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Today is Poetry Friday. Bloggers worldwide post poems on their blogs to highlight the fact that people are not reading enough poetry these days.

I chose this Dorothy Parker poem to post here. I enjoy her humour and it actually fits with this blog.

Bric-a-Brac
Dorothy Parker

Little things that no one needs --
Little things to joke about --
Little landscapes, done in beads.
Little morals, woven out,
Little wreaths of gilded grass,
Little brigs of whittled oak
Bottled painfully in glass;
These are made by lonely folk.

Lonely folk have lines of days
Long and faltering and thin;
Therefore -- little wax bouquets,
Prayers cut upon a pin,
Little maps of pinkish lands,
Little charts of curly seas,
Little plats of linen strands,
Little verses, such as these.

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Posted By: Susan Keeping - Category: No Category

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Books are people too!

March 5th 2008 15:23

Most designers on home-design shows seem to hate books; many consider them clutter. They cringe when they see a room with 2 or more bookcases; much like a high-fashion designer looks down on Birkenstocks, many designers curl up their noses at books. They hide the books away and the bookcases are taken over by "knickknacks". One or two books are allowed to stay...but only if they have pretty covers.

Well, I like books and I want my books to be on display.

For the past 2 years my books have been hidden away in closets and in boxes because I didn't have anywhere to put them. I have one two-shelf bookcase which is stuffed two-rows deep with books and DVDs and VHS's. That is changing now. I have ordered more bookcases and as of next week my books will be out in the open again.

I found that when I started cataloguing my books on Library Thing that I missed seeing them. I missed looking at the covers and seeing the titles. I didn't realize what books I had, a lot of them remain unread because they were put away almost immediately. My books made me calm; I get sustenance from them. My books are part of who I am and I do not like hiding them.

And the moral of this story is? Be proud of your books; be proud that you still read when many others don't. Don't hide your books away. But, do display them in bookcases; with all due respect to Library Thing's book-pile contest, a pile of books on the floor or on the dining room table or on your desk IS clutter.

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Posted By: Susan Keeping - Category: No Category

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March 1st 2008 22:38

I have written several articles for HowToDoThings. It's a site where you can learn about practically everything. The posts are written in an easy to follow numerical format.

Here are my food/entertaining related articles:

How to choose music for your dinner party
The type of music you play at a dinner party can go a long way in making sure your party is a success. This article will give you some pointers on choosing the right music.

How to make a 3-minute egg
Boiling an egg isn't as simple as it seems. I am very picky about my boiled eggs...

How to make creme brulee
Creme brulee is a light and very tasty dessert, and easy to make.

How to make California rolls
I am a big fan of California rolls, they are they only sushi I like. Well, I do like barbequed eel, but that is another story. They aren't that difficult to make.

How to make mashed potatoes
Another recipe that is very easy, yet can easily be messed up if you don't follow some of these suggestions.

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Posted By: Susan Keeping - Category: No Category

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The Home Guru

February 19th 2008 23:01

I'm not exactly a domestic goddess, far from it. If I ever win the lottery I will hire a housekeeper to do my housework. I'm no Martha Stewart, my furniture doesn't all match. I watch Althea Turner's show "The Perfect Housewife" and feel relieved, I'm not as bad as those women at housekeeping. However, if Althea Turner came to my house she'd probably faint because I don't dust the tops of the doors in my apartment. I do like to cook and bake, and I do it well. Anything to do with food doesn't feel like work to me

I watch all the anti-clutter shows, and many of the designing shows, and shows on being the perfect housewife so I consider myself a little bit of an expert; as much an expert as many of the hosts of those shows anyway

The Home Guru

Bric-a-brac

Books are people too!

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