Saturday 9: Happy Holidays

 

SATURDAY 9: HAPPY HOLIDAYS

 From the archives

1. When Sam Winters (the meme author) was a little girl, she loved giving her annual wish list to Santa. If you could ask Santa for anything at all, right now, what would it be?

A. There's always the Peace on Earth wish, but that ain't happening. So, I will take it closer to home and ask for a hard-shell case for my Fender electric guitar. That's simple and easy, right?

2. Are you currently on the Naughty or Nice list? How did you get there?

A. I am on the Nice list because I am not mean, outlandish, or naughty. I swear and I am overweight. Those are my vices. If everyone who says f&ck and eats too much is on the naughty list, the nice list is very short.

3. Are you traveling this Christmas? If so, are you going by car, plane or train?

A. I am not traveling.

4. Did you ship any gifts to friends and family this year? If yes, which one traveled the farthest?

A. I sent a gift to a friend in England, but I ordered it from Amazon UK. So I am not sure how far it actually traveled.

5. Did you buy yourself a gift this year?

A. I bought a pair of earrings to fill out an order so I could get free shipping.

6. Which do you prefer: candy canes or gingerbread?

A. Gingerbread.

7. Close your eyes and tell us the first carol that comes to mind.

A. The First Noel.

8. What's your favorite winter beverage?

A. Water. It's all I drink anymore. It used to be hot chocolate, though.

9. Share a memory from last Christmas.

A. Oy vey. Last Christmas? Last Christmas took three blog entries to describe. We lost power in 0-degree weather. We didn't have Christmas, not really. We were busy trying to keep the pipes in the house from freezing, and chopping out the frozen ice from the cattle waterers, and ensuring that everyone else was ok, too. We were saved by my wonderful friend and her husband, who brought us dinner on Sunday afternoon, which was Christmas Day, just as the power came back on, and my husband and I had a wonderful meal that I was most thankful for, since I'd only had sandwiches for days.

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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. 

Thursday Thirteen

 

1. On the first day of Christmas, I tried not to cry. The Christmas tree was too much for me by myself. I hated asking the husband for help.

2. On the second day of Christmas, I wrote out my list. I have no idea what to buy for gifts.

3. On the third day of Christmas, I set out to shop. Thank goodness for my little laptop.

4. On the fourth day of Christmas, I sat down to write my cards. I found my messages to folks were hard to write.

5. On the fifth day of Christmas, UPS rolled in with gifts. I wondered if anyone would like the things I picked.

6. On the sixth day of Christmas, I started looking for the tape, because a new pack cost $6.88.

7. On the seventh day of Christmas, I couldn't find my special recipes. I printed off a few I found online.

8. On the eighth day of Christmas, I found my recipe. I was relieved and I could go and make penuche.

9. On the ninth day of Christmas, I made a slab of fudge. I put in the freezer and hoped it would be good.

10. On the tenth day of Christmas, I watched Rudolph, the Red Nosed Reindeer. This time I did not fall asleep.

11. On the eleventh day of Christmas, I found a fruit cake for my guy. I also bought him old fashioned custard, which he likes.

12. On the twelfth day of Christmas, I played carols with my dad, and when I came home, I was kind of mad.

13. On the thirteenth day of Christmas, I said, "That's enough," and I sat down to drink a cup of ... something.

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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 839th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.

Local Lights

 

Sunday Stealing - Christmas

Sunday Stealing

1. What is the best Christmas gift you’ve ever received?

A. When I was five, my parents gave me a blue bicycle with a Batgirl doll sitting on the handlebars. Actually, it came from Santa and was under the tree. I didn't know which to be excited about, the bike or Batgirl.

2. What is the worst Christmas gift you’ve ever received?

A. I think it's a tie between a hair dryer and a vacuum, although I was greatly alarmed the year my parents gave me luggage. I thought they were throwing me out of the house.

3. Do you have a favorite Christmas song?

A. O Holy Night is beautiful when it's sung well. But I like to play Hark the Herald Angels sing on the guitar. It has great chord changes.

