Is the dog crazy or am I ?
Missy is her name. Well, Miss Lila is her name. I call her Missy. She's very sweet. Well behaved most of the time. She has this dominance thing with big dogs. Apparently, she thinks she's a Labrador Retreiver, or a Great Dane, or something like that. She's a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel mix. (Probably with a dachshund or something). Small, under 8 pounds. Yet viscous and ferocius when she encounters a tethered large dog. Attemts to rip their neck open. Of course, she herself is tethered (to me!) so I haul her back. Can dogs see themselves in a mirror? Maybe I should mount one close to the floor by the back door, so that just before I take her out for a walk she can get a perspective on her own size. Crazy as loon!
And what's all the jumping and prancing and barking when Jack comes to take her for a walk? I mean you could set a clock by him. Everyday - unless it's raining or snowing - at 6 o'clock (well, earlier in the winter, 'cause it's dark by 6 pm.) he rings my doorbell, and takes Missy for a walk. She knows he's coming. She comes to where I am, and sits staring at me with this look like "poor,poor, pitiful me" about 5 minutes before Jack is due. Then, when the doorbell rings, she goes looney tunes, jumping, and prancing, and barking, and running up and down the stairs. Did I mention the jumping and prancing and barking?? She can hardly stand still long enough for Jack to hitch her up to her lead. Then, off they go. Crazy as a loon! She knew he was coming. She knew they were going to go for a walk. Why all the wasted energy? What's up with that?
Okay, so they walk. and eventually, they return. Now, she makes a beeline for her water bowl, and drinks up. then she seeks me out and again with a look. This time it's 'wanna play?". So I go to my recliner and reach into the basket at my side and pull out her favorite toy, fling it across the room and she scrambles after it, runs around the room a few times holding it in her mouth, although it's taller than she is, so she trips on it, loses her grip on it, chases it down, resumes her race around the room. After two or three laps, she brings it to me and I pick it up and fling it again. This goes on about 8 minutes or so. Now, she just got back from a long walk with 'Uncle" Jack. Where did all this energy come from? Why isn't she taking a nap or something? Crazy as a loon! Or am I? Maybe I should face life with that much reckless abandon!
Bank of America
Bank of America has a new scam it is foisting on unsuspecting customers.
This one may not be against the law, like the last one was.
This time, they encourage their card holders to ‘round up’ their purchases to the next dollar.
Seems innocuous enough. If you pay your total credit card debt every month, and thereby don’t incur any finance charges.
However, if you need help putting money away in your savings account, chances are you carry a balance on your credit card debt. So you’re paying finance charges on the money you put into your savings account.
And the money in your savings account is not earning as much money as the credit debt is charging.
So basically, you’re ‘borrowing’ money from your credit card company (at say 5.45 percent) so that you can save it at (say 4.2 percent.) You are losing. Bank of America is making money off your meager attempt to ‘save’.
My advice? If you want to save more money, deposit some money every payday into a savings account. You can do this at the ATM when you make your first withdrawal after payday. And it won’t ‘cost’ you anything.
If you want to know the previous scam that they did (which was against the law) and the Feds had to step in and stop them, ask me. J :-)
Be My Valentine
Well, it was an interesting week. My Valentine Quartet delivered a singing Valentine to the bride-to-be and the groom-to-be at a party in the home of the GTB. In July. I never delivered a singing Valentine in July before. Sue L (on the left in the picture) is the mother of the GTB. She and her husband Peter, hosted a party on the night before the rehearsal dinner at their home. Fr. Lynch (brother of Peter) said a Mass of Celebration in the living room and delivered communion to all the cousins from Ireland, all the American family, and all the guests, including the Valentine quartet (at least to the Catholic ones).
It was a very warm, festive event, the table was heavily laden with good eats, the air was ringing with an Irish brogue, and the tinkling of glasses as we sipped on Pims (England's answer to the Sangria) - tea with apples, oranges, strawberries and CUCUMBER floating in the pitcher. Chris (a friend of the family, and a member of my chorus) was busy recruiting new singers for our barbershop chorus, and Peter was scurrying around the various rooms pouring Pims and serving up sausages and other goodies. It was a most delightful evening.
