~ New TSA Bumper Stickers ~

by Tina~in_ut

Cary Grant 1/18/1904 to 11/29/1986

by Maureen

Today marks the anniversary of the passing of the man, the legend, Cary Grant. On 11/29/1986 Cary Grant suffered a stroke and passed away in Davenport, Iowa where he was to perform his one man show  - An Evening With Cary Grant. His wife was by his side. His will directed that he be cremated and that there be no services. His wife scattered his ashes in So. Cal to honor his wishes. Cary Grant left behind his only daughter Jennifer Grant, who later went on to have a son named Cary Benjamin Grant.

I thought it would be fun to list some of the quotes made famous by Mr. Grant. I enjoyed reading them and I hope you do, too.

Everyone wants to be Cary Grant. Even I want to be Cary Grant.
I pretended to be somebody I wanted to be until finally I became that person. Or he became me. Do your job and demand your compensation - but in that order.

I think that making love is the best form of exercise.
Insanity runs in my family. It practically gallops.
My formula for living is quite simple. I get up in the morning and I go to bed at night. In between, I occupy myself as best I can.
To succeed with the opposite sex, tell her you're impotent. She can't wait to disprove it.
When people tell you how young you look, they are telling you how old you are.
I improve on misquotation.

There are lots more, but I didn't want to bore you more then you already are :)

PS...I've now seen 20 of his 72 movies!

~ Gold and Green ~

by Tina~in_ut

Someone, who shall be nameless, (di) got me the Sugarland Christmas CD last year.  I listened to it every day from June to September.  My family was so sick of it.  I love this song.  I couldn't wait to share it with you.

Atlantic City

it has become a tradition

after Thanksgiving we all head

to Atlantic City for an overnight stay

it's usually the Saturday after

so here it is 

there will be about 15 of us

meeting up first thing in the morning

and heading down the GSP 

towards our destination

it is about a 2hr drive

we have a chill day, and usually just 

enjoy each others company

starting with a long walk on the 

boardwalk

from there food, drink and gambling

and whatever else floats our boat

family, so fun, good times

many laughs, many hearts

many smiles

Black Friday

Its seems today is the day that all the crazies get up at 3AM to go shopping for all those oh so great deals. We see all the commercials, newspaper ads and e-mails advertising all the sales. I have seen and heard from many people that it is an absolute madhouse at some of these stores. I also hear some horror stories of some people getting trampled. 

I for one want no part of waking at 3AM, or shopping in terror! So I will stay in my turkey coma for the entire day, and be happy that I am not in any store, fighting my way thru. 

Are any of you one of the crazies?

Happy Thanksgiving

 On Thanksgiving Day we’re thankful for
Our blessings all year through,
For family we dearly love,
For good friends, old and new.  For sun to light and warm our days,
For stars that glow at night,
For trees of green and skies of blue,
And puffy clouds of white.  We’re grateful for our eyes that see
The beauty all around,
For arms to hug, and legs to walk,
And ears to hear each sound.  The list of all we’re grateful for
Would fill a great big book;
Our thankful hearts find new delights
Everywhere we look!

How much do YOU pay?

by Shirley

I 've been wondering for a while now how much things cost where you all live. So I decided to do a blog about it. (Jodi thought it would be a good idea too) I'm going to give you a list of products and I would like to know what you pay for them in your local grocery store. I will put the price that I pay next to the item. I hope I have the sizes right, cause I had to covert from metric. Which brings me to the question...Why isn't America using the Metric System like everyone else? Just wondering. Hope you enjoy this little shopping excursion!

loaf of white /ww bread - $2.69
1 lb bananas - .89
family size Rice Krispies - $5.69
1/2 gallon of 1% milk - $3.91
1 doz lg white eggs - $2.66
1 lb bacon - $4.79
whole fresh chicken - $2.49/lb
frozen pizza (Delissio) - $7.49
Kraft dinner - $1.39
Heinz Ketchup 36oz bottle - $3.89
1/2 gallon bottle diet Pepsi - $2.39 + .10 for deposit + 15% tax
1 gallon of reg. gas - $4.25

