Happy New Year

Now the fun begins............trying to remember to write 2008!

Mood Tester

According to your mood today, are you the dog or the cat?
Meaning...do you have the upperhand or are you the underdog.
Well, tomorrow is another day and then a whole new year!

Peace

Rambling Rae

Just a little note that I have started another blog "Rambling Rae". This blog is a bit different so visit at your own risk:)

Movie Review

"P.S. I love you"

This was a chick movie but my husband said it wasn't too bad. I liked it but it makes you think of things you try to avoid thinking about...the loss of someone you dearly love; It does have some funny parts in it and they are truly funny.

A test

"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power."

Surprise gift

Menopause the Musical

My daughter surprised me with dinner and tickets to this musical, just the two of us:)

What was your surprise gift?

Rest

It's a good thing there is a week before New Years!

Christmas

Luke 2: 10 And the angel said unto them (the shepherds) Fear not; for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

12 And this (the star) shall be a sign unto you; you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Politically correct - Twas the night before Christmas

Twas the night before Christmas and Santa's a wreck.....How to live in a world that's politically correct? His workers no longer would answer to "Elves"- -"Vertically Challenged" they were calling themselves.

And Labor conditions at the north pole, were alleged by the union to stifle the soul. Four reindeer had vanished, without much propriety, released to the wilds by the Humane Society.

And equal employment had made it quite, clear that Santa had better not use just only reindeer. So Dancer, and Donner, Comet and Cupid, were replaced with 4 pigs, and you know that looked stupid!

The runners had all been removed from his sleigh; The ruts were termed dangerous by the E.P.A, and people had started calling the cops, when they heard noises on their roof-tops.

Second-hand smoke from his pipe had his workers quite frightened. His fur trimmed red suit was called "Unenlightened".

And to show you the strangeness of life's ebbs and flows, Rudolf was suing over unauthorized use of his nose and had gone to Geraldo, in front the the nation, demanding millions in over - due compensation.

So, half of the reindeer were gone and his wife, who suddenly said she had enough of this life, joined a self - help group, packed and left in a whiz, demanding from now on her title was Ms.

And as for the gifts, why he's ne'er had a notion that making a choice, could cause so much commotion.

Nothing of leather, nothing of fur, which meant nothing for him and nothing for her. Nothing that might be construed to pollute, nothing to aim, nothing to shoot. Nothing that clamored or made lots of noise. Nothing for just girls or just for the boys. Nothing that claimed to be gender specific. Nothing that's warlike or non-pacific. No candy or sweets..they were had for the teeth. Nothing that seemed to embellish a truth.

And fairy tales, while not yet forbidden, were like Ken and Barbie, better off hidden. For they raised the hackles of those psychological who claimed the only good gift was one ecological.

No baseball no football..someone could get hurt; Besides, playing sports exposed kids to dirt. Dolls were said to be sexist, and should be passe; and Nintendo would rot your entire brains away.

So Santa just stood there, disheveled, perplexed; he just could not figure out what to do next. He tried to be merry, tried to be gay, but you've got to be careful with that word today.

His sack was quite empty, limp to the ground Nothing fully acceptable was to be found. Something special was needed, a gift that he might give to all without angering the left or the right.

A gift that would satisfy..with no indecision each group of people, every religion, every ethnicity, every hue, everyone, everywhere...even you. So here is that gift, it's price beyond worth;

"May you and your loved ones enjoy Peace on Earth"

Merry Christmas

I'm sending this note to advise you
That taxes have taken away

The things I have found most essential

My Reindeer, My workshop, My sleigh

Now I'm making my rounds on a donkey

He is old - and crippled - and slow

So you'll know if you don't see me Christmas

I'm out on my ass in the snow

Santa Clause

When I was a girl, the Judge in the little town I grew up in dressed up as Santa and had this card made....I have always thought it was a good one.

Movie Review

"Charlie Wilson's War"

A good movie. A true story that unfortunately reveals the true view of most congressmen.

Tom Hanks and Julie Roberts performed great!

Show and Tell Friday

There is no place like home

This is a Christmas ornament that belonged to my Grandfather. I have had it for 40 years and I don't know how long he had it before I got it. It is really just plastic painted to shine and a very crude clip to attach it to the tree and then nylon strings make the tail.

