Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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Snow and Books

February 10, 2020 at 9:59 am by Claudia

About 4 inches of wet snow fell over night and Don was outside shoveling his car out at 6:30. He has two auditions in the city this morning and he had to catch the bus. There’s still quite a bit to be shoveled, so I’m going to go out there after I have some oatmeal and finish this post.

Or maybe I’ll wait. It’s raining and will be off and on today. It’s also going to hit 42 degrees. I’ll see how much snow disappears with the help of the rain and then tackle it in the early afternoon.

Anyway, it was a topsy-turvy morning with our little routine thrown for a loop.

Loved the Oscars last night. It was one of the better Oscar nights I have seen, and by that, I mean the flow of the evening, the presenters, the opening number with Janelle Monae (fabulous!). I think it functions better without a host. We were happy to see Brad and Renée win. I haven’t seen The Joker  so I can’t speak to Joaquin Phoenix, but I sure loved his speech. My only disappointment was Laura Dern’s win. I have nothing against her, she’s a good actress, but that role was not Oscar-worthy. It was written as over-the-top stuff that was better suited to a soap opera. I’m sure she was directed that way, but nonetheless, I was shocked when she won. So was Don. It seems that we are the exceptions in our feelings about A Marriage Story – we weren’t crazy about it. I love Adam Driver in just about anything and he was solid, as usual. Scarlett Johansson? I think she was miscast – I never quite believed her. And Laura Dern seemed to be in a different movie. All of this may have been due to the director. I have no idea. Anyway, as always, just my opinion.

Okay. Enough about that.

We drove into our neighboring town yesterday after stopping by Rick’s to water his plants. There is a chocolate shop there that has the best sugar-free chocolate and those chocolates are my only sweet indulgences since I stopped eating sugar. I have one or two in the evening. We got some regular chocolates for Don, as well, and then visited the two bookstores that are on the same street. One is entirely used books, the other is a mix of new and used. I didn’t find anything in the used bookshop, but I did find some books in the other shop. One was used, two were new.

I love Charlie Lovett and I haven’t read this book. He writes books – mysteries – involving books and booksellers. This one focuses on Jane Austen and a mystery involving the “true authorship of Pride and Prejudice.” It sounds like fun.

I follow Patti Smith on Instagram. She is such a fascinating person. She writes beautifully and she is an avid reader. Every time I visit Oblong Books, I think of buying one of her books and I never do. It’s as if I’m getting messages to read them. Just yesterday, I was reading a weekly email – Brain Pickings – that I subscribe to and Smith was quoted about her love for libraries when she was a kid. I find references to her everywhere. I’m not at all drawn to her music, but I definitely feel that the Universe has been nudging me to read her, so I bit the bullet and got these two books.

My abstinence as to book buying? I fell off the wagon.

So that’s the latest. Shoveling is on the docket for today.

Happy Monday.

Filed Under: books, bookshops, snow 21 Comments

A Wee Bit of Snow

February 9, 2020 at 11:01 am by Claudia

The morning view as we sip our second cup of coffee. The coffee table is generally Don’s bailiwick for his current reading material, journal, datebook, pens, etc. I have my space in the den. I move in with my cup of coffee, cell phone, earbuds (which I remove of course while chatting with him) and in this case, one of my planners because I wanted to read a quote that I’d jotted down there to Don. I tend to wear earbuds if I’m listening to anything because we both like our mornings to be relatively quiet.

In fact, I’ll share that quote with you. It’s from Rebecca Solnit and it’s about books and reading.

The object we call a book is not the real book, but its potential, like a musical score or seed. It exists fully only in the act of being read, and its real home is inside the head of the reader, where the symphony resounds, the seed germinates.

I love that.

We had some snow last night and it’s still snowing rather gently. Hardly any accumulation but watching the fat flakes float gently down to the ground is rather lovely on this Sunday morning. We’re due to get a bit more overnight; the usual rain/snow combo that seems to be the theme of this winter.

