MelaniePenelope

Saturday 9: I've Got Your Number

Hey, guys. This week, we'll be talking about Tony Bennett, a master at his craft who died a little over a week ago. But I couldn't let this go without also mentioning another master (won't call her a mistress of) her craft, who sadly died at only 56 just a few days ago: Sinéad O'Connor. (She later changed her name to Shuhada' Sadaqat after converting to Islam, but kept the original when performing.) I'm so distraught over her death. Please, if you or someone you love is struggling with mental health issues, know the suicide hotline phone numbers, text numbers, and any other available helps. Share them with that person. Watch them. Check in with them. Show them that yes, somebody does care about them. /PSA Thank you.

If you're playing along today, please link up here to have some fun with Anthony Benedetto and pals!

And we're off:

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Saturday 9: I've Got Your Number (1965)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

 

 

Chosen in memory of Tony Bennett, who passed away on July 21.

 

1) In this song, Tony sings that he recognizes his lover's insecurities because she's a lot like him. Are you unsure in social situations? Or do you meet new people easily?

 

I'm very timid and insecure, at least at first. Once I've gotten to know people and am comfortable with them, I can totally let loose. But at first? I'm super uncomfortable.

 

2) While singing was his livelihood, painting was Tony Bennett's passion. What hobby do you participate in with the greatest enthusiasm?

 

 

Well, let's see. I spend the most time on creating Paper Hugs for Mama Dragons, since it's such a constant need. The hobby for which I feel the strongest fervor would definitely be knitting, followed by crochet, both of which I've done very little of since we lived in Florida. Sad to say. But I'm thrilled to say I've got a project going right now. And the project I'd like to spend the most money on? Yarn-collecting. I could spend an absolute fortune at places like Expression Fiber Arts (some of whose yarns are shown here, along with link right here) and then just stroke and rub my cheek on the wool that comes to my house, before I ever start knitting. Heh. Yarn collecting is definitely a hobby, trust me.

 

3) Tony was a proud son of New Jersey. Many singers hail from The Garden State, including Bruce Springsteen, Jon Bon Jovi and Frank Sinatra. What heroes, heroines or celebrities hail from your home state?

 

 

I'm from New York. Shall we say at least a good 30%? No? Okay, I'll put some work in. Stay right there. I'll be back.

 

Y'all. I got lost. That is a long list! I'm only going to post a small smattering of original-New Yorkers here, who are only names I know.

 

Semi-random draw from that subset: (a) Iron Man himself, Robert Downey, Jr. (b) Scarlett Johansson aka "ScarJo"

(c) the beautiful Kerry Washington (d) ooh! Claire Danes! I've loved her since her "My So-Called Life" days (e) oh, another one I love: Lucy Liu, who I admired on Kill Bill & Charlie's Angels, among other things (f) Diane Lane (g) Ahh, here's the one on this list I was waiting for, who I knew would be there: Alicia Keys (h) Julia Stiles, about whom they're always making false claims (random people online, don't know who or why) that she's out of work, out of money, homeless, you name it. Always liked her (i) another big crush: Lenny Kravitz, and finally (j) (so hard to narrow this last slot down!) Whoopi Goldberg

 

4) Though Tony dreamed of becoming a commercial artist, he had to drop out of school in his teens to help support his family. Looking back on your teen years, what did you want to do for a living? Is that what you ended up doing?

 

 

When I was a tween and a teenager, I wanted desperately to be a marine biologist. At 17, I was accepted to the marine science + biology double major Bachelor and Doctoral program at UMiami. I got the bachelor's degree in three years and always jokingly whined I got my degree before I was "legal." Anyway, by that point, the shark researcher I wanted to do my Ph.D. with had lost his funding for graduate students, which left me up shit's creek without a paddle.

 

I had to pivot. Since I was only 20, I had plenty of time, but I was always in a hurry for everything. I started busting my hump preparing for the GRE, on which I eventually earned nearly a perfect score. I wrote to several professors/labs saying I wanted work with them, etc., even there was really only one. That one wrote me back and told me what I needed to bone up on in order to get into his lab - and I got in. Long story short, I wanted to be a marine biologist,  I was a marine biologist. Until I left to go be wife and mom.

 

5) During WWII, Tony served in Germany. The first time his voice was broadcast was during an aircheck for Armed Forced Radio. For the occasion he sang "St. James Infirmary." That was Tony's first. Let's contrast it with your last. What's the most recent song you sang?

 

 

Chloë, Noah and I semi-sorta-kinda sang "Nothing Compares 2 U," along with Sinéad O'Connor, through our Echo Pop last night. Also this photograph just nearly made me start bawling.

