Anecdotes, Antidotes, and Anodes

And the Winners from the Swamp Are...

Because the contest rules stated '... most accurate, most detail, most creative ...' it was impossible to choose just ONE winner. So, the two winners are:

For most creative:

BRIAN at Truth is Freedom with his riveting tale of David's harrowing trial by fire and dramatic interpretation of the photos.

For being the most persistent and finally being the most accurate with the most detail:

STEPHANIE at Mama Drama for commenting at least 3 times, having accurate answers, serenading us with song, and commenting just to up the comment $$$ count.

Thanks to all of you who commented and have been so observant. You gave me smiles and giggles with all your comments. Even those of you who went the opposite direction with your answers..those were worth full-fledged laughs. For the curious, the comments mentioned are at yesterday's post.

E-mail me at [email protected] with a mailing address so I can send each of you a $20.00 Gift Card from REI.

Answers:

1) Sake - Namazake

2) Suhiero Japanese Restaurant

3) Three Aliens singing Happy Birthday

4) My oldest daughter, Leigh Anne

5) Seattle - Volunteer Park

More pictures from that celebration...

Any captions for either of these pictures?

Another Contest from the Swamp

What Is This Man Doing Drinking ?

OK, here's the deal:  The first person to correctly answer the most questions, most accurately, with the most details, and most creatively will win a Gift Card from REI. If you don't believe that it will be mailed to you, just ask SkyDancer about my last contest.

1)  What is David drinking?  (the more specific, the better)

2)  In what type of restaurant is he drinking this beverage?  (If you research, you can come up with the exact name of the restaurant.)

3) Who performed David's Happy Birthday song on yesterday's post?

4) Who is David going to marry?  Ok, here's is another clue.

5) Have you ever seen David on a previous post? If so, where was he e.x.a.c.t.l.y.?  There are e.x.a.c.t. clues in the comments of this post.

Rules of the Swamp:

1) Post your answers on today's comments.

2) You can enter as many times as you wish.

3) The contest ends 6:00 p.m., Saturday, March 31, Swampwitch Time. (Mountain Daylight Time)

4) The person who answers the most questions with specific, creative answers wins a Gift Card from REI.

5) The $$ amount of the gift card will be determined by the number of entries. For every 10 entries, $10.00 will be added to the balance.  (Ex:  10 entries = $10.00,   50 entries = $50.00.)  Yes, it's a ploy for comments.  I just want to see how many people are willing to de-lurk. Plus, it gives all you regular commenters a chance to win something.

6) The winner will be named on April Fool's Day.

Decision of the judge is final. Judge can be bribed. Family members are not eligible to win but you are welcome to leave sarcastic comments but without any clues, unless they are vague.

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Does anyone know who is hosting the next Fun Monday?

Happy Birthday, David !

Whether it's boxed wine or wine in a box, we always find a way to celebrate.

Happy Birthday, David ,our future S-I-L, who is quite the wine conoisseur.

This is what happens when the connoisseur tastes too much wine in a box.

Music, A Leopard, and Bread Pudding

If you were here yesteday and didn't click on the video "Jambalaya on the Bayou below," take the time to do it today. It's well worth the 120 seconds to watch this little boy play and sing.  He's only four.

P.S. The recipe for the bread pudding with bourbon sauce is in the comments.  The comments are always worth reading, folks...better that the post itself.

Out and about today just being random...

This post reeks of randomness :

The first part was created from Jenny's tag at Mama Drama Seven Songs for Seven Bloggers, Claudia, and also DubYaT's Dingo's Jukebox. I just tagged myself because I love music.

Multiple Intelligence:  Musical-Rhythmical

Here are my seven eight songs:

It helps to be Crazy in the World of Blogging.

I love Jambalaya, on the Bayou especially as performed by this four year-old named Hunter Hayes with Hank Williams.

This song by Al Green will always be one of my favorites and is dedicated to theHansMan.

When I was trying to learn to play the piano, I loved Beethoven's Fifth Sympathy.

My favorite time of year, Summertime.

Here is a wish for you to find your dreams Somewhere over the Rainbow.

Let's have a party with An Everlasting Love.

I never said I could count OR that I follow the rules. Here's one more.

And yes, I am currently enjoying ALL these songs.

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Verbal-Linguistic !

Jenny, in reference to your post, I wanted to refer you to this book.

Equal time, you know.

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Visual-Spatial !

How the leopard got its spots...

(permission granted to use photo)

This is our friend, Hope Marie Carlton.  (Hope, Wikipedia needs to update this !)

The airbrushing took eleven hours to complete and was done by artist, Kim Whitesides.

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Interpersonal Intelligence !

A request from Min at Mama Drama...Bread Pudding with Bourbon Sauce

This is her slice, so don't touch it !

Any random thoughts about today's randomness?

 

 

Fun Monday #10

FUN MONDAY #10 is being hosted by Tristan aka: Blackbeard. Go check out the other participants who woke up this morning. 

