Susan B. Anthony (standing) & Elizabeth Cady Stanton
I’m so proud of women today. They got out there yesterday and voted en masse. It doesn’t matter who they voted for–only that they voted.
It never ceases to amaze me that more women don’t feel an obligation to get themselves out and into the voting booths on election days. After all, so many brave women in the past suffered immensely to fight for our right to vote.
Yesterday ladies, you did us proud!
I was driving home from the supermarket when I dreamed up an amusing April Fool’s joke to play on my husband. The day before he had sweat through an entire Saturday planting annuals along the path leading to our front door. And April Fool’s Day was right around the corner.
The day finally arrived. I strolled along our walkway after work and entered the house. My husband was sitting on the sofa sipping a cup of coffee and reading the newspaper. I cleared my throat and said, “What happened to all your beautiful flowers?”
“What do you mean, what happened to my flowers?”
I put on a super-duper gloomy face and replied, “Well, they’re all sort of drooping and dying.”
He threw the paper aside and hurried out the door with me trailing close behind.
When we were both standing looking down at his still-blooming flowers, a real explosion of color, I clapped my hands and shouted, “April Fool’s.”
My husband turned and stared at me. He didn’t think it was funny.
(I still say it was a great April Fool’s joke.)
I’ve never been much for eating breakfast. Even as a kid, I could take it or leave it. But all the nutritionists agree, it’s an important meal. So I’ve adapted. I even have a few favorites.
Each of the breakfasts above can be topped off with a cup of tea or coffee. Personally, I forego fruit juice because I don’t like to drink my calories, but if that’s your passion, go for it. Just remember if you have apple juice in the morning, you can’t have that apple in the afternoon.
The other thing you’ll find missing from my list is cold cereal. That’s because I like all the “wrong” kinds of cereals–all those sugary flakes and stuff like that. My best defense is to leave them on the shelves at the supermarket.
My final word of caution–if you’d prefer to grab a granola bar in the morning, check the calories. Some of them are deadly.
Did you know that one of the first age-giveaways is your hands?
We tend to take really good care of our faces, but we neglect our hands. Facial products are big business, as well they should be, because it’s important to put your best face forward. But every bit as important are your hands.
I encourage you to buy hand cream and not the cheapest brand you can find. Invest in a good, creamy product, not a watery lotion that will do nothing except make your hands feel sticky. Rub in some cream every evening. It’s never too late to start making this a nightly habit.
And while you’re at it, be kind to your feet. Every once in a while, slather some of that cream onto your feet. Wear socks to bed that night to insure that the cream doesn’t rub off. Trust me, you will never have hard, rough feet if you treat them to a little loving care. It only takes a minute–if that.
Is anyone else getting bored with Project Runway? The designers don’t seem to be as talented as they have been in past seasons. There definitely should have been more excitement for that challenge where they teamed up with a school art class. There was so much inspiration there from the young artists, but the same lackluster array of clothes was trotted out. Pitiful!
When I think of “Runway,” I think of glamor and extraordinary fashion. I want to see some gowns and cocktail dresses coming down the runway, not tailored pants and jackets constantly. What fun is there in that?
The avant-garde challenge should have been evening wear.
There should be a different red carpet challenge every season. Let’s see the difference between a Grammy Awards red carpet as opposed to what we might see on Oscar night.
With so many Hollywood-type events to choose from, the best they could come up with was the Nina Garcia challenge? I have never seen Nina wear anything electrifying, and why in the world would I want to see her in clothes she would wear to work?
And the challenges themselves are getting old and stale. Okay, making a garment from stuff you can buy in a pet store was fun the first couple of times, but come-on! And then to put one designer down for using umbrella material, while rewarding the designer using fleece wasn’t even a fair assessment of the project, especially when the guy who made a dress out of birdseed was the clear winner.
And by the way, the bully in the playroom should’ve been kicked off the show, not one of his victims. But, oops, I forgot–the ratings. Maybe people are looking forward to more hysterics and mood swings. I, for one, would like to see more “out of the box” design and less drama.
