It was very fun. My 10 year old kept a tally sheet and added all the scores. I don't know if my Emeralds are that good or my others are that bad. My sister said the Emeralds were as good or better than the ones she buys in the store. My favorite was Scintilla. I did not give it a 5 more like a 4.5 to me.

In this book (which it took the librarian about 35 seconds to find - it was on the display table by the front door) it's called "The Christmas Song". "Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping at your nose, Yuletide carols being sung by a choir And folks dressed up like Eskimos. Ev'rybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe Help to make the season bright. Tiny tots with their eyes all aglow Will find it hard to sleep tonight. They know that Santa's on his way; He's loaded lots of toys and goodies on his sleigh. And ev'ry mother's child is gonna spy --- To see if reindeer really know how to fly. And so I'm offering this simple phrase To kids from one to ninety-two; Although it's been said many times, many ways, "Merry Christmas to you". Hope you're looking forward to an inspirational one - I think that we need such, this year. ole joyfuelled

The Molineaux is 7 years old and I got it from Pickering (I miss them so much...), so it's grafted on multiflora, which makes it very vigorous in our area. By the end of the season it's always taller than my 6-foot fence and saying hello to the neighbors. The coloring really depends on the weather, and I think the lack of sunshine brought out the peachy tones.

It's so interesting to take novels we enjoyed as young people, and re-read as adults. It's a whole different viewpoint. I wouldn't include The Little Prince as a novel, but it is a wonderful little book. Every time I read it, or my kids read it, it's different. April and Lars, perhaps I will try Russian novels again . . . if I own it and can mark it up, and if it's a good translation. But maybe not Dostoevsky. After reading Dickens and Hugo, who were also likely paid by the word, I don't think I have the attention span anymore. My son was in Les Mis in high school, and I decided to read the novel by the time the show closed. Well, through 4 months, wholesale skipping pages dealing with pruning fruit trees, underground sewer systems, and Napoleonic battles, I finished the last page while waiting for him to get home from the cast party. Grueling. Excellent, but grueling.