A Golden Girls Classic!

Hi all~ It has been a while since I've written here.

My fellow North Carolina blogger Cocked&Loaded might be saying,

"Spring has sprung, the grass is ris', wonder where that blogger is?"

...or not.

Either way, I hope everyone is having a delightful Springtime;

and speaking of delight, here's something just for fun:



These gals were just tops!

Happy EASTER!!

~~~

Donkey Whisperer??

This is RICH! Go Roger Williams!!




LOVED it, didn't you?

~~~

Thanks Michael Franti~

Something for my man~

He knows who he is...

Yep!
~~~

Jack(?) & the Bean(?)stalk~

So I'm in the yard this morning, coffee in hand, waiting for our school bus w/ my daughter. I'm pulling a weed here & there, admiring what surely is the last day lily of the summer. One must know first, it's most unusual to have a day lily bloom (of this variety) past mid July. But here she is - "Brocaded Gown" in all her yellow, ruffled beauty.

And if that's not enough to pique my surprise, I find another curious delight...See, if it's unusual to have a bloom this time of year, it's almost unheard-of for new scapes w/ buds to show up! Imagine the surprise at my good fortune! This one will be "Jedi Dot Pearce," 'long about mid-September!


And yet, I've observed a mysterious vegetation growing like Jack's Magic Beans over the past week, & have had fun puzzling over its identity. (Look closely @ the first picture above, & you'll see its leaves poking into the background, top right.)

It's a robust thing that has begun taking over the bed. I'm of half a mind to whisper, "Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum," & start looking for itty-bitty boys amongst its tindrels. Just as I'm humming along with the rest of the rhyme: "Be it alive or be it dead...

...I'll have watermelon(?) with my bread."

~~

*Oh boy*

~~~

Seven Degrees of Otis

Been a while, friends~ It's swim team season again. . .

And also, I spent a week working with writer & teacher, Pat Schneider; a wonderful teacher of creative writing. Terrific!

Two days ago, my Dad & Otis were on a play-date - fishing. No kidding ~ Dad texts me & says, "Can Otis go out to play?" This is not unusual. See, my Dad is a dog magnet, & Otis has this steel plate. . .

Here's a poem I wrote while working with Pat Schneider. It says it all:

Seven Degrees of Otis
after Wallace Stevens (& Kevin Bacon)

I
He is the small, bobbling tail,
short-legged-Russell-doggie
love of my life.

II
Most pointedly, the only one: bobbling tail,
that has ever really connected with the true me.

III
Sounds ridiculous, and makes me feel a bit neurotic,
but I truly, surely
love his little spirit.

IV

And he understands me.
I can see it in his
supple brown eyes, fringed with furnishings and knowing.

V
And then there’s Daddy!
Ah! They are just best friends, fishing buddies, snack hounds,
those two.

VI
What does it say about a man,
whose best friend, almost literally,
is his daughter’s dog? Ha!

VII
Funny! So joyful and happy and sweet a soul is my Otis!
God knows what He’s doing, indeed, (and Cesar Millan is right)
matching him with me.

~~
Seven degrees of Otis,

indeed.

~~~

Bailey Plays Dead...

Been away for almost a week & a half. Back with a giggle maker...

~ Enjoy ~

Classic Letterman.

~~~

Oh the places you will go!

My friend Duta, posted an interesting piece about a park near her house. I find her light, happy post so very refreshing. Duta tells us she is becoming 'addicted' to this little park where she can exercise for free. She describes the people who frequent it, as well as the do's & don'ts of the place. Her blithe sense of humor also bubbles up:

"Kids and dogs belonging to people who stop here for a short work out, can be a distraction sometimes - you would rather play with them :) . Dogs, by the way, are not allowed in the park, but this is the Middle East here, nobody gives a damn on what is allowed or not..."

Duta takes us to fascinating places with her blog. Click this link for the post referenced here: Workout in the Park . Then spend some time with Duta's other adventures. You'll go places you would never expect. I promise!

~~~

Speaker Boehner's First Priority

First things first...


(From Jimmy Kimmel Live)

Now, Let's 'get down to business.'

~~~

Waiting on Santa...

"I heard Santa's on his way, so I'm dressed & ready..."

("...ah...People. I'm waiting...")

"...why does it have to take him so long??"

~You better watch out, you better not cry;

You better not pout, I'm telling you why~

He's on his way!

~~~

The Movie Test: Wow!

The Movie Test

This is really amazing!

Try this test & find out what movie is your favorite. I was surprised how this worked.

You must be honest & don't look at the movie list until you've done the math!

This simple math quiz can likely predict which of 18 films listed below you would enjoy the most. Don't ask me how, but it really works!

Movie Test:
Pick a number from 1-9.

Multiply by 3.

Add 3.

Multiply by 3 again.

Now add the two digits of that number together...

Use that # to find your predicted favorite movie in the list of 18 movies below.

Movie List:
1. Gone With The Wind
2. E.T.
3. Beverly Hills Cop
4. Star Wars
5. Forrest Gump
6. The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly
7. Jaws
8. Grease
9. The Defeat of Obama in 2012
10. Casablanca
11. Jurassic Park
12. Shrek
13. Pirates of the Caribbean
14. Titanic
15. Raiders Of The Lost Ark
16. Home Alone
17. Mrs. Doubtfire
18. Toy Story

~~

Gotcha! ;)

~~~

Happy Thanksgiving -- Fun day!