 

6) After the War, Bob Hope saw him perform under his real name, Anthony Benedetto. Hope told him that, no matter how great his talent, his name would hold him back because it was too long for a marquee. And so, Tony Bennett was born. Tell us about a marquee in your town. Is it announcing a movie, play, or concert performance?

 

Well, there are the movie marquees advertising movies, especially Barbie & Oppenheimer, of course. But I'm waiting for something new to come out, or a few things, because the family and I want to drive about 2½ hours to the nearest drive-in theater for a double-header, and they're not so interested in those two. Someone let me know when things change!

 

7) In 2006, he recorded his Duets album, partnering with a variety of singers he admired. Tony said he enjoyed working with Paul McCartney at London's Abbey Road Studios, where the Beatles created their classic recordings. If you vacationed in London, what would you be sure to visit?

 

 

I'm such a tourist! Among other things, I'd have to go to Buckingham palace to see the changing of the guard. That and seeing Big Ben would be on my must list.

 

8) "I've Got Your Number" was performed by Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore on The Dick Van Dyke Show. According to Dick, they were so believable as a married couple that he received glares from a hotel clerk while checking in with his real-life wife, Margie. What TV or movie couple do you feel had "chemistry?"

 

 

Hmm... what about Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in Mr. and Mrs. Smith? Whaaaaat? Too soon?

 

9) Special summertime random question: Would you have more fun at a pro baseball game or an art museum exhibit?

 

 

I could have a lot of fun at either. I love going to a baseball game, but it's kind of sunny and hot for me (bad for me to be out in for hours, with my autoimmune problems), so maybe I should stick with an art museum for now - like one of these 3D museums? I've always wanted to go to Lisbon, Portugal!

 

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Well, I hope you all have a tremendously wonderful weekend. If you have plans outside, stay safe and wear sunblock. TTFN! (Haven't said that in centuries, haha)

 

Fin.

Saturday 9: You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To

Hello and good evening. This lovely lady here, of course, is the late Dinah Shore who, I just learned, was a frequent companion of the late Burt Reynolds of Smokey and the Bear fame, which is one of the earliest movies I can remember watching. There's your useless trivia (about me, that is) for this week.

Why don't you consider playing on your own blahg, and linking up here? We'd love to have you!

Let's get it started:

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Saturday 9: You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To (1943)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

 
1) In this song, Dinah Shore goes on about listening to the breeze. Is it windy, breezy, or still where you are today?

 

 

It's sunny, hot, and very still.

 

2) The August moon is bright in Dinah's musical fantasy. Let's look at your calendar. Is anything special coming up in August (birthdays, anniversaries, vacation getaways...)? 

 

 

Let's see. Rob's (Hubs) birthday is at the tail end of the month, so that's the most important thing. There is a county fair and the State Fair that we want to check out. Oh, and we have tickets to the Taco Festival out in Ocean City, so of course that's big excitement. And I just better get to swim in the ocean at least once!

 

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3) Dinah was one of TV's pioneers. Her first show was a 15-minute variety show that ran two nights/week in 1951. What's the most recent show you watched?

 

.

 

I am getting ready to turn Netflix on to watch something else (don't know what yet) "here in a minute," as Hubs would say, but the latest thing I've seen was more House. Chloë and I have been watching together whenever possible for months, and we're f i n a l l y in the middle of the last (8th) season. Whew! This better be a doozie!

 

4) She followed that in 1956 with the "Dinah Shore Chevy Show." It was an hour long and sponsored by the car company. At the end of every show Dinah encouraged her viewers to "see the USA in your Chevrolet..." Today Chevrolets are still the most popular cars manufactured by General Motors. Tell us about your car.

 

I have a '21 Honda Odyssey. She's red, and I named her Ruby. I'm keeping her as clean as possible, although she could use a vacuuming and maybe a wipe-down inside. LOL. I call her my spaceship because in place of regular gear shift mechanisms, including the starter, there are just buttons inside. Buttons for a lot of things. Sometimes I need to do several things at once and get overwhelmed for a second, not gonna lie! But I love her; she's the coolest car.

 

5) From 1970 to 1991, Dinah hosted daytime TV talk shows and found tremendous success, winning 6 Emmy Awards and repeatedly appearing in the Gallup Poll of America's most admired women. Do you remember her?

 

Not really. Just her name. I'm sorry.

 

6) Dinah was such an avid golfer that, in 1972, she founded one of the LPGA's major tournaments. Though now officially titled The Chevron Championship, it's still often referred to as "The Dinah Shore" in her memory. Do you golf? If not, would you like to learn?

