Marriage Trivia

After 11 years of living together, Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman were married during a Taxi-lunch break in 1982.

Cat and Girl

For all us social networkers. Click to embiggen. Source HERE.

Philadelphia Here I Come!

Tina and I are leaving in the morning for Philadelphia. We're flying and will be back Sunday night. I can now comment on blogs with my phone at last! I actually checked "help" on my BlackBerry, got better advice this time, and can comment on blogs and post on my own. It's been really frustrating to read posts and not be able to comment on them. I can also mute my phone. I got wrong information from the Verizon store about how to do that, but a former student helped me with it on FB. So I'll leave some blog and FB updates when I can. Wish I'd known how to do that when I was on my cruise, but it worked out. I'll probably leave updates on FB because it's easier and less time consuming since I have to do all that with my thumbs. I'm not a teenager!

I'm really looking forward to seeing David and Maddie Saturday! We're going to talk and talk and talk! Can't wait!!

I discovered that the Reading Terminal Market has many $7 meals, so I'll be heading over there while Tina is at the conference. She'll have breakfast and other meals there. It will also be fun to check out the shops and all they have there. From what I read, it sounds like a good place to browse and shop. The Naked Chocolate Cafe and a gelato place are nearby, too, which will be ever so tempting. We'll have to find somewhere to have dinner unless we eat early at the Market. The hotel will have information.

It's supposed to rain Thursday and Friday, so that might curtail some of my sightseeing. I'll go on the historic walking tour if I can. Hope so but won't be walking all over the place in the rain. I'm taking a good book and some knitting and stay at the hotel. I'm easily entertained.

Temp Trivia

Back in the 1600s, thermometers were filled with brandy instead of mercury.

Maddie would never have known the temperature from drinking the thermometer.

Movie

I went to see The Men Who Stare at Goats this afternoon with friends and thought it was hilarious! Have any of you seen it? Great cast and quirky writing!


Here's what Roger Ebert wrote about it in his 3 1/2 star review HERE:

Bear with me here. Imagine "Ghostbusters" is based on a true story. Imagine the Dude from "The Big Lebowski" as a real-life U.S. Army general. All factual, right? That's what "The Men Who Stare at Goats" sort of wants us to believe. I think I sort of do -- to a small degree, sort of. "More of this is true than you would believe," the movie announces in an opening title. I'm waiting for the review of this one in Skeptic magazine.

We begin with a newspaperman named Wilton (Ewan McGregor) from Ann Arbor. That's a poignant note, because Ann Arbor recently lost its daily newspaper. He interviews a goof who tells him he was a member of the New Earth Army, a super-secret Army team of paranormals who were being trained as stealth weapons. In theory, they could spy at a distance, kill by the power of their sight alone and penetrate enemy lines in spirit, not in body.

Wilton hungers to hunt where the headlines are. In 2002, he flies to Kuwait, hoping to cross into the war zone. He runs into a legendary guy he heard about from the crackpot back home. This is Lyn Cassady (George Clooney), said to be the best of the New Earth trainees. Wilton pumps him and learns of an acidhead Vietnam veteran named Bill Django (Jeff Bridges), who sold the Army the notion of fighting men who could transcend physical limitations. We see Django in flashbacks; Bridges essentially plays him as the Dude in "The Big Lebowski." Members of the Church of Lebowski will be able to enjoy this film as apocrypha.

The movie flashes between the recent Middle East and events 20 years earlier, when Cassady trained under Django to become, he explains, a Jedi Warrior. Clooney doesn't overplay and is persuasive, making Cassady as a sensible, sane man who has seen the impossible and has no choice but to believe it. He shows Wilton videos of a goat and a hamster killed by brain power. In theory, mind power can even allow men to run through walls -- if, of course, they believe they can.

The two of them unwisely journey into wartime Iraq, where they run into hostility. Cassady attempts to deal it with using paranormal techniques. He explains his theory of Jedi Warriordom to Wilton, who has apparently never seen "Star Wars" episodes I, II and III. Little joke. Their troubles are intercut with scenes of Cassady's early training, which included such self-persuasion exercises as fire walking. I think it is impossible that a flywheel like Bill Django could survive in the Army, but then again, he has top security clearance in a crucial secret program, so maybe he gets a pass. It may be that psychotropic drugs are justified as a pathway to higher powers. Whatever.

Kevin Spacey, who has been absorbed in London theatrical adventures, comes back in a good role as Hooper, who hates everything that Cassady stands for, whatever that is. All of the actors play without winks and spins, unless you consider Lebowskism itself a wink and spin. And we're faced with the fact that the movie is based on the 2004 book by Jon Ronson, a writer for the Guardian, who wrote it humorously but (he said) truthfully about an Army experiment. It was this real program, he says, that inspired playing the "Barney the Dinosaur" theme as a torture technique.

It actually doesn't matter if the book is truthful. It doesn't claim the paranormal powers are real. Ronson simply says some officials thought they might be -- and that if they were, we had to get there first. The movie is funny either way.

But figure this out. The book inspired a BBC-TV series which interviewed the real Ret. Gen. Albert Stubblebine III, who explains on camera exactly how men could walk through walls. He may be correct. Judge for yourself: http://j.mp/32khK0

Hot Trivia

Pound for pound, the human body produces 5 times more heat than the sun. The production of heat from the sun averages only 2 calories per pound of its mass daily, while the typical human body generates 10 calories per pound of mass each day.

A Name is Just A Name?

Former Good Morning, America cohost Joan Lunden’s birth name was Joan Blunden.

Material for "Says You"

Winning "hands down" in horse racing means never once having to use the whip on the animal.


It's neat to learn origins of phrases and words. This one especially! I have mixed feelings about horse racing. If treated well and trained properly, it can be like running track for people. If not, it is abusive. What's your opinion on it?

