Feline Friday

It's Feline Friday! This week it's hosted by Julie at Stately Barrett Manor.

This week I caught Boo Boo under a chair looking as something intently...

... it was Peanutchew playing with his favorite mousie! (how dare she!)

Later I noticed that all was forgiven, and they were still as close as ever...

Don't forget, if you want to join in and post a kitty photo to leave a link at Julie's place!

Thursday...

Another day...

I finally finished the book I was reading, Dragon's Fire, by Todd McCaffrey. It took me a while for finish. I don't think he captured me at all until the very end of the book. Although I see talent in him, he's certainly not his mother when it comes to the Pern Series. And that makes me sad, since I could read about Pern and the dragons more.

Next I tackle a book called Legends II.

Short stories by various authors. After glancing thru it I seem I probably will be lucky if I read even half of this book. There are just some things I don't think would interest me, though I will begin to read each and see if it captures me or not. Thankfully there's a few I know I'll like.

Actually it's hard for me to get into any of them since I get called to do something quite often all day long. But I have to try because otherwise I am consumed by my everyday life... which means I don't think for myself at all.

I wish I could get into my 4th installment of my story again... it's been over a year. But If i can't seem to concentrate to read, I sure can't concentrate to write. When I did write, it was only for myself but I miss it. I miss escaping.

Anyway... only 11 days left for Christmas shopping! I hope yours is done. I would hate to really "have to" still be shopping after this weekend... that's the time everyone should be happy the shopping is over and beginning to enjoy the feelings of Christmas.

It's been unseasonably warm here in NJ. Normally I wouldn't complain about that..but I have a feeling it's all due to global warming, and that scares the heck out of me.

For the moment though, I know those that still are out and about are glad for the warm (mid 50's) weather, and glad that they don't have to try to drive around in ice and snow. I remember last year we had just a tiny bit of snow on Thanksgiving.. and here we sit in the 50's, quite a difference.

So, here's to sunny shopping days to everyone!.. *tipping my cafe vienna*

Happy Chanukah

I just want to take a moment to wish any of my readers that celebrate Chanukah, a Happy Holiday!! I hope your celebration is the best ever!(Chanukah begins on Friday the 15th)

If you'd like to learn a little about Chaukah I found this website you might enjoy.

A Ghost (or two) from Christmas Past

I was sitting and looking at this picture as I animated the snow falling...

It reminded me that the color blue has always been my favorite color for Christmas. For as long as I can remember I've always decorated my trees (when i had them) with blue lights, and sometimes some white.

I think the fascination with blue lights began when I was quite young. Each year my mother would load my brother and I into her car and drive to Wyoming Avenue and some other streets in (I think ) Short Hills and Livingston NJ, where the rich lived. They were known for decorating their homes really pretty and we'd drive up and down the streets to see all the lights.

I can't remember how old I was, but I do remember one time she took a road that became a dead end. At the end of this road was a home decorated in all blue lights. This was back in the day that "outside lights" were those big bulbs, nothing like today's small glitter lights.

Every seam and corner of the house had lights on it. Every window was adorned with the same lights. The blue lights reflected off of the snow that was on the ground. And off to one side was a small pen set up with two baby lambs in it for petting.

I remember feeling like I stepped into a dream .. and I never forgot that house. I don't know if we went back the next year or not.. memories fade when we age..heh. But I never forgot the feeling of it being a dreamy fantasy.

I guess over the years I'd try to get that feeling back from when I was a kid and saw that house. I'm not sure I ever really got it back, but I do know the very few times I tried to use a different color lights, or multicolored lights, on my Christmas Tree, it just never seemed right to me.

I guess that's odd, as I still enjoy looking at everyone else's tree's no matter how they are decorated.... but mine always had to be blue.

Me and Charlie Brown...

Maybe it was only 10 yrs ago when I was living in California.. money was tight and Christmas was upon us. I managed to buy a small (maybe 4 ft) tree to set on a table.. that made money even tighter. I went to a store and found some lights on sale since Christmas was so close, they were trying to get them sold. (blue lights of course!) Then I searched the store and found these really big bags of cotton and purchased them.

After I put the lights on the tree, I took the cotton and branch by branch dragged the cotton over them hoping it would look like snow on the branches. I wish i had a photo of that tree (laughing here).. I guess you'd call it my own personal "Charlie Brown" tree lol..

But it was BLUE!

And if you got really far away it even looked like snow on the branches LOL.

It seems like yesterday..

Naomi, over at Here in the Hills did a post showing photos from a snowstorm from the 1960's. This got me to thinking (and searching) for what I could find of an old snow storm.

