A Repeat.

I'm preparing to move in May or June, and am working at lowering my stacks of books and paper ephemera. I proposed this in January, and yesterday I sent out six packets. I'll make the same offer in February, as I've progressed to a different set of bookcases.

If you would like a couple of books, free of charge, send me an email with your snail mail addy. My middle initial, E, officially stands for Ellen, but unofficially stands for eclectic, so I bet I can find something that will suit your tastes. And you'll be helping a bookaholic pare her stash.

Nothing to lose, no postage, no fuss or muss, and if you don't like the offerings you can pass them right on!

Thanks!

You Should Drive a Saturn Sky

You're sleek and smooth, and you need a car to match your hot persona. Besides, sometimes you want your top up - and sometimes you want it down.

What 2007 Car Should You Drive?

yup! From Rex.

I don't always find deer on my walks in the woods, but I always know they're near.

These are cool! You can make a word-cloud of your blog, and have it made into a t-shirt here. Nifty nifty.

susan over on the other-side-of-the-world has new digs. Visit her here and say howdy!

Good morning! Are we having fun yet?

This last week was just the pits. I'm hoping for a better week this week, but it's "end-of-month" and that's never a good sign. How about you? Are you caught in the January blues, or are things perking right along for you?

Curious Shirl.

For those of you who have a flickr pro acount: What is the highest percentage availability you've hit in any one month? Thanks!

And we start Sunday off with the Unconscious Mutterings:

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Long distance::telephone
2. Meant to be::fated
3. Here::there
4. Endless::love
5. Resentment::sibling
6. Insipid::comptroller
7. Bunny::Rabbit
8. Slogan::Advertising
9. Naked::Bare
10. Sarcasm::Dripping with

Kane's a good egg. I'm glad he's blogging again, that he's visiting Susan's Saturday Morning Me AND that he's posting his wonderful pictures at flickr. Told ya he was a good egg!

Hurrah! Kat is engaged!

Kat is also conducting an on-line Artist's Way group. Great links, great ideas, great artwork going on over there.

Tagged by Pandora:

1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the sentence in your blog along with these instructions.
5. Don't search around and look for the "coolest" book you can find. Do what's actually next to you.

From The Chronicles of Narnia, by C.S. Lewis. This is the chronological compilation of the Narnia books, so The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe is the second book in. The fifth sentence on page 123 is lovely:

Make it Pax.

Passing the meme along to all of you. Stretch out your arm and grab that book. Thanks!

mmmm. It's Friday. This has been a week, but things are starting to look up. How are you doing?

Diane just started to paint a room at 9:00 p.m. tonight. Go over and tell her something witty to keep her awake. (I can't think of anything witty, so tell her I set you, k?)

As I looked through the shots I had taken Saturday, I found that I had, indeed, captured on digital the amazingly rare six-legged deer.

Earlier in the week Gail directed us to the genius test here. Many of us went. Kim went one step further. He offered this:

they don't have p g c 200 d

Now Rex and I have taken a couple of guesses, but . . . didn't get it. Can you figure out what it stands for?

eww. I wasn't on-line last night, so didn't have problems with the original blogger outage, but I see that there are residual effects. Yikes!

Game for the day. How many deer do you see?

All right. Our public service announcement. Eleven months to Christmas.

Have you been to Toogle?

Sometimes a quiz comes along that is absolutely perfect. I mean ABSOLUTELY! Look at the tie I have going here. This describes me completely!!!! (swiped from Rex, who is Sleeping Beauty.

You scored as Peter Pan. Your alter ego is Peter Pan. You are a child at heart. Anything you believe is possible, and you never want to grow up. Peter Pan 81% Goofy 81% The Beast 81% Sleeping Beauty 69% Cinderella 63% Pinocchio 44% Donald Duck 38% Ariel 25% Snow White 25% Cruella De Ville 19% Which Disney Character is your Alter Ego? created with QuizFarm.com

Good evening!

Coming up tomorrow night, this, on the blogger page:

Blogger Status
Tuesday, January 24, 2006

We'll be taking Blogger down on Wednesday the 25th at 4pm PST to fix a bit of a switch that's gone wonky on us. The outage should last about 15 minutes. Blogger.com and Blog*Spot blogs will be inaccessible during this time.

This repair will fix the problem that caused the brief outage last Friday night. We're also using this down time as an opportunity to tune our databases for more efficient spam catching and deletion.