Mr. Looper!

When Sesame Street’s Big Bird visited the Nixon White House as a guest of First Lady Patricia Nixon, the Secret Service’s radio frequency got mixed up with Big Bird’s microphone frequency—so the Secret Service was picking up Big Bird’s lines in their earpieces.

This is Just Weird

In zoos, ostriches are often unable to be sexually aroused unless they’re being observed by human beings—which makes them total exhibitionists.

My Day

I went to the monthly meeting of the local Democratic Party for the first time in many years. We signed a resolution to let Congressman John Tanner know that we do not like his voting record, especially on health care reform and that we will support other Democratic candidates now.

Then I went to lunch at Lugo's with a friend I met while knitting. We enjoyed the food and the visit. Afterwards I went to the Grand Opening of Yarn Frenzy. There were lots of people there who bought things and others who got interested in learning to knit. I'm making the transition from social knitter to functional knitter they said. I'll show you my next creations when I finish them.

How was your day? What did you do?

Trip!!

I'm so excited!! Tina is going to the NCTE (National Council of Teachers of English) Conference in Philadelphia next weekend, and I'm going to tag along with her. I bought my plane ticket last week and can stay in her hotel room at no extra cost to the county. They're paying for her to attend the conference. I'll be on my own to explore since the Courtyard Marriott Downtown is near so many neat places. We're leaving here Thursday morning and will get back Sunday evening. Tina and I will have time to do some things together while she is not in sessions.

Here's the exciting part! I emailed to see if Maddie would be in town while I'm there, and the answer is YES! I'll have a wonderful tour guide Saturday and am hoping that David will get to ride the train down from NYC. That would be wonderful to get to meet David, Maddie, and the Boy Toy! I'm keeping my fingers crossed! Maddie already mentioned the Naked Chocolate Cafe, which I'd already googled because I remember his mentioning it on his blog and want to be in chocolate heaven.

I'm really looking forward to this trip! I've checked online and am also looking forward to hearing about places to go and things to see.


Instead of a DDBW, this will be an "Auntie Flame And Nephews" weekend (AFAN) and will involve chocolate.

Beanie Baby Trivia

The man behind the Beanie Babies phenomenon of the late 1990s is still quite a mystery. Ty Warner has shunned interviews, and the company’s financial records and phone number are hard to find. Reports in 1999 identified Warner as a billionaire and the richest toy maker in the world. He purchased New York’s Four Seasons luxury hotel for $275 million.


Mother has a collection of these, and my grandson Brendan plays with them every time we go there. He loves them and knows all their names.

CMA's

Since I don't follow country music regularly, I watch the awards shows to know who they are. I like awards shows anyway and watch most of them. The local news has had pieces on it all week since it's held in Nashville again. It's better when it's in Nashville.


Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood are hosting it and are doing a good job. They started off making fun of Kanye West by singing a parody of "Mamas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys" with a line in it about cowboys being too polite to interrupt. It was funny and worked. Carrie told Brad he smelled really good and went on about it. He said he was wearing MacGraw. Faith Hill was cracking up and so was Tim. Then Carrie said she had on Faith Hill Parfum.


Hey, did you know Darius Rucker of Hootie and the Blowfish has had three country music hits in a row!! He was on the awards show and is nominated for Male Vocalist of the Year. I had no idea about that until this week. What about you, Howard? Did you know this? He just won Best New Artist of the Year. Well, yes, new country artist. He's been around the music block more than a few times.

Btw, it's called country music, not country and western music. I've had this conversation with Charlie many times and believe he's finally caught on. I'm still working on getting him to say "jeans" instead of "denims" and am making progress.

The Judds just came out to present an award. K. T. Oslin cracked me up one time calling them Nairobi and Wyoming. I don't know what kind of makeup Wynona has on but she's too bronze and almost orange like Michael Kors but with that flaming bright hard-to-describe sort of burgundy neon orange hair and pink lipstick. Yep, as bad as it sounds. Naomi looked frumpy and not in good health. She looked healthy on Can You Duet when she was a judge and mentor.


Sugarland won Duo of the Year. They were surprised since this is the last time Brooks and Dunn perform together. The hosts sang a version of "DIVORCE" to them at the beginning of the show. I like Sugarland.


Nicole Kidman is sitting on the front row with her husband Keith Urban who is nominated for Entertainer of the Year. I hope he gets it. I'm not that big a fan of Taylor Swift who is the youngest ever to be nominated for it. She's really popular with teenagers, but her singing doesn't do much for me. Have I mentioned that I hate Twilight which is also popular with teenage girls. LOL

Hmm, Keith has big feet. Did you notice that?

Brad Paisley won Male Vocalist of the Year. Crap! Taylor Swift won Entertainer of the Year.



Good show and lots of fun!

It Works!

Target has Tim Tams, which are Australian cookies, in their stores from October until March. Pepperidge Farms makes the ones sold here, and of course I bought some. They're supposed to be the same cookie, but I'm not sure they are exactly. I need some more from Australia to be sure. Those are made by Arnott, and both companies are owned by Campbell Soup Company. I found that I can order the original ones on Amazon without paying the expensive shipping cost that I did when I ordered them online from Australia. The variety isn't available here that there is there, but at least they have some of them.

Pseudonymph from Rad Mamblings on my blog list sent me my first ones and got me hooked! I just ate those but didn't try the Tim Tam Slam. That I did this afternoon and wow!! I bit off opposite corners of the Tim Tam and then sucked coffee into it. It will hold together for you to pop it in your mouth quickly and enjoy heavenly melty mocha taste wonderment!

It goes by many names: the Tim Tam Slam, the Tim Tam Bomb, the Tim Tam Suck, the Tim Tam Explosion.

