The Queen's Meme #22~ Come On Baby Light My Fire

The Queen's Meme #22 ~ Come On Baby, Light My Fire!



Welcome to The Queen's Tuesday Meme #22



Sometimes silly. Sometimes serious.
Always fun!
Step out of the box. Be creative.
Use your imagination.
No one's answers are quite like yours.


Once upon a time in a faraway Bloggiverse there lived a maiden named Queen Mimi Pencil Skirt. She slayed her own dragons, stoked her own fire and well.....wrote memes by the light of the Bloggingham moon. One day a kind blogger from England noticed her meme lovin' ways and royally crowned her Mimi Queen of Memes. As time passed in the peaceful kingdom of Bloggingham, her Royal Highness found comfort in the company of fellow bloggers who also loved memes. But the Queen had a wicked disposition too. It is widely reported in historical Blogosphere archives that any and all bloggers found guilty of not completing their memes were promptly thrown into the dreaded Bloggingham dungeon. If I were you, I'd do the meme.


The Queen's Meme #22 ~ Come On Baby, Light My Fire!


Before you get carried away and let your mind wander down a trail of romantic and erotic intrigue, stop. We're not talking about that kind of fire. Not today anyway. We're talking about intellect, entertainment and adventure. I'd like you to take a look at the what makes you happy and brings you joy. Pretend you are talking to a new friend. Answer the questions as enthusiastically as you can and share with your friend what lights your fire. Recommend your favorites, what you're passionate about - and tell us why. If it's too hard to choose just one, narrow it down to the best of the best. Everyone who reads your answers will not only get a better sense of who you are but we might be inspired to check it out upon your expert recommendation. I like learning something new everyday. If you open the door of my imagination, I just might step through. Tell me!

1. Which historical figure do you admire the most? Why? I admired Samuel Clemens/Mark Twain because he observed life from a humorous viewpoint.

2. Name the band or artist you'd like to see live in concert before you leave the planet or tell us about a concert or album that has already rocked your world.

I would love to see Sting in concert. I saw Pink Floyd in Rome, Italy when I was twenty years old. Just too many great musicians to decide on one.

3. What's your favorite television show or series of all time? The Lucille Ball Show.
Why should I care? Because she was so funny.

4. Movies! I am so behind on the movie scene. What should I watch this weekend? Should I watch it alone or with someone? I haven't been to the movies in ages, but if you have someone to go with then go with them.

5. You are hopping on a plane tomorrow morning. I would go to a lone island surrounded by turquoise water, sand, palm trees, and a drink with a little umbrella in it. Where did you choose to go and why? I would choose Tahiti because I want to be alone and to get warm.

6. Who is your favorite author? What about their writing inspires you or simply entertains you? Recommend at least one book that you feel I must read.
Danielle Steel because she develops her characters meticulously and the love stories last for generations.

7. Hobbies and passions. What brings you joy in your spare time? How did you get into it? Flowers are my passion, always have been and always will be. I have been in love with flowers since I was three years old. I like to oil paint, garden and photography.

Ben, My Favorite Step-Father

Mary Lou and Ben circa 1962

Can you tell my mother has a flair for drama?

Mary Lou, me, my sister, Candy, and Ben, our third step-father at Six Flags Over Texas. That boy in the back was checking my sister out, we don't know him. I was twelve and my sister is fifteen years old.

Looking back over my life, I never imagined that I would marry a blond headed man. The tall, dark and handsome ones were my type. My father was dark, handsome, but not tall. He had left our mother for another woman when I was three. Perhaps looking for a man that was similar to my father's features would bring him back to me if only briefly in the face of my Mr. Perfect man.

I was always looking for my dad everywhere I went. Constantly searching out faces that resembled our father. Looking for his eyes. Desperately seeking him. While we lived in the same city, he never called and the last time I saw him, I was nine years old. His new family had taken his time and attention away from his first family and we felt abandoned. But we never stopped searching.

I really never even thought about blond haired men with blue eyes, until our mother married a new man. He would become our third step-father. He was blond haired with the bluest eyes you ever saw. Ben was his name, he was tan from his work as a linesman and had a kind and gentle way about him. He drove the most beautiful blue convertible car with big fins. How he came to marry our mother was a surprise to us. Mary Lou never settled down with just one man; there were many men in her life and ours, too. Ben now had an instant family. Not many men wanted a woman with kids. Those were the men the we did not like.

