Laughs As of Late

I feel extraordinarily blessed to be living in a world with emails, and text messaging, and blogging, and Itunes and Google and Facebook!

Can any of you believe that the ONLY way to communicate with people used to be through letter-writing... or telegram.. or cable!? (Although, I don't really know what "cable" means---it doesn't sound at all convenient. Am I right?) Anyway, this idea of only being able to write IS sort of romantic though, don't you think. I know that I have complained before on here of men using the text message as a lame, passive, immature, inconsiderate way to pursue a relationship with someone of the opposite sex --(wait-- I didn't? Well, I meant to..) But, anyway, now I am changing my tune. I've decided I'm going to start trying to think of these such advances as mini-telegrams. Short, sweet, to the point... I wonder how long I can keep it up. For now, I am enthralled with the idea.

Why?...You may ask? I have just finished reading the most wonderful book. It is called The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. The entire novel is made up of a (fictitious) collection of letters, cables, and telegrams written about the German Occupation of the Channel Islands during WWII. Juliet Ashton is always writing or receiving the letters and my, how she made me laugh! ... and cry...and then laugh some more! Of course, all the stuff about the concentration camps and the injustices that were forced upon these people was simply horrible. But there is more joy in this book than sadness for sure. Here are two of my favorite quotes of hers from the novel:

1. I suppose I do have a suitor, but I'm not really used to him yet. He's terribly charming and he plies me with delicious meals, but I sometimes think I prefer suitors in books rather than right in front of me. How awful, backward, cowardly, and mentally warped that will be if it turns out to be true.

2. My neighbor Evangeline Smythe is going to have twins in June. She is none too happy about it, so I am going to ask her to give one of them to me.

Hahahaa. She is a strange and funny lady... not entirely unlike myself...

In other news, my friend Heidi and I hosted our supper club at my house last night. We had a Mexican themed dinner and calamity, of course, ensued. I've posted pictures of the "activity portion" of the evening below. We laughed and laughed and laughed at everyone being dizzy and trying frantically to swing and hit the pinata. It proved challenging for most. Ha. I hope you can enjoy the photos at least a fraction of the amount I enjoyed having everyone over.

Until next time,
Yours ever,
Myra

(this is the way Juliet signed all her letters... I may adopt it and try and pass it off as my own).

Random Shenanigans & the Cutest Baby in the World

Okay- so I KNOW I promised not to talk about Lilly Whit much on this blog, and I plan to stick to that--HOWEVER, baby girl turned ONE this weekend and I went home for her party. The pictures posted here are of her making two of my favorite faces. The whammy face-- that's her making it in front of the tent I gave her--which she LOVED... Obviously. And the other one is when I'm singing "Stand By Me" to her, complete with percussion and bass noises--- or otherwise doing something else really weird and ridiculous. She just looks at me like: "Who ARE you?!" Ahahahahaha. It's hilarious.

I feel like we really got some good bonding time in this weekend though. She slept in the bed with me on Saturday night-- and it is Un-be-LIEVable how someone so small can take up soooo much room. She's too heavy to sleep on my chest anymore. We tried and I couldn't breathe---so I laid her down beside me. She kept snuggling over further and further to me-- I'm talking right up in the crook of my neck... So I'd scoot over a bit and then there she was again--until I was on the very edge of the bed where I stayed for the rest of the night. I'd be annoyed except I'm pretty sure she gets this trait from ME. Ask my sister, my college roommates or anyone who's ever had a slumber party with me. Ha. I can handle the little snuggle bunny for a night, I guess. Even if it did mean getting absolutely no sleep.
All in all, it was a worthwhile trip to the Delta. I'm always so ready to go home---and then sooo ready to get back!

In other news--I've been channeling Aaron Karo a bit and thinking about some really random things as of late. Here they are.. in no particular order:

• I really wish that, as far as pets go-- that there was option out there to own a really small cat. I'm talking about a cat that stays the size of a kitten. I have my own house, a fenced in yard, plenty of room for a pet... The problem is--they don't make the pet I want. I want a tiny cat. One that never gets big. People have tiny dogs. I don't understand why this is such an odd request. We can clone human beings, create embryos in a test tube, send people into OUTER SPACE--but no one can tell me where to find a tiny cat? HUMPHF!

• In general-- I've never been much of a rule follower. I think most people who know me would agree... EXCEPT when it comes to the rules of cooking a Lean Cuisine. I get ready to pop one in the microwave and here's what goes on in my head--Wait--am I supposed to cut a slit in the film cover or pull one corner of it back to vent? Phew! I'm supposed to cut a slit. Good thing I didn't just pull back that corner! Okay, cook on high for 3 minutes and then pull back cover and stir. Got it. Then recover and cook on high for one more minute. Check. Then leave in microwave for 3 to 5 minutes before eating. Oh, better make it 5. I don't want to mess anything up...
  

• I've tuned in to the Oprah Winfrey show two times in the past 12 months and BOTH times Kirstie Alley has been her guest. Whaaaat are the odds of that? Seriously?! Anyway,-- Kirstie! Lose the weight, honey. Don't lose the weight, ... WHATEVER! Please just stop talking about it! Geez. No one cares but you.

• Sometimes- I gchat in only emoticons. Sometimes- it's all you need...
  

• I make a pretty good extra income by babysitting in my spare time. I've always done it; I enjoy it, so its a really good gig if you can get it. Most of the families I sit for--I've known for years... like 9 years. So the children, at this point, are reaching that tweenager mark--and I'm going to be honest, I don't really think it is my forte. Example #1: I was keeping 5 children the other night ages 8, 10, 10, 10, and 12. They begged me to let them prank call some of my friends... After thinking about it for oh, a SECOND, I was like-- okay, let's do it! For those of you wondering-- Star 67 still works from a land line. Anyway--I let them call several of my friends and act like they were from a Chinese restaurant. The conversation went mostly like this: (in the best Chinese accent this 10 year old could muster) "You orda Kung Pao Sheekin? I deliver? You want me bring to you now? You have four ordas? Where you live? I bring to you." Most of my friends knew they were being pranked and it was HILARIOUS to hear their reactions. I was pretty much laughing harder than the kids were. After a while--Grace (age 12) was like, "Guys, I don't think we should do this anymore. It's not funny." And I was like--- "Whaaat? This is hilarious. Lighten up, Grace. Geez." Example #2: I was keeping my little Celeste the other day (age 8). I was helping her with her math homework and she was telling me about this guy at her school, Briggs. She said that she thought he had a crush on her... or people say he does anyway. So I'm like--"Well, is he cute?" And she goes, "Eh, not really." And I was like, "well, is he smart?" And she goes, "Eh, not really. And I said, well, is he nice? And she goes "I mean--not really. He's always pulling my hair and poking me and making fun of me." My response: "Ewwww. Whatta weirdo. He sounds lame-E-O!" And she goes, "Yea, lame-E-O!" Then I was like--"Can we watch Phineas and Ferb now?" And she goes, "Sure. Just let me finish this last math problem and I'll come watch it with you in a second."