Sunday Stealing

Sunday Stealing

Name Your Favorite . . .

    Place: Home.

    Color: Blue.

    Smell: My husband's chest.

    Magazine: The Atlantic

    Texture: Creamy, like a good chocolate.

    Thing to do when bored: Read

    Precious stone: Pearl

    Animal: Deer

    Time in history: This one, I guess, since it's the one I live in.

    Font: Times Roman (Yes, I know, boring.)

    Sound: My husband's voice.

    Fruit: Watermelon.

    Vegetable: Broccoli.

    Store/shop: Amazon.

    Quote: "Not all who wander are lost." J.R.R. Tolkien

    Historical figure: Mary, Queen of Scots

    Letter: Like in the alphabet? Q.

    Memory: The day my grandfather gave me a guitar.

    Dessert: Chocolate cake.

    Candy: Chocolate. (I'm so easy to guess, aren't I.)

    Restaurant: Don't have one anymore.

    Language: English.

    Thing to learn about: Local history. 

    Thing about yourself: I'm not an idiot.

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I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

Happiness Challenge - Day 19

Today I was helpful on the farm!

Honestly, I don't do much around here except take care of my man and do the bookkeeping. I keep an eye on the cows, but I seldom visit with them. Sometimes I chase a cow when it gets out, and I may drive him - my husband, not a cow - back and forth, but otherwise, the farming is the domain of the manly man.

Yesterday while he was riding around the fields, a part fell off the tractor. It was a $150 part. He went out this morning to look for it, but could not find it.

So, I asked him to take me along on the John Deere Gator and let me help him look for it.

And I found it!

I felt like I'd won the lottery.

And that made me happy because I was helpful, and because now I don't have to spend $150 on a part.

Saturday 9: Michelle

Saturday 9: Michelle (1965)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

 

1) In this song, Paul McCartney sings to Michelle in French, "Sont des mots qui vont très bien ensemble." Can you say anything else in French?

A. Par le vous Englais? That's about it.

2) Paul admits that, as a teenager, he'd perform the first few bars at parties to impress girls. It was John Lennon who encouraged him to "turn it into a proper song." Tell us about a time you were glad you took advice from a friend or coworker.

A. A coworker gave me the name of a therapist back in the 1980s; I took her advice and saw the therapist.

 

3) A big Elvis fan, Paul is proud to own the bass that was played on the 1954 recording of "That's Alright, Mama." Tell us about one of your prized possessions.

A. My most prized possessions are my wedding ring and my college diploma(s). 

4) John was also an Elvis fan and honored The King by naming one of his cats Elvis. Do you share your home with any pets? If so, let us know their names.

A. I have no pets in the house. We have cows, but we don't name them because then they are harder to sell. It also makes eating a hamburger difficult.

5) John was a heavy smoker who often attempted to quit. He tried hypnosis but that didn't work. Have you ever been hypnotized?

A. I have.

6) George Harrison fell in love with Hawaii and bought a 63-acre estate. If you could take off tomorrow for a vacation to any of our 50 states, which one would you choose?

A. I would love to go to the northern states in the fall, when the leaves are changing. So perhaps Maine in October?

6) While Ringo Starr quit signing autographs for fans in 2008, he will donate autographed memorabilia to charity for auction. Have you ever bid on an item at auction? Did you win?

A. I used to go to auctions frequently when we first married. I did win my bids on some things.

 

7) As a young boy, Ringo had a severe case of appendicitis and his appendix was removed. Do you still have your appendix?

A. Yes, I still have my appendix. For 20 years I thought I didn't, only to find out that the doctors didn't remove it during my hysterectomy like I thought they did.

 

8) In 1965 -- before Advil and Tylenol and Aleve -- Americans took aspirin to relieve pain. If we peered into your medicine chest, would we find aspirin?

A. Yes, I keep a bottle of aspirin here in case one of us has a heart attack.

9) Random question: You're at dinner with a married couple who begins to argue. Would you intercede and try to make peace? Or would you just sit back and mind your own business?

A. Mind my own business, unless someone became violent or abusive, in which case I'd call the police. Or at least threaten to in hopes of shutting them down.

