red sox

Misty Morning

October 7, 2021 at 9:43 am by Claudia

More misty mornings.

Spider webs everywhere, leaves turning color, an altogether magical-almost-otherworldly landscape. That is one of the joys of autumn.

I am coaching Ben both today and tomorrow, so this has turned out to be a satisfying week of working almost every day. That hasn’t happened in a long time! It’s wonderful to feel productive and valued and to have the opportunity to do what I do best. Though I am prone to the same doubts as everyone, I am good at what I do and I know it.

One of my former students wrote me the other day. One of the things I taught my students at both Boston University and the University of San Diego, was the International Phonetic Alphabet and its use in transcribing sounds and sound changes. Each symbol represents a sound (and there are far more out there than I had to teach my actors) and they are invaluable for transcribing sound changes for dialect work. Elisa, who I taught at USD, said this:

I was thinking of and channeling you today. After many years of not doing any IPA, I dusted it off today to transcribe Chinese. My son just started taking classes and I am working with him at home. Without IPA, I would not be able to capture the sounds that we need to have to refer to. At any rate, it’s not the original application, but I thought you might like to know that your teaching in phonetics helped me greatly in teaching my dyslexic son to read, and now I am passing my transcription skills to the next generation.

Isn’t that the best? I can’t tell you how much this kind of thing means to me. To see it being used in a new and fresh way that adapts to Elisa’s particular situation is wonderful. I will hold this close to my heart.

I also had a former student reach out to ask me if I could send her the phonetic changes for a German dialect, which I somehow managed to find in my files. I sent them off to her, with the proviso that they were general and if she needed more specific regional sound changes, she’d need to research them.

The coaching and the interaction with former students all happened within the past four days, so I’m beginning to recognize my professional self again.

We stayed up late watching the Red Sox vs Yankees the other night. The Red Sox won, thank goodness (sorry, Yankees fans – I was perfectly willing to accept a Yankees win, if it happened) and tonight they start their 3 game series with the Tampa Bay Rays (my sister’s team.) The Rays are really, really good, so this will be interesting. We don’t often get to watch the Red Sox because we’re not in their broadcast area, so this will be fun.

Okay. Have to get going and put makeup on to zoom coach! After a year and half of no makeup, I’ve been wearing it quite a bit lately.

Stay safe.

Happy Thursday.

Paris, Part Three

October 26, 2018 at 10:29 am by Claudia

Good morning! It’s so cold here this morning! I had to run an errand yesterday and I noticed that the last time I was in the car before leaving on our trip, I had the A/C on. What a change in a little over two weeks!

We’re still coping with jet lag. Yesterday we fell asleep on the sofa at about 5:30 and slept as if we were drugged. We had to force ourselves awake to eat dinner, as well as not succumbing to sleep until at least 10 pm. Woke up at 5 am, just like yesterday.

I feel as if I am half in this world here at the cottage and half in the world we just left behind. I miss our trip. I miss the luxury of spending all day with my husband; exploring, learning, being. I miss seeing new places, chatting with those we met along the way, marveling at the beauty I saw everywhere. I’ll freely admit that I wish I was back there, much as I love our little cottage.

We’ve each said at different times that we feel transformed. We’re not the same.

Some more of Paris for you. (I have at least one more Paris post after this one.)

I’m in love with the Seine. Completely and utterly in love.

On the Right Bank.

The Place des Vosges. Gorgeous, with a little park in the center of the Place.

Notre Dame and the tip of the Ile de là Cité.

I think someone was moving, but I briefly considered stealing this table.

We went to Montmartre on our anniversary (more on that tomorrow) and the first place we sought out was this café, the Café des 2 Moulins. (Moulin means windmill and Montmartre is known for windmills.) This is the place where Amelie was filmed, her place of work. They now pay homage to their appearance in the movie, but it’s not over-the-top. We had lunch there. Absolutely charming.

There are obviously a lot of Amelie fans, as several people took the same photos we did!

In looking back at my photos this morning, I noticed that the street address in a couple of them is 21. Twenty-one is my favorite number, as it is the day I was born. I’m drawn to it – apparently, I’m drawn to it subconsciously, as well, as I had no idea that these numbers were there until today.

Another example:

Look familiar?

