Happy Leap Year Day !!

You won't have another chance to

eat chocolate

on February 29th

for 3 more years.

Do you want to let an opportunity

like this go by?

Dark Chocolate ROCKS !!

Public Service Announcement !!

Digital Picture Frames Contain New Trojan Virus

A computer security vendor has identified a new data-stealing Trojan Horse virus coming from different brands of digital photo frames made in China. The Mocmex virus infects PCs when connected to the digital frames sold at Best Buy, Costco, Target and Sam's Club stores. The virus is programmed to steal passwords for online games. But Computer Associates has analyzed Mocmex and found it can do more damage to PCs because it is immune from anti-virus software from more than 100 security vendors and can penetrate firewalls of the Microsoft Windows operating system. It is believed that Mocmex can capture something and leave no traces. (AllHeadlineNews 19Feb08)

Fun Monday - # 29 - Names and Plates

This week's hostess is Mariposa (AKA Ms. Butterfly) of Mariposa's Tales. (when you post late in the day as I most often do, you can check the already posted posts and it is amazing what you learn! (I never knew what Ms Cellania meant - now I feel rather SLOW because I had never figured it out on my own!)


The assignment is:

(1) Please share to us how the NAME of your BLOG was made? I can't wait to hear interesting funny stories!


(2) Please share to us (in words or photo, though a combination of both will be a bonus!) your favorite/ most common dish!




(1) The name - not real original - just a fact !! I am THE FIRST OF SIX children in my family.


I have 3 brothers - LM (who somehow has cleared out all of his posts, then became lazy, I guess - well ... this week, he is on a cruise with his wife, celebrating their 30th Anniversary, so he has an excuse!), DM (non-blogger, but I think he reads) and SM (another non-blogger whom we haven't crossed over yet!).


I have 2 sisters - LB and the baby of the clan (and who started it all for us) - the infamous SJ !!

That's it - in a nutshell !!

Now I just need to convince (at least) the three of them to become FUN MONDAY ers.




(2) The plate - since I am supposed to be dieting ... I didn't prepare my favorite dish, in fear that I would eat it all in one sitting.

So, on one of my favorite dishes (how convenient that Valentines Day just passed) is a "dish" that is currently a favorite - it is allowed (in moderation) on the South Beach Diet ....

DARK CHOCOLATE HERSHEY KISSES

and

DOVE DARK CHOCOLATE

Almost Heaven !!

I just ate two of the Dove chocolates ... these are "Rich Dark Chocolate with Almonds". Just a wee bit disappointed though ... the original "Rich Dark Chocolate" ones (in my opinion) are SO much tastier!

And the PROMISES messages were:

Go against the grain.

Discover yourself.

Make sure you go and visit Mariposa to check out everyone's story. It's going to be late night for me (reading) ... I just know it!

Observations

When your nails haven't seen the light of day in ten years plus ...

because you have had them covered in acrylic all that time ...

and you get lazy and don't go to have them "filled" ...

and they start falling off (or you peel them off) ...

then you decide to let them grow naturally again ....

and they are paper thin ...

DON'T put post earrings in your ears ...

Because it is almost impossible to get them out !!!

(I don't know what hurt worse ... my nubby fingers or my ears !!)

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

When you are walking around antique shops just for something to do ...
And you see a sign for vintage clothing ...

DON'T STOP IN AND TAKE A PEEK ...

Because the clothes they are calling vintage -
ARE JUST LIKE THE CLOTHES ...
I WORE IN HIGH SCHOOL !!!

(Clothes from the 70's aren't quite vintage in my opinion!)
... and I could be quite wealthy if I still had them ...

I'm a Guilty Neighbor - Kinda!!

Remember this from back in the early part of January?



As of this morning, it looks SO MUCH better !!

