Boschendal 1685 Chardonnay Pinot Noir, 10 Degrees South: I am not a wine connoisseur, but I enjoyed this South African Chardonnay Pinot Noir. I actually did not know blends of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir existed. I did not like it alone, but it enhanced my South African meal at 10 Degrees South.
Viticulturist’s DetailsA blend of 60% Chardonnay and 40% Pinot Noir from two specific vineyards situated on the gravely Boschendal slopes of the Simonsberg mountain.
pets, Mortality Paradox, Mark Twain, poem, MY DOG BURNS:
Your love for them compels you to let them die with dignity in their own time and not on our time. When their bodies fail them, they are telling you in their own way to let go. I have learned this lesson the hard way when I kept my dog alive (with numerous surgeries and excessive medications) way longer than I should have.
A Dish reader reflects on the moral and emotional turmoil of pet mortality. Pair with John Updike’s heartbreaking poem “Another Dog’s Death” and Fiona Apple’s stirring handwritten letter about her dying dog, and Mark Twain’s little-known verses mourning the loss of his beloved canine companion.
Meanwhile, the Mortality Paradox looms over all of us.
via Explore – Your love for them compels you to let them die….
Here’s the Mark Twain poem referenced above:
Though a far cry from John Updike’s heartbreaking poem about the last days of his dog, Twain’s verses mourning the loss of his beloved canine companion don’t fail to stir:
MY DOG BURNS
No more shall bear beauteous form
Be seen in the raging storm.
No more shall her wondrous tail
Dodge the quickly dropping hail.
She lived a quiet harmless life
In Hartford far from madding strife;
Nor waged no War on peaceful rat
Nor battled with wild fierce tomcat.
No, No, my beloved, dear ’cause dead
What tough thy coat was a brick dust red?
Like a good author, thou was a trusty friend
And thy tail, like his, red to the very end.
via On Loves, Lunacies, and Losses: The Little-Known Poetry of Mark Twain | Brain Pickings.
royal baby, Zoo ATL’s giant panda, Lun Lun, labor, @ajc: Another fun tweet …
AJC @ajc 31s
No #royalbaby yet, but Zoo ATL’s giant panda Lun Lun is in labor. http://bit.ly/12synyC
via Twitter.
Aparecium!, J.K. Rowling, ‘Cuckoo’ Mystery Author, @nprbooks, Revealing Charm, Harry Potter Wiki:
NPR Books @nprbooks 4m
Aparecium! J.K. Rowling Revealed As ‘Cuckoo’ Mystery Author http://n.pr/146o1cT
via (2) Twitter
OK, I had to look up “Aparecium!”
The Revealing Charm[1] (Aparecium) is a charm that forces invisible ink or other hidden messages to appear. It is also possible this spell can be used to make other invisible things reveal themselves. Hermione Granger used this spell on Tom Riddle’s Diary to see if anything could be read. Nothing appeared after she used the spell because that was not the enchantment placed on the book.
When the Harry Potter books splashed into our pop culture as the 20th century closed, I knew that I would love them (I played my share of Dungeons and Dragons as a kid). But a little voice inside my head kept me from plowing through them- it told me to wait and enjoy them as a father. My oldest son, now 9, finally expressed interest in HP this year, so off we went- reading them in tandem. This shared experience has been wonderful, and got me thinking about my all-time favorite children’s books (or should I say, books for the young at heart?).
Dennard's Clipping Service 