Litterbugs
I walk my dog on a modest little street in town with waterfront homes on the east side of the street nad neat raised ranches and cape cod houses on the west side of the street. The street is a commonly used route to get from one major road to another. (Lots of transient traffic.) And those who pass along this route smoke Newport cigarettes, drink Dunkin Donuts coolatas and Budweiser beer. How do I know that? Because they litter the sides of the street with their empty containers.
It never ceases to amaze me, that someone can carry a box or soft pack of cigarettes in their pocket or purse all day long, as long as there is at least one cigarette left in it. But as soon as they remove the last cigarette, it suddenly becomes so filthy that it mus be immediately tossed to the ground, or thrown out the car window. Isn't that an amazing phenomenon????? Do you suppose the manufacturer programmed it that way? To increase advertising for their brand? That way, many, many people will see that someone enjoys Newport cigarettes. And maybe I should try them.
If it is indeed an advertising scam, I for one am not buying it. As a matter of fact, If I ever DID return to smoking cigarettes (in a state of dementia, obviously), I can guarantee it will NOT be Newport!
But, I digress. The only thing we have to be thankful for is the fact that these people are riding around in spotless cars, rather than hiking or camping in our pristine wilderness areas. Can you imagine the filth they would leave behind? Can you imagine how quickly our pristine wilderness would lose it's allure?
Let us all bend a knee and pray that they do not take up any outdoor pursuits like kayaking, or hiking, or camping. Or that they do it where we can catch them in the act and mortify them with our rage and incantations!
Whew! Glad I got THAT off my chest! :-) Now, back to serenity!
Very Hot!
One of my favorite movie lines is from Biloxi Blues, when the new recruits were getting off the bus at boot camp in Biloxi. Having hailed from northern climes, they were amazed at the heat. One young man kept exclaiming about the heat and trying to find a way to describe it. He finally said, "It's AFRICA hot!". (Of course, he had never been to Africa, either) Well, I thought it was funny - I guess you had to be there.
Anyway, it's in the 90's today - (Africa hot!). I volunteered to help man the booth at a town festival. One of the theatre groups I am associated with has a booth and hands out flyers and recruits new actors/actresses for their upcoming productions. So we sat in the shade of the canopy, drinking copious amounts of water, and talking about many topics. And people watched. As the day wore on, we started looking for ways to entertain ourselves. Jim decided to see if he could blow the conch shell (That was one of the items of interest on our display table, a prop from our most recent production:" Luau for King Lear" ) Then I took my turn: for the first time in my life, I have blown a conch shell.
Never to late to add 'first time I ever..' things to your life's repertoire.
When that wore a little thin, we began grabbing the helium balloons the local politician was foisting on innocent children. We'd take turns sending someone over to ask for a ballon 'for my nephew', and then breath the helium, then recite our lines from "Luau". What a hoot! Grown people acting like a bunch of kids! Life is good!
'Gonna be Africa hot again tomorrow - I think I'll stay close to home and soak in the lake.
Friends
Billie Holiday once said: "If I don't have friends, then I ain't got nothin'".
When I count my blessings, my family and my friends are right at the top of my list. As I look back to my youth, and take my mind on a little walk through the streets of yesterday, the most vivid images are those of relatives and friends. I don't remember the 'things' of my life - I rememer the people who cradled my cares and hoisted my spirits.
I've lost contact with some of these people, as our lives weave our life tapestry. The threads of each relationship are firmly imbedded in my own personal spectrum of colors and emotions. But sometimes a thread reaches the edge of the tapestry, and disappears into the fringe. So be it. But that doesn't diminish the importance of the thread while it was an intregral part of the weave.
