Oh!

ABC-Along 2008 runs down toward the back half of the alphabet; here is the letter 'O' and
"'O' is for 'ocean.'" Both photos taken in Maine, in Acadia National Park.

This weekend we went into Boston to see, at Dean's request, "El Greco to Velazquez: Art during the Reign of Phillip III" at the Museum of Fine Arts. He'd seen a billboard for the show earlier in the month and was intrigued. I am so delighted when he has an interest in art and museum-going that I'm willing to have the experience in the way that works for him -- wandering through galleries, pausing and reading and looking when something catches his (or my) eye.

I do always steer him toward at least one gallery that I know he may not pick but that has things I know will interest him; he's interested in the Revolutionary War and Paul Revere so I brought him to see the collection of silver items made by Revere himself as well as Copley's portrait of Revere. Ken remarked that the gallery made the streets and neighborhoods of Boston come alive; it doesn't take long to see namesakes' portraits or work. It's a great exercise in a city to question who a street or neighborhood is named for, especially in an "old" city like Boston. This is one reason why I kinda hate the suburbs -- it's either names like "Elm" or "Birch" everywhere, or you get the streets named for the developer's family members ("Mindy Lou Circle").

Anyway, our day of culture was rounded out with a day of cleaning and the new atmosphere of minimalism is helping us clear out bags and bags worth of stuff. It's hard for me to let go sometimes; I am a collector, an archivist by nature. We work with Dean to clear out his room and closet of the things he no longer plays with and I see a childhood passing right by. I inadvertently made a smart move that's helped me -- I completely cleaned out the kitchen and got rid of the extraneous stuff on the counters. The result is that it feels great to walk in there, and so the room has become my reminder of the upside of downsizing. Someday -- soon -- I plan to have enough room to do some sewing again. The holidays are coming, you know.