~ Lisa ~

by Tina~in_ut

I never met her.....never talked to her.....never e-mailed her......only sent her a get well card once. I always thought DeeDee exaggerated about her. (I know...DeeDee exaggerating.....not possible!) One thing I've learned though, everyone loved Lisa. Yes....I did a little facebook stalking (that's what my daughter calls it)! I realize that the people posting on her page are friends or family, but dear Lord! They all LOVE her! Beautiful Lisa. Wonderful Lisa. Perfect Lisa! And no matter who was posting to her or what they posted to her, she responded to all and told each of them how much she loved them back!

From her pictures it's easy to tell that she loved life and loved to travel. She seems to have been everywhere. In all her pictures, she looks so serene.....so at peace with the world around her. She had her husband, her dog Rita, her family, and her many friends. If only she had her health, too. Everything would have been perfect.

DeeDee, I believe, as I know you do, that you are so very blessed to have known Lisa for all these years. You have an Angel in Heaven to watch over you now......an incredibly brilliant light! (dont' blow it!) .......shhhhhh......i love you~

~ I HATE Alcohol ~

by Tina~in_ut

I HATE alcohol with a passion. I hate a lot of it and I hate just one drink. It just depends on the person.

At our house, I detest three drinks! Three drinks is too much for the hubby. I can handle him with only two, but after drink number three, I hate him. He gets mean. I know it and my kids know it. He's not physically abusive, thank God, but verbally, oh my hell. I have learned that I just need to shut up when he's like that.

Saturday night, we went to a dinner party with friends. We had the best time. While we were eating, it started snowing like crazy. The worst storm this season so far. Guess who got to drive home? There's nothing more fun than driving on snowy roads with Mr. Had Too Many!!! I think he wanted to discuss every single thing that we've fought about all year!

What really drives me nuts is, I'm the only person who will remember what happened at the party and after. I hate it! People say things that they don't mean.....nice and not so nice......and I remember it. Maybe I'm overly sensitive and need to take a chill pill. I don't know. I have no way to gauge it.

Hubby had a horrible week. Quite a few at the party had a horrible week......the kind you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy. I get that they needed to unwind. I just wish they'd play twister instead. Am I way off base here, or can you see my point of view?

Dancing at the Movies

by Zona

I can't remember if we've used this as a Sunday blog yet? It is absolutely fantastic. I would have loved to have been a dancer..unfortunately I was born with two left feet..which makes it hard enough to walk..let alone dance..lol.. :D

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~ I Enjoyed This Commercial ~

by Tina~in_ut

I loved this commercial the first time I saw it.  This is the extended version.  I thought it was a commercial for his new show, but it's not.  I hope you like it, too~

~hmmmmmmm~

by Tina~in_ut

I've got nothin'! So..........talk amongst yourselves~

Romance

by Shirley

Which one of these pictures represents your husband or SSO? What is your definition of romance? What do you think your husband/SSO"s definition is? Were you swept off your feet? Did he carry you over the threshold after you were married? How did you or he propose? Since I've never been in love, or married I can't answer these questions, but I'm curious to read your answers.

The Death Penalty: Justice?

 by Just_Lin

In the news recently was a story regarding the death penalty being given to a man who had committed a horrible crime in Connecticut.  He did not commit this crime alone but had a partner who has yet to go on trial.

In some cases I do not oppose the death penalty but, to be honest, I guess I am a snob to some extent as I do not trust the verdict of the death penalty in the hands of some jurors in some particular states.  That is not the case in this particular circumstance in Connecticut.

