Marilynne's World

A sweet little girl grows up

Marilynne — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:12:09 +0000

I love to add photos to my posts and I love to read blogs with photos. I guess all of us like pictures to add meaning to the words. So, today, some very old photos. My father loved the camera. We were posed, often for Christmas Cards, but sometimes just for our grandparents who didn’t live close. These particular pictures show me growing up.

Me about 3 with my little brother Dicky.

Dicky and I (Sugie) shed those nicknames as soon as we could. Here we are in our babyhood.

Billy joins us. He didn't like his nickname either.

Ruthie and I at camp.

Bobby has joined the group. I've already rebelled and am known as Marilynne.

Roy and I and our three children

Roy and I in a grownup moment.

Me with two of our grandchildren. They're growing up too.

Roy and I on our 50th anniversary

When did it all happen. I still remember most of those times. Time has gone so quickly.

Marilynne

First impressions

Marilynne — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 19:24:34 +0000

Are you good at first impressions? Can you tell things about a person’s personality in that first meeting? I’m notoriously bad at it. So bad, that I rarely trust that first impression.

Let me tell you about a recent first impression. I have problems with my heart. I decided to go to a cardiologist who was closer to home and one who could meet me at the closest hospital to my home, if necessary. I don’t know about where you live, but here the hospitals are very clickish. Stone throwing between hospital personnel is common to the disgust of everyone else.

It seemed right to change. My old cardiologist is 35 miles from home and it’s not at all convenient to see him. So, I went to meet the new cardiologist. My first impression – male chauvinist pig. He was curt to everyone. Talked down to me. Seemed to expect me to keep my mouth shut and do what he said. I heard him yell from his office “[office girl] how long does it take to go to the mailbox and bring back come coffee?” It sounded so nasty. I noticed the staff was treading gingerly. No chit chat. No pleasantries with the patients. Just working quietly.

Did I want this man by my bedside in times of crisis? Let’s think about that. If I need him to meet me at the hospital, what do I need? I need the best doctor I can find to help me through a crisis of the heart. Does his personality matter or only his excellent skills? I’ve been thinking about this while I went through an electrocardiogram of my heart and a stress test. Could I work with a man who has no personality, but very good skills?

Yesterday I returned to hear the results of the tests. The doctor had an emergency at the hospital and was not available. In his place I was seen by a young nurse practitioner. She seemed to have almost as many degrees as the doctor did. We were almost done when the doctor arrived.

He was bouncy, bubbly, elated. I was surprised. The rest of the visit went well.

Now I have two times to compare. At the first visit he’d been bad tempered. At the second visit, he was in a good mood. Why? Maybe because yesterday he’d won the battle and he loved the victory of it. Is this a doctor I want by my side in times of crisis? You bet.

You see why I don’t really trust my first impressions.

Marilynne

Small treasures

Marilynne — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 02:40:59 +0000

Linda Mau is a well-known clay artist in the San Francisco Bay area. She has made some marvelously creative things. You can see more of her very professional work at http://lmau.com . Linda is also my sister-in-law. Her clay art is simply stunning.

When Linda, allows me to own something she has created, I know it’s bound to be very special. Here are a selection of small treasures she’s given me. Most of them are useful as well. There’s nothing big here because it had to travel home in a suitcase or come through the mail.

The strawberry bowl is designed to show off the berries as well as hold them. It’s one of my favorites.

The lady usually sits among my flowers

The photo doesn’t show her beautiful color well. She’s a lovely medium brown and looks so pretty in my garden. Linda gave her to my mother, and when we were closing my mother’s home, I took the lady home with me.

A paper bowl, two hearts, and a butterfly of a dish

I never dreamed so much could be made of paper. This little bowl has bits of flowers and such made into the paper. It once had a handle of twigs. The gray heart honors Scott and Tina’s wedding day. The white heart is a pin, beautiful in its simplicity. The turquoise blue dish is another favorite. It is so light and delicate you think you’ll break it if you touch it, but it’s strong.

This tray was destined for the garbage can. It's a failed experiment, but I love it.

On this tray are two silver bells from my mother-in-law’s collection, a trinket from my daughter Lisa, and a broken bit of honeycomb. They rest on a fancy napkin given me by another daughter. Linda planned to throw the tray away because the experiment didn’t work. The clay edges were crumbling off the wire on the edges. I loved it with its imperfections and begged to be allowed to rescue it from the trash.

The blue tea box keeps my tea bags fresh. A square for used bags is ready next to it.

The last time I visited, Linda gave me a lovely tea caddy. It’s exactly the right shape and size for the tea bags.

Find out more about Linda’s art and where you can see it at http://lmau.com . Here are more references to her work

Marilynne