Hope These Make You Smile!

A woman got on a bus. She was holding a baby. The bus driver looked at the child and blurted out, “That is the ugliest baby I’ve ever seen!”

Infuriated, the woman slammed her fare into the fare box and took an aisle seat near the rear of the bus. The man seated next to her sensed that she was agitated and asked her what was wrong. “The bus driver insulted me,” she fumed.

The man sympathized and said, “Why, he shouldn’t say things to insult passengers. He could be fired for that.”

“You’re right,” she said. “I think I’ll go back up there and give him a piece of my mind!”

“That’s a good idea,” the man said. “Here, let me hold your monkey for you.”

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The dentist told me I grind my teeth at night, so now before I go to sleep I fill my mouth with hot water and coffee beans and set my alarm for 7:30. ~ Jeff Marder

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Many years ago I used to frequent the Valley of the Sun’s comedy clubs. The early 80’s was a terrific time for up and coming comedians and Phoenix/Scottsdale/Tempe had no less than 4 clubs where they were showcased. It was a low time in my life, and going solo to Gatsby’s Mardi Gras, Finney Bones or The Improv to sit anonymously and laugh for an hour or two was like medicine. My drink of preference was club soda, as often times I would head off to work the graveyard shift at the generating station after a set. Some of the folks (that I can remember) I had the pleasure of seeing perform were: Jeff Marder, Rita Rudner, Paula Poundstone, Michael Finney,Paul Rodriguez. There were others that I have seen on the late show since then and it always tickled me since I saw them when they weren’t well known. Most were pretty clean in those days, but there was an occasional comic that used foul language…one guy was so offensive that I had to walk out. Once when my parents came to Phoenix I pre-screened Paula Poundstone to make sure she was okay. She was soooo good. I then took my parents and she even carried on a conversation with my Dad and Mom! When she was on Johnny Carson a year or so later my Dad called me to say the young comedienne we had discovered was on TV. He was so excited about it. Daddy had a really good sense of humor and when he laughed it was hardy….made you want to laugh too.

Restroom Sign

Every time I use the restroom at our library I have to chuckle when I see this sign on the dispenser that holds the cloth towel roll. It reads:

DO NOT ATTEMPT TO HANG FROM TOWEL OR INSERT YOUR HEAD IN THE TOWEL LOOP.

I understand that this kind of signage is necessary nowadays due to lawsuits, small children and frankly, just plain dumb people, so please don’t write to me to explain this. It’s just one of those things that makes me laugh every time I read it. Is it just me or does this tickle anyone else’s funny bone?

Jealous Man

Patrick just sent me an email titled Jealous Man with this picture attached. It was taken on Whiskey Row in Prescott, AZ on November 2,2003 our 15th wedding anniversary (and my 53rd B-day). I had cataract surgery the following January, so it's one of the last pics of me with glasses. (Wore them since 2nd grade!) Pat just added the "Don't ya be a messin' with my woman!" caption. Isn't he mean looking?? People think he's mean, I think because of his mustache (which I love). He is really pretty mushy though. But don't get him mad, because before that stache turned silver it was red and he does have that 'zero to ticked off' temperament!

7 Things About Me

Dorothy, of Counting My Blessings, found at http://www.mawdot.blogspot.com/, tagged me (along with 7 others) to post 7 random or weird facts about myself. Here are the rules:

1-Link to the person that tagged you, and post the rules on your blog.

2- Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself.

3- Tag 7 random people at the end of your post, and include links to their blogs.

4- Let each person know that they've been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

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I am going to post my random facts, but don’t actually know 7 other bloggers to pass this on to. If anyone reading this has the urge to join in the fun, please feel free to continue this game, and list a link to my blog & let me know when you do. Thanks. Okay, here goes:

#1 - Out of all the delicious foods in the world, my very favorite foods are Campbell’s Bean with Bacon soup and oatmeal. When I was a little kid I would be on a liquid diet for weeks while in the hospital. When I could finally eat a semi-solid food my first choice was either Campbell’s Bean with Bacon soup or oatmeal. To this day I still love both foods. Yum, I feel like eating some now. On the subject of weird foods, I’ve always had a taste for odd things. My cousin Sheila lives in Texas and as we’ve gotten older, we keep in touch via email. She’s 4 years older than me and remembers what a strange kid I was. She asked me last year if I remember eating raw macaroni and dog biscuits. Well, yes, I do remember. I still to this day, enjoy munching on raw macaroni or spaghetti. Haven’t eaten any dog biscuits since I was really little, hiding behind the high chair and sharing them with our English Springer spaniel! I bet you’re saying that’s a relief.