I didn't know my Grandfather very well and only saw him, maybe three times in my lifetime but just knowing it was his, makes it special.

Our first year of marriage we didn't have any Christmas decorations and my Grandfather had passed away 7 months before so my parents brought these home for us. It included an aluminum tree (see picture under on my Nostalgia site).


Rook's nest, shared some special ornaments today on her site....check them out.

A VERY SPECIAL CHRISTMAS WISH

May all those bathroom stalls have toilet paper

while you're out shopping!

Christmas

Decorations are complete.......

Shopping's done!

Wrapping's next.........

and just a little baking.....................Only six more days till Christmas!

Dog House Christmas

Sometimes I'm sorry just isn't enough and more restrictions are required in your life. So is the situation with my Grandson this year and so he will miss our traditional Christmas activities. Yes, I am sad but also glad that this is not a permanent situation.

Sometimes it is good to remember that not everyone is having a festive Christmas and may indeed be having a very hard time. If this applies to you...I wish you peace.

Home Grown

Downtown Prescott, Arizona has a courthouse square and every year they decorate it for Christmas; It indeed is beautiful. Wished I knew of more towns with a courthouse square, love the concept.

Christmas Meme

Saw this Christmas Meme on Lynne's blog and it sounded like a lot of fun, so here's mine:

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? I mostly use wrapping paper. I like to prolong the opening as much as possible:)

2. Real tree or artificial? Artificial. It is just easier and safer since they don't dry out but miss the smell and feel of the real ones.

3. When do you put up the tree? Usually in mid Dec. Our kids come and put up the decorations and I fix dinner:)

4. When do you take the tree down? After New Years.

5. Do you like eggnog? I am not very fond of it. It is too sweet for me even with alcohol additions.
6. Favorite gift received as a child? A stereo when I was around 12 years old. Loved music and played the heck out of it.

7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, my mother gave us a beautiful nativity many years ago.

8. Hardest person to buy for? My husband. We have discontinued to try to buy each other gifts and instead go on a nice trip after the holidays (usually to Mexico because it is warm....Mazatlan is my favorite).

9. Easiest person to buy for? My granddaughter. She is still young and wants and likes lots of things.

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? My brother-in-law and family gave us a pancake mix set my first Christmas in the family.

11. Mail or e-mail Christmas cards? Snail mail. Have cut way down on cards because of the cost.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? None

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?I normally wait until Dec.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? No

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? No favorites here. Just like good food anytime anywhere.
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear lights for me.

17. Favorite Christmas song? Silent night

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Stay home. Family is close so no need to fight the crowds and travel.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Dasher, Dancer, Comet and Blitzen. Donner, Cupid, Prancer, Vixen, and Rudolph.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star?I have a lighted wooden star.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? We have always opened gifts on Christmas Eve. Before we had to share our kids we would then have dinner on Christmas day. Now they go to the other side and open gifts and hubby and I go out for a country drive.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? I really don't like those gigantic air blown Christmas decorations a lot of people have on their front lawns. Especially during the day when they are deflated. Does anyone else feel this way? Yes, Yes, Yes....I feel this way too.

23. What I love most about Christmas? It is the one time of the year that other people think of someone other than themselves and hopefully think about the birth of Jesus. If you read this-you're tagged!! Let me know-I'd love to see your answers.

Fun Scrabble

THE MORSE CODE: When you rearrange the letters:
HERE COME THE DOTS

Share

People might think they have nothing to share ....but it might be right under your nose!

Free

Recently in my local newspaper I saw this picture with an article about this cat being saved with the fidobag from a house fire that was caused by careless smoking. I breathed a sigh of relief. It has been 10 years since I quit smoking. That is something I never thought I would ever be able to say and let me tell you it didn't happen without a fight. I was a 3 pack a day smoker, smoked in bed and woke up every 2 hours to do so. I refused to take anymore trips to Hawaii or any other place that required me to be without a cigarette for more than 4 hours because I thought I would go nuts and drinking didn't help. I tell you all this because if you are a smoker and you want to quit..........YOU CAN DO IT!

