Delightful Blogger Award Winners!

 

Rules:

1. Link back to me please

2. Share your favorite thing about blogging

3. Choose at least 3 friends to give this award to

Tiger's Winners:

1. Jules,Trying to Get Over the Rainbow

2. N.R. Williams, N.R. Williams Fantasy Writer

3. The Golden Eagle, The Eagle's Aerial Perspective

4. L' Aussie, L'Aussie Writing & L'Aussie Travel Blog

5. Yvonne, Welcome to My World of Poetry

6. Joanne, Whole Latte Life

7. Alex J. Cavanaugh,  Alex J. Cavanaugh

My favorite thing about blogging is reading posts. I am always learning something and I just love learning new things. I also must say meeting new people is right up there. Everyone's different point of views are refreshing to come across.

Thursday's Quotes

"Anger is never without a reason but seldom with a good one." - Ben Franklin

Monday's poems

Al Aaraaf

Part 2

By: Edgar Allan Poe

High on a mountain of enamell'd head-
Such as the drowsy shepherd on his bed
Of giant pasturage lying at his ease,
Raising his heavy eyelid, starts and sees
With many a mutter'd 'hope to be forgiven'
What time the moon is quadrated in Heaven-
Of rosy head that, towering far away
Into the sunlit ether, caught the ray
Of sunken suns at eve- at noon of night,
While the moon danc'd with the fair stranger light-
Uprear'd upon such height arose a pile
Of gorgeous columns on th' unburthen'd air,
Flashing from Parian marble that twin smile
Far down upon the wave that sparkled there,
And nursled the young mountain in its lair.
Of molten stars their pavement, such as fall
Thro' the ebon air, besilvering the pall
Of their own dissolution, while they die-
Adorning then the dwellings of the sky.
A dome, by linked light from Heaven let down,
Sat gently on these columns as a crown-
A window of one circular diamond, there,
Look'd out above into the purple air,
And rays from God shot down that meteor chain
And hallow'd all the beauty twice again,
Save, when, between th' empyrean and that ring,
Some eager spirit Flapp'd his dusky wing.
But on the pillars Seraph eyes have seen
The dimness of this world: that greyish green
That Nature loves the best Beauty's grave
Lurk'd in each cornice, round each architrave-
And every sculptur'd cherub thereabout
That from his marble dwelling peered out,
Seem'd earthly in the shadow of his niche-
Achaian statues in a world so rich!
Friezes from Tadmor and Persepolis-
From Balbec, and the stilly, clear abyss
Of beautiful Gomorrah! O, the wave
Is now upon thee- but too late to save!

Sound loves to revel in a summer night:
Witness the murmur of the grey twilight

That stole upon the ear, in Eyraco,
Of many a wild star-gazer long ago-
That stealeth ever on the ear of him
Who, musing, gazeth on the distance dim,
And sees the darkness coming as a cloud-
Is not its form- its voice- most palpable and loud?

But what is this?- it cometh, and it brings
A music with it- 'tis the rush of wings-
A pause- and then a sweeping, falling strain
And Nesace is in her halls again.
From the wild energy of wanton haste
Her cheeks were flushing, and her lips apart;
And zone that clung around her gentle waist
Had burst beneath the heaving of her heart.
Within the centre of that hall to breathe,
She paused and panted, Zanthe! all beneath,
The fairy light that kiss'd her golden hair
And long'd to rest, yet could but sparkle there.

Young flowers were whispering in melody
To happy flowers that night- and tree to tree;
Fountains were gushing music as they fell
In many a star-lit grove, or moon-lit dell;
Yet silence came upon material things-
Fair flowers, bright waterfalls and angel wings-
And sound alone that from the spirit sprang
Bore burthen to the charm the maiden sang:

''Neath the blue-bell or streamer-
Or tufted wild spray
That keeps, from the dreamer,
The moonbeam away-
Bright beings! that ponder,
With half closing eyes,
On the stars which your wonder
Hath drawn from the skies,
Till they glance thro' the shade, and
Come down to your brow
Like- eyes of the maiden
Who calls on you now-
Arise! from your dreaming
In violet bowers,
To duty beseeming
These star-litten hours-
And shake from your tresses
Encumber'd with dew
The breath of those kisses
That cumber them too-
(O! how, without you, Love!
Could angels be blest?)
Those kisses of true Love
That lull'd ye to rest!
Up!- shake from your wing
Each hindering thing:
The dew of the night-
It would weigh down your flight
And true love caresses-
O, leave them apart!
They are light on the tresses,
But lead on the heart.

