Category Archives: humor

I Ran, Can I Complain?

It has been a while since I made a Running Commentary post.  This afternoon I ran for the first time in three day.  I have not missed three days in a row for a while.  It was one thing I have felt pleased with myself about recently, that I have been running regularly. Well, when you don’t have to go to work in the morning,  it is easier to run.

I knew it would be more difficult to talk myself into running after work.  I did not even attempt it on Monday.  Tuesday and Wednesday I tried and failed.  Today, I was determined not to lose the progress I have made.

Afternoon running is more difficult for me than morning running.  For one reason, I work on my feet all day.  In addition to being tired, I have that little devil that sits on one shoulder whispering, “You got plenty of exercise today!  Just look at all the walking you did at work!” I resolutely ignored that bastard.

My other problem is that it is hot and sunny in the afternoon.  Some people LOVE hot weather.  I am not one of them.  Today I resolutely ignored myself and got going shortly after work.

And I did not enjoy it.  I appreciated the occasional breeze or patch of shade.  I tried not to mind the sweat dripping down my face, although it did sting when it got in my eyes.  Ouch!  I tried to blot them with my sleeves,  which helped a little.

It was not a long run, but I did it.  Sometimes my stubbornness is my most useful quality.  As I ran up my street at the end of my run, I waved at some neighbors on their porch.  One lady yelled at me that it was too hot for running.

“You are SO RIGHT!” I answered.

I have run in hotter, muggier weather, and I will undoubtedly do so again.  I may write blog posts about it. I do not promise not to complain, but I may write a Lame Post Friday post about what a big baby I am.

 

 

Sharon and Susan on Wuss-out Wednesday

How about a lawn update in lieu of my usual Wuss-out Wednesday post.  For one reason, I just walked around and took a few pictures with my Tablet. Pictures always dress up a post.

A little backlit, but you can see the bloom.

We were delighted recently when our Rose of Sharon finally bloomed.  A few more blossoms have appeared.  Next year I must clear all around the base of it and mulch, like my mother and father did (note to self: get a picture of Mom and Dad’s Rose of Sharon).

I took two views.

I looked at the Black-Eyed Susans but did not think I could get a shot much better than what I had  previously.   I am ashamed to admit it, but the patch is quite overgrown with weeds.  However, the Brown-Eyed Susans,  which I did not plant but just magically appeared,  are growing great guns.  I took two pictures of them

Our deck may need a little maintenance as well.

I love how much they have spread!

I walked out front, but there are no flowers.  I thought I might as well take another shot of what our friend Eva dubbed Frankentree.

 

I stood closer than I have for previous pictures, but it is getting bigger.

I personally would like to have a tree that blooms pink or white in the early spring,  but that is for the future.  You know, the distant, misty future, when I work harder on my lawn and possibly make better blog posts.

 

OK, Me, WRITE!

Tired Tuesday follows Monstrous Monday, and we know Cindy is back to work.  Um, I am making this post AFTER work.  I work when I am AT work.  I don’t know why I insist on putting that.  It is extremely unlikely that anybody in management reads my blog, and all my friends are more likely to say, “Yeah right, you work?”

Today was a hot, sticky day.  The word “soupy” springs to mind.  In fact, my husband Steven suggested soup for supper, but I declined.  We had sandwiches.  And that is my stream of consciousness paragraph for the day.

I really thought I would be able to write more once I got back to work (while on BREAK!  We’ve already gone over this, for heaven’s sake!). My job is simple, repetitive and fairly mindless.  While doing my job, I think about what I am going to write.  Then as soon as it is break time, I write!  It’s great!  However, as I have mentioned in many blog posts,  it does not always work.

I remind myself that I have only been back at work for two days.  And my work does involve standing on my feet most of the day and, you know, working. The best thing to do, I tell myself, is to not get discouraged but to try again tomorrow.   Additionally,  I end the conversation with myself before I start counting up how long I have been trying again tomorrow.  Never mind about the past!

What a pep talk.  I may even put down the Tablet and pick up my notebook (the spiral kind with paper; we’ve gone over that, too).

 

Boris Karloff, Can You Help Me Now?

I think we all knew today was going to be Monstrous Monday.  At least, anybody who gives any thought to my silly blog knew it.  Anybody who did not think about it is probably not surprised. No matter.  On with the monsters!