I did manage to come up with the photo below. 1969. Barely made the 60's, but it meets it by .. oh.. not much lol.

This is my first born son, George. He will be 41 in January.. he was about 2 1/2 here. I looked for a similiar photo of Tom but didn't come up with one right away and got tired of looking, so all you get is one photo!

The photo, rather quickly, brings to mind the movie "A Christmas Story".. in it "Randy" (Ian Petrella), who plays the smallest boy, is "overdressed" to the point that when he falls in the snow .. he can't get up again! Now, I could be wrong (but I don't think so!) the same would apply to this photo of my son George!! Hmmm, maybe he should have gotten the part huh?!

Some Free Advice..

Only 13 Shopping days left!!....

HOLIDAY EATING TIPS

1. Avoid carrot sticks. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday
buffet table knows nothing of the Christmas spirit. In fact,
if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where
they're serving rum balls.

2. Drink as much eggnog as you can. And quickly. Like fine
single-malt scotch, it's rare. In fact, it's even rarer than
single-malt scotch. You can't find it any other time of year
but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories
in every sip? It's not as if you're going to turn into an
eggnog-aholic or something. It's a treat. Enjoy it. Have one
for me. Have two. It's later than you think. It's Christmas!

3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That's the whole
point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make
a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy.
Eat the volcano. Repeat.

4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they're made with
skim milk or whole milk. If it's skim, pass. Why bother?
It's like buying a sports car with an automatic
transmission.

5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort
to control your eating. The whole point of going to a
Christmas party is to eat other people's food for free. Lots
of it. Hello?

6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now
and New Year's. You can do that in January when you have
nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which
you'll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a
10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog.

7. If you come across something really good at a buffet
table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size
of Santa, position yourself near them and don't budge. Have
as many as you can before becoming the center of attention.
They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them
behind, you're never going to see them again.

8. Same for pies. Apple. Pumpkin. Mincemeat. Have a slice of
each. Or, if you don't like mincemeat, have two apples and
one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have
more than one dessert? Labor Day?

9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it's loaded with
the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all
cost. I mean, have SOME standards.

10. One final tip: If you don't feel terrible when you leave
the party or get up from the table, you haven't been paying
attention. Reread tips; start over, but hurry, January is
just around the corner.

Remember this motto to live by:

"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the
intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well
preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in
one hand, martini in the other, totally worn out and
screaming, "WOO HOO what a ride!"

Happy Holidays

Naughty or Nice?

Oh me, oh my...

It looks as if Santa is making his list!!

.. and checking it twice! (gulp)

I wonder who he will find naughty or nice??!!

...And which list are you on???? (dare you to admit it!)

*************************************************

Last night, I'm guessing that I was on the nice list! As I browsed thru the television channels I made a dead stop on channel 13. (something I never do because it's the channel they hit you up for money to keep the station going)

There before my eyes was Johnny Mathis! *swoon* gawd, at age 71 that man still can sing like no one else! And he's still gorgeous to look at!!

That dimple in his chin and the crooked way he holds his mouth when he sings (gads! I'm beginning to drool again, where's that drool bucket when I need it?).. and I haven't even mentioned the sparkle in his eyes! *sigh*

I really dislike the channel he was on.. but dang it all... I found myself sitting through the "show me the money" parts just to hear him sing again!

It astounds me that he hasn't begun to loose his voice even at his age.. but I am Oooooooo so grateful! I couldn't have found a better show to watch before I fell off to sleep. Johnny Mathis is just one of those singers who has always been in my life, and for this... I can smile.

Ho-Ho-Ho

Let the Countdown begin!... only 14 shopping days left!

It's a sunny, cool and crisp day here in NJ. Perfect for all the weekend shoppers!

Which reminds me... i do miss going to a mall around this time of year to see all the decorations and to people watch. Hectic as it is it was always fun seeing the satisfaction on so many faces that they had finally gotten things they wanted and needed. And to see (in general) the Christmas spirit in so many.

I hope if you are out and about this weekend that you get to enjoy it and don't get weighed down with the few "cranks" that are inevitably out there too !! Have a good weekend!

Feline Friday

It's Feline Friday ... I'm glad to report I have a decent set of pictures this week...

Just yesterday I got this group of pictures of Boo Boo Kitty and PeanutChew..

They both spotted the mousie up high near the door... (photo 1)

Boo first made a weak attempt.. (photo 2)

But then, he went for it! (photo 3)

Boo has been known to jump as high as my face after the mousie when it's against the door. I got really lucky that the picture of him making his "jump" came out as well as it did!! I expected a blurr, so I was surprised when it looked as if he was frozen in time.

