365 Photos Day 35: Beginnings of Spring

I love springtime. Budding trees, blooming flowers, and baby animals are a welcome sight after the dark dreariness of winter. February starts off with Imbolc, the Celtic holiday celebrating the beginning of spring. It's related to Groundhog Day, which basically stands for the same thing. Yesterday was Chinese New Year. The past few days have been warm and sunny. With all these symbols of new beginnings, today I decided to go in search of signs of spring. I found this old leaf, still clinging on, hanging next to the beginnings of new leaf buds. It just seemed to symbolize this transitional period to me.

365 Photos Days 27-34: Cute Rat and Memories

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I've been really busy the past few days, but I finally got caught up.  First, the obligatory zoo animal picture.  This is one of the baby rats from the education program. Isn't it adorable? They're about a month old (they were born on New Years Eve, I think). I got to help weigh and take identification photos of them before they got sent off to their new home in the education building. I know a lot of people dislike rats, but pet rats are so cute! Just look at that little nose, and that friendly, curious expression. He's saying "Hello!"

 Now, on to what I used to catch up on my photos. Images of things around my house that make me think of certain people. This is Kero-chan. He's a stuffed animal from an Anime called Card Captor Sakura. He makes me think of my friend Becky, because we used to have joint custody of him back in college. See, we both really liked the cartoon, and there was only one of the stuffed animals at the anime store in town, and it was kind of expensive. So, we split the cost, and would trade off who had him. At the end of our last semester together, I talked Becky into letting me give her the other half of the cost, and kept him permanently. I still think of her when I see him, though.

This necklace was a college graduation gift from my friend Rain.  Anyone reading this blog is probably aware that I associate myself very strongly with both cats and the color silver (my online handle for the longest time was Silvercat). I used to comment on this necklace every time Rain wore it. So,  one day just before graduation, she came up to me and handed it to me. It's come along safely through three moves now,  and I would be absolutely heartbroken if something happened to it.  I haven't worn it in a while, but talking to Rain on the phone recently prompted me to go through the jewelry box it was in and pull it out. Rain, I really miss you!

This is a note from a former coworker.  It had been a really rough, really busy couple of weeks, and a big project we had been working on was finally coming to a close.  For some reason, coming in and finding this encouraging note on my desk made my day. I stuck it in my pocket and brought it home. I run across it from time to time, and it always makes me smile. Oddly appropriate that I'd run across it now, when work's been so busy and hectic.

This is our autograph from Mike Nelson, the second host of Mystery Science Theatre 3000. MST3K was (and still is) one of the cornerstones of our relationship with our best friends Miles and Rachel. It's what we did to be lazy and hang out when we were sharing a house.  One weekend, back in Asheville,  the four of us drove for two or three hours to hear Mike speak on a (relatively) nearby college campus. We went up afterwards to get an autograph, only to realize while we were talking to him that the only thing we had for him to sign was our parking pass. So, we had him sign that, and it's lived on the fridge ever since.


This is the tree-topper for my flat Christmas tree.  My Gran (maternal grandmother) made it for me.  In fact, she made me a whole set of cross-stitch ornaments and gave them to me as a birthday present a couple of years ago. My Gran is incredibly artistic, and has had some kind of art project going on as far back as I can remember. These days it's mainly cross-stitch, but she used to do a lot of wood work as well.  She (along with my Mom and aunt Jenny) also used to do the majority of the decorations for Vacation Bible School at our church.  Needless to say, these ornaments are greatly treasured, and I intend to keep them to hand down at some point.

The last time I was home, my Momaw (paternal grandmother) gave me jewelry my Popaw (paternal grandfather) had bought for her. This included her wedding and engagement rings, which I was EXTREMELY nervous about flying cross-country with.  I can't tell you how glad I was to open my suitcase when I got home and find that box safely where I'd stowed it.  I wear the cameo locket quite often, but the other pieces (especially the rings) generally stay safely stored. I'd wear the rings, but apparently my Momaw and I have the same size finger, so they fit perfectly on my left ring finger, but nowhere else.

My Popaw was a whittler. He could make the most amazing things out of wood.  Toys, picture frames, wooden chains, knick-knacks.... My Mom has a beautiful cedar-wood swing on her front porch that he made specifically for her years ago.  The smell of sawdust always makes me think of him.  Especially on warm days, you could always find him in his workshop making something. This is a picture frame that he made me a couple of years before he passed away.  One of these days,  I'm going to get  around to getting a photo of him to put in it.