Lots of Shiny Things

from the Speller:

Place a bowl of prunes on the table. Are you able to reach that plain saucer? There are four lemons on a saucer. Place the melon on the table. Does he grow citrons in his garden? I bought that pretty saucer at a sale. Bring a bowl of water for the table. Place the melon on the scales. --What made your face so pale?

I love the unexpected question at the end. A sudden change of mood, suggesting there's more going on than we thought in this domestic scene. (I added the dashes.)

Today's NY Times reports that there will be a memorial service today, presented by the American Turkish Society, for the late Ahmet Ertegun, with several notables speaking, including Susan Steinberg. Ertegun made an impression on me when I was young and mostly ignorant because of his unusual name. I used to wonder if he was real. Years later, when I knew a little more, I realized that he was Turkish.

Also in the Times today is a story about pedicab drivers in New York. The subheadline is "Drifting Through Manhattan in a Pedicab, as Though Down the Mississippi on a Raft." The story makes me want to go to NY and ride in a pedicab. A driver says of his work, "You're outside all the time. You start when you want, quit when you want, take whatever days off you want. You're pretty much your own boss. It's one of the last bohemian jobs left." Sounds like great work to me, though it's being threatened -- of course -- by new regulations.

Okay, so there are more important things in the day's news, but this one caught my fancy.

Here are the miniature spring flowers, joining the crocuses and daffodils:

These are Iris reticulata. Next to them are Tete-a-tete daffodils, but I don't have a good picture. And here is my new mailbox, given me by my doctor-artist neighbor, whose house was formerly #9:

Views are of its west, south, and east-facing sides. Zack's ship is still supporting it but needs to be repainted to match the shiny new box.

One more note: March 7 will mark the 20th anniversary of -- ????