 

 

I liked it and did alright in high school, but haven't played since. That was a different day; I don't think I could manage it these days, and it doesn't interest me much now.

 

7) In 1943, when "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To" was popular, so were tablecloths. It was common to have cotton tablecloths for everyday use, fun and festive ones for 4th of July and Christmas, and linen for formal occasions. Do you use tablecloths in your home?

 

We have one or two, just for festive occasions.

 

8) Beatle George Harrison was born in 1943. Which of the Fab Four is your favorite?

 

 

I really don't have much familiarity with George or Ringo, except for "Got My Mind Set On You" in the 80s. So I think in all fairness, it would have to be between Paul and John. I adore a lot of John's lyricism and emotional expression in his music, but I didn't get to "know" him, either. Not that his being assassinated should take him out of the running; it doesn't. That just means I got to see fewer years of his personality. That said, he always seems/ed quite serious to me. Whereas Paul, I've seen, has often been clearly capable of having a righteously good time. I like someone who can take themself seriously and also poke fun at themself or otherwise enjoy their time, alternately. To me, that Beatle is Paul. Paul, you are the strongest link.

 

9) Random question: Would you rather live on a houseboat or in a trailer?

 

 

Oh, come now. You all should know my answer to that! I would live in a houseboat over a trailer any day of the week. With my nomadic brain and bent, my love for being on - and in - the water, and loving change and new adventures, being a liveaboard would be a natural choice. I love being aboard a small boat and being rocked to sleep each night (or nap). 

 

We actually were going to liveaboard a houseboat - a more modern one, sorta like this, not the older, stodgy kind you might think of when you hear the word - when we lived in Miami. We bought and read guidebooks, went to a boat show, talked about it at length... but at the end of the day, having several cats and dogs - not to mention three tweenagers! - just knocked the deal off the table. It seemed too dangerous for all of them and irresponsible of us to try. So that was that.

 

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All right, now to find out what Netflix is recommending to me tonight. Probably one of the eleventeen shows I'm already in the middle of watching? Have a good night and a better week, folks!

 

Fin.

Saturday 9: Touch Me In The Morning

Well, well, well. Look who's here early to the party. C'est moi! I didn't want you ladies and gents to think I wasn't receiving my invitation. No, no, no... rather, it's that I'm dreadfully forgetful, I nap a lot, and I sleep in even more.

This week's questions from Ms. Samantha revolve around Diana Ross's song, "Touch Me in the Morning," which I have just listened to for the first time. It's beautiful. Take a listen. And if you're going to participate this weekend (which you definitely should), link up here.

Let's hop to it.

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Saturday 9: Touch Me in the Morning (1973)

Unfamiliar with this week's song? Hear it here.

1) In this song, Diana Ross sings that nothing good lasts forever. Do you agree?

The optimist in me could make a million different arguments against this sentiment, but at the end of the day, I'd have to hang my head and agree. But what about the converse, nothing bad lasts forever? Also true?

2) She sings about a happy past with her lover, and the strength she'll need to face tomorrow alone. Do you find yourself more often remembering the past or anticipating the future? 

At 46, I find myself smack in the middle of doing both. These kids here are now 18, 20, and 21; I was reminiscing about their little kid-hood yesterday. And then, being disabled -- especially with the expectation that things will progress -- I look around the house all the time and point out improvements we'll need to do (or just think it), or I wonder what I'd do without Hubs, God forbid, or just a lot of that.

3) In the 1970s, Diana Ross had young daughters. To spend maximum time with her girls, she would sleep all day when they were in school. That way she could have dinner with them, bathe them and put them to bed before going to the studio and recording all night. Have you ever worked the night shift? 

Well, not truly. I worked as the overnight nurse for a guy who became a good friend for many years, but we won't get into that now. I could sleep then, though.

And I worked until midnight, sometimes 1 AM for a couple of jobs, like when I worked at this Larry's Ice Cream shop back in 1998-1999. Oh, the stories! I got fired because I'd been accepted into my Ph.D. program, and "I'd be leaving soon"!!!! The tips were great, though. José Canseco was an a--hole and did not tip at all. (Which was fine, his prerogative, but it wasn't the tiplessness that made him an AH, and I did bend over backward for him.)

4) Diana has five children altogether. There's a 16-year age difference between her oldest daughter, Rhonda, and her youngest son, Evan. Studies have shown that when there's a big gap between siblings, parents consider the older kids "built-in babysitters." In your family, were the older kids ever in charge of the younger ones? 