To briefly give an overview of the crime: Two men entered the home of a doctor and his family and brutally and mercilessly beat the doctor into unconsciousness.  One of the men then drove the doctor's wife to the bank to withdraw $15,000 while the other man held her husband and two daughters, ages 11 and 17, hostage at the house.  While in the bank, the woman passed a note to the teller explaining that her family was being held hostage.  After the woman left, the teller alerted the police.  When the woman was driven back to her home, she was raped and murdered by the man who had taken her to the bank.  The other man had raped her 11 year old daughter.  I'm not sure of the exact sequence of events, but at some point, the father managed to crawl out of the house and crawl to a neighbor's home to seek help.  He had been beaten so badly that the neighbor didn't even recognize him.  At about this time, the police were positioning themselves outside the family home.  Still inside the house, the two men then tied the young girls to their beds, doused them with gasoline and lit them and the house on fire.  The men were apprehended by the police as they fled the home.

I can't even imagine how the doctor can bear the loss of his wife and daughters in this manner at the hands of these men.  I think it is his full focus now to testify against them and have them receive the death penalty.  One down and one to go.  The one who has already received the death penalty is the one that drove the wife to the bank then raped and murdered her.

There is no doubt who committed this horrendous crime.  Their guilt is beyond question.  They exemplify evil, in my book, and deserve to be put to death.  Frankly, I find their crime to be so cruel and horrendous that I would have no problem with pulling the switch myself.  No problem at all.  I can't say that it is true justice.  These men will not feel the terror the the doctor's family felt.  They will not feel the flames licking at their flesh and burning them the way those young girls did.

How do you feel about the death penalty?

WOW! Delish?

by EBJ

OMG I can almost taste it!

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Moulin Rouge

by Jodi

Lately I've been obsessed with the movie Moulin Rouge. I love everything about it. The actors, the story, the music. They use some of the most popular music from the last 30-40 years to help tell the story. It is set in turn of the century Paris. It is a story about a poor writer named Christian that falls in love with the lovely Satine. She is the highest paid and most talented of the "ladies" of the Moulin Rouge. The trouble is a Duke is also after her affections. All to save the Moulin Rouge.

The following video is from the night that Satine goes to the Duke. It shows Christian's jealousy, but also Satine's love for him and her sacrifice for him and The Moulin Rouge. The music really is in a fugue style. I love the play of the strings against the song Roxanne and Christian's lament.

There is also a YouTube Channel that has the complete soundtrack on one of it's playlists. Click Here for the Soundtrack Lover's channel. When I'm playing on fb or reading the blog I love using that playlist. It will play all the music continually, kind of like the old MySpace days of playlists!!

Do you love a good musical? If so, what is your favorite and why?

~ Raise Your Glass ~

by Tina~in_ut

I really don't care what Pink sings.  I love it all.  This song is "celebration for people who feel left out from the popular crowd".  It's for the underdog.  The video itself is based around one of Pink's real-life experiences, and features a celebration of gay marriage, expressing her views that people should not feel any differently towards gay marriage than straight marriage.  It also features protests on bull fighting and animal abuse.  There is one part of the video that I don't particularly care for, but hey, it's her putting it out there, not me~  I hope you enjoy her song.  (DeeDee, suck it up and listen! mkay?!  And HAPPY BIRTHDAY!) :D  

~ Women: Know Your Limits!! ~

by Tina~in_ut

Do you know your limits?

My Jon Bon has competition for my affections!

by Maureen

I have become obsessed, and totally in love with Archibald Alec Leach...CARY GRANT! Ok, so he'd be over a hundred years old, but hey it's my fantasy :)~


One day, I found a 5 movie boxed set of Cary Grant movies...Ohhh la la! My lucky day! The first movie was Holiday. LOVED IT! And so began my infatuation with the oh so handsome, funny and charming Cary Grant. I love a light-hearted romantic comedy from any era, but these movies ("screwball comedies" as they were then dubbed) have captured my heart. And so did Mr. Grant (NOT Ed Asner! tee hee hee!) I watched Holiday 3 times. Then I watched The Awful Truth...repeatedly! His Girl Friday was interesting to me. His character was every bit as suave, but not so debonair. He was rather mean, but the eyes and the voice with his own special accent and the CLEFT CHIN...oh my gawd...that chin! Needless to say I swooned! I was not as thrilled with Only Angels Have Wings, but still a good vehicle for my man! This movie was attributed to the supposed line...JUDY, JUDY, JUDY, but he really only said JUDY one time! I replayed the scene a number of times just to be sure (and see my guy some more!)

