Saturday 9: Star Spangled

Saturday 9

Memorial Day is a federal holiday designated to honor American service people who died in battle.
The Star Spangled Banner, as sung by Whitney Houston.

1) Are you a veteran? Are there veterans in your family? Do you know anyone who is active military? (We are grateful and want to hear about it.)

 

A. My father served in the Army in the late 1950s-early 1960s. My grandfather fought in WWII. I have several uncles who served in the Armed Forces as well.

 

2) Memorial Day kicks off the summer season. What's your favorite picnic food?

 

A. Watermelon.

 

3) Let's celebrate the Memorial Day holiday with ice cream. What's your favorite flavor? Cone or cup?

 

A. I would love to have a hot fudge sundae with whipped cream and a cherry on top. That would require a cup.

 

4) This marks the weekend when Americans step up their outdoor activity and do things they may not have been able to do during the winter months. For example, when is the last time you rode a bike?

 

A. About 25 years ago.

 

5) Or went hiking?

 

A. About 4 years ago. 

 

6) Or rode a horse?

 

A. About 35 years ago.

 

7) Or toasted a marshmallow?

 

A. About 35 years ago.

 

8) As you answer these questions, is there an air conditioner or fan on?

 

A. Air conditioner.

 

9) Crazy Sam needs your help: What song or a performer would you like to see featured in a Saturday 9 this summer? You'll begin seeing your suggestions as Saturday 9 themes in mid-June. Thanks!

 

A. Hotel California, by the Eagles.

 

Cows, Because I've Nothing to Say Today

Thursday Thirteen

What Happens at the Trash Can

A squirrel.

Raccoon.

Three raccoons!

Raccoon.

A Bear! A Bear!

Bear make big mess.

A groundhog.

Big fat groundhog.

A bear! Too bad the camera apparently slipped.

Bear Butt.

Now we know why there is a mess in the morning.

Having a feast.

Winding it up and going away.

 

Now to figure out how to keep the animals out of the trash!

_____________

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 449th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. 

When Becky Came to Town

On May 12, my friend Becky Mushko, author of Them That Go and a other books, visited the Fincastle Library. She came dressed in costume.

She explained how a family mystery contributed to certain aspects of her novel, and a bit about her writing process.



Becky Mushko reading from her presentation.



Stories about her relatives mysterious death.



More family information.



Vicky, who came to listen.



Dreama, who also turned out.



A display of a quilt and some of Becky's books.



Becky reading from her book.

Earlier this week, Becky had gallbladder surgery. Join me in wishing her a quick recovery, so she can get back to telling her stories.

May Flowers

May Sky

Sunday Stealing: Ask Questions

From Sunday Stealing

Ask Questions Meme

1. What type of criminal would you be? A. The Mastermind behind some high-tech scheme to steal all the gold in Fort Knox. Fortunately for the world, I do not desire to be a criminal.

2. What are you listening to right now? A. My husband has the TV on in the other room, and he is watching some show about tractors.

3. If you had to choose a stripper name, what would it be? A. Cinnamon Sally

4. If your phone started ringing, who would you hope is calling? A. My husband, except he is here. Otherwise I am willing to talk to any of my friends and most of my family members.

5. Do you drink alcohol? A. No.

6. Do you smoke? A. No.

7. What is the first thing you notice in someone? A. Whether or not they look clean.

8. Do you get attached easily? A. My shoes get attached to gum in parking lot sometimes. But otherwise, I think I get attached in a way that is normal.

9. Do you like your eye color? A. Yes.

10. Have any stupid human tricks? A. I don't think so.

11. Humor me. What physical ideal do you imagine in a boyfriend/girlfriend/partner? A. I don't really think like that; I am into the mind.

12. Any other essential quirks/interests/other you look for in a boyfriend/girlfriend/partner? A. It helps if the person likes you back.

13. Have you ever stolen anything? A. No.

14. Any romantic gestures you really like? A. Hugs and kisses.

15. What’s your favorite color and why? A. Blue because it reflects the sky.

16. What were you like when you were a kid? A. I read books and was sick a lot.

17. What would your dream house be like? A. A nice long front porch, plenty of storage space inside, a nice pantry, a two-car garage, a library, an office, a master suite, a man cave for the husband, and a nice room for living in.