Often, when we did not like Mary Lou's boy friends, my sister and I would put our plan in action. Our one objective was to get rid of the obnoxious man by our terrible behavior. It worked every time. A few times it did not work out to our liking, but this time was different. Ben was persistent, and we found ourselves with a new step-dad and moving into a real home. Not the ugly,cold and grim apartments we had lived in before, but a house with a yard. Life was good with Ben.

This was the first time in a long while that we were a family, if only briefly. Ben traveled with his work and came home on weekends. We had barbeque's, went swimming, traveled to meet his family all over Texas. My sister and I did not know what an extended family was like because Mary Lou was an only child. This was a new and foreign experience for us. So this is what having family is like? One of his nieces was a little girl that was about ten years old, Ina, was her name. She sang I-N-A all the time. There was a song about an insurance company named INA. She would sing and dance a little bit like she could not be still. My sister and I were city girls and had little in common with these little country girls that had even less than we had. We went all of Texas to meet his family and they us. Little did I know that from those childhood introductions would one day years later help us overcome our sorrow.

For awhile our mother was sober and off prescription drugs for several years, but she still did crazy things like getting all holy on us. She tried to save all sinners. We were just children, we weren't sinners. Why she could not just leave us alone? Always pushing us away. Why didn't she work on herself first. Maybe later when she finished her own self-improvement and finding God she could save us. It was all or nothing, or nothing at all. Bazaar extremes and bad behavior were her trademarks. Life with our mother was not easy and she knew how to pick you to pieces. She did not want to be our mother, but rather our sister. Good grief! She had to be the center of attention.

Ben stayed married to Mary Lou until I was nineteen and in college. We had gone through a lot with Ben. Mary Lou was admitted to a long term facility for her addictions. My sister and I lived alone that summer. We were 16 and 18 years old. While Ben worked down in Florida at Cape Canaveral. It wasn't soon after that Ben came home less and less. We saw the writing on the wall and knew Mary Lou had lost another chance at love. I felt so forsaken like an unwanted kitten on the side of the road. I am not even sure I can aptly describe this feeling that had become all to familiar. The farewells and the leaving was a constant reminder of not being wanted. Repeated over and over for many years. Never feeling worthy of being loved.

One day, I received the call from Ben telling me that he was leaving our mother, Mary Lou. He felt really sad about leaving us and I could tell by the sound of his voice he was sorry he could not make it work out. Politely, I thanked him for the call, wished him well and said good-bye, once again, good-bye.

Trying desperately to just put this out of my mind. Every few weeks, Ben would call. He was a little tipsy, but always sorry for leaving. I thought that bothered him more than he even knew. We were used to it, the men coming and leaving. He always ask about Mary Lou. The conversation was cordial, but revealing little information. It was his check in call to make sure we were alright.

Every so often I would get that drunk call in the middle of the night from Ben. For the first couple of years, I just would listen to his liquid sorrow that spilled forth from his night of imbibement. His pain was palpable, but I was sad, too and so I listened.

Some how during all those many calls we became true friends. I liked Ben, even when he was teetering on and off sobriety, even after he left our mother. He traveled all around and yet still the calls came. He came to meet our first born son, Brian. He would drive for hours and as soon as he got here he would play ball with Brian. He also came when Hunter was born. He was still like family to me even more so than my mother. My mother never came for the kids births or for anything when I needed her, but Ben came. My own father abandoned us, but not Ben.

It would take me years to realize that I had married a blond haired blue eyed man that was like Ben. Not that tall, dark and handsome Mr. Perfect man that I always yearned to marry. Perhaps all those years ago,while my mother was never satisfied with me, Ben did the one thing my mother could not. In my mother's eyes, I felt imperfect, but Ben never tried to change a thing about me. He loved me for me and not what my mother wanted me to be. Ben visited my family a lot. He was the grand father my kids never had. He spent quality time with us.

He mentored me as an adult, encouraged me to bridge the gap with my estranged father. I learned how to forgive and let go. Ben was there for us when we found out months later that our father had died. He came with us to say our farewells at the foot of our fathers grave. He never judged our father because he understood what we were feeling. I learned what real family was about and what it meant to be a family. So many lessons learned while Ben was alive.

Even in his death, I learned how much he loved us girls. We went to his funeral in Vernon,TX. We were listed as his children on the funeral program. I can't even begin to tell you what that meant to us. It made me feel whole and loved. His family lifted us up with unconditional love. They had so many wonderful stories to tell us that Ben had shared with them. Photos and memories were shared in the Dairy Queen in that little town. I took my photos as well to share our stories of Ben with his family. I have never felt so touched. This beautiful family embraced us, we caught up on one another's lives. Some how they made it better. Their faith surrounded us.

