QUOTE OF THE DAY

This is a book of short stories written by Faye Kellerman. The following quote is something that a mother said to her daughter:

"Some people race through life. Some people stroll through it. Whatever suits you, suits me. Just remember, whether you walk or run, it doesn't matter much. The finish line is still death."

I really like that. Why go fast if you don't have to? Slow down and relax. You're not missing anything. You miss things when you go too fast. Enjoy life....it only comes around once.

FANCY FEET FRIDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - M83
SONG - KIM AND JESSE

I can skate just like this. He,he,he.

I CAN'T GET THIS SONG OUT OF MY HEAD - WAIT - I DON'T WANNA - PLAY IT AGAIN!

ARTIST - TEDDYBEARS
SONG - AHEAD OF MY TIME

Topo Gigio!

The Editor is six years younger than me and most of the time, it doesn't make a difference. But once in a while......he has no earthly idea what or who I'm talking about. It's like Angel said in her blog (and you'll just have to look at the list of blogs I follow cause I don't know how to paste her blog in here) about how her husband is older and he loved Dark Shadows while she didn't know what Dark Shadows was. When I was a little girl, I used to watch The Ed Sullivan Show and I loved Topo Gigio. He was a little mouse. Here's how our Topo Gigio conversation began last night....

Me: Hey, do you know who Topo Gigio is?

The Editor: Sounds like something that can be cured by Penicillin.

OUCH! I'm getting old!!!!!!!!





More info on Topo Gigio:
Topo Gigio was the lead character of a children's puppet show on Italian television, in the early 1960s. The character was created by artist Maria Perego in 1958 and has been customarily voiced by actor Giuseppe (Peppino) Mazzullo. The name means "Louie Mouse" in English.

Topo Gigio, a soft foam mouse with dreamy eyes and childish personality, was very popular in Italy for many years — not only on TV but also in children magazines, such as the classical Corriere dei Piccoli, animated cartoons, movies, and merchandising. Its popularity spread to the world after being featured on Ed Sullivan's weekly TV show in the U.S. Today Topo Gigio still has a cohort of faithful fans, and has become an icon of Italian pop culture. He performs regularly at Zecchino d'Oro festival and other programs created by Antoniano and RAI. In 1965, a feature length motion picture Le Avventure di topo Gigio (The Adventures of Topo Gigio) was released internationally.

The endearing puppet has made appearances and has a fan base in many other countries — including Dominican Republic, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Japan, Mexico, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Perú.

UPBEAT THURSDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - BLUR
SONG - CRAZY BEAT

DOES ANYBODY REMEMBER THIS COMMERCIAL?

This Heinz commercial came out in 1987. Matt Le Blanc (from Friends fame) is in this commercial. The Editor says I have a good ear for music and I always listen to the music in the background of commercials, movies, etc. Years after this commercial aired, I heard a song and I was just sure it was the same song that was in the commercial. After a little research I figured it out. I was right. I'm gonna post the commercial and then the song here. The song is by Jon Astley and is called Jane's Getting Serious. It's one of my favorite songs. Do you remember the commercial?

DEPP OR DUCKY?

So the Editor knows that if I ever just fall off the face of the earth, Johnny finally came to get me. No questions asked, I'm outta here. But the other night while I was watching Pretty in Pink, I thought to myself, what the heck was Molly Ringwald's character thinking? I mean, come on, Andrew McCarthy? His character was......well, he had no character really. He was a boring limp dishrag. But Jon Cryer's Ducky? He was sooooo cool. Why didn't she pick him? Kudus to Jon Cryer for the scene in the bedroom with the Smiths song..........please, please, please, let me get what I want. My heart breaks for him everytime. And the "A Little Tenderness" scene in the record store? Brilliant. Yeah, the hunks are fun to look at and all but here's to the Ducky's of the world. Just remember.......when girls grow up, if they're smart, they figure out that the Ducky's of the world are worth much, much more than the hunks....hang on.......someone at the door.....it's Depp......um......I may not be blogging for a while.

WEIRD WACKY WEDNESDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - Klaus Nomi
SONG - After the Fall

This guy was popular in New York back in the early 80's. I loved him. You guys are probably gonna wonder "what the heck" but this guy was and still is one of my favs. He died of aids back several years ago. There is a great documentary out about him called "The Nomi Song".

TWO FOR TUESDAY - SOMETHING NEW

ARTIST - CYNDI LAUPER
SONG - INTO THE NIGHTLIFE

TWO FOR TUESDAY - SOMETHING OLD

ARTIST - Cyndi Lauper
SONG - Money Changes Everything

BOOK RATING

AUTHOR - FAYE KELLERMAN
TITLE - STRAIGHT INTO DARKNESS

ON A SCALE OF 1 THROUGH 10:

7

THANKSGIVING TREE!