Don't forget to leave a link with Steven if you post a photo of your kitty...

Almost Done..

Well I'm glad to say my son let me know what my grandson wants for Christmas (movies) and I was able to find the 4 on his list and order them to be delivered straight to Florida where they live. (Ice Age-the Melt down, Robots, Over the Hedge, and Monster House) Whew, glad that's over! My grandson is on a roll.. last year it was books, this year movies.. I sense he enjoys creativity!!

The I ordered 2 "art" calendars for my brother.. Boris Vallejo and Luis Royo.. he loves those sort of things. And Lastly I ordered 2 more movies for David. (Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Mans Chest and The DiVinci Code) So I did all my "shopping" at Amazon this year!

Amazon and Barnes and Noble are two of my favorite sites. It's really hard for me to go to them and not want to order something for myself lol.. But I remained "good" and ordered only what I needed to. (this time)

How's your Christmas Shopping going?

A game...

My girlfriend Annie sent me this list in an email.. I thought it was pretty good and decided to make it into a little game for everyone.
Just drag your mouse cursor to the right of the quote to find the answer.

Dyn-O-Mite! TV Land Lists Catchphrases

In alphabetical order, TV Land's list:

_"Aaay" (Fonzie, "Happy Days")

_"And that's the way it is" (Walter Cronkite, "CBS Evening News")

_"Ask not what your country can do for you ..." (John F. Kennedy)

_"Baby, you're the greatest" (Jackie Gleason as Ralph Kramden, "The Hononers")

_"Bam!" (Emeril Lagasse, "Emeril Live")

_"Book 'em, Danno" (Steve McGarrett, "Hawaii Five-O")

_"Come on down!" (Johnny Olson, "The Price is Right")

_"Danger, Will Robinson" (Robot, "Lost in Space")

_"De plane! De plane!" (Tattoo, "Fantasy Island")

_"Denny Crane" (Denny Crane, "Boston Legal")

_"Do you believe in miracles?" (Al Michaels, 1980 Winter Olympics)

_"D'oh!" (Homer Simpson, "The Simpsons")

_"Don't make me angry ..." (David Banner, "The Incredible Hulk")

_"Dyn-o-mite" (J.J., "Good Times")

_"Elizabeth, I'm coming!" (Fred Sanford, "Sanford and Son")

_"Gee, Mrs. Cleaver ..." (Eddie Haskell, "Leave it to Beaver")

_"God'll get you for that" (Maude, "Maude")

_"Good grief" (Charlie Brown, "Peanuts" specials)

_"Good night, and good luck" (Edward R. Murrow, "See It Now")

_"Good night, John Boy" ("The Waltons")

_"Have you no sense of decency?" (Joseph Welch to Sen. McCarthy)

_"Heh heh" (Beavis and Butt-head, "Beavis and Butthead")

_"Here it is, your moment of Zen" (Jon Stewart, "The Daily Show")

_"Here's Johnny!" (Ed McMahon, "The Tonight Show")

_"Hey now!" (Hank Kingsley, "The Larry Sanders Show")

_"Hey hey hey!" (Dwayne Nelson, "What's Happening!!")

_"Hey hey hey!" (Fat Albert, "Fat Albert")

_"Holy (whatever), Batman!" (Robin, "Batman")

_"Holy crap!" (Frank Barone, "Everybody Loves Raymond")

_"Homey don't play that!" (Homey the Clown, "In Living Color")

_"How sweet it is!" (Jackie Gleason, "The Jackie Gleason Show")

_"How you doin'?" (Joey Tribbiani, "Friends")

_"I know nothing!" (Sgt. Schultz, "Hogan's Heroes")

_"I love it when a plan comes together" (Hannibal, "The A-Team")

_"I'm Larry, this is my brother Darryl ..." (Larry, "Newhart")

_"I'm not a crook ..." (Richard Nixon)

_"I'm Rick James, bitch!" (Dave Chappelle as Rick James, "Chappelle's Show")

_"Is that your final answer?" (Regis Philbin, "Who Wants toBe a Millionaire")

_"Jane, you ignorant slut" (Dan Aykroyd to Jane Curtin, "Saturday Night Live")

_"Just one more thing ..." (Columbo, "Columbo")

_"Let's be careful out there" (Sgt. Esterhaus, "Hill Street Blues")

_"Let's get ready to rumble!" (Michael Buffer, various sports events)

_"Live long and prosper" (Spock, "Star Trek")

_"Makin' whoopie" (Bob Eubanks, "The Newlywed Game")

_"Mom always liked you best" (Tommy Smothers, "The Smothers Brothers medy )

"Never assume ..." (Felix Unger, "The Odd Couple")