Ben's sister ask me "Did you ever wonder why Ben did not have children?" Well, yes I did wonder why. She said"Because you and your sister were his children." I fell apart in tears and total surrender to this thought that a man not even related to us loved us more that our own mother and father did. This quite humble man taught me so much without saying a word. He was my best friend and I still miss him so very much. His family were good people and they showed without words just what love means.

I will never forget Ben. Never. He was the kind of man that inspires one to do good for others. I am who I am because of Ben. What a gift he gave me, when I least expected it.

We are not in Kansas anymore...

What a dreadful night night this has been. There have been tornadoes everywhere in east Texas. One touched down in Waskom and did some damage, but thankfully no one was hurt. Pine trees broken like toothpicks along I-20 and houses demolished. This is a very small town and it is where I work at this one-hundred year old house that is a gift and garden shop. It was not damaged, but a lot of electric poles are cut in half. I guess I will see the damage tomorrow.

My friends FB me to make sure we were OK, then they had tornadoes as well, but no damage. If there is one thing I can't stand it is tornadoes. Too many bad memories of them as a child. We are so blessed by the technology to give us advance warning when a storm is becoming a real threat. In the old days, we had nothing but the color of the sky, the direction of the winds and the tale tell sign of hail. You can not imagine how bad all this weather looks on a 55 inch HD flat screen TV. But what scares me more is that we currently live in a pre-manufactured home built on pier and beam. It is secured to the ground. I told Hubs that we should build a storm shelter for six people. He ask why? Well for you, me, sister Candy, three big dogs and three cats.

At first we thought about building a house, but this one is fairly new and we are really busy with clearing the land. We had a huge deck built on the back. My builder said the safest place during a tornado would be under neath the deck because of all of the cemented post. I am not that desperate yet. My neighbor lives in a Quonset hut and it will sustain winds up to 185 mph. I have gone there before, but thankfully no tornado then.

So I close tonight with gratitude that no one was hurt. Gratitude that we have a roof over our head, we have food and water. We are so blessed beyond measure. It breaks my heart that the Haitians have experienced another earthquake. How much more can they take? Tonight, I close in prayer for Haiti and all the survivors, the doctors, the search and rescue teams,the children,those in pain and those that have lost loved ones. May God lift them up in their darkest hour.

The Queen'a Meme #21 ~ The WIsdom At Twenty-One Meme

Tuesday January 19, 2010
The Queen's Meme #21 ~ The Wisdom At Twenty-One Meme


Welcome to The Queen's Tuesday Meme #21



Sometimes silly. Sometimes serious.
Always fun!
Step out of the box. Be creative.
Use your imagination.
No one's answers are quite like yours.


Once upon a time in a faraway Bloggiverse there lived a maiden named Queen Mimi Pencil Skirt. She slayed her own dragons, stoked her own fire and well.....wrote memes by the light of the Bloggingham moon. One day a kind blogger from England noticed her meme lovin' ways and royally crowned her Mimi Queen of Memes. As time passed in the peaceful kingdom of Bloggingham, her Royal Highness found comfort in the company of fellow bloggers who also loved memes. But the Queen had a wicked disposition too. It is widely reported in historical Blogosphere archives that any and all bloggers found guilty of not completing their memes were promptly thrown into the dreaded Bloggingham dungeon. If I were you, I'd do the meme.


The Queen's Meme #21 ~ The Wisdom At 21 Meme
This is a royal twist on an old meme. I just wish I'd found these gems when I was actually twenty-one.This is how it works: You must follow the directions to the letter.

1. Find the nearest bookshelf of your favorite reads, cookbooks, tech books, magazines. It doesn't matter. This will work for all print media. If you don't have seven books lined up on a shelf, grab the first seven you see around the house.

2. Book #1: Turn to page 21. Read the 21st sentence (you may have to turn the page).
Write it down.
3. Do the same with the first seven books or articles you see. The sentences will make a paragraph. You must write them down in the order you found them. 4. When you are finished, read over your "story" and title it.
5. Show us your bibliography at the end of this meme. Hmmm...I wonder if we'll be surprised at the reading material we may find. I just did mine. It was rather shocking! I didn't cheat. I promise! Don't you either....or it's you-know-where for you.