Okay, so the Halloween tree has been replaced with a Thanksgiving tree!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYBODY!

BLOCKER, BLOCKER, GOOD BUDDY!

Okay! So I've been waiting years for this feature. I made a decision over the weekend to change my cell phone number to keep a certain mother from leaving me messages that depress the heck out of me. I've had my cell number for several years and have put off changing it but finally decided that today was the day. I called AT&T and guess what? For five bucks a month, you can block up to 15 calls from your phone and you don't have to change your number! Just thought you might like to know that AT&T has added this service. Works for me!

BOOK QUOTE OF THE DAY

AUTHOR - Faye Kellerman
TITLE - Straight into Darkness

So everybody who knows me knows that I like Spring, love Summer, Fall makes me sad and I DO NOT LIKE WINTER! I hibernate just like a bear this time of year. The following quote from the above book is EXACTLY how I feel about Fall:

It had been a stunning autumn day, the sky cloudless and blue, the leaves in full color. The air had been crisp and cool at that turning point when the bite of winter started sinking its fangs into the bone marrow.

HAPPY MONDAY - VIDEO FOR THE DAY

ARTIST - ELBOW
SONG - GROUNDS FOR DIVORCE

Just felt like posting a song with a little kick to it today! Have a great Monday everybody!

SUPER SATURDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - Super Furry Animals
SONG - Atomik Lust

ANTHONY MICHAEL HALL

GEEK!

WOW! SOMEBODY KISSED THAT FROG!!!!

HUNK!

JOHN HUGHES & PRETTY IN PINK

I caught part of Pretty in Pink last night on HBO. It's one of those movies that I have to stop on if I'm channel surfing. I hadn't seen it in a while and it brought back so many memories. I miss those really cool John Hughes movies. SIXTEEN CANDLES, WEIRD SCIENCE, THE BREAKFAST CLUB. Not only were the movies great but the soundtracks were always awesome too! OINGO BOINGO, PSYCHEDELIC FURS, OMD, SIMPLE MINDS, ETC. Classic teen movies that even a grown up could love. I think my favorite was Sixteen Candles. I still think Anthony Michael Hall was fabulous in that movie! What's your favorite Hughes movie?

THE DAY MICHAEL FLATLEY CHANNELED THROUGH MY BODY!

So one day at work, I got on the freight elevator by myself. The freight elevator has a linoleum floor and the sides are padded. I had a skirt and heels on. I’m up several floors and it takes a long time for the elevator to get down to the bottom floor. So I got bored, okay? I started clicking around on the linoleum floor with my heels and before I knew it.....I was River Dancing. I mean, I had my hands down to the side....I thought I was Michael Flatley. I was clickety-clacking.......having a great ole time.....until.............a voice from above said......MAY I HELP YOU!...............HOLY COW! For a minute there, I thought it was God talking to me! I said in a teeny, tiny voice....no, thank you.
So I didn’t know, until then, that the elevators are monitored by the guards. Now I’m not sure if they could see me or not.....but they sure could hear me! So now, I stand prim and proper in the elevators........hands down by my sides.........head straight ahead.......chicken purse in hand.

TECHNOCOLOR FORTUNE COOKIES!

So those of you who read my blog know by now that I struggle from time to time about my childhood and the way I was treated by my parents. And when I’m in the middle of one of these struggles, I get kinda down. Seems like when this happens to me, it’s always at night when I’m by myself, usually when I’m in bed trying to go to sleep. Why does everything always seem worse at night? Anyway, I was having quite a struggle with my thoughts last night. I’m not going into too much detail here because it’s pretty private but in a nutshell, I was abused by a distant relative when I was a little girl. I didn’t tell my parents until I was much older and when I told them, not only did they do absolutely nothing about it but a few years later my mother invited the abuser over for dinner. Then, several years after I moved to Little Rock, she called to apologize for having him over for dinner. When she called, I told her I didn’t wanna talk about it and that it was no big deal. But, as I get older, I realize it is a very big deal. The abuse is big but the biggest deal is that my folks did nothing. And you know what? There are some things that you just cannot apologize for. Sometimes, love really is never having to say you’re sorry. An apology for having him over to dinner is not acceptable.

I cut ties with my parents almost seven years ago because I couldn’t handle the abuse towards me and my son anymore. I’ve been feeling guilty lately because my parents are older and I know they don’t have it easy. Last night, as I lay in bed thinking, something started to become clear to me. My parents did not love me like they should. If they had, they would have been there for me when I told them I had been sexually abused. If I found out someone had abused my son, I would go to hell and back to confront that person. I called The Editor last night and talked with him for a long time and he made me feel better. I asked him, am I messed up? Is there something wrong with me? After we hung up, I continued to think and then it was like a lightbulb went off in my head. The guilt I felt for not being there for my parents right now evaporated. And here’s why: they weren’t really there for me, were they? I realized that by not going to bat for me with the abusive relative, they made me feel that I was worthless which I think is a lot of the cause for the awful relationships in my past. I didn’t feel worthy of the best until now. And I realized........I don’t owe my mom and dad anything. I feel asleep.

