Bits and Pieces of Our Days

Every year, our subdivision has a Garage Sale Day. There are loads of sales within walking distance of one another and we always hit a bunch of them. This year we snagged a great bicycle, a couple of games, a much-longed for Lite Brite for Ramona, and this guy (for fifty cents.) The girls have named him Steve:



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Today we attended an open house for the newly renovated Benedictine monastery here. The sisters spent eighteen months crammed into a tiny apartment complex while the monastery was being completely remodeled, and they've just moved back in. Being Benedictines, they naturally and hospitably welcomed the public today so that we could nose around their new home. The new retreat floor is lovely, and now I'm feeling the tug toward a retreat ....

But, ummm, next time? Remind me not to wear high heels on a walking tour of a four-story monastery.

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Last week, we saw Wicked and found it delightful. Fun and funny -- touching, too. And a visual feast. I liked it much more than I expected I would. We've been listening to the soundtrack -- songs designed to tug on you in all the right places. Even Ramona (who did not see the show) says of some of the music, "It's that kind that makes you feel every emotion in one emotion, like you want to laugh and cry at the same time."

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Tonight, we're no longer in Oz but will be found in the comfort of our living room watching The Next Food Network Star. Anyone else?