Not exactly a monster movie…

This is from Bedlam, starring the marvelous Boris Karloff.  It is only a monster movie in a people-are-the-worst-monsters sort of way.  It is really an excellent flick.  I highly recommend it.

There’s the Karloff we know and love!

OK, here is a real monster,  two in fact. Bride of Frankenstein is billed as “The Monster Takes a Mate,” but it isn’t really much of a love story.

Who doesn’t love Una O’Connor?

Here is another shot from the same picture, just because I love Una O’Connor.  The other person in the picture is of the monstrous variety, Ernest Thesiger as Dr. Pretorius.

I once had a ‘do like that.

Here is a better view of the lovely Elsa Lanchester.  I love her especially in the introductory scene, as Mary Shelley.  “She is an angel!”

“You were looking for me?”

And here is one more of Karloff looking more like Karloff.  I don’t know what movie it is from.  I had thought Arsenic and Old Lace, but he was not in the movie.  Perhaps it was a publicity shot from the Broadway show.

At last I am over 200 words!  Happy Monday,  everyone!

 

 

Why Do I Do These Things?

Well, I’ve done it again.  I’ve let another day pass without making a blog post, so here I am at 4 a.m. trying to post something, anything, so I am not another day behind.  I am the more urgently typing (one letter at a time with the stylus,  by the way) because this morning I return to work.

I have not talked about it much, because this is not a work blog, but I have been on furlough from my place of employment since June.  I will be very happy to be back at work and gainfully employed.  Even more happy will I be to once again have an excuse for not meeting my writing, running, weight loss, and house cleaning goals.

Yes, for the past few days I have been sadly admitting to myself that I pretty much wasted my time off.  I have no excuse. I comfort myself with the thought that no life is wasted, because it can always stand as a bad example.

So here I am, a bad example for all.  Will I spend the rest of my life profiting from the bad example I have been thus far?  Perhaps.  I must have some coffee and ponder the thought (yes, I have made this entire post before coffee. Does it show?)

 

Yay, Meeples!

Yesterday Steve and I went to a ribbon cutting at one of our favorite area businesses,  Meeples Mug House, the board game cafe in Little Falls, NY. Two Chambers of Commerce,  Herkimer County and Greater Utica were on hand to congratulate them.

We arrived early and sat at the counter to enjoy a cup of coffee. Quite the crowd had turned out for the event. Steve and I indulged in a couple of rounds of Rock’em Sock’em Robots, since the game was right there on the counter (I won).

Coffee with a handsome guy at a local business, what more could I want?

I went outside to get a picture of the actual ribbon cutting.  There was lots of milling about.

Some people enjoyed a cookie while they waited. Who could blame them?

 

Of course I did not make a note of any important names. Silly me!

 

Complete with a bow!

At last the ribbon was up, and the important people were making speeches.

Ready? One… two… three…

 

And cut! I love those big scissors!

Everybody applauded when the ribbon was cut, except those of us who were taking pictures.

There’s an accessory that makes a statement!

I had to get a shot of one attendee who really enjoyed the ribbon.  After the cutting we returned to the cafe for refreshments.

Meeples Mug House is located at 598 E. Main St., Little Falls NY,  phone number 315-868-7488.  They are  open 5 to 9 p.m. Thursday,  5 to 10 p.m. Friday, 2 to 10 p.m. Saturday,  and 2 to 8 p.m. Sunday.

 

It’s Blooming Friday!

Hello, all, it is Lame Post Friday and I thought I would share a couple of pictures of my lawn and call it a post.  For one reason, our Rose of Sharon finally has a blossom and we are quite happy about it.

Look at that sweet bloom saying hello!

I walked around to the side to get another view, and saw that we have at least two more buds.

Can you see them?

I am utterly delighted to have some flowers on my Rose of Sharon.  We are also seeing more blooms on our Black-Eyed and Brown-Eyed Susans.

Here are the Black-Eyed!

I took two of the Brown-Eyed Susans.

Look how nice they are

 

There are more than two pictures can show.

Steven said he thinks he mowed down some of the Brown-Eyed Susans in previous years,  not knowing what they were.  That is entirely possible.  However, there is little point in dwelling on the past. We have flowers in our yard today.  I am going to call that a win.

I see I have not yet reached 200 words, my usual criteria for a respectable blog post.  That is unfortunate.  I don’t know if I have any other flowers I can take a picture of.   Full disclosure: this is Lame Post Friday and I am disinclined to try. But I believe I have reached 200 words while dithering about it.