I'm always glad when I catch these before the fact.

Unexpected Blessings.

It was that kind of a day, a MONDAY. Started out having trouble waking up, fiddled too long, got started for work late. Stockings didn't want to stay up. Thought I smelled stale.

One of my workmates had a severe back/leg problem for the last week or so. He had an MRI Thursday, a Dye thingee Friday. Backbone is disintegrating, and they found a mass. That word, ugh. He had a biopsy today. Depressing.

Mom picked me up at 5:30 because we were going to a fundraising dinner for my second cousin. She was going to have surgery last August. There was a reaction to the anesthesia, loss of oxygen, a coma. She did come out of the coma, but there is damage, and it looks like it will be a long-term care situation.

On the way over to the restaurant Mom was filling me in on the status of my brother, who is battling an alcohol addiction. She had spent the afternoon with him, and tomorrow hopefully he will begin the process of taking care of himself. That's what we're praying for.

So the mood was a little gloomy, but boy, my cousin's folks were so upbeat, so living in the moment of all their friends coming together to help out. And then, as Mom and I were sitting there, a gentleman walked up to our table and made a face. who??? and then behind him I saw my friend Deb. She and her husband had come to the fundraiser, because it was a good cause, and because they're good people.

They had Mom in stitches, which was exactly what she needed. I think they might have been "angels unaware".

Monday, Monday.

Starting with otto's Monday Madness:


Another week behind us... which brings us to Monday again. And you know what THAT means! It's Monday Madness time again. Thanks for playing, and have a marvelous week! =)

This week (since I'm fresh out of new ideas), I thought I'd ask you to use the letters in your name (first, last, middle, or other) to list words that describe you!

S - Silly, Smart, Sad
H - Happy, Healthy, Honest
I - Intelligent, Idiot, Idealistic
R - Resourceful,
L - Lover, Learner, Laugher, Liver (eww, liver???)

Happy Monday!

The things we learn from our parents.

Mom and I were chatting about the farm today. It came to her that her father kept guinea hens: as watchdogs! Huh? But after googling them, I find that they are good watchdogs, they keep potato bugs down, their eggs are edible, and of course you can eat them if you want.

Will I be first this week?

Unconscious Mutterings:

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Alone::again, naturally
2. Science::nature
3. Deposit::bank
4. Faithful::old
5. Tender::hearted
6. Chocolate::Godiva, Roscoe
7. Homework::Long, long time ago
8. Tamper::medicine
9. Friend::You've Got A
10. Wire::Bird on a

erm, no. I'm number 2.

Gail's a genius! (And a nice person, too!)

Check out this link to see how you do.

Wanna book?

Okay, here's the deal. Earlier in the month, I wrote about this being the year for Movement and for Letting Go. Movement's main form is that I am going to change addresses this year. Letting Go is a lot of things, but in the physical manifestation it is letting go of some of the stuff I've accumulated through the bunch of years I've lived here. I posted about my paperholicism. I gathered all my craft papers into one convenient tote (that holds 720 sheets, and is now full). But now . . .

Now I have to admit to another obsession. I have too many books! One bookcase as you come into the apartment. Two bookcases in the dining area. Bookcase in the living room. Two bookcases in the bedroom. And a little wee one in the bathroom.

Eek! I cannot move all those books. So let me propose this:

If you would like a couple of books, free of charge, send me an email with your snail mail addy. My middle initial, E, officially stands for Ellen, but unofficially stands for eclectic, so I bet I can find something that will suit your tastes. And you'll be helping a bookaholic pare her stash.

Maybe it's a Sherle thing. Stole this from her, and we both have the same color of heart:

Your Heart Is Blue

Love is a doing word for you. You know it's love when you treat each other well. You are a giving lover, but you don't give too much. You expect something in return. Your flirting style: Friendly Your lucky first date: Lunch at an outdoor cafe Your dream lover: Is both generous and selfish What you bring to relationships: Loyalty

What Color Heart Do You Have?

too cool!

It's Saturday already at susan's over-on-the-other-side-of-the-world, and you can hear her speak! What a voice!

Check out Sherle's new photo meme.

Good Friday Evening!