When I woke up this morning, I was a little down but for the first time, I felt whole and I realized that I AM WORTHY. I am a great believer that things happen for a reason. When I got to work today, I was taking my wallet out of my purse (yeah, my chicken purse) to get change for a Dr. Pepper when a fortune cookie thingie that I had kept from the last time I went to lunch with friends fell out. I picked it up off the floor and when I read it, a little smile came over my face and I realized.......it’s gonna be okay. Here’s what it said:

The major value in life is not in what you get, but in what you become.

FANCY FEETS FRIDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - FEIST
SONG - MY MOON MY MAN

So could you do this? I've decided that The Editor is gonna have to take me to an airport with one of these things.....cause I wanna try it.

FUN FRIDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - MIKA
SONG - GRACE KELLY

This video and song just make me feel good all over...kinda like Friday. Nothing better than Friday and payday......only thing better is payday + Friday + 5:00 p.m.

AND WHILE I'M ON MY SOAPBOX........

BBC America used to air a British soap called EastEnders. They would show five episodes every Sunday. I loved this soap. Just the music in the background at the pub was so cool. The Charlatans, Suede, Pulp, Blur, Oasis. All those one word wonder bands that I love so much!!!!

Martin Kemp (from Spandau Ballet) was actually an actor on the soap for quite a while.

It's probably a good thing BBC America stopped airing the EastEnders. I was so addicted!

Below is a synopsis from the internet about the soap.

EastEnders is a serial drama for BBC One. It is often the most watched soap on British television and recently saw over 14 million viewers tune in to watch the Christmas Day 2007 episode.It follows the lives of the residents of Albert Square in Walford, East London. EastEnders was created by Julia Smith and Tony Holland and first aired in 1985 .

TODAY I'M MISSING.......DARK SHADOWS

Did anybody else watch this soap?

UPBEAT THURSDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - THE TING TINGS
SONG - THAT'S NOT MY NAME

These guys are so much fun!

OH NO! NOT MYRTLE!

Okay, you guys, you may be laughing at me right now but I grew up watching All My Children at my grandma’s house in the summer. My cousins, Melissa and Michelle, and I used to sit in front of her TV, with our drinks of koolaid in hand (it was supposed to be liquor) and act out the parts while we watched. Because I was the oldest, I always had to be the male part. What a pain. You know how they say you know you’re gonna be gay when you’re a kid? Well, I knew I wasn’t gay cause I always wanted to play the female actors. I loved Mrytle Fargate’s character while I was growing up. They just don’t make actors like Eileen Herlie anymore. I don’t even watch soaps now. The acting is atrocious and the story lines are stupid. All My Children has three couples that are good friends. Such good friends, that they’ve all slept with each other. Heck, two of them can be in bed together – commercial break – one of the characters in bed has been changed. Okay, not really, but it seems like they change bed partners that fast.
Eileen Herlie is one of the last good soap actors. I will miss her red hair, her dress shop, her wit, etc. Remember the old days on All My Children? Anytime anybody got hurt, you knew Joe the doctor was gonna operate and save their life. He and his wife were happy for years together. They didn’t cheat on each other. They had great family values. Joe is still on there but his wife only makes guest appearances. They don’t even have a happy couple on All My Children anymore. I mean, we all know Erica Kane has been married 97 times (he he he) but back then every soap had one or two characters like that. Now, all of them are promiscuous. And what about how much fun the villains used to be? Palmer Courtland and Adam Chandler/Stewart Chandler. Adam/Stewart is still around but Palmer’s gone. I know that these actors are getting older and are being replaced. But the villains now are just....boring. All the characters are. I guess those good actor and writer days are gone.
Anyway, if anyone is interested, I’m cutting and pasting a little on Eileen Herlie. She is one of the last of her kind. Literally a dying breed.