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I encourage you to visit the posts of other participants in Saturday 9 and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however.  

Happiness Challenge - Day 18

Today I sing a song of myself. I am a woman, and I have the right to vote (for the moment).

Just over 100 years ago today, Congress ratified the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote in 1920.

The Amendment passed Congress on June 4, 1919, and it was ratified on August 18, 1920.

From the government archives:

The 19th amendment legally guarantees American women the right to vote. Achieving this milestone required a lengthy and difficult struggle—victory took decades of agitation and protest. Beginning in the mid-19th century, several generations of woman suffrage supporters lectured, wrote, marched, lobbied, and practiced civil disobedience to achieve what many Americans considered a radical change of the Constitution. Few early supporters lived to see final victory in 1920.

Beginning in the 1800s, women organized, petitioned, and picketed to win the right to vote, but it took them decades to accomplish their purpose. Between 1878, when the amendment was first introduced in Congress, and August 18, 1920, when it was ratified, champions of voting rights for women worked tirelessly, but strategies for achieving their goal varied. Some pursued a strategy of passing suffrage acts in each state—nine western states adopted woman suffrage legislation by 1912. Others challenged male-only voting laws in the courts. Some suffragists used more confrontational tactics such as picketing, silent vigils, and hunger strikes. Often supporters met fierce resistance. Opponents heckled, jailed, and sometimes physically abused them.

By 1916, almost all of the major suffrage organizations were united behind the goal of a constitutional amendment. When New York adopted woman suffrage in 1917 and President Wilson changed his position to support an amendment in 1918, the political balance began to shift.

On May 21, 1919, the House of Representatives passed the amendment, and 2 weeks later, the Senate followed. When Tennessee became the 36th state to ratify the amendment on August 18, 1920, the amendment passed its final hurdle of obtaining the agreement of three-fourths of the states. Secretary of State Bainbridge Colby certified the ratification on August 26, 1920, changing the face of the American electorate forever.

The campaign for woman suffrage was long, difficult, and sometimes dramatic; yet ratification did not ensure full enfranchisement. Decades of struggle to include African Americans and other minority women in the promise of voting rights remained. Many women remained unable to vote long into the 20th century because of discriminatory state voting laws.

If we are not careful, if we don't watch who we elect and understand what is going on around us, we will lose this right that our foremothers fought and died for.

Today, I am happy to sound the alarm: rights can be taken away. Be careful, watchful, and diligent.

Thursday Thirteen

Things I would never post on Facebook but would like to (so of course I post it here instead):

1. I am holding out a slight hope that saner minds will ultimately prevail but can only wait and see. It's been a sh*tshow here for months, thanks to a few loudmouthed bullies who think their tax dollars count for more than anyone else's, and that their morals are the only morals. They define the word "bigot" in all of its definitions.

2. Moms for Liberty - aka Klanned Karenhood - best thing I've seen today

3. #bannedbooksareworthreading

4. If you haven't actually seen the movie, read the book, or watched the show, you have no right to bash it simply because your conservative friends think badly of it.

5. We don't do that because there wouldn't be any daddys, daddys' best friends, grandpas, uncles, mothers, aunts, or siblings left once they were all dead, plus people are innocent until proven guilty. 1 in 5 women and 1 in 20 boys have experienced molestation before they turn 18. Who do you think does that to them? It isn't a book, I can tell you that. There aren't enough orphanages to take in all the kids who would be left without parents if you did that. Who do you think molesters are? Sneaky people the kids don't know? It's their family members and family friends.  - in response to a meme saying "we put dogs that molest kids to sleep, why don't we do that to child molestors [sic]." 

6. [Name of person], most of these are fake, and they use them to hack your account. Your friend is right. You should delete this right away. - in response to the multitude of "lost dogs, children missing, or house for rent really cheap" posts.

7. Using "for the children" is the last refuge of scoundrels and fascists.

8. Some of these people wouldn't know an intelligent thought if it came up and bit them square in the a$$.

9. Take that "perfect" phone call and stick it where the sun doesn't shine.

10. Go away, you damn scam man. - in response to all the pretty men who post on my page and want to be my friend. (I block them.)