Tristan asked this question, "How would you like to wake up?"

"When you wake up in the morning, Pooh," said Piglet,"what's the first thing you say to yourself?"

"What's for breakfast?" said Pooh.

"What do you say, Piglet?"

"I say, I wonder what's going to happen exciting today?" said Piglet.

Pooh nodded thoughtfully. "It's the same thing," he said.

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I like to wake up and find that my eyes open and can enjoy

the beauty of another sunrise. I love sunrises as evidenced by

the number of photographs posted here.

After stumbling around trying to find my camera to take pictures of

the sunrise, I head for the coffee pot.  My coffee is strong enough

that my spoon will stand up in the cup.  I love coffee so much, one of

my posts was dedicated to coffeeisms.

Since Pooh is on the subject of breakfast, I'll just share breakfast

with you. Breakfast is my favorite meal, so you might say I like to wake up to the smell of biscuits

baking.  Biscuits are a staple in my diet.  Any kind of

biscuits...frozen ones, out of the can,  out of the Bisquick box, but

especially homemade sourdough Dutch Oven biscuits like these....

...or these

...or these with pecans in them...

...or these that are just plain 'ole

biscuits ...

or these that have cheese and jalapenos in them...

                                             

Then, there's the gravy that is

oh, so good on biscuits...

Gravy, gravy, gravy...I love to eat

it almost as much as I love

to try to make it...someday I'll post a couple of my gravy-making

experiences...ever heard of powdered sugar gravy?

Potatoes for breakfast !  Yum !

Yum!  So yummy, they disappeared  before the picture could be

taken.  You'll just have to imagine how

good they tasted ...onions, green peppers, cheese...

  This bowl-full of batter, and just

like magic, turned into mouth watering  pancakes... pancakes that

have been drenched in butter and

homemade syrup... (brown sugar,

more butter, vanilla, pecans, and

a few ingredients the cook

wouldn't share...)

No words needed here.

Headed back for seconds.

Then just a little dessert.

Dessert ! Dessert ? For breakfast?  Nothing like some warm bread

pudding for dessert at 8:00 in the morning.

COME AND GET IT !!!  Oh wait,

there's nothing to come and get.

We ate it all.

At one time, all these Dutch

Ovens were full of campfire

cookin'... But wait, there might be

just a little gravy left...

Now, that we've had a hearty

breakfast with the minimun daily requirement of grease to last an

entire month, I'll go back to what Pooh said...   "It's the same thing."

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And, the sunrise?  The sunrise represents to me the first day of the

rest of my life. . . a new beginning. A chance to make another

memory.  How would I like to wake up?

Seeing another sunrise.   (It's a pretty song. 180 seconds)

"Opportunities are like sunrises. If you wait too long you miss them."

----William A. Ward

"We can only appreciate the miracle of a sunrise, if we have waited in the darkness."

----Anonymous

May your day be bright with just the right amount of sunshine.

Where in the World Is/Are Mickey Mice

There were many fringe benefits that came with my teaching career. One benefit was that my students taught me something new e.v.e.r.y.  day.

This post refers to yesterday's post and the following bloggers' comments about looking for Mickey Mouse.  There were several Mickey Mouses, Mickey Mice...there were several Mickeys in the photographs which these observant bloggers and their children found for me.

Diesel : I am the one who needs to think 'outside the box.'  Read on.

Beccy : You were looking in the correct place among the cacti.

MJD : Nothing wrong with looking in the foreground. He's there, too.

Claudia : Yup ! He is in the cactus in the foreground.

Karmyn's son found Mickey immediately in the cactus. I didn't see him until he was pointed out to me, several times.  Leave it to a child to make me look like an idiot.

Her Indoors : Well, he IS in the cactus.

So, not only did Mickey ROCK...he was a STICKY Mickey, too.  Thanks guys for playing along and helping to remind me there's always more than one correct answer.

Leann: Glad the telemarketer conversation gave you a giggle.

Pam: Are you thinking of Scottsdale? If so, Bingo ! And it WAS taken from a golf course.

JanetakaWonderMom: Well, it took me awhile to realize there was more than one Mickey Mouse in those pictures. Thanks for playing along.

Jodi: You have a great weekend, too. Thanks for playing the 'look for Mickey game.'

Min:  Swoosh! Swoosh ! Rattle ! Rattle !  (sounds in the space between my ears - the rattle rattle proves that there's something there - not sure what )  Now I know what "to infinity and back" really means...it has something to do with the space in your stomach, ding dongs, and grape soda. In reference to you "very nearly falling in love with me," please keep in mind that I snore at night.

Where in the World is Mickey Mouse ?

Howard Gardner's  Theory of Multiple Intelligences was the 'philosophy' my curriculum was based on during my teaching career.  One of the Intelligences is Visual-Spatial.  This post could fit into that category.  If you have kiddos close by, let them look for Mickey, too. Have fun.