4. Does your family have any favorite holiday traditions?

A. My brother and I have always opened our presents to each other on Christmas Eve, for as long as I can remember. It was how my parents shut us up and/or calmed us down before the big day.

5. What is your favorite Christmas snack?

A. Fudge.

6. Did you believe in Santa growing up?

A. I was an early non-believer. I stopped believing when I was five. But I pretended for my brother until he stopped believing. He used to sneak into my bedroom around 2 a.m. and wake me up. "Santa Claus has come!" he'd whisper, all excited. I'd climb out of bed and we'd go look at the presents. The next morning when we'd get up, we did not look all that surprised and my father would look at my mother and say, "They got up in the night again."

7. How early do you start decorating?

A. After Thanksgiving. A month of Christmas is enough.

8. Are you an early or last-minute shopper?

A. If I see something throughout the year that I think someone would like, I pick it up, but mostly I start shopping around late August. It's easier on the credit cards, for one thing.

9. Would you rather give or receive gifts?

A. I love to give presents and am always a little irked when I am ordered by someone to stop giving them something. I have had people tell me to stop buying them presents or sending them cards, and I always think, who are you to order me around like that? But I stop. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth, though, and I think it damages the relationship on a subconscious level. If I want to give you something, it's your job to accept it politely and say thank you and not tell me it makes you feel bad because you didn't get me anything. I wasn't expecting anything, you know? I give out of love and caring. But it is nice when someone cares enough to get me something, too.

10. What’s your favorite Christmas movie?

A. I really don't have one. I like the Tim Allen Santa Clause movies, It's a Wonderful Life, most any rendition of A Christmas Carol, and I almost always watch The Lord of the Rings movies during the holidays.

11. What is one of your Christmas memories?

A. My boyfriend gave me cowboy boots for Christmas. I was hoping for a ring. That came along another six months later, though. 

12. Do you open any presents on Christmas Eve?

A. Yes. It's one of my traditions.

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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.

Saturday 9: The Christmas Blues

Saturday 9: The Christmas Blues (1953)

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

 

1) In this song, Dean Martin sings that the streets are white with snow. Do you anticipate a White Christmas this year?

A. No. We have about a 10% chance of a white Christmas on any given year. Mostly I hope this year we don't have below zero temperatures and that we do have electricity, after last year's debacle.

2) He tells us he's done plenty of window shopping this season. Do you find you're influenced by a retailer's window dressing and store decor? Are you more motivated by price? Or do you do most of your shopping online, making holiday decorations irrelevant?

A. These days I do most of my shopping online. I miss the days of actual shopping, though. I also miss the Sears and the JC Penny's catalogs. The new way of shopping is as time consuming as flipping through a catalog, but definitely not as fun.

 

3) Dean was born in Steubenville, OH. Though he rarely returned to his hometown, it was in his thoughts during the holidays. Every Christmas he made like Santa and sent toys to hospitalized children in the Steubenville area. Are there toys on your shopping list this year?

A. I bought kids books for the great niece and great nephew. Otherwise, aside from a few monetary donations that hopefully will help a kid or two, no.

4) He had fast hands when it came to cards and before he was famous he worked as a dealer in Atlantic City. When you play cards, what's your favorite game?

A. We play Rummy when we play cards. But we haven't played in a long time. I play a lot of solitaire on the computer, though.

5) Dean Martin was an avid reader . . . of comic books, especially in bed when he was on the road and couldn't sleep. Much as he enjoyed comic books, he was embarrassed by them. What do you do when you can't sleep?

A. I walk around the house a bit and then return to bed. I have a countdown and an imagery method that I learned long ago to help me fall asleep. If that doesn't work, I repeat the process - get up, walk around, go back to bed, and try again, until I fall asleep. 

Now let's have a few holiday-specific questions:

 

6) Every year, the United States Postal Service introduces special holiday stamps. Do you purchase them?

