Category Archives: Bloggin’ Buddies

December 30, 2012 · 0:00

Fifty-Four-and-a-Half’s New Year’s Tradition

Most of our family’s traditions come from my family. I think that’s because I’m the girl. But our New Year’s Tradition comes from my husband. It’s quite simple, and I’d like to share it with you. And I will even add, Try This At Home, for good measure.

On the stroke of midnight,

Open the back door –

to force out all the BAD luck.

Open the front door —

to let in the GOOD luck.

The rest is optional, but we always:

Drink a toast to the New Year.

Kiss anyone who happens to be nearby – especially Cooper the dog who might not be there to kiss next year. (I wrote and posted this for New Years Eve 2011/12, and Cooper is still with us for 2012/13!)

Hope for all the best for all we care about in the New Year.

This year I will of course add to family and flesh friends a wish the happiest, healthiest of new years to all my blogging buddies.

Happy New Year – may your good luck always be stronger than your bad.

***

Yup, this is a re-tread. I will probably post it next year, too.

Last year, when I posted this tradition, some of my bloggin’ buddies worried that they weren’t going to be home — that their doors would not be available at midnight. That they were at a party, or at someone else’s house (“Hey,” some said, “we don’t want to give THEM all the good luck!”).

Relax!

If you are out when the ball drops, or traveling or your own personal doors are unavailable to you, you have my official permission to improvise. You can do this at Midnight in your own home; in somebody else’s, in a hotel — wherever. Or you can wait and carry out the tradition when you get home, after you have put down your suitcase and relaxed a minute. There is no expiration date/time stamp on it.

Traditions are what you make of them, after all.

Happy New Year!

40 Comments

Filed under Bloggin' Buddies, Dogs, Family, Holidays, Neighbors, Pets

Tagged as Family, Humor

December 28, 2012 · 0:00

Shattered Belief

The following is a story that I submitted to The Green Study’s funny Christmas Story contest. I found out about it through C4C, Company For Christmas, when Michelle of The Green Study and I met. And I won 2nd Prize! See Michelle’s post here for the other winners.

Thanks, Michelle for hosting the contest and for being part of C4C!

* * *

Jacob was 8 years old, and still believed in Santa with all his heart. No matter how many of his friends showed him just why Santa couldn’t possibly be real, Jacob found it in his heart to believe.

It was getting awkward. He was 8, and big for his age. Nobody else in his class still believed.

It was 1999, and my husband, John, our 8 year old son Jacob and I were living in Geneva, Switzerland, where English language books were extremely expensive. So naturally, in early December, Jacob’s teacher announced that the entire class needed to get a particular and particularly expensive dictionary by the beginning of 2000 for home use. Locally it was tres cher. But we found it for a reasonable price on Amazon.co.uk. Being good parents, we ordered it.

It arrived two days before Christmas. And on Christmas Eve, I wrapped it up.

“I’ll take the hit for this one,” I told my husband, knowing that Jacob would not appreciate getting a dictionary for Christmas.

“Nah,” said John. “Mark it from Santa.”

I didn’t think much about it, but I followed John’s suggestion. Santa had another gift for Jacob.

When Christmas morning arrived, Jacob got great gifts from Santa: an electric car race track, skiis and one more present.

“Feels like a book,” Jacob said, eagerly opening it. And then he looked at the cover.

“There’s no such thing as Santa.” Jacob cried. “Santa would never have given me a dictionary.”

60 Comments

Filed under Bloggin' Buddies, Childhood Traumas, Family, Geneva Stories, Humor

Tagged as Family, Humor

December 22, 2012 · 0:00

Bloggin’ Buddy Birthday

Rumor has it, that today is my bloggin’ buddy John Erickson’s birthday. You know John, of Commentality. Approximately 60 seconds after I first “met” John, he became the top commenter on my blog. He is interested in a million things, particularly history, space travel and sci-fi movies, TV and likely books. John is quite well versed on stuff. All kinds of stuff. He is smart, funny, and sweet. Not necessarily all at the same time though. He spreads it out.

I will admit that John’s comments don’t necessarily make sense, but they are great for your statistics. So encourage John. Really. You’ll be glad you did.

Now Ill tell you a secret. Unlike most folks approaching the half-way mark, John has been a wee bit apprehensive about this birthday, because it is a biggie. The Big 5-0.

Fifty. Yup.

To welcome John into the Old-timers Blogging Group, I will play age appropriate music:

Still, I am pretty sure that John won’t go down without a fight. Not a guy who has spent nearly 50 years studying military history. He knows the details of every battle fought between 1412 and 1945, and just exactly how to load a flintlock. Nope, John will never give up; he’ll never surrender. (He could use a Coke and a couple of Advil, though.) Here is a clip of a younger John taken from some important “Historical Documents.” Only they couldn’t get the goat in the picture.

By Grapthar’s Hammer, John, I’m wishing you the Happiest of Birthdays. And I am wishing you health, wealth and good cheer for all the years to come.

