CAUTION - BRAGGING GRANDMOTHER

Last weekend my granddaughters cheerleading squad won another competition! I know it's worth all the bruises and sore muscles, isn't it, MH!

Here she is supporting one of her team mates

That's my MH, second from left

The whole gang

Military Sense of Humor!

I received these in an email the other day from one of my cousins. Just had to share them with ya. It's refreshing to see that in all the turmoil, our troops can maintain a sense of humor. Thanks, Donna and Bob for sharing with me!

One of the most valuable tools to have is your watch dog!

It is important to always make an effort to befriend your enemy. As the saying goes, "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer."

Every lady needs a convenient place to hang her hand bag!

Plan "A"

Plan "B"

This one is for the newer, smaller, secret aircraft carriers in development now!

New version of transportation for our dedicated ground troops!

Wonder if this would work?

Here comes the Cavalry!

Harry Potter finds new uses for the cloak of invisibility!

.. .. .. .. and for the broom!

I do have one more picture -- but it's PG13 rated and I hesitate to post it here on my 'family friendly' blog. If you would like me to e-mail it to you, leave your address in comments and I'll send it along! It's just a little nudity .. .. .. but I don't want to offend anyone!

Not Me! Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I really had to give the subject some thought this week. Not because I don't have any Not Me's .. .. .. .. but because I may not have very many that I want to actually publish! Okay, here goes.

**Dub washed and waxed our SUV the other day. He did a beautiful job, as always .. .. .. when he asked me to come out and check to make sure I approved, I DID NOT immediately walk over, take the hem of my t-shirt and polish a little spot on the front fender - while saying, "WE did a great job, don't ya think!" Hey, I was baking a cake at the time and had the batter on my shirt to prove it! (Never mind that the batter got there when I was licking the bowl.) Anyway, polishing 2 square inches was HARD work!

**I did not take a three hour nap yesterday and then go to bed at 10pm! No, JB & Karen, I'm not sick - just really, really tired from polishing that fender, I guess!

**Since it was so beautiful and sunny out this afternoon, I refrained from going out and spraying down everything in the yard with Miracle Grow without checking what the weatherman had planned. It DID NOT pour down rain shortly after I finished!

**Oh - and just before I did my Miracle Grow fiasco, I had NOT hung a bunch of doggie and sugar glider blankets out on the line to dry in the fresh breeze. And I did NOT have to bring them all inside and run them through the dryer anyway, dammit!

That's enough! I'll leave the comments open for you - Would love to see some comments on what you didn't do!

A Good Deed!

I've seen it all now!

I don't know about where you live, but around here most of the pre-teens and teenagers are a little on the rough side. Some are a LOT on the rough side. You don't often see many of the "good" kids out wandering the neighborhood. They are at one function or another - or studying - or home being ideal children.

This afternoon one of our elderly neighbors was trying to get a couch out his door by himself. Two of the rougher teenagers were walking past and noticed his struggle. They jogged up to the door, one climbed over the couch, they picked it up, angled it perfectly and got it onto the porch in no time. After a little discussion, the boys then carried it out to the gentleman's pickup truck, loaded it and tied it down very well.

When our neighbor pulled out his wallet and offered to pay the boys they both refused any payment, shook the man's hand and waved as they walked on down the street.

It took everything I had not to walk over and congratulate them for doing such a good deed - but was afraid if I made a big deal out of it, they might never do anything that nice again. So, when they passed my house, I just smiled and waved. And for the first time ever, they smiled and waved back!

Jail? For a Candle?

Well, I hitched up the mules this morning and headed for the big city. Had to go by the hardware store, the bank, the feed store and .. .. .. .. who am I kidding! ! !

Actually, I got into my gas guzzling Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited (with leather seats) and cruised south a few miles to Home Depot to pick up some Kingsford and some fertilizer. Then hit the ATM for a cash refill. Stopped in at the pet shop for goodies for the ratters and the sugar glider. Finally made it to the grocery store - $78 for groceries to feed two people for about a week! Sheesh!

On the way back home, I noticed a sign saying that a store I like was having a moving sale! DETOUR!! I knew that those frozen goods in the back of the Jeep could stand the 82 degree heat for a few minutes while I just ran in a took a quick look.

They had Yankee Candles 50% off - with another 10% off if you paid cash . . . I now know why I hit that ATM earlier.