Birds Of A Feather

"It went down the hill and T.P. was fighting by himself and he fell down again. Observers can nearly always identify a bird without reference to molt, but a basic understanding of molt can be helpful for determining the age of a bird, for assessing plumage variation, and for identification.

Anyway it's really too slick to go out. So it's no wonder that people in the sector have such a hard time focusing long enough to think long term. They had invaded country after country in many bloody wars, but now the whole empire was at peace. With self-discipline it is just the opposite. Clay's last phone call from Tigger had been a gut-wrenching plea from the kid for money."

1. The Sound and The Fury by William Faulkner
2. The Sibley Guide to Birds by David Allen Sibley
3. The Shack by William Paul Young
4. Begging For Change by Robert Egger
5. Let Me Tell You About My Savior by Maria von Trapp
6. The Book of Virtues by William J. Bennett
7. The King of Torts by John Grisham

Part Two...

In the Autumn of my freshman year, I met Doc. He was in my Spanish class and set in front of me with his room mate, Russell. I liked the man sitting next to him. He was tall, dark and handsome. You see that was Russell.

I had been sick and had gone to the doctor. I get a call from Doc Tannehill and I wonder why is the doctor calling me? I thought it was the infirmary doctor. I listened to him and then realized he was not the doctor.

He explained that he was in Spanish class with me. I got so excited because I thought this was the tall dark handsome guy in front of me. Once again, remember that I like tall dark and handsome men. I accepted the invitation for the date only to realize that Doc was not Russell. Doc was tall, blond and blue eyed and handsome for a man that was not my type. Mr. Not My Type would not work out so I thought.

On our first date, he took me flying. I had never been in a small aircraft and was somewhat scared. He ask me if I wanted to fly it. Doc said it was just like driving a car. Well, it wasn't!

He had fun stalling the plane and frightening me. It was late that day when he brought me back to my dorm. Pretty impressive first date. I did not know what to think of this blond haired man in a sport coat and a tie.

I told my room mate about him. She said "He would have to grow on me, and that I would marry him". What was she talking about? I was going to be an interior designer and I had not even thought of marriage. Little did I know that she would prove me wrong years later.

I did not let him kiss me for six weeks. Then when he did kiss me, well I sorta liked it. We grew closer and closer. He would walk me to my classes. That felt odd, but then again no one had ever walked me to my class before. All of a sudden we were a couple. Doc was very intense and that scared me. I had never been in a relationship like this before. We would fight all the time, break up and then get back together. It was not the sort of relationship I wanted.

We dated on and off for three and a half years. Constant bickering, then we would make up,mixed in with fighting and paronia. He was the jealous type, so was I, but not to the extent that he was. The next summer we broke up because he was going to Rome, Italy for a summer school program. I enjoyed my freedom, but being the good girl I was I never dated anyone. I heard all kinds of stories about Doc. How much fun he is having. I am OK with that. He seemed to enjoy the high life and rubbing it in.

Another year passes, then I go on the Tech Rome summer school trip. We break up. I am enjoying Italy because I am an art major. I stay unattached and hang with a group of friends. Thinking that our relationship is over for good. Doc started writing me and then calling me in Rome. He is sorry and begs forgiveness. Away from him I am strong, but he has a grip on me still. We are so young and silly. Sometimes you would do anything for love. I was caught in the strong arm of love and it would not let me go.



I had met a really neat guy before I went to Summer School and he and some friends wanted to drive me to New Orleans for my flight. This was the first nice guy I had met in a while. I just wanted to be friends, but he wanted more. It was the strangest return flight from Rome because my new friends were there to pick me up, but so was Doc. This was truely one of the worst days of my life. I had never been in such a predictment. What do I do? Do I go with my friends and the new guy or do I run back to the changed old boy friend? It broke my heart, but I went with Doc. Doc had changed. He had more confidence and knew what he wanted.

On the way back, we stopped at my new friends house to try to explain why I made the choice I did. We cried, he did not understand why I had made the decision that I had made. He did not understand that Doc and I had a long history and that I loved both of them. I loved him in a different way from Doc, but I still cared deeply.

So on the happiest and the sadest day of my life I chose the man that I thought would be the best man for me. Things were good for a while, then Doc started back with his old insecurities, smothering me with his doubt, his fears. Day after day he kept on and on. I was so co-dependant that I was afraid I had made the wrong choice. I had enough and left Doc for the final time.

