Shameless Begging

Hey, guess what! I did an interview on BlogInterviewer.com. If anyone wants to read it, here is the link.

Today I got a letter from them suggesting that I link to their website, which I am happy to do. And it seems they offer prizes for the blogs that get the most votes every month.

My daughter, Ellen, is involved with Animalkind, a cat rescue service in Hudson, New York, which always needs money, so that is how I would spend my glorious winnings, if any.

One of the questions in the interview asked for urls of other blogs I visit. I gave them several of yours, so you may be hearing from them soon, too.

Thanks, everybody!

Waste of a Hottie

We went to the supermarket this evening. On our way out, we passed a young woman in a most striking dress, thin black fabric with only the tiniest strips covering her nipples, and also exceedingly short. Stiletto heels. I stared for a moment, and then remembered that it was rude. As we exited the store, the man behind us said, loudly, "Halloween
already?"

Flip professed not to have seen her. I professed not to believe him.

"If you didn't see her, you shouldn't be driving. Give me the keys."

He waffled. Maybe he really did see her. Or maybe he didn't. He seemed to be testing the waters.

I am not insecure. I was worried about his eyesight.

He insisted he had no idea what the other man and I were laughing about.

"You have a very good husband," the man told me as he got into his car.

"It's okay for you to look at other women," I said. "It's not even a male DNA thing. I noticed her, and I'm not attracted to women." He asked me to describe her. I'm sure I got every detail right. Any woman could do the same.

"Nope, I didn't see her," he said. "You're the only woman I ever look at."

I need to schedule him for an eye exam as soon as I clean up all the bovine excrement around here.

It Makes Me Proud

I feel silly. I have been known to rant about the skewed values I perceive in our society, children dressed as hookers, schools closing so that we can build more weaponry with which to bring our messages of mass freedom (MMF's) to other countries. I have even remarked that the U.S. will soon slip, giggling, into the sea.

But there is light at the end of the tunnel. There is hope for us and for the future of mankind. We will not dwell in the valley of the shadow of death forever.

There is now the butt-cam.

A Scottsdale, Arizona store has eliminated the need to ask ones trusted friends or significant other, "Does my butt look fat in these?"

The cameras are set up to capture an image of ones rear end so women can see how those jeans really look without twisting their necks.

And I. am. speechless.

Moi?

The most lovely and charming Odat of Odat Mumbles has given me a Recommended Read award!

Thank you so much, Odat! You and I have been blog buddies for a very long time, and your sense of fun never fails to delight me. I visit your blog like a child going to the playground, but underneath all the laughs you provide is a strong current of helping and caring for others.

You're the best!

Here is the new award. It will go perfectly with my favorite silver jewelry.


Now I am to give it to Only Two other blogs. This will not be easy as I strongly recommend every one on my list, and others, too, that I haven't gotten around to adding yet.

Meno at Meno's Blog is a great source of wisdom and compassion with a strong overlay of quirky commentary on life, whose many ironies are never lost on her. She seems like a woman who can do anything, although she would probably deny it.

Josie at All In Good Time is an independent spirit whose life has required that she be strong. She writes beautifully about life in Vancouver, art and sometimes shares a real treasure about her childhood. She is also a most talented artist.

I highly recommend these two bloggers who always strike the right chord and please me so much.

Read their words and enjoy!

Where Have All the Flowers Gone?

I feel like a dinosaur, or maybe a carryover from a time when, at least in literature, people were more polite than they are now.

In the supermarket, something caught my eye and I turned away from my shopping cart and ran headlong into the cart of a man who thought he was competing in the Indy 500. Knee first.

I didn't say anything but my expression must have betrayed that I was in pain because he said, belligerently, "Don't look at me! You ran into me."

I didn't answer because (a) I was hurting and (b) I was shocked at his outburst.

It seems to me that the appropriate response on his part would have been, "I'm sorry." Or at least, "Are you all right?"

What difference did it make that I ran into his cart (which was going much too fast?) Steel trumps flesh any day. He should have expressed concern.

Instead, he turned around and yelled, "What are you looking at? You ran into me, bitch."

I have my limits. I muttered, "Asshole" under my breath.

