Love Is The Drug

During the Fall and Winter Terry ventured into his own pharmacy in the city.
Smack dab across the street from his old digs, he took on the mighty lion of CVS. So far everything has run according to plan, the neighbors love him, he gets catered fried chicken and collards a few times a week.(I cant compete with that cooking).

With all that has gone down with Kwame, and his compatriots bringing down the city.
Terry is a semblance of unity and neighborhood.

Meanwhile, the Pope was assigned as well as the City manager for Detroit.  The City of Detroit will thrive soon, I think.
I hope that Pope Francis brings a new vision to the Catholics.
Hail to New Life.

Terry and Leona are Detroit... Lovely

Spring Is On The Wing

It was so exciting to feel the first breaths of Spring.

I always get into a frenzy of cleaning and organizing, purging unneeded junk.
I decided to clean out my desktop computer, in the hopes of stopping its infuriating slow pace and trying to organize my personal media.

I cleaned and scoured my hard drive , hooked up my printer to my wireless network and moved the desktop downstairs to the kitchen.
I then logged onto my much ignored blog and discovered that my last post was January 9th.

Yikes.

I have such a backlog of stories and photos. I don't know if I will ever catch up.

I guess, just like my teeny daffodils in the backyard, I will start anew and throw in some old craggly posts for posterity sake.

Last weekend, Terry surprised Mimi by booking a night at the Book Cadillac downtown.
Strange as it may seem, its been Mimi's dream to stay in this hotel.

Our view included the courthouse(Goodbye Kwame)

On special occasions we often go to the main restaurant in the hotel  called Roast. Mimi always takes longing look into the lobby and whispers, some day I am going to stay here.

What a lovely stay it was. We had dinner at Roast swam in the pool and generally soaked in the beautiful ambiance.
When we checked in Mimi requested a floor as high up as we could get. They upgraded us to an executive suite on the 20th floor(somehow, I think if Terry or I requested it, that wouldn't happen.)

She was so excited to have to enter her key card in order to go higher up in the elevator.
She immediately opened her door, carefully unpacked her clothes, scolded me for messing up the bathroom with my stuff, and ordered extra towels from housekeeping.

The Annual Corktown 5k race outside the hotel

Making the most of no valet service(during the race)

Mimi organizing her nightstand

A beautiful city

Putting on clear mascara for her dinner at Roast

Waiting to swim

Mimi was in heaven.

Somewhere Between

I am excited to say that "Somewhere Between" is being shown at a local theater on Monday night.
I am looking forward to sharing the experience with family and other families that are going through similar experiences. Terry can't even watch the trailer, so I don't know about that part.

All Of This And Nothing Part 2

I just wanted to update , that my friend has been upgraded to 100% on Ebay.
Truth be told, I heard an NPR story that involved people buying things at assorted tag and garage sales and placing them on Ebay, with grand story tellers doing the descriptions.

Things that were bought for a nickel, described by Tom Wolfe were selling to the highest bidder, because of their storytelling.
I thought that may help my friend get her 100% rating back.

My mom was at a dance, it was at Cranbrook, the Saarinens were there.... end of story.
My fur was sent back.
I'm glad.

All Of This And Nothing

I am not without shame, I put , or let me say I try to put my kids toys on Ebay.

I bought a ton of cool stuff for Jiejie from the Doll Hospital. I bought Beanie Babies?????, Muffy Vanderbears, Madame Alexanders.

For Mimi I bought Blythe , Dawn dolls and Sonny and Cher, all with the intent of selling them on Ebay????.
Whenever anyone said,"Dont take them out of the box" "They will be valuable someday"
 I usually said nope , "They will just play with it".
I recently, went into the Ebay world to sell a ton of stuff that was building up in my basement.
My dear friend was enthusiastic about helping me out. She had an Ebay shop, she knew the business.
I told her that I was reluctantly selling a modern dollhouse that I had bought for Terry?Just before Mimi came home from China.

I also listed a fur.
The fur sold for probably five times what I had expected, delivered promptly.
The abuse then began.
"My fur wasn't odor free", "My fur had wear", "My fur wasn't sent "UPS fur storage?"

I felt terribly about my friend suffering so much Ebay and email abuse from someone.  I told my friend to let the coat go for free. I wanted her to keep her 100% rating, I felt responsible.
I got a call from USPS, my coat is back, my friend has a 99.6% rating on Ebay.
I wrote a letter.
 Dear Ms. Dominique,
You have just bid upon, spent moments of your life obtaining a fur jacket.
Let me tell you a little story;

My grandmother was given this fur jacket as a gift by my grandfather John Dean. His family owned a small business in Pontiac MI.
The fur jacket was a dear gift  to my grandmother and lent out to  my aunts, only on special occasions.

My mother (who was the most attractive of the three), was asked to a Dance. My mom was seventeen years old and needed to be dressed accordingly for the occassion .
My grandma loaned her the jacket,with of course , the caution of taking care of it.
My mother was at a dance at Cranbrook Manor, with a Saarinen boy.

Years later, at Christmas time, I was standing at the front of the tree, giving out presents to my children. I made it a tradition to wear my grandmas mink by the tree.Considering its historical significance , why wouldn't you?
I reached in a little secret pocket and there were fifty dollars.
My mind raced? so did my sisters(I have four) what could have happened?
My mother would never tell.
In an effort to rid my mother of the question, I thought that I might put it on Ebay.
I asked a sweet friend to do it and she  took a chance for me
I find it unusual how people treat one another and what people think is valuable.
Regards,
Julianne
I am shameless and never going back to sell on Ebay. (for now).
The dollhouse didn't sell. 

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

" Now Is The Start" by A Fine Frenzy is a song placed  with brilliant piece of editing of classic Hollywood films, to appeal to the younger set.

Over the last weeks I have had the extreme pleasure of watching films with my girls.
I don't always get the most desired responses for the movies I love.

Mimi doesn't like how Beth's face looks when she cries in "Little Women" and Jie Jie couldn't get through "Little Women" ... a whole lot of cryin.

Note to self, next year, leave out "Little Women" even the new one with Batman.

JieJie, Bill and I watched " Love Actually" which also makes us cry, but in a good way.

My nephew Bob is coming to stay with us and his favorite Christmas song is " Christmas Is Around Us"I really look forward to hearing him sing it around the house constantly for 4 or 5 days.
He is also responsible for making this brilliant gem of a film about my house during the Holidays. I repost it yet again.

Stop Me If You Think Youve Heard This One Before

I knew that my passion for music would leak onto Mimi eventually.
Paulina was the president of her middle school rock band club. She did a report on Ella Fitzgerald in the second grade.

I think that Mimi takes it to a new height. She wears her Wilco and White Stripes shirts to school every day. Her latest fixation is/are"The Smiths"
She loves "The Smiths", a brilliant band, but for an 8 year old? She doesn't listen to "One Direction" or Justin, which is more than fine.
But the Smiths? Morrisey ?  at 8 she recites the lyrics to me and I want to weep.

putting on lashes to be Cher for Halloween(fake hair)

"If a double Decker bus crashes into us . to die by your side is a pleasure the privilege,is mine". I loved it as a teen , but heck.
The best bit is that she thinks Morrisey looks exactly like Mitt.