A. I bought the snow globes this year. I think they were the newest ones.

 

7) Do you have a funny/ugly holiday sweater?

A. No.

 

8) Do you wrap your presents or use gift bags?

A. I do both. Some presents call for gift bags, depending on the present (and the person). Gift bags are good for older folks who might have trouble with tape and boxes. They're also good when I'm in a hurry and don't feel like wrapping.

9) We're doing Christmas karaoke! What holiday or winter-themed song will you perform?

A. Winter Wonderland. Sleigh bells ring! Are you listening? In the lane, snow is glistening! A beautiful sight, we're happy tonight, walking in a winter wonderland!

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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. 

Thursday Thirteen

I have decided that the 1970s was the best decade for most everything, like music, TV, politics, women's rights, religion, etc. It was also the beginning of what we have today (which is a mess), but for a while there I think the 1970s had good things going for it. I know there was inflation, Nixon, Carter, and women and people of color were still repressed and all, but the Vietnam War ended, the music is still played even now, and that was the most influential decade of my life, I think, as far as the things I learned in school and what I saw on TV.

So, without further ado, in no particular order, here are 13 TV shows from the 1970s that influenced me:

1. M*A*S*H. Even though I was a little late to the party watching this (we couldn't get the channel), I think this is the show that made me a pacifist. I watched what it did to Hawkeye and it ate me up inside.

2. The Carol Burnette Show. I watched this when we stayed with my grandparents. I didn't always understand the jokes because of my age, but it was good, solid humor that didn't actually hurt anyone.

3. The Six Million Dollar Man and The Bionic Woman. I am tying these two together, since the latter was a spin-off from the first. I loved them both (but especially Lindsay Wagner as The Bionic Woman). They gave me hope for a future when humanity could heal deadly wounds and make us better than we actually were.

4. The Brady Bunch. I was a dedicated fan of Marcia and Greg Brady, the older two of the six children. I watched their interactions with one another and with their friends with great zeal. I wanted to be popular like Marcia (didn't happen), and I wanted a boyfriend like Greg (didn't happen, either, although I married someone even better than Greg).

5. Little House on the Prairie. This was my grandmother's favorite show, and I saw it only when I was at her house (again, we were limited to two channels at home, but we spent most of our weekends with my grandparents). I was actually a fan of Mary, not Laura. I thought Laura was too brash and too tom boyish. But Mary was studious, thoughtful, and a good daughter. I had read the books and followed the plot of the loss of her eyesight with great sorrow, knowing that she would, indeed, go blind.

6. Charlie's Angels. Oh, did I love Sabrina Duncan! She was smart, sexy in a non-conformist (i.e., no bathing suit) sort of way, and I thought Kate Jackson was the greatest actress ever. I had been a fan of hers ever since her first appearance in Dark Shadows and had followed her on The Rookies, where she played a nurse and wife of a police officer. Maybe that's why I became the wife of a fireman. We'll never know.

7. Wonder Woman. I have a "strong woman" thing - I like to read and watch woman who kick butt and take names, yet don't actually damage people. With her magic lasso of truth and her terrific speed and strength, Wonder Woman fit the bill. She tossed people about but no one seemed to die from her efforts; they just went to jail like they were supposed to.

8. Emergency! This show, more so than The Rookies, made me a fan of emergency services and the things those folks do to keep the public safe. I also had a little crush on Johnnie.

9. CHIPS. Ok, I admit it, I watched this show simply to see Erik Estrada. He was like, oh, Ranger in the Stephanie Plum books. Handsome, suave, a real hunk. (I was a teenager by then, so, hormones.)

10. The Partridge Family. I loved the idea of a musical family, and I thought this show put the Monkees to shame because this was more realistic. Also, David Cassidy was more of a dreamboat than Davy Jones, in my opinion. I thought Susan Dey was a great actress - almost up there with Kate Jackson - and I was happiest when the shows revolved around her, which they seldom did. Mostly they seemed to revolve around Danny.