Whatever you decide call it, your coffee break will never be the same.

Tim Tams are the creation of Arnott’s -- an Australian biscuit (cookie) company now substantially owned by Campbell’s Soup Company.

The biscuit (remember, we call ‘cookies’ biscuits) is a delightful construction of a chocolate biscuit with a chocolate cream center all of which is then covered in chocolate.

The Tim Tam Slam is an Australian coffee break ritual.

The method is simple:

1. First, have your hot coffee/ tea/ chocolate ready in front of you.
2. Then bite off each end of the Tim Tam.
3. Next, place one bitten end of the Tim Tam in your mouth and dip the other bitten end in the hot drink.
4. Now suck. Use the Tim Tam as a straw. As the hot drink is pulled through the biscuit, the structure of the biscuit and cream collapses.
5. Once you sense the drink on your tongue, pop the whole Tim Tam in your mouth before it explodes!

This was the invention of bored or creative Australians playing with their food. It was, though, gratefully adopted by Arnott’s in their advertising campaigns. I have no idea why Arnott’s chose the name "Tim Tam Suck" over the other two. To me, "Tim Tam Suck" sounds like the title of a complaint letter than a sensual assault-by-chocolate.

The only complaint they are ever likely to hear is that there are only 11 biscuits per packet. It’s just mean. Eleven is a prime number. Someone is always going to be short a Tim Tam. That’s why when I go Tim Tam shopping, I always get two.

Thank You to Our Veterans

Little Joe Trivia

Before starring on Bonanza or Little House on the Prairie, Michael Landon worked as an operator for a machine that sealed hot cans of Campbell’s Tomato Soup.

Government & Dolly Again

I emailed my senators and congressman about health care and marriage equality for all the good it will do. Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker are the Republican TN Senators. John Tanner is the Congressman from our district and is a Blue Dog Democrat. I felt dirty just going to Corker's web page. He's like political porn. Lamar Explanation Point is not quite as bad. I call him that because his bumper stickers had "Lamar!" on them.

I thanked Alexander because he co-sponsored a bill to prevent blasting the tops off of East Tennessee mountains which sounds like a good bill to me. HERE is a good article by Dave Cooper about the coal companies boycotting Dollywood and Tennessee travel in Huffington Post. And here is an excerpt from "Dollywood Boycott Falls Flat":

When it comes to entertainers, there is probably no American singer more wholesome, cheerful and relentlessly upbeat as country music star Dolly Parton. Raised in the Smoky Mountains of east Tennessee, Ms. Parton is the public face of Smoky Mountain tourism, exemplified by the popular Dollywood theme park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.

And she's also a genuinely nice person. So why on earth would anyone want to boycott Dollywood?

Because Dolly lives in Tennessee, and Tennessee loves its mountains.

You see, Tennesseans don't want to see their mountains -- and their billion-dollar tourism economy -- destroyed. So Tennessee Sen. Lamar Alexander has introduced legislation in the Senate that would prevent coal companies from blasting the tops off of Appalachian Mountains and dumping the debris into mountain streams, a hideous mining method called "mountaintop removal" that is, unfortunately, widespread in West Virginia and eastern Kentucky.

Sen. Alexander's bill, The "Appalachia Restoration Act" (S. 696) doesn't sit well with certain coal companies such as Coal Mac, a division of St. Louis-based coal giant Arch Coal. In a July 6 letter, Coal Mac HR Manager Richard Phillips advised the Pigeon Forge Chamber of Commerce that Coal Mac's Virginia and Kentucky sister companies were canceling their annual company picnic at Dollywood.

Roger Horton, front man for a West Virginia group called Citizens for Coal has also asked its members to boycott Tennessee travel.

In response to the boycott, The Kentucky Chapter of the Sierra Club is calling on its members to visit Tennessee. Kentucky Sierra Club chairman Joey Shadowen said the organization supports Alexander's legislation, and encourages its members to visit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and other Tennessee tourist sites.

Hey West Virginia miners: Leave Dolly alone. Just be quiet and go to your Ted Nugent "Friends of Coal" concert.

We Know!

Cats have amazing hearing ability. A cat’s ear has 30 muscles that control the outer ear (by comparison, human ears only have 6 muscles). These muscles rotate 180 degrees, so the cat can hear in all directions without moving its head.

Interesting Trivia

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, has the most mini-golf courses per area in the United States. At last count, there were 47 in a 60-mile radius.

Dolly Trivia

Reportedly, country singer Dolly Parton has her breasts insured for $600,000.

Seeing in the Dark Trivia

It takes the human eyes an hour to adapt completely to seeing in the dark. Once adapted, however, the eyes are about 100,000 times more sensitive to light than they are in bright sunlight.

Dodger Trivia

The Brooklyn Dodgers (who later became the Los Angeles Dodgers) did not get their name because of their sporting ability. The term dodger was a shortened form of the term trolley dodgers, which was first used to describe Brooklynites for their ability to avoid being hit by trolley cars.

TMI Trivia

When it’s hot and you need to cool down, little muscles at the base of each hair relax. Your hair becomes relaxed. Your sweat glands pump out body heat in sweat. Your blood vessels get big to take more heat to the skin in order to get rid of it. But when it’s cold, the arrector muscle pulls the hair up. The duct to the sweat glands gets small to conserve heat. Our blood vessels also get small to save heat.

Book

I can't stop reading this novel by Cathy Lamb The Last Time I Was Me. I love that title! She writes such quirky characters. This one says what she thinks, which I wish I'd do a little more. She goes too far, but it makes the novel more interesting. Here is a synopsis. The novel keeps me interested and makes me want to live in Oregon.