11. There is no price tag on stupid. Stupid comes free.

12. I'll believe I have fiber Internet availability when I am actually paying the bill and it's been installed. (I still have DSL. A local company constantly advertises it on my FB page, but I am "not eligible" to receive it.)

13. The "independent thinkers" haven't had an original thought since they fell out of the birth canal. If it hasn't been fed to them by some group, they just have dead air between their ears.

______________

Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while, and this is my 821st time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.

Happiness Challenge - Day 16

Today I saw the chiropractor. I had a bit of a reaction to the adjustment (or maybe to my blood pressure medicine) - when I sat up, I had spots dancing before my eyes.

My chiropractor gave me cold water and made me sit there for a very long time. After I dressed, she kept me in the waiting room talking until she felt like I was good to go.

It's nice to be cared for by someone who, well, cares. She didn't have to go out of her way to make sure I was fine before I drove home, but she did.

In a world where money rules, today I am happy that I have managed to find some healthcare providers who actually care about me as a person.

Happiness Challenge - Day 15

Today is house cleaning day, meaning that the young woman who has been helping me clean the house once a month for several years came in to help.

I keep the place generally picked up, but she does the heavy stuff for me now - the mopping and such that I can no longer manage thanks to that bum abdominal surgery I had in 2013 that left me in chronic pain. I am unable to use my abdominal muscles for the things one must use them for - like slopping water on the floor or running the vacuum for several hours.

During the month, I keep the clutter picked up, dust, and run the vacuum from time to time - I can manage it infrequently and in small time frames.

But I can't mop.

So yay for a clean house.

Happiness Challenge - Day 14

Today I ran into someone I hadn't seen a long time when I was in the grocery store. We talked a bit about the issues with the library - we have a few homophobic bigots who want books dealing with LBGTQ+ issues removed from the public library.

We also talked about retirement, moving on from what we used to do, and stuff like that.

As I was turning to go, the friend turned to me and said, "I hope you know you've always been an inspiration."

I was stunned. "No, I didn't know that. But thank you!"

It was so nice to be on the end of such a nice compliment. I don't think of myself as being an inspiration to anyone - and yet apparently I am.

Sunday Stealing

Sunday Stealing

1. What are things you would do first if you won a billion-dollar lottery?

A. Hire a financial advisor and lawyer.

2. What is something you probably spend too much money on?

A. That would be potato chips.

3. How do you feel about the dentist?

A. I love my dentist. She is great and takes good care of me. I also love to get my teeth cleaned and I would do it every three months if I could afford it.

4. What foods are you most picky about?

A. I don't eat spicy foods, and I'm allergic to black pepper.

5. Name some Internet friends / penpals you want to visit in person.

A. Oh, I would love to visit all of them. I'd like to meet Bev, who does Sunday Stealing, and Sam, who does Saturday 9. I'd like to meet Kwizgiver (which should happen given that she has a sister who lives not far away . . .), and Stacy, and Diane, and oh . . . just everyone.

6. What are your healthiest habits?

A. I'm not sure I have any. Let me think. I shower daily and use lotion. I brush my teeth twice a day, sometimes three. 

7. What are the easiest, low effort foods and snacks for busy days?

A. Trail mix, or a granola bar.

8. Where do you go in summer to unwind?

A. Same place I go in winter - to my office in my house, or to my chair in the living room. 

9. List your comfort books, tv shows, and movies.

A. My comfort books would be The Lord of the Rings trilogy or most anything by Janet Evanovich or Nora Roberts. TV shows would be Big Bang Theory or MASH. Movies would be Under the Tuscan Sun, Dirty Dancing, Steel Magnolias, and The Lord of the Rings trilogy.

10. Make a list of good things.

A. All of the stuff in #9, sunshine, clouds, rain, rainbows, clover, bees, grass, books, music, writing.

11. Name your favorite places to take photos.

A. Out the back and front doors of my house.

12. What are the routines and habits you stick to most?

A. I shower regularly, generally eat before 6 p.m., and go to bed about the same time every night.

13. What are some topics you’d love to learn more about?

A. I'd like to learn more about astronomy, archeology, music theory, and other languages.

14. What happened about this time last year?

A. I wrote 33 blog posts last August. My husband was recovering from his hip replacement surgery about this time last year and getting along well, so I would have been dealing with him.