_"Nip it!" (Barney Fife, "The Andy Griffith Show")

_"No soup for you!" (The Soup Nazi, "Seinfeld")

_"Norm!" ("Cheers")

_"Now cut that out!" (Jack Benny, "The Jack Benny Program")

_"Oh, my God! They killed Kenny!" (Stan and Kyle, "South Park")

_"Oh, my nose!" (Marcia Brady, "The Brady Bunch")

_"One small step for man ..." (Neil Armstrong)

_"Read my lips: No new taxes!" (George H.W. Bush)

_"Resistance is futile" (Picard as Borg, "Star Trek: The Next Generation")

_"Say good night, Gracie" (George Burns, "The Burns & Allen Show")

_"Schwing!" (Mike Myers and Dana Carvey as Wayne and Garth, "Saturday ight )

_"Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy" (Lloyd Bentsen to Dan Quayle)

_"Smile, you're on 'Candid Camera'" ("Candid Camera")

_"Sock it to me" ("Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In")

_"Space, the final frontier ..." (Capt. Kirk, "Star Trek")

_"Stifle!" (Archie Bunker, "All in the Family")

_"Suit up!" (Barney Stinson, "How I Met Your Mother")

_"Tell me what you don't like about yourself" (Dr. McNamara and Dr. roy, /Tuck")

_"That's hot" (Paris Hilton, "The Simple Life")

_"The thrill of victory, the agony of defeat" (Jim McKay, "ABC's Wide World of s")

_"The tribe has spoken" (Jeff Probst, "Survivor")

_"The truth is out there" (Fox Mulder, "The X-Files")

_"This is the city ..." (Sgt. Joe Friday, "Dragnet")

_"Two thumbsup" (Siskel & Ebert, "Siskel & Ebert")

_"Up your nose with a rubber hose" (Vinnie Barbarino, "Welcome Back, Kotter")

_"We are two wild and crazy guys!" (Steve Martin and Dan Aykroyd as Czech oys, ght Live")

_"Welcome to the O.C., bitch" (Luke, "The O.C.")

_"Well, isn't that special?" (Dana Carvey as the Church Lady, "Saturday Night e")

_"We've got a really big show!" (Ed Sullivan, "The Ed Sullivan Show")

_"What you see is what you get!" (Geraldine, "The Flip Wilson Show")

_"Whatchoo talkin"bout, Willis?" (Arnold Drummond, "Diff'rent Strokes")

_"Who loves you, baby?" (Kojak, "Kojak")

_"Would you believe?" (Maxwell Smart, "Get Smart")

_"Yabba dabba do!" (Fred Flintstone, "The Flintstones")

_"Yada, yada, yada" ("Seinfeld")

_"Yeah, that's the ticket" (Jon Lovitz as the pathological liar, "Saturday Night e")

_"You eeeediot!" (Ren, "Ren & Stimpy")

_"You look mahvelous!" (Billy Crystal as Fernando, "Saturday Night Live")

_"You rang?" (Lurch, "The Addams Family")

_"You're fired!" (Donald Trump, "The Apprentice")

_"You've got spunk ..." (Lou Grant, "The Mary Taylor Moore Show")

I Did-Done-Dodit!

Well, I finally did it. I finally wrote to Morgan Freeman! I had a letter in the process for weeks, trying to have it sound the way I wanted. I'm not even sure it was right, but I finally sent it.

I used to write to people who's autographs I wanted a lot more often then I do now. My letters are not conventional. According to those to give advice to those writing to celebrities I do everything wrong. They tell you to make them short and sweet, "no more then one page". Most often my letters run 2 pages and sometimes longer! They tell you not to make them "personal". If they didn't mean something personal to me I would not bother to write!

It's sometimes hard to express to someone in written words just what they mean to you. So you write it and wait. Then read it again and change it. ... and wait. Then you read it and change it again. sigh. Well I did that a sufficient amount of times and finally addressed the envelope, put the letter inside (along with an sase), gave a HUGE sigh, and put the stamps on it.

Now I wait.

I know it will be some time before it even gets to him. It first goes to his agent in California, who in turns sends it to him (here on the east coast). I'm sure he gets plenty of mail. He is, after all, MORGAN FREEMAN!

All I do now (and whenever I get up the guts to send a letter) is to wait and hope. First and foremost, I hope he reads the letter, even if I get no response. Then of course I hope he does autographs and I get one! lol.

But mostly I write because I have something to say to the individual, and I want them to know. (autograph be dammed).

Morgan Freeman is a busy man. If you look him up on Imdb you will see that he remains VERY busy! That pleases me. He's one of those actors who only gets better with age.