Ligeia! Ligeia!
My beautiful one!
Whose harshest idea
Will to melody run,
O! is it thy will
On the breezes to toss?
Or, capriciously still,
Like the lone Albatros,
Incumbent on night
(As she on the air)
To keep watch with delight
On the harmony there?

Ligeia! wherever
Thy image may be,
No magic shall sever
Thy music from thee.
Thou hast bound many eyes
In a dreamy sleep-
But the strains still arise
Which thy vigilance keep-
The sound of the rain,
Which leaps down to the flower-
And dances again
In the rhythm of the shower-
The murmur that springs
From the growing of grass
Are the music of things-
But are modell'd, alas!-
Away, then, my dearest,
Oh! hie thee away
To the springs that lie clearest
Beneath the moon-ray-
To lone lake that smiles,
In its dream of deep rest,
At the many star-isles
That enjewel its breast-
Where wild flowers, creeping,
Have mingled their shade,
On its margin is sleeping
Full many a maid-
Some have left the cool glade, and
Have slept with the bee-
Arouse them, my maiden,
On moorland and lea-
Go! breathe on their slumber,
All softly in ear,
Thy musical number
They slumbered to hear-
For what can awaken
An angel so soon,
Whose sleep hath been taken
Beneath the cold moon,
As the spell which no slumber
Of witchery may test,
The rhythmical number
Which lull'd him to rest?'

Spirits in wing, and angels to the view,
A thousand seraphs burst th' Empyrean thro',
Young dreams still hovering on their drowsy flight-
Seraphs in all but 'Knowledge,' the keen light
That fell, refracted, thro' thy bounds, afar,
O Death! from eye of God upon that star:
Sweet was that error- sweeter still that death-
Sweet was that error- even with us the breath
Of Science dims the mirror of our joy-
To them 'twere the Simoom, and would destroy-
For what (to them) availeth it to know
That Truth is Falsehood- or that Bliss is Woe?
Sweet was their death- with them to die was rife
With the last ecstasy of satiate life-
Beyond that death no immortality-
But sleep that pondereth and is not 'to be'!-
And there- oh! may my weary spirit dwell-
Apart from Heaven's Eternity- and yet how far from Hell!
What guilty spirit, in what shrubbery dim,
Heard not the stirring summons of that hymn?
But two: they fell: for Heaven no grace imparts
To those who hear not for their beating hearts.
A maiden-angel and her seraph-lover-
O! where (and ye may seek the wide skies over)
Was Love, the blind, near sober Duty known?
Unguided Love hath fallen- 'mid 'tears of perfect moan.'
He was a goodly spirit- he who fell:
A wanderer by moss-y-mantled well-
A gazer on the lights that shine above-
A dreamer in the moonbeam by his love:
What wonder? for each star is eye-like there,
And looks so sweetly down on Beauty's hair-
And they, and ev'ry mossy spring were holy
To his love-haunted heart and melancholy.
The night had found (to him a night of woe)
Upon a mountain crag, young Angelo-
Beetling it bends athwart the solemn sky,
And scowls on starry worlds that down beneath it lie.
Here sat he with his love- his dark eye bent
With eagle gaze along the firmament:
Now turn'd it upon her- but ever then
It trembled to the orb of EARTH again.