11. Land of the Lost. I hate to say I was so invested in the plight of Marshall, Will, and Hollie on their routine expedition (hit the greatest earthquake ever known) and their efforts to find a way home, but I never missed a show on Saturday morning. I think part of my love of fantasy and science fiction comes from this show.

12. The Incredible Hulk. This was another fantasy/comic book show that I was regularly. I found it sad a lot of the time, though. Poor Bruce Banner was destined to live his life alone, walking the world trying to find a cure for his Jekyll and Hyde problem.

13. Fantasy Island. De plane! De plane! This one also caught my attention because sometimes the fantasies turned out so . . . wrong. Sometimes it was definitely a Monkey's Paw situation and a cautionary tale of be careful of what you wish for. 

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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 838th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.

Bucks Battle It Out!

 

This afternoon I watched these two bucks go head-to-head for a few minutes.

Sunday Stealing

 

1. Do you tend to have a guilty conscious?

A. I have a lot of anxiety and I worry a lot. I am not sure what a guilty conscious is, because I am not guilty of anything overly dramatic. I just let little things bother me too much. But I try not to hurt anyone.

2. Do you still have your wisdom teeth?

A. No. Mine were cut out when I was about 16, after my braces were removed. I was quite sick for several days from it.

3. Peanut Butter - creamy or crunchy?

A. Creamy.

4. Get up off your butt. Take 5 steps. Which leg did you start out on?

A. Right.

5. What color is your favorite kitchen utensil?

A. Silver.

6. Did you watch the Michael Jackson memorial/funeral?

A. Not that I recall. That was a while ago. But in general, I don't watch public funerals. I didn't even watch Queen Elizabeth's funeral.

7. Do you know anyone who graduated from high school this year? Were you invited to their graduation party? Did you go?

A. I don't know anyone who graduated from high school this year. So, no parties.

8. White with black stripes or black with white stripes?

A. Who cares?

9. If we were to call your 6th grade teacher, what would they say about you?

A. That I was studious and quiet, and the other kids disliked me because I made straight As.

10. Can you draw a perfect circle?

A. No.

11. What was your favorite scratch & sniff sticker scent?

A. I don't like anything with scents. I am allergic to most of that stuff.

12. How many light switches and electrical outlets are in the room that you are in right now?

A. One light switch, five electrical outlets, not counting the outlets on the extension things.

13. Do you know sign language?

A. No. I always thought it would be a good thing to learn, but I never have.

14. Do you step on cracks in the sidewalk?

A. It's not something I pay attention to, so I suppose so.

15. And the sheets on your bed look like . . .?

A. They're white, crisp, and clean. I change the bed linens every weekend.

__________

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: Wildest Dreams

Saturday 9: Wildest Dreams (2014)

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

1) In this song, a tall, handsome man asks Taylor Swift to drive away with him to escape the crowds. Where were you headed when you most recently got behind the wheel?

A. I went up to my mother-in-law's house.

2) She sings about memories of a romance that just "follow you around." Is anyone special on your mind this morning? (It doesn't have to be a romantic partner.)

A. For some reason, I had been thinking of a high school friend lately, and after some searching, I found a number for her and called it. We have reconnected. She lives far, far away.

3) The lyrics reference sunset. Now that it gets dark earlier, do you find yourself watching the sun set more often?

A. I have always stopped to watch the sun set or rise. I stop to watch the moon set and rise, too.

4) The video for this song takes place on a movie set. Swift said it was inspired by tales of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton embarking on a love affair while co-starring in Cleopatra. Elizabeth and Richard fell in love in Rome, while this video was filmed outside of Gaborone, Botswana. In your wildest dreams, which of these exotic locales would you rather visit: Rome or Gaborone?

A. Rome, I suppose, although I've always wanted to see the Egyptian pyramids. But that wasn't a choice.

5) In homage to Elizabeth Taylor, Swift went from blonde to brunette for the video. Do you have an appointment with a stylist between now and year end?

