"Costumes" o' the 70s

Well, I guess it's that dress up day again. Most of us will see lots of little ones today, all dressed up and ready for goodies. While I'm the first to admit that I'm not Halloween's biggest fan, I do have fond memories of costumes and the candy that came our way.

Another type of "costume" came through my e-mail this week. Originally it was from someone who came across a big ol' 1977 JC Penney's catalog, complete with the dapper, fashion-forward getups of the day. The pictures almost defied description. My sister and I were laughing through e-mail (that's possible, isn't it?) about what we used to wear back then, too. I think we can all use a chuckle, so I'm willing humble myself (sigh). In honor of "dressing up" this week, here's a fashion parade from the 70s. Ah, childish, blissful ignorance...


Although grinning, little did I know that I had just been chosen as the spokesperson for Grey Poupon-colored eskimos everywhere.

My sister's plaid coat with its jaunty collar, topped with the ample cap, speak of a quiet elegance.

Remember how thick those polyester shirts were? At night this one stood up on its own in the corner of the bedroom.

And remember wearing fairy outfits to school everyday? ...What--that was just me? Okay, you got me. This was a favorite dress-up outfit,

complete with floppy fairy wings in the back. This one shows my shock that I was actually allowed in the picture by the cool big girls, what with the gauchos, Shaun Cassidy album, Laura Ingalls outfit, and all. Ask me another time about why I have a boy's haircut. (sniff)

I saved the best for last...David and his twin brother, Daniel. What confidence. What haberdashery. I'm sure they were quite the pair with the ladies of their kindergarten class.

When seeing this do any outfits of yours from this decade come marching out of the fashion tombs you've locked them in? Do tell. If y'all like this, we may just have to do an 80s flashback sometime.

Stream (or river or creek) of Consciousness

Off and on all week I thought about what the next post should include. I tried to come up with something deep and chin-rubbing-worthy. As the week went on, though, it was just too entertaining watching the brouhaha in the comments of the last post. I sat back, crossed my arms, and grinned with bloggish glee. (whatever that is)

And here we are at the weekend. This morning I had the treat of a mocha, so most of the day I floated around in caffeine-induced giddiness. The day was actually quite productive. Perhaps I should make more visits to the coffee house (but perhaps not)...it was a great day, and I'm in no mood to be somber.

So instead, I'm going to channel that caffeinaline (Can that be a word? Let's say it is for now.) and let my mind wander. Christi's blog today addressed a succession of various topics. Very nice read. I'm not going to be so organized. You're invited to join me now on a float down the stream of consciousness...you may have seen this before, too. In school when teaching us creative writing, this was a technique used for sparking thought in which you wrote down whatever came into your head, no organization or editing necessary. Enough jabbering; let's go.

-(Crickets chirping; brain silent, awaiting thoughts to pass by.)
-It's funny to mute the TV and imagine what else actors could be saying.
-Their slogan is, "ABC Family...A 'New' Kind of Family." Why don't they just be honest and say, "The morals of what we show now are anything but 'family,' but we're too cheap to change the station's name because we'd have to change all of our stationery."
-There's actually a car dealership named "Sexy Super Cars" (El Paso)
-It's funny and uncomfortable at the came time to be writing this post when I'm so tired...there's no telling what might come out.
-"Jabbering." Sounds like "jabberwocky." That sounds like "Jabba the Hut" and wookie.
-That lady co-host on the infomercial is the same one we saw a year or so ago when Esteban the guitar guy was on then, too. Wow. It's so sad that I know and remember that. I need to get out more often.
-What to do around here, though? Hmmm, small city...there's ring-twirling contests, Balderdash, and eating wasabi macadamia nuts. I can't believe I didn't just bite into that first one. Talk about (Three Stooges sound) woohoo! Oh, no...I just referenced one of my sworn enemies-- in a very strange way at that.
-We were just talking about how giving our dog physical boundaries within the house calms her down and she's more content. Isn't it comforting knowing that God gives us boundaries, too, so that we can rest and enjoy life within them?
-Mmmm. Pumpkin pancakes sound good right now.

Aaaaand on that note, I'll wrap up the river cruise. Thanks for joining me in that experiment. =) By the way, my hands are twitching to edit what I wrote above. (sigh) Guess that's the fare you pay to take that ride. Okay. That's really over now.

On a different note, for some great recommendations for chilly fall evenings see what David wrote here.

I've had a request for a picture of our dog, Daisy. Here's one of my favorite photos of her, taken a few months ago by my sister-in-law, Kara--a very talented photographer. Daisy has grown quite a bit since this time.

Liza's Tears

Poor Liza Minelli. No one wanted to see her trot out her rapping skillz. Instead, you pollsters chose the Gaithers doing Bon Jovi. Very intriguing choice! Well, I'm sure Liza will recover soon. By the way, some of you may know that she had a very funny cameo role in a few episodes of "Arrested Development."

That's about it for now, unless you can suggest other singer/song pairings. ....Hmmm?

Dishwashers and dark chocolate

Do you find that when God wants to teach you something, you're reminded of it almost everywhere you go? No, that never happens to me, either. Actually, this week I've been nudged, encouraged, (hammered!) to look for simple reasons to be joyful and thankful. Things seem so much brighter when we look past temporary circumstances, don't they?