Cathy Lamb wrote Julia's Chocolates, which also made me want to live in Oregon and made me want the recipes for those chocolates she made! There were some Ya-Ya women in that one, and who doesn't want to keep reading about a runaway bride who throws her wedding dress up a tree and leaves it on a limb while she drives off across country to escape her abusive fiance? She writes empowering books for women.

Time and Yarn

Time flies like an arrow.
Fruit flies like a banana.

I'm not sure where that originated, but Townes Van Zandt said it often during performances. Another week has flown by! It feels as if a month lasts about two weeks now.

I finished my hat I was knitting. I branched out from scarves to a hat and took a class even! Before, all I did was knit back and forth until it was a scarf. This time I learned to purl, decrease, and sew it together. Despite a frustrating call to Tina to complain that I suck at knitting, I did finish it with some help. Now I'm going to make another one to practice following directions and to get these "skills" more firmly in mind. Here are two views of it. Yep, it's a hat.



Eventually, I'm going to attempt a jacket and just hope it will be presentable enough to wear. I don't have patience with myself and want to be good at it right away because that seems easier. Oh well. I do enjoy the social aspects of it and will keep trying.

Hmmm Trivia

A male kangaroo is called a boomer, and a female is called a flyer.

I've never heard this before. Is it true, Kim?

Dodgy Trivia

Do you think that the Vietnam War had a lot of draft dodgers? Only 16 percent of the able-bodied males in the thirteen original American colonies participated in the Revolutionary War.

Emmyless Trivia

Jackie Gleason shares ranks with TV performers Andy Griffith, Bob Hope, Angela Lansbury, Bob Newhart, Cybill Shepherd, the Smothers Brothers, Tim Allen, Hal Linden, and Jerry Seinfeld, none of whom have won Best Actor Emmys.

Bernice and the Time Change

Saturday night I was still catching up on shows I recorded while I was on the cruise and some since then and playing Spider Solitaire. That's my usual M.O. I had been doing some chores in the house, listening to NPR, and reading during the day. There were a couple of movies I watched that took me later into the night. At one point when I went to another room, I noticed that the clock in there said it was 1:45 instead of 12:45 like the ones on my computer and DVR. Hmm, I thought, the clock must have stopped in this room. Then I noticed the same time on the microwave clock and another battery-operated wall clock. "What's going on?" I wondered and went around confused and sleepy for a while.

Eventually it occurred to me that Daylight Savings Time must have expired. If I'd read Frogponder's blog or watched the news, I'd have known. I didn't have to be anywhere, so it didn't affect anything, but I thought it was funny.

Jon Stewart Quote

"If you are a minority or an interest group, the Democrats will hold the debate at your house. Whereas Republicans take a slightly different approach: they have a big tent - you're just not allowed in it." (Oct. 1, 2007)

MTV Trivia

The first video featured on MTV was by the group the Buggles, and it was called "Video Killed the Radio Star."


You'll be so proud of me for looking for a picture to go with this because Useless Knowledge had "the Ruggles" instead of the correct band. There are some critical comments on its page about the accuracy of their trivia HERE and some corrections. Perhaps I should look for another trivia source, but this one causes us to question, laugh, and/or discuss. Anyway, this one is named correctly.

Drinking Animal Trivia

A giraffe can go without water longer than a camel can.

"So there!" looms the giraffe as the camel ignores his taunting.

Answer to Your Questions

I've been asked where I get the trivia I post on here. I have an iGoogle page where I have added various gadgets like the weather, literary and Jon Stewart and Albert Einstein quotes, a clock and calendar, maps, cute kitten pictures, movie schedules, news, crossword puzzle, IMDB search, Snopes, and all kinds of stuff I'm interested in. One of these applications is called Useless Knowledge. Tada! That's where I get the trivia. They change it several times a day, so I have a supply. I copy and paste and don't check it out unless there are questions because I'm lazy. As you know, sometimes I do add a photo that goes along with it and/or make my own personal commentary, but that's about it. Here's the latest one:

Dr. Samuel Langley was able to get many model airplanes to fly, but on December 8, 1903, Langley’s "human-carrying flying machine," the aerodrome, plunged into the Potomac River near Washington, D.C., in front of photographers assembled to witness his flight. Reporters around the country made fun of the idea that people could fly—but nine days later, Wilbur and Orville Wright proved them wrong.

Expensive Tooth Trivia

Mick Jagger had an emerald chip put in the middle of his upper-right incisor, but people thought it was spinach. He changed it to a ruby until he got tired of people discussing the drop of blood on his tooth. Jagger finally settled on a diamond.

DC Trivia (not that one)

In the airplane known as the DC-10, the letters "DC" stand for Douglas Commercial.

Football & Deaf Trivia

The huddle formation used by football teams originated at Gallaudet University, a Washington, D.C., liberal arts college for deaf people. The purpose was to prevent other schools from reading their sign language.

Little Red Wagon Trivia

The classic toy wagon was designed by Antonio Pasin, who founded his company in 1918. Pasin wanted to give his wagons a modern flair, and chose the word "radio" for what was then a new form of communication, and "flyer’ for the wonder of flight—hence, "Radio Flyer."

Three of us girls went down a steep hill (actually it was the road in front of one of the girls' houses) in one of those when we were probably around 11 or 12 (who remembers?). When I decided to do it by myself, my weight wasn't enough to keep the front wheels from swerving all over the place no matter how hard I tried to control the steering with the handle. It turned over, and I skidded down the paved road long enough to have many painful abrasions. I hobbled home embarrassed about the whole thing.

Some of us in the neighborhood did foolhardy things like that as well as riding our bicycles "no hands" and standing on the seat while speeding down a driveway that had two right-angle turns in it. My knees were scar tissue after a while. Yes, my mother was home and a good mother, but that's when kids played outside all the time in the neighborhood. We all had large yards, an empty lot, and a woods behind us. We survived quite well actually.