I think that my favorite, so far is An Affair To Remember. Nobody dons a tux like Cary (see, I am now on a first name basis with him!) And even though you think he is a wolf in sheep's clothing, he is charming and quick witted and loves his grandma! I cried as he stood, in the rain, at the Empire State Building while being stood up by his one true love. I have a thing for men's hands and he has strong hands that I want to hold me! And when he wiped the tears from Deborah Kerr's cheek...I was smitten. Me thinks I need to watch it AGAIN before it goes back!

So now I am reading a Bio of him. If what is written is true, he was not the nicest man. He was a diva. He drank a LOT. He was cheap. He worked for J. Edgar Hoover as a spy, watching and reporting on his then wife, Barbara Hutton (heiress to the Woolworth fortune) and like so many of the heart throbs of that era was bi-sexual. He was in a long-term relationship with Randolf Scott...it seems even while he was married (as was Scott)...longer then any of his marriages.  He had 5 marriages and 1 daughter by Dyan Cannon. And spent years tripping on LSD.

But I don't care, because remember this is MY fantasy! If he were alive today and 50 years younger we WOULD be together! He would flash that smile at me, caress me with those strong hands and swallow me up in that cleft chin of his. We would cuddle together on the love seat and watch each of the 72 movies he made while sipping champagne. He would make me laugh and then he would take my face in his hands, cock his head ever so slightly and say...maureen, maureen, maureen.

What would you do?

by Shirley

I was going to just make this a comment and then when I saw Carol say she needed blog I decided to make it a blog. So here goes.

I know I don't have children so I should probably shut up and say nothing, but I'm not going to. I just came back from the grocery store a little while ago. There was a child (2-3) that was not happy from the time she entered the mall until I saw her leave. She cried, she screamed, she kicked off her shoes then screamed some more if her mother didn't pick up her shoe right away. She cried if the other woman with the mother started to push the cart. You could hear her all over the store. At one point I saw the mother giving her chips and I though, yeah that's a good idea to reward her for crying and screaming! I left that store and went over to the pharmacy to buy a lottery ticket for tomorrow night (a lucky one I hope). I was putting the ticket in my purse and I heard the crying and screaming again. They were coming into the pharmacy. I stuffed the money in my purse and left to call my taxi. The taxis were busy so I had to sit on a bench to wait awhile, The whole time I could still hear this kid. The most shocking part about this story (to me anyway) was when they left the pharmacy the mother let the kid have a ride in one of those race car things they have at malls. The mother was saying how much she loved her and the kid just said "I don't love you".

Now I don't know that family or why the kid was screaming or crying, BUT...
#1 - the kid would NOT have gotten chips.
#2 - the shoes would have been put in my pocket or purse NOT given back to the kid to kick off again, and again and again.
#3 - I wouldn't have stayed in the store with the kid crying and screaming like that, we would have left.
#4 - I'm DAMN SURE the kid would NOT have been rewarded with a ride before we left the mall.

If this was your child how would you have handled it?

Funny, or Not?

by Bonachichi

The first time I saw this vid, I laughed. In fact, I laughed whilst watching it several times. What a knob! And a spoilt brat. Then I thought about the girl. Surely, she didn’t put this on YouTube herself? I saw some of the comments people were making about her. If I were her mother, I’d have gotten it taken down immediately. I hope the ending of this story isn’t a sad one. We all have moments like this girl displays, but they are usually secret, not broadcast to the world. So watch this video. Watch it a few times and see if your reaction changes from laughter (go ahead, cuz it’s funny) to compassion for the mistakes made by youth when their quest to stand out doesn’t go as planned.