#2 - My (great) Aunt Anna Michniewicz died about 2o years ago. While Aunt Annie was a teenager she helped to raise my mother. She worked in a factory in Shamokin,PA until her retirement. She never married but was a wonderful homemaker---seamstress, knitter, cook. After Jessica was born she made her first (& only) airplane trip, flying from PA to Arizona. That was really an honor for me. She thought Jessica was wonderful and when we went to visit her in PA when Jess was little she insisted that we take Jessica to Doodlebug Park. That was a small amusement park that she took me to as a little girl. She always called Pat "Phillip". This rug is one that she made a long time ago and it was given to me. It is still in excellent shape as you can see.

#3 - My favorite song in the whole world is Amazing Grace by John Newton. It brings joy to my heart to think what my Lord Jesus did to save a wretch like me. Our God is an awesome God. (I like that song too!) As a daily reminder, here is the cross hanging on our bedroom wall:

#4 - When I was a year old, and spending a lot of time in the hospital my parents bought me a stuffed bear that was made by Ideal. His name was Algy and he was advertised as being a hypo allergenic stuffed toy. Just right for a child that had health issues. I adored that bear and not only slept with him throughout my childhood, but told him all my deep thoughts and secrets. He even went overseas with me (see #5). When I got married the first time, my first husband was certifiable (really) and one of the cruel things that he did to me in the first month of marriage was to throw Algy away. I was heart broken, but never forgot my old pal. Well, 5 years ago while horsing around on eBay I found an Algy bear for sale. Patrick okayed a high bidding figure with me and the bidding was on. I got my Algy bear & was so excited & happy. I thanked my sweet husband for going along with my desire to buy this little fellow for a ridiculously high price. His response to me was, “You told me how much you loved that bear, and you have missed your Algy for such a long time. How could I put a price on that?” What a guy! Here is a picture of my replacement Algy bear:

#5 - When I was 15 years old I traveled to Germany, Austria and Russia. I studied Russian in Unterweissenbach, Austria with the American Institute for Foreign Study out of Greenwich, CT. We were among the first student groups allowed to travel to the (then) Soviet Union. While in Yalta at the beach our group met up with another study group (all boys) from the USA. We began conversing and the young fellow I was talking with turned out to be the nephew of my ophthalmologist in Pennsylvania!! Small world.

#6 - My favorite wines are Huckleberry Blush from Sandpoint, Idaho & Verde Spumante from Italy.

#7 - I love this ceramic string of chili peppers. My daughter, Jessica, designed and made them for me as a Christmas surprise in 1995. She didn’t have art class in school that year, but knew I wished I had a string of peppers, so asked the art teacher if she could come in during study hall and after school to work on them. The teacher agreed and boy was I surprised when I opened that package at Christmas! It was a hard secret for Jess to keep, as I was giving her a hard time about what took her so long getting home from school when she was working on the present. I had them hung up in our big home in Phoenix, but had them packed away after we moved into our condo there. I was very pleased to give them their new home in our cabin.

That’s a little bit of info on me. I’d love to see a list of 7 things from each person visiting my blog now.

WOW!!!

My buddy Maria sent these to me. The question is what is that cable made of??!

Find 5 Differences

Dorothy challenged me to spruce up the cabin in a Fall fashion after I made a joke about Hootie eatting my one silver maple leaf the other day. I actually already had the table "dolled up", but decided to do the window in front of my kitchen sink. Forgot to take any pics of the table, but here are 2 pictures of my newly Autumn decorated window. (Fall & Autumn are the same, right?) Anyway, I took 2 pictures at about the same angle, but changed 5 things in the second picture. Can you spot the differences? First responce gets a great big Baby Rocket Dog kiss. Hootie has taken to eatting deer and turkey poo lately, so his puppy lips are off limits for a while. I hope he outgrows this newest bad habit. He's disgusting. Anyway, have fun playing my silly little game! May the Lord of heaven & earth bless you today and throughout the weekend. Love, Cassie

Bells & Angels

Remember "It's A wonderful Life" with Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed? Well, here's a little twist to the bells & angel wings thing. This copper rack hangs in my kitchen & the ceiling isn't really high enough for such a rack, but I had Patrick hang it anyway. I'm short, so no problem.....for me. Pat is 6'1", soooooooo.....

Every time the bell rings, an angel hits his head!

Nice Job Inland Masonry

We had front steps built and cultured stonework done on the front of our cabin in June. These pictures (kind of) show the process. I visited a booth that Matthew & Julia Shetler had in Montana at the Amish auction in May & set up an appointment for Matt to come give us an estimate. He gave estimates on getting the whole (outside) including walkout basement done, as well as just the front house band and steps. We were very grateful that he broke it down like that and that he was willing to do just the front. Our budget did not allow for the whole shebang to get done, as much as I would have loved that. The steps and landing were made of concrete block then covered with a golden slate that is native to this part of N. Idaho. The house band was done with Pennsylvania Weather ledge a product of Dutch Quality Stone. We think the guys from Inland Masonry, Eli and Joe, did a great job. Inland Masonry is a family business for brothers Matt and Eli and Joe is their cousin. (All the fellows are members of the Mennonite church that Patrick and I attend up here.) For three years we had a crude wooden ramp to our front door, so we rarely even used the front door. Now we can put 2 chairs on the little porch and just sit and enjoy the east morning sun in the summer.