'Ianthe, dearest, see- how dim that ray!
How lovely 'tis to look so far away!
She seem'd not thus upon that autumn eve
I left her gorgeous halls- nor mourn'd to leave.
That eve- that eve- I should remember well-
The sun-ray dropp'd in Lemnos, with a spell
On th' arabesque carving of a gilded hall
Wherein I sate, and on the draperied wall-
And on my eyelids- O the heavy light!
How drowsily it weigh'd them into night!
On flowers, before, and mist, and love they ran
With Persian Saadi in his Gulistan:
But O that light!- I slumber'd- Death, the while,
Stole o'er my senses in that lovely isle
So softly that no single silken hair
Awoke that slept- or knew that he was there.

'The last spot of Earth's orb I trod upon
Was a proud temple call'd the Parthenon;
More beauty clung around her column'd wall
Than ev'n thy glowing bosom beats withal,
And when old Time my wing did disenthral
Thence sprang I- as the eagle from his tower,
And years I left behind me in an hour.
What time upon her airy bounds I hung,
One half the garden of her globe was flung
Unrolling as a chart unto my view-
Tenantless cities of the desert too!
Ianthe, beauty crowded on me then,
And half I wish'd to be again of men.'

'My Angelo! and why of them to be?
A brighter dwelling-place is here for thee-
And greener fields than in yon world above,
And woman's loveliness- and passionate love.'

'But, list, Ianthe! when the air so soft
Fail'd, as my pennon'd spirit leapt aloft,
Perhaps my brain grew dizzy- but the world
I left so late was into chaos hurl'd-
Sprang from her station, on the winds apart.
And roll'd, a flame, the fiery Heaven athwart.
Methought, my sweet one, then I ceased to soar
And fell- not swiftly as I rose before,
But with a downward, tremulous motion thro'
Light, brazen rays, this golden star unto!
Nor long the measure of my falling hours,
For nearest of all stars was thine to ours-
Dread star! that came, amid a night of mirth,
A red Daedalion on the timid Earth.'

'We came- and to thy Earth- but not to us
Be given our lady's bidding to discuss:
We came, my love; around, above, below,
Gay fire-fly of the night we come and go,
Nor ask a reason save the angel-nod
She grants to us, as granted by her God-
But, Angelo, than thine grey Time unfurl'd
Never his fairy wing O'er fairier world!
Dim was its little disk, and angel eyes
Alone could see the phantom in the skies,
When first Al Aaraaf knew her course to be
Headlong thitherward o'er the starry sea-
But when its glory swell'd upon the sky,
As glowing Beauty's bust beneath man's eye,
We paused before the heritage of men,
And thy star trembled- as doth Beauty then!'

Thus, in discourse, the lovers whiled away
The night that waned and waned and brought no day.
They fell: for Heaven to them no hope imparts
Who hear not for the beating of their hearts.

Thursday's Quotes

"Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter." - Mark Twain

Magic of Windlier Woods

This is N.R. Williams book trailer for her short story. =)

Monday's poems

Al Aaraaf

By; Edgar Allan Poe

PART I
O! nothing earthly save the ray
(Thrown back from flowers) of Beauty's eye,
As in those gardens where the day
Springs from the gems of Circassy-
O! nothing earthly save the thrill
Of melody in woodland rill-
Or (music of the passion-hearted)
Joy's voice so peacefully departed
That like the murmur in the shell,
Its echo dwelleth and will dwell-
Oh, nothing of the dross of ours-
Yet all the beauty- all the flowers
That list our Love, and deck our bowers-
Adorn yon world afar, afar-
The wandering star.

'Twas a sweet time for Nesace- for there
Her world lay lolling on the golden air,
Near four bright suns- a temporary rest-
An oasis in desert of the blest.
Away- away- 'mid seas of rays that roll
Empyrean splendor o'er th' unchained soul-
The soul that scarce (the billows are so dense)
Can struggle to its destin'd eminence,-
To distant spheres, from time to time, she rode
And late to ours, the favor'd one of God-
But, now, the ruler of an anchor'd realm,
She throws aside the sceptre- leaves the helm,
And, amid incense and high spiritual hymns,
Laves in quadruple light her angel limbs.