Hopefully I'm done with flat tires. Yesterday morning went out to the car, and the driver's side was soft. Mighty mighty soft. I had some fix-a-flat in the trunk, but it didn't help at all. (I think you're supposed to get it into the tire, not all around the tire.) So I got in, tried to keep my weight off the tire (yeah, right) and drove the quarter mile to the gas station to get some air in it. Lots and lots of air. I then drove very gently to the tire store and purchased a new tire. That's two new tires now. Enough, please?

How are you faring these days?

oh great. Looks like blogrolling.com is hanging the site. Will check back in the morning and see what is going on.

Shoot.

The nice thing about a five-day week:

Wednesday is a true hump day!!

Whee! Just when I'm about to move cyber-bro Jeeem (with three e's) to the inactive file, he comes roaring back to life! Great post, little bro!

Oh goodness, it's January 18th. Kevin Costner is 51 today.

I always like it when I get a "wheresgeorge" bill. This one:

One Dollar Bill, Serial# F6670---1J Series: 2003
This bill has travelled 247 Miles in 312 Days, 1 Hr, 36 Mins at an average of 0.79 Miles per day.

Wanna play a caption game?

Next Question:

What does crikey mean?

oh no! It's freezing rain this morning. The one thing I hate to drive in. Yikes!

Swiped from Roscoe, who is having a birthday tomorrow!

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Your personality type is SLUAI

You are moderately social, moody, moderately unstructured, accommodating, and intellectual, and may prefer a city which matches those traits.

The largest representation of your personality type can be found in the these U.S. cities: New Orleans, Albuquerque/Santa Fe, Greensboro, Memphis, Providence, Washington DC, Pittsburgh, Orlando, Salt Lake City, Portland/Salem, St. Louis and these international countries/regions Puerto Rico, Iceland, Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, Turkey, Ireland, Ukraine, England, South Africa, Greece, Wales, Brazil, Switzerland, South Korea

What Places In The World Match Your Personality?
City Reviews at CityCulture.org

On my mind:

Hunting for sites that show average "sunlight" of locales as opposed to average "daylight".

Monday, Monday!

It's otto's Monday Madness.

Good Monday to you all! Let's fill in the blanks! As always, I want to thank you for playing my meme! =)

1. Before I walk out the door, I always check to make sure I _______. have my keys.
2. I can't seem to catch up on my _______. anything. I am always behind.
3. The one surface in my house that always seems to get cluttered fast is _______. the little stand by the door.
4. If I sleep past _____, I feel that I've slept in too late. nothing. The sky is the limit.
5. No matter how hard I try, I just can't seem to _______.hmmm. I dunno on this one. I don't think I try very hard on a lot of things. hmmm.
6. I hope to have my income taxes done by _______. April 15.
7. This year I'd like to make more time for _______. writing.

okay, Kathryn had to share the top 10 trivia about Kathryn, so I must do the same for Shirl:

Ten Top Trivia Tips about Shirl!

1. Shirl can sleep with one eye open!


2. The only planet that rotates on its side is shirl.


3. Only twelve people have ever set foot on shirl.


4. Plato believed that the souls of melancholy people would be reincarnated into shirl!


5. The original nineteenth-century Coca-Cola formula contained shirl!


6. If your ear itches, this means that someone is talking about shirl.


7. The patron saint of shirl is Saint Eugenie.


8. Shirl is the only one of the original Seven Wonders of the World that still survives.


9. South Australia was the first place to allow shirl to stand for parliament.


10. Grapes explode if you put them inside shirl.

I am interested in - do tell me about
herhimitthem

Reality Bites!

At the movies, no less.

Yesterday I saw Last Holiday, the new Queen Latifah movie. The reviews are pretty accurate: this is a so-so movie with absolutely nothing that will surprise you, but it is fun.

One of the characters was an evil business owner. He was in his 40's, and had a sharp, hungry, lean look. The actor looked so familiar, but I could not place him. I stayed for the credits to see who it was, and gasped! It was Timothy Hutton! I've not followed his career, so the last thing I had seen him in was Ordinary People, one of my three favorite movies of all time. He played a teenager in that movie, but that was back in 1980. Now he's an older man.

Where did the time go?

Unconscious Mutterings are up.

I'd like to be first, but I bet I'm not!

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Paralyzed:: with fear
2. Bossy:: comptroller
3. Worth:: self
4. Breathing:: remember to keep (thanks, susan!)
5. Uneventful:: day
6. Return:: income tax
7. Splint:: sling
8. Notice:: eye
9. Hero:: who is your?
10. Vulnerable:: open

Just checked. I'm third.

