A Madonna for the New Recession

Wonderful words, this morning (as always), on The Insomniacs Kitchen...a favorite blog of mine. Here is the post, in it's entirety:

A Much Greater Poverty
Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat.
-Mother Teresa

POSTED BY THE URBAN MERMAID [EMILY LISKER] ON SATURDAY, DECEMBER 06, 2008

I've chosen a Dorothea Lange photo (via Old Picture of the Day) to illustrate our hat-tip to Emily.

Money or no, the child sits on the woman's lap carefully ensconced and softly held. There is the presence of love here. The protection of being cared for, no matter what the circumstances. The compassion that love affords, no matter where we are. A true modern Madonna.

(Perhaps this mother and child should have been the postal stamp this year: "Madonna of the Recession," whaddya think?)

Wishing you abundant blessings this weekend, and always.

To be loved and cared for, these are the greatest riches. Let's share this gift, and use our extra pennies to buy bread and milk for a child that might not have any otherwise.

Is it the year to skip the sales and shore up the local food kitchen?

In Love with Pink Boxes: Overzealous Baker Frosts Hills Like Wedding Cake

Found this at Anh-minh's delightful blog. And it's another "I love": the little houses that dot the hills near San Francisco. Clever Anh mentions both sfgirlbybay (very swell stuff she has, and more good little house pics here) and the author of Little Boxes, Rob Kiel.

When you are driving into the city, it always looks as though some overzealous baker (who loved little pink boxes) decided to create subdivisions and frosted the hills like wedding cake.

It's all sort of delicious, isn't it?

By Andrew Moore, Via Paul Pincus

Dear Readers: I thought you deserved an excellent photograph, having wandered through the week with us. Here, from Andrew Moore, via the elegant master Paul Pincus. I love this.

seal

Lloyd's of Kew, Booksellers

British Biography, originally uploaded by ulle.b.

lovely stuff from ulle.b

never too many

ladder, originally uploaded by ulle.b.

Carry On

Saw this at swissmiss the other day...

it's fabulous, don't you think? She has glorious taste,

that swissmiss.

Good Fortune Hunting

"Good fortune

only arrives

when you share

your happiness

with other people."

Quote of the Day: John Foster on grainedit

"I also don’t care much for 

pretension in design 

for the most part."

John Foster

This says so much so simply, doesn't it? From grain edit's terrific interview: John Foster and his new book, FOR SALE: Over 200 Innovative Solutions in Packaging Design.

I think you'll like the interview, and the book. I love packaging design, and have gotten to do a bit. (We'll be posting examples as the blog progresses.) 

For now, though, I'd just like to thank John Foster (who also designed the book: he is taking part, thank goodness, in the new wave of publishing) for the excellent quote above, and the one we'll finish with:

"Selling products in a fragmented marketplace is more and more challenging and I wanted to show the designers who were up to the task."

In this crazy sad market, design that is not pretentious, overwrought, or underdone is a tonic. 

Glad Foster has brought some of the good stuff to the fore. Glad grain edit has the goods.

Suggested Reading

Ah, here is an illustration from Mudpies and Other Recipes...

now, do you remember why we love Erik Blegvad?

Visual courtesy of the marvelous

Vintage Kids' Books My Kids Love.

Check out her blog and her etsy shop.

Good books for the holidays.

What could be better?

To Make A Mudpie

You might just need 

this great book. 

The author, Marjorie Winslow, is

pictured below (pushing the pram).

More to come, as we also 

do adore the illustrator,

Erik Blegvad.

Driving the Buggy

This little girl grew up to

write a great book.

More on that later.