It's Perfect

they are together

and as happy as can be

so blessed to have them near me

and grateful each day

a new beginning for them

and a journey they are ready to take
so glad i will be along for the ride!

♥♥♥

What would you do with $11,255,272?

by Shirley

LOWER TRURO — They won $11.2 million from a lottery ticket in July. And now every penny is gone. But Allen and Violet Large didn’t spend any of it on themselves. And that’s just the way they like it.

"What you’ve never had, you never miss," said Violet, 78.

Married since 1974, the Lower Truro couple don’t live large. They don’t travel, they don’t gamble and they don’t buy what they don’t need.

"We have an old house, but we’re comfortable and we’re happy in it," Violet said.

They spent 30 years in Ontario where Allen was a steel welder and Violet worked for cosmetics and chocolate companies. They retired in 1983 and returned to Nova Scotia.

"We were pretty well set, not millionaires, but comfortable," said Allen, 75.

So when they hit it big in Lotto 6-49’s July 14 draw, they decided to give it all away.

All that money "was a big headache," Allen said. Violet said she was concerned about "crooked people" who might try to take advantage of them.

But the big win came at a difficult time in their lives: Violet was undergoing treatment for cancer that doctors discovered in the spring.

"That money that we won was nothing," said Allen, choking back tears. "We have each other."

Violet has been through surgery and finished her last chemotherapy treatment a week ago.

"I’ve been very fortunate not to be bedfast," said Violet, who also pointed to the support of her family and neighbours who bring them meals and keep their spirits up.

"It’s very hard" to watch the woman he married 36 years ago go through so much, Allen said.

"All the money in the world can’t buy your health," he said.

After the win, the couple took about a week to work out the details before embarking on their $11,255,272 spending spree.

They took care of family first and then began delivering donations to the two pages’ worth of groups they had decided on, including the local fire department, churches, cemeteries, the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, hospitals in Truro and Halifax, where Violet underwent her cancer treatment, and organizations that fight cancer, Alzheimer’s and diabetes. The list goes on and on.

The couple won’t say how much they gave each group, but they’ve received plenty of phone calls, letters and plaques of gratitude. While they’re thankful for each one, they didn’t do it for the recognition.

"It made us feel good," said Violet. "And there’s so much good being done with that money."

She and her husband said they feel privileged to be able to give back to the community, to help the firefighters, the doctors and nurses and the volunteers who have helped them.

"We’re the lucky ones," Violet said. "I have no complaints."

How many of us would be able to do what this couple did with that much money? I know I wouldn't. I would certainly help people out but I would also spend on myself.

Seasons In The Son

by Shirley

I use to go over into my sister's room, sit on her hope chest in front of the window and strum the guitar to this song. I also sang to it too (much to my mothers dislike). Mind you I couldn't play a note or carry a tune but I enjoyed myself anyway. I was probably 10 or 11. Anyone else think they were destined to have a thriving musical career at the age of 10?

The Sweetness of Summer

i miss the summer

i feel myself getting in the

winter mode of hibernation

and am not looking forward to it

even tho, i enjoy our change of seasons

the upcoming season is the most

i dislike

the cold, the dark, the weather

just really not my favorite time of year

when i see this pic of my parents

i am reminded of the

summer smiles that are constant

hoboken is a great place to 

wander about

esp Frank Sinatra Park

(across the river is NYC)

so to get my day going i shall look 

at these pics more than once today 

and remember the summer of 2010

with laughter and smiles 

cheers!

~ Service ~

by Tina~in_ut

I've had my fill of flying lately~  Yesterday was my last flight for a while (I hope!).  I was waiting to board my flight home when I heard the gate agent try to stop a man from boarding with too many carry-on bags.  He stopped long enough to tell her that he was carrying his son's bag as well and kept going.  She called him back.  He wouldn't come back.  She kept walking toward him asking him to come back thru the jetway to the boarding area.  It took him forever to come back and work the whole thing out.  I didn't hear the outcome, but he acted like an ass toward the agent and was eventually able to board.

