Thank you, th...

Thank you, thank you, Chering, for the new icon, from my favorite picture of Gale. Ain't it classy?Chering gets one of my coveted Gold Stars.Gold Star

Time Wasting

Qafcomments tagged me for this one. In turn, I tag:pepino21786 bradys_rulztosca15betty122_alicespringsWhat were you doing 10 years ago?I was the Associate Administrator for Finance for the Department of Anesthesia of the University of Pennsylvania. My husband was alive, and we had season tickets to the Philadelphia Flyers and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Our Big Trip that year was three weeks in Copenhagen, Oslo, and Helsinki. Among other books, that year I read “Dangerous” by Amanda Quick and “Inheritor” by C.J. Cherryh each twice. Life was good. What were you doing 1 year ago?I was still working as the part-time accountant for The Printer’s Place even though I’d told myself when I took the job the previous summer that I would quit after I closed the year. 26 February was the fourth anniversary of my husband’s death, and I was splitting the Orchestra subscription with my youngest son, John. I had dropped the Flyers' season tickets. I was going to read only 24 books that whole year, the least since I got a library card when I was nine, but including the play “Equus,” and “Freakonomics,” which inspired me to make “Dominance’s” Justin a professor of Economics. Mostly, however, I was responding, at great length, to Chering and Pepino’s recaps and waiting on tenterhooks for S5. Life was good. Five snacks you enjoy:1.) Chocolate ice cream.2.) Peppermint chocolate chip ice cream.3.) Wasabi peanuts.4.) Kit-Kat bars.5.) Big, round, not-too-sweet sugar cookies.Five songs to which you know all the lyrics: 1.) Down in the Valley2.) She’ll Be Coming Around the Mountain3.) Love and Marriage (Go Together Like a Horse and Carriage)4.) Jingle Bells5.) We Three Kings of Orient Are Five things you would do if you were a millionaire: 1.) Set up trust funds for my sons and grandchildren.2.) Take said sons and grandchildren to Hawaii for two weeks.3.) Invest the remaining funds 60% equities, 40% short-term fixed income.4.) Quit my job.5.) Take an undergraduate degree in History, preferably at Upenn. Five bad habits:1.) I eat too many sweets.2.) I stay up too late.3.) I am a slutty housekeeper.4.) I am selfish - not good at sharing, particularly the computer.5.) I don’t always open and read my mail (postal only).Five things you like doing: 1.) Writing.2.) Reading.3.) Playing Snood.4.) Traveling5.) Attending theater, concerts, movies. Five things you would never wear again: 1.) One-piece bathing suits2.) Mini-skirts3.) Slacks with the crease sewn in.4.) Heels higher than 1.5”5.) Underwired braFive favorite toys: 1.) Computer, including an internet connection2.) DVD player with slo-mo button3.) Plasma TV with SurroundSound4.) Clock-radio with CD player5.) My needlepoint/counted crossstitch projects

Happy happy

"Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you,Happy birthday, dear pepino21786,Happy birthday to you.Happy times and largely your fault, Pep. FanSee

Roses

Sass, qafcomments, thank you both for your roses, but even more thanks for your constant encouragement. I am such a slut for praise, it's embarrassing. FanSee

Would You Want Your Daughter to Marry One?

The author uses Brokeback Mountain (which he hasn't seen) as a jumping-off spot, but that's not what this article is about:Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Ex-Gay Cowboys

Organization I Plan to Join

National Sarcasm Society: Like We Need Your Support.

Stress Management

Must be my day to post.Having a rough day?Just in case you've had a rough day, here's a stress management technique recommended in all the latest psychological texts.The funny thing is that it really works.1. Picture yourself near a stream.2. Birds are softly chirping in the cool mountain air.3. No one but you knows your secret place.4. You are in total seclusion from the hectic place called "the world,".5. The soothing sound of a gentle waterfall fills the air with a cascade of serenity.6. The water is crystal clear.7. You can easily make out the face of the person you're holding underwater.8. See, you're smiling already.