18. What last made you laugh? A. A conversation with a friend about my love affair with chocolate.

19. Do you have a place you like to go to collect your thoughts? A. I like to walk when I think. I also think well in the shower.

20. What is your favorite word? A. Serendipity.

21. What is your least favorite word? A. Fascism.

22. Would you go bungee jumping/sky diving if given the chance? A. Not now, I would get hurt, I'm sure. I probably would have 20 years ago, though.

23. Do you have any siblings? A. I have a brother.

24. Do you like to dance? A. I used to do that when no one was watching and it didn't hurt.

25. What is your definition of cheating? A. Taking something from someone else and using it as your own.

__________

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: What Hurts the Most

Saturday 9: What Hurts the Most (2006)

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

1) What hurts Sam the most is her sole, since she just found that earring she thought was lost by stepping on it with her bare foot. How about you? Any aches and pains to report?

A. Nothing overly new, except my lower back where the chiropractor worked on it Friday is a bit tender. Otherwise same ol' same ol'.

2) What's the last thing you misplaced? Did you find it?

A. A pair of kitchen scissors, which I lost at least six months ago or better, suddenly appeared just today. I have sworn off chocolate and was reaching around in an upper cabinet where I had been known to stash a candy bar, hoping I'd missed something, and lo, there was my scissors. But no chocolate.

3) Lead singer Gary LeVox sings that he's not afraid to cry. When is the last time you shed a tear?

A. Not that long ago; I have been trying so hard to improve my pain situation with physical therapy and the insurance company decided I had to go to a "home program." Within two weeks, things started going downhill and have continued to decline. Stupid insurance.

4) Gary auditioned for another country group, Little Big Town, but didn't get in. Considering how successful Rascal Flatts has been, he's probably not sorry. Tell us about something you thought you wanted, but later weren't so sure.

A. I thought I wanted to be a teacher, but after attempting it, I determined it was not really for me. Too petrified in front of the students, and too independent to really get with the rules and regulations.


5) The country group has their roots in Columbus, Ohio. What else is Ohio known for?

A. Something to do with voting? Or that Joe Plumber dude? An O at the beginning and another at the end?

6) Lead guitarist Joe Don Rooney married model and former Miss Georgia, Tiffany Fallon. Many major pageants give prizes in the talent, congeniality and swimsuit competitions. Would you prefer to have exceptional skills, a great personality, or a terrific body?

A. Exceptional skills and the will to use them.

7) 2006, the year this song was popular, was a very good one for tennis pro Roger Federer. He reached the finals in all four Grand Slam tournaments, and won three. What's the last game you won? (Yes, Words with Friends counts.)

A. Solitaire.

8) Actor Tony Shalhoub won an Emmy in 2006 for his portrayal of detective Adrian Monk on Monk. Who's your favorite TV detective?

A. Christine Cagney on Cagney & Lacey. Yes, I am old school.

9) Random question ... You've just won an all-expenses-paid trip but now you have to choose: Carnivale in Brazil, the Bordeaux Wine Festival in France, or the Running of the Bulls in Spain?

A. Oh, let's go to France. I would like to see Paris again.

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

The Red-Caped Wizard and the Yellow Rose

Medium: Crayon

Medium: Colored Pencil

Thursday 13

This is the stuff that sits in my office that doesn't really belong in here:

 

Sometimes I like to play when
I am supposed to be writing.

1. My GS Mini Taylor guitar.

2. My Takamine classical guitar.

3. A pair of binoculars.

4. Nasacort Nasal Spray.

5. Bach Rescue Remedy.

6. A pair of hand barbells.

7. A mouth covering mask (for allergies).

For my inner child.

8. Play Doh.

9. A music stand.

10. A tool kit (screwdrivers and a small hammer).

11. An axe.

Look out, Lizzie Borden!

You always need this stuff.

12. Duct Tape

More inner child.
 

13. Bubble blowing stuff.









_____________

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 448th time to do a list of 13 on a Thursday. 

Breaking Up is Hard to Do

I see how you lie there, waiting for me. Your sweetness beckons me like the cries of seagulls bring forth the mermaids. You make my mouth water as I think of you, how your thickness will taste on my tongue, how the goodness that spills from you will make me feel.

That sugar high when the chocolatey goodness that is a Hershey Symphony bar oozes from the heat of me, and then ventures down my throat to my stomach. How that bite of cocoa lights up the inner joy of brain, giving me a mild sensation of a joyously glorious high.

