Category Archives: General

Most daffodils begin their blooming period in bashful form, especially when the weather is so changeable. They only unfurl their full splendor if they can be sure of some sun and warmth and stillness. I do not blame them in the least, and my natural state in times of uncertainty is certainly within the realm of all that is bashful. 

This little blossom is at the early stage of its bloom, still looking groundward and holding its outer petals close to its corona. A shy first step that is full of hope and trepidation. 

I often like this stage better than the fullest bloom, the same way I enjoy the night before a dinner or a party more than the actual event itself. It’s a happy way of prolonging the experience and making every moment matter. 

And so is anyone who still supports this moron.

The world is laughing at him, and US. 

#FAFO

This isn’t some set piece from ‘Wicked’ – it is the eerie way the lighting looked for our local Macy’s building at Colonie around dusk the other night. A visit to the mall – an increasingly rare expedition for someone who once made the mall his home many, many years ago – is what prompted this negative post. It does appear as though in-person retail shopping is falling by the wayside, based on the dwindling stock and questionable customer service in a store like Macy’s.

On this recent visit, the floor was more apparent than ever. That sounds ridiculous to say, but I never used to notice the floor in any department store because it was always obscured by rows of racks and stacks of merchandise. Now there is more empty floor space than goods, leaving a stark sense of sparseness that might work for fancier fare like Dior or Gucci, but falls apart when you’re looking for variety and choices. 

Everything has shifted online, which is maddening for a recovering-perfectionist who still wants to see how colors and fabrics look in real life and not be bothered with the risk of having to return something because it appeared entirely different online than it is in person. 

Alas, I am a curmudgeonly dinosaur, still hanging on to some semblance of the past, further serving my jurassic image. Cue the roar of the rex. 

Things are not always what they seem. 

At quick first glance, this looks like it’s some beautifully blue patch of sea fronted by a few pretty pine trees along the shore. It could be a stretch of Maine or California coast, or something along Cape Cod. Happy thoughts, all of them, ideal for daydreams when spring is slow to come. A little make-believe is required to get through the dark reality of the present moment.

The reality of this scene is that a distinct bank of clouds hung low in the sky, starkly delineated, and at just the right position to make it appear that the sky was the sea, and the clouds the sky. 

Andy noticed it first, and I took a few pictures as we followed its expansive reach over the bridge into Amsterdam.  

As seen on social media: “They should invent a baby that isn’t stupid.“

And I swear it wasn’t my social media. 

On God.

That such a statement even needs to be made speaks more to the awfulness of intolerant and hateful people who have an issue with trans people, because I guarantee every one of them has never been bothered by a trans person in their life. If you happen to be someone who does have a problem with it, you don’t need to justify it to me. Just ask yourself why you care. 

We aren’t put on this earth to make things awful or even the least bit difficult for other people. Why go out of your way to hurt someone that has nothing to do with your life?

Easter, like the spring weather, showed up later than usual this year, and now that it’s over we can begin the summer prep work in earnest. Andy has just about drained the pool (preventing a breeding catastrophe of frogs that their singing seemed to be indicative of) and we are quickly headed into the end of April. Before that charge, a look back at this past Holy Week in the weekly recap. Blessed be. 

A shaggy dough challenge.

Dreamy music for the spring season.

A bearded Pete Buttigieg.

My must-see-TV.

Skies of Maxfield Parrish.

Crocus Pocus.

Our lone Dazzler of the Day was Jennifer Tilly.

Anniversary accommodations in Boston.

Worn magnolias.

Summer whispers.

A sky with clouds and hope.

Hints from Heloise.

Friday night filler Diller.

A diva’s show must go on.

A cocktail from the past…

… and a cocktale from the present.

The fairy takes another turn.

The traditional terrifying Easter bunny post.

Stormy Saturday night music.

Let us take a deep breath before we resume the weekend posting schedule of ‘The Divine Diva Tour: A Fairy’s Tale’ – one that affords us a moment to look back at our story thus far in the following links:

~ The Divine Diva Tour: A Fairy’s Tale ~

1. Pink Frilly Fairy: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three
2. Homage to Herb: Part One, Part Two and Part Three
3. A Purple-Hued Interlude
4. Style & Panache: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
5. Purple Puff Confection: Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four.
6. A Blue-Hued Interlude
7. Fuchsia Fabulousness: Part One. Part Two and Part Three.
8. Bad Boy Bangs: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
9. Vanity Under Where: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
10. Sugar Plum Ballerina: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
11. A Pool Frolic: Part One, Part Two. and Part Three.
12. A Cemetery Interlude: Part One and Part Two.
13. Powder Blue Fur Doll: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.
14. A Milky Interlude 
15. Rock Out, Cock Out/ Hang Out, Wang Out: Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.

Without a strong structural narrative, this project was more about shifting images and the kaleidoscope of identity. Refusing to be just one thing, straining against the confines of limiting labels, and trying on a multitude of guises were just some of the themes at work. Escapism was another integral aspect informing the journey, and we’ll escape to a time twenty years ago in our next post… 

Is anyone who may be reading this old enough to remember Phyllis Diller? She was a comedian in the 60’s and 70’s whose work was so hysterical her mark bled into the 80’s. It’s a different kind of comedy compared to what the kids are accustomed today. A kinder comedy, perhaps, but just as killer. Witness her roast of Lucille Ball below. Happy Friday!

The light is magical when it illuminates the clouds, and the sky behind them turns a bit deeper in blue. 

Like clouds of cotton candy.

Whimsy eludes me at the moment. 

The notion of it will have to do. 

Enjoy your Friday, and your weekend.

The Divine Diva invites you for a cocktail again tomorrow… 

With spring hesitating to show off her true finery, I find myself feeling wistful for summer. It’s a bit soon but the heart wants what it wants when it wants it. There’s nothing so terribly wrong in wishing for a slightly warmer and sunnier clime than we’ve had of late. To bide the time, a little link list of summers that have come before:

Last year’s Coquette Summer was a smash in many ways, most of which got written up here. 

A sad summer was looked back upon here.

The summer of 2022 was so fun that it had not just one recap post but this second one as well.

The summer of 2021 seemed less fun but that didn’t stop it from getting a part two too.

I am closing out this look back with the summer of 2020, which was billed as insane and must have truly been such, because it came with a whopping third post.  

These sad magnolia blossoms were stopped in their almost-beautiful tracks by some snow and wind, and as spring stalls in her arrival we are left with brown-tipped and ice-ravaged blooms. It’s a dangerous business blooming at this time of the year, and I have great admiration for those plants that brave the treacherous thing that is spring in these parts. 

Respect. 

A dreamy spring finds a sky that complements its dreaminess. 

Think the ‘Lover‘ color theme from that Taylor Swift era. 

Think the background of the mural behind the King Cole Bar at the St. Regis in New York. 

Here we have the whimsical addition of a moon as it was encroaching on achieving full status – this would become the Pink Moon – fitting for a sky featuring clouds hinting at pink.

Some days the sky feels more like a painting – muted, soft, impossibly beautiful. 

Or maybe some days the paintings are like the sky – muted, soft, impossibly beautiful. 

‘The Last of Us‘ has taken over from ‘The White Lotus‘ as the only television I’m watching right now (ok, with the guilty exception of the reunion episodes of ‘The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills‘). And truth be told, all of it is just a waiting game for the new season of ‘The Gilded Age’.