They were really, really crowded - and there were two grown women arguing very loudly over who grabbed a candle first! There were about 15 of us who just stepped back and watched as they kept yelling and pulling on one candle. An employee tried to settle the problem to no avail and stood right beside them and called the police! Yep, they were still screaming when two cops walked in a few minutes later. Each cop took hold of a woman, the employee grabbed the candle and all the fun was over, just that quick! It was one of those yummy Christmas Cookie candles that they were fighting over. But - guess what - another shopper pointed out to us all that there were about 6 or 7 more of them right in the bin! I don't think I'll ever understand people!

By the way - I did get myself 4 candles - and the groceries made it through the ordeal just fine. And, the store employee said that they were going to press charges - disturbing the peace - against the two fighters .. .. .. the cops actually took them to jail!

NOT ME MONDAY - Stuff I DID NOT Do!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

*No one in this house would be dumb enough to turn on the ceiling fan in the guest room and then proceed to stand up on the bed (trying to reach up to the top shelf in the closet) and manage to almost knock herself out. Nobody is that stoopid! Turn the fan on high - and then immediately stick her head in it!! No No No Not Me Never Ever .. .. .. why do I have this headache???

*The weather was so nice outside this morning that I went out in the front yard to pull more weeds out of my poor old flower beds. Barefoot. And just before starting back into the house I didn't notice that my heel was covered in .. .. .. um .. .. er .. .. kitty poop! And I did not yell for Dub to bring me the soap, the Lysol AND the alcohol and paper towels so I could clean that yuck off my poor foot! We DO NOT own a cat!

*Dub was sweet enough to make really yummy brownies Friday - and we did not consume the entire pan of said chewy brownies within 24 hours.

*I am certainly NOT trying really, really hard to lose some weight - and that's why I couldn't have participated in the brownie chow-down Friday and Saturday! I am wwaayy too dedicated to my diet to do something like that!

So - what haven't you done lately?

Sign, Sign - Everywhere a Sign

I think most, if not all, of these signs are British . . . yes, our 'mother tongue'!

Now, if I were to say most of these things in my semi-redneck, southern drawl, I think most of them might sound kind of rude.

But with the proper British accent, they sound kind of dignified, I think!!

OR - maybe not!

Good dog, indeed - if he can read that!

sucked off?

DAYTONA 500 TIME!!

For some reason, I still find myself getting excited as the new NASCAR racing season begins this week! It's like this every year. The closer we get to the Daytona 500, the higher the anticipation!

I was at the first Daytona 500. Actually, I was at the last two races that were held on the beach! I watched a lot of the construction of the Speedway, saw the testing - and was mesmerized by the speeds!

When people speak now of the history of NASCAR, they are usually talking about the 1970's. When I talk about history . . . I'm talking HISTORY! Red Byron, Eddie Pagan, Lee Petty, Johnny Beauchamp, Joe Weatherly, Elmo Langley, Tim Flock, Fireball Roberts, Buck Baker, Tiny Lund, Glen Wood, Herman Beam, Marvin Panch, and Curtis Turner.

There was at least one year that there were over 60 races for what is called Cup cars. That was before all the huge interstate highways, before the plush motor homes, before the fabulous tractor-trailer rigs, etc. That was when nobody had private planes to zip from track to track.!

One thing I can say is that those were some really wild times! Even though I was just a kid in the late 50's - I remember drivers racing rental cars (lovingly called u-wreck 'ems), in reverse from the speedway to the beach .. .. .. just to see who had to buy dinner!

Some of this "way back when" stuff makes me wonder how those guys ever made it . . . some of it makes me wonder just how crazy we all were to be involved in it . . . . some of it makes me really proud to be able to say I was there and was able to contribute in my own little, tiny way to what we see as NASCAR now!!

Got a question or comment about NASCAR ancient history? Leave it in comments and I'll do my best to answer for ya! I don't know it all - but I can make up a story just as good as those other guys!! ;-)

Not Me Monday! - February 9, 2009 Edition

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

**This dedicated, hard working career woman DID NOT walk out of work Wednesday evening, telling the boss - I quit! Yikes!

**And I have not decided that I am officially retired! That’s it! I’m done! Not me!

**Nobody in this house is still getting a pretty good chuckle out of the picture over at mycharmingkids showing MckMama’s diapering skills on poor little Small Fry. We’re gonna have to teach her the finer skills of 200mph tape! (That’s duct tape to you Yankees out there!)