Daytime mainstay Eileen Herlie, who played the wise Myrtle Fargate for 32 years on ABC's "All My Children," died Wednesday, ABC has announced. Her death came from complications from pneumonia. She was 90 years old. (it was dated Thurs., Oct 9th)
Eileen Herlie joined the cast of All My Children in 1976, playing the role of Myrtle Fargate.
Born and raised in Glasgow, Scotland, Ms. Herlie worked for several years in the Scottish National Theatre and in the English theater in the company of Tyrone Guthrie. Among her first hit plays on the London stage was Jean Cocteau's The Eagle Has Two Heads.
On Broadway, she starred as Queen Gertrude opposite Richard Burton's Hamlet and played the same role in the film with Sir Laurence Olivier. She also starred on Broadway with Ruth Gordon in The Matchmaker, with Jackie Gleason and Walter Pidgeon in Take Me Along, with Ray Bolger in All American, and as Queen Mary in Crown Matrimonial. Ms. Herlie's other film credits include Freud with Montgomery Clift and Sidney Lumet's The Seagull with Simone Signoret.
Ms. Herlie guest starred as Myrtle Fargate on two other ABC daytime dramas, Loving and One Life To Live.

WHO WANTS CAKE?

About seven years ago (give or take a year or so) I told one of my best friends that I wasn’t happy at the law firm where I was working back then. She said that maybe I was just burned out and needed a career change. She suggested I apply for a job where she worked. She worked for a bank. Long story short, I ended up working there too. I was in the trust department. Man, I hated that job. Crunching numbers all day long. I bet I didn’t type 10 letters in the six months I worked there. I love to type but crunching numbers? YUCK. I realized I had made a mistake. I actually missed working for a law firm. I was really out of my comfort zone. So I found a job with a law firm and gave two weeks notice with the bank. On my last day, the trust department had a little party for me and there were streamers and a little cake. The party was in a room which was located in the back of the trust department. My desk was in the front. Anyway, after the party was pretty much over, I want back to my desk. I could see the elevator from my desk. The elevator rang, the door opened, and this girl got out and walked up to my desk. I had never seen her before. She asked me if I was Kelly. I said yes. She said that she had heard that it was my last day with the bank. I told her yes. She said that she wanted to "give me her best wishes and hoped I did well in whatever endeavors I took on." I said thank you. Then we just looked at each other. I mean, I didn’t know her and I didn’t know what else to say. There was an uncomfortable silence and then she said.......was there a cake? NO WAY. She didn’t care what happened to me. She just wanted a piece of cake. So I pointed to the room down the hall. She said thank you and flounced down the hall. In a few minutes, she walked by me with a plate, fork, and yeah, a piece of cake. She walked right by me, never even looked my way, jumped on the elevator and left. That’s what I call having your cake and eating it too!!!!!!

SEE! I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE!

I BET THEY THOUGHT IT WAS A SIAMESE TOO!

DAVID JACOBS, I MISS YOU!

This coming August will be 30 years since I’ve been in the work force. Most of that time, I’ve worked for attorneys. Small firms, large firms, I’ve done it all. About five years ago, I was the manager of a whole floor in one of the skyscrapers in downtown Little Rock. This floor had offices for rent and most of the tenants were attorneys. I was in charge of showing the empty offices to perspective renters (had to have a real estate license for that), collecting monthly rent, as well as the phone answering, typing and mailing of correspondence for the whole floor. I was also the manager of two employees – another typist besides me and a receptionist. Most of the tenants didn’t have secretaries and they depended on us for just about everything. There were some really interesting characters on the floor.

I don’t usually name names in my blog, but I’m breaking my rule today. David Jacobs was one of my favorite tenants. I just loved him to death. He passed away shortly after I stopped working there. If you read my blog, you can see that I’m a big Faye and Jonathan Kellerman fan. I’ve been reading Faye’s books for a while now. I’m reading her 19th book right now. I only have about four more left of hers to read. After I finish those, I’m going to start reading Jonathan’s books.

David Jacobs also read Faye and Jonathan and every time he would finish one of their new books, he would just bring it to work and give it to me. Faye writes about a detective and his wife and they are Jewish. I have really enjoyed her books because I knew nothing about the Jewish faith before. I find the Jewish aspects of these books really interesting. David Jacobs was Jewish and we used to talk about the books after I read them. I recently finished Faye’s book "Street Dreams" and at one point while reading, I caught myself thinking that I couldn’t wait to discuss this book with David. Then I remembered he was gone. I’ll never get to talk to David about the Kellerman books again. Gee, it’s sad when you lose a friend. I really miss him.

RAINY DAY VIDEO

ARTIST - The Jayhawks
SONG - Save it for a Rainy Day

Okay, guys, I know that drive to work was not fun for you in this rain. I live 18 miles out. YUCK. So here's a song for a rainy day like today.

BOOK REVIEW

AUTHOR - Faye and Jonathan Kellerman
TITLE - Double Homicide (Boston and Sante Fe)

This is such a cool concept! Faye Kellerman and her husband, Jonathan, are two authors that I really enjoy reading. They both write murder/mystery novels. They teamed up for Double Homicide which is actually two books in one. As you can see from the cover above, you read one book and then flip it over to read the other one. Both books were interesting. They have a son, Jesse Kellerman, who writes mystery novels also.

