Belleek Castle Tower

 

Today I worked on campus, and at lunch I walked with Hardingfele. We didn't have any adventures today like the conversation with the robots, but after our walk she came to my office and we tried to figure out something about the new system without success. It was my coworker's birthday, so I sang him "Happy Birthday" in Basque, which is "Zorionak." Then I got an email that my Belleek castle was delivered, but I wasn't going straight home.

I drove to the Lone Girl for the monthly ukulele strum, and people were especially friendly this time. Maybe they are finally beginning to recognize me. One woman seemed particularly familiar, and then I realized she goes to Moldy Jam, but I never got a chance to ask her if she went Monday night. A family came who had lost their patriarch, father to some and grandpa to some, and they said afterwards that hearing us sing and play such cheerful songs really lifted their mood. So we played an extra song for them that hadn't been on the playlist, "Another Star in Heaven," and they really appreciated that. Travalon didn't join me afterwards since he was watching the high school basketball tournament, so I didn't eat dinner there. I headed home to admire my new castle tower vase.

I'd been a bit sad not to win this in the raffle on Sunday, but then I realized it was a good use of the gift certificates that were going to expire soon. I'd been saving them to maybe buy another hat, but do I need another hat? Today I wore my red tasseled hat, and nobody has said they like it, but it's a snuggly hat that feels like a hug, and it was made just for me. I also still love the plaid tam, which feels like it found its way to me, the way it was listed completely wrong ("argyle beret") so I happened to see it on eBay, and the secret that some of it glows under blacklight. And then another thing is that we have a Christmas ornament of a smaller castle tower we got when visiting the Belleek factory twelve years ago, but I'm not sure what happened to it. If I find it, I'll take a photo.

Famous Hat