Now happiest, loveliest in yon lovely Earth,
Whence sprang the 'Idea of Beauty' into birth,
(Falling in wreaths thro' many a startled star,
Like woman's hair 'mid pearls, until, afar,
It lit on hills Achaian, and there dwelt)
She looked into Infinity- and knelt.
Rich clouds, for canopies, about her curled-
Fit emblems of the model of her world-
Seen but in beauty- not impeding sight
Of other beauty glittering thro' the light-
A wreath that twined each starry form around,
And all the opal'd air in color bound.

All hurriedly she knelt upon a bed
Of flowers: of lilies such as rear'd the head
On the fair Capo Deucato, and sprang
So eagerly around about to hang
Upon the flying footsteps of- deep pride-
Of her who lov'd a mortal- and so died.
The Sephalica, budding with young bees,
Upreared its purple stem around her knees:-
And gemmy flower, of Trebizond misnam'd-
Inmate of highest stars, where erst it sham'd
All other loveliness:- its honied dew
(The fabled nectar that the heathen knew)
Deliriously sweet, was dropp'd from Heaven,
And fell on gardens of the unforgiven
In Trebizond- and on a sunny flower
So like its own above that, to this hour,
It still remaineth, torturing the bee
With madness, and unwonted reverie:
In Heaven, and all its environs, the leaf
And blossom of the fairy plant in grief
Disconsolate linger- grief that hangs her head,
Repenting follies that full long have Red,
Heaving her white breast to the balmy air,
Like guilty beauty, chasten'd and more fair:
Nyctanthes too, as sacred as the light
She fears to perfume, perfuming the night:
And Clytia, pondering between many a sun,
While pettish tears adown her petals run:
And that aspiring flower that sprang on Earth,
And died, ere scarce exalted into birth,
Bursting its odorous heart in spirit to wing
Its way to Heaven, from garden of a king:
And Valisnerian lotus, thither flown'
From struggling with the waters of the Rhone:
And thy most lovely purple perfume, Zante!
Isola d'oro!- Fior di Levante!
And the Nelumbo bud that floats for ever
With Indian Cupid down the holy river-
Fair flowers, and fairy! to whose care is given
To bear the Goddess' song, in odors, up to Heaven:

'Spirit! that dwellest where,
In the deep sky,
The terrible and fair,
In beauty vie!
Beyond the line of blue-
The boundary of the star
Which turneth at the view
Of thy barrier and thy bar-
Of the barrier overgone
By the comets who were cast
From their pride and from their throne
To be drudges till the last-
To be carriers of fire
(The red fire of their heart)
With speed that may not tire
And with pain that shall not part-
Who livest- that we know-
In Eternity- we feel-
But the shadow of whose brow
What spirit shall reveal?
Tho' the beings whom thy Nesace,
Thy messenger hath known
Have dream'd for thy Infinity
A model of their own-
Thy will is done, O God!
The star hath ridden high
Thro' many a tempest, but she rode
Beneath thy burning eye;
And here, in thought, to thee-
In thought that can alone
Ascend thy empire and so be
A partner of thy throne-
By winged Fantasy,
My embassy is given,
Till secrecy shall knowledge be
In the environs of Heaven.'

She ceas'd- and buried then her burning cheek
Abash'd, amid the lilies there, to seek
A shelter from the fervor of His eye;
For the stars trembled at the Deity.
She stirr'd not- breath'd not- for a voice was there
How solemnly pervading the calm air!
A sound of silence on the startled ear
Which dreamy poets name 'the music of the sphere.'
Ours is a world of words: Quiet we call
'Silence'- which is the merest word of all.
All Nature speaks, and ev'n ideal things
Flap shadowy sounds from visionary wings-
But ah! not so when, thus, in realms on high
The eternal voice of God is passing by,
And the red winds are withering in the sky:-

'What tho 'in worlds which sightless cycles run,
Linked to a little system, and one sun-
Where all my love is folly and the crowd
Still think my terrors but the thunder cloud,
The storm, the earthquake, and the ocean-wrath-
(Ah! will they cross me in my angrier path?)
What tho' in worlds which own a single sun
The sands of Time grow dimmer as they run,
Yet thine is my resplendency, so given
To bear my secrets thro' the upper Heaven!
Leave tenantless thy crystal home, and fly,
With all thy train, athwart the moony sky-
Apart- like fire-flies in Sicilian night,
And wing to other worlds another light!
Divulge the secrets of thy embassy
To the proud orbs that twinkle- and so be
To ev'ry heart a barrier and a ban
Lest the stars totter in the guilt of man!'

