2006 Retrospective

Instead of posting the usual resolutions for the upcoming year (okay, okay: lose weight, get back up to at least 5 miles at a time on my runs, get back into knitting and playing the guitar, finish the novel--which I now have promised Jeff I will have a draft of on April 1...), I thought it would be nice to revisit some of the stuff Jeff and I and all and sundry of friends and family did this year by posting some of my favorite photos of this year, along with some commentary about them. So here goes:


Rachel graduated from the University of Texas School of Communications in May, and we all converged on Austin for her convocation and graduation ceremonies. Hijinks ensued.


In July, my Mom celebrated her 88th birthday with her sister-in-law and other family members in Vallejo, California. I couldn't be there, but I sent flowers and a card--I think she is just the cutest thing in the world in this photo. I sure hope I inherited her longevity and sassy spryness genes!


Also in July, Jeff and I traveled to Marfa, Texas, to visit Rachel. See entries on Marfa and the trip in the July archives! I snapped this photo as Jeff and I were wandering the streets of Marfa near the Brown Recluse Coffee House where we were due to meet Rachel for breakfast one morning. I found the shapes of the cactus and the single flower to be lovely and evocative of the beauty of West Texas, even amidst all the stark desert.


Although we put the front bathroom reno on hold for yet another year (let's see how we're fixed after the first quarter of 2007 to decide if this is the year or not...), I managed to make a couple of small improvements. After looking for just the right piece at the right price for several years, I finally found a perfect china cabinet at the Village Treasure House in Glenview. As you can see, we can now display our vintage Cambridge Caprice crystal, our various trophies amassed from Barb and Charlie's foolish parties over the years, my share of Mom's salt and pepper collection, and various other glassware and pottery in one spot!


Also, after searching for just the right fabric to recover my frayed but classy round chairs (purchased for $5 each at the Mission Thrift Town in SF more than 20 years ago, and dear to my heart), I came across this bottle green paisley chenille. It fits the bill nicely, don't you think? I also became the proud owner of Ox, my favorite Ugly Doll, as you can see. (At Christmas, Ox was joined by my second fave, Moxy. Yea!)


In September, Jeff and I joined our work colleagues and friends Nancy and Paul and a whole passel of other folks for a last blast of summer weekend in Michigan (again, check out the September archives for more on that jaunt). Fall put in an early appearance in 2006, making for less than optimum beach weather, but man, did we get a nice show on the lake.


In October, I headed south to my hometown of Waynesboro, Virginia, to attend my 33rd high school reunion and the Virginia Fall Foliage Festival Art Show. You can read all about these doings in the blog--merely consult the archives for October.


My pal Barb Lawson (see links to the right) had her cartoon art on display. She did quite well! And I purchased a lovely painting by her mom, Patsy Spilman. I'm in the process of finding the perfect frame for the piece, and when I do, I will feature it with pictures of the other watercolors of hers that grace my walls.


Time marches on, and soon autumn gives way to winter and the holiday season. This is the tree that grows outside our sunroom window--you can still see the traces of our late fall snow storm. We haven't had any snow since! I'm sure we're in for it, though. Just give it a few weeks. Today it's foggy and 45 degrees, though. Go figure.


December brought a trip to Racine and environs in search of antiques and cameraderie. You can read more about it in the entry directly preceding this one. Still I thought I'd regale you with a couple more photos...


These weird and scary hulking Santa ornaments are a craft better left to... I don't even know to whom! Yikes!


But this! This I fell in love with, and Laurie and Mary managed to spirit it away and buy it for me right under my nose!


We hosted Greg and Rachel on Christmas Eve--although it may be the last one in a while when we see them both together on that day. Rachel lives so far away now that it's not easy for her to get the time off from her job to make the trek. We're happy she was able to do it this year!


Shelly loves Christmas--lots of paper for her to chase and tear, and she gets to recline under the tree and imagine for the slightest of moments that she is the intrepid huntress of her dreams.


Here's a parting look at the tree...the holidays are nearly over. Wah.


Here's wishing everyone a happy, healthy, successful New Year. Let's hope we can put an end to this ill-begotten war and start repairing this great nation, both inside and out.

Welcome, 2007!