A. I think I have had my last haircut for the year, unless I have a sudden hair emergency.

6) Both Taylors (Swift and Elizabeth) often wore the color purple. What color dominates your wardrobe?

A. Blue.

7) In the video, Taylor Swift's leading man is Scott Eastwood, son of Clint. Though not as famous as his dad, Scott works steadily and has more than 30 TV and movie credits. Can you think of another second-generation performer who followed his or her parent into show business?

A. Jennifer Grey of Dirty Dancing fame. I learned from reading her autobiography earlier this year that her father is Academy Award winning actor Joel Grey. He won an Academy Award for a role in Cabaret with Liza Minnelli. (Don't feel bad, I had no idea who he was, either, until I looked him up.)

8) In 2014, when "Wildest Dreams" topped the charts, Paul McCartney had to reschedule tour dates so he could recover from a bout with the flu. How are you feeling this morning? Any coughs, sneezes, sniffles?

A. I always have sinus drainage, so nothing out of the ordinary.

9) Random question: How many different zip codes have you lived in throughout your life?

A. Three. Interesting fact: my address where I live has changed 3 times without my ever moving (although the zip code has stayed the same).

_______________

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. 

Thursday Thirteen

1. This morning, I watched as the darkness became lighter, and the cloudy sky began to show pink, maroon, and purple color out the front window.

2. On the other side of the house, the sky was also purple, but quickly turned into a more orange hue as the sun rose.

3. If we didn't have clouds, we wouldn't have magnificent sunrises and sunsets. They would all look the same. There's a lesson in there somewhere, isn't there?

4. We are still in drought conditions, but the county lifted the burn ban anyway because we'd had a few showers of rain.

5. Out in rural areas, people often burn their trash. Many folks have a "burn barrel" for this specific purpose. We do not burn our trash; we take it to the landfill. I have asthma and can't take the smoke from burning trash.

6. People also burn piles of brush, or piles of leaves. Sometimes farmers deliberately burn a field of grass, because it makes for better grass the following year.

7.  I prefer the sight of a burning sky - one colored by the sun - to the sight of a fire.

8. Fire in the fireplace can be mesmerizing, which is why they have fireplace fires you can watch on TV, or electric heaters that mimic the look of a fireplace.

9. We have a fireplace, but we haven't used it in many years. Again, that's because of my asthma and allergies. At this point, I would be afraid to use the fireplace until a chimney sweep cleans it out and checks it over.

10. The fireplace in the house is the one thing I wish we hadn't installed when we built this house. It looks nice, but it is now more of a liability for us than anything. 

11. Maybe I should get some orange construction paper and cut out flames and put a light behind them so the woodstove that takes up the fireplace hole would look like it has a fire in it. 

12. We've considered removing the woodstove and installing gas logs, but talking about it is as far as we've gone.

13. Red sky in morning, sailors take warning!

______________

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 837th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.

Is This Rudolph?

 

O Christmas Tree

 

This decoration is older than I am. I think it came on an Avon bottle, but I'm not sure.

Our tree this year.

Sunset, December 3, 2023

 

Sunday Stealing

Sunday Stealing

1. If someone wanted to really understand you, what would they read, watch, and listen to?

A. The Lord of the Rings (books and movies), Little Women (book), Fleetwood Mac, Melissa Etheridge and Sheryl Crow (music), Xena: Warrior Princess, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Star Trek: Voyager (TV).

2. Have you ever found a writer who thinks just like you? If so, who?

A. David Sedaris, maybe, except I'm not a homosexual man. Or homosexual, for that matter.

3. Do you care about your ethnicity?

A. No.

4. What musical artists have you most felt connected to over your lifetime?

A. Melissa Etheridge and Sheryl Crow, but I'm sure there are others, like Juice Newton, Karen Carpenter, Stevie Nicks, Joan Jett, Pat Benetar, etc.