15. What are some favorite memories of someone you’ve lost?

A. My grandmother had varicose veins, and when I was quite young, I was sitting with her and I starting tracing the lines on her legs. I looked up at her and said, quite earnestly, "Gee, Grandma, you're cracking up!"  She loved that and reminded me that I said it many times.

She used to talk to her friend, "Mama Fore" every day. We were not allowed to interrupt when she was talking to Mama Fore.

When I cut my thumb open when I was 10, I passed out in her arms.

I called her once a week just to talk after I became an adult. I miss that.

__________

I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

Saturday 9: Diana

Saturday 9: Diana (1957)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) Legend has it that Paul Anka wrote this song about his favorite babysitter. In your younger days, did you make a little extra money as a sitter?

A. I did. I did not do it often, but I babysat occasionally. I did it for one couple for quite a while. I was too young to drive so they would drive me home. The gig ended after the man tried to assault me in his car when he drove me home one night. After that, I refused to babysit for them, although they may not have asked me again. I can't remember for sure.

2) Paul sings he doesn't care what "they" say about his love for an older girl. Have you ever had a romantic relationship that your friends or family didn't approve of?

A. Not really, no. I mean, that would have been over 40 years ago anyway, so what does it matter?

3) Paul was once a choirboy, singing with the St. Elias Antiochian Orthodox Cathedral choir in Ontario. Have you ever performed with your church choir?

A. No.

4) When Paul was 15, he left Ontario to find fame and fortune in New York. He had $100 in his pocket, a gift from his uncle. Tell us about someone in your life who believed in you and encouraged you.

A. My teachers were generally encouraging. My math teacher in high school encouraged me to go to college more so than others did. I think she was disappointed that I took a long circular route to get there, but I did it, and obtained a masters degree, too. If I'd gone to college, I would not have met my husband and my life would have been completely different.

5) Paul seldom gets credit for one of his most familiar compositions: the theme to The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. Since Johnny retired in 1992, The Tonight Show has been hosted by Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien, and Jimmy Fallon. Which of these Tonight Show hosts is your favorite?

A. I didn't watch The Tonight Show; I watched David Letterman. Now I go to bed too early to watch any of them. I've seen Jimmy Fallon on other things and liked him on those.

6) In 1978, Paul Anka hired Las Vegas' first female bartender for his restaurant, Jubilation. Where did you most recently dine out?

A. We are still doing mostly take-out. That's our new normal, apparently. The last place we ate out was Coach & Four back in June.

7) In 1957, when "Diana" was a hit, Wham-O began producing Frisbees. The toy was a massive success, even outselling the hula hoop. Do you enjoy tossing a Frisbee?

A. I haven't tossed a Frisbee in decades. I used to like it ok when I was a kid.

8) Also in 1957, the book Peyton Place was made into a blockbuster film. Book lovers often say that, no matter what, the movie is never as good as the book. Do you think that's true?

A. No. They are different artistic mediums, and I don't think they can be fairly compared. It's like trying to compare an oil painting to a knitting project.

9) Random question: This Saturday, the treat's on Sam. Will you have buttered popcorn, caramel corn or cheese popcorn?

A. Just plain buttered popcorn, please. Thank you, Sam.

_______________

I encourage you to visit the posts of other participants in Saturday 9 and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however.  

Happiness Challenge - Day 11

 

Today I am happy that the grocery stores are stocked. I remember during the pandemic when the sight of shelves instead of products scared me, along with everyone else. So, I am happy today for a full grocery store, even if some things I used to purchase seem no longer to be available (at least not around here).

I am also happy that I had a long chat with my friend today. We hadn't talked for a day or so and I missed her. It is amazing how much a conversation with a similar soul can lift the spirits. So, thank goodness for friends!

I am also happy that I ate a little pizza, and it didn't upset my stomach. I don't think it's something I can eat often, but it's nice to see that perhaps a piece every now and then won't do me in.