Today my father would have been 80.

My dad was a good guy who died too young. He was fifty-six. That was twenty-four years ago.

Still miss him after all these years.

Good Friday the 13th Evening!

We're having April Showers up here in Michigan. Temperature was 51F yesterday. The pussy willows are out. This is weird!

Bathroom Break.

A constant all my life has been needing bathroom breaks. This means that one of my areas of expertise is knowing where all the bathrooms are in town.

One of my nieces was teasing me a year or so ago. "Owwee, you need to do a web page of bathrooms."

Well, I always mind my nieces and nephews, so I started grabbing quick shots of places I had visited with my cellphone. They're very quick pics, and the cellphone is old so the quality is dubious, but I've got a dozen here in a flickr set.

Question for the day: what is the most exotic or most interesting restroom you've ever seen?

You did hear about the mouse's revenge, didn't you?

I Keep Losing My Car!

And that's a good thing. A year ago my newly-wed niece's husband left for Iraq. Niece #1 has had a lot of misfortunes in her young life. Her dad passed away when she was ten. Her mother was sickly, and she was a little Momma to her younger brother. She tried college, but it wasn't really for her.

Things started turning around. She found a good job, and she found A. They made plans to wed. However, he was in the Guards and his unit was called up. They had two weddings, a civil in June (in case of early deployment) and the planned one in August. (Whew, he was still here.) They had a couple of weeks after the second wedding, and then he was gone.

So I put this ribbon on my antennae as a reminder to keep both niece and A in my thoughts. On December 23, I removed it, as A was home for good. The pictures of their reunion, of A as he was wending his way through the crowd to find his sweetie, are right out of a movie.

But now I keep losing my car!

And that's a good thing.

oh Susan. You have shirley created a monster. I'm just now getting comfortable with the easy ones. How long will THIS obsession continue?

Monday Madness.

This is what otto gives us for today's Monday Madness:

I want to thank coffeeNtoast for this week's excellent questions! Thank you so much for emailing me! (Suggestions are always welcome!) =)

1. Name 1 type of supplement that you take. None, but I should take calcium.
2. List 2 books that you would like to read in 2006. Soul Collage (thank you, Kathryn!) and Romantic Country.
3. List 3 hobbies that you have. Photography, Reading, Scrapbooking
4. List 4 gifts that you have received. Michaels Gift Cards-3, Hobby Lobby Gift Card-1, PhotostoScrapbook Gift Card-1, Meijers Gift Card-1.
5. Share 5 (instant & inexpensive) ways to spruce up a room. Oh boy, I should read everyone's answers to this. Fresh flowers (doesn't have to be but one or two), fresh potpourri, dusting, light some candles, hide that junk!

A Five-Day Week?!? Oh NO!

Due to the holidays and a couple of judiciously placed vacation days, I have worked four-day weeks for the last month.

This week is a five-dayer.

I'm not a particularly jealous person, but I am a little green right now for those of you working 4-dayers.

See ya!

Confessions of a Paperholic.

Hi, my name is Shirl, and I am a paperholic.

I have been one for many years. Originally, my illness was limited to notebooks and writing paper. I had a file drawer of ready-to-use notebooks, and a bag of journal type books. Finally, even I could see that enough was enough, and I tapered off, only to get in on the beginning of . . .

The Scrapbooking Craze. More paper. Paper of every color, every design, with embellishments. Paper that of course I would one day make into beautiful scrapbook sheets. Utoh.

For Christmas and my birthday I received several gift cards to Michaels, the craft store. I had thought I would slowly use them through the year to buy scrapping and craft supplies. That plan went out the window when Michaels ran an ad for the Crop in Style P3, a Pop-up Paper Plus Storage Tote. I had been eying the P-3 just the week before, thinking I might use the 40% discount coupon that often comes in the paper for this purchase. However, the sale price was way more than 40% off. Time to move, and I almost missed out even then. There had been seven units the previous week. I purchased the last one in the store.

Yesterday I went through all the bins and boxes I have paper in, and my P3 is quite full. To give you an idea of the scope of my addiction: the P3 has 9 trays that hold up to 80 sheets per tray.

Yep, my name is Shirl, and I am a paperholic. And if I'm tempted to go buy more paper, remind me to open the P3 and look on my stash. Better yet, remind me to scrapbook some pictures!