Whichever way you say it, you haven’t eaten a really good tomato in a very long time–well, unless you’re growing your own or buying from a farmers market. However, you are eating really, really pretty tomatoes: bright red, no blemishes, smooth skin, firm to the touch, perfect green stem. Too bad they’re red rocks with little or no juice inside.
Every year, it gets harder and harder to find an awful looking, ugly tomato–the ones that are grown to taste good, not to look good.
If you’re lucky enough to find one, don’t expect it to be bright red. Sometimes they’re more orange. And don’t bother to look for a perfect stem sticking out of its misshapen body, because there probably isn’t one.
If you’ve ever bent over and picked a tomato direct from the plant, you’ll know the minute you hold this ugly baby in the palm of your hand that it’s been sun-drenched and grown outside and maybe it hasn’t even been sprayed with “who knows what.”
So, the next time you pass the tomatoes in your supermarket, try to figure out why you don’t see those hideous looking tomatoes in the store anymore. Are we so enamored of beauty that our food has to look gorgeous, while real taste suffers?
Oh, well. Pretty is “in.” So, I won’t even get started on our pretty, pretty red beef, or our pearly white eggs, or …
Evidently, Tom knew what he was talking about!
“If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the people of all property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their Fathers conquered… I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies… The issuing power should be taken from the banks and restored to the people, to whom it properly belongs.” – Thomas Jefferson
Who would’ve guessed that out of all the shows I’ve seen in my lifetime, Chubby Checker’s concert would take first prize? I didn’t think anyone could possibly displace the double bill of the fantastic Tina Turner and the inimitable Joe Cocker, but there it is. Chubby Checker skyrocketed.
His show didn’t begin with an announcer’s usual warnings, “There will be no flash pictures allowed during the show” and “Turn off all cell phones.” Once the show started, I understood why. Because if a cell phone rang, no one would’ve heard it anyway.
Only one prior statement was made–“Chubby will be available in the lobby after the show to sign autographs and say hello.”
Then his band walked out, took their places and the sax player walked up to the mic and simply said, “Chubby Checker.”
Chubby walked out onto the stage and proceeded to sing non-stop for an hour and a half. He embraced the audience and they embraced him back.
By the mid-point of his concert, it became obvious he needed no back-up singers or performers, because his audience filled the bill. People were dancing in the aisles, standing at their seats dancing and those who couldn’t get out of their seats were dancing in their seats.
Whenever he sang a song that came complete with its own dance, he’d shout, “If you know how to do the Pony, come on up.” People of all ages went up to the stage and danced. At one point, he had over 20 women onstage teaching them how to do the Fly. Toward the end of the show, he had 20+ men on stage doing the Twist.
He encouraged people to sing and since everyone in that audience knew the lyrics, everyone in that audience sang. He didn’t just perform his own songs, he sang songs that were well-loved in the 60’s. Songs by Little Richard, Marvin Gaye, Bill Haley, and so many more I couldn’t keep track. He sang Blue Suede Shoes and he didn’t massacre it. He did Elvis proud.
At other concerts I’ve attended, when a recognizable song is about to begin, there is a hushed sort of “ahhh” that permeates the audience. At this concert, every time Chubby started to sing, people screamed their approval.
Senior teenagers! It was a night to reminisce, to do things we hadn’t done in many years. Some folks who climbed up on stage had to be helped up the steps. In one case, a man actually used a cane to get up on stage to join the rest of the guys.
Inhibitions be damned! Everyone was a kid again.
Many people stayed to talk to Chubby after the show and get his autograph. Some held old 33 1/3 record albums for him to autograph. Others just wanted to tell him what he meant to them when they were growing up.
I was there well over an hour and there were still people waiting to talk to him. They took pictures of him with their cell phones. He was gracious, never rushed anyone, and he signed every autograph requested.
It was a party!
She would be so proud.
I wished throughout the entire regal wedding ceremony that Diana could have been there. It was hard not to think about her while watching her two handsome sons do her proud.
Kate was beautiful as she made her entrance and walked down the aisle. One can only hope that she and Prince William will enjoy many happy years together.
Diana, you did a fabulous job making your sons approachable, yet dignified and dedicated individuals. Your legacy lives on.