***

Each day in August you are to post about something that makes *you* happy. Pretty simple. And, it doesn't even have to be every day if you don't want it to be. It's a great way to remind ourselves that there are positive things going on in our lives, our communities, and the world.

This meme comes from The Gal Herself.

Happiness Challenge - Day 10

 

I saw a buck in velvet this morning. He was like a shadow, moving quickly across the glen, but I caught a visual of him and his beautiful horns. My deer always make me happy.

Today I worked on an editing project, and it is nice to have work to do. Especially this kind of work, which I can pick up and put down at my leisure. And it's work I enjoy. That always helps.

Most of the day I was alone, and I enjoyed that as well. I like my alone time.

I finished a Neil Gaiman audiobook, Norse Mythology, this morning, too. I learned a lot about that mythology that I hadn't known. I knew a bit of it, and I could hear echoes of other mythologies in it, but it was good to learn something new.

Thursday Thirteen #820

Gaslighting is a form of psychological manipulation in which a person seeks to make another person doubt their own perceptions, memories, or sanity. It's a tactic used to gain power and control over someone by making them question their reality, thereby weakening their confidence and ability to trust their own judgment. The term "gaslighting" originates from a play called "Gas Light," in which a husband manipulates his wife by dimming the gas lights in their home and then denying that they had changed, making her doubt her perception.

Here are 13 ways to identify when someone might be gaslighting you:

1. Denying: The gaslighter flatly denies events or situations that you clearly remember happening, making you question your memory.

2. Withholding Information: They purposefully withhold information or keep secrets, causing you to doubt your understanding of what's going on.

3. Contradictions: They contradict themselves frequently, making it difficult for you to grasp the truth and leaving you feeling confused.

4. Trivializing Feelings: The gaslighter dismisses your emotions or reactions as overreactions, making you question your own feelings and emotional responses.

5. Projection: They accuse you of things they are doing themselves, deflecting attention away from their actions by putting the focus on you.

6. Shifting Blame: Gaslighters shift blame onto you, even for their own mistakes or inappropriate behavior, leading you to feel responsible for things that aren't your fault.

7. Minimizing: They downplay their behavior or the impact it has on you, making you doubt the significance of your concerns.

8. Creating Confusion: Gaslighters intentionally confuse you by changing their story or manipulating facts, leaving you unsure of what's true.

9. Isolation: They isolate you from friends, family, or support networks, making you more dependent on them and less likely to get validation from others.

10. Doubting Your Memory: They repeatedly claim that your memory is unreliable, causing you to question your recollection of events.

11. Using Others: Gaslighters might enlist others to support their version of events, making you feel like everyone agrees with them and you're in the wrong.

12. Setting Unrealistic Expectations: They set unrealistic standards for you and then blame you for not meeting them, eroding your self-esteem and self-worth.

13. Changing Reality: Gaslighters may rearrange objects, hide things, or subtly change your environment to make you doubt your sanity or perception.

If you suspect someone is gaslighting you, it's important to trust your instincts and seek support from trusted friends, family, or a mental health professional. Gaslighting can have serious effects on your mental and emotional well-being, and recognizing it is the first step towards protecting yourself from its harmful effects.

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Thursday Thirteen is played by lots of people; there is a list here if you want to read other Thursday Thirteens and/or play along. I've been playing for a while, and this is my 820th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.

Happiness Challenge - Day 9

 

We didn't get the rain we needed, but today was a pretty day. It got a little humid after lunch as some storm clouds rolled through (they dropped no rain), but I thought it was lovely outside.

The garden is producing in abundance, especially tomatoes. It is too bad I cannot eat tomatoes much anymore, and my husband doesn't like cooked tomatoes at all, so it is not worth the effort to can or freeze tomatoes. It is unfortunate that the produce all comes in at the same time, but I guess summer abundance meant not starving in the wintertime in the old days, when that was all one had to eat.

Also, I went over to my father's for a guitar-playing session with him and a friend of his. I like playing my guitar.

Happiness Challenge - Day 8

 

Today I am happy because I have a good dentist.