Do you have an addiction?

Unconsciously Muttering, we are.

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Better off::Richer
2. Girls::Boys
3. Uniform::Soldier
4. Classified::Ads
5. Hard::Soft
6. Kitty::Cat
7. Team::Swat
8. Massive::Huge
9. Depressed::Sad
10. Award::Academy

Via the Scientific Eponymous Text:

What Sort of Intellectual Are You?

You're a poetic intellectual.
Take this quiz!




Quizilla
Join
| Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

PHI

Making Peace with 54.

It is divisible by 1, 2, 3, 6, 9, 18, 27, 54. That's nice.

It is one of the 9 multiples. My dad taught me a trick back in third grade to learn the 9's. For example: 6x9. Six minus one = 5. Five + four = 9. 6x9=54. Good memory. (And got me through multiplication tables faster.)

Fifty-four forty or fight.

Studio 54.

Car 54, Where Are you?

It's still ten years away from When I'm 64.

Your Mood Ring is Yellow

Imaginative Wondering Thoughts Peaceful

Mood Ring Generator

Swiped from Roscoe.

Good Evening!

I love the holidays, I really do. I love the planning and the thinking about gifts for people and the glitter and the excitement and seeing everyone. It's a wonderful time.

It is also wonderful to have a weekend ahead with no deadlines, no fussing, no alarm clock, no stress, either good or bad. Bland, boring, wonderful in its own way.

And how are you?

Good morning!

With a birthday so close to the first of the year this period is a double-time of introspection and goal-setting. The watchwords for this year will be: Movement and Letting Go.

Movement. This means changing my address. After twenty-three years in a "student ghetto" it's time to mosey on along. I think I should live in at least one other place before I move to the senior center, don't you?

Movement also means getting out and doing more physical things.

An object at rest tends to stay at rest and an object in motion tends to stay in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force.
Newton's First Law

Okay, so I don't know how Newton applies, but I've always liked the first law.

Letting Go. Letting go works hand-in-hand with movement. As I prepare to change addresses, I need to go through the clutter and detritus and good stuff collected over the last twenty-three years. This should make for a few posts. *smile*

I also need to let go of some old attitudes, some old hurts and frustrations. These only bind, and restrict that good old movement.

This is where I'm at, at the start of the year 2006. How about you?

Good Evening!

I was going to have a quick post yesterday morning, about how it was Mel Gibson's birthday and J.R.R. Tolkien's birthday and how when I first started blogging my blog was called 49-forever and NOW it's five years later because I turned 54 yesterday.

I was going to do that, but, I slept through my alarm. Woke up to daylight, which meant I should be at work. Had to hustle, which is hard for an old woman. *grin*

Had a great birthday, lots of cards and gift cards (yay, I'll be at the craft stores if you can't find me) and a roast beef dinner with all the trimmings last night. AND butter-brickle cake with butter-brickle frosting. Moms can spoil one, even when one has reached my advanced years.

Thanks for all your well-wishes, and onward we go!

Heads up for those interested in doing an on-line Artist's Way: kat will be leading such a group, and I think there's still time to join. Kat is the creator of the Art Everday November project, which had wonderful success this year.

It's so good to have another three-day weekend! And so, let's do the Monday Madness early in the morning. Works for me!

Happy New Year to you all! This week we're going to try something a little different.

Using the letters in the words HAPPY NEW YEAR, give yourself 2 minutes to list all the words you can make.

Happy, pear, pap, pan, pen, reap, heap, hen, wen, wren, hewn, New, Year, Ear, hap, when, yap, weep, wear, near, hear, here, hew, pew, yew

A year that starts with watching the deer at the Nature Center has to be a good one! I hope your New Year started well!

Good evening, and happy 2006. We shall start the evening off with some Unconscious Mutterings:

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Celebrate:: each day
2. Resolve:: to celebrate each day
3. I need to:: celebrate each day
4. Call:: phone home!
5. Token:: of my affection
6. Brand:: name
7. Comparison:: shop
8. Far away:: and long, long ago
9. Artful:: Dodger
10. Fantastic:: Four!

Happy New Year! is one way to say it. If you keep on typing it will wrap around.

And so we end the year, stealing from Mandarin meg. Shhhh, don't tell, eh?