We watched Separate Tables  on TCM last night. The night before we watched Interiors. I’d seen Interiors  many years ago and sort of discounted it at the time because it wasn’t Woody Allen’s usual fare. I’m really glad we watched it again because it was an homage to Ingmar Bergman and quite good.  I’d always known of Separate Tables, based on Terence Rattigan’s play of the same name, but hadn’t ever watched it. An excellent cast: David Niven, Deborah Kerr, Burt Lancaster, Rita Hayworth, Cathleen Nesbitt, Wendy Hiller, and Gladys Cooper. We liked it very much.

Today I have to water Rick’s plants one more time – I’m not sure when they’re getting back – and run a couple of errands. Don’s going to go along with me. Tonight, we settle in and watch the Oscars, because why not?

Happy Sunday.

Filed Under: books, movies, reading 26 Comments

Four Years

February 8, 2020 at 10:08 am by Claudia

Turns out I didn’t need to buy a copy of Jane Eyre; Caroline had a copy all along. I could have borrowed hers. That’s Anne of Green Gables (the very same edition my mom had that is now on my shelf) to the right of Jane Eyre.

It’s very cold out there today but it’s sunny! We’ve had so much rain and wind and dark skies this past week that I’m going to enjoy the sun today. From what I’ve read, there might not be much of it this next week. We had high winds yesterday (this is becoming a broken record) and they went on into the night. It’s still quite breezy but much better than last night.

I finished Transcription  last night and I quite enjoyed it, though not as much as Atkinson’s Jackson Brodie series. It’s about WWII Britain and MI5, spies, and all of that sort of thing. There’s an interesting twist at the end. Atkinson is a wonderful writer. There’s always a great deal of dry humor in her books, even when the subject matter is quite serious.

I am moving on to The Snowman  by Jo Nesbø, which I started this morning.

Other than that, I’m taking it easy this weekend. Even though I threaten not to watch the Oscars, I’m sure we will. It’s too much fun, even if it’s maddening. We’re cheering for Renée Zellweger and Brad Pitt. Did you know that Don worked with Brad when he was very young and just starting out? It was on a television show called Freddy’s Nightmares. I’ve seen a recording of it. Brad looks like he’s about 16. Anyway, Brad, according to Don, is a very nice guy. That’s not the reason I’m cheering him on, necessarily, but it doesn’t hurt. He’s a very good actor and he’s often underrated because of his looks. It would be nice to see him acknowledged. Other than those two, I have no favorites. It will be interesting to see what happens.

Today? Cleaning the bathroom, something you know I do not like. But it must be done. Maybe some work on the dollhouse, though I seem to have a problem getting motivated lately. Definitely reading.

We lost this magical creature on this date 4 years ago. I was working in Hartford at the time. We made the decision while I was home on my day off. I could see that she was failing and that it was time. Don, who had been taking care of her, had a harder time seeing it because he was right in the middle of it all. I had a little distance because I’d been away. But Don knew in his heart of hearts that it was time.

We miss her so. There’s less magic and joy around here nowadays. It’s there, but not as strongly as when my girl was alive. She taught us so much. She loved adventure. She was always joyful. She scolded us when she wanted something. She was smart as a whip. She made everyone she met happy. She was our magic girl.

We miss you, Scoutie. We miss you, Winston and Riley.

And no, it’s not time for us to adopt a dog yet. We’ll know when it’s time.

Happy Saturday.

Filed Under: books, Scout 38 Comments

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Welcome!

Welcome!

I live in a little cottage in the country with my husband. It's a sweet place, sheltered by old trees and surrounded by gardens. The inside is full of the things we love. I love to write, I love my camera, I love creating, I love gardening. My decorating style is eclectic; full of vintage and a bit of whimsy.

I've worked in the theater for more years than I can count. I'm currently a voice, speech, dialect and text coach freelancing on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater.

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The Dogs

The Dogs

Scout & Riley. Riley left us in 2012. Scout left us in February 2016. Dearest babies. Dearest friends.

Winston - Our first dog. We miss you, sweetheart.

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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