But just like me, you ARE gettin’ gross. But I’m pretty sure you can deal with it! But to soften the blow, if it’s OK with Frank of AFrankAngle I will be happy to use my newly acquired Queenly powers to knight you.

Arise, Sir John. I command you to celebrate!

* * *

Other bloggers joining the love fest: Visit these other birthday tributes: Fasab, Frank, Gaupo, Weebs, Doggy, Jamie, Brainrants, Benzeknees, Archon

List cheerfully stolen from Frank.

41 Comments

Filed under Bloggin' Buddies, Criminal Activity, Dogs, History, Humor, Word Press

Tagged as Crazy people, Humor

December 13, 2012 · 0:00

Babes in Toyland – Angie and Me

Angie and I came up to the knees of these guys

We did it! Angie of Childhood Relived and I met for lunch! It was memorable. Sadly, though, we did stay in this decade, the 2010s (which sounds really weird). We simply couldn’t work in time travel back to the 1980s. Traffic congestion, you see.

We had wonderful plans, Angie and I. Tours. Nostalgia. Archie Bunker and the Smithsonian’s American Museum that contains just the right tidbits of crap from TV Land as brilliantly suggested by Darla of She’s a Maineiac.

But there was one thing that we didn’t factor in ahead of time. Now, what do you suppose that might be.

If you’re guessing that it’s the fact that neither Angie nor I knows how to shut up, “Come On Down.” Yup, we spent a 2 hour lunch fighting for air time. I had my stories; Angie had hers. It was close, but I think Angie won. I want a re-match.

Still, we did do a tour of DC. Sort of.

First of all, none of the restaurants I’d suggested in my earlier post um, worked out. Still, the restaurant we went to is a Washington landmark: The Old Ebbitt Grill. The restaurant has been there for centuries! Famous people have eaten there – Lincoln! Grant! Wilson! FDR! Checkers! It is a piece of Washington history that is seriously cool. Except that it didn’t happen at the place where we had lunch. Yup, we had lunch at the new Old Ebbitt Grill. The OLD Old Ebbitt Grill was torn down not long after I got to DC in 1979. I’m sure there is no connection. And I did tell Angie that we were having an expensive lunch in a fraudulent facility. That’s our nation’s capital for you.

Still, we had a great lunch. Of course, neither of us would stop talking. As a result, the food wasn’t as hot as it might have been. Perhaps we should have sent it back. A good restaurant should factor conversation in.

Anyway after our long lunch, we realized that we really didn’t have time for much else, so we decided to walk around the White House and gloat about Obama’s re-election. Of course, we didn’t know that that night Barack, Michelle and the girls were going to light the White House Christmas Tree. In public. With thousands of folks in attendance. Apparently, everybody in DC, VA and MD was there. So Angie and I, still never pausing our conversation, swam upstream against thousands of folks determined to see the festivities.

Here are the pictures. Angie did her best Angie-1980s in front of some of Washington’s most impressive tourist destinations.

OK, I can’t be that mean. Here she is — and really, she doesn’t often let her mouth hang open like that. It was done only by request.

And here is the picture she took of me!

But the single best moment was when I drove Angie in my car out of a Washington, DC parking lot where we had left my car for 3 hours.

“Twenty Dollars?” she said. “It cost $20 to park for three hours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Angie, you’re not in Kansas any more. Or one of those other fly-over states, either. Whichever one you come from.

Come back soon!

124 Comments

Filed under Bloggin' Buddies, Campaigning, Conspicuous consumption, Criminal Activity, Driving, Elections, History, Humor, Mental Health, Politics

Tagged as Crazy people, Humor, Politics, Washington

December 6, 2012 · 0:00

Fantastic Foolishness

Today’s music is A Very Good Year

Woo-hoo! It’s not Friday! But it IS Guapola’s Birthday! So Happy Birthday, Guap.

Wait a minute, you don’t know El Guapola? What are you waiting for go!

As all Guap’s bloggin’ buddies know, this is a good year to put behind him so he can go on to sharing more good tunes, checking out all the blogs we haven’t gotten to yet, and doing all those extreme sports that make me ~~wet my pants~~ very uncomfortable. For the hardships he had, I am glad the year is over, but I’m glad he spent time with me on my blog and that I got to spend time with him on his.

Of course, the biggest news is that Guap is completely nuts. Oh, you mean you knew that? It’s not news? Oh. My bad.

Still I love hearing what Guap is up to. I say that (1) as a total coward; and (2) as someone who refuses to climb stairs too fast. Yes, this year, Guap did his first Bungee jump. I don’t know what he looked like when he did it. I played the film but closed my eyes and plugged my ears. I’m told it was memorable, though. I’m also told he survived.

Today I’m joining with other bloggin’ buddies of Guap’s to wish him a great birthday, and to offer up my own Word Press Poll

But seriously, Guap, you rock. Thanks for all the smiles you’ve given me throughout the year. May the coming year bring you nothing but good fortune, good health and good humor.