The contractor was supposed to be here this morning between 7 and 7:30 AM. The phone rings at 7:32 AM and a very apologetic voice tells me that he is sorry that he is late, but he is stuck in traffic on I-95. I told him "No problem, I deal with the same thing each and every weekday morning." I settle down on the couch and wait. I catch a glimpse of a work type van pull into the neighbor's parking spot and immediately think, "Oh SH*T!". Shortly after, the door bell rings. The very nice gentleman comes into my kitchen to take measurements, then goes back out to his van to cut the wood. I hear a vehicle start up and immediately think to myself - OMG, she's come home! (I never knew what time she returns in the morning, because, well, I am already at work!)

He returns, with a silly little grin on his face. I say to him "She made you move, didn't she?" He asks me if she is for real? He was out in his van, cutting the wood (he intentionally parked where there were no cars, so that the sawdust would not get on anyone's car), neighbor pulls up - very snottily (his words) asks - AND what company are you with? He politely tells her and she says back to him - YOU ARE PARKED IN MY SPOT - MOVE IT OR GET TOWED. He very politely says OK and moves over to my other neighbor's spot (she doesn't have issues like the other one does).

He finishes his work and gets ready to leave. Neighbor's car is the only one out there in that section. He turns back to me and says "I hope she gets snowed in".

It tried to snow ....

Such a disappointment !!

Kids Say The Darndest Things !

Saw this in the newspaper today - in a column titled "Apologies to Art Linkletter" ... Just had to share !!

"When my daughter was 4, she would often help feed her baby brother. With the first spoonful, she would cheerfully say. "Bone up to eat!"

After many feedings and many discreet chuckles on my part, I finally decided to gently correct her one day and said, "Honey, it's actually "bon appetit'"

She scowled and stubbornly insisted: "No it's not! It's 'Bone up to eat!' I said: "No, really. It's 'bon appetit.' It's French."

She pauses and then declared, "Well, I'm saying it in ENGLISH!""

- Cindy Holliday, Springfield

Fun Monday - # 28 - Things That Make You Laugh !

Sayre from Sayre Smiles is still in the groove from last week's FUN Fun Monday and wants us to have some more FUN!! -

Her assignment to all of us is:

Every day as I go to work, I see things around me that make me laugh. Usually these are in the forms of signs. So take your camera with you as you go about your business and take a picture of the things that make you laugh along the way (but it doesn't necessarily HAVE to be a sign).

This isn't a sign ... but it makes me laugh each and every time I see it !!

I live in a townhouse community and each of us have 2 parking spaces reserved for us to use. My next door neighbor (across the common area) lives next door to a young lady who just happens to have a LOT of company coming and going!

SO ....

she parks her vehicle ACROSS BOTH SPOTS just enough so that no one can park in the extra spot !!

She only has one vehicle.

I rarely see anyone come to visit her.

AND she works at night !!

But, it really ticks her off, if someone parks in her spot. She even asks if we have seen any one park there when she isn't home !

There are so many more important things in life to be concerned about - so, I chuckle to myself EACH and EVERY time !!

Please take some time to visit Sayre and laugh with everyone !!

Is it wrong that I knew ALL the words to the song in the video that is on Sayre's Fun Monday site ??

Happy President's Day !!

50 Ways to Wellness

I need to take a GOOD look at this list and start practicing them myself !! I have been in a "funk" lately and this hopefully, will be a good start ...

* Keep a positive attitude
* Avoid dangerous drugs (no problem here)
* Stop smoking now
* Stay active
* Value your veggies
* Budget time & money
* Control your stress
* Eat a balanced diet
* Maintain lower blood pressure
* Do self-exams
* Don't drink & drive (no problem here)
* Have medical exams on schedule
* Take medicines as directed (no problem here)
* Keep an open mind
* Protect your hearing - avoid loud noises
* Warm up & stretch before exercising (one must exercise first !)
* Buckle your seatbelt (no problem here)
* Choose water to drink
* Challenge your mind
* Forgive & forget
* Eat fruits for dessert
* Sit up straight
* Learn when to say "No"
* Brush & floss often
* Take responsibility for your actions
* Cook & store food properly
* Learn from your mistakes
* Manage anger wisely
* Shun the sun
* Work at relationships
* Wear proper sports gear
* Get enough sleep
* Vary your exercise routine
* Cool down & stretch after exercising
* Keep up with health news
* Resolve conflicts peacefully
* Respect your body
* Learn Internet safety
* Count your blessings
* Feel good - volunteer
* Avoid secondhand smoke
* Avoid eyestrain
* Have adequate insurance
* Fuel up with fiber
* Ask questions of your doctor
* Reduce your risks
* Celebrate life
* Weight train for bone & muscle strength
* Share your feelings
* Love others & love yourself

This Made Me Cry ... Again !