If for no other myriad of reasons to be thankful today,

we can be thankful for dogs!!












(Otis is almost ready for Christmas...)






(He also likes to play dress-up...)










And if by chance you don't have a canine friend, you can enjoy this video
that a sweet friend sent me...
Laughter - we can ALL be thankful for that!!



Enjoy, & Have a Happy, Blessed Thanksgiving!!
~~~

~The Mule~

Brothers Hughie & Teddy saw an ad for a mule in the Starkville Daily News in Starkville, MS. Bein' in need of a mule, they bought it for $100. The farmer agreed to deliver the mule once he received their check in the mail.

A week goes by; the farmer drives over to Hughie & Teddy's & says, "Sorry, fellas, I have some bad news. The mule died last night."

Hughie & Teddy replied, "Well that's too bad. Just give us our money back."

The farmer said, "Can't do that. I went & spent it already."

They said, "OK. Just bring us the dead mule."

The farmer asked, "What in the world y'all gonna do with a dead mule?"

Hughie said, "We gonna raffle him off."

The farmer said, "You can't raffle off a dead mule!"

Teddy said, "Shore we can! Heck, we don't hafta tell nobody he's dead!"

A few weeks later, the farmer ran into Hughie & Teddy at the Piggly Wiggly, "Hey. What'd you fellas ever do with that dead mule?"

Surprised at his ignorance, they said, "We raffled him off like we said we wuz gonna do."

Hughie said,"Shucks, we sold 500 tickets fer $2.00 a piece & made a net profit of $898.00"

The farmer said, "My Lord, didn't anyone complain!?"

Teddy said, "Well, the feller who won got upset. So we gave him his two dollars back."

Hughie & Teddy now work for the Obama Administration.

~~~

Rufus Hussey Reprise...

Some days just call up memories of Rufus. Cool, crisp air; clear, clean blue sky; sunshine sparkling through the trees.

Today is one of those days...(taken from 3-25-09 GTBI post)

Okay in the comment section of last post, I came perfectly clean about my Southern-ness. Not that it was any secret, or anything; I think my name probably blows my cover pretty quick. :)

Anyway, here's a little treat that you just don't see anywhere, except in the American South. Watch & be amazed!


I'll s'wannee! If I believed in reincarnation - which I don't, mind you - I'd say this fella is 'David' all over again. You know, Goliath's David? For all you skeptics, I think maybe Rufus is God's way of showing how a little guy like David could've taken down that big 'ole Goliath!

I just love stories like this. Go get'em Rufus!

~~

Wishing you one of these days...

~~~

An afternoon with Otis

Ok.

My kids are back in school. I'm working part time, but not today...

I'm on the Board of Directors for a group that needs a head/shoulders picture of all their Directors for a website. (Formal pose not necessary, you see...) So, I spend the large part of my morning on tasks related to the Board's needs, then I decide to have a little fun, & get them their picture at the same time -- maybe.

Otis is a funny animal. Squeezable, playful, funny, very happy; and, well, quirky. See, he licks things -- carpets, hardwoods, sofa cushions, piano bench legs; people's legs, toes, cabinets, cups, toothbrushes, suitcases. He's always licking at things too, if nothing but air. So, why I thought this (Otis, a camera timer, & a BoD picture) was going to work, I'm not really sure...

Eventually we got it, I think. It may not work for the BoD & their site, but it was a lot of fun!

Would that the whole world could have an afternoon with Otis every once in a while...

~~~

North is Southeast of Due West...?

While my family & I are on vacation, here's a little humor to tide me over...

South Carolina is the only place in the world where North is southeast of Due West.



...and since "my people" are all originally South Carolinians, I know about what I speak...

Enjoy summer!

~~
Curtsy to "Nancynotes" !

Swimming: It's what we do in Summer!!

We dive...

We fly... We soar...

...and we win City League championships!!

Oh yeah!

~~~

Wait for the trailer!

Trailer?
We're trapped in the screening room and we can't get out...

Can we boycott Hollywood now??

~~

curtsy to Mr. Susannah

~~~

Very worried Terrier...

Ok, so Mr. Susannah is a deer hunter.

Back in December, he 'brought home' a buck, but not before taking it (well part of it...) to a taxidermist. So today, 6 1/2 months later, he brings 'the rest' home...and Otis has become very concerned...

I swear, at one point, Otis looked at us & said, "I knew reindeer could fly, but I didn't know they'd come through the wall!!"

~~~

Y' Picked a fine time to lead us, Barack...

Now, friends, this is rich...

Have a GREAT weekend!

~~~

Tiptoe through the tulips...

Hmmm friends...looks like Spring outside!

Think I'll go out & look...

azalea, scilla, & hosta peeping through...

and a closer look...

Wow! Hollyhocks.

are these even real?

one of my favorites - Old Fashioned garden phlox.

...a beautiful purple variety from my Grandmother's garden.

Stunning in real life, friends!

And everybody's favorite - peonies!

Take a few minutes friends, & go tiptoe through your own "tulips."

If you don't have any, your Lowe's or Home Depot is probably just around the corner...

I couldn't live without mine!

~~~