ON A SCALE OF 1 THROUGH 10:

8

WEIRD WACKY WEDNESDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY (Explicit Lyrics)

ARTIST - KELLY
SONG - SHOES

Okay, this has some cuss words in it but it's one of my favorite videos. Can't stop laughing when I watch it.

TWO FOR TUESDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY - PART II

ARTIST - THE CULT
SONG - SHE SELLS SANCTUARY

This one's for The Editor.

TWO FOR TUESDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY - PART 1

ARTIST - THE CULT
SONG - HERE COMES THE RAIN

Because it's raining and I miss these guys!

BOOK REVIEW

TITLE: Street Dreams

AUTHOR: Faye Kellerman

ON A SCALE OF 1 - 10:

9

HAPPY MONDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - LORETTA LYNN FEATURING JACK WHITE OF THE WHITE STRIPES
SONG - PORTLAND, OREGON

Man, this is just soooooo cool!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BEN!

ARTIST - SPARKLEHORSE
SONG - GOLD DAY

22 years ago today, I gave birth to the best thing that ever happened to me. The video to this song is a little strange but the words and melody always make me tear up. My son has a lot of responsibility running the restaurant, sometimes he gets really tired, and I know, like the song says, sometimes it can weigh a ton, but he handles the responsibility well. My job of raising him is pretty much at an end and my wish and hope for him is as Sparklehorse so eloquently puts it: may all your days be gold my child.



good morning my child
stay with me a while
you not got any place to be
won't you sit a spell with me

you've got diamonds for eyes
it's time for you to rise
and evaporate
in the sun
sometimes it can weigh
a ton

keep all your crows away
hold skinny wolves at bay
in silver piles of smiles
may all your days be gold my child

a necklace of leaves
spirits in the trees
and drown all the clocks 'til there's none
little ambient in the sun

keep all your crows away
hold skinny wolves at bay
in silver piles of smiles
may all your days be gold my child

ha-ah, ha-ah, ha-ah, hah-ahh

good morning my child
stay with me a while
and evaporate in the sun
sometimes it can weigh a ton

keep all your crows away
hold skinny wolves at bay
in silver piles of smiles
may all your days be gold my child

REFRIGERATOR POETRY!!!!!

So I went to the Argenta Neighborhood Yard Sale last Saturday. I bought this little plastic box called Magnetic Poetry Kit. The instructions said it had over 400 magnetic words. I put all the words alphabetically on the left side of the refrigerator and I told The Editor we could make sentences, poems, etc. on the right side of the refrigerator. So I’m thinking that I have a little too much time on my hands since it took me quite a while to alphabetize these magnetic words. And The Editor said he thought I was being a little obsessive when I told him I counted them and there were 437 words in the little plastic box. And his eyebrows really went up when I said that meant I spent less than a penny on each letter. But, in my defense, guess who the first person was to formulate a sentence on the right side of the fridge? Yep, that’s right. The Editor. He, he, he, he.

WATCH OUT FOR STRAY BULLETS!!!

So tomorrow is my son's birthday and hunting season is starting which makes me think of when I used to have birthday parties for my son when he was little. My mom and dad live 4 hours away. Every year, I would invite them to come to his party, and every year they would turn me down. Reason: My mom was afraid they would get hit by a stray bullet while they were driving. Of course, after a couple of weeks, the story would change and it would be that I didn't have the party at a good time for them to attend which made no sense at all because I always had his party on a Saturday afternoon.

Darn those pesky hunters!!!!!!!

FUN FRIDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - EAGLES OF DEATH METAL
SONG - SPEAKING ON TONGUES

LET'S DANCE EVERYBODY!

SHOE SHINE BOY

One time, when I was about five years old, my mom took me down to the barbershop to visit my dad. He had just hired a shoe shine boy. The boy was sitting in a chair in the back of the shop. I walked up to him and said, hi, what's your name? He said, my name is Jimmy. I crawled up in his lap and said, well...........I think I'll just call you honey. My dad said he was so embarrassed he "just bout died." :)

THE RIGHT DOLL

When I was a little girl, my mom and dad would give me the Sears Roebuck catalog and let me pick out stuff for X-Mas. One year, I picked out a doll I wanted. There were two pictures of the same doll....one was black, one was white. I wanted the black doll. I went to my mom and dad and showed them the doll. They said I couldn’t have the black doll but I could have the white doll. I didn’t understand but I didn’t ask them why not. I wasn’t one to ask questions when I was a child. Now that I’m grown, I still don’t understand why I couldn’t have that black baby doll. Only difference is now that I’m grown, I ask questions. The election has brought all this back to me. Question: What is the difference between a black doll and a white doll? Answer: The only difference between the dolls is the color. They are made exactly the same.
One of the merriam webster definitions of prejudice is an irrational attitude of hostility directed against an individual, a group, a race, or their supposed characteristics.
If you didn’t vote for Obama because you thought who you did vote for would do a better job for our country, I can understand that. But if you didn’t vote for Obama because of the color of his skin.....well......that just makes me sad.