We went to the Marche aux Puces at Clingnacourt/St. Ouen on the weekend and I found a few things. This is a famous flea market and it’s HUGE. I had no idea! The antique/vintage section of it opened a bit later than the rest, so we had a bite to eat while we waited. Don bought a sweet watercolor, we bought a vintage lithograph (!!!) which will be sent to us. And I found a few little treasures – I went for “little” as I had to transport anything I bought home with us.

I found these two eggcups, which are darling. They’re not vintage, but they are so charming. And the morning glories just won me over. There were four of them, but I bought two.

Another egg cup – this one is indeed vintage. There’s a marking on the bottom that I can’t quite make out. I’ll have to study it further.

I bought this miniature pitcher for my collection. Isn’t it lovely?

And I finally found a vintage match striker. I’ve been wanting one for a long time. They were used in cafés and often served as advertising for a company. I really love them (oh no, another collection?) but I’d never found one stateside. There are some very high-end dealers there but that’s not what I was interested in. Finally, I found a wonderful warren of aisles that were just the ticket. That’s where I found the egg cups and pitcher and the match striker.

The name of the company that is advertising on this striker is Frémy Fils & Cie. (Frémy Sons and Company).

The other side: Eaux-de-vie et Liqueurs.

With matches:

And on the French bistro table:

I love it.

More tomorrow. I’m starting to feel a wee bit human again.

Even though we’ve been less attentive fans in the past couple of years, we’re thrilled that our Red Sox are in the World Series, so we’ll be watching tonight.

Happy Friday.

Sunday Thoughts and a Thank You

October 9, 2016 at 9:34 am by Claudia

Before I get into today’s post, I want to thank everyone for the conversation that was sparked by yesterday’s post – even the dissenters.

Those who disagree and want to disengage from the blog are obviously free to do so. I’m not writing this blog 365 days a year in order to gain lots of followers. And 4 or 5 posts about the election hardly makes this a ‘political’ blog. I’m writing the blog for me, as a daily journal. That I can share it with all of you is the icing on the cake.

Here’s the deal (a phrase I use all the time here at home): I work hard at being tolerant but I draw the line at tolerating racism, misogyny, bigotry, xenophobia, and sexism. And any defense of Mr. Trump carries with it the implication that those beliefs are tolerated and supported. How can it not? That those beliefs are toxic and the death knell to any sense of respect I might hold for someone is also true.

There is no defense. None.

We can grow. We can educate ourselves. And I can hope that healing comes. I can pray for the release of the fears and ignorance that fuel those beliefs. I can and do.

I am heartened by the sheer amount of positive comments, by those who also see that this ’emperor’ has no clothes.

As for speaking out on my blog; it is imperative that we all speak out. We have only to look back at the rise of other dangerous dictators to know what happens when people don’t speak out and take action.

If someone is offended, so be it. I really don’t care. This is too important.

As I wrote in one of my responses yesterday, my dad was onto Donald Trump long ago. He detested him and everything he stands for. That Trump managed to become the Republican nominee for President was knowledge my father was spared, mercifully. But I know he would be proud of me and of my sister (who has also spoken out about this election on her blog). So would my mom.

Meredith and I speak our minds. We speak out. We try to do the right thing. That’s how we were raised.

And thank you for your spirited defense of my words. That means so much to me. More than you know. My husband read the post and cheered me on throughout the day. We are of one mind on this subject.

Moving on. Some fading flowers I photographed recently, each of them beautiful.

10-8-flower

Fading zinnia.

10-8-fadingbuddelia

Fading Butterfly Bush.

10-8-fadingphlox1

Fading phlox.

10-8-fadingconeflower

Fading coneflower.

10-8-fadinghydrangea

Fading hydrangea.

10-8-fadingphlox2

Fading phlox.

It turned colder overnight and it’s windy outside! All of the leaves that we raked up have been replaced by a lot more leaves. It’s as if we never raked – so goes changeable Autumn.

Today: the Red Sox (who aren’t doing too well in this series, darn it!) and the debate.

I only hope I can sleep at the end of the day.

I’m going to close comments on yesterday’s post.

One more thing: a reminder about my post on DHA and the essential nutrients we need. If you’re interested in a vegetarian source of omega-3s, stop by and read the sponsored post.

Happy Sunday.

ClaudiaSignature140X93

Misty Morning

Paris, Part Three

Sunday Thoughts and a Thank You

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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