Here's a wagon with cute puppies to help you cope with the sadness of that story.

This Week

I missed DWTS while I was on the cruise and decided not to recap it this week. This season hasn't been that interesting, so I'm not sure I'll recap any more of them. I might just write about them a little.

For almost a week I've been sick with sinus problems and went to the walk-in clinic Sunday to get meds to keep it from going into bronchitis. I got prescriptions for a Z-pack and Flonase spray. I already have prescription Allegra and have been taking all those and whatever else helped like chicken noodle soup. I'm feeling better.

Tuesday I went to Yarn Frenzy, a new yarn shop a friend opened several weeks ago, to take a class to make a hat. So far I've just made simple scarves. Some of us who knitted at a coffee shop on Tuesdays hang out there now. It's a fun group, and I enjoy the social part of it all.

Yesterday I stayed home and read American on Purpose by Craig Ferguson. Thank goodness I'm past the drunk and disorderly part. I dated some guys like that and it brought back memories. I really like his show and knew some of this since he tells about some of it. He's pretty hard on himself, but it sounds as if he was out of control for quite a while. I worked at Feet & More today and read more of it since the owners took the afternoon off to go to Nashville to celebrate their anniversary. Only about five customers came in and several called for appointments and information. Nice afternoon!

Then I headed over to Yarn Frenzy and had fun with Tina, Emma, Yvonne, Hope, and Diane. We ordered pizza and laughed and knitted. All this time I've been a social knitter but now am wanting to try more adventurous (for me at my skill level) projects. I don't expect to ever be that great at it but might make a few neat things.

The rain is knocking too many leaves off the trees before they finish turning colors.

Oh Captain!

After lots of searching, I found a photo online of the captain of the cruise ship we were on. He's Italian and well you can see for yourself. Now, Miss Ginger, I have delivered! I had to crop the passenger who posted the picture out of the photo, but here he is!

Fall Foliage

Linda and I went to lunch today at the Front Porch, a tea room with blue plate specials. This tree was beside it. We're beginning to have beautiful trees which makes such pretty days with a blue sky behind them. I nearly always have my camera in my purse and snapped a few pictures of them.

TV Trivia

Mickey Rooney turned down the role of Archie Bunker in the 1970s sitsom "All in the Family." The former child star was convinced that the show would bomb, and he wasn’t willing to jeopardize his professional reputation, although his film career had been on the skids for years. Little-known character actor Carroll O’Connor won the role as a result.

Confession: I'm glad. I don't like Mickey Rooney. Besides, who could have been better in that part than Carroll O'Connor?

Trivia

Phobia: dishabiliophobia
Fear of: undressing in front of someone

Sometimes that's not a phobia but a public service. I couldn't get drunk enough to think I'd look good enough to get nekkid with any man.

Thankful Trivia

In 1857, Joseph C. Gayetty of New York City invented toilet paper.

Amazon Trivia (no, not the river)

In October 1994, Jeff Bezos wanted to name his new Web venture "Cadabra," as in "abracadabra." But his attorney convinced him that this magical moniker sounded a bit too much like "cadaver." Reluctantly, Bezos went with his second choice: Amazon.com.

This 'n That

I told you that Tina and I both won trophies playing trivia on the ship. She won first and had one point higher than I did. Then other people won games other days, and then I won by one point over Tina. This is it. Or as Tina calls it Ship on a Stick. Impressive, isn't it?


Brigit thinks so.


This is a t-shirt I bought in New Orleans. Yes!


This is my birthday present from Brian he had waiting for me when I got home. They were in a cute gift bag with cartoon pirates all over it and a tag that said, "Happy Birthday and Welcome Back!" He's a good son (and funny, too). The gifts were perfect! I never miss House and Craig Ferguson's show and had planned to get his new book. I have his other one Between the Bridge and the River, and he writes so well! If you watch House, you'll know how it's always lupus. It's sort of hard to tell that it's a black t-shirt since it's against a dark brown (espresso) couch, but I love it! Two of my very favorite British men! Thank you again, Brian!


Of course, Brigit had to get in this photo, too. Gotta love her!

FYI

You guys may call me "Joy" and don't have to add Miss or Ms before it. Thanks for the respect and all, and if you feel better adding titles, go ahead, but you don't have to. I sort of like Doña Alegría. Or just Doña. :-) Auntie Flame still works out just fine for some of you, or Auntie.

Wow Trivia!

Paul Winchell, the ventriloquist, was not only the voice of Jerry Mahoney, Knucklehead, and Tigger in the Winnie the Pooh films, he also invented the artificial heart. He donated the patent for it to the University of Utah.

Last Cruise Pictures

Leaving New Orleans on the Mississippi River


Returning to New Orleans


At the New Orleans Amtrak Station Tina and I seem really interested in what Dick is saying.


Our luggage - my Winnie the Pooh bag (second large one from the right) and black one with the colorful circles which are easy to spot.

Bye-Bye!!



OMG! I can't believe I forgot to tell you how hot the captain is! He's young, Italian, and HOT! Somehow I didn't get a photo of him and neither did Linda. We were too busy ogling him and swooning when he talked.

Cozumel

While I went to Cozumel, I can't say I was really there since I didn't experience being in the real area. It was 118 degrees and so humid that I couldn't handle it very well. I am not a rain forest kind of person and get over-heated here in Tennessee. After we left, they had a cold front that brought the temperatures down to the 80's. It rained a bit that day, so you know it was humid.

I could tell it's beautiful there. We did some shopping and exploring. I bought some vanilla, t-shirts, and jewelry. I wish I could have spent more time there and branched out a lot more. I guess we stayed there a few hours, but Tina and I both got over-heated. :-( I didn't take many photos. Sorry.




