Only Time Will Tell ~

A Powerful Parable

If you're bank credited your account each morning with $86,400 and after 24 hours canceled whatever amount was still unspent... what would you do? Wouldn't you try to draw out every last cent you could... every single day? Of course, you would!!!

Well, we all have such a bank... it's called "LIFE" and it makes a "TIME DEPOSIT" into your account every morning. It credits your "account" with 86,400 seconds and every day it burns the records and cancels out, as lost, whatever amount you failed to put to a good purpose. Use it or lose it... no balance carried forward.

Thanks to Mark Goldstein who recently shared this with me.

March 27, 1998 The Wedding of the Century

This is Sean, my nephew and his wife, Annie-belle.
I am blessed to have both of them in my life. They have added joy, love, warmth, humor (LOTS of THAT!!) and friendship. They are quite a package. I love them a ton and am glad they are staying in Ohio ~ for a while, at least.
Happy Anniversary to this wonderful couple!
May you have another 10 years x 7 in good health and love!

These Shoes Were Made for Walking - to The Cone!

The REAL Opening DAY is here! Yippee!! So I will slip on my new waffle shoes and run, not walk to the nearest CONE!



WHO doesn't like ice cream?





It's been kinda depressing over the winter...no ice cream.

But NOW I'm happy again!

Easter Egg Hunters

Remember when Easter baskets were BASKETS?
Now they come in the form of baseballs, footballs and furry creatures that are unrecognizable to me.
But the kids enjoyed "scrambling" around for their hidden eggs..and big brothers even helped their little sis find the prettiest ones!

Life is good.

I Never Cook Alone

As I was preparing some deviled eggs (aka "stuffed eggs" for those opposed to adding an evil over-tone to their dining experience), I realized how many people help me cook. I may be standing by myself in the kitchen but I am by no means, alone.
As I was peeling the hard-boiled eggs, I remembered that Mom taught me that the eggs will peel better if you let them soak in very cold water for 15 minutes. My friend, Suzer, has counseled me that peeling eggs under a light stream of cool water helps unravel the shell without making pock-marks on the egg's skins. Then as I discarded the shells in the waste basket, I heard the voice of nephew Sean caution me against putting shells down the disposal.

Now it was time to mash the eggs yolks before adding the good goop for the stuffing. I used my Dad's Marine Corps fork because he was the one who always performed this function with that same utensil....for over 50 years. I used to watch him intently as he explained to me (with much pride) that the trick for smooth and tasty eggs was to continuously turn the bowl as you mash.

As I retrieved Mom's deviled eggs plate (another antique), I remember how she told me that 90% of cooking was how you presented the meal. So, I got out the paprika and carefully tapped it's contents over the eggs with just the slightest hint of a sprinkle. Then I put the mandatory toothpicks in each egg to help create a protective tent when I covered the dish with saran wrap.

When I serve these eggs later today, I will think of the past ~ when brother Dave, nephew Brian and sister-in-law Connie would fight over the last survivor.

I may have seemed alone in that kitchen today ~ but I sure wasn't lonely.
It was "eggs"actly how I wanted it to be.

GOD Friday

There is some New Age thinking that purports that "there are no accidents".
Maybe that's true.
I tried three times to type the title of this post as "GOOD Friday" and it kept typing "GOD" Friday.
Growing up as a Catholic, we spent three hours in Church on Good Friday...from 12 noon to 3 p.m. to reflect on what Jesus suffered for us.
Three hours.
Now I wonder who spends 5 minutes.
I hear everyone saying automatically, "Happy Easter" but I don't hear anyone even whisper, "Pensive Good Friday"...
So...
I am taking the "E" challenge...
"Pensive Good Friday to you all.."

First Day of Spring

Happy First Day of Spring!
The times ~ they are a-changin'!
Maybe the flooding will subside..or the sleet and freezing rain will cease ~ or maybe the snow will stop flurry-ing...so the rabbits can come for Easter and the birds can greet the flowers.
Or maybe we will have to TRY to fire up the snow blowers again....

The Day After St. Paddy's Day

Ah, tis sad that some leprechauns never learn their lesson....Brian!

A Wee Bit 'O The Blarney

 
How Much Do You Know About Ireland?
St. Patrick’s name was really Maewyn Succat and was NOT Irish but Scottish with an Italian Father.

A Leprechaun’s profession is.....a shoemaker

The ratio of Irish pubs to people = 1/350

Divorce in Ireland did not become legal until 1997

Irish coffee was NOT invented in Ireland...but San Francisco

What % of U.S. President’s claim Irish heritage?
40%

When an Irish name starts with “Mac-”, it means “son of” ~ but when an Irish name begins with “O”, it means “grandson of”.

Slainte! (meaning “Cheers” or “a “toast to your health”)

Computers, Kids and Embarrassment

I received an email from Shirley, a close friend in her 70's, who sent me this email.
Can anyone else relate other than ME?


I was having trouble with my computer. So I called Eric, the 11 year old next door, whose bedroom looks like Mission Control, and asked him to come over.
Eric clicked a couple of buttons and solved the problem.