Best wishes to all of you, and we'll see you tomorrow, with a brand-spanking new year.

Escape!

There is something to be said for a slow connection. I made it to 39.37 seconds!!

You're Babar the King!
by Jean de Brunhoff
Though your life has been filled with struggle and sadness of late,
you're personally doing quite well for yourself. All this success brings responsibility,
though, and should not be taken lightly. Life has turned from war to peace, from damage
to reconstruction, and this brings a bright new hope for everyone you know. These hopeful
people look to you for guidance, and your best advice to them is to watch out for snakes.
You're quite fond of the name "Celeste".


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

and from Susan at EBC:

In the year 2006 I resolve to: Fly a kite. Get your resolution here

Pandora of Montana has tagged me:

Guiltiest Song: "Lose Yourself", Eminem. Only you folks know *grin*.

Guiltiest TV: Hmmm. Desperate Housewives.

Guiltiest Food: Hmmmm. Big hmmmmmm. Uhhhhhh. Candy bars from the snack box at work. I really just shouldn't.

Guiltiest Drink: The margaritas at Texas Roadhouse. Strange things happen when I drink those.

Guiltiest Crush: Well, first it was Robert Redford, then it was Kevin Costner, and now, it's Brad Pitt. And I'm soooo happy he's with Angelina.

Let's see, now who shall I tag: I'm gonna say, anyone who wants to play!

It's Friday again! Yay!

I had a couple of vacation days in December, so this is my third four-day week, with one more to go next week. I could get used to this!

Whoa!

Now Randy had quite a Christmas!

Okay, in this post we're going to discuss the various grays/greys there are in the world. Discussion in the comments. (I think mid-Michigan has to be one of the grayest parts of the world.)

H O M E

Things I learned (or relearned) over the holidays:

• Twenty-four people can still be squeezed into Mom's living room. Twenty-five cannot.
• Opening presents before dinner is still more fun that opening them after.
• Fifteen pounds of ham will feed 25 people, with lots of leftovers. Thirty pounds will make for meals of leftovers. (What was Mom thinking?)
• Even if it's a giftcard in the package, it's more fun to unwrap presents than open cards.
• It can be white ALL December, and still end up being a green and white Christmas.
• There's no place like home.

And what did you learn?

Nominations are Open:

For your hero of 2005.
Can be a famous person or a not-famous person or an infamous person.

Well, hello everyone! I'm back from a lovely Christmas. If you celebrate the holiday, I hope it was a good one for you.

I didn't unconsciously mutter yesterday, so I'll mutter today:

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Virus::Computer
2. Poop::dood (poop upside down, a long-standing family joke)
3. Smart::Aleck
4. Agent::Secret
5. Wrap::those presents
6. Brass::Bad
7. Waste of time::oh, a lot of things that are also a lot of fun
8. Suspicious::minds
9. 360::degrees
10. Dummy::Charlie McCarthy

Merry Christmas Eve Day!

Taking a quick break from a massive gift-wrapping session!

Ut-oh.

I have one gift that I purchased back in October, and I can't find where I put it. Have you ever lost a gift before you gave it?

The Slut-o-Meter is here. Might want to find out your score.
Thanks to Patti for finding it. And wow, girl! Impressive numbers!

Yikes!

After snow all December, we now have possible rain in the forecast for Friday. Wouldn't it be funny if we DIDN'T have a white Christmas after all???

oh sure.


Tarzan!


What movie Do you Belong in?(many different outcomes!)
brought to you by Quizilla

Holidays.

So often they have "other" sides.

This Christmas, our family is sad as my brother entered detox Sunday. Sad that it came to that, sad that he won't be with us for Christmas, but happy that he is taking steps now to get a long-standing problem under control.

This Christmas, our family is ecstatic that Niece #1's husband is home from Iraq, for good! Their company returned to town this morning. My mom and brother and I couldn't stay for the whole thing (as they were delayed) but the pulsating excitement and joy in that auditorium was a wonder to behold.

Holidays. They do have "other" sides.

"Mary, did you know?"

This Christmas song caught my attention this year. I've been thinking about it a lot, and looking for nativity scenes at churches. So far I've only spotted two stationary ones, one lighted one, and one tableau. (The tableau was quite cute. It was teenagers on a Saturday afternoon, with three live goats, and the goats were soooo cute and cold.) The blonde Marys are kind of a jolt. My favorite so far is the Mary at Cristo Rey.