When we went to eat, I wasn't sure I'd be able to since I was so hot and clammy. Janie heard about a place she wanted us to eat she'd heard about which turned out to be a big mistake. Do not go to Senor Frog's unless you'd like a male Hooter's, which I know some of you would. It was a frantic frenzy with noise, sexual hats and signs. See what I mean? The one on the left says "Horny Girl" and you can see mine. All the pictures can be embiggened.



Maybe male Hooter's isn't the best description. It was more like some circle of hell according to Dante. To quote Dorothy Parker, "What fresh hell is this?" is also accurate. They're always doing something to you like putting hats or balloons on your head, setting signs behind you, goosing you, slapping you on the butt, blowing whistles, making all kinds of noise, and who knows what else! Here I am trying to be nice about it.


On the way back to the ship.

Progreso

Next time I'm going on some excursions and packing differently. I over packed for one thing and would make a few different choices. You might have noticed a few "Glamour Don'ts" in the pictures. I'm also prepared now for the gauntlet of vendors that assault us when we get off the ship. It's sad and upsetting at the same time. I'd heard about it but wasn't prepared for how invasive and difficult it is. I didn't spend much time in Progreso but wish I'd been with Emma who found a tour for $15 and got to see flamingos, Mayan ruins, villas, local homes, and all kinds of places. I want to go back to several places in Mexico sometime when it's not so hot and when I can be there longer.

That bridge in the background is where we rode the bus since the ship has to dock about a mile from the shore. As soon as we got off the ship and went through the security gates, the vendors started trying to sell us things. They shout and call you over to buy whatever they are selling. We made our way to a table on the deck of a cafe and enjoyed being on land and looking at the Caribbean. The water really is as blue as you hear it is. Many shades of blue and just beautiful. We had Mexican Cokes. Notice that Diet Coke is Coca-Cola Light.

Carnival Fantasy Cruise Ship

There's no way to have taken pictures of being herded through the masses to get on board. We had a taxi ride to the pier which cost $40 (not counting tip) to go about three blocks, and he didn't even touch the luggage. The concierge and guys at the pier did it. After this happened again when we got back, we figured out we needed to check the rates on the cabs. Those red cabs charged $8 and $7 a person! It said that or the meter, which they didn't turn on! Live and learn, huh? Some of the other taxis don't charge that much and go by the meter on short trips. It cost us $11 on a white cab from Amtrak to the hotel which was farther.

When we first saw all those people in lines in a huge room, it was overwhelming! But we got through it and made it on the ship and into our stateroom. Tina and I stared at each other like, "What have we gotten ourselves into?" All those Wal-Mart people and noise and no quiet places! Later on as we found places to go, it was fine and we had fun.

Our room. It's small but efficient - just like the bathroom.



We left our room and went on the Promenade Deck where we spent a lot of our time, and watched as the ship sailed down the Mississippi, which is 110 miles long through the Mississippi Delta to the Gulf of Mexico and takes 8 hours. Since the ship left New Orleans around 4:00 PM, it was dark during most of it. We watched from the Promenade Deck until we had to go to dinner.

Later on, we could see lights from oil refineries along the way. Here they are in the daylight.


I'd like to take that trip during daylight and see more of it sometime.

We saw some of the lights from the windows while we were having dinner in the dining room. Here are Tina and I getting ready to order.

Gwynn and Linda sat across the table from us.

Janie and Dick sat to our right.

Emma and Jeanette were at the table to our left.

Marilyn and Paula sat across from Emma and Jeanette.

This is one of the towel animals our steward left in our room - a different kind every night.

New Orleans

Murals in the hotel in New Orleans.




The Mississippi River from Riverwalk on the way to the streetcar stop.


On the Streetcar not named Desire ... Actually, it's the Riverfront. They cost $1.25 to ride but .40 for seniors!! Such a deal! Tina had to pay full price. Left to right - Linda, Tina, Janie, and Dick.


Yes, we did! Beignets and café au lait at the Café Du Monde! You can't eat them without being messy. Tina unwisely wore black.

Dick, the waitress, Janie

Here's our carriage driver Brendan Finn McSomething who told us interesting stories during the tour.


Front seat left to right - Tina, Janie, Dick Back seat left to right - Linda and me


Jean Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop - the oldest bar in America (1772). Check it and the other 10 oldest bars in the US out HERE. They have curb service. The waitress came out to the carriage to take our order, but it was a little early in the day for us. In New Orleans you can take drinks out on the sidewalk, and the bars are open 24/7 except for an hour on Ash Wednesday from midnight until 1:00 AM. It's definitely a party town!


It's Voo Doo!


Linda and I walked around the French Quarter while the others rode the Canal Street Trolley to the end and back through the Garden District. We happened upon Touché where a friend of Dan's is bartender. I went in and asked an attractive woman behind the bar if her name might be Donna. She said it was, and I told her that Dan from Chicago told me to stop by and tell her hello. She smiled a huge smile and asked how he was and said she'd lost his phone number when she changed cell phones, so I gave it to her. I told her I'd never actually met Dan in person but knew him through blogs. Donna said I'd love him because he's so sweet and nice. I told her I could tell that from what I knew about him already and looked forward to meeting him in person. I told her my name and about "Auntie Flame" - we hugged each other and I let her get back to work. No pictures unfortunately. This is on Dumaine.




Home of the famous Muffaletta!


Blue Dog paintings by George Rodrigue. More HERE


We all met at the Gumbo Shop for dinner (another suggestion by Dan) and totally enjoyed it. Linda and I stopped in earlier for a bowl of gumbo and based on the menu wanted to have dinner there, so we suggested it to the group. Everyone thanks Dan!

End of the day at Pat O'Brien's


I have more New Orleans and cruise pictures I'll post on Facebook.