Up rose the maiden in the yellow night,
The single-mooned eve!- on Earth we plight
Our faith to one love- and one moon adore-
The birth-place of young Beauty had no more.
As sprang that yellow star from downy hours
Up rose the maiden from her shrine of flowers,
And bent o'er sheeny mountains and dim plain
Her way, but left not yet her Therasaean reign.

Funny Things to Share

My son is 4 years old and he just loves all animals, reptiles, and of course dinosaurs. I don't know how many of you have seen Disney's "The Dinosaur", but when the T-Rex dies my son gets upset. He likes the predators in all species. His favorites are sharks, snakes, crocodiles, alligators, T-Rex and raptors. Oh and lobsters. =)  Well at least this year they are. LOL He watches this show on animal planet called "River Monsters" it's pretty good but not so much my thing.

So I took him to the Aquarium here in Denver, CO and he had so much fun. Here are a few of the pictures I took while we were there.

 Lobster on the left.

Unicorn fish on the right.

 

Piranha's  above.                                                                                          Blow fish above.

 

 Seahorse above.

Star Fish (left) 

The fish that said I'm obnoxious  from "Finding Nemo." (right)                                                                                                                  

 

 Where's Nemo? His dad and Dori are here. LOL

These guys on the left are related to sting rays but the look like.    

This is a cool looking sting ray on the right.

This sting ray is huge and they look like their smiling.

I can't remember the specific name of these Jelly Fish.( Left) 

 This sea turtle started swimming right after this picture was taken. (right)

 This looks like it has a saw for a nose. (left)                          

A Sand-tiger shark but it's more like a sting ray. (right)

This guy was interested in me for some reason. He came up to me and just stayed there for a while. I felt like his lunch after a few minutes. It was kind of uncomfortable but mostly because everyone there kept saying, "look at the way the shark is just staring at her." Well, he eventually moved on but I'll never forget it.

They have a fish there that will swim up to the scuba divers (you can swim with the fish and sharks there you just sign up) and eats the bubbles from the oxygen tanks. Now this fish is as big as a woman about 5 feet tall give or take and is as round as a boulder. It was fun to see this but I did not get a picture of this big fish, sorry. I might be a little off of the size of the fish but it was enormous.

 Also they have two Tigers but they were sleeping where we could not see them at the time we were there.

If your ever in the area you should definitely check out the Aquarium. Hope you enjoy these photos. =)

Thursday's Quotes

"Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference." - Winston Churchill

I Will Not Be Blogging To Much For A Few Days

Yesterday my new puppy got injured badly and he was bleeding internally. The vet could not save him and I'm having trouble focusing. He stole my heart the second I saw that little guy. I'm trying hard to distract myself from the pain and the trauma I saw him endure. It seems to me this month is just not a good month for many people. Sorry to share just bad news. I do have some scheduled posts and I should be on again in a few days. Thanks for visiting.

Update on Treasures of Carmelidrium by N.R. Williams

From the first sentence I was brought in to this wonderful book. I wanted to share part of a song in this book, so here it is.

Chapter 9
Towards the end, I can't tell what page it's on cause I just got my kindle and am still learning how it works.

"I shall sing for thee, I shall sing for thy honor. Of the age of dragons, Dreams and wild men. Of the darkness void, From whence came our fright. Of the men and daughters, With the Evil Eye."

"O daughters of men, Brave fathers and husbands. Take heed and take warning, Or thou shalt not live. Set free all the cattle, And run toward the woods. From the fair-haired people, Of the Dragon's Ship."

