Karl A. Pillemer, a renowned Cornell gerontologist, used the wisdom of crowds — more than 1,000 Americans over 65 years old — to glean material for his book “30 Lessons in Living: Tried and True Advice from the Wisest Americans.” <iframe src=”http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=pampeandpakhl-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0452298482&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr” style=”width:120px;height:240px;” scrolling=”no” marginwidth=”0″ marginheight=”0″ frameborder=”0″></iframe> Here are twelve of those lessons (as adapted […]
Holiday
When you wish upon a star
This morning I read Baby Bird a new book, Olivia and the Fairy Princess. She loves the original Olivia and I’d heard great reports about this book too. In this book, Olivia is having an identity crisis. There are too many ruffled, sparkly princesses around. She wants to do more than just fit in. She […]
Seeds of the season
I like Halloween pumpkin carving as much–if not more– for the seeds as for the Jack ‘o Lantern. Every year, after I roast my pumpkin seeds, I ask myself: Why don’t I buy pumpkins and do this more often? Roasted pumpkin seeds are addictively delicious. I’ve seen recipes for roasted pumpkin seeds with: curry, cinnamon-sugar, […]
Happy Birthday USA…and Big Papa
Happy Birthday USA! And…Happy Birthday, Big Papa, also born on the fourth of July. Baby Bird, Maggie and I are the luckiest girls in the world to walk alongside you.
Kicking off 2012 with Pomegranate Spritzer
Big Papa and I kicked off 2012 with a bit of bubbly, a special creation I concocted to welcome the New Year. I filled our glasses half-way with Cava, topped them off with a semi-sweet pomegranate wine from Armenia that I picked up this past summer at our favorite wine shop, and floated a few […]
Santa floats! Seattle’s Christmas Ships
Did you know that Seattle hosts the largest floating parade in the world? For 62 years, a flotilla of brightly decorated Christmas ships, share holiday cheer at waterfront locations all around Seattle during the month of December. During each stop, revelers are treated to a twenty minute serenade of holiday music by one of several […]
A Riesling in a pear tree: Pear-Riesling Sorbet
On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me, a Riesling in a pear tree. Actually, I gave this gift to him, in the form of Pear-Riesling sorbet. Sweet notes of candied apricot, pear, green tea and orange blossom mingled with fresh pear. Iced and refreshing, our sorbet “peared” perfectly with the […]
Let there be lights! Luminaria light up Seattle’s Green Lake
Every city has its own unique holiday traditions. Three that I love in Seattle are: Christmas Ships, Nutcracker with its Maurice Sendak sets, and The Pathway of Lights. For the past 35 years, on the second Saturday in December, if you add up a hundred volunteers, two thousand candles plus two thousand brown paper bags, […]
Flags across the generations
When I was a little, my father took great pride in flying a flag on a flagpole he’d built on our front lawn. On the metal pole, he inscribed a message of dedication, to his two daughters in memory of his father. Our little fingers would help him carefully unfold the flag and – always […]