My Bombardier's A Dope....

Dialogue that is still amusing me months later....

Louis Zamperini: NOW you're praying?
Phil: I was busy before.
Louis Zamperini: My mother does that sometimes.
Phil: Yeah... a lot of people do this.
Louis Zamperini: He say anything back?
Phil: Yeah.
Louis Zamperini: What?
Phil: He says my bombardier's a dope.
Louis Zamperini: ...Really? 

Slightly biased because of the actor that played Phil but the delivery of the line was perfect!



 

Phrases....

Tidbits...

Drops from my brain while sitting and enjoying the mountains last August.  (unfortunately it does not translate well - the feeling is lost)

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Jūtu vēju par visu

Turos pie zemes ar kājām, ar prātu

Gars ir priecigs kad ir miers

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Zils, Zils, Zils – ar vēju un smaidu.

Vejš apkampa un aicina

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Tikai saprašana

Tikai tā momenta ir svariga – tas ir visums un pasaule – nekas vairs nav.

Neko citu nevajag, jo viskas ir šajā brīdī

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 Aplis sarkani deg - ikviens ir laimīgs

Avots ir pilns ar labvēlību

Var smelt visu dienu – aka ir pilna

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Dream...

I had the strangest dream the other night...

You were hosting a "Big Little Christmas" party.
Your girlfriend was the one that I had suggested for you years ago.
Three piece suits were all around.
We danced a lot - body and conversation wise.
An ice cream truck drove into the restaurant as part of the festivities.

It was bizarre...

Life's Adventures...

Last night I dressed in a bear costume to present a gift at a retirement party...yup, you read that right.  Of course I hammed it up!

Not quite something that I had on my life checklist but I'm glad that I did it.

Tongue Biter!

I have this bad habit of biting my tongue when I concentrate - especially when hiking. 

I keep thinking that it's only a matter of time before it gets bitten off.

Luckily I hike with people that make sure that I talk and laugh a whole lot.   

It's possible that the universe may have a hidden agenda to protect my tongue from my own self....

Well, at least for this weekend...

 

Progression of Names...

One of the main reasons that I enjoy Christopher Moore’s books (besides the zany topics) is that he just takes his story telling to another level.

In “A Dirty Job”, they were trying to track down a girl and one character very surely announced that the girl was a stripper.  

When asked why he was so sure, he replied:

“Yeah, and there's sort of a progression going back to the fifties: 

Bubbles, Boom Boom, and Blaze 

Begat Bambi, Candy, and Jewel

Who begat Sunshine, Brandy, and Cinnamon

Who begat Amber, Brittany, and Brie

Who begat Reagan, Morgan, and Madison.  

Madison is a stripper name."

Yup, a whole other level….

Serendipity...

Quite the happy surprise to find this in my travels - it's a recent addition to Weird NJ! 

Smatterings....

Smatterings That I Meant to Blog About….But Didn’t…

Weeklong celebration of my birthday - dinner with TGP's parents, 16 megapixels of fun, Ren Faire, my family get together and presents!

Hurricane flooding aftershocks – have to wonder if the people are panicking every time it rains

The memories that pumpkin spice coffee pulls from the far reaches of my mind.

My adventurer spirit – just pack up and go. I do like to plan ahead but the logistics do not drive me crazy for a spur of the moment road trip.

Glimpses...Part 2...

Glimpses of the end of 2011...

Glimpses...

December 2011 in random pix....

Dinner on the Run?

Did I just see a rooster??



Say what?

It was not the beer talking...there was a rooster and a hen on the way to the Monastery!

Random Thought....

"Always do you best"


"Try it all"


"You can succeed"





Hey Playtex Sport....it is a tampon, not a fortune cookie!!

Paper and Ink...

I have rediscovered the library…mainly because you can request books from the entire county online!

As a result, I have the opportunity to read a bunch of books that I have always had interest in but did not necessarily want to purchase….

