I inferred, from its being so miserable a marriage, that it was probably an unequal one in point of years.

The first beat of foreshadowing Ms. Sparsit's behavior later on in the novel.

.

IF: Spooky

The scene we play in the Portland Opera's Hansel and Gretel is actually very sweet and moving, but there is a slight nudge into the weird because we are wearing these chef costumes and the faces are a bit ghoulish.



It's especially amusing during rehearsals, as we are only in the wings and heads, not the fat suits or outfits. We are fourteen silent chefs, skinny with fat heads and polystyrene wings. We are quite a spectacle.

IF: Star Gazing

I am particularly fond of his mismatching pajamas. I have a matching set of pajamas, but I never wear the two pieces together. I do often wear them separately with different pants or shirts.

IF: artificial

I think to really get the point across I should also depict the next phase, which is the stylish woman with boots showing her friends the quilt she made.

IF: double

There's another problem that was mentioned in that NPR story.

As healthy eating becomes trendier, food bank donations become more unhealthy.

It was something that I hadn't ever thought about, but which makes sense and is also very worrisome. It's the element of the "diet of poverty" that no amount of budgeting, education or planning can really help.

So the take home lesson is: keep the health of the needy in mind when donating food. Or donate cash? Is that possible? There must be organizations out there working with food banks and soup kitchens to try and make everything wonderful -- and goodness knows they do SO much with so little. But chip in if you can. A little for you is a lot for someone else.

IF: diary

IF: linked

The other part of our weekend. We'd detoured off the highway to look for somewhere to eat lunch, and followed signs for the Canby Ferry hoping we'd get to the river. Boy did we. The road dead-ends into the water itself, wherein a tiny ferry links the road back to itself on the other side.

IF: Brave