In light of that, here is a short-ish list of some things for which I'm thankful (how do ya like that proper grammar? Impressive, huh?). As I write, in the back of my mind I'm hearing strains of "...these are a few of my favorite things..." You can thank me later for having that stuck in your head, too. Here we go:

• Fall mornings at Blue House, our local coffee house
• Friends
• Friends' laughter
• Friends' laughter with (at) me =)
  
• Curiosity
• Dishwashers
• New magazines
  
• Snuggling up with a fleece throw to watch a movie
  
• Office supply stores
• Forgiveness from God and others
• Velvety dog ears
• Dark chocolate
• David's patience and sense of humor
• David's patience with my sense of humor
• A child's perspective
• Funny-sounding words
  

So, what makes you thankful?

For your new week...

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone;
my hope comes from Him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation;
He is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
My salvation and my honor depend on God;
He is my mighty rock, my refuge.
Trust in Him at all times, O people;
pour out your hearts to Him,
for God is our refuge.

Psalm 62:5-8

Isn't it amazing to know that whatever we are going through, He is our "mighty rock," "salvation"..."refuge"? Not could be or might be--He is those things. Whatever troubles we are shouldering, we must surrender them to Him as you "pour out your hearts to Him." May you find rest in Him alone today.

One more of my favorite passages from Psalms, the greatest book of poetry...

Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,
for I have put my trust in you.
Show me the way I should go,
for to you I lift up my soul.
Rescue me from my enemies, O LORD,
for I hide myself in you.
Teach me to do your will,
for you are my God;
may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.

Psalm 143:8-10

Short (and Sweet?)

...And now back to our regularly-scheduled blog posts. This week I had a hiatus from the internet courtesy of our DSL provider--much of our area was off line for a couple of days. Very disruptive. Although I had internet withdrawals and started getting a nervous tick that made others hide their frightened children, I think it was healthy to be low-tech for a couple of days.

Apparently I didn't list your favorite superheroes. Besides the mighty Tick, who did I leave out?

Anyway, I'm so proud of how many of you rose to the Balderdash challenge! And for all of your trouble, here are the top-secret true definitions of the words:

Piebald:

adjective

having sections or patches colored differently and usually brightly; "a jester dressed in motley"; "the painted desert"; "a particolored dress"; "a piebald horse"; "pied daisies" [syn: motley]

WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.

Farrago:
a confused mixture; hodgepodge; medley: a farrago of doubts, fears, hopes, and wishes.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

And the race is on...

I've heard some strong opinions from some of you about the current poll. You take your superheroes seriously! Glad to hear it. =) One comment offered was that The Tick, the revered hero of all things blue, was woefully excluded from the choices. This was an oversight--The Tick is near and dear to my heart--but perhaps it's for the best. He would've whooped the competition unfairly, methinks.

Let's shift gears and start the week with a game, shall we? No, not Texas Hold 'Em, 42, or even the Bathroom Tile Game (that's for another post). Have you ever played Balderdash? It's a great board game that uses real words that almost no one has heard of. Players are given the word without knowing the real definition. Each player then makes up a definition. Then all of the "definitions" are read--with the real definition slipped in somewhere--and players vote to guess the real one. It's almost always worth a chuckle or even a chortle. Other ways to play include guessing the plot to an obscure movie, based on the title only.

For example, if given the word "pettifogger," I might say that it is "a specialized tool to rid petticoats of bowl weevils." The real answer is that it is "a petty, unscrupulous lawyer; also, who quibbles over trivia."

We'll play the movie version soon, but let's warm up with the words. Come on, take a chance and play a nerdy thinking game! Ready? Good. I'll give a couple of words. If you play you can make up definitions for one or both; post them in the comments section. In a couple of days I'll give the real meaning. Yeeessss, I realize you can look them up, but where's your sense of fun?

Here we go: Word #1: farrago
Word #2: piebald

Deep thoughts, I imagine

The sprightly young squirrel paused, sitting upright and still by the curb as he flicked his bushy tail. "Hmmm," he pondered after awhile. "I thought I heard a possum nearby. ...Must've been my imagination." He resumed his task of hunting broken pecans. "If there had been a possum," he wondered, amusing himself as he worked, "what would he be doing in this neighborhood? Visiting possum cousins? Taking a stroll? Hiding out in a garage in order to scare some poor, unsuspecting human?"

He stopped to sample a meaty piece of pecan then scurried on his way.
###

I'm feeling very weird and quirky writing this post, so hang on! Whaddya think of my little squirrel story? I spent hours working on it. (And if you'll buy that...) But what if it really happened? What if the squirrel used his imagination?

To put it bluntly, I don't think so. But it was fun imagining the story.

I've been thinking this week about the miracle of imagination. Have you ever wondered about that? I believe we're the only creation that God endowed with imagination. For example, somehow I doubt that javelinas sit around spinning yarns.

And don't you think that is part of how we're created in His image? He has the ultimate imagination--He created the universe, for goodness' sake--and imagination is part of His amazing fingerprint on each of us, I believe.

I like to think that He loves it when we use our wonderings as He intended. We had such great imaginations as kids, didn't we? Too bad our time now is often too crowded with errands, e-mail, and other day-fillers to see the invisible.

I'll try to remind myself of that the next time I see a twitchy-tailed squirrel on my curb.