I came across this a few minutes ago (when I should be cleaning instead of surfing) ... and yes, it made cry again - just watching it !!

Check it out.

Daddy is home !!

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=28237825

Rearrange the Letters

DORMITORY:
When you rearrange the letters:
DIRTY ROOM

THE MORSE CODE:
When you rearrange the letters:
HERE COME DOTS

SLOT MACHINES:
When you rearrange the letters:
CASH LOST IN ME

ANIMOSITY:
When you rearrange the letters:
IS NO AMITY

MOTHER-IN-LAW:
When you rearrange the letters:
WOMAN HITLER

SNOOZE ALARMS:
When you rearrange the letters:
ALAS! NO MORE Z'S

A DECIMAL POINT:
When you rearrange the letters:
IM A DOT IN PLACE

THE EARTHQUAKES:
When you rearrange the letters:
THAT QUEER SHAKE

ELEVEN PLUS TWO:
When you rearrange the letters:
TWELVE PLUS ONE

February 10 - 16

Is JELL-O week !!

Some history about the WIGGLE:

1845: The industrialist, inventor and philanthropist Peter Cooper, of Tom Thumb engine and Cooper Union fame, obtained the first patent for a gelatin dessert.

1897: Pearle B. Wait, a carpenter and cough medicine manufacturer from LeRoy, New York, developed a fruit-flavored version of Cooper’s gelatin. His wife, May Davis Wait, named it
JELL-O®. The first flavors were: strawberry, raspberry, orange and lemon.

1899: Wait sold the business to Orator Francis Woodward, a neighbor, for $450.

1902: First JELL-O ad - it ran in Ladies' Home Journal

1904: JELL-O Girl makes her debut

1905: Canadian JELL-O gelatin production began in Bridgeburg, Ontario

1907: Peach JELL-O debuts

1923: JELL-O goes sugar-free - D-Zerta®, was introduced.

During the early quarter of the 20th century, immigrants entering Ellis Island in New York City were served JELL-O gelatin as a “Welcome to America”.

1927: Chocolate flavor gelatin was discontinued

1930: Gelled or “congealed” salads became very popular around this time, with almost one-third of the salad recipes in the average cookbook gelatin-based. This led to the introduction of Lime JELL-O® gelatin, a flavor well-suited to salads, appetizers, relishes, and entrees.

1934: The return of chocolate - Chocolate flavor was first marketed to consumers as Walter Baker’s Dessert, then in 1936 was renamed JELL-O® Chocolate Pudding.

1942: Cola flavor introduced, but it only lasted a year.

1944: World War II - Because of the scarcity of shortening, one-crust pies became popular, with fillings made with JELL-O® gelatin or pudding.

1948: JELL-O® Tapioca pudding in three flavors was introduced: vanilla, chocolate and orange-coconut.

1950: JELL-O® Apple gelatin made its debut, followed later in the decade by grape, black cherry and black raspberry flavors.

1950: No longer promoted as a food-stretcher, JELL-O® gelatin took a light-hearted approach, positioned as a treat and a festive dessert to be served with pride. One-crust gelatin and ice cream Parfait Pies became all the rage.

1953: JELL-O® Instant Pudding chocolate, vanilla and butterscotch flavors were joined shortly by coconut cream and strawberry. These were promoted as “Busy Day Desserts,” stressing that it's never too late for real homemade desserts.

