Words On Wednesday

It's no secret that I'm a big baseball fan.

I enjoy watching all ages play.

It's one of the things I like most about baseball -- anyone can play.

Young, old, male, female, tall or short.

From the postcard collection
AMERICA PLAYS BALL: Historical Baseball Photographs from the Library of Congress.

 And, baseball has been popular for a long time.

Collage done for ICAD 2016

No surprise that I not only enjoy watching baseball,
but I also enjoy reading about baseball. 

One of my favorite baseball books is
BASEBALL HAIKU: The Best Haiku Ever Written About The Game 
Edited by Cor Van Den Heuvel and Nanae Tamura.
This book has been in my library for years and is one I really enjoy.
It combines two of my loves: baseball and haiku.

Some of the most important haiku poets of both America and Japan 
are featured in this anthology.
Poets like Jack Kerouac, a longtime baseball fan who pioneered English-language haiku

Empty baseball field
-- A robin,
Hops along the bench


and Masaoka Shiki, one of the four great pillars of Japanese haiku and was
instrumental in popularizing baseball in Japan during the 1890's.


Spring breeze
this grassy field makes me
want to play catch



TEAMMATE: My Journey in Baseball and a World Series For the Ages
by David Ross and Don Yaeger is my new baseball book for this year.
David Ross (AKA Grandpa Rossy) was the backup catcher for the cubs in 2016, mostly catching Jon Lester. This is his story, from his early days in the big leagues to his final year in baseball with the Cubs in 2016. What a way to retire! Lots of life lessons. What it takes to be a good teammate and play the game the way it should be played. It was interesting to read about concussion and its effects on Ross. A fun baseball book!


What's on your reading list?


Wishing YOU well and much joy!

Opening Night

It's Opening Night at home for the Rice University Owl baseball team.
Astros spring training is also going on.

And, Sofie is back!
She is now a year old and doing well in her service dog training.
Here she is with her Mom.
Sofie's boy is on the baseball team.

*

It's Mardi Gras time.
That means King Cake!

This one has a Strawberry Creme filling.
Yum.

Here on the Gulf Coast the King Cake is associated with the pre-Lenten celebrations of Mardi Gras/Carnival.

In the southern United States, the tradition was brought to the area by colonists from France and Spain.

The King Cake comes in a number of styles. The most simple, said to be the most traditional, is a ring of twisted cinnamon roll-style dough topped with icing or sugar, usually colored purple, green and gold (traditional Mardi Gras colors) with food coloring. King cakes may also be filled with additional foodstuffs - the most common being cream cheese, praline, cinnamon or strawberry.

Finding the baby in the cake is said to bring good luck and you must supply the King Cake for the next years party.

*

I've started adding the green to the flowers for the afghan.

Almost finished  The Readaholics and the Gothic Gala by Laura DiSilverio.

I enjoy the readholics series.
 Book club members that always seems to get caught up in murder
and the book they are reading offers clues!
This time they are reading Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier.

Wishing YOU well and much joy!

Five On Friday

Monday Social

Mosaic Monday

I'm Feeling a Bit Moldy

1. Im feeling a bit moldy after rain all week. 

April showers bring May flowers. 

In my case, April showers bring more May showers. 

Lots of tropical downpours meaning I'm taking water OUT of the pond. 

I don't want the water going over and the fish going over, too. 

2. I just finished Journey to Munich: A Maisie Dobb's Novel by Jacqueline Winspear. 

I've read each and every one of the Maisie novels. 

I'm happy to report that Maisie is back. 

She is dealing with the deaths of her husband and child. 

In Journey to Munich Maisie is sent undercover to Berlin to bring back a British citizen who has been imprisoned in Dachau. 

3. The regular home season for the Rice University baseball season is over. 

I'm going to miss my little buddy Sofie. 

Sofie is six months old and is in training to be a service dog. 

Her people are parents of a Rice baseball player . 

Sofie is a great baseball fan and I'm going to miss her (and her people).

4. I finished another knitted shawl. 

I'm calling it a shawl/scarf as it is smaller in size than the shawl I finished earlier.

 The pattern is free and can be found here. 

5. I've been gathering my index cards. The 2016 version of ICAD (Index Card A Day) will start on June 1. This will be my fourth year and it is always fun. A little bit of art every day is good for everyone!  

Meow 2013 ICAD

Wishing YOU well and much joy.

Willy Nilly Friday

Five On Friday

Random Five Friday with Nancy

This and That

It's been cold
and then it's been like spring.

Today it's cold, but the sun is shining.
Mina is always good at finding a sun puddle.

The college baseball season is off to a fast start.

The Rice Owl baseball team started off with four games against the

University of Texas.

There's nothing like the sound of the bat hitting the ball

Or eating a hotdog at a ball game. 

Photo From Rice Sports Information

Meanwhile,

back at home in the garden

the camellias are blooming.

Last, but not least,

the Burpee catalog arrived.

I'm making a list.

Burpee is a Non-GMO company.

Something I really appreciate.

Wishing YOU well and much joy!

Thanks, Kim.

Thanks to Karen for hosting Sun Lit Sunday.

You Can't Have Too Much Citron

It's been busy around here.

- I've had Terminix out terminating the carpenter bees eating the arbor.

- Had more insulation blown into the attic in preparation for summer heat.

Finished just in time as 95 is predicted by the end of the week.

-Baseball season ended for my Rice Owls. 

- And I celebrated a birthday.

I always use my birthday as an excuse to visit my favorite thrift shop in search of another teacup. And I found one. In fact, there were two and I brought them both home. I didn't want to break them up. Seems like they've been together for a long time!

They are Limoges Elite teacups.

The decoration is very delicate, the gold almost worn off the handles.

The Bawo and Dotter company of New York established a manufacturing facility in Limoges, France, called Elite Works. That factory began producing porcelain in 1892 with the mark "Elite France" and later "Elite Works France." Some Elite Works collectibles can be dated by the color of the mark. Between 1900 and 1914 the company marked items in red and between 1920 and 1932 the company used green to mark the pieces it manufactured. The cups I found are marked in red. 

I love the dainty little daisy decoration.

My birthday cake was lemon everything.

I filled my teacup with Tea Forte Chamomile Citron (a gift from my god-kids).

You can't have too much citron!

In the background is a photo book of images I've taken at the Houston Zoo.

Another birthday gift to myself! 

Wishing You Well and Much Joy!

A big thank you to our tea party hosts:

Tea Time Tuesday

Teacup Tuesday

Friends Sharing Tea

Tuesday Cuppa Tea

Sunlit Sunday: Baseball

It's time for Sunlit Sunday.

Nothing brightens up my day more than baseball.

Especially college baseball.

That's part of the Texas Medical Center in the background.

My owlettes started the season off well and then they went to Hawaii.

They played well there.

I think they may have had too much Hawaii as they haven't played well since coming home.

The season is young -- and so are they!

Wishing YOU well and much joy!

More Baseball

There's a lot of baseball going on around here.

My beloved Rice University Owl baseball team is playing at home this weekend

in the NCAA regional tournament as 64 teams reach for the stars

and the right to play for the College World Series in Omaha in late June.

So, I went back to

America Plays Ball: Historical Baseball Photographs from the Library of Congress

published by Pomegranate.

Little boys playing baseball.

The back of the card reads:

US Resettlement Administration project children's baseball game at

Granger (IA) Homesteads, May 1936.

Photograph by Carl Mydans

Prints and Photographs Division LC-USF33-T01-607-M5

Did you know that there is a book titled Baseball Haiku?

I've been following Haiku My Heart in the blog world for awhile.

I haven't tried my hand at writing one, although I feel the urge coming on.

Not too long ago there were comments that some weren't following the *recipe*

for Haiku and therefore *they* were doing something wrong.

Obviously, this well meaning person knew nothing about baseball haiku.

So, here is a little educational post!

the young grass

kids get together

to hit a ball

This haiku was written by Masaoka Shiki (1867-1902)

"The last of the four great pillars of Japanese haiku and the first modern haiku poet, Masaoka Shiki revived the genre of haiku from its stagnant state near the end of the nineteenth century and gave it a new and vibrant life. Influenced by recent Western literature and art, he used common language and new subject matter to move haiku away from the classical vocabulary and conventional themes that had been stifling innovation. He wrote about glass doors, railroad trains, and even a new game -- baseball. In 1890 he created the world's first baseball haiku."*

We learn something new everyday!

Here's to baseball and haiku!

Thank you to our hosts:

Beth for Postcard Friendship Friday 

and

Rebecca for Haiku My Heart

Long may they flourish!

* From the book Baseball Haiku: The Best Haiku Ever Written About The Game by

Van Den Heuvel and Tamura

It's That Time of Year...

when thoughts turn to summer

and baseball 

and Memorial Day.

I thought this postcard covered all of those.

The back of the postcard reads:

AMERICA PLAYS BALL

A uniformed soldier takes a swing.

There is no date or location.

This postcard is from AMERICA PLAYS BALL:

Historical Baseball Photographs from the Library of Congress

A Book of Postcards

Published by Pomegranate

Have a wonderful time this weekend.

Enjoy the hot dogs and hamburgers,

a little baseball

and don't forget to remember and honor members of the armed forces.

Thank you to the lovely Beth for being the hostess for Postcard Friendship Friday.

It's That Time of Year!

It's college baseball season.

It's time to hear the wondrous sound of the bat hitting the ball.

The Rice University Owls take the field this evening 

against the Stanford Cardinal

and I'm ready!

In honor of the start of the season,

I'm sharing a postcard from the Pomegranate Book of Postcards:

America Plays Ball: Historical Baseball Photographs from the Library of Congress.

The back of the postcard reads:

Hitting the ball in Rock Creek Park, Washington, D.C., July, 1942

Photograph by John Ferrell

There's nothing like baseball! It gets you out-of-doors,

fills you with oxygen (all that yelling).

It is a pastime that is enjoyed by young and old, male and female,

East and West, North and South.

Play Ball!

A big THANK YOU to Beth for being hostess for
Postcard Friendship Friday.

***

Many thanks to all of you for your wonderful comments and emails

of condolence on Mr. Dragon's passing to the stars.

His spirit will be with me this weekend as the baseball season starts.

He loved college baseball and the Rice Owls. 

Wishing you well.

Mosaic Monday

Mosaic Monday is hosted each week by the lovely Mary.

Each mosaic is different. Each a story to tell.

You'll enjoy visiting - I promise!

In a way, this is a continuation of the previous post about baseball.

We went to the Astros baseball game Friday night.

Poor Astros. They've had two bad years in a row and should be in the rebuilding mode.

Time will tell.

But that didn't keep us from enjoying the game with the Cincinnati Reds.

It was a pretty good game and the Reds won.

(One of the Astros announcers said, "the best thing about this series is that it's air conditioned.")

But that was okay, because Paul Janish is on the Reds team.

Paul went to Rice University and played on the baseball team that won the College World Series in 2003. It is always nice when *our* boys come home!

Friday night at Minute Maid Park (also known as The Juice Box)

is fireworks night and they were beautiful.

The roof to the ballpark is opened and the fireworks begin.

Part of the ball park is attached to the old Union Station.

That's why there is a train at the park (filled with giant oranges).

But the most important part of the night--

it was our first really long night out since Mr. Dragon's cancer diagnosis

and the end of all the treatment.

We had a lovely time.

The game was entertaining.

Mr. Dragon enjoyed the food (a stuffed baked potato).

He didn't get too tired or too hot.

YeeHaw!

Wishing all of you a wonderful week.

Joy to You!

Postcard Friendship Friday

Postcard Friendship Friday is hosted each week by the lovely Beth.

You'll enjoy visiting to see what great postcards everyone comes up with!

Beth has posted a wonderful card on baseball and hot dogs -- two things that definitely go together in the summer.

Those of you who have followed Twisty Lane for any length of time, know that Mr. Dragon and I are big baseball fans -- especially college baseball. The subject of baseball is right up my alley! The fondest memories I have of my Daddy are all baseball related. He took me to baseball games and gave me my first softball and bat. I remember all the time he took with me, teaching me how to hit the ball and he was successful. I didn't run well, but I could catch the ball (didn't throw well), but I was on the team because I could hit! For the Dragon Family, baseball is a rite of summer -- along with hot dogs and beer!

(Choosing sides, Washington, D.C.)

The postcards I'm sharing with you today are from Pomegranate. They publish books of postcards on a wide range of subjects. AMERICA PLAYS BALL: Historical Baseball Photographs from the Library of Congress is one that Mr. Dragon gave me for my birthday.

"I see great things in baseball," wrote Walt Whitman in 1846. "It's our game -- the American game. It will take our people out-of doors, fill them with oxygen, give them a larger physical stoicism. Tend to relieve us from being a nervous, dyspeptic set. Repair these losses, and be a blessing to us."

(U. S. Coast Guard sailors play ball on shore-fast ice in a bay in the Bering Sea, winter 1953)

"The photographs collected in this volume, taken from the 1900's to the 1950's, illustrate arguably the largest role baseball has ever played in the United States: not as a commercial sport, but as a pastime enjoyed by people young and old, male and female, East and West."

Walt Whitman also wrote that "the game of ball is glorious," a sentiment I have to agree with.

Happy PFF!

Have a wonderful weekend.

We will be watching the weather channel to see where *Bonnie* is going to go.

Joy to You!

Reading For Pleasure

Now I ask you. How could I resist sharing this email from the Daily OM about one of my favorite subjects -- Reading For Pleasure? I've even included a couple of reviews at the end!


February 22, 2010
Reading For Pleasure
A Whole New World When reading we remove ourselves from the confines of reality to immerse ourselves in the intrigue of the unfamiliar.

Every book has the potential to touch the human soul deeply, arousing patterns of thought that might otherwise have lain dormant. The pleasure we derive from the written word is unique in that we must labor for it. Other forms of art provide us with stimulus and ask nothing more than our emotional response. Reading is an active pastime that requires an investment of emotion as well as our concentration and imagination. The words we read are merely a starting point for a process that takes place largely within our minds and hearts.

There are few activities as comforting, relaxing, and healthy as perusing the pages of a good piece of fiction or nonfiction. Curling up with a book and a cup of tea is one of the simplest ways we can remove ourselves from the confines of reality in order to immerse ourselves in the drama and intrigue of the unfamiliar. The pleasure of transcending reality is only one aspect of the reading experience, however. Each time we read for enjoyment, whether we prefer the fantastic nature of fiction, the empathy awakened within us by memoir, or the instructive passion of nonfiction, we create entire landscapes in our mind’s eye. The books we choose provide us with the inspiration we need to accomplish such a feat, but it is our own creative reserves that empower us to use our imaginations for this unique and beautiful purpose.

The tales you lose yourself in can lead you on paths of discovery that take you out of your own life and help you see that existence can unfold in an infinite number of ways. You can learn so much from the characters and mentors who guide you from page to page. Your emotions are awakened each time you read, allowing you to become vessels of the passion that pours forth from line after line of print. Ultimately, the books you absorb—those that touch you deeply—will become a part of who you are, providing you with a rich and thrilling world within that you can revisit anytime you wish by simply closing your eyes. If you haven’t read a book for pleasure lately, try and allow yourself the time—you deserve it.

A couple of reviews for you from my Goodreads list. The first a non-fiction book and the second a cozy mystery. There's a book out there, somewhere for you -- no matter what your interests. Go for it!

Play by Play: Baseball, Radio and Life in the Last Chance League by Neal Conan



Most of you know how crazy we are about college baseball. We've just recently started reading baseball books. Play by Play was one we found at Half-Price Books. It is about Neal Conan (of NPR and Talk of the Nation fame) and the year he took off from NPR to follow his dream of being a baseball play-by-play announcer.

From the book jacket: " Following nearly twenty-five years as a prominent voice at National Public Radio, after being shelled, rocketed, bombed and held captive in the desert as one of their top foreign correspondents, Neal Conan decided to pursue a lifelong dream -- to become, of all things, a baseball announcer. And, that's what he did, specifically with the Aberdeen Arsenal, a franchise of the independent Atlantic League. Not the majors, alas, but it afforded him a rue opportunity to use the surge of conflicting emotions that we refer to as midlife crisis to rethink what he'd done and what he was doing. It also allowed Neal to marry his two lifelong passions - radio and baseball - and gave him the chance to return to the grassroots of each. He decided to put the fun and challenge back into things he had become bored with."

Lot's of fun baseball trivia in Play by Play. For instance: " One of Tyrone Horne's bats is in Cooperstown. In 1998 Tyrone did something unprecedented: he homered for the cycle. Hitting for the cycle is unusual, once a year or so, somebody will get a single,double, triple and home run in the same game. Four homers in a game is much rarer, and, so far as anyone knows, Tyrone is the only professional ballplayer every to hit a solo shot, a two-run job, a three-run homer and a grand slam in the same game." Conan shares other stories throughout the book.

If you are baseball fan or a fan of Conan's from NPR, I believe you'll enjoy this book.


Dropped Dead Stitch by Maggie Sefton



Kelly's friend Jennifer is a top notch knitter and a bit of a party girl. But she's always stayed one step ahead of trouble, until the night a stranger follows her home. As Jennifer recovers from the dangerous encounter, she looks to Kelly and their other close-knit friends for comfort and support. A retreat in the mountains, stitching and talking seems to be just what the doctor ordered. Surprise! The owner of the ranch turns out to be Jennifer's attacker and when he ends up dead - Jennifer is at the top of the suspect list.

All the usual characters return in this cozy mystery. Sefton gets 5 stars for the banter between the characters in this novel. She gets two stars for the story itself and the way it was written. I haven't quite put my finger on it, but I didn't think this one was written as well as the previous novels in the series. Perhaps Sefton has reached the *too many books in the series* itis! I enjoy visiting with the characters and love the knitting/weaving/crochet shop - Lambspun.

My World

It's Time for My World.

Go visit the My World site to see more of our world or, even better, to participate yourself!

I was trying to decide what pictures I would share with you about My World. I was watching the Home Run Derby, part of the Baseball All-Star Game and decided that I would show you my two favorite baseball parks in Houston.


This is the scoreboard at Minute Maid Stadium, home of the Houston Astros. The Minute Maid corporate offices are located in Houston and they paid for the naming rights to the stadium. The stadium is built on the grounds of the old Union Station and is attached to part of the old Station building. That's why you see a lot of railroad trains around the park.


The roof opens and closes. Good thing in this horrible heat. No one would be able to play if it was open. You can see the shadows the window and roof cast on the field. Makes fielding interesting sometimes.

Batting practice at Minute Maid.

Here's my other favorite park, Reckling Park home of the Rice University Owls. These pictures were taken during Fall Ball last year. Scoreboard first.

The Owls have been quite successful -- scholar athletes. They take their studies seriously along with their baseball.

Batting practice at Reckling Park. In the background you can see the Texas Medical Center.

We do enjoy baseball!

Moon Over Reckling Park

The other title for this post could be: It's Time For Baseball!

This is a picture we took of the moon as we left baseball practice on Saturday. Yes, it's that time again. Time for college baseball. The Owls and all the other college teams started practice on February 1.

The Rice Owls play at Reckling Park.
The scoreboard was *new* last year.

The banner is up.

Bunting Practice

Batting practice.

Cool background for a baseball field, don't you think?
That's the Texas Medical Center
in the background. We may be the only team in college baseball that has to call
a 20 minute glare delay! The sun comes off the Hilton Hotel late in the season -
just enough of a glare to blind
the batters.

What do we think of the team so far (you baseball fans are wondering)? We will have the fastest outfield in college baseball and they all have guns for arms. We may have one of the best defensive teams we've ever had -- we hope. We've always had great defensive catchers and this year he is a work in progress. We can say he has a gun for an arm and every throw he's made to second has been right on the money. Lots of talent on this team. A couple of valedictorians included. And, they seem to like each other. They are very young. Lot's of freshmen and sophomores. We'll sit back and watch and enjoy. They will be exciting.

Stress Test

At the first baseball dinner of the year Coach Graham said it was going to be a very interesting year. He wasn't kidding. This year has been a cardiac stress test for Rice baseball fans. We've had no idea what we were going to see when we got to the ballpark. If anyone had told us when the team was 8-7 we would be going to Omaha for the College World Series for the third time in three years, we wouldn't have believed them.

If you've guessed by now the Owls won their super regional against Texas A&M you'd be correct -- by the skin of their teeth.

Because Rice is a small university, baseball season ticket holders are like an extended family. You know the names of the fans sitting around you in your section and usually something about them and their family. You exchange email addresses and telephone numbers to keep in touch during the off season because you really do miss them when baseball season is over. You meet the players. You realize that Rice has successfully combined the student with the athlete. Listening to the team last night at the after game celebration was a joy. These are articulate young men who are a pleasure to be around no matter how much stress they've put us through.

Fans always have their favorite players. One player everyone has been rooting for is Jimmy Comerota. He started the year as our utility infielder. If someone needed a day off, Jimmy got to play. Our second baseman suffered a season ending injury and suddenly Jimmy became the starting second baseman. The fans watched Jimmy mature as a defensive and offensive player and (even Coach Graham agrees) one of the best second basemen in college baseball. To put the icing on the cake, Jimmy is also an excellent student. Go Jimmy Baseball!

No matter what may happen in Omaha in 2008, we are proud of our Owls. GO OWLS!

Journals and Baseball

I've been thinking about starting a blog for months. It seems like a good way for family and friends to keep up with what is happening at Twisty Lane. It also seems like a good way to keep a diary or journal. Remember those little books that came with a lock and a key? Every little girl had one. I think I had a pink book and I don't remember writing anything in it! A diary online. What next?

It is college baseball season. In fact, it is the road to Omaha time and the College World Series. We are big college baseball fans and follow the Rice University Owls. Rice University is a beautiful place. It is a three mile walk around the entire campus ... beautiful live oak trees the whole walk. Rice is a small university with an undergraduate and graduate population of a little under 5,000. Rice baseball is coached by Wayne Graham. Under Coach Graham the Owls have won conference championships 13 years in a row (1996-2008), appeared in the NCAA regionals 14 times (counting this year), super regionals 8 times (also counting this year) and have appeared in the College World Series 6 times winning and becoming national champions in 2003. Home for the baseball Owls is Reckling Park, a beautiful, pitcher friendly facility that overlooks the Texas Medical Center. Last weekend the Owls won their regional and this weekend will host Texas A&M in the super regional. There are three former Owls on the hometown Houston Astros: left handed pitcher Tim Byrdak, outfielder Jose Cruz Jr., and first baseman Lance Berkman who was the National League player of the month for May. GO OWLS!