Boy Scout Snub
President Obama has turned down an invitation to speak at the Boy Scouts' 100th anniversary Jamboree so he can be a guest on "The View"... and earn his merit badge for animal grooming.



Good News in the Gulf
The BP oil slick in the Gulf of Mexico is dissolving faster than anyone expected. But the toxic waste is growing in the Atlantic because of the premiere of season two of "Jersey Shore."



Cigarette Sales Down
Sales tax revenues from cigarettes have plummeted in California... mostly because everyone in California has switched to pot.



Twin Fundraisers Tonight
President Obama is heading to Manhattan today to attend two Democratic fundraisers. One is for Democratic Congressional candidates, and the other is to help the Clintons pay for Chelsea's wedding.



Tax Hike
A new report shows that married couples with children will be forced to pay thousands more dollars in taxes next year. In light of this news, Mel Gibson is claiming he compassionately beat up his girlfriend to save her money.






July 28th


1973: 600,000 people attend a rock festival at the Watkins Glen International Raceway… most of whom are there to beat up hippies.


1996: Kennewick Man, the remains of a prehistoric man, is discovered near Kennewick, Washington. His body is only in slightly worse condition than most living men in Kennewick.


2005: The Provisional Irish Republican Army calls an end to its thirty year long armed campaign in Northern Ireland and redirects its efforts towards the much more important cause of getting Bono to shut the Hell up.

Hedda on Video

The Heartbreaker is possibly not the correct translation of the Norwegian word "Hjerteknuser " (i positiv betydning), but Hedda Emilie is gorgeous, and the video just received tells us all we need to know.
Click on Hedda on video and see yourself.

Wild about Weavers

Taking some time out from writing the new manuscript, which has been getting a bit intense. Time out means time for other creativity. In this case, my other passion, photography.

About a mile from where I live, amidst middle class suburbia is a tiny oasis - a pond (or very small dam) which attracts a whole lot of birdlife. Not least of all a buzzing, squabbling flock of weaver birds. The males are gearing up for the nesting season and there is a lot of nestbuilding and displaying going on. And a LOT of noise and plenty of attitude. But, they are rather beautiful - and comical.

We start with a piece of grass...

We find a suitable location...

We start to weave...

It's hard and thirsty work...

And a chap needs some time out...

Got to make sure the front entrance is just so...

The finished product...

Now to find a wife... (and hope she doesn't tear it apart)

See what I've made, it's beautiful, isn't it?

Look at me, I'm beautiful, aren't I - you know you wanna marry me and have my babies...

Pilgrimage

Every summer Jane Douglas and her children make a pilgrimage to her home state of Virginia to see her family and friends in the Old Dominion. A few days ago she stopped by Virginia Beach which is full of great old beach houses. The temperature reached 105 degrees while they were there - the heat seems to be coming through in the photos!









This is going to date me, but I can't say or hear the word pilgrimage without hearing the REM song in my head -
to hear Pilgrimage click here.

Takes you right back to 1983...

all photos taken with JD's iphone

Engelsviken - End of the World or a Place to Visit

When Christopher Columbus started his voyage to the west in 1492 he probably did not know if they would come to the end of the world or to India. Maybe that is what they know at Engelsviken outside Fredrikstad in Norway. They have discovered the End.
The trafic sign is clear; "Slutt" or End is written for those without competence in car-driving.Yesterday we visited Bente and Per Arne in their cosy old house at Engelsviken. Thanks for a nice day, delicious food and excellent guiding around at this intriguing small village.
With the "Onsøy Bevis" (Evidence of being there) as my new cap, I could later return to Oslo with Herrings made with various taste and some books to read in addition to updated knowledge of this part of the Oslo Fjord.
From the website of Restaurant Engelsviken Brygge we can copy and translate:

The place Engelsviken has a history dating back to Viking times. It is said that the name Engelsviken comes from a farm with the same name. The name was given the farm by a man named Ingjald.
So at the very beginning Engelsviken was called Ingjaldvik.