I've had a tooth bothering me for a while. When I finally called about it, my dentist was on vacation, so I saw someone else.

That person did not fix the problem, so three weeks later I went back to see my own dentist.

She's great.

I have a filling in the tooth that was bothering me. She said it had worn down - I grind my teeth even though I wear a night guard - and she refilled her back up and I was good to go.

Today I realized how much the tooth had been bothering me because the bother was gone. Sometime you don't know how much pain and/or discomfort you're putting up with until it goes away.

Happiness Challenge - Day 7

 

Today I am happy because we have rain in the forecast. We still need rain.

When the systems change over from el nino to la nina and vice versa, we get into these weather patterns where we sit and watch the rain go down the mountains, missing us entirely.

This year has been particularly bad and for a while we were so short of hay for the cattle for the winter we were afraid we might have to sell half the herd.

It looks like now we will be ok, and this rain will help with a third cutting.

Farming is not easy. But I'm happy too that I live in a rural area where I can see trees, the sky, the deer, the squirrels. I never know what kind of critter might walk right by my office window. That's happiness, right there, just watching Ma Nature do her thing.

Happiness Challenge - Day 6

 

Today I am looking back to see that this is my blog anniversary weekend. I started my blog on August 5, 2006.

I've been writing this thing for 17 years. That's like birthing a kid. Sort of.

My blog is printed out by blog2print every six months or so. It takes up almost an entire shelf on my bookcase now. I do this so I will have it, because this has been free all of this time, and one day, it will not be, or it will cease to exist because blogging isn't a thing anymore.

Those blog books hopefully will end up with family. Or they may end up in the recycling when I am gone, who knows. But I print them up and have them bound for myself. So I can look at them occasionally and say, "See, I did that." 

I may not be writing bestselling books, but I have written an awful lot of words.

My blog makes me happy, and even after all of these years, it can still challenge me because I try not to go for many days without writing something or posting a photo. I have to tend to it, nurture it, guard it.

After all, I've been writing here for almost 1/3 of my life!

Sunday Stealing

Sunday Stealing

1.  What do you have hanging on your walls?

A. A calendar, several clocks, my diplomas, and a copy of a Van Gogh picture.

2.  Have you used an outrageous excuse to get out of jury duty?

A. No. I wanted to be juror, but I have only been picked three times and then didn't make the cut. I was released because I wrote for the newspaper.

3. Where so you like to go shopping (not for groceries)?

A. I like to shop in office supply stores. The older kind, though, not the newer ones. They don't have as many notebooks and things in them now.

4. What was the last movie you saw in a movie theater?

A. Barbie.

5. If you wrote a note and put it in a bottle to throw out to sea, what would the note say?

A. “Do not meddle in the affairs of Dragons, for you are crunchy and taste good with ketchup!”

6. What decision have you made in your life that you regret?

A. I have written before about a job I left in 1984 that I wish I had not. 

7. What is in your junk drawer?

A. Junk, of course. That includes an assortment of tools, the little twisty ties off of bread, tape, a deck of playing cards, toothpicks, scratch pads, nuts and bolts, and other assorted doodads.

8. Have you ever gone to a high school reunion?

A. Yes. I went to my 30th high school reunion. I have no plans to attend another.

9. Would you rather receive the GOOD news or the BAD news first?

A. The bad news.

10. What are your top 3 pet peeves?

A. I don't know that I have a top three. But here are three: people who smell bad (and for me that could be someone who wears perfume), people who can't park properly, especially in the disabled parking spaces, and people who lie.

11. Are there famous people from where you live?

A. Yes. Matt Ramsey is in the band Old Dominion, which has won lots of music awards. Mary Johnston was a famous writer in the early 1900s. 

12. What kitchen gadgets do you use most?

A. The can opener, the toaster, and the potato peeler.

13. Who was your elementary school best friend?

A. That seemed to change from year to year, but a few of them were Chris, Ann, and Donna.

14. Choose an animal and tell us 4 things about that animal.

A. A deer is curious, yet timid. They give birth to twins more frequently than one might think. They don't like cats or coyotes. They will eat roses, even the thorns.