Sometimes, a song, a fragrance, a situation, will trigger a fond memory of someone from the past. A twinge of nostalgia washes over me, mixed with joy. As my mind retraces the footsteps of a cherished memory, I get a 'heart-hug'. That''s what I call it. A little nudge in my chest that reminds me of the warm comfortable feeling of having another person touch my life.
Reunions are fun - they allow us to step back from the tapestry and take a close look at the weave, and rekindle friendships. Our family has an annual reunion, and were it not for that, there are members of my family I would not see from year to year. We exhange photos, and we talk on the phone, or via the internet, and we keep the ties bound, but I'm glad we have a time for us to gather. To share favorite recipes, and wrap our arms around each other, and laugh at one another, and cry over lost treasures.
At the end of this month, I'm taking the 4 1/2 hour road trip to my home town, because an old school chum has emailed me and said he would be coming in from Tennessee to visit his family. I contacted some of the schoolmate-friends who still live in town, and we're gonna have a mini reunion - and catch up on all the news about each other. I'm really looking forward to that.
In October, I'll be travelling to Las Vegas with my chorus (90 of my close friends
) and I know that there will be other Sweet Adelines at the convention whom I haven't seen in a couple of years. I'm sure there'll be lots of time for 'How 'ya been?' and 'What's up with you?". That's alwalys a special, fun part of going to International Competition.
It's important to keep in touch with the people who mean something to you. For one thing
it strengthens the weave of your own personal tapestry. And it usually provides the moments for future 'heart-hugs'. Try it. You'll like it.
Back in the Day
I've noticed this expression has come into frequent use, of late. It is an antiquated expression, I'm not sure of it's origin, but I believe it's older than I. Based on the context where I'm seeing it used now, I believe it means the same as 'once upon a time' or 'when I was a kid' or 'back when ......( there was no TV, radio, microwaves, etc whatever).
How would YOU define
'the day'? I suppose it takes on a different meaning in each context. Here's an example:
Hollywood Squares:
Back in the day - they taped the show live, and the guests were real performers. There were no prepared answers to prior known questions - guest stars were taken as unaware as the audience was - to the absolute delight of the audience.
Here's a sampling:
Q. In bowling, what's a perfect score?
A. Rose Marie: Ralph, the pin boy
Q. It is considered in bad taste to discuss two subjects at nudist camps. One is politics, what is the other?
A. Paul Lynde: Tape measures.
Q. During a tornado, are you safer in the bedroom or in the closet?
A. Rose Marie: unfortunately Peter, I'm always safe in the bedroom.
Q. Can boys join the Camp Fire Girls?
A. Marty Allen: Only after lights out.
Q. When you pat a dog on its head he will wag his tail. What will a goose do?
A. Paul Lynde: Make him bark?
Q. If you were pregnant for two years, what would you give birth to?
A. Paul Lynde: Whatever it is, it would never be afraid of the dark.
Q. According to Ann Landers, is there anything wrong with getting into the habit of kissing a lot of people?
A. Charley Weaver: It got me out of the army.
Q. While visiting China, your tour guide starts shouting "Poo! Poo! Poo!". What does this mean?
A. George Gobel: Cattle crossing.
Q. It is the most abused and neglected part of your body, what is it?
A. Paul Lynde: Mine may be abused but it certainly isn't neglected.
Q. Back in the old days, when Great Grandpa put horseradish on his head, what was he trying to do?
A. George Gobel: Get it in his mouth.
Q. Who stays pregnant for a longer period of time, your wife or your elephant?
A. Paul Lynde: Who told you about my elephant?
Q. When a couple have a baby, who is responsible for its sex?
A. Charley Weaver: I'll lend him the car, the rest is up to him.
Q. According to Ann Landers, what are two things you should never do in bed?
A. Paul Lynde: Point and Laugh.
Q. Jackie Gleason recently revealed that he firmly believes in them and has actually seen them on at least two occasions: What are they?
A. Charley Weaver: His feet.
AND THAT'S THE WAY IT WAS......................BACK IN THE DAY