The 60s were a time of flavor expansion and experimentation for JELL-O gelatin.
Introduced: Blackberry, Concord Grape, Fruit Mold Supreme, JELL-O® Gelatin for Salads (Celery, Italian, Mixed Vegetable and Seasoned Tomato), Lemon-Lime, Mixed Fruit, Orange-Banana, Orange-Pineapple, Pineapple-Grapefruit, Strawberry-Banana, Tropical Fruit, Variety Packs, Wild Strawberry, Wild Raspberry and Wild Cherrry
Discontinued: Apple, Blackberry, Grape, Lemon-Lime, Pineapple-Grapefruit and Strawberry Punch.

1966: The first JELL-O® No-Bake Dessert was introduced, a real cheesecake which required no baking and took only 15 minutes to prepare.

1971: JELL-O® Pudding Treats were introduced.

1974: Comedian Bill Cosby became the spokesperson for JELL-O® pudding. The synergistic relationship between Cosby and the JELL-O® brand lasted nearly 30 years.

1975: Peach flavor reappeared.

1976: New flavors were Americana Rice pudding and Pistachio instant pudding.

1981: JELL-O® Gelatin Pops were introduced.

1984: Sugar Free JELL-O® Gelatin was introduced. A second convenient JELL-O® No Bake Dessert, Chocolate Silk Pie, was introduced.

1987: After 13 years with JELL-O Pudding, Bill Cosby was so successful in appealing to young moms and kids that he became the spokesperson for JELL-O Gelatin, as well.

1990: JELL-O® JIGGLERS® (concentrated gelatin snacks) were introduced.

1991: The Smithsonian Institute held its first and only mock conference on JELL-O Brand History, featuring such topics as “American History is JELL-O® History,” “The Dialectics of JELL-O® in Peasant Culture,” “The Semiotics of JELL-O®,” “JELL-O® Salad or Just Desserts: The Poetics of an American Food.” The event included a JELL-O® Jell-Off Cooking Contest.
Snacktivities evolved from JIGGLERS®—ideas to encourage parents and kids to create recipes together using JELL-O® gelatin and pudding in playful edibles like Dirt Cups.
New Watermelon and Berry Blue gelatin flavors appealed to youngsters, Grape reappeared with the help of dinosaurs from Jurassic Park, and Blackberry was reincarnated as Berry Black.

1994: Cranberry JELL-O® gelatin flavor was introduced.

1995: Cranberry-Raspberry and Cranberry-Strawberry JELL-O® gelatin flavors were introduced. JELL-O® JIGGLER® Eggs were launched, with molds that produced three-dimensional jewel-like gelatin snacks the size and shape of real eggs. That same year, more than 15,000 of these were handed out to children attending the annual Easter Egg Roll at the White House. Other 90s innovations include JELL-O® Microwave Pudding and Pie Filling, JELL-O® Free Pudding Snacks made with skim milk, JELL-O® Sugar Free Fat Free Instant Pudding & Pie Filling, and seven new JELL-O® No Bake Dessert flavors. Low Fat Yogurt containing JIGGLERS® Bits was introduced.

1996: JELL-O® gelatin in space made news in June, 1996. According to a Reuters dispatch, Shannon Lucid, an astronaut on a 140-day mission to the Russian Mir space station, revealed that she kept track of time by allowing herself to wear pink socks and eat JELL-O® gelatin on Sundays. After Lucid served her Russian crewmates their first JELL-O® gelatin as a special Easter treat, they decided to share a bag every Sunday night. “It is the greatest improvement in space flight since my first flight over 10 years ago,” Lucid wrote. “Every once in awhile, Yuri will come up to me and say, 'Isn’t today Sunday?' and I will say 'No, it’s not. No JELL-O® [gelatin] tonight!'” The JELL-O brand introduced Sparkling White Grape Flavor, known as “The Champagne of JELL-O®™”. This new gelatin flavor was so popular that it was joined by Sparkling Berry and Sparkling Mandarin Orange.

