There was an interesting article in the Washington Post recently about the Gardens of Versailles, and how the climate changes are taking their toll on the plant life there, some of it dating to the French Revolution.

My favorite point in this article is how they stopped using insecticides to kill off the bugs, instead letting the bugs grow fat and juicy. Guess what happened? The birds came back and ate the bugs! Isn't that amazing!? Nature has a way of taking care of itself, if us pesky humans would just let it be and stop screwing it up.

My garden has its fair share of buggy critters. I don't use anything to deter that, no matter what they nibble on. Sure I have aphids on a few things, but I also have lady bugs who love a good juicy aphid. I've got caterpillers galore, and yes, they turn a canna leaf into swiss cheese, but then they turn into a lovely butterfly. There are plenty of birds during the day, and in the evening the bats put on a show having their way with the mosquitos. If I sprayed insecticides, none of that would happen. It's worth the trade.

How do you know you're getting old?

When a scene from one of your coming of age movies is used as inspiration for a JC Penney commercial.

Pass me my cane.

Item(s) of the week

You might as well call these the misunderstood sequin tops.

This style is often attributed to the '70s. Being the glitzy disco era that it was, surely something of this amount of "sequinage" must be disco, right? Aha!! OK, I did have to double check this one with my felow vinties at the VFG, but it confirmed the suspicions. This style was all '80's...'85 to '86 to be exact. A few of the more mature VFGers even recalled seeing them in shop windows then! Being a newly minted teenager, I'm sure my mind was elsewhere then, or I would have noticed it myself.
Recently, this style has seen a come back, worn well with a tight top underneith and skinny fitted jeans, with the butterfly top off the shoulder in true slouch style.

Mall hair optional this time around.

Check them out on my site: http://www.hatfeathersvintage.com

Just couldn't be more proud.....

If you watch the show America's Got Talent, you get to see the wide (and odd) array of entertainment talent in America..and some that, well, have the spirit but not the talent to back it up. Not the case with a bit of last night's show, for me at least. The Zooperstars were on, and made it to the Vegas callbacks!
Here's the bit of the show last night:

What's a Zooperstar? Well, they are a group of entertainers that utilize special suits made by my friends Signs & Shapes International. http://www.signsandshapes.com/ These suits, called Walkarounds, are really ingenious little creations, made in all sorts of nifty character shapes from something as generic as Uncle Sam to as recognizable as Lil' Red (go Huskers!) and Chester Cheetah. The operator wears a special blower belt that inflates the shape from inside. I spent a little time in a Chester Cheetah suit once, picking up a little extra cash at a Walmart grand opening, and I have to tell you, what the Zooperstars folks do in these suits is just amazing. I was doing well to wave at little kids and bounce around a bit. I was absolutely wiped out after a 4 hour stint of walking around and waving. I most certainly wasn't trying to do anything athletic!

So, hooray for the Zooperstars, and hooray for the designers, patternmakers, seamstresses and painters that do the work to bring these and other fun shapes to life at Signs & Shapes. After all, if you can't laugh at a big wobbly dude, then what point is there to life?

OK, well, this looks interesting! You can't beat the cast, and hey, it's summer...why not?
http://www.drhorrible.com



Teaser from Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog on Vimeo.

Item of the week

Vested Gentress had the whimsical print thing down pat, and this fun example is no exception.
The crisp white dress is covered with Morning Glory vines in blues and greens. How fun!
Dresses like this offer a fun alternative to the Tshirt and shorts routine, just pair with a pair of sandals and go.
Find this and more fun stuff at http://www.hatfeathersvintage.com

Retro to me, new to the kidlet...They Might Be Giants

They Might Be Giants....but for my kid? You bet your bloomers!
My son (age 6) has a new obsession, and who would have thunk it!? It's They Might Be Giant's two DVDs "Here Come the ABCs" and "Here Come the 123s", a collection of witty, quirky, and (don't tell) a little bit educational video tidbits. We got hooked on it when Disney and Noggin started playing the video for "Zeroes" in between shows. I know neither of these discs is particularly new, but they're worth seeking out...and those of you without kids may not have seen this new venture, so here you go.
If I stop to think about it, it really does make sense, since TMBG was doing quirky, thought inducing music even back in the 90s when I was listening to them in college. It relays nicely to the kid scene, and gives Mom something fun to listen to with the wee one. I've posted three of their video tidbits above, so enjoy them with someone you think is nifty.