The topics range from Historic Ruins of the Hudson Valley to Kat Von D’s books to the Disney Secrets to others…

I am currently reading Mouse Under Glass – Secrets of Disney Animation and Theme Parks by David Koenig. Lots of fun tidbits and of course I latch onto the pirate stuff…


There are 20 types of deviant behavior promoted by the Pirates of the Carribean theme song “Yo Ho (A Pirate’s Life For Me)”. The author points out that many of the deeds seem redundant, but here they are:



Plundering
Pillaging
Rifling
Looting
Kidnapping
Ravaging
Extorting
Pilfering
Filching
Sacking
Marauding
Embzzeling
Hijacking
Kindling
Charring
Inflaming
Igniting
Burning up the city
Begging
And of course drinking up, me hearties, yo ho!


If you are interested in what I have been reading and have read, click on the Goodreads link to the right – it will bring you to my bookshelf!

99....Not The Restaurant...

Now on to something light while I try to pull together some entries about the recent big outings!

I have seen this on a few blogs so I decided to give it a whirl – bolded the ones that I have done and added my commentary – enjoy!


1. Started your own blog – Ayup, you’re reading it!

2. Slept under the stars - Of course

3. Played in a band – Marching, jazz and concert

4. Visited Hawaii – I would like to! And then I can sing “Down among the sheltering palms, oh honey wait for me!”

5. Watched a meteor shower – Twice – once in Maine on a family vacation and sitting on a Florida beach at night watching a thunderstorm to the left of me and a meteor shower to the right of me.

6. Given more than you can afford to charity – the band needed new uniforms and I charged it to my alumni credit card so it was kinda like a double dip….come to think of it, I never did get my pillow made of the old uniform…

7. Been to Disney World – Oh hells yeah and I wanna go back!!

8. Climbed a mountain – Hunter Mountain is the big one that I remember as a young’un…..and there are a few others in recent history, like High Point in NJ

9. Held a praying mantis - Nope

10. Sang a solo – A few times, in Latin and Latvian

11. Bungee jumped – Nuh-uh….scared to do it.

12. Visited Paris – nope, not really high on my travel wish list.

13. Watched a lightning storm – Yup!

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch – I vote that scrapbooking counts as an art!

15. Adopted a child - No but I did entertain the idea of ransoming one to help pay my college tuiton

16. Had food poisoning – Ugh, yes.

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty – No, but now that it is open again, I want to.

18. Grown your own vegetables – they grow in the yard of the house that I live in, does that count?

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France – Only in print and the Da Vinci Code…

20. Slept on an overnight train – Nope

21. Had a pillow fight – It was a legitimate contest during summer camp!

22. Hitch hiked – No, no and no

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill – mainly for job interviews

24. Built a snow fort – Somewhere along the line as a kid

25. Held a lamb – last summer, I was photographed holding the weird looking dog - lol

26. Gone skinny dipping - nope

27. Run a Marathon – No running unless chased by a man with a chainsaw….

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice - Nope

29. Seen a total eclipse – OMG, I love the Twilight saga!! Oh wait…..total eclipse…whoops…I have seen that too.

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset – Another great movie! Oh, not the Ethan Hawke & Julie Delpy movies….of course I have seen both sunrises and sunsets.

31. Hit a home run - No

32. Been on a cruise – No, but it is also on the wish list! And I probably would come back having gained 30 pounds

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person – Yup, even crossed the bridge where I had to pay a quarter and declare that I was from the U.S. of A in order to get back in the country.

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors – Not yet, on the travel list now that it is not full of Commies.

35. Seen an Amish community – summer camp as a teen was in Bethlehem, PA, so yes

36. Taught yourself a new language – I channeled my high school Spanish classes in order to communicate with the housekeeping staff years ago and now I am starting up French. (hmm, I should maybe put Paris higher up on the list if I learn the language…)

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied – When I did, I did not realize it and spent it…

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person - Nope

39. Gone rock climbing – No rock climbing per se but did a rock scramble during a hike last spring….and my trail name has something to do with rocks!

