Diagonally Parked in a Parallel Universe

Signs, Signs, Everywhere Are Signs

This is a hard one because on my  trip to Nepal, I took lots of pictures of great signs. I'm choosing this one because when everyone on the group shared their pictures, it seemed all of us had a shot of this sign in Lukla, Nepal.

I guess Dr. Jaiswal is the local gp.









Submitted for Shutterday.

Friday's Feast

Appetizer
What is your usual bedtime?  Do you like that, or would you rather it be different?

Usually about 10pm. I wish I didn't have to sleep because there's so much I want to do, read, paint, plant, see, experience!

Soup
When it comes to advice, do you give more or receive more?

I have a pretty big mouth that's full of opinions. In fact, if I took half of the advice I gave, I'd be in great shape all the way around. I do receive a lot of advice though. Especially in the form of "Okay-ya" from my  15-year-old  daughter. I keep forgetting that these are the years where she knows everything and I'm merely the taxi driver.

Salad
Describe a memorable meal you've had.

This is so difficult because if there's one thing I remember it's memorable meals. I can go back as far as a Chinese meal my parents brought home to me when I was about 12 from a Chinese freighter that was transiting the Panama Canal.

Probably the most memorable (I'll remove delicious from this) meal I ever had was with my husband in Boca Raton. We went to Morton's Steakhouse which is incredible! It's also incredibly expensive because everything is ala carte. I had ordered the Gran Marnier Souffle for dessert the moment we arrived at the restaurant because I knew that it had to be ordered first due to the prep time.

After we ate our fabulous steaks and drank our very expensive wine, we were ready for dessert. It never came. We told our waiter that it was okay, no worries, and just to remove the charge for that from the bill. We had had such a nice evening it was no longer important. The next thing we knew, the maitre'de came over and said, "I'm very sorry to hear about your experience and I don't want it to affect how you feel about Morton's Steakhouse. If I can serve 100 people to their satisfaction, I should be able serve everyone. Because of this, your dinner tonight is on the house." I'll never forget those words.

With that, he walked away, leaving us sitting there with our jaws on the table. My husband looked at me and said, "Did he say what I think he said?"

I said, "I think so."

We stood up very nonchalantly, left a huge tip for our waiter, picked up our doggie bag which was shaped like a swan of course, and strolled to the door. Looking over our shoulders to make sure no one was following us with bill in hand, we ran to the car and got out of there!

That would have to be my most memorable dinner!

Main Course
Name a work of fiction that affected the way you think about something.

There are many, but one that affected me the most would be Stephen Kings' It. I am still afraid of the sewer!

Dessert
What is your favorite type of fruit juice?

Fresh "squoze" tangelo juice from my mother's tangelo tree. The nectar of the gods.

A Few of My Favorite Things

Edition #3

My Favorite Podcasts.

(These aren't listed in any order.)

1. Griddlecakes Radio - Ron (and the other Ron) mixes good old storytelling with a fair amount of New England history.
2. Cast On - Brenda Dayne makes me want to just sit and knit.
3. Creative Mom - Expensive because I alway end up ordering books at the end of her podcast!
4. Gestalt Gardener - Dr. Dirt's got it goin' on! I just wish he would keep his blog current.
5. Quirky Nomads - Sage can certainly spin a yarn. (No knitting pun intended!)
   
6. Zedcast - Bruce Murray has convinced that Picto, Nova Scotia is definitely on my list of places to visit. Especially for the Lobster Carnival.
7. The Daily Purge - Some of this I tune out, but I love J. Michael Haas' opening stories.
8. Thinking with Someone Else's Head - This is a great fix for those moments when I think 'momdom' is turning my brain to mush.
9. Wait, Wait. Don't Tell Me - Makes me realize I'm not the only one completely out of the loop.
10. Island Podcasting - Ted Reicken sounds like such a nice man and his podcast is just soothing.
11. Lime and Violet - Another knitting podcast, but their relationship sounds like a trainwreck waiting to happen.
12. Exercise Radio - If you can't get the eliptical or the treadmill going at the gym, this will do the trick!
13. Chub Creek - This may be my favorite. Just don't have hot coffee in your mouth when listening.

Needless to say, I think I need a bigger IPod and more time as there are currently over 30 days worth of podcasts to listen to!