Some years we've been in danger of not having a white Christmas. That is definitely not the case this year. We've had snow throughout the month, and the forecast will keep us in the white stuff.

I've liked the wno this year. (Don't hit me, otto!) It's made me think of the old-fashioned Christmases of years gone by.

And be sure to ask me how I like the white stuff come February. *smile*

Fake blizzard. Actual picture over on flickr.

spotted at a couple of different places, and the quizzie finally worked for me.

You Are Rudolph

Sweet and shy, you tend to be happiest when you're making someone else happy. Why You're Naughty: You sometimes stick that nose where it doesn't belong Why You're Nice: Christmas would be a sad affair without you!

Which of Santa's Reindeer Are You?

Stretch, yawn, oh lovely! I love having a Monday off. Now I'll catch up on all the things I've needed to catch up on: mailing my cards, finish wrapping packages, finish decorating, finish finishing! Plus napping. And . . .

A Little Monday Madness:

Since I haven't received any emails from my faithful participants, offering questions (hint, hint), I will have to come up with my own... =)

1. Name 1 toy you owned when you were younger, that meant a lot to you. My sewing box that my grandparents gave me when I was ten. I still have it.
2. Name 2 games you enjoyed playing as a child. Hide 'n Seek. Monopoly.
3. Name 3 foods you didn't like as a child, but do now. Mushrooms, coconut, and green peppers
4. Name 4 foods you didn't like as a child, and still don't like. asparagus, cooked cabbage, can't think of a fourth, but the third would be, and I bet you guessed it bryn: brussel sprouts!

It appears that there have been problems accessing both this blog and the comments. Sorry about that. We're in the holiday season now, so anything can happen, I guess. (That's what I get for using free tools.)

It was the deer. Those beautiful animals with their big dark eyes, their white plumelike tails, and their ridiculous Vulcan-like ears. He had tried three times in the four years they had lived in Long Ridge to have a vegetable garden, and each time the deer had devoured it.

~~Before You Know Kindness, Chris Bohjalian

Up with the 3:00 a.m. whatevers, so, we shall mutter:

I say ... and you think ... ?

1. Replenish::Refuel
2. People::Person
3. Trend::Fad, chart
4. Girlfriends::Sharing
5. Spirit::Moves Me
6. Banshee::Howl like a
7. Oasis::in the Desert
8. Thrills::and Chills
9. Fountain::Chocolate. They seem to be in this Christmas.
10. Boxes::Gift wrap.

I would have said pumpkin:

You Are Apple Pie

You're the perfect combo of comforting and traditional Those who like you crave security

What Kind of Pie Are You?

Lifted from Knit-Together, where Kathryn is the sumptious Mud Pie

Argh!

I picked up a sandwich for lunch yesterday. It was a chicken barbecue thingee, and it tasted a bit off. (I didn't finish it, which is rare for me.) Within an hour, I was raging sick. Ewww! So came home from work, slept three hours, got up and had some soda and crackers, slept three hours, got up, had some more soda, slept three hours, had some chicken soup, went to bed for the night.

Feeling better this morning, and the scales say some weight went bye-bye.

A new weight-loss program.

Great Grandmothers.

Today would have been my Grandma Bea's 99th birthday.

Today my mom is being a Great Grandma and my nieces and nephews are being Great Grands.

My mom is quite conservative in her tastes in books, movies and television shows. Bad language, violence, and sex are issues. Her grands know her tastes, and work within that framework. Nieces #2 and #4 went to all of the Lord of the Ring movies with her, and would tell her when to not look if things got too intense.

On Thanksgiving, Niece #2's new husband went over to Mom. "Grandma," he said, "there's a movie coming out and we'd like to go to it with you." He was speaking of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

So the program mushroomed, and this evening two nieces and three nephews are gathering for Chinese with Grandma and then going to the movies. And I don't think they'll have to tell her not to look at all.

They're all great.

Needmore Church. Yes, that's it's name, taken from the highway that it sits on. This is the church where Grandma Bea taught Sunday School for many years, the church where she played the piano for many many years. It's where she married Grandpa Larry after being a widow for six years and living with us.



That's US at the wedding.

Behind the church is the cemetery where many of our relatives are parked. We take wreaths out in the winter, fill urns on Memorial Day.

December 16th was Grandma Bea's birthday.