As he was walking away, I called after him, "So, what was wrong?" He replied, "It was an ID ten T error."

I didn't want to appear stupid, but nonetheless inquired,
"An, ID ten T error? What's that? In case I need to fix it again."

Eric grinned.... "Haven't you ever heard of an ID ten T error before?"

"No," I replied. "Write it down," he said, "and I think you'll figure it
out."


So I wrote down: I D 1 0 T

I used to like Eric...


Thanks to Shirley I feel just a wee bit better today.

Money Woes?

There seems to be a preponderance of evidence accumulating that points to a recession here in the USA. Although our Commander in Chief calls it a "slow down", our economist call it a recession.
In my myopic vision, I am not witnessing people scaling back in the spending category.
Yesterday a new Swedish store, IKEA, opened about 4 miles from my house and people lined up 3 days early to be able to grab the prized $100 chair that the first 100 door-busters would receive. I had four carloads of people ask if they could park in my driveway and have me shuttle them to the store. I informed them that there were fields of parking a mere 2 miles away from the store with a free drop off service at the door. Apparently over 12,000 people were in the doors of the store before noon, following a 9 a.m. opening.

Later that day, I went to a local restaurant to pick up a carry-out order of a home-made turkey dinner (ok, store-made but it TASTES almost home-made!)
I noticed that on this Thursday night, my dining establishment, along with it's neighboring FIVE others each had jammed packed parking lots and there was a waiting line outside each building! I thought that maybe I had been transported to a twilight-zone time period and it was really some Holiday I had missed.
As I drove away I glanced over at the movie theater parking lot and they, too, had no room to spare.
Did you know that movie tickets after 6 p.m. are $9.25? Apparently these patrons were all using their movie passes given to them as a Christmas present since no one can actually afford these prices when we are in a recession! What slays me are the people who order their tickets on line and go over to a machine to print them out and they will pay MORE money, $1.00, which is more than a 10% surcharge, for the convenience on avoiding waiting 3 minutes in line.

Well, I found out the house next door that was in foreclosure was sold at a sheriff's auction for about $40,000 less than it is worth. The people who purchased it live 1 block away in a house that is worth about twice what they paid for this place. Now it DOES have a pool. The only problem is that the people who bought the discounted house, don't know if they can sell their current home.
I guess too many people spend money at restaurants and movies.

Out of the Mouth of Babes

A 1st grade school teacher had twenty-six students in her class. She presented each child in her classroom the 1st half of a well-known proverb and asked them to come up with the remainder of the proverb. It’s hard to believe these were actually done by first graders. Their insight may surprise you. While reading, keep in mind that these are first-graders, 6-year-olds, because the last one is a classic!

1. Don’t change horses until .....they stop running.
2. Strike while the ......bug is close.
3. It’s always darkest before.......Daylight Saving Time.
4. Never underestimate the power of......termites.
5. You can lead a horse to water but......How?
6. Don’t bite the hand that.....looks dirty.
7. No news is.......impossible
8. A miss is as good as a......Mr.
9. You can’t teach an old dog new......Math
10. If you lie down with dogs, .......you’ll stink in the morning.
11. Love all, trust......Me.
12. The pen is mightier than the......pigs.
13. An idle mind is the best way to relax .
14. Where there’s smoke there’s....pollution.
15. Happy the bride who......gets all the presents.
16. A penny saved is.....not much.
17. Two’s company, three’s......the Musketeers.
18. Don’t put off till tomorrow what you......put on to go to bed.
19. Laugh and the whole world laughs with you, cry and You....have to blow your nose.
20. There are none so blind as......Stevie Wonder.
21. Children should be seen and not.....spanked or grounded.
22. If at first you don’t succeed......get new batteries.
23. You get out of something only what you......see in the picture on the box
24. When the blind lead the blind.....get out of the way.
25. A bird in the hand is....going to poop on you.

And the WINNER and last one!
26. Better late than....Pregnant

Wonder what they said in SECOND grade??

Email Spam-a-lot

We all deal with the ignorant emails offering us such "opportunities" as an unsecured credit card with a $50,000 limit only to find out it is a shopping card inviting you to buy from a catalog that feature products that are four times the cost of what you can find at Odd Lots...or how about the $50,000/minute job working 12 minutes a week from home? Gosh, what would happen if I worked 24 minutes? How would I spend all that money?

Of course I can't believe I am related to so many people who have died in a tragic accident in Nigeria (the "accidents vary from a remote-controlled toy plane crash to a cooking session gone hay-wire), but these misfortunes somehow manage to leave me as the only person who can handle the $12 billion dollar estate of my Great Uncle Utu...but I need to send $12,000 so armed guards from Africa can come deliver the money. Hmmmm...

The best junk email that I have had the fortune of receiving was the "opportunity" to earn big bucks to help others become protected from "spammers".
Come on now...a spam email asking me to help put them out of business?
Isn't that kinda like asking Donald Trump what a good hair piece looks like?

I think my spam filter is on vacation.