O Chocolate Bar! O Milky Way Midnight! O Three Musketeers! O Nestle's chocolate chip cookies, O Keebler Fudge Stripes! You must all go away, leave me now, whilst I sit alone here with my celery and green beans.

Apparently, you have to eat healthy more than once to get in shape. This is cruel and unfair.

You, O chocolate, are as bountiful as the sea, filling aisles at the supermarket, appearing even in the healthy food section. My love for you is deep, for the more of you I eat, the more I crave, the desire overcoming good sense and all thoughts of nutrition. I hear your siren call the moment I step into the store - deny it not! You sing loud and long, trilling and thrilling me with your song, all the while whispering, "Come eat me, my love."

And eat you I have, not measuring or caring if the bites end up on my hips or make my triglycerides raise to uncountable levels. How can I resist you, my sugary desire? How can I break myself of the need for you at 2 p.m. in the afternoons, when the rest of the world is off dancing whilst I sit home alone?

I cannot abide you in small bites. I must have you all, every M&M, until the bag is empty. Only you, O Chocolate - only you make me do this and act in such an irrational manner. No other whispers to me, or persuades me to indulge in that which I should not. Only you, you feckless and irresponsible dark drug of chocolate covered cherries - only you drive me to despair when you're not in the house.

So there will be no small withdrawal. No small Kisses, no occasional delight. I'm sorry it must be this way, my dear, but we must not see one another again, not for years. Perhaps I will greet you at a cousin's wedding, and hope by then that a small taste of your deliciousness will not render me unconscious, if enough time has passed. For if my lips touch you, you will think I still care, and that caring I must force into submission, until I crave salads, and salads alone. I will not still care, I will not.

So farewell, my sweet delicacy, my delight, my afternoon bite of lust. I free you and fling you from my thoughts and my brain. You are gone now from my house, dear and wonderful treat, and I shall shed tears at the loss of you and the joy you once brought.

Now someone bring me a carrot.

The Deer Are Not Afraid

We have lived in our house for 29 years. The animals are used to us. They stand and watch while the car drives up and down the driveway. They will run a few yards when we walk out the door, then turn and look at us as if to say, what did you bother me for?

When my husband was mowing, I glanced out the window and saw this:

There are actually two deer up there; one is a little further in the back and I shot this through the window screen.

Isn't it amazing how close they come, though?

Sunday Stealing: Doodley-Do

From Sunday Stealing

Doodley-Do Meme

1. Do you keep notes, drawings or letters that people give you? A. For a while, anyway. Some I keep forever.
 
2. How many true best friends are present in your life? A. How can one determine that? I have many friends, some of whom only turn up during a crisis, others who are there but I don't speak too often, and others who seem to know when to call because I need them.

3. Do you currently have a significant other? A. I've been married for 32 years. I hope it is significant.

4. Would you be able to stand being in the same room as someone you hate? A. Yes. But there are not many people I hate. There are some I am not fond of, but I don't hate them or wish them harm.
 
5. Do you depend on people at all, in any way? A. Of course. Everyone does, and anyone who thinks otherwise is a fool. (My apologies to any Sunday Stealers who think they go it alone; I contend you have not thought it through.)

6. Have you ever lost a close friend? A. Yes.

7. Has anybody ever held a grudge against you for a dumb reason? A. I'm sure they have.
 
8. Have you ever stayed up late talking to someone you like on the phone or online? A. When I was young. Older people go to bed early. They have jobs and households to take care of.

9. Have you ever felt backstabbed by a close friend? A. Hasn't everyone?

10. Have you ever regretted ignoring anybody? A. I'm human, so yes.

11. Has a friend of yours ever confessed their love to you? A. Yes.

12. Have you written or drawn anything for somebody else? A. Yes.

13. Do you tend to hide your emotions from certain people? How do you hide them? A. Yes. I smile when I shouldn't, or crack a joke.

14. Do your friends know how to make you smile in tough times? A. Some of them do, yes.

15. Could you picture yourself on a reality TV show? A. I would last about 1/2 day on Survivor, I can't cook, and I have no designer style. Unless the reality show was about staring out a window, I don't think so.

16. Are you better at drawing or coloring? A. I have recently taken up coloring and seem to be fairly good at it.

17. Do you prefer meat or seafood? A. Seafood is meat, isn't it? But I have developed a fish allergy so I do not eat seafood anymore.