This was not how love was suppose to be. This is not what I wanted. I can't breathe. I refused to take his calls and stayed in my dorm. I would see him coming and going from my dorm looking for me. Back in those days, men could not go above the living room reception area. I needed time to sort this all out. It wasn't long until my new friend called because he had heard that Doc and I broke up again.

I had to know if I had made the right choice. So I dated the new guy for a while. I found out that he was not really sincere about me. Maybe he just wanted to hurt me like I had hurt him. I don't know, but that friendship ended when I saw the real guy. He did not care about me at all. Now I am thinking that I have really blown it this time for good. Doc graduated and I heard he was dating again. I was alright with that because this was my choice and I would have to live with it.

By now, it is the fall quarter and I am back in school living with some new friends in an old house. I came down with the flu. I was so sick, and no one really helped me. Actually I don't remember very much about that time. Some how Doc found out and came to our house. He took me home to be with my family. I had strepe throat and Tonsellitis. I had to get a shot everyday. Doc went back to his home town. I could not believe that he did that for me.

It was soon after that we started seeing one another again. We had both grown up and put our childish ways aside. Doc was going in to the service and I took him to catch his buss. That was three days before Thanksgiving.

The Queen's Meme #20 ~ THe Blabbermouth Meme

Monday, January 11, 2010
The Queen's Meme #20 ~ The Blabbermouth Meme



Welcome to The Queen's Tuesday Meme #20


Sometimes silly. Sometimes serious.
Always fun!
Step out of the box. Be creative.
Use your imagination.
No one's answers are quite like yours.


Once upon a time in a faraway Bloggiverse there lived a maiden named Queen Mimi Pencil Skirt. She slayed her own dragons, stoked her own fire and well.....wrote memes by the light of the Bloggingham moon. One day a kind blogger from England noticed her meme lovin' ways and royally crowned her Mimi Queen of Memes. As time passed in the peaceful kingdom of Bloggingham, her Royal Highness found comfort in the company of fellow bloggers who also loved memes. But the Queen had a wicked disposition too. It is widely reported in historical Blogosphere archives that any and all bloggers found guilty of not completing their memes were promptly thrown into the dreaded Bloggingham dungeon. If I were you, I'd do the meme.


The Blabbermouth Meme

1. When you were a child did you ever blab a family secret and get in trouble for it later?
I am not a very good liar. It is too hard to keep up all those lies so I just tell the truth. I can not lie under any circumstance, so I spilled the beans about everything and to anyone that would listen.

2. Have you said anything in the last 24 hours that you regret? I have not said a word, though I may have had a few thoughts, but I have finally learned to keep my mouth shut. There are extenuating circumstances...

3. Have you ever blabber mouthed something to a significant other that in hindsight you really should have kept to yourself?
No, I don't think so, besides loose lips sink ships.

4. Have you ever written anything on your blog that you wish you could take back?
Well of course! My blog started out as a journal to finding me and I had to be real.

5. Are you the blabber or the blabbee? Tell us your most embarrassing blabbermouth moment.
I try not to be either. It falls into the category of gossip and I don't go there. Small minds talk about people, average minds talk about events and great minds talk about ideas.

6. Who is the biggest blabbermouth tattletale in your household?
Hubs can not shut up...I mean be quite. I never tell him any one's secrets, unless I want the whole world to know.

7. You are the Blog Paparazzi! Which blogger's real photograph are you most interested in getting?
There is one blog I follow and he does not post a photo of himself. He is very brilliant, but I like to put a face with people I converse with. You mean those are not real photos of the bloggers? I am also naive. Duh...


8. If you could hire the loudest and most skilled blabbermouth in the universe to do your talking for you and advertise it well, what message would you like to spread to humanity? Don't hold back.
Do you have to ask? Peace and love make this world a better place. Add in a little less judgement and more tolerance of our fellow man and celebrate the differences.

Jeeze It's cold

I have been hybernating all week long. I have not been out of the house since Monday. I am getting a little cabin fever and I can't stand this cold weather. Our pipes frozen from the 12 degree temps that we have not had in over fifteen years or so.

I had been hanging in there until my head cold got the best of me. Now Hubs has it. I think I am in the recovery stage. Sore throat? No, it is gone. Chills? Nope they are gone, appetite? Back in full force. Sleep? No, not any quality sleep.

I just made some cinnamon toast,and set down to write this little note to you. There have been so many house fires and folks are dying in the fires. This really makes me sad that homeless folks take too great a risk living in abandoned trailers. So tonight as always I pray for the homeless folks. May they find shelter and stay warm.