We Knew the Lights Would Go Out!

I haven't seen Jericho, but I'm been through a couple of natural disasters!

Iteration 3/07/07

1. The weatherman said Hurricane Jeanne was coming. We watched and tracked it diligently and in the end decided not to evacuate as we did for Francis.
2. Up went the plywood and the house became a cave.
3. We went to bed thinking it would be a category 2 and awoke at 6:00am to the news that a cat 4 was expected. It was too late to get out so we unconvincingly laughed about "hunkering down."
4. We had water and canned goods knowing that it could be awhile before the stores opened again. The cars were full of gas that we had waited in long lines for, all the while hoping that we would get through before the gas ran out.
5. Cocktails by the pool at sunset in the calm before the storm while looking at the screen that still hung, ripped and torn, by Francis.
6. The winds picked up. 8:00pm the power went out and the battery powered radio went on.
7. The walls shook. Plywood was ripped from a front window and the sound of the wind down the chimney sounded like women shrieking. Over all this, the sound of metal bending and finally giving away as the pool enclosure tore away from the pool.
8. Finally dawn came. Fences down. Limbs down. Trees down. A town under a curfew and the supermarket shelves empty even though they were open for cash-only transactions. No alcohol could be sold. All water had to be boiled. Cell phone service was non-existent.
9. Panic about not being able to reach my parents to make sure they were okay and to let them know we were fine. We couldn't leave town because no one was being allowed in; all entrance roads were blocked by police.
10. Really afraid there had been a breach at the nuclear power plant nearby. (unreasonable I know, but there nonetheless).
11. Cooking all the meat we had in the freezer on the grill and washing it down with lots of warm beer. Making breakfast on the grill with the last of the eggs and bacon. No coffee because I only had beans and had no way to grind them.
12. Agreeing that next time we would evacuate even though when we did that for Francis, it was a story unto itself.

Unconscious Mutterings #213

1. Nude :: Art 
2. Support :: Bra
   
3. Rachel:: Ray 
4. Crane :: Sandhill 
5. Candy bar :: Snickers 
6. Material :: Fabric 
7. Mind games :: Dumb 
8. Eviction :: Gone 
9. Produce :: Lettuce
   
10. Joke :: Bad 

Am Not! Are Too!

Me 1: I'm not superstitious!
Me 2: Are too.
Me 1: Am not!
Me 2: Are TOO!
Me 1: Superstitions are hooey!
Me 2: Explain New Year's Eve day then.
Me 1: What about it?
Me 2: Generally cranky that day?
Me 1: Hey! I'm busy that day. The whole house has to be cleaned and every stitch of laundry must be washed and put away!
Me 2: And could you explain to the nice people why?
Me 1: They know why. If all is neat, clean and tidy and all the laundry is done then it will stay that way through the next year. Jeez!
Me 2: Hmmmm. Well then, could you please explain to the nice people why, when you receive a knife as a gift, you run around like a crazy person looking for a coin to give to the person who gifted you with that knife?
Me 1: Knives can sever relationships, but cannot sever coins. I don't want to lose any relationships. (Especially if they give really great knives!)
Me 2: I see. Well, I'm sorry if I took up any of your time. You're right. Not superstitious at all. Shall we discuss why you always buy a new broom when you move into a new house or hide a coin when you go to someone else's housewarming?

Me 1: End of conversation! Look what you did with all your chatter...you made me step on a crack and now I have to go check on my mother's back.

Submitted for Sunday Scribblings.

Jump Around, Jump, Jump, Jump Up, and Get Down

Falling fast from 18,000 feet on my 44th birthday. No granny here!

Submitted for Shutterday.

Alone

Submitted for Photo Friday.

Friday's Feast

Appetizer
What does the color pink make you think of?

Pepto-bismol.

Soup
Name something you thought you had lost, but later found.

My sanity.

Salad
In 3 words, describe this past week.

Worrisome, peaceful, painful. (It's been a weird week.)

Main Course
What are you obsessed with?

Trying not to be a control freak. (Is it a control issue if I'm obsessed with it?)

Dessert
What kind of perfume or cologne do you like to wear?

None. I always smell like roses! (Written with tongue firmly planted in cheek.)

Salty

My poor little guy after having his broken arm reset.