So.. that's what I did yesterday. The envelope got mailed today. IF and when I hear from him you will be the first to know! Meanwhile, enjoy the photo below of some of the many faces of Mr. Morgan Freeman.

Monday Photo Shoot

Scalzi's Monday Photo Shoot: Winter Decorations

Your Monday Photo Shoot: Show off your winter home decorations. If you've put up something seasonal (or have shots of decorations from seasons gone by) let's see what they look like. These can include lights and lawn decorations. However, don't post pictures of Christmas trees or menorahs. We'll save those for another Photo Shoot, probably next week.

We aren't decorating this year.. but below are some ceramic Carolers that I made many (many) years ago. I spiced them up with a little snow animation....

My Christmas Card to You..

Today, I thought I would post my Christmas Card.

For any who have read my journal for a long time you will recognize it as the same one I used last year. Yeah, well.. if i'm still journaling next year it will probably be up then too! (get used to it! lol)

The photo's used were taken BG nearly 20 yrs ago. (BG=before gravity) I hope you enjoy my Mall Santa as much as I did way back when...

Kitty Foyle

I wasn't sure I was going to post today... but early on I turned on the television to Turner Classic Movies and saw that a movie called "Kitty Foyle" was coming on.

My mind jumped instantly to a story that both DeForest and Carolyn told me about many years ago. I turned the channel on so that I might, once more, watch the movie, which contained a very handsome actor named Dennis Morgan. When this movie came out even I wasn't born yet! 1940

I realize that unless you are.. ummm, a bit past "prime age", that you very well never heard of Dennis Morgan. He was a handsome devil to say the least and someone you can look up information on here and here.

The story that De and Carolyn told me concerning Dennis Morgan went like this:

Dennis Morgan was Carolyn's favorite actor. (small crush involved)

DeForest always knew of Carolyn's "crush" and so when in 1959 Dennis got a short lived television series called 21 Beacon Street, DeForest told his agent to try to get him on the show.

Indeed DeForest got a part on one of the shows! He and Dennis became chummy very quickly and De told Dennis that he was his wife's favorite actor, and then asked him, if he called Carolyn on the phone would he say hello to her? Dennis told De that he'd be happy to.

De phoned Carolyn at home and when she answered he said, "Guess who is standing right next to me?"

Carolyn giggled.

De handed the phone to Dennis, who said hello to Carolyn... there was no response.

He said hello a second time, and when he again received no response he chuckled and carried on a one sided conversation, saying things like how nice it was to meet her and that he enjoyed having De on the set etc. Then he handed the phone back to DeForest.

De told me that Carolyn never said one word to Dennis.. she was so "enamored" that she found herself speechless! (Carolyn giggled as De told me the story)

Fast forward to September 7th, 1994. Somewhere about 9 at night, I was listening to the radio, "The Gregg Hunter Show". De and Carolyn were listening to the same show, as they did every evening that it was on.

Gregg Hunter's show was a call in show that discussed old movies and actors.. someone called and over the radio I heard this man say, "Did you hear that Dennis Morgan passed away today?" My heart sank! I knew the Kelley's were always listening to the radio, and I knew this was the way Carolyn was hearing that her favorite actor had died.

The next day I called Carolyn to see how she was. She told me she had Gregg on last night and did I hear about Dennis Morgan. I said yes. She said that when she heard it she felt a little silly because she began to cry. Then De, she said, reached over and held my hand and let me know it was ok to cry.

I remember thinking how wonderful I thought De was for understanding and loving Carolyn enough to let her have her little crush and even be sad that he had passed away. Then I wondered how it would feel to have someone love me that much.

Below are photos of De and Dennis.. I thought you would like to see what these two guys looked like long ago when Carolyn first had a crush on Dennis... Personally, I think Carolyn had really good taste in men! What do you think?

Feline Friday

Oops! I almost forgot to do Feline Friday!! (Yes, I know it's Saturday)

Last night while waiting for the "cold front" and storm to come by here in NJ, Winkey came up and was watching intently outside for something to happen. Which (thankfully) it did not! That's got to be a first! With a whole line of storms coming East, it seems there was a small break in the line and that break passed right over East Orange! Oh, we still go some high winds, but the expected downpour and lightening never happened! You will not hear me say that the weather man was wrong, because when he's wrong to MY ADVANTAGE.. it thills the heck outta me! lol

Anyway.. here's Winkey keeping vigle at the window.. if you want to post your own kitty remember to link to Steven's Feline Friday! (He always has the bestest pictures of his kitty Pickle!)

The temps did drop "considerably" around here! From nearly 70 degrees yesterday to in the 40's today!