STRANGE THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

In the twelve years I was married to Sadistic Mama’s Boy, he had several jobs. Dude could not keep a job. I decided after a few years of marriage that he was just allergic to work. All the big news stories that happened while I was married to him – I would call him from work and tell him to turn on the TV and let me know what was happening because he was never working. He was at home, sitting with the channel changer or sleeping. He was unemployed for The Oklahoma Bombing, The O.J. Simpson Trial, 9/11, etc., all while I was supporting us financially. He was really good at getting jobs...just couldn’t keep one. You know that saying I can count on one hand...well, to count the many jobs he had, I would have to take off both shoes and count my toes after I counted off the fingers of both hands. But if I counted the number of years he was employed while we were married, I think I would make it to the second hand but just barely. After a while, he couldn’t get a job at all because his resume looked like a roadmap.
Anyway, I just had a strange memory come to mind today about one of his jobs. He worked for a short time for this store in Park Plaza called Suncoast Motion Pictures. It’s not there anymore but it was a store that sold videos. Not used videos, new ones. Movies, sitcoms, etc. along with movie-related cups, toy figures and t-shirts. Anyway, I guess the owners were really concerned about theft so each day at closing, when the employees locked up the store and left, they had to raise up their pant legs and show each other their socks to make sure nobody was smuggling merchandise in their socks. Isn’t that strange? Yeah, I know, what a strange, random, thing for me to remember.

SO WHO WAS THIS OLD LADY, ANYWAY?

Saturday night, at The Reporter’s going away party, I told this story and everybody said I should put it on the blog so here goes. When I was a little girl, my dad didn’t have a phone in the barbershop. Customers just showed up and waited their turn. About every two or three months, my dad would get this phone call at home from an old lady. I can’t remember her name so I’ll just call her Ms. Selby. She would call at night, not late, 7:00 p.m. or so, and she’d say, Mr. Sherrell, this is Ms. Selby and I’m sending the boys down tomorrow for a haircut. Dad would always say okay, Ms. Selby, send them on down. The first few times she called, he didn’t ask any questions, he would just wait the next day for the boys to show up but they never did. This went on for 20 years or so. As time went on, Dad tried asking her all kinds of questions like, Mrs. Selby, what’s the boys’ names, how old are they, are they walking to the barbershop or are you driving them down? But she never would answer his questions, just kept saying she was sending them down and then she’d just hang up. After about 20 years, the calls just stopped. Dad said she sounded old in the beginning so he just figured the calls stopped because she died. His theory was that the boys were probably grown when she started calling and that she was senile. Back then, they didn’t really call it Dementia or Alzheimer. But, on the other hand, she remembered Dad’s number and called him by his last name. Dad tried to look her up in the phone book, no luck. He asked his customers about her, no luck there either. West Plains was a small town when I was a kid, I mean, everybody knew everybody, but nobody knew a Ms. Selby.
Somebody at the party Saturday night thought maybe she was a ghost. What do you think?

UPBEAT THURSDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - OF MONTREAL
SONG - DISCONNECT THE DOTS

Still sticking to the theme of it's my Son's birthday Saturday and I'm pickings songs that he and I love. Hope you enjoy this one. Just try not to tap your feet! :)

THINGS THAT SCARE ME!!!!!!

I'm afraid of midgets. Absolutely scared to death of them. I know, that's prejudice. It's not like they're clowns. Clowns are not real. Midgets are. But I can't help it. Freaks me out. And these guys are the scariest of all. Take a band that I idolized when I was a teenager.......mix that with something I'm scared to death of......shake, shake, shake............MINI KISS!!!! Woo hoo.

There's absolutely nothing right about this band. First of all, they lip sync to KISS songs. Yep, can't even play instruments. Their little guitars are made out of cardboard. And their scary shoes..........tennis shoes with monster faces painted on.

I ran into these guys once.........or should I say ran over these guys.....several years ago....back when I used to drink......two in the morning.....in a bar.....I was drunk..........it wasn't pretty.

I still feel pretty guilty for being scared of midgets. But a little better since I found out that this girl I work with throws up when she sees a midget! Someday I'll blog about what happened to me when I was a kid to make me scared of them. Can only blog about Mini KISS today, folks. My midget phobia will have to be blogged out a little at a time. Um....no pun intended.