Happy Friday,  everyone!

 

I Hope Nobody Comes Along and Drops a House on Me

Our area is under a severe thunderstorm warning.  Naturally Steven and I went out to sit on the deck till it got here.  We each took a glass of wine, and I brought my Tablet, to take a picture or two for blogging purposes.

I’m not sure the Tablet captures the color and light.

This is the view over our back fence.  One of my favorite skies is a dark one hit by sunshine.  This was not as dramatic as some I have seen, but I believe in appreciating what I see.  We sat down, sipped our wine and chatted.  Eventually I took another picture.

What do you see in the clouds?

This is to my left.  I think some of the clouds may be the same as in the other shot, but it is hard to say.  I decided to walk put front and see what the clouds looked like there.

“It’s probably not as dark,” I predicted.  I was correct.  However, as I got ready to take a picture of the blue sky and white clouds, I saw that darker ones were moving in.  I tried to capture both.

Pretty ominous!

When I showed that one to Steven, he said I should send it to Jill Reale.  For non-local readers (and local readers who don’t happen to know), Jill Reale is the meteorologist on WKTV morning news.  She shares weather photos that readers send to her via social media.  How proud I would be to be featured!  So I posted it on her Facebook page.

I sat back down.  Soon we picked up our wine glasses, because the wind had picked up.

“I should make a video of this,” I said, watching tree branches whip back and forth.  I don’t know that I am technologically advanced enough for video.

In any case, it soon started to rain, so we came inside, and I made this blog post.  I wonder if I can come up with a headline striking enough to constitute a Non-Sequitur Thursday post.

 

Mid-Week Monster Movies

Do I have a feature called Mid-Week Movies?  Looking back, I see I have another post thus titled.  Anyways, we watched two movies tonight and since I got nuthin’ else, here goes.

Full disclosure: sometimes I feel like the Blob, or at least a blob.

I DVR’d The Blob sometime ago, as I usually do when I see it is on TCM.  It is one of our perennial favorites.   Since I am quite ready to begin the Halloween movie watching portion of our year, it was a good choice for tonight.  Oh, who am I kidding?  I am ready to watch Halloween movies at all times.

It’s scary!

To continue with the monster theme (ooh, could this post be Mid-Week Monsters? ), I suggested Little Shop of Horrors, by which I mean the original Roger Corman flick, NOT the musical.  Steven graciously agreed.  That was very nice of him, because in general he is not as big a fan of the cheesy stuff as I am.

My favorite character is Gravis Mushnick.

We are tired after our movie viewing and will probably go to bed soon.  I’m sorry this is not a more riveting description of the evening, but you’ll have that.  At least, with my blog you will.  I guess I’ll close with one more monster picture.

“You were looking for a monster?”

Naturally I wanted to use my favourite,  Nosferatu.  I may even watch that movie again soon.

 

Lawn Update on Tired Tuesday

Tired Tuesday it is!  I am sitting on my back deck, extremely grateful when the breeze blows, and hoping to make some semblance of a blog post.  I took a few pictures a minute ago, thinking to do an update on the state of my yard.  Spoiler alert: it isn’t that great.

I loves me my Black-Eyed Susans!

My Black-Eyed Susans finally bloomed, no thanks to me weeding them, which I did not.

I tried to get two good views.

The other day I did do some clearing out by my fence.  Of course I did not take a before picture — who can be bothered by such things when enjoying a rare bout of ambition — but I seem to remember taking a picture of the area for some flowers that had grown there.

Here it is!

You can’t really see the fence.

NOW you can see the fence!

The expression, “I fought the lawn, and the lawn won,” comes to mind.  But to end on a more positive note, our Brown-Eyed Susans are also starting to bloom.

Hey! You can see Steve’s feet!

These just magically appeared a few years ago, and this year there are quite a few of them.

Yay! They’re pretty!

Never mind how crappy the deck is starting to look!

So my lawn is not looking as bad as it could look, despite my colossal lack of effort this year.  Then again, why am I so hard on myself?   I have kept the grass in check, done some work around the edges, pruned the evergreen tree, in short, worked somewhat.  One can almost always do more.

So I can sit on my deck and relax with a minimum of guilt.  It doesn’t do me any good to shoulda-woulda-coulda anyways.  I will just relax myself till the thunder I am hearing gets a little closer.  Happy Tuesday, everyone!