18. Have you ever read the Bill of Rights / Declaration of Independence? A. Yes. I can recite the preamble without looking because I learned it from School House Rock when I was young. Everyone should read the entire U.S. Constitution once in a while.
 
19. Would you rather become a police officer or a firefighter? A. I am not physically qualified to do either, and after being married to a firefighter my whole adult life, I would say that many people are not mentally qualified to do either job. They are difficult roles and society devalues them, when they should instead be grateful that there exist people who will put their own safety on the line for others. Selfless professions should be greatly rewarded and highly regarded, and we have it backwards.

__________

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: Boots

Saturday 9: These Boots Were Made for Walkin' (1966)

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

(I remember this from when I was a child. This song and the show The Mod Squad made me want a pair of go-go boots before I even knew what they were.)


1) In this song/video, Ms. Sinatra's boots make a serious fashion statement. Do you choose footwear for comfort or fashion?

A. Comfort. I would like to say I used to wear fashionable shoes but I never have. I was one of those children who went to the special store to buy Stride-Rite Mary Janes because I didn't have arches in my feet. Or at least not well-defined arches. I hated those shoes. However, because of bad feet and bad knees, I never got into fashionable shoes. I was once told when I worked at a law firm that I was passed over for a promotion because I didn't wear heels, only flats. "You're one of the best legal secretaries but you don't look the part," was the take-away from that particular interview. I left not long after.

2) This is by far the biggest hit of Nancy Sinatra's career, which includes 6 top ten hits. Can you name another?

A. Alas, Yorick, I cannot. I even looked them up and don't recognize any of the names.
 
3) Nancy recorded it on Reprise Records, which was founded by her father, Frank. Did your parents give you a leg up in your chosen career?

A. My mother always told me, "Sure, you can try to be a writer, but you better take business courses because you're going to end up as a secretary. There is no money in writing." I sort of proved her wrong - I made decent money writing for quite some time, as a freelancer.

4) Professionally Nancy has been involved in espionage, singing the theme to a James Bond movie and appearing in an episode of The Man from UNCLE. Do you enjoy spy/secret agent stories?

A. I like mysteries, sometimes. I enjoyed those shows with that older woman who fell into stories, the name of which I cannot remember now, it was a long time ago and she had red hair. Darn, I hate when I lose my recall. Jessica Fletcher? Was that it? Murder She Wrote! (Yes, I googled it.) But I don't like shows with a lot of gun violence and/or blood.

5) Nancy maintains the official Sinatra family website, which includes a link to the site of Mia Farrow. Ms. Farrow was, briefly, Nancy's stepmother, and obviously they are still on good terms. Do you have a big, extended family?

A. I suppose I do. I know many of my cousins. I embrace anyone with a family connection, even it goes back to the 1800s. In fact, my husband and I are 5th cousins. But mostly this is on my mother's side; my father's family all live in another state. My immediate family consisted of four people (mom, dad, brother, me), but my mother had 5 siblings. I knew my grandparents and great aunts and uncles. One of my great-great aunts died a few years ago at the age of 107. And my father's mother is still alive, though in California. She is 96.

6) Nancy's music -- and posters -- were very popular with the troops during the Vietnam War. Nancy continues to return their loyalty and affection with her efforts on behalf of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund. Here's your chance to promote a cause that's near and dear to your heart. What charity gets your support?

A. I give to local historic societies and arts groups, The American Cancer Association, the cemetery where my mother is buried, and the local homeless shelter.

7) Nancy hosts a Sirius radio show devoted to her father's music. Do you have a subscription to a satellite radio or podcast network?

A. I'm afraid not. Well, I listen to Amazon music and Pandora. Does that count?

8) Nancy has said that she and her sister Tina had a more comfortable relationship with their famous father than their late brother, Frank, Jr., did. Do you think it's easier for mothers to get along with their sons, while fathers have an easier time with their daughters?

A. That has not been my experience, and I have no further comment on that topic.

9) Random question: Tonight's dinner is on us. Would you prefer to eat at a casual restaurant with exceptional food, or an exclusive restaurant with so-so food but a celebrity clientele?

A. Oh, the causal restaurant with exceptional food, please, with all of the Saturday 9 and Sunday Stealer players filling the tables. We'd have great fun. And I could wear my sneakers and not worry about my feet.

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