Friday, November 21, 2008

Joy Movie

There are several great quotes in this piece. Everybody from Mother Teresa to Milton Berle .
I liked this and hope you will too.

http://www.thejoymovie.com/

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Santa's Little Elf

I know it isn't Thanksgiving yet but I have already been helping Santa this year. I just bought my hubby, Al, tickets to an NBA game, the New Orleans Hornets vs the Boston Celtics. I am so pumped about this because I know he will be excited and delighted on Christmas Morning.
We tried to get tickets for the Hornets vs Celtics last year but we waited too late. We even went into New Orleans on the day of the game and tried to buy scalper tickets but no luck.
I could care less about basketball but he loves it and his favorite team, having grown up in New England during the Larry Bird years, is of course the Celtics. He does cheer for the Hornets since we transplanted to Louisiana.
I also do all the Christmas shopping for my Mother who has Alzheimer's. It is easy to take care of her grandchildren . Money is always a favorite for them. Right color and right size! LOL
The difficult ones to buy for are her brother, sister-in-laws and brother-in-laws all of whom are in their 80's and 90's. In past years I have sent flowers or gift cards for favorite restaurants. I am hesitant to send actual food or treats since some of them have restrictions on what they can eat.
I received a catalogue from Yankee Candle that has some very nice gift baskets with candles ,diffusers, ornaments, etc. I am considering those but am not sure that having burning candles is a good idea for elderly folks.
All of these relatives are fairly well off so I don't want to send something cheap or even necessarily useful. All but one of them lives in their own home. The one who is not in her own home is still active and lives in a senior community not a nursing home. One has lost much of their sight. 2 are in pretty bad health with major problems but still have a zest for life.
If any of you have ideas I am all ears.

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Veterans Day

Thank you to all Vets and families of the Vets who have served our country.

Although Al, my husband, and I were never in the military we both have worked for the military as civilians. I only worked for the Army for a few months but Al worked for them for over 25 years.
One of the highlights of my life was when we were living and working for the Army in Germany. It was December 1991 just before the start of the first Gulf War AKA Desert Storm. I was lucky enough to volunteer to work at the USO's tent City at Rhein Main Air Force Base. Our job was to greet, feed and talk to the troops who had just flown in from the States and were en route to Kuwait, Saudi, and unknown points in the Persian Gulf region.
Most of the troops we saw were very young 18 to 22 year old men and women. All were dressed in desert khakis. All had automatic weapons slung over their shoulders. When they came into the tent the weapons came off their shoulders and were placed upright into a pyramid shape by unit or squadron. These gun pyramids were an interesting contrast to the fresh cut Christmas trees scattered throughout the tent.
After having the long flight from the States to Germany many of the troops were jet lagged but full of bravado at the task they would face in only a few weeks. It was almost a pep rally before the big game type atmosphere.
We did our best to feed them, talk with them, and show them how to use the equipment to make MARS Phone calls to family back in the States.
About the middle of the afternoon, a group of 7 to 8 year old Brownie Scouts in full uniform showed up to sing Christmas Carols. At first there were some snide comments about the little girl's performance but within a few minutes some of the troops started gathering round and singing along with the girls. By the time the girl's finished I don't think there was a dry eye in the place.
I spent the remainder of the afternoon talking to soldiers, both men and women, who suddenly realized they were going to war . For some of them this would be the first time they had ever been away from their family at Christmas. One woman who sticks in my mind after all these years was thinking about her 3 year son. It was heart wrenching. It was an emotional day, but I think it was probably one of the most rewarding days of my life.

To all those troops , others who have served and the troops now in service to our country I say God bless and keep you and thank you for your service.

Monday, November 10, 2008

Newbie Test

Since I am a complete newbie at writing my own blog and not very computer savvy when trying things new to me, I am experimenting with trying to post a new entry on my blog. If it works great , if not I will be calling on my blog buddies to show me the ropes.

Until I get everything figured out I won't be posting a lot of stuff. Good thing I guess cause if I blogged what is on my mind today I would sound like a bitcher and moaner. I maybe one but I don't want to use my blog for whining and griping about every little thing.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to check out my blog. It is fun to see my friend's from Jackie's stop by.

Friday, November 7, 2008

I've been tagged!

1. Clothes Yeah I wear them. I am not into making fashion statements. If it is clean, comfortable and fits I will wear it.


2. Furniture I am in the market for new family room furniture. I guess I must be hard to please because my Hubby and I have been to many furniture stores from New Orleans to Mobile Alabama and have only seen one sofa, love seat and chair and a half that we like. I am not set on leather or fabric but it must be comfortable and durable. It would help if it wasn't the most expensive thing in the store but I am willing to pay more for good quality.



3. Sweet. I do have a sweet tooth but it depends on how I feel on a certain day. It could be chocolate I crave or something more sugary like funnel cake or donuts. Then again it could be something like fresh pineapple or melon. Just depends.

4. City. I love to visit cities. Among my favorite cities are London, Florence, Venice, Brugges, San Francisco, New York and New Orleans.

5. Drink. On a daily basis I am a Diet coke drinker. I do not drink Coffee at all. I do occasionally drink Wine, Champagne, decent scotch and mixed drinks such as Bloody Mary's & Pina Coladas.

6. Music. I am very eclectic about music. My favorite is Doo Wop, but I also enjoy Rock & Roll, Blues, Soul, Gospel, Classical, Broadway show tunes. The only music I haven't been able to have a deep appreciation for is Rap.

7. TV series. There are so many... to name a few, Boston Legal, The Eleventh Hour, Monk, 24, Lost. Almost any reality show like The Amazing Race, Survivor, Big Brother , Top Chef, Project Runway. I love cop shows especially the Law and Order group.

8. Film. I like most dramas and old musicals. There are some comedies I enjoy. I'm not too big on the action adventures, horror or sci-fi.

9. Workout. Are you serious???

10. Pastries. I am a big fan of donuts though I am not sure if that fits into the pastry category.


11. Coffee. Never touch the stuff in any form. No coffee flavored candies, ice cream or any fancy coffee drinks for me. I just don't like how it tastes.