Blogging News & A White Christmas

We spent our first 3 nights at the Bellvue Hilton before Christmas last year,so I bought this red tree to brighten up our room. The last 4 nights we stayed at Jess & David's so hauled our little tree along and set it up in their kitchen. It's so gaudy, that it's pretty! These are a few of my snowmen. They are living in boxes at the present, but they might come out for Christmas. David sang with a group on Christmas Eve at Horizon 4-Square Church in 2007. He's the 3rd from the left. Here David is with a couple of his friends from the church. Don't they look Butch Cassidy-ish?? This is the darling daughter,Jessica Rose & her sweetheart, David John.

Patrick showed me how to type my blog on msworks from the cabin and transfer it to my blog online later. Now I don’t have to use up all my laptop power & time on composing my blog. The most time used will be getting the pictures to upload. That’s very nice because now when I go downtown to use the library’s wireless internet I have more time to read everybody else’s blogs. I guess I’m learning slowly but surely! :<)

Good news! This year we will be celebrating the birth of our Lord in N. Idaho. I am very excited about this, since it will be our first Christmas up here. In past years Patrick & I have snowbirded down to Phoenix by the end of November, then gone to Seattle to celebrate Christmas with Jessica & David. Of course, we had to board both Baby Rocket Dog and Chuck (our old cat) when we flew off to WA., not to mention the fact that I was still in the process of getting acclimated to being back in the city. Of course, now I face a whole new set of challenges since most all of my Christmas decorations are down in Phoenix. Pat has one more trip back up here before his (o/w) Christmas trip, so I guess he’ll have his suitcase stuffed full of decorations. Unfortunately Alaska Airlines is now charging for the 2nd suitcase and US Air charges for any checked bag. What a swizz! Jessica & David will drive over from Seattle and probably go skiing/snowboarding on Schweitzer while here. They both were part time instructors at Snoqualmie Pass Ski Resort a few years ago & should have fun doing a new mountain. We haven’t seen them since they flew to Phx last April so I can hardly wait. Both Jessica and David are born again Christians with a deep love for Jesus, so their presence is always so uplifting. Iron sharpening iron and all. I am SO excited to have a white Christmas this year with the family!

My Moose OR Cool As A Moose

I took these 2 pictures in June 2007. I believe the young female that frequents our place now is one of the twins from these pictures. She seems quite comfortable on our property.

No joke, this is the female moose in the woods next to our cabin. It was dusk, but wasn't dark out, but my little camera couldn't catch the daylight. I thought it was kind of cool how her eyes reflected the camera flash.

My Mommy ~ The Pearl of Poland

Here is a little tribute to my 85 year old Mom, Rosie Miller, who lives in Pennsylvania. My father died 14 years ago last April [they were married 50 years]& she really has never gotten over it. Actually, her personality changed quite dramatically after he died. I think Daddy must have kept her in line more than we knew! Mom has been rewriting family history for many years now, changing things to suit her --- she has done this since before she became old, but it has really become an art form in her later years. Sure wish she would make me sound better, rather than worse! She has very strong opinions, likes and dislikes. Her childhood was sad in many ways, which I might go into at a later date., but I’m sure it affected her personality. She has always “played favorites” with her children (3 of us) and also her grandchildren. As a little kid (they used to call me "the middle one"), I was the lucky chosen one, probably because of the many operations & hospital stays I had. After I left PA. at 19 years, I lost favor and have been odd man out ever since. That is also another story for another time. Mommy is a pretty interesting character. She has macular degeneration (blindness) and has only slight peripheral vision in one eye, total blindness in the other, but still runs her hardware store. As you can see from the videos, she smokes her little black cigarettes most waking hours. She works in her store 6 days a week, and I believe the only days the store was ever closed down (for regular business hours) was after President John F. Kennedy was shot and after my father died. She always used to say that she was the brawn and Dad was the brains of the outfit. (Some day I’ll do a tribute to my father, but I need to be in Phx since that's where our scanner is.) Mom has in fact commented that the store is her reason for being alive...so sad. When not working in her store, she is always working around her house/flower beds & I don’t know how she can tell a weed from a flower, but she can. Also, she always puts her leftovers out for the deer and other critters that hang around her place. Her bird feeder is regularly visited (& ruined!) by bears, but she won’t stop feeding the birds. She is a very stubborn lady. Mom also has a pretty unique style of dress. She has worn culottes and print knee socks to work for as long as I can remember. Also generally wears a vest so she can carry her cigarettes and tape measure with her at all times. The picture with 3 of us in is Mom, my cousin Mary from Indiana and I'm the one with the ponytail. So, with no more fanfare, here are some pics and videos of my Mom, Rosie Posie The Pearl of Poland. Enjoy and God bless your day. love, Cassie