1996: The JELL-O® Museum opened its doors in LeRoy, NY (the birthplace of JELL-O®). The museum features JELL-O® artwork by famous artists such as Maxfield Parrish and Norman Rockwell, and has memorabilia that is loved by JELL-O® brand fans everywhere!

1996: The JELL-O® brand had a “faloon” (air inflated float) in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade three years—featuring such talent as the Olson Twins, Kool and the Gang and country sensation JoDee Messina.

2001: In January 2001, the Utah Senate declared JELL-O® gelatin the “Official State Snack” of Utah, in an effort to recognize the popularity of the wiggly treat in the state. And, to celebrate, an annual “JELL-O® Week” was proclaimed (the second full week of February) by Governor Michael O. Leavitt.

JELL-O® gelatin and pudding have been featured and/or mentioned in many Hollywood movies, including Some Like it Hot with Marilyn Monroe, Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park and teamed up with the video release of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie. In addition, they have played parts in Kindergarten Cop, Corrina, Corrina, My Best Friend’s Wedding, The Muse, and Reindeer Games.

JELL-O’s legacy: Today, there are more than 158 products sold under the JELL-O® brand name. With about 300 million boxes of JELL-O® gelatin sold in the United States each year, it’s no wonder that JELL-O® gelatin is “America’s Most Famous Dessert.”

SENSATIONAL SAND ART

Evenly layer 4 packages different colors/flavors JELL-O Gelatin in 4 clear plastic cups.
Poke the gelatin colors gently with a toothpick in each cup to create cool color patterns.
Stand back and admire your work!
Now eat your art—prepare each cup of JELL-O according to package directions.

I Didn't Sign Up This Week !

Today is Fun Monday. I struggled with what I could possibly post for the assignment. The assignment from Crown Princess at Ooh, a shiny pen was:

Music plays a vital role in most of our lives. It is everywhere. I want to hear the ONE song that is you. The song that whenever it is heard, you smile. I am not looking for the soundtrack of your life, just that one song. Your friends hear it and think of you. You can post the video, the lyrics, the wav file. However you want to post it is great.


The ONE song that is me.

I thought of one but it doesn't make me smile when I hear it.


It makes me sad.


She doesn't want the soundtrack of my life ... but this one song seems to be right on the money.


I have no idea if when people hear it, they think of me ... I hope not.


I haven't had a very successful track record ...

(I am not smart enough to figure out how to embed the video, so ... this will have to do!!)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlrXIvMmG3s

I Can't Make You Love Me

Turn down the lights, turn down the bed

Turn down these voices inside my head

Lay down with me, tell me no lies

Just hold me close, don't patronize - don't patronize me

CHORUS:

Cause I can't make you love me if you don't

You can't make your heart feel something it won't

Here in the dark, in these lonely hours

I will lay down my heart and I'll feel the power

But you won't, no you won't'

Cause I can't make you love me, if you don't

I'll close my eyes, then I won't see

The love you don't feel when you're holding me

Morning will come and I'll do what's right

Just give me till then to give up this fight

And I will give up this fight

CHORUS:

Cause I can't make you love me if you don't

You can't make your heart feel something it won't

Here in the dark, in these lonely hours

I will lay down my heart and I'll feel the power

But you won't, no you won't'

Cause I can't make you love me, if you don't.

Check out everyone else's songs at Ooh, a shiny pen - they are much more "uplifting"

Welcome Home !

I got up at "O.dark.thirty" this morning. On a Sunday! But for a very good reason.

Let me tell you ... traffic is wonderful in Northern Virginia - at 5:30 A.M. on a Sunday morning - when it's still dark and no one is up yet to get in your way! I got there in record time!

Where was I going? Dulles Airport

Why was I going there so early in the morning? My nephew was coming home for a couple of weeks

From where? Kuwait (The Gulf) - where he has been since June of 2007 - he's a soldier with the USCG

Who was he expecting to be there to pick him up? His wife

Who was there to welcome him home?

His wife, his 3 yr old twin daughters, his mother, his sister and his aunt !

(which would be ME!)
(His father (my brother), unfortunately had to report to work this morning) stupid power company

Waiting, patiently ...