Can you find Mickey Mouse?

Can you hear see me now ?

In which photo did you locate Waldo  Carmen Sandiego  Mickey?    1-8 ?

Any idea in what city these photos were taken?

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If you are interested in a Family Blog, complete with homeschooling stories and the writings of a talented Blogger, go visit Family Gregg. Be sure to tell her a friendly witch sent you.

Telemarketer's Conversation with Swampwitch

Even though we have registered our number with the "no-call people," somehow, our phone rings about four times every day with someone at the other end of that contraption either: 1) asking for a donation 2) asking questions on a survey  3) asking about a mortgage  or  4) asking about siding for our house.  Even with caller ID, it is difficult to screen those calls. I try to be nice, not be a trouble-maker, and explain that we: 1) already give to several worthwhile causes, 2)  don't live on a farm and therefore don't have any cows, sheep, or goats to discuss  3) have a bank that takes care of that particular detail of our lives   4) Well, this siding conversation happened just last week, so I decided to share it.  It is not embellished, fabricated, or exaggerated in any way. This is the conversation verbatim:

Telephone Conversation with Swampwitch and The Telemarketer

Hello

Is this Mrs. _________ (grossly mispronounces my name)

Who's calling, please?

Is this Mrs. _________ (tries again but re-mispronounces my name)

Who's calling, PLEASE?

I'm calling for Mrs. ____________ (not even close, getting grosser)

(At this point, I realize he's not willing to reveal his identity just yet, so I'm willing to play his game.)

Is this the person with whom I'm speaking?

Um-m-m, What?

Is this the person with whom I'm speaking?

Uh, this is Robert with Super Siding for Your House.  Is this Mrs. _______ (getting worse - but at least he finally identified himself)

Ah-h ! You ARE the person with whom I'm speaking. Hey, Richard, since you can't pronounce my name correctly, why don't you just call me Swampwitch. Better yet, just Swampy. That's what my Internet friends call me.

My name is Robert....Your Internet Friends?

Yeah, I got a porn site.

Uh-h, Oh-h ,Oh-h, Uh-h, Mrs. Swampy, I just wanted to talk to you about your siding today.

Oh no, Reggie! Is there something wrong with my siding, today?

My name is Robert...Well, no ma-am, I wondered if you'd be interested...

Well, Ralph, there can't be anything wrong with it, I don't have any siding, today.

My name is Ralph, I mean Robert.  Well, ma-am, that's what I wanted to talk to...

Hey, Randy, I'm pretty busy here, working on this porn site and everything. Could you just give me your home phone number and I'll be delighted to call you back this evening about my siding issues?

Well, ma-am, I really don't want you to call me at home.

Well, Roscoe, now you know how I feel.

*click*  (please note, Rufus was the one who hung up - I was more than willing to continue.)

I am usually not a smart-a$$ with telemarketers because I know it's a tough job. But, I do like for them to identify who they are from the 'git-go.'

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Do you have any telemarketer conversations or stories to share?

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Desert Scene for your viewing pleasure...Don't touch your screen. Ouch!

Can you spot a Disney character in those rocks?  If not, maybe tomorrow's pics will be more revealing.

Click It to Big It.

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Does anyone click on the links?  Just wondering.

Birthday Cards for Shane

Here are three links about Shane Bernier. The first one is about 3 minutes long, the second about 90 seconds, and the third about 60 seconds. If you only have time to watch one, watch the second one. For one with music and only words, watch the first one.

First Video about Shane

Shane Shares His Wish With You

News Report about Shane Bernier

Here is one address to mail your card:

Shane Bernier

P.O. Box 484

Lancasater, Ontario

KOC 1NO

Canada

Thank you Marnie for sharing this with me.

Instead of taking the time to post a comment today, take that time to mail Shane a card.

Maybe there will be others who will post Shane's Wish on their blogs.

To My School Teacher Friends:  Maybe you could combine art and writing into one of your lesson plans this week and have your students mail birthday cards to Shane.

My Celebrity Look-Alikes

The one and only, Jenny at Mama Drama, is a celebrity in every sense of the word. She has posted some lesser known females who Heritage 'thinks' looks like her. Pop on over there to check them out. In the meantime, I stole borrowed her idea for this post. I'm sure these ladies would be just tickled pink to know their mugs are surrounding a snaggled-toothed witch on this blog. S-h-h-h, don't tell them.

An explanation for those who are wondering why I'm missing a front tooth, Thwampwidth Revealed shares that bit of information.

I'm just wondering why Alfred E. Newman didn't show up. Any others you can think of that should have been pictured with me?

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Happy Spring

Question: Do eggs only stand on end during the Vernal and Autumnal Equinox?

If you say "yes," the yolk's on you.

What does spring mean to you?

I hope you enjoyed these pictures. The first three were taken in Seattle and the hummingbird was visiting our house last year. We usually don't see hummingbirds until April 1.