This is what (finally) worked for me. I got every book available from the library on quiting smoking and while smoking like a steam engine, read them. I went to my doctor and got some medication (zoloff). I gave my last three cigarettes to my husband and asked him to bring home 3 stargazers (my favorite flower) in exchange. I bought bags of red hot candy...every time I wanted a cigarette I would have a red hot....they were low on calories and gave me something to do with my mouth and eventually my mouth would be hot as a firecracker (a lot like smoking too many cigarettes). I joined an online support group, did jigsaw puzzles, swam and anything else I could think of to divert my attention. It was a long hard battle but to my amazement.....I won! While stuck in the Philadelphia airport this past year waiting to board a plane to Portugal (a ten hour flight) I was surprised to smell smoke in the bathroom and realized that people were desperate. I had totally forgot that situation.

It will soon be a new year and if brings knots to your gut.........break free, you can do it.

ILY Christmas Tree

The sign for "I love you"

The bottom line

An optimist thinks the glass is half-full; a pessimist thinks the glass is half-empty. A realist knows that if he sticks around, either way he's eventually going to have to wash the glass.

A flash from the past

The local business's posted Christmas greetings in the local paper....notice the date 1940.

Movie review

"No country for old men"
I didn't like this movie. The ending is one of those dead end nothing endings...sort of like slamming a book shut before the last page.

Show and Tell Friday

There is no place like home
http://www.kellishouse.blogspot.com/

These are pictures of old telephone insulators.

They were first created in 1850 and could be found not only on telephone poles but also electric power lines. My mother collected dozens of them and many of the clear ones are now purple from age.

A friend of mine makes these beautiful wind chimes so I gave him one of mine to make this one for me.

Be a player

You shouldn't go through life with a catchers mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw something back.

Smart risk taker

Nothing's worrying me

Who is in the better position..the kitten under the cover of this huge dog's ear or the dog hearing purring all night long??????? Sometimes differences don't matter:)

Warning

This is an interesting billboard and something to think about.
By what means do you base your right and wrong?
What is the track record of that basis?


If politician's are suppose to be able to answer the tough questions than shouldn't we?

Early beginnings

After reading the comments on my show and tell I remembered that I had my first dollhouse up in the attic. Since it was raining, I decided to take my life in my hands and climb up there to take a few pictures. Some things you just never outgrow.

A little dirty but still good as new:) This is a Marx's vintage metal dollhouse and like everything in the world, they are selling on ebay along with the furniture.

Can't tell you how many hours I spent arranging all this furniture...wonderful memories.

Arizona Phenomenon

RAIN

Been raining for two days now....It's a good thing I don't live in Oregon, I would start smoking again!

If we aren't careful our Arizona Tree Frog that is the official state amphibian will become one of those water bull frogs:)

Show and Tell Friday

There is no place like home

http://www.kellishouse.blogspot.com/

My dollhouse:

I purchased this dollhouse already put together but not decorated from a friend who was an antique dealer. When the time came that I started working on it I realized that whoever had put it together must have been recovering from brain surgery and did it with a glue gun! I sought out help and found out that I could use a hairdryer to take it apart and clean it up.......................so I totally disassembled it and started over.

I worked on it during the O.J. Simpson trial and it gave me a good excuse to be still.

I love it because it reminds me of the old homestead of my grandparents.

Yes, I did the electrical and roofed it:)

Home Sweet Home

Home grown

Being a native (home grown) of Arizona I thought it would be fun to give an occasional glimpse of this diverse state so here goes the first one.................................................................

This is the world's largest kokopelli

It is found close to Camp Verde, Arizona

It stands 32 feet high and sits on a 6 foot base

It is made of welded steel and weighs five and a half tons

Kokopelli is pronounced koh-koh-bell-ee

It is a fertility symbol among the Hopi Indians

In Honor

In honor of those who say nothing is black or white

Fun Scrabble

GEORGE BUSH: When you rearrange the letters:

HE BUGS GORE

FashionABLE

"I am still trying to find my true fashion self. Cute no longer works, nor does sophisticated. Mysterious is out. I hope I find it soon, before that last permanent stage; before floral print polyester with three-quarter sleeves, and acrylic shawl and shoes with build-in bunion lumps."
writer Gretchen Sentry

There is no question that being older is an awkward age but perhaps Marie von Ebner-Eschenback has found the perfect answer "Being young is beautiful but being old is comfortable." Either way the key is ABLE.

Size isn't what matters

But seeing eye to eye does