There's more to the song, but I could not help but laugh as I read this. If you love to read you need to check out this book.

Check out her blog here, http://nrwilliams.blogspot.com/, and she has a link there if you'd like to purchase her book. She also has her reviews of her book on her blog, at the top of her blog is a tab that says Treasures of Carmelidrium book reviews.

Thanks for stopping by my blog today. =)

Monday's poems

Annabel Lee

By: Edgar Allan Poe

It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of ANNABEL LEE;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.

I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea;
But we loved with a love that was more than love-
I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.

And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsman came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.

The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me-
Yes!- that was the reason (as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.

But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we-
Of many far wiser than we-
And neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee.

For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride,
In the sepulchre there by the sea,
In her tomb by the sounding sea.

Another one of my favorites. I have so many I sometimes forget some of them lol. =)

Funny Things to Share

I just wanted to share with you the new addition to my family. I got a new dog and my son decided on Duke. Now when I think of that name I think first of Lord's and Ladies and Princes, and Princesses and all. =) I also think about big dogs second because I knew a lady whose dog was named Duke and he was a Saint Bernard.

Anyway, he is loveable, and playful. He's still a puppy but don't be fooled he's a great guard dog. He's fast and quick and before you know it he'll be right behind you.

When I was outside calling for Duke to come with me the neighbors all looked to see the dog with such a name. What breed of dog would be coming through the door? A greyhound, a doberman, or maybe a husky?

You might be wondering what breed of dog Duke is? =)


Well when Duke shot through the door the neighbors faces changed from curious to humorous. I saw smiles throughout the park and many were laughing loudly.


See Duke is a Teacup Chihuahua......really he is. LOL


Here's a picture of our furry little friend.

He weighs 2 lbs. and he's 4 months old. =)

Thursday's Quotes & Award

"Believe you can and you're halfway there." - Theodore Roosevelt


I also want to say Thank-you to N.R. Williams for this award.

"Bubble Butt the Sea Turtle and the Hidden Harbor Motel" Book Review

Bubble Butt the Sea Turtle and the Hidden Harbor Motel by: Rebecca R. H. Spriggs is a children's book. I read it to my son and I thought it was really cute. I have the Kindle version.
 My 4 year old son loves animals especially sea animals and he liked this story. He really likes to look at pictures when I read him stories but this version does not have any. That is my only complaint I have but it's not a big one. He was still interested in the story though. I rate this book 4 stars. =)

Thank-You to all of my Followers, Lifes a Climb, & One Day Without Shoes cause!

I just wanted to take the time to say thank you. This award is for all of my followers so please take this award.

Life's a Climb

On a few of yesterday's posts that I read talked about confidence. Ann at http://annbest-jen.blogspot.com/ shared a picture of a girl climbing up a mountain. (Please check out her blog, she has wonderful posts and she is a wonderful blogger friend). This reminded me of this song and I wanted to share this with all of you. When I first heard this song I was going through some really difficult times and it enspired me to conquer them. I hope you like this song and feel enspired in your own way. =)

One Day Without Shoes

This is a way to help children who have no shoes a pair. So check out the website (If you click on this picture on the right side of my blog it will direct you to the website.) and find out how you can join in. I am participating by sharing this with all of you and on my facebook page as well as going barefoot where I can tomorrow unless we get more snow. I don't think I'd last long on snow and ice with no shoes.  I found out about this from Su at http://cheekyness.blogspot.com/. So please stop by her blog it is excellent and I know you'll enjoy it too. =)

Mondays poems

A Book
By: Emily Dickinson

There is no frigate like a book
To take us lands away,
Nor any coursers like a page
Of prancing poetry.
This traverse may the poorest take
Without oppress of toll;
How frugal is the chariot
That bears a human soul!

I really like this poem. =)

Starting a New Book

I am starting to read The Treasures of Carmelidrium by: N. R. Williams. I have not read it since it's been finished. I will update once a week. I can't wait to continue to read this book because I can't put it down. =)