Links
Here are Web sites that are of interest to me. (All links open in a new window.)
Arizona and the Desert
These are a few sites around Tucson. If you ever visit here, be sure to put them on your list of things to see.
- Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum
- This is a great place. During the summer they stay open on Saturday evenings and you can hunt for scorpions with a black light!
- Tucson Botanical Gardens
- The desert around Tucson has the most diverse plant life of any desert in the world.
- Kitt Peak National Observatory
- On a clear day with the sun shining just right, I can see the gleaming observatory from my front yard!
- Desert USA
- Most everything you ever wanted to know about the desert and it's flora and fauna.
- Tucson Weather
- The weather is a "hot" topic in Tucson. Summers are hot, winters are generally mild, and fall and spring can be almost non-existent.
Friends & Family
- Oak Street Cafe
- My cousin and her husband own this place. He's the chef. My brother visited: "The restaurant is fabulous. Joe's Mom (80+ years old) still comes in every day and cooks one of the entrees. Great wines. Really good food with a touch of class. Nice big city atmosphere, but with a 'small town' feeling."
- Fabric Solutions
- My cousin owns this store. They have stores in Wilmington, North Carolina, and Florence, South Carolina. Check it out!
- Rockingham Remembered
- I went to high school in Rockingham and still have relatives and friends there. Joel Bailey keeps this site and does a wonderful job.
- Hookinman.com
- I went to college with Orion. Besides being a church musician and singer, he has taken up crocheting. Well, it's more like he's become obsessed with crocheting. The comments on his site are hilarious.
- Liquid Moonlight
- Darvin Atkeson was our neighbor when we lived in California. He's an exceptional artist. You'll recognize some of the work he did for Boston.
Genealogy
- Ancestry.com
- This is the place to search extensive records for family members. There is an annual fee, but if you're serious about genealogy, it's well worth it. With a membership you can input your entire family tree online and Ancestry will help you search for records.
- Arizona State Genealogical Society
- The local society for Tucson, Arizona
- Cyndi's List
- Thousands of genealogy links
- Family Search
- Search for your ancestors and find general information on all aspects of genealogy
- National Genealogical Society
- One of the foremost societies in the country, they publish and quarterly journal and magazine as well as books.
- The Remembering Site
- A place to share your memories.
- RootsWeb
- A collection of information and sites for finding your roots.
- USGenWeb
- This site features information particular to each state.
Music
- Renée Fleming
- The premier American soprano.
- Placido Domingo
- A wonderful tenor.
- Thomas Hampson
- A delightful baritone.
- Samuel Ramey
- Sam has a rich bass-baritone voice that you don't want to miss.
- Bryn Terfel
- This Welsh bass-baritone has done a duet CD with Renée Fleming.
- Sarah Brightman
- She has an amazing voice that spans all types of musical styles.
- Choral Public Domain Library
- A collection of free choral music to download. The selections range from early music to the present. If you need to stretch your music budget, this is the place to go.
- Arizona Repertory Singers
- This large ensemble performs a wide variety of music.
- Musica Sonora
- This small ensemble specializes in early music.
- Tucson Masterworks Chorale
- I started singing with this volunteer group in fall 2007 and am really enjoying it. You're invited to come to our next concert.
- The Art of Choral Singing
- This summer workshop (July 7-11) will be at Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersy, and led my Tony Thornton, former Artistic Director of the Tucson Masterworks Chorale. Tony is an excellent conductor and all those attending will have a great time and learn a lot.
Churches
- Grace St. Paul's Episcopal Church
- Located in Tucson, Arizona, this is where I go to church now. I selected it for the choir. After years as a Lutheran, sometimes it's strange going to an Episcopal church, but after all the family history research, I realize I'm just going back to my roots!
- Holy Trinity Lutheran Church
- Charlotte, North Carolina. This is where I went to church when I lived in Charlotte.
- First United Methodist Church
- Rockingham, North Carolina. This is where I went to church when I was in high school.
Schools
- Rockingham High School
- This school no longer exists as it was when I was in school. The building is now the Junior High and the high school is a county consolidated school.