In the late 1800's things happened that have helped to shape the Engelsviken we know today. In 1867, one of Engelviken´s great sons, Lars Andersen, began to trade fish with specialily on salted herring. His business evolved, both here and elsewhere.

During the 1900's his descendants established a fish canning factory, Engelsviken Preserving (1919) and Engelsviken Canning (1924). Today it is the fifth generation Andersen, Marianne Andersen Grand, which owns and operates the well-known company Engelsviken Canning Ltd.

At the same time Bjarne Skogen´s, fish trade was established. Today, Bjarne Skogen's two sons run the well-known company Skogen Brothers Fish Trade.
In 1995, the two decided to do something even more exciting out of the good fish food they produced, and opened a restaurant called Engelsviken Brygge.

The place Engelsviken is now more and more known as a holiday gem, but it is still the sea that characterizes Engelsviken and the industry here.
Engelsviken is a place of tradition, environment and atmosphere.

The old boat-houses are now converted to nice summerpaces not only for local fishermen, but tourists and public visitors.
However: If you are interested in real handycraft and hand-made outdoor furnitures (like the table below), Engelsviken has the potencial at reasonable prices.
The dimentions of this table was 110cm x 310cm. (Delivered at your home for 9000 nok inclusive the bench) Very interesting!

New BP Chief
Bob Dudley will replace Tony Hayward as CEO of BP. The BP board chose Dudley mostly because he's very good at bending over.



Clinton Wedding Primetime
Chelsea Clinton's wedding this weekend will cost an estimated $3 million. That's $2 million for all the food and decorations, and $1 million to dry clean Bill's pants 10-15 times during the afternoon.



Apple Jailbreakers
Apple now says it won't sue iPhone users who get service from companies other than AT&T... which would be a big story if any iPhone users were actually getting any service from AT&T.



Spanish Tea Parties
Hundreds of Spanish-speaking residents of Bell, California are loudly protesting the outrageous salaries for their city officials. The Democratic Party and the NAACP are now in emergency sessions to figure out why non-white people don't like getting ripped off either.



Online Gambling Rules
Congress is close to legalizing online gambling. The Senators are hoping to keep teenage boys indoors 24 hours a day so they can date all the high school girls themselves.





July 27th

1549: Jesuit priest Francis Xavier's ship reaches Japan. Where he immediately works to set up an urban university with a decent football team.


1663: The English Parliament passes the second Navigation Act requiring that all goods bound for the American colonies have to be sent in English ships from English ports… guaranteeing that no one in America gets edible food for decades.


1974: The House Judiciary Committee votes 27 to 11 to recommend the impeachment of President Richard Nixon… and 29-9 to have all interns wear miniskirts for the rest of the summer.

House of the Week

This week the house of the week is a Peachtree Heights Tudor owned by shop proprietor and designer Kay Douglass. I remember this house (from my morning dog walks at the duck pond) before the Douglass family owned it - it was a little bit ramshackle and there were random sculptures and items in the front yard. Kay Douglass has kept the house's charm while updating and freshening it.










I love the steel casement windows.


The porch, closeup photo of it without these lanterns is below.

All photos above via Whitehaven

This house has been featured in Atlanta Homes and Lifestyles and also in some lighting advertisements, which you can see at the Limestone and Boxwoods blog.


The kitchen via Atlanta Homes and Lifestyles,
photo credit Mali Azima


Kitchen eating area - via Limestone and Boxwoods


The porch, via Limestone and Boxwoods


Kay Douglass clearly likes Tudor style houses - her previous house, featured in Atlanta Homes and Lifestyles, was a Tudor also.



Look, here's artwork by Atlanta artist Helen Durant (my aunt) in Kay's previous house -


image via Atlanta Homes and Lifestyles
photo credit here and above William Waldron

Only three degrees of separation...