Take a minute...

Grab a cup of hot tea, crank up your speakers and enjoy. One of my very favorite renditions of this song. What's not to love about Dolly. She's as sweet as Spun Sugar.... And gravelly voiced ole' Rod Stewart isn't bad, either...

This is why you don't ' bring this stuff home from the store....

I simply ADORE cherry covered chocolates, Brach's have always been my faves, but I never see them anymore.

So I'm shopping last week, and I see these individually wrapped Cellas Dark Chocolate Covered Cherries. I flip them over to read the nutritionals, and they are only 60 calories per piece.

Hmmmm, that's not bad, just one point each, so I buy them. WRONG, WRONG, WRONG. Betcha can't just eat one!!!

Oh no, Miz Piggy here has eaten the whole box of twenty-four, except for these token four that are left, and which will in all probability be consumed by tonight. I'm not bringing this stuff into the house ANYMORE!!!!! I'm NOT... I have NO willpower - NONE!!! And I might as well zero them out and calculate how many calories i've ingested - let's see, 24x60 = 1440 calories *huge sigh*

On a happier note, see the little Chef. My buddy V bought him for me years ago, and I always put him out at Christmas. He used to hold a gingerbread boy, and I actually still have it, just needs to be super glued back on....

Miz Piggy should do something productive like repair the little chef and leave the chocolate covered cherries alone!!!!!!

It's a family tradition...

It's the most STUPID movie, ever, but we all love it. We watch it year after year after year and laugh like we've never seen it before.... So, watch this trailer, and see if it doesn't give you a giggle, too.. ~ jan

The M&M's letter to Santa...

You're looking at the typewriter in my living room. It's the one that Daddy used when he went to Lockyear's Business College in Heavensville in the early 50's. The older I get, the more I enjoy using things that belonged to my parents...



If you click on the picture, another window will open and you will be able to read the letter...

This is SO cute... CLICK ON THE PIX for an up close view...

See this Christmas Theme. For those of you who use FireFox as a browser, you can have it, too, thanks to my buddy, Hooterville, she ALWAYS finds the good stuff...

If you're unsure how to install it, it's easy - here's how.

CLICK HERE TO INSTALL IT, now you see a page with a little button that says INSTALL NOW. Click on the button to install the theme to your FireFox browser.

When it finishes downloading, close FireFox - then reopenFireFox, and go to TOOLS/ADD-ONS/on the file menu, and you will a Tinseltown Theme - Click on the box that says USE THEME, Close Firefox Again, and then when you reopen FireFox again, it will be there. Even the little slider bar is cute, it's a candy cane. You gotta have it, girlfriends...

Enjoy. ~ jan

I'm trying men for a change...

That headline got your attention, I bet....

Okay, here's the deal, look at my Books on My Bedside Table widget in the right sidebar. Notice, male authors, MEN. I never read men, EV-ER, a lot of you know that, but I'm rethinking it. Giving them another chance.

And so far I'm finding that they are just as boring as they ever were. Oh, they are full of adventure, tall tales and excitement, but they just don't have the touch. What I need is a GAY author. Yep, that's what I'm looking for next...

In the meantime, I'm reading Dean Koontz's, The Darkest Evening of the Year, and while it's a good read, it's just not what I like. He, most certainly, is NOT gay...

Do you remember these????

I'm looking for peppermint puffs. I can buy them online, but SURELY I can find them locally. I loved them as a little girl, the big puffy pillows of peppermint that dissolve in your mouth almost instantly.

I had hubby take me to Rural King last weekend, because they have bulk candy, and I bought what they called peppermint "puffs", but they were just logs of peppermint. I didn't think they looked right, but I tried them, those suckers never would dissolve in my mouth, they were just regular pieces of peppermint, grrrrrrrr.

I was talking with V about this today. We were also reminiscing about ribbon hard candy, we both love that, too.

So if ANY of you out there have seen peppermint puffs, please send me an email.

~ jan

Lord, have MERCY!!!!!

I thought Joan VanArk looked bad, but look at the getup that Miss Aretha wore to the Kennedy Center Honors.

The headline with the article said, "Aretha Franklin wears the White House curtains!"

The straps on this getup must be cutting her shoulders to the BONE!!!

TO-THE-BONE!!!

There are just no words...

Doesn't this just scare the Beejeejus right outta you....

Eeeeekkkkkkks, this is Hollywood gone WRONG. I used to enjoy watching Joan VanArk on Knotts Landing back in the 80's... But she is living proof positive that you just can't mess with Mother Nature.

Holy Batman and Robin, she is downright SCARY!!!!

"Actress Joan Van Ark of Knots Landing fame could turn back time – it's safe to say the actress might think twice before ruining her once stunning looks with cosmetic surgery

Van Ark, 64, was seen at a benefit in Hollywood wearing a sober suit, and mask-like make-up which failed to hide the fact that she has appeared to have been under the surgeon's knife. Several times."

Meteorological Info...

The length of the day is now 9.2 hrs. That’s the bad news. The good news is that in a little more than two weeks, we’ll hit rock bottom for darkness. Then it starts going up. What a nice thought.

