better. I'm so proud of the work he's done.

William's Lane LaRue

If You're Not In The Obit...

I finished watching this show with Mama Rosie this past weekend and man, was it inspirational. Reading Dick Van Dyke's Keep Moving and (up next) Jimmy Carter's The Virtues of Aging plus this wonderful take on life after turning ninety has me feeling less depressed about aging. I'm putting the focus back on eating right, exercising more, and staying positive so that I can stay strong like these scamps:

(photo kidnapped from thehollywoodreporter)

Get Outta Here

Sully

Great. Effing. Movie.

Last Meal...

...for a month, anyways. Today began a thirty day juice fast and so yesterday I took Mama Rose to my fave place. I got lucky because Heart Beet had a special - flax waffles with strawberries! Absolutely divine. As was the bruschetta with fresh cherries, strawberries, mint, and basil with yummy balsamic drizzle. I'm seriously in love with this place.

Three Gal Pals

Today Mum and I went to see Nana Irma who was in high spirits and looking much better. We even got in some selfies!

Keep Moving

Anne recommended this to me and it is seriously delightful. A fast and charming read; the sort of book where you can hear the author's voice so clearly on every page. Oooo....I wonder if Dick Van Dyke did an audio version of this....how fabulous would that be for one of my treks across the Atlantic!?

Fan Girl

I betcha I am the only gal to send this postcard to Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter.

The Car

What a fun Sunday morning flick! Plus it featured Kathleen Lloyd, from one of my fave eps of Hart to Hart as well as a gorgeously moustachio'ed (handlebar at that!) James Brolin. Plus Kyle Richards from Little House on the Prairie and Watcher in the Woods (!!) and Kim Richards from a wonderful episode of The Rockford Files. Oh and Ronny Cox!! Just all kinds of fun. Afterwards I starting daydreaming of a sequel, starring the gals all growed up. They've come home to celebrate their father's retirement as sheriff and suddenly A Car comes to seek revenge after forty years...Oh if only I had the power to make it so!! Perhaps we could get Ms Streisand to put in a cameo as Brolin's lady love...the possibilities are endless. Especially with my wacko mind.

More from The Beet

Mmmm....seasonal fruit salad...

I never EVER tire of the Coconut BLT....

And Lauryn got the Almond Nut Butter Sandwich which looks delish!

Before and Now

Summer is almost here and Baby needed to brighten up m'do. It's been like 7 years (??!) since I last had it coloured purple. It's more magenta then I expected, but it's bright and bold and I'm quite happy with it. Not as pleased with the stains in my bathtub or on my palms, but it's not permanent. 

Saturday All Day

Saturday was spent with one of my bestest besties of all time, Jackson. We went ot MOM'S in Bryn Mawr/Rosemont area for lunch, made a pit stop at Sweet Freedom Bakery, hung out at my place to watch (and love!) Pee Wee's Big Adventure. Then it was off to see Nana Rose and lil' Miss Lucy while we worked on a Father's Day project for Xavier. For some reason we tend to have the most fun just driving around, looking for yellow cars to shout "BINGO!" while we chat and listen to music. So far Jax really likes M83's Midnight City, Beastie Boys' Interglactic, Vum You Have Gold ("this song is the best...is she saying You have gold but I have power?"), Roy Orbison A Love So Beautiful, all things Olly Murs ("he's got a cool voice"), David Bowie Lady Stardust (which he knew so well from listening to his father's Ziggy Stardust album that he was singing along), and stellastarr* In the Walls. About halfway through our time together and the second time this month we hung out (Ashlee canceled on me last week at the 11th hour and Jax and I were able to spend the day together...wish granted!), Jackson says, "When are we hanging out again?" Man, this kid makes me happy. Love him to pieces.

Another Goodbye

Friday night brought Ashlee and Sean's (and Bailey, too!) last day in Philly. True to our ritual, we went to Dunkin' Donuts on Grant to chat for a bit. There's never enough time and our farewell hug is one that neither of us wants to break. Fingers are crossed that Sean will be discharged before the year is out and they can move back to Philly permanently!

The Obsession Goes On...

It's no secret that I adore Martin Clunes and this book just makes me smile. A lovely escape from a tough week at the office.

Afrodisiac

(spotted this outside the Visionary Arts Museum in Baltimore)

New York Fridge

(we have the same Brita pitcher!!)

Rory Gallagher Corner LaRue

A Loofah for Your Toofahs

I absolutely love CocoFloss! I read about it online somewheres and one of the descriptions stated that the texture of the floss was similar to a loofah and that it leaves your teeth feeling über clean. I immediately signed up to receive two packets of floss every four months in random flavours. My first order arrived last night and it really is fab floss! I can't wait to talk to Dr. Davis about it at my cleaning in July. Next up I plan on trying oil pulling. Have youse heard about this practice? It's supposed to help remove bacteria from your mouth and whiten your teeth. Apparently one would swish some coconut oil through one's teeth for 5-20 minutes. I kinda think I have to give this a whirl. Anything that makes dental hygiene fun is something I'm willing to try!

Heart Beet Sweets

(i'm kind of obsessed with this place)