Happy Earth Day!

The folks at Punchbowl (who provide my blog widget) tell us that today is Earth Day. Here in Minne-snow-tah -- where just last week, it seems, there was more snow here than we knew what to do with -- we natives are celebrating what finally feels like spring. We can come up with no END of things to do to celebrate this fabulous day! But if you're at a loss, hopefully these suggestions off the top of my head will get you started:

•  Grab that pail of sidewalk chalk and draw a big, smileyface Earth at the end of your driveway. Add a verse or just a word balloon that says "Happy Earth Day!" Live in a condo or apartment? Draw something cheery on an empty parking space or shared sidewalk. Someone will appreciate it when they return home tonight. :)
• Roll up your sleeves, catch some UVs, take a stroll around the block and smile and wave at everyone you meet.
• Kneel down and look (really LOOK) at those teensy green bits that are already reaching out for the sun. Pull back a handful of matted leaves and notice that all sorts of living, crawling things are busy celebrating today, too.
• Sun tea. You don't need anything fancy; just a jar and some tea bags. Fill the jar with water, lower a bunch of tea bags into it, screw on the lid, and set it in the sun. Don't like tea? Grab a coffee filter, add some ground coffee, tie the filter closed, and follow the above directions.
• Hammock up, if you've got one. Pull it into the sun, relax, and watch clouds. No hammock? Throw a quilt on the ground, pull up a lawn chair, or claim a park bench. No clouds? Check out the heavens. You'll be surprised once your eye adjusts to the distance. There are eagles soaring around way up there!
• Salute the sun IN the sun. Go slow. Hold each yoga pose. Feel worshipful.
• Dedicate a little gardeny bit to the fairies. Pour them a tiny dish of cream, serve them a strawberry or a chocolate chip, share something sparkly. Write them a note! Here at Tumbledown, they sometimes even write back.
• Make some noise. Everything is made of music and all will respond to your vibration. Want to get started? Take something simple, like a tune from childhood, and just change the words. Voila! Now even though it sounds like 'Row, Row, Row Your Boat' it's really a song prayer. A hymn.
• Open that bottle of dandelion wine from last year. Toast the earth. Share your glassful by pouring a bit of it on the ground. Yum! The earth gave you weeds and you give her wine. The eternal return.
• And the usual drill: Hug a tree, visit a nature center, get your fingernails dirty, feed the ducks, wish on a star, plant a seed, wear something green, fill-in-the-blank. And check out the Earth Day site (www.earthday.org) for more info.

Now you got it!

But you don't need ME for ideas, do you?, you creative kindred spirit, you. SO:

"Enjoy your wonder-filled day
Your own special way,
And then tell me all about it, 'k?"

(Shutting up now. Promise!)

:)
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Celebrate Your Sweeties

Hug'm, feed'm, luv'm, need'm,

Look into their eyes and greet'm,

Walk'm, pet'm, play 'Go-Get-'Em,'

Never let yourself forget'm.

None to luv? Adopt a stray --

'Cause it's National Pet Day!

~delayne.

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The folks who provide my blog widget (yay, Punchbowl!; check it out, over there in the right margin) tell us that today is National Pet Day.

Here at Tumbledown, this is a BIG AFFAIR. There are many little friends here to hug on!

Do you have a pet? Are you like me and surround yourself with critters? Want to talk about them here? :)
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Meet the Newbies

Do not be fooled by their sweet faces....

In addition to these not-always-so-daily posts I also write a not-always-so-daily e-mail blast, and one of the things I like to include in each is the info provided by the fun folks at Punchbowl who provide my blog widget (scroll down at right and you'll see it).

Today when I clicked on the widget to get more info (it's National Hot Fudge Sundae Day, yay!), I also learned that this week is National Zookeeper's Week. Well, huh! With all the creatures I happily tend here at Tumbledown each day -- the monarch 'pillars; the grandbug's terrarium of pillbugs; the beta fish, cockatiel, housemouse, snakes, tarantula, blah, etc., fill-in-the-blank -- I feel like I should be taking the week off in celebration.

So in honor of my perceived 'zookeeperishness' I'll take this opportunity to share with you Tumbledown's most recent addition: meet 'Lovey' and 'Thurston,' a pair of rescued lovebirds (courtesy of my James, who isn't bothered by insane tropical bird noise, for which I'm totally grateful).

Lovey's on the left in the photo above. She looks all sweet and ladylike, doesn't she? Guess again! These were abandoned birds for a reason, and I have a hole in the thumb of my Menard's leather gardening gloves to prove it.

But I'm patient.
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Happy Pigs-in-a-Blanket Day!

The party plannin' Punchbowl folks who provide my cool blog widget tell us that in addition to today being Administrative Professionals Day, it's also Pigs-in-a-Blanket Day (who knew?).