Just for fun...

Favorite Things Have Arrived.....

I've had such fun reading all of your emails and putting together your lists.

I hope you all enjoy them as much as I have, and thanks to all of you who so generously contributed your favorites. Much of this site would not be possible without the input and the friendship of so many of you. Girlfriends are a wonderful thing.

To access them, just click in the Favorite Things area in the left sidebar, or CLICK HERE!


Enjoy, Enjoy... ~ jan

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
area paper packages tied up with strings
These are a few of my favorite things

Cream colored ponies and crisp apple streudels
Doorbells and sleigh bells and schnitzel with noodles
Wild geese that fly with the moon on their wings
These are a few of my favorite things

Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes
Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes
Silver white winters that melt into springs
These are a few of my favorite things

When the dog bites
When the bee stings
When I'm feeling sad
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don't feel so bad

Today's the Day...

I'm working on favorite things, check back in an hour or so... ~ jan

Okay, here's the deal...

I have been knee deep in Christmas decorations for the past two days. The house has been pretty much destroyed, trying to get it all out, all up. Is it finished - NOT. Tree is up, not decorated, yet. Mantle is finished, dining room and kitchen are done... And FAVORITE THINGS???? NOT DONE!!! Patience, dear hearts, tomorrow, I pinkie swear..........

Tomorrow, tomorrow, it's only a day away.....

It was just one of those nights....

Okay, this is more info than you want to hear, but haven't we all had these nights???

I was off to bed early, took a warm bath, went to bed at 9pm with a BIG mug of hot tea, all cozy, relaxed, THEN, I decided to check out some Christmas present ideas on Amazon, so I fired up my laptop, after finding what I wanted to look up, I decided to play some stupid, silly computer game. At 11:15 the battery on my laptop died, I was still playing that dumb game, and by now I'm totally awake, no chance of just drifting off to sleep. So I make a bathroom run, settle in for the night,FINALLY get to sleep, and LC jumps up and turns on the light. He thought Munchie was crying. Arughhh, it's 1AM, Munchie is fast asleep at the foot of the bed. He was DREAMING... I'm awake, I make a potty run, go back to sleep and it's now 3AM - I'm awake, I HAVE TO GO TO THE BATHROOM!!!!!!!!!!!! IT'S THAT DAMN MUG OF TEA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ROARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Back to sleep, fast forward to 5:30AM - Munchie is whining, she has to go outside, I wake up LC, go once again to the bathroom, and I'm back to sleep. It's 7:30AM - he comes bursting in the room singing friggin' Jingle Bells. I'm about ready to lose it by now. And today we have to put up the Christmas tree and decorate the house. And I'm so tired I feel pretty much like a pile of day old dog doodoo...

Is this why old people never drink fluids after 6pm. Is this what my future holds? Calgon take me away.................................

On a more positive note, I'm not retaining fluid this morning *lame smile*

I'm off to decorate, Favorite Things posts tomorrow, I'm sure you'll enjoy reading about all our favorite things more than you have enjoyed reading about my potty runs....

I recycle my apple cores...

Veronica brought Michigan apples to me from her Thanksgiving trip to South Haven, and they taste AMAZING. I'm not the only one who thinks so, The M&M's line up for bites when I'm eating them and then I take turns giving them the cores to chew on. Oh, I wish you could see them, they lick and tug, and rake their teeth over those cores, drooling and making little doggie messes, but oh, do they love them....

It's those simple things, ladies....

I admit it....

I enjoy Martha Stewart, I always have, always will. Am I fan, well I don't think I am, but I do follow her, so maybe I am.

Anyhoo, her Martha Blog is SO interesting. If you want to see some lovely pictures from Puget Sound, and great Thanksgiving photos, give it a look - CLICK HERE -

I like to think this is a more personal, gentler side of Martha....

And YES, I'm still working on Favorite Things, I have EVERYBODY'S finished except MINE.... Soon, ladies, soon....

Cancer Prevention -

I read the following article this morning, no surprises, really, but something we should all read.

~ jan

People have long wondered if a healthy diet can prevent cancer, but the answer has been a little unclear — until recently. The World Cancer Research Fund has now reviewed 7,000 medical studies and concluded that, yes, your diet (and weight) can affect whether you get cancer or not. While this large analysis focused only on past research studies, you may still be surprised by the scientists' recommendations.The researchers' diet recommendations are to:

limit red meat to no more than 2.5 ounces per day

eat no processed meats (bacon, sausage)

limit alcohol to two drinks for men and one drink for women per day

avoid sugary drinks like juices and sodas

limit sodium to 2000 mg per day

Other recommendations beyond those for diet included:

exercise every other day

get your nutrients from foods, not supplements

breastfeed your babies

control your body weight with body mass index between 18.5 and 24.9

Favorite Things...

No time to blog, working on Favorite Things. It's all coming together nicely, if you haven't sent me your faves, your missing out girlfriends. This is pretty much your last chance to send them to me -
I'll be back with a link to the list soon. Check back.

~ jan