**I did not neglect my yard so far this winter. It is a beautiful, landscaped pride of the neighborhood. That’s why I couldn’t have possibly filled two big garbage cans with the weeds I pulled out of two flower beds Thursday and Friday (you know, since I didn’t have to work)!

**And I do not have to cut this short - since I hear a hot tub and a good book calling my name! Wow, I smile every time I think about it! Of course, my retirement isn’t going to cause us to find new inventive ways to cut the budget - MORE!

Now I've Done It!!

Yep, I've done it now. It's all over. Can't be un-done. Can't be taken back.

I QUIT MY JOB!!

I am now officially retired.

I just didn't do it in exactly the traditional way.

In early April I'll be 62 and qualify for early retirement according to Social Security. I applied for Disability several months ago - because of COPD, arthritis, anxiety and miscellaneous other ailments. However, the COPD and working in an auto repair shop just don't mix well. The more exposure, the worse it got -- -- and did I mention the alcohol burning drag cars? Much as I LOVE those race cars, the fumes about took me out! So even if I can't get the disability, I'll at least get my regular retirement benefits!

But dang! Where's my gold watch? Where's my ticket for the 6 week trip to the tropics? Where's that fabulous retirement community I'm supposed to be living in?

Okay, the reality is that I stayed in my jammies all day Thursday and enjoyed every minute of it and this morning I went out and weeded a flower bed that was desperately in need of help. It's 2pm and I have the rest of the day to pamper myself with a little R&R and try to get my health back where it needs to be!

All I can say is - - - - Yikes! I'm retired!

Run - Zombies are coming! Raptors Ahead!

I'm not sure if this makes me a little strange or not - but I really got a kick out of this article I saw this evening! Run for your life - the zombies are coming!

COLLINSVILLE, Ill. Pranksters in at least three states are messing with electronic road signs meant to warn motorists of possible traffic problems by putting drivers on notice about Nazi zombies and raptors. And highway safety officials aren't amused.

The latest breach came Tuesday during the morning rush hour near Collinsville, Ill., where hackers changed a sign along southbound Interstate 255 to read, "DAILY LANE CLOSURES DUE TO ZOMBIES."

A day earlier in Indiana's Hamilton County, the electronic message on a board in Carmel's construction zone warned drivers of "RAPTORS AHEAD CAUTION."

And signs in Austin, Texas, recently flashed: "NAZI ZOMBIES! RUN!!!" and "ZOMBIES IN AREA! RUN."

Officials in Illinois are concerned the rewritten signs distract motorists from heeding legitimate hazards down the road. The hacked sign on Tuesday originally warned drivers of crews replacing guardrails.

I can see humor in all of it - except that Nazi part . . . not funny at all! The article goes on to explain about sites where you can learn how to hack into these signs - and then discusses the HUGE fines for doing so!

IS IT NOT ME MONDAY AGAIN?

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I absolutely did not just stand and watch as our two rat terriers decided they were going to dig a hole to China or die trying! It started with Dixie just kind of snooping around in this sandy patch next to the tomato plants - - then Rascal started sniffing - - then they moved a little sand around - - then it was a full-tilt dig, dig, dig! I just didn't have the heart to stop them cause they were obviously having such a great time!

And Dub didn't grab them as soon as they even thought about coming in the house . . . carried each to MY bath tub and gave them both complete head to little stubby tail shampoos!

And then he DIDN'T turn TWO really wet rat terriers loose in the house - yelling at me to dry them off!! Oh, no - none of that could happen here!

While reading Not Me's from someone who shall remain nameless (MckMama), I didn't almost choke at her fabulous diapering skills! Poor little Small Fry looks like she might just be a little over-padded!

That's it for me - - what didn't you do???

This and That!

A lazy Sunday here. It's still cooler than usual. We actually had a light freeze the other night and the surface of everything died. My poor bananas will take a while to grow back. It had been so warm that lots of plants had already started new growth and we also had a lot of things in full bloom! Well - now it's all a lovely shade of brown.

And because we are in what they call our dry season, we now have a huge risk of wild fires. There was a little rain a few days ago - but not enough to fix the problem. So, we are all on alert - again!

Getting ready to the Super Bowl commercials. Well, if it's a good game - I'll really enjoy that, too. But it seems to me that the games are kind of lop sided a lot of times and really don't keep you that excited . . . so the commercials are a big draw! I'm already looking forward to Miller Lite - - I just love that beer delivery guy!