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David - Nope

41. Sung karaoke – Oh yeah – many, many times….and I enjoy it!

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt - Nope

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant – Nope

44. Visited Africa – Nope

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight – I prefer the beach at night, no potential for sunburn!!

46. Been transported in an ambulance – Thankfully no

47. Had your portrait painted – I have a chalk drawing that was done in London….not really paint though

48. Gone deep sea fishing – No, the hooks involved in fishing scare me – you could lose an eye!!!

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris – Nope

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling – Nope, can’t hold my breath underwater without holding my nose so there is a chance for some major panic doing these two things

52. Kissed in the rain - Yup

53. Played in the mud - it's called Oozeball!!!
(I kept Chele76’s answer because it was my one time to play in the mud too!)

54. Gone to a drive-in theater – Twice in my life, I would like to go more!

55. Been in a movie – Does the UCMB documentary count? Figured as much – nope.

56. Visited the Great Wall of China – Nope.

57. Started a business – Ebay selling counts!

58. Taken a martial arts class – Brown belt in kajukenbo…I do miss it but the time commitment was ridiculous.

59. Visited Russia – Nope, too many Commies

60. Served at a soup kitchen - Nope

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies – Nope but I do love me some samoas!

62. Gone whale watching - Nope.

63. Got flowers for no reason – A few times and I always smile

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma – Blood, I am the universal donor.

65. Gone sky diving – No, I have toyed with the idea but I think that I would be screaming the first 200 feet

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp - Nope

67. Bounced a check – Once in my early twenties

68. Flown in a helicopter - Nope

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy – Of course, my M-O-M has a few of mine too. (the clackey dog and wobbly apple, I believe)

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial – 8th grade trip to DC!

71. Eaten Caviar - Yup

72. Pieced a quilt – Nope

73. Stood in Times Square – A whole lotta times

74. Toured the Everglades – Dem gators are big!!

75. Been fired from a job – Unfortunately but it all worked out for the best in the long run.

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London - Yup.

77. Broken a bone – Thankfully no

78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle – Once and I realized how much of a control freak I am.

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person – Flew over it when my flight from Vegas was diverted due to storms in the Midwest

80. Published a book - Nope

81. Visited the Vatican – Nope

82. Bought a brand new car – Once - my Black ThunderCloud – a Ford that was made in Mexico
83. Walked in Jerusalem - Nope

84. Had your picture in the newspaper – Oh yeah and that is not counting the Daily Campus

85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve – define kiss…..it was a smooch on the cheek from a friend’s friends who I had spent part of the evening trying to scare….does that count as a stranger?

86. Visited the White House – Only outside

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating - Nope

88. Had chickenpox – Yup, shared it with my brother too, my dad had never had it so he evacuated and his mom came to help….and she got shingles as a result

89. Saved someone’s life – Physically no, but I have been told that me coming into their lives changed it profoundly.

90. Sat on a jury – 3 days a week for 9 weeks about 6 years ago, I was on a Grand Jury – learned that drug dealers always deal near a school, run from the cops, hit the cop when caught and give a false name….adding four more charges

91. Met someone famous – Back in my mall days we had a constant stream of celebrities coming in to do book signings and performances – the ones that stand out from an interaction standpoint are Dan Akroyd, Jim Belushi, James Earl Jones, BBMak, Rick Springfield, Sean Hannity, Faith Evans and Russell and Kimora Lee Simmons

92. Joined a book club – Nope, I have problems finding time to read and this would just cause me undue anxiety about finishing it on time

93. Got a tattoo – Yup and have ideas for the second one

94. Had a baby - Nope

95. Seen the Alamo in person - Nope

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake - Nope

97. Been involved in a law suit – Does a class action suit count?

98. Owned a cell phone – Amazing how we freak out now if we leave the house without it!

99. Been stung by a bee – stepped on one as a kid – not pleasant

Ebb and Flow…

Be forewarned….this may sound a bit flakey but I think that I was able to get the gist across…

The thought started when I brought home an empty Ortega salsa jar from TGP’s. The full jar already had made me happy - part of a sale and with coupon cost me about 50 cents. I rinsed it out and it is sitting there waiting to be put in the recycle bin. My mom was finishing up making marinated roasted red peppers as part of my dad’s birthday gift…..now she needed a jar. How odd/cosmic/interesting that I happen to arrive home with the jar that she needed about 5 minutes before she needed it.