Look at that picture above again. You tell me. Haha. Actually, we would put Chloë "in charge" of the threesome when we had to go places like the Emergency Department or a quick grocery run, but only because someone had to be in charge and the eldest made the most sense. There's only 3.5 years between oldest and youngest. She'd have been 12-13-14 at that point.

5) She says her favorite sweet treat is Famous Amos Chocolate Chip Cookies. Do you have a favorite cookie?

Those are a good snack sometimes. I usually got those out when it was snacktime after donating blood. But I much prefer the Nestlé Tollhouse chocolate chip cookies I (used to) make myself.

6) Around the time she recorded this song, Diana Ross considered making a movie called The Bodyguard. She was to play a singer who received death threats, and Steve McQueen would portray the man hired to protect her. Scheduling conflicts prevented the movie from being made. It wasn't filmed until 1992, and then with different stars. Without looking it up, can you name the stars of The Bodyguard? 

Aaaaabsolutely.

Whitney Houston & the guy who's back in the news, Kevin Costner

7) In 1973, when this song was #1, Norman Mailer was atop the best-seller list with his controversial biography of Marilyn Monroe. Do you often read biographies and memoirs? 

Not really. I've read a few, but not too many. I don't know why that is.

8) Also in 1973, another Motown singer, Stevie Wonder, was injured in an automobile crash and still has a scar on his nose to show for it. Have you ever been in a car accident?

I have been in a few. The biggest one, off the top of my head, was when:

Dad rented a minivan to get me and all my stuff back for year #2 of college. We had to go from Aiken, S.C., to Miami, FL. He wanted to go in one long stretch that wasn't marked by too much traffic, so we left around 3:30 AM - or as Rob says, zero-dark-thirty. We'd been on the road about an hour, and it was still, of course, pitch black outside in the dead of South Carolina, in the middle of nowhere. I had just started to fall asleep, as I'd been excited to finally be getting out of my dad's!

All of a sudden, BAM!!!

Something hit us on the driver's rear bumper pretty hard. Hard enough that we went into something of a tailspin, and I remember to this day hearing my scream as if it was coming from somewhere outside my body. So simultaneously, we're spinning horizonally; one-by-one our tires are popping; and, we've slid down a ravine and wouldn't be visible from the road even if were day. I'm not sure at what point I stopped screaming. I'm not sure when I realized my dad was in some level of shock.

Probably when the first thing ended, and I became aware of my boombox having been ejected into the brush around the van through a broken window and the only audible sound the eerie music it was playing as it hung from out there somewhere, only then did I start to take stock and realize Dad wasn't entirely with me. In my exaggerated state of disappointment over possibly not getting back to school (living with him isn't easy), and really only wanting to get out of where we were at that instant, I tried to hand him his car phone (this was 1995) and have him call friends from church. He couldn't do it. Or wouldn't, but I think, now, couldn't is more correct. Maybe he bumped his head?

I knew I had to take it upon myself to get us out of there. When I started to see a trucker's lights coming down our way, I reached over and honked. No, that is a lie. I reached over and leaned on that horn until I could see for certain that we had been noticed and they were going to be stopping to help. They really had to cut some brush away from the car in order to open the door and lift us out!

Meanwhile, down the road, a conversation between a father and his very drunk son was going, in part, like this: "Son, what did you do? You've got to go back!" And the Dad drove him back, and the cops were called, and we were all interviewed for what seemed like an interminable amount of time, before Dad and I, and all my stuff, were taken back to my dad's house to regroup - by that driver's dad! He was a peach. I wonder if his son kept up his drunkenness behind the wheel?

The officers told us that if any ONE of those four tires hadn't blown out, we could've been toast.

Anyway, that's most of one story. Sorry it wasn't too short.

9) Random Question: What's the last thing you borrowed or lent?

Your time.

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I hope you have a loverly weekend with much better weather than what we're promised!

Fin.

Saturday 9: Mercy

Hey, everyone. Been looking through pictures of Shawn Mendes for the last little while for the right one to share with you, and let me tell you, it's been difficult. I mean, yeah, I'm a cis-het reddish-blooded American woman with eyes, and as far as I know, Shawn is a cis-het Canadian man who looks like that... And that's the problem. A. I'm married. B. There's a significant age spread. And C. my oldest daughter is one of his biggest fans! Needless to say, he's a good-looking specimen who can carry a tune. Where even was I?!! 

I'm just going to drop the link here if you want to go read the entries of those far wittier than I, and get right innit.

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Saturday 9: Mercy (2013)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

Or here!

 

 
1) In this song, Shawn Mