Smile!

The little one and I made our weekly trip to the grocery store yesterday. We always incorporate some sort of game or challenge into grocery shopping, this week it was to smile at folks and see how many would smile back. This was a very telling challenge, we discovered several things...

1. none of the women who appeared to be under 50 smiled back, most wouldn't even make eye contact and hurried past us.

2. every man (who appeared to by by himself) we smiled at, regardless of assumed age, smiled back! Some even greeted us with "Good Morning". I don't think this had anything to do with us being female or flirting. The men seemed more relaxed, open to a friendly face/greeting.

3. all of the elderly couples smiled back, most said "good morning", "hello" and I found it interesting that they were already smiling at us before we got the chance to make eye contact and smile. One little lady tenderly grasped my daughter's arm and said "there's no question who your mother is, you look just like her". I'd like to think this was a compliment! I'm partial to elderly people, I think there is much to be learned from them.

4. we came up on a few couples who were obviously under 50, none of these folks made eye contact with us, I wonder if this has anything to do with #1?

What did we take away from this experience...we left feeling great, knowing we were simply trying to insight random acts of kindness. Perhaps those folks left the store and didn't give us a second thought, I'm hoping not.

Typical Sunday

I get up early, go on the patio to have a cup of coffee, it's still dark, no moon, lots of stars, about 65 degrees, quiet...

This is the start of a typical Sunday. I'll do a little housework, laundry, get prepared for the week ahead. A little before lunch, I'll decide what I'm going to cook, today it's crab cakes with white beans (cooked with onion, bacon,s&p), steamed asparagus, grilled corn on the cob, salad of greens. I think I'm going to bake a couple of apples for dessert. Sound Good?

Every Sunday we listen to a station out of Copperas Cove, 91.3. I'm unsure of the call letters but the show is called Big Band Sunday. The show features Big Band, Swing, Jazz, the recordings sound old. When I was a kid, our family and my uncle's family used to have Sunday dinner at my ma maw and pa paw Moore's house. The men and boys watched football, the ladies cooked and talked.

I would sneak off to the front room to look at my pa paw's books about organized crime, the photos were very graphic and I loved the names of the gangsters. He had Sears and Roebuck catalogues from the late 1920's and 30's. Huge Norman Rockwell coffee table books. I'd stay in that room all day. Pa paw had a huge stereo, it had a turntable, radio and speakers, all encased in what looked like a fancy wooden coffin to me. The lid lifted to open up like a cedar chest, the sound was pretty bad, muffled, lots of static. He would play his records all day, I think they were called 38's, really thick vinyl. He had everything from Ella to Benny Goodman, Johnny Hartman, various orchestras and big bands. He has a huge collection. The room had these wonderful pine doors that slid shut, I would close the doors, pile on the couch with one of these books and just read. Very special memories. I guess I try to give some semblance of that to my child now with the music and the cooking Every Sunday. God, if only the Walt Disney Hour still came on every Sunday night, that would be just perfect. Am I boring or what? I'm nearly 36 and I'm living like my grandparents did when they were in their 60's, I digress.

Yesterday, I found a new free magazine at the gas station. It's similar to the Austin Chronicle but for Waco. It is beautifully done, the cover is very attractive, it caught my attention. The information is what blew me away. Interesting articles, witty commentary, and a huge events section featuring local live music, art exhibits, literary events, who knew there was a water color exhibit going on at the park down the road and a photo exhibit at the Art Center by a world renowned photographer?? I'm thrilled about it, that's why I'm doing my part to spread the word, I want this paper to make it! It's called The City Review.

I've been trying to photograph a hummingbird that feeds on my purple sage but it seems to outsmart me everytime. Hopefully today, I'll get something.

Have a nice day!