Encyclopedia of Moi: B

B is an especially meaningful letter to me with both my first name and maiden name starting with B's.  You can't go through life with the initials BB or even B without forming an attachment to the letter and all the nicknames that go with it (Bibi, Baby, Bea).

Bees - What fascinating insects!  Between flowers and honey they have such sweet associations.  Because of my initials and part-time nickname "Bea", bees have become my mascot. 

Books - I always have at least one book going -- usually a novel ,  Every night I read right before going to sleep. No book?  Plan on a restless night.  Besides a novel, I usually have a biography, philosophy, educational, work-related, self-help or some other such book going.  Kindles look handy, but I doubt I'll ever give up the luxury of a real book in my hands, the smell and feel of the pages. My shelves are full.  Browsing through bookstores is sheer entertainment in our family.

Blonde and Blue-Eyed - Chalk it up to our Northern European heritage, towheads abound in our family. Although we each look quite different, you could always tell we were siblings when you walked in the room from our fair hair.  Only my sister Chris and my daughter Ash ended up with my mother's truly green eyes.  The rest of us carried on my dad's blue eyed genes.  And yes, I hate blonde jokes.

The Fab Four won my heart the first time they appeared on the Ed Sullivan show all those years ago.  I've had a crush on Paul McCartney ever since!  In high school my brother and I collected all of their albums, then when things converted to CD's we got rid of them -- silly move.  Now I'm working on recreating my collection in CD format.  Such talent!  What songwriters!  Fabulous music that stands the test of time.  Hey Jude, The Long and Winding Road, Let It Be, Penny Lane, A Day in the Life, Good Day Sunshine, Hello Goodbye, In My Life, She Came In Through the Bathroom Window, You Can't Do That -- to name just a few old favs.

Which brings me to another composer....

Bach - When it comes right down to it, my favorite classical composer is musical genius Johann Sebastian Bach. There is nothing like popping the Brandenburg Concertos into my stereo on a Sunday morning, making a batch of French Toast, grabbing my journal and relishing the peace within my soul.  The Brandenburg Concertos is an exquisite composition, my all time favorite classical piece. I fell in love with it when I attended a Music Appreciation class to satisfy a humanities elective back in college.  See, there are reasons to take those "annoying electives."  My life is so much richer for it.

Johann Sebastian Bach

Please, please have a listen to this guaranteed-to-lift-your-soul youtube presentation:  Brandenburg Concerto No. 1  AllegroModerato


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Photos are courtesy of Wikipedia.