Hubs thawed out the pipes. It seems our Culligan water filter's second filtering system froze and that was the problem. It burst and Doc went to get a new housing for it. I am not sure if this makes much sense because I am in a hurry.

I worked on cleaning off my desk and organizing my scrap booking stuff. I filed the paid bills, started an envelope for our taxes, washed clothes, did the dishes and exercised. I am sure I did some other things but I can't remember what.

Next summer when I am burning up I will be wishing I was freezing cold. I just can't win. It is that time of year when I start cleaning out all the clutter and organizing my stuff. I thought I got rid of most of my stuff before our move last year, but alas, I still have unorganized stuff. My adage is cluttered house, clutterd mind.

The Queen's Meme #19~ The Band Meme(aka The Album Cover Meme)

>
Monday, January 4, 2010

The Queen's Meme #19 ~ The Band Meme (aka The Album Cover Meme)
Welcome to The Queen's Tuesday Meme #19
Sometimes silly. Sometimes serious.Always fun!Step out of the box. Be creative.Use your imagination.No one's answers are quite like yours.Once upon a time in a faraway Bloggiverse there lived a maiden named Queen Mimi Pencil Skirt. She slayed her own dragons, stoked her own fire and well.....wrote memes by the light of the Bloggingham moon. One day a kind blogger from England noticed her meme lovin' ways and royally crowned her Mimi Queen of Memes. As time passed in the peaceful kingdom of Bloggingham, her Royal Highness found comfort in the company of fellow bloggers who also loved memes. But the Queen had a wicked disposition too. It is widely reported in historical Blogosphere archives that any and all bloggers found guilty of not completing their memes were promptly thrown into the dreaded Bloggingham dungeon. If I were you, I'd do the meme.
Get ready to rock 'n roll!I've joined a rock band. Actually, I AM a rock band. Nobody will let me join their group so I decided to make my own dungeon band.It's a screeeaammm.Ever heard of my group?I didn't think so.So I'm thinking....We have our own Royal Blible, our own Royal Shopping Mall , we threw message bottles in the bloggy ocean and now it's time to become a Rock Band. This meme has been very popular in the past. I didn't write it and I don't know where it started. If you know, please tell me and I will give credit where credit is due. Not only is it entertaining but it would also make an interesting sidebar conversation piece. Think of it as sitting on the mantel in your blivingroom. (that's blog + living room for all you non blog speakers). I finished this little project with a new respect for mindless memology. The result was downright spooky.
The Band Meme
It's a musical meme-O-matic! Here's how it goes. You are about to have your own band's CD cover. Follow these directions to the letter. My tagee list is at the bottom of this post. It's fun and requires no thought at all. Go to......
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first article title on the page is the name of your band.
2. http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
Go to the bottom of the page and find the NEW RANDOM QUOTATIONS button. Click it. The last four words of the very last quote that appears on the page is the title of your album.
3. http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days/
The third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.
4. Use your graphics program of choice to throw them together, and post the result.

Computer help?

For some silly reason I do not know how to make this new computer copy and paste. I have gone to the help section. I did everything it said to do. Still can not copy and paste. Does anyone know what I may be doing wrong?

I have a Toshiba computer. I know some of my smart friends will know what to do.

I am trying to do the Queen's Meme and I don't want to end up in the Dungeon. Please help because that place is cold and has mice.

I have been disconnected from my computer, and it has been miserable. Last week, my cat jumped up on the table and spilled my coffee cup all over my desk ,my scrap booking and my computer. We have been having trouble with it for a while this was the final blow to the computer. It just died.

I have been having all sorts of weird things happen with my animals. None of it has been good. So the dogs were chasing one another around in a circle eight and then spoofed the cat and well you know the ending already. Every morning I have awoken to throw up, one of the dogs knocked off a palm tree, ate part of the foliage and then threw it up. Ack! The dogs have eaten part of their new camouflage beds. They are really in trouble. I am not sure what is going on with them, but I am ready for them to stop.

We have been sorta of thinking about a new computer. In our dreams, we have wished for a Flat screen TV, but we are always so cautious. So it was a complete surprise when Hubs and I went to Bestbuy and purchased a new computer. Then we went to look at the TVs. Yes, we did ended up with a 55" flat screen TV. This is not like us to make two big purchases at one time. I really like it. Hubs is elated.

So we just bought our anniversary, and our birthday gifts for next year or two. I can see the TV from the kitchen while I am on the computer. Really nice. I hope everyone is having a great New Year.