5. Are you an artist?

A. I am not a drawing artist, but I am a fairly creative person.

6. Dog person or cat person?

A. Dog, except I'm allergic to both.

7. Inside or outdoors?

A. Inside, although I enjoy the outdoors. My sinuses don't, though.

8. Five most influential books over your lifetime.

A. 1984, Alas Babylon, The Lord of the Rings, The Children's Bible, Mrs. Osborne the Mop.

9. Would you rather be in Middle Earth, Narnia, Hogwarts, or somewhere else?

A. Where I am is just fine, although any of those places would be nice to visit.

10. List the top five things you spend the most time doing, in order.

A. Messing around on the computer (reading, writing, playing video games), cleaning house, cooking, grocery shopping, sleeping.

11. Have you ever felt like you had a “mind-meld” with someone?

A. No.

12. Could you live as a hermit?

A. Probably. I practically do anyway, since Covid.

13. Do you feel like your outside appearance is a fair representation of the “real you”?

A. I'm not sure anyone's outside appearance represents who they really are inside. It's certainly not a fair judgment.

14. Three songs that you connect with right now.

A. Rainy Days and Mondays, Vincent (Starry Starry Night), and Landslide.

15. Pick one of your favorite quotes.

A. "So after snow comes fire, and even dragons have their ending." - J.R.R. Tolkien

__________

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: Rollin' Stone

Saturday 9: Rollin' Stone (1958)

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

 

1) The title comes from the proverb, "a rolling stone gathers no moss." What do you suppose that proverb is trying to teach us?

A. The proverb is trying to teach us not to be couch potatoes, but instead to constantly be "human doings" instead of "human beings."

 

2) The lyrics warn us not to be lazy stay-at-homes but to go out and learn about the world around us. Tell us about a place you haven't visited yet but would like to.

A. I would like to go Scotland. Or Ireland. Or New Zealand.

 

3) Karen and Cubby were Mouseketeers on the original Mickey Mouse Club, a TV show which ran from 1955 to 1959. Then, from 1962 to 1967, local TV stations reran it in syndication. In 1989, there was a Mickey Mouse Club reboot, which launched the careers of Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. So The Mickey Mouse Club has entertained generations of kids. What shows did you enjoy as a child?

A. I don't recall watching The Mickey Mouse Club. It was probably on a channel I could not get. I watched shows like Land of the Lost, Isis, Shazaam! H.R. Puffenstuff, etc., along with Saturday morning cartoons. In the afternoons I remember watching Dark Shadows followed by Batman.

4) Karen was Karen Pendleton, among the youngest of the original Mousketeers. Producers discovered her at a local dancing school. Have you ever taken dance lessons?

A. I have not. And it shows.

5) When The Mickey Mouse Club ended, Karen left show business. She went to public school, graduated, got married, and had a daughter. When she was in her 30s, she was involved in a car accident that left her paralyzed from the waist down. Still, she went back to college, earning first her Bachelor's and then Master's degrees in psychology. Have you considered continuing your education? What subject would you pursue?

A. I was 49 when I obtained my masters degree. I thought about getting a law degree but decided against it.

 

6) Cubby is Cubby O'Brien, a drum prodigy who began playing professionally when he was just 8 years old. After the Mickey Mouse Club he went on to The Lawerence Welk Show. As he entered his teens, he prioritized school over TV. He later returned to television as musician on The Carol Burnett Show. He also performed in concert behind The Carpenters. Do you have a favorite Carpenters song?

A. Rainy Days and Mondays.

 

7) In 1958, when kids were watching the original Mickey Mouse Club during the day, adults were watching Westerns. The most popular TV shows of that year included Gunsmoke, Wagon Train and The Rifleman. Have you ever fantasized about life as a cowboy/cowgirl?

A. Can't say that I have, although I played with the Johnny West series of dolls when I was a child. I didn't want to be a cowgirl, though.

 

8) Also in 1958, Dwight Eisenhower became the first President to appear on color TV. Not many Americans saw him in color, though. It wasn't until 1972 that color TVs outsold black-and-white sets. Did you ever own a black-and-white TV?