- Governor's School of North Carolina Alumni Association
- I was fortunate to be able to attend in 1969 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
- Lenoir-Rhyne College
- My degree is in music.
- Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary
- Only attended one year.
- California State University, East Bay
- This is where I received my master's degree, done completely online. My diploma is signed by Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Governor!
Cross-Stitching
Counted cross-stitching is so much fun. I love all the colors and the stitches are very simple. If you can count and thread a needle, you can do this!
- The Busy Needle
- The online store has access to a great collection of Southwest designs.
- Herrschners
- Everything you could possibly want for any kind of needlework and crafts.
- 1-2-3 Stitch!
- This online store had all your needlework supplies.
Books
Now that I'm retired, I've had a chance to read a lot of books! Here are some of my favorite authors.
- David Baldacci
- I've read David's first book and it was really good; much better than the movie (Absolute Power). I'm looking forward to the rest of them.
- Marcus J. Borg
- Marcus is an ex-Lutheran married to an Episcopal priest. He provides an open look at Christianity today.
- Joseph Campbell
- Besides Campbell's books, be sure to read the biography written by Stephen Larsen and Robin Larsen: Joseph Campbell: A Fire in the Mind
- Lee Child
- Jack Reacher is a great character and I look forward to reading all about him in Lee's books.
- Bryce Courtenay
- Though he has written other books, The Power of One is truly exceptional. A coming-of-age book for all ages.
- Robert Crais
- The Elvis Cole novels are set in Los Angeles and Crais makes you want to live there despite the traffic. With just a touch of humor at just the right time, these are a great read.
- Janet Evanovich
- The Stephanie Plum novels are laugh-out-loud hilarious. Start with the first one and laugh your way through a great read.
- C.S. Forester
- The Horatio Hornblower novels are an exciting adventure on the seas in the late 18th century. Be sure to read them in chronological order (not the order in which they were written).
- Elizabeth George
- Lynley and Havers investigate crimes in London and the surrounding area. These are wonderful mysteries that delve into the lives of the main characters as well as their investigations. These books have been made into a series of TV shows by the BBC.
- Sue Grafton
- The Alphabet Series follows Kinsey Milhone as she investigates crimes in Southern California.
- Bob Greene and D.G. Fulford
- This brother/sister team has written To Our Children's Children: Preserving Family Histories for Generations to Come. With over 1,000 questions to answer, the book guides you through your life history. A great gift for anyone. D.G. Fulford also has The Remebering Site, which has some sample questions and, for a fee, you can put your story online.
- Martha Grimes
- Richard Jury investigates crimes in England.
- John Grisham
- John mainly writes about lawyers and the law, but there are a few that stray and they are as good or better than his law books.
- Barbara Kingsolver
- Barbara writes about Kentucky and Arizona. Trained as a biologist, Barbara is never far away from the natural world of her books.
- Wally Lamb
- In I Know this Much Is True, Lamb writes about families and forgiveness.
- Gordon McBride
- Gordon recently retired as Rector at Grace St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Tucson. I really enjoyed this book. Now that he has retired, I hope he'll have time to write more novels.
- Sara Paretsky
- V.I. Warshawski investigates crimes in the Chicago area.
- J.K. Rowling
- The Harry Potter books are wonderful.
- John Steinbeck
- One of America's finest writers. I especially liked East of Eden.
- Jane Tesh
- I went to college with Jane. She has written two mystery novels that are fun to read.
- Tony Thornton
- The Choral Singer's Survival Guide covers every topic a singer needs for excellent choral singing. The CD included with the book provides vocal exercises.
- Scott Turow
- You're probably familiar with Presumed Innocent since it was made into a movie. The book is a bit different and much better!
- Alan Watts
- Philosopher, writer and speaker, Watts was best known for his interpretations of Asian philosophies.
- David Weber
- The Honor Harrington books are Horatio Hornblower meets Star Trek; a great fantasy adventure.
- Stuart Woods
- Stuart's "world" started with Chiefs and continues as his characters investigate crimes around the world.