BOOK REVIEW

TITLE: Memoirs of a Geisha

AUTHOR: Arthur Golden

ON A SCALE OF 1 - 10:

8

HAPPY!

I’m just plain old happy today. My son is doing well and we are closer now than ever. He’s turning 22 Saturday. He has a great girlfriend that I think the world of and last weekend they both moved in across the street from The Editor. The Editor is just priceless. My friends are awesome. My job is going well, my dogs are the sweetest things ever. We have elected a new president that shows great promise. It’s November, the month of Thanksgiving and I’m feeling very happy and thankful today. It has taken me 47 years to get to a point where I feel truly happy and blessed and at peace.

WEIRD WACKY WEDNESDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - WEEN
SONG - PUSH TH' LITTLE DAISIES

Saturday is my son's 22nd birthday. This was one of his favorite songs when he was little and I love it too. And it's perfect for Weird Wacky Wednesday. :)

HAPPY GIRL

Another one of my favorite people in Argenta is the Engineer’s daughter. I call her Happy Girl. I only had one child - a boy, and he’s not a boy any longer. His 22nd birthday is Saturday. But, if I’d had a little girl........I would have wanted one just like Happy Girl. She is just what you think of when you think of a little girl. She has the sweetest nature and is just a good kid. I really admire the Engineer because he takes a genuine interest in Happy Girl. He is what a father is supposed to be. Sometimes I don’t understand why people want to have children but then don’t spend time raising them – don’t enjoy their company. The Engineer gets the real meaning of having a child. He gets a real kick out of the things that Happy Girl says and does. It’s just so nice to see a father and daughter like them. My dad and I were always really close and I was my dad’s running buddy. I think of daddy when I see The Engineer and Happy Girl out and about together.

Here’s a funny story about Happy Girl. The Editor had a party Saturday night for his friend The Reporter. The Reporter is The Editor’s best friend and is moving back to New York. The Editor and I are very sad and wish he wouldn’t go. I’m gonna miss The Reporter but I’m especially sad for The Editor because he is dearly gonna miss The Reporter. Anyway, when everybody got to the party Saturday night, I was running behind. I was in The Editor’s kitchen making a cake. The Engineer and Happy Girl showed up and Happy Girl wanted to help me make the cake. She helped me break the eggs, stir sugar and sour cream, add oil, etc. Here’s part of the conversation we had Saturday night while making the cake:

Happy Girl: Are you and The Editor brother and sister?

Me: No. We’re boyfriend/girlfriend.

Happy Girl: How long have you guys been dating?

Me: Over a year now.

Happy Girl: Do you think you’ll get married?

Me: Um, well, Happy Girl, see, The Editor was married for a long time to somebody else and I was married for a long time to somebody else. Both marriages ended up being pretty long and painful and when you’re married for a long time like that and it doesn’t work out....you’re not in a real hurry to get back into a marriage again. I think The Editor and I are just enjoying dating, having fun, and just being good to and for each other.

Happy Girl: How long was The Editor married?

Me: 16 years.

Happy Girl’s mouth fell open and her eyes were as big as saucers!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Girl: MY GOSH....HOW OLD IS HE ANYWAY?

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!

Now, The Editor is ONLY 41 but I know what Happy Girl was thinking. Let’s face it....we’re just plain old in the eyes of Happy Girl. Heck, the winter of the year my dad turned 40, we had this really big snow and he took me sledding. He was running with the sled, threw the sled down, landed on top of it, and broke his collarbone. I remember thinking to myself, yep, he’s 40 and his bones are brittle now.

The Engineer said that he and Happy Girl came by The Editor’s house Halloween night but, alas, we had already left to go out and about. I’m sorry that I missed her because I’m sure she would have put a big smile on my face and made me laugh like she always does!

BEER DUDE

There are many colorful people in Argenta but none so much as Beer Dude. I call him Beer Dude because he owns a liquor store and whenever Argenta has an event where beer is needed, Beer Dude is the one to get in touch with. Beer Dude has several sides to his personality. I’m not talking Sybil here, people. I’m talking multi-faceted. I mean, I could have picked several names for this guy. Skateboarder Dude, Party Guy, Birthday Dog Owner, Leg Lamp Man, the possibilities are endless. Whenever something fun is going on in Argenta, Beer Dude is there. When The Editor and I go out to do something fun, we just about always run into Beer Dude. I don’t know him very well but he always makes me smile, and usually makes me laugh, when I see him. I’ve never seen him without a big friendly smile on his face and he is just the coolest guy to talk to. Down to earth, funny, yet smart too.