The Cruise - Part One - Saturday

I'm going to tell about the trip in segments. First of all, we got on the interstate around 2 AM and drove to Memphis to catch Amtrak to New Orleans. This meant we had no sleep from Friday morning until Saturday night. Those naps on the train in a painful pretzel position weren't real sleep but helped a little. We were on the second (top) level of the train and walked down steps to the tiny, airplane-like bathroon and through several cars to the lounge and dining cars. As Charlie said, Amtrak food is not to die for but to die from! On the way back, some of our group said dinner was really good, though.

It took 3 hours to drive to Memphis and 9 hours on Amtrak to New Orleans. It's sort of like riding a bus on rails. It stopped several times and various places in Mississippi and Louisiana. I'm still not sure how I feel about traveling that way.

Our car.

Janie, Richard, and Linda - we rode down with Janie and Richard.

Tina, my rommate, but Linda was my seatmate on the trip down.

Louisiana scene from the window.

We ate dinner at Mulate's and ran into the others from Dickson who came down a day earlier than we did. What are the odds? You'll see them later.

Here are Tina and Janie being silly with the fish after dinner.


While I am also punchy from no sleep and look it! My hair did not travel well but looked better here than it did later in the humidity! Yikes!


Linda looks good. How did she do it?


After dinner we went back to the hotel for the free drinks. I had a very good glass of pinot noir. Here's a picture I took later on the next morning when it was empty, but there were Gators fans watching football in the bar area and a wedding getting ready to happen in this part. Not sure how that worked out because we were too sleepy to stay and watch. This is where we had breakfast the next two mornings. They had a buffet and a place to order what you want that went with the room, too. We were at the Embassy Suites on Julia. The Joneses were in the main hotel, and Tina, Linda, and I were in The Lofts on the next block. My bed was so comfortable, and the suite was roomy and nice.

Gates Trivia

Microsoft CEO Bill Gates formed a company to sell a computerized traffic counting system to cities, which made $20,000 its first year. Business dropped sharply when customers learned that Gates was only 14 years old.

I'm Back!

I got home a little after 1:00 AM and slept so well! After being on a cruise ship for five days and Amtrak for nine hours, I was happiest to see my own bathroom facilities. It also took a while to quit feeling as if I were moving while standing still. We had a great time and enjoyed it! Details later!

I heard from some of you while I was gone by email and on FB. That was neat! Now I need to catch up on TV shows, the news, blogs, and delete over 500 emails and messages on the laptop. That BlackBerry came in handy for sure!

Cruising Away

Check out this wonderful Bon Voyage post from Maddie to me HERE! I'm thrilled and grateful! What a wonderful nephew! I just love my new family members!! Thank you, Maddie!

Thanks for all of your good wishes for my trip and sweet things you said! I also appreciate the birthday greetings! Thanks so much to all of you!!

I'll take lots of pictures and be in touch when I get back. You'll be in my thoughts! See you after the 17th!

Our Captain and Crew

Check Jim's blog HERE for DWTS recaps!

By Any Other Name Trivia

Chicago’s National League baseball franchise has been known by 18 different names establishing a record. They have been the White Stockings, the Colts, the Black Stockings, the Ex-Colts, the Rainmakers, the Orphans, the Cowboys, the Rough Riders, the Desert Rangers, the Pennants, the Recruits, the Zephyrs, the Nationals, the Fourth Nationals, the Third Nationals, the Spuds, and the Trojans. The club owners finally settled on Cubs in 1908, although this hasn’t helped them get into a World Series.

Chilly Trivia

Humans don’t have very much hair on their bodies anymore (except maybe for guys who get their backs waxed). So, hair standing up doesn’t make very good insulation—we don’t have enough fur for that. However, those little muscles we have on the end of each hair still work. They still make goose bumps.

World Famous David Dust

We can say we knew him when ....


Congratulations!!!

Moment of Grin

Info

OK, I got the global data service from Verizon and can check email and blogs while I'm on the cruise, so I might do that some. I might update on Facebook but won't blog. Being online comes under the global package which will be about $10.50 for the five days at sea since it will be prorated from the monthly charge. However, I won't be making calls since the roaming charges are $2.49 a minute on the ship. I've already told friends and family they won't hear from me while I'm gone. I got it mostly to be accessible in case they need to get in touch with me if there's an emergency and to be able to send my son an email letting him know that I'm OK, so he can also let my mother know.

My BlackBerry Curve

Tall Trivia

During World War II, before James Arness portrayed U.S. mar-shall Matt Dillon in Gunsmoke, he was the first American soldier to jump off his boat at the Anzio beachhead. He was ordered to do so by his commanding officer because, standing at 6’8", Arness was the tallest man in his company, and the water’s depth needed to be tested as a safety precaution.

Miss Kitty must have been tall, too, because I don't remember her being tremendously shorter than he was.

Preparation C

I'm working like a madman to get ready for the cruise. I went through my clothes to decide what to take and start packing them. I'm also doing some cleaning and running errands that need to get done before I leave. There are around 20 from here that are going. I know half of them. Five of us (Tina, Linda, Janie, Richard, and me) are driving to Memphis to take Amtrak to New Orleans very early Saturday morning. We'll be in NOLA from Saturday afternoon until Monday morning when we board the ship. We have two stops - Progreso and Cozumel. This is my first cruise, and I'm looking forward to it. Hope I get everything done and still get some sleep!

You will not hear from me while we're on the ship. Will you miss me?

This is the exact ship, Carnival Fantasy, in the New Orleans port. Wish us luck! My daughter Kathy and her family are going the next week and leaving from Miami on a seven-day cruise. Ours is five days which is just right for the first one, I think. They've been on many cruises.

