Why yes – you’re looking lovely today!

We could all do with a compliment now and then – so remember to pay yourself one today, and to be kind to others.

Motto of the day: Don’t be yourself today – be someone nicer and more compassionate!

My small slice of the world has been wrapped up in soft grey tissue paper.

And sprinkled now and then with pearls. In this case, the luminous moonstone white of the swans bobbing upside down in search of food.

And just when I think the soft grey clouds are winning, I catch sight of a splash of tinsel, a dab of gold.

We have to embrace the grey too. After all, it is a part of life’s mosaic.

And look – the soft grey pastel tones have a near-magical quality!

What greys will you embrace today?

To see other colourful parts of the world, please visit: That’s My World!

No wonder the book is so dog-eared!

To see more literate pets, please visit: Pet Pride.

Sir Pe sent me this funny article, which I thought I would share with you while my brain is on vacation.

Apple strikes again!

Apple announced today that it has developed a breast implant that can store and play music. The iTit will cost from $499 to $699, depending on cup and speaker size.

This is considered a major social breakthrough because women are always complaining about men staring at their breasts and not listening to them.

Sometimes Facebook is full of statuses about what we have for lunch, where we are headed and who we are meeting. And that’s fine!

And sometimes, people post something so funny that it just has to be shared!

Here are three golden nuggets for you to enjoy:

“If you get bird flu, you need tweet-ment. If you get swine flu, you need oink-ment.”

“Menstruation, menopause.. and mental breakdown! Have you noticed how all women’s problems start with ‘men’?”

“Don’t you find it interesting that after Monday (M) and Tuesday (T), the rest of the week spells WTF?”

November is a dull grey month in Sweden. The sun has forgotten how to shine and the trees softly drop their burden of leaves.

And yet, in secret nooks and crannies, hidden along untrodden paths, you can find spots of beauty.

The smile of a friend, the laughter of a child or a bridge made out of leaves.

Even those familiar spots that I visit daily suddenly look different, clothed as they are in the soft November light, and shining with their carpet of gold.

Perhaps November isn’t such a dull month after all … if we can only remember to see.

What hidden beauty will you uncover in your life today?

To see more beauty around the world, please visit: That’s My World!

It’s about time I told you the story of how we came to  have a dog called Oscar. You see, on Monday Oscar turns seven, so I thought we’d celebrate with his story (and a few tasty dog biscuits).

Oscar in 2007 when we first met him

Let’s turn the clock back two and a half years ago…

As I work from home quite a lot, I had answered an ad to be a dog sitter for a dog you all know (Frodo), so that he wouldn’t be at home all alone while his owners worked. Frodo comes from local dog breeders, who are famous for their beautifully-coloured working golden retrievers. The breeders had five or six dogs at that time, one of them being Frodo’s dad, Oscar. (Yes – our Oscar!)

Oscar was one of their stud dogs and his puppies were always booked up long in advance because people just fell in love with his sweet and generous nature. Unfortunately, he didn’t like living in a big flock of dogs and was getting more and more stressed.

Frodo’s owners brought him home, but as Oscar was very worried and followed them around all the time – he never seemed to be able to relax – they decided not to add him to their family.

That’s when they suggested that I go over to the breeders to meet him.

So, I did.

Although only a couple of weeks before, we had decided as a family not to get a dog until the kids were old enough to come home from school by themselves and walk the dog.

I didn’t tell Sir Pe, but took the kids out to the breeders. They were lovely as were all their dogs, especially a handsome 4.5-year-old called Oscar. I decided to bring him home for the weekend to see if he really was as sweet as everyone said he was.

On returning home, I did what any sane parent would have done: I made the kids go in first with the dog and explain to Sir Pe that he was spending the weekend with us! When Sir Pe wanted to take Oscar back at the end of the weekend, we all burst out crying.

And that’s  how we ended up with one of the kindest, gentlest and most patient dogs you’re ever likely to meet.

Big thanks to Bozo over at Pet Pride for featuring Oscar this week to celebrate his birthday!

Confused and dazed? Me too – especially by that post title that just seemed to have written itself. Honest!

Anyway, your sleepless nights and nail biting are at an end. Finally! (You’re welcome!)

Yesterday, I asked you which Michael Jackson song had these lyrics: Doodley daze before…

Only one person even dared to guess: way to go Wandering the world! (Make sure you check out her blog if you haven’t done so. She’s a funny globe-trotting blogger!) The song isn’t Billie Jean, but here are some more clues. (Update: Louise from Carmine Superiore also guessed, but not correctly.)

It starts off like this:

Hee-Hee!
Ooh!
Go On Girl!
Aaow!

They don’t write deep lyrics like this anymore!

Still dazed? Well, apparently Doodle-y Daze (actually, that’s days) is really: My lonely days are gone.

That’s right: you’ve guessed it now, haven’t you?

………

………

……..

Without further ado or nonsense, please enjoy Michael Jackson singing ‘The Way You Make Me Feel’!

(If you listen carefully, it really does sound as if he is singing: Doodle-y days…)

All families play their own versions of games, and we are no exception. As both of the anklebiters are very musical, one of their favourite games is to hum a tune while the rest of us have to guess artist and title.

Sometimes, we need a clue in the form of the artist’s name.

Sometimes even that doesn’t help…

… and then we get further clues in the form of song lyrics.

Like this:

Doodle-y daze before!

Can you guess artist and song title from these lyrics? (Yes – apparently the lyrics are: Doodley daze before…)

I didn’t think so…

…..

Neither could we, not even when we were given the artist’s name.

So – can you guess the title of the Michael Jackson song that anklebiter #2 entertained us with?

We couldn’t…

The winner(s) will get cosmic kudos, fame and fortune (Oh wait – I lied about the fortune bit!) and a shout-out in tomorrow’s post!

This lovely wooden church stands gracious and glows with colour in Uppland, about an hour’s drive north of us.

The yellow box hanging so wonkily from its red fence is a post box.

Seems as if the church is a collecting point for letters as well as for souls.

And after 500 years or so, the church is still glowing like a ruby.

For more interesting perspectives of our world, please visit: My World!