Things I know about Beer Dude:

1. He owns a liquor store.

2. He skateboards.

3. They say he has a birthday party for his dog every year. The Editor and I went to the one he had last year for his dog. Beer Dude provided food, liquor, a band and everyone brought their dog too. The Beer Dude’s backyard was full of dogs. That was just the ultimate for me. I love dogs. You know how when most women go to a family reunion, they seek out all the newborn babies? Not me. I’m lookin’ for dogs. It was great fun. Heck, Mayor Hayes was there and gave Beer Dude a plaque that I think declared that day Beer Dude’s Dog’s day in North Little Rock.

4. You know the movie "A Christmas Story"? The Editor and I were driving down the road last X-Mas, I looked over into the picture window of this house and yelled "STOP". The Editor slammed on the brakes. There it was in the picture window. A MAJOR AWARD!! FRAGILE!! Yep, a leg lamp......tassels, panty hose and all. Shining brightly in the picture window of Beer Dude’s house.

Anyway, now that you know a little about Beer Dude (you Argenitals know a lot more than me, I suspect and I wish you’d leave comments) I’ll tell ya my latest Beer Dude story. Halloween night, The Editor and I were walking down the road about 8:30 p.m. We had ridden the trolley from the restaurant my son manages in Little Rock to the trolley stop in Argenta and we were walking the rest of the way to The Editor’s house. It was dark and quiet....a few trick-or-treaters on the sidewalks where we were walking.....the perfect Halloween setting. We see this old man coming down the middle of the street in a kinda electric wheelchair thingie. He has a robe on and his hair is just this comb-over mess. We can’t help but look at him, our eyebrows up....I mean, it’s not everyday you see an old man going down the middle of the street at night in a wheelchair thingie. The Editor and I didn’t say a thing to each other. I think we were speechless. He’s going pretty slow....he looks over at us....he says, "How you folks doing tonight?" We say we’re fine (in that quiet voice you use when you think you’re talking to a weird stranger - ya don’t wanna be unfriendly but ya sure don’t wanna be too friendly) and we start to continue on. But he turns his contraption towards us and slowly starts coming right for us. We’re not sure what to do.....we just stand there....still speechless. He stops and says, "you don’t know who I am, do you?" I didn’t have a clue. The Editor squenches his eyes up and says, "Beer Dude"? At this point, the old man jumps up, grabs his robe and flashes us. Under his robe is a t-shirt that says "Old Men Rule." By this time, I'm just doubled over with laugher. He tells us he is on his way to a local restaurant/bar that is having a costume party. Says he has a blowup doll that he’s left at the restaurant. I don’t know if Beer Dude won, but he should have. I took the picture above. Priceless.

I went to the Argenta neighborhood yard sale the next morning. Somebody told me that they saw Beer Dude later that night, hovering back towards his house with a passenger aboard - the blowup doll.

CITY MOUSE, COUNTRY MOUSE

So th Editor and I have been dating for over a year now and today I’m thinking about how fond I’ve grown of the community The Editor lives in. I’m a country mouse and The Editor is a city mouse. I live in Saline County - East End. He lives in Pulaski County - North Little Rock - Argenta. Now don’t get me wrong, I love living in the country, wouldn’t go back to the city for anything, but dating The Editor is like having the best of both worlds. Over the twelve months plus we’ve been together, I’ve met several of the people in the Argenta community. I’ve lived in several communities in the 30 years I’ve been around Little Rock and North Little Rock but I’ve never experienced a community like Argenta before. Everyone is friendly, helpful, smart, funny, and very creative/artistic. The residents of Argenta are what make downtown North Little Rock so special and unique. They have worked very hard to make Argenta what it is today. To me, it’s like a small town within a big city. My life is better for having met each and every one of them and I’ve decided that I’d like to blog about some of them from time to time. I won’t use real names but you guys know who you are and I hope you don’t mind seeing yourselves through my eyes.

COME ON EVERYBODY, GET OUT THERE AND VOTE!!!!!

ARTIST - ARCADIA
SONG - ELECTION DAY

QUOTE OF THE DAY!

Grief is a most peculiar thing: we’re so helpless in the face of it. It’s like a window that will simply open of its own accord. The room grows cold, and we can do nothing but shiver. But it opens a little less each time, and a little less; and one day we wonder what has become of it.

BOOK - Memoirs of a Geisha

AUTHOR - Arthur Golden

SMACKOVER, ARKANSAS

CAN YOU GUYS SAY SMACKOVER WITHOUT SMILING?

HAPPY MONDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - LYKKE LI
SONG - LITTLE BIT

So, I'm having trouble waking up this morning. Thought maybe you are too! Here's a laid back song to get us started! Have a good Monday!

SLEEPY SUNDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - THE PEARLFISHERS
SONG - EVEN ON A SUNDAY AFTERNOON

SUPER SATURDAY - VIDEO OF THE DAY

ARTIST - SUPERDRAG
SONG - SUCKED OUT