Ban Button

DWTS 9 Week 3

Kathy Ireland went home last week. Dances this week are the Latin dances. Len is back, so we'll see what kind of mood he's in tonight. Scores are listed in this order: Carrie Ann, Len, and Bruno.

Mark Dacascos & Lacey Schwimmer

Dance: Rumba
Score: 6, 6, 6 = 18
Apparently the Iron Chef dancer is hyper since Lacey kept telling him to slow down. I've said that to some men myself. I'm not sure about Lacey's choreography on this or if I don't know much about rumbas. Ah, the judges agree that there's no chemistry between them. So mostly they criticized Mark for not connecting with his partner and being too mechanical. Yeah, I know what they mean.

Joanna Krupa & Derek Hough

Dance: Samba
Score: 7, 8, 8 = 23
Joanna had moments of hip action but more of stiffness and not moving. The judges liked it more than I did.

Mya & Dmitry Chaplin

Dance: Rumba
Score: 10, 7, 10 = 27
The rumba is supposed to be sensual and passionate. This one was! They had chemistry and danced really well. There have been hotter rumbas, like Cheryl and Gilles and Maks and Mel B, but this had passion. Len was the 7 of course. He thought too much was going on, and last time he thought they didn't have enough content.

Melissa Joan Hart & Mark Ballas

Dance: Samba
Score: 6, 6, 7 = 19
After watching rehearsal, I didn't think she would do this well. She still looks as if she's trying to remember the steps and isn't letting go enough but is farther along that she's been.

Louie Vito & Chelsie Hightower

Dance: Rumba
Score: 8, 5, 7 = 21
Wow! I don't know how his technique was because of the chemistry!! That was hot! He said in rehearsal that he was looking forward to this dance and loved rehearsing it. Len put a damper on the whole thing saying it was hectic and frantic. The rest of us loved it. The audience booed Len. Tom said Len was going to read from his essay, "Beethoven Was A Hack."

Debi Mazar & Maksim Chmerkovskiy

Dance: Samba
Score: 6, 5, 6 = 17
Mel B came to rehearsal to talk to Debi because she was upset about being in the bottom two. I'm afraid this dance showed that. She seemed nervous and unsure of herself. With her personality and how she looked during rehearsal, I thought she would have more hip action and fire. Not so much.

Donny Osmond & Kym Johnson

Dance: Rumba
Score: 7, 7, 7 = 21
I wonder if Mr. Wholesome Donny Osmond can perform a rumba with passion and sexiness. I know he can do the moves. Kym got him to do it! He stayed serious, and it was pretty and romantic until he rushed over to Bruno and carried on giving him a dipping hug and acting like they were making out.

Michael Irvin and Anna Demidova

Dance: Samba
Score: 5, 4, 5 = 14
He was having fun and moved, but his footwork was off. The judges didn't like it, but it was better than some of the others tonight. I think the judges' scores were too low. They do this sometimes to the black athletes. Emmit Smith almost won, but they scored Jerry Rice and some others lower than they should have at times.

Natalie Coughlin & Alec Mazo

Dance: Rumba
Score: 9, 8, 9 = 26
Natalie had trouble in rehearsal with the romantic part, so Alec had his wife Edyta come in and show her how to keep eye contact and put herself into the dance. It's easier for actors since they are used to getting into character and playing a part, but the athletes have so much control of their bodies and rise to the competition. She had good lines and maintained the intensity.

Chuck Liddell & Anna Trebunskaya

Dance: Samba
Score: 6, 5, 6 = 17
It was entertaining but rough and like a zombie according to the judges. Was that Mickey Rourke in the front row of the audience last week showing support of Chuck? It definitely looked like him, and he would have friends in Ultimate Fighting.

Aaron Carter & Karina Smirnoff

Dance: Rumba
Score: 8, 6, 7 = 21
He was nervous about this dance, and it showed. Karina said they both were since Len's been giving out all those 5's. His moves were good, and he was able to focus and be romantic. Some of his arm movements were choppy, but he did well.

Tom DeLay & Cheryl Burke

Dance: Samba
Score: 6, 4, 5 = 15
Tom DeLay has stress fractures in both feet, so they don't know if he'll get to dance or not since his doctor and the producers told him to withdraw from the competition. Maybe Cheryl will get a break herself if he can't. He will get no sympathy vote from me - all my sympathy goes to Cheryl for having to dance with him. I think I'll gag if he does the rumba. Thank goodness, it's the samba, a party dance, which Cheryl told him he danced like a robot. He said his father drilled into him never to ever give up, so, "What's a little pain when you can party?" he said when Tom asked him why he's staying. Do you think he'll be saying this in prison? I hate to say this but he danced like his feet weren't hurting and had rhythm. They danced to "Why Can't We Be Friends" with a sequined elephant on his costume and a donkey on Cheryl's. Not bad actually.

Kelly Osbourne & Louis Van Amstel

Dance: Samba
Score: 7, 6, 7 = 20
Who is this blonde boy who sits next to Sharon in the audience? He's been there every time. OK, I googled. He's her boyfriend Luke Worrall. What a fun samba she danced! The judges told her she needed confidence because she dances well. Her smile is just like Ozzy's, so I can't look at her without thinking about him when she smiles.

Who do you think will go home this week? I think it might be Debi or Chuck. Tom will probably stay another week anyway because of the fan base.

Nose?

I just saw on the news that they're giving the H1N1 vaccine in the nostril. It's not a shot in the nose, is it? Or do they squirt it in there? That doesn't sound so great. My eyes are watering just thinking about it.

Moment of Eye Rolling

Jennifer Love Hewitt - overconfident or playing tennis with a ghost?

Buzzed Bee

The orchid releases a chemical that makes bees drunk. When the bee becomes disoriented, it dumps its load of pollen into the flower, thus pollinating the flower.