Consortium of Seven

The concept of an idea that overwhelms, of a bit of language or a thought as a powerful, almost magical thing with possibly grave consequences, is a notion that's drawn and sometimes haunted me over the years with its possibilities and potential perils.  The loss of control, of meaning and direction, has become more of a palpable horror to me as I consider the threat of dementia. A creeping corruption, binding and obscuring, or simply rotting from within, a person's agency and identity. Best not to go down that particular rabbit hole today, though.   Certainly, the power of language to captivate, enthrall, to pierce and change is known, but that still usually requires a participatory willingness by the reader or listener. It can be enhanced by the quality of voice, by showmanship, cadence and rhythm, but all of this even at its most skilled falls short of the magical concept of true word magic.  (Sights and ideas that can cause madness is a very Lovecrafti...

Donna Fay Reeves is the newest member of the Consortium. She's working on tech upgrades to get her connected up here. In the meantime, we have been featuring highlights from Donna's social media posts, beginning with her projects at home during the lockdown. So far we've had Donna Fay's freshly-painted front dood (it's red!) and her front porch lit up with fairy lights. Today we're changing it up with some moments from DF's Facebook photo album.

Nan's computer has gremlins in it and her post (which may nor may not have Eleanor R. in it) will appear eventually. In the meantime,  this lost-landmarks website  has interesting photos of a tribute to Eleanor's work for worldwide peace. 

This post is the next in an ongoing series about my trips  as a teenager  to the Indianapolis Public Library in the early 1970s. Each time I went, I had the same goal: to find books shelved in the Dewey Decimal 800s. I was looking for magic volumes which would teach me how to:   a.) be a writer, and  b.) be a funny writer.  Happily, over time I discovered lots of authors and essayists I'd never have known about if it hadn't been for these library adventures.  And they were true adventures; one might say quests, even. Finding anything to read in industrial Indianapolis (besides the Bible and Reader's Digest) had been a long-time challenge. Our house didn't have many books in it. Nobody read books.  My father was an engineering guy, not a words person. My mother had only intermittent schooling as a farm girl and she was also dyslexic. My middle sister was also dyslexic and hated school, mostly because reading was a misery for her. My ...

This is the second of my antique European postcards. A few had writing and postmarks on the back that I included. I may be a bit of a voyeur, but I enjoy reading them and imagining what their lives at that moment might have been like. I like looking for the period penmanship and the instruments used for writing such as fountain pens that are easy to spot.  For myself, I don't have a strong urge to travel to other countries. It makes me very anxious. The few times I've been to Mexico was not pleasant for me. In my older age, I don't even have a strong urge to travel domestically. There are a few places I'd go though, if I had the funds to do it well, such as New York, San Francisco, again and New England in the fall.  I have zero interest in the South, the Midwest, or Texas.  Hope you enjoy the installment of my postcard blogs.  The above postcard is described on the back as Alpabfahrt - Cow festival -Descente des vaches Geneve - L'Horloge Fluerie Lucerne, Lion's...

It has been a dry summer in SWFL. Nature is never wrong about gray and green. Florida plants featuring combinations of greens, grays, and browns. Florida's version of  Frosted with silver and gray. Life springs up wherever it chooses. Rich browns look so beautiful with the young green. Ferns and philodendron trail up the palm trees. Fawn brown an icy mineral green. And gray. These colors would be lovely in a knit. Segmented palms. They are very sturdy and straight. Lacy Cypress green frost Juniper The 1970's brought us the woven palm look in everything from fabrics to lamps. I think of the movie, Three Women and Shelley Duvall's character's apartment whenever I look at these. ~Oldgirl