I was one of the last to get on the flight.  Right in front of me, the same gate agent stopped a woman from carrying on 3 bags.  As I passed her, she tried to talk the agent into "just letting her go this one time!"  She added that she's a Platinum member (someone who flies between 75,000 to 125,000 miles a year).  The agent was very polite both times, but stuck to her guns.  The flight was in danger of running late and we didn't have time for this.  The next thing I know as I'm entering the jetway, one of the pilots is carrying the coffee he had run out to get for the crew, and one of the lady's bags.  He completely diffused the situation, had the lady laughing, and as he made his way thru the line of passengers with his "coming through....wide load", he had the rest of us smiling.  Right then, I decided to send in a compliment for him.  I just had to get his name. 

Well that turned out to be easy.  Once everyone was on board, the same pilot, Harv, came into the cabin to say hello to those in first class, and the high fliers in the front of the coach cabin.  Since I was sitting in the second row of coach, I read his name tag.  He saw me staring at him and said, "Hello to you, young lady!"  I just smiled.

He is by far, the nicest and most engaging pilot I've ever encountered.  Most of them are so full of themselves that I just want to smack them.  And it didn't stop with just him.  He set the tone.  The flight attendants were fabulous too.  The two male flight attendants took care of the front and there was a female in the back that I didn't have any contact with.  Both guys were great.  Very friendly, smiled, listened.....I mean come on....one of them apologized to me for the delay in getting me my drink!  Everyone knows that Diet Coke takes FOREVER to fill in a cup cuz of the dang carbonation.  duh!!!~  I wish all our flight crews were like this, especially the flight crew on my outbound flight!  Then maybe, just maybe, we wouldn't be known as the airline with the worst customer service!  sigh~

~ Flash Mob ~

by Tina~in_ut

I love watching a mob of people dancing together.  It doesn't hurt that I love this song.  I know we heard it a couple of Sunday's ago from Jodi, but this time, I'm watching the young couple dancing with the baby. 

Mel lived next door to us growing up.  She's danced ever since I could remember.  Her family was honerary Mexican because of us and we were honorary Chinese because of her family.  They were invited to our family functions and we to theirs.  I loved it when JoJo visited from China.  I liked Abu (her grandmother), but I could never understand her!  We went to her dad's funeral and cried afterward when they had to move to another city.  Mel is my youngest brother's age.  She and her sister were like my little sisters.  With facebook, I've reconnected with both of them.  If you look to the left, next to the escalator, there is a man with a red shirt dancing and carrying a baby.  The woman dancing with him is Mel. 

Is it just me, or does anyone else notice that the only person really aging is me!  Mel and her sister look EXACTLY the same as I remember them as little girls! 

Too Hot For Television

by Bonachichi

This advert was recently banned from a few television networks, being deemed as “too controversial”. It is an homage to a 1986 advert entitled, “The Deficit Trials”, also banned by major networks. In 1986, the U.S. national debt was around 2 trillion dollars. Today, it is rapidly approaching 14 trillion dollars. A seven hundred percent increase.

Three questions for today: Do you find this advert offensive or controversial? (why or why not?) Do you think it’s right to censor this advert in light of what we’ve just seen with political adverts? What do you think of the “Tax and Spend” solution to the economic crisis? There is no right or wrong answer to any of these questions. Just opinions. Everyone’s got one, and everyone can voice it.

~ Colonel Angus ~

by Tina~in_ut

 

I had never seen this skit before last night on the Real Women of SNL. I'll really miss Colonel Angus~

Fall~

nov 1

chilly in my hometown

you can feel the crisp air as you breathe

its that time of year

the leaves are changing

pretty colors

apple crisp, pumpkins, cornucopia

and then

winter is near

new day, fresh start

embrace the air

enjoy the day