15. What is your favorite pizza topping?  What do you never want on a pizza?

A. I like a veggie pizza, but never want black olives.

__________

I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.

Happiness Challenge - Day 5

 

Today I am happy because this morning when I stepped on the scales, I had lost three pounds. This was a pleasant surprise because I thought I had gained weight instead.

Yay.

I am also happy because it is Saturday and that means clean bed linens tonight.

***

Each day in August you are to post about something that makes *you* happy. Pretty simple. And, it doesn't even have to be every day if you don't want it to be. It's a great way to remind ourselves that there are positive things going on in our lives, our communities, and the world.

This meme comes from The Gal Herself.

Saturday 9: Linda

Saturday 9: Linda (1946)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) In this song, Buddy Clark sings that when he can't sleep he doesn't count sheep, he enumerates Linda's charms. Did you sleep well last night?

A. Yes. I have to get up every night to take medication, so I seldom get through a night without that, but I sleep better than I did when I was younger.

2) In addition to singing with big bands, Buddy sang commercial jingles live on radio programs and was the voice of Carnation Milk. Can you think of a jingle that's stayed in your head?

A. This is a jingle for a local drugstore that for whatever reason I have always remembered. I can't find it online. I think it dates back to the 1970s. Anyway, it goes like this:

Evans Drugstore, Evans Drugstore, good prescription service. Intersection at Airport and Williamson Road. Delivery in the city, and in the county too! For drugs, cosmetics, school supplies, it's Evans Drugstore!

3) For "Linda," Buddy Clark performed with bandleader Ray Noble. Ray was classically trained at London's Royal Academy of Music, but much preferred big band music to that of Mozart, Beethoven or Chopin. When did you last listen to classical music?

A. It has been a while. Sometimes when I am writing something I ask Alexa for classical music, but not often.

4) Composer Jack Lawrence named this song after a particular little girl, the daughter of his lawyer, Lee Eastman. Without looking it up, do you know what became of Lee Eastman's daughter Linda?

A. I haven't a clue. I don't know who any of those people are. Ok, I looked her up, now I know who she was.

5) According to the Social Security Administration Linda was long one of the most popular names for American baby girls. It was #2 in the 1940s and 1950s (second only to Mary). By the 1960s it slipped to #7 and by the 1970s it fell to #68. Are there many Lindas in your life?

A. Not many. There are some Lindas who are friends with me on Facebook, but I don't know of anyone named Linda that I hang out with.

6) 1946, the year this record was released, is regarded as the first year of the Baby Boom, which lasted until 1964. Are you from The Silent Generation or are you Boomer, a Gen-Xer, a Gen-Yer, or a Millennial?

A. According to this, I am a Boomer. I feel better with the "Generation Jones" term given to people born between 1954 and 1965. I have never related much to Boomers as I was born at the tail end of the years used for that. I actually relate more to Gen-Xers.

7) In the summer of '46, hats were a standard part of any woman's outfit. Hats for day, hats for evening, hats for rainy days . . . The 1946 Sears Spring-Summer catalog devoted nine pages to women's hats. Do you own many hats? If yes, for what occasions do you wear them?

A. I have a few baseball caps and one railroad hat that my brother gave me, but I don't wear hats much anymore. I used to wear them all the time, but I think that was mostly because my mother hated them.

8) Also in 1946, the Mensa Society was created. The only qualification to join was an IQ in the top 98th percentile. Do you know your IQ?

A. I do not. I just took this test and it says I am smarter than 70% of the other people who have taken the test. I scored above average on every aspect of the test. It gives me an IQ score of 108, but I have no idea how accurate that is. There's a lot more to knowing stuff than being able to determine which number goes where or whatever.

9) Random question: Tell us something you admire about your best friend.

A. My best friend is my husband. He is loyal, steady, trustworthy, honorable, smart, and friendly. He's also a hard worker. I admire him for staying true to himself most of the time - he seldom slips. My closest female friend is an artist, and I greatly admire her ability to paint and draw, among other things.

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I encourage you to visit the posts of other participants in Saturday 9 and leave a comment. Because there are no rules, it is your choice. Saturday 9 players hate rules. We love memes, however.