I believe that the Universe has a lovely ebb and flow of stuff – for actual physical stuff.

I joined Freecycle a few years ago and have benefited from both aspects of it – getting rid of things as well as receiving things that could be of use.

The extra coffee table that I did not have room for went to a woman who was starting out on her own after getting out of an abusive marriage and had nothing to her name.

My street hockey stick went to a kid whose mom was trying to get him to exercise more and this was the only sport where kids did not make fun of him and he wanted to keep on doing it.

I was able to pass on a Bumbo seat to a co-worker that could not afford one to have at her home for her niece that she babysat.

I was able to get about 60 egg cartons for the woman who sells farm fresh eggs - I have been the lucky recipient of free eggs before I got these cartons for her and I saw it as a way to say thank you since she will not take money for the eggs from us (family friend).

I was able to get a bunch of adult diapers for our family’s use.

There are more …..

Put it out there folks, things that you need will come to you and you will be passing your unwanted items to people that can use them…

Random Memory...

Back in grammar school, one of our class projects was a balloon release. Attached was a card with our name, school information as well as a request to mail the card back letting us know where i
it was found.

Obviously this was back when releasing balloons was not recognized as a hazard to the environment and it was still thought of as safe to send children’s information out into the world.

One of the main reasons that I still have that card is because my balloon went the furthest.

The whole point of sharing this memory?

I realized the other day that I now work in the town in which my balloon landed….

Weird, huh?

I Think I Can...

I have a day off…..

Here’s my ambitious “To Do” list…. in no particular order…

Package Ebay items to ship out
Post office trip
Write out, label, sticker and send 71 Christmas Cards
Wrap presents
Laundry
Call Medicare to figure out why they did not cover grandma’s EKG (and most likely file a claim)
Fill out bank form for Dad
Set up work 401K withdrawls
Shoprite trip
Make meatballs for Mom’s work Christmas party
Lunch with TGP
Follow-up notecards from Latvian sorority meeting
FInd a flight for oldest FL monkey to come visit
Pay bills
Balance checkbook
Bed, Bath & Beyond Trip
Bank trip
CVS dealsmithing
Walgreens dealsmithing
Target trip
WW meeting
Set up desk blotter calendar for home
Pull stuff from storage
Upload pix to Snapfish
Upload pix to Facebook
Find a new blog background
Change emails to Gmail addys
Get rid of more of the "notes to self"
Dunkin Donuts trip (to buy presents not coffee)
Rite Aid dealsmithing
Play on Facebook
Catch up on Twitter

Fingers crossed I get most of it done!!

Boujolais Nouveau...

I know that this may seem silly but it has been cracking me up all day….

The 2010 Boujolais Nouveau shipments have created a conflict of interest for me…they are interfering with my cargo!! (turns out they get priority on booking cargo space this time of year)

I like the wine and I want it to make it into the country...

But my customers need their products...

But I like the wine...

But the customer’s sales pay my salary….

See…it just cracks me up….

So Kids, what have we learned today?

I rock at doing my job because I take REALLY good notes. (that and a healthy fear of screwing up things in the almighty computer system helps too)

Even after 5 years, four moves and a lack of artificial sunlight, the lone bamboo stalk survives.

French men are very charming.

I can make even the most stoic people chuckle.

I can decipher most ESL essays when the person with the degree in it is stuck.

It is always better to snuggle on the cold evenings and mornings – whether it be with a person or a furball.

I don’t need to verify on FB what I already know, but it still makes me smile.

Despite some hearing damage due to years of marching band and being in drumline, I can hear what most people are whispering about.

I may be cheesy at times, but I am surrounded by the people that appreciate me and my sparkle.