The Punchbowlians have this to say about it:

Today is National Pigs-In-A-Blanket Day! This delicious finger food is popular with kids and cocktail party guests all across the world. In fact, there are many different cultures that have their own unique twist on this comfort food classic.

In the United Kingdom, pigs-in-a-blanket are small sausages wrapped in bacon. People traditionally serve them as Christmas dinner appetizers. In Israel, kids enjoy Moshe Ba'Teiva (Moses in the Ark), which are miniature hot dogs rolled in a ketchup-covered puff pastry and baked in the oven. In the United States, pigs-in-a-blanket are hot dogs or Vienna sausages wrapped in biscuit or croissant dough and baked until golden brown. Yum!

No matter where you are or how you decide to cook your pigs-in-a-blanket, make this tasty finger food for dinner tonight and serve it with a side of ketchup. Happy National Pigs-In-A-Blanket Day!

Well, cool.

And because I think piggies are much more fun to draw than Administrative Professionals, here is my blogsketch for today's celebratory shenanigans.

Enjoy! And may your day be fun-filled.

:)

...delayne.

And the Winner is....

Oh those Punchbowl folks. They just keep giving us fun reasons to celebrate (and DRAW, don't forget!). And today we're looking at Cordon Bleu Day.

A Punchbowl snippet sez this about it:

"Did you know that “cordon bleu” means “blue ribbon” in French? In the 1500s, the Order of the Knights of the Holy Spirit became known as “Les Cordon Bleus.” The knights used a blue ribbon to hang their talisman, and eventually the term became associated with distinction and honor. Today, we still award blue ribbons for excellence!"

So I'm awarding today's blogsketch to YOU. You win the Most Excellent Reader blue ribbon, my dear.

Congratulations!

:)

~delayne.
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Let's Celebrate Together!

I had no idea that today is World Party Day. And Punchbowl -- the folks who host my blog widget -- have this to say about it:

"Today is World Party Day! World Party Day (or P-Day) is a synchronized global celebration that seeks to make the world a better place. The motto for this holiday is “Party is the opposite of War.” The idea behind it is that we can only create a better reality by taking positive action and celebrating life (instead of passively promoting peace).

"The first World Party Day (known as World Party I) took place on April 3, 1996. The novel Flight by Vanna Bonta inspired the event. The story ends with a countdown to a mass celebration where all of humanity is united. Readers took the idea and organized a real worldwide party!"

Cool. Who knew that World Party Day was a real thing? Not me....

And since I'm unfamiliar with Vanna Bonta's novel I think I'll have to give it some attention too. (Have you read it? And what did you think?)

Have fun today!

...delayne.
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Happy Pencil Day

Expecto Patronum!

In my sunny Minnesota neighborhood today all things were clothed in spring. Cars cruised by with their windows open and sub-woofers thumping. Motorcycles brapped their tailpipes in the distance, accelerating up on-ramps like frisky colts stretching their legs. Joggers jogged and bicyclists biked. And I walked and walked, inhaling the season and discovering treasure: I live within spitting distance of a handful of schools, and where there are schools there are pencils.

Last night's thunderstorm and today's warmish temps caused the remaining winter snow to recede remarkably, and my eye spied a whole handful of pencils on my walk. Some were broken, some were just stubs... but I knew that inside them all were things just begging to come out. Things that I was curious to discover.

So home with me they went.

When I took off my jacket and quickly checked emails, I learned that today is Pencil Day. Who knew?? And Punchbowl, the folks who provide my Blog Widget, had this to say about it:

On this day in 1858, the United States Patent and Trademark Office granted the first-ever patent for a modern pencil with an eraser attached to it. Hymen Lipman created the wooden pencil and received high praise for how easy it was to use for writing and drawing.

Did you know that a single wooden pencil can write 45,000 words or draw a line that is 35 miles long? A pencil can also write under water, upside down, or in zero gravity. Manufacturers painted the first pencils yellow because the color was associated with royalty and honor. People quickly began assuming that yellow pencils were the best type!

To celebrate Pencil Day, set aside your laptop and use a pencil and paper to write today!

OK!

But I didn't write with my pencil. I drew instead.

And as I drew I thought of the character of Harry Potter. I thought of Harry's personal 'Patronus' -- his protective spirit guardian -- and how it manifested as a glowing, ghostly stag from the tip of his wand when he pointed it and said the magick words. And I wondered what sort of wizard would have a pencil as a magick wand and what manner of Patronus would come from it.

And then I thought to myself, "Anyone with a pencil for a magick wand would have a Patronus limited only by the boundaries of their imagination."

And then I thought, "...Cool."
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