The plane has arrived !

Still waiting, patiently ...

They are at customs ...

A lady passenger walked by and told the girls "He's coming"

Daddy! Daddy!

Eight months is a long time to be so far away from your loved ones.

All together again

(for about two weeks - he comes home for good in June 2008)

Daddy and his little girls

After 8 months being across the world in a foreign land ...

And a 15 hour flight ...

It's good to be heading home with your family.

Good bye Dulles Airport !!

Hello Daylight !!

Lee

WELCOME HOME

and

THANK YOU

for serving our country with the USCG

Saturday Silliness Again ...

* The plastic things on the end of shoelaces are called aglets.

* Maine is the toothpick capital of the world.

* New Jersey has a spoon museum with over 5,400 spoons from almost all the states.

* There once was a town in West Virginia called "6".

* Singapore only has one train station.

* The parking meter was invented in North Dakota.

* Napoleon made his battle plans in a sandbox.

* Roman Emperor Caligula made his horse a senator.

* The green stuff on the occasional freak potato chip is chlorophyll.

* Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon with his left foot first.

* There are 333 toilet paper squares on a regular toilet paper roll.

* The Eiffel Tower has 2,5000,000 rivets in it.

* "Jaws" is the most common name for a goldfish.

* On a average work day, a typist's fingers travel 12.6 miles.

* Every minute in the U.S. six people turn 17.

* 2,500 lefties die each year using products designed for rightists.

* Ten tons of space dust falls on the Earth every day.

* On average, a 4-year-old child asks 437 questions a day.

* Blue and white are the most common school colors.

* Swimming pools in Phoenix, Arizona, pick up 20 pounds of dust a year.

Thankful on a Thursday

Be thankful for the clothes that fit a little too snug, because it means you have enough to eat.

Be thankful for the mess you clean up after a party, because it means you have been surrounded by friends.

Be thankful for the taxes you pay, because it means you're employed.

Be thankful that your lawn needs mowing and your windows need fixing, because it means you have a home.

Be thankful for your heating bill, because it means you are warm.

Be thankful for the laundry, because it means you have clothes to wear.

Be thankful for the space you find at the far end of the parking lot, because it means you can walk.

Be thankful for the lady who sings off-key behind you in church, because it means you can hear.

Be thankful for the alarm that goes off in the early morning hours, because it means you're alive.

The next time you catch yourself complaining .....remember the things above AND be thankful!

Many don't have the same luxuries as you and I.

The Hill

20 more days ... and I will no longer be standing on top of it, but starting to head down it.

I hope the trip down is more exciting than the trip up was !!

I am starting to reflect on the past year ... and am hoping that the next one is the best to come !!

I have been told that 50 is the new 30, so I will be young again !!

More Saturday Silliness

Who Knew??

* No piece of paper can be folded more than 7 times.

* The first product to have a bar code was Wrigley's gum.

* Earth is the only planet not named after a Pagan God.

* A Boeing 747s wingspan is longer than the Wright brother's first flight.

* Venus is the only planet that rotates clockwise.

* Apples, not caffeine, are more efficient at waking you up in the morning.

* The first owner of the Marlboro company died of cancer.

* All US Presidents have worn glasses. Some just didn't like being seen wearing them in public.

* Walt Disney was afraid of mice.

* The inventor of the flushing toilet was Thomas Crapper.

* The average bed is home to over 6 billion dust mites.

* Plastic lawn flamingos outnumber real flamingos in the U.S.A.

* Ernest Vincent Wright wrote a novel with over 50,000 words, none of which containing the letter "e".

* The largest pumpkin weighed 377 pounds.

* The largest cabbage weighed 144 pounds.

* Pinocchio was made of pine.

* Alfred Hitchcock had no belly button for it was eliminated during surgery.

* A quarter has 119 grooves around the edge.

* A dime has 118 ridges around the edge.

* Cranberry Jell-O is the only kind that contains real fruit.

May your Saturday be all that you want it to be !!