A. I never owned a black-and-white TV but my grandparents did, I think.

 

9) Random question -- Did you pass your driver's license test on the first try?

A. Yes, I did.

_______________

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. 

Phone Company Update

Three trucks from the phone company rolled into my driveway around lunchtime yesterday. I thought I was under attack for a minute.

The three guys, good ol' boys, hopped out and one of them checked my phone from the box outside of my house. He made the phone call his cellphone and it hung right up.

"There's nothing wrong out here," he declared, as I stood in the doorway watching.

"Try it the other way. Call in from your cell phone and then try to hang up," I told him.

He tried that and lo, he couldn't hang up. Now he was perplexed. There was an immediate gathering of men to try to figure out this issue. 

Then they had to try again with different cell phones. Amazingly, they received the same result each time.

They discussed what the problem could be. This appeared to be an unusual issue that they'd not run into before. Was it something they called a card? Would switching a channel help?

I reminded them that it wasn't only my line. Since it looked like they were going to be there a while, I asked if they needed anything to drink. "Can I make you a sandwich?" I offered.

They all declined but thanked me. I would have made them sandwiches if they'd said yes.

They made phone calls back to home base, conferred for a long time, and two of the trucks left.

One of the fellows stood around by himself, and I went out to ask him about the possibility of my ever receiving fiber internet. I told him I wasn't holding my breath about getting it, but I was wondering if they'd have to dig up my sidewalk. He said they bored under stuff like that, so no.

That was a relief. I asked him when I could expect it, and he said, "They tell us it will all be in by the end of the 1st quarter, but, like you said, don't hold your breath."

I went back inside for a while. He later knocked on the door and told me nothing they'd tried had fixed the problem. They were sending it to "landline engineering," whatever that was.

Around 6 p.m., someone from the phone company called and asked me to hang up on him. I did. He called me back and said he was seeing unusual activity and would now work on it. 

When I last checked it just moments before writing this, the issue remained. I don't think it will be fixed until sometime next week.

At least I got somebody's attention.

Thursday Thirteen

These are the nonfiction books I have read this year, with the exception of the inclusion of #2, which was listed as a novel. I included it because it was about the Japanese internment camps in the US during World War II and while written as a novel, I had the feeling it was based more on family lore than fiction.

Some of these books I don't remember much about, so obviously they didn't stick with me. Those include The Power of Habit and The 60-Something Crisis. Either I wasn't paying attention or the messages in the books weren't new or impressive enough to warrant my attention.

The memoirs/autobiographies are all female, except for David Sedaris's books. The books by Carly Simon and Jennifer Grey were somewhat dismaying; Carly Simon's book in particular perhaps should not have been written. Our Little Secret is a biography of Melissa Etheridge by an adoring fan, and it ended in 1999, so there wasn't much new information there. My favorites were The First Lady of World War II, which was about Eleanor Roosevelt, and Back to the Prairie, by Melissa Gilbert, which surprised me with how good it was.

Anything by David Sedaris is good; I think I have now read most of his books.

1. Boys in Trees, by Carly Simon

2. When the Emperor Was Divine, by Julie Otsuka

3. Our Little Secret, by Joyce Luck

4. If You Ask Me, by Betty White

5. The Power of Habit, by Charles Duhigg

6. The First Lady of World War II, by Shannon McKenny Schmidt

7. Back to the Prairie, a Home Remade, by Melissa Gilbert

8. 1963, a Turning Point in Civil Rights, by Lawrence C. Campbell, Sr.

9. The 60-Something Crisis, by Barbara Pagano

10. Out of the Corner, by Jennifer Grey

11. Holidays on Ice, by David Sedaris

12. Theft by Finding, by David Sedaris

13. In Such Good Company, by Carol Burnette

Extra: Born with Teeth, by Kate Mulgrew

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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 836th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. Or so sayth the Blogger counter, anyway.