Flip said, "Great. Get me into a fight." He suddenly remembered an important errand involving chocolate-covered donuts, and hurried off. Flip is a peaceable person.

The guy made a 180 and rammed my cart. Better than my knee, but still...

I said, "Do that again and I'll have you arrested."

He let loose a stream of profanity and kept going. He probably needed some donuts, too.

We are devolving as a race. Long ago, way before my time or yours, people actually cared about one another. They lived in communities and looked out for their neighbors.

When I was growing up, this attitude didn't exist in most places anymore, but still, people pretended that they cared. It was better than nothing. They had manners, which smoothed over all the tricky areas of life that crop up wherever people share space.

It seems as if even that is gone now. We no longer pretend, and we certainly don't care about each other the way we should. We have become as hostile as cavemen fighting over territory, ripping raw meat from each other's teeth. We inflict physical and emotional pain on one another because. we. can.

Instead of nourishing ourselves with the warmth of good relations with loved ones, friends and even strangers, we have a starvation mentality and compete for the very air we breathe. The fact that there are far too many of us in the world fosters the worst behaviors instead of encouraging us to be even more considerate of others so that we can coexist peacefully.

This makes me very sad.

Today, I want to go and live with dogs.

Ten Things

Chani at Thailand Gal has tagged me to tell ten things I like about myself.

In her words: "You are such a clear-thinker and such a faithful friend. There is no way in the world I will ever be able to really thank you for that. With your quick wit and obvious intelligence, you are a teacher for me. All the time. I would also like to hear ten things you like about yourself. I want to know if they match the things I like about you. :)"

Thank you, Chani. What you've said about me is so very generous and kind. I really appreciate it, and also that I am now forced to consider myself in a more positive way than usual. Normally, I chastise myself for my failings, as I was taught that blowing ones own horn was immodest. Perhaps some balance is needed after all.


1. I like my sense of humor, which is often quirky. I probably enjoy it more than anyone else, which doesn't bother me in the least. I have a great capacity to entertain myself, although sometimes I do so in inappropriate places.

2. I like that I have no prejudices. My life would be considerably smaller and poorer if all my friends came from similar backgrounds and were just like me. It would be unimaginably stagnant and boring, and none of us would ever learn anything new. I could not live like that.

3. I have always defended underdogs, and I am generally compassionate (with a few notable exceptions.)

4. I understand and relate to animals well, perhaps because I am not caught up in the human dominance and superiority fallacy.

5. I like that I have a great deal of intellectual curiosity about nearly everything.

6. I appreciate my creative ability. I am artistic, I cook well, and am able to make a charming home out of anyplace I live.

7. I am comfortable with people from all walks of life. I feel eye to eye with everyone, regardless of our respective status, and I look for qualities of spirit in those I like and love.

8. I am loyal, supportive and nurturing. Plants, animals and children grow magnificently for me.

9. I have an excellent memory which is both photographic and phonographic. I can remember nearly every moment of my life, entire conversations, everything. This extremely fortunate party trick was most helpful in school and enabled me to get by with little effort.

10. I am strong. I have had a lot of trauma in my life but I am still here, and not diminished by it. I have come to believe that adversity has made me even stronger, and I know it has given me more confidence in myself.

Bonus: I like that I'm tall. Also deluded.

Now it's my turn to choose five of my blog friends to tell ten things they like about themselves.

1. Liz at Los Angelista's Guide to The Pursuit Of Happiness

I love her fine mind and great honesty, her personal beauty.

2. Maht at The Moon Topples

I love his creativity and generosity, the way he supports other writers.

3. Kevin at Kevin Charnas

I love his impish sense of humor, which cannot hide his intellect and decency.

4. Voyager at Spindrift and Dreams

I love her indomitable spirit, her personal strength and dignity.

5. Odat at Odat's Mumblings

I love her sense of fun and her quirky charm which brightens the blogosphere for so many.

The torch is passed. You're all amazing, and I eagerly await reading your lists.

Advice from a Master

"Keep away from people who try
to belittle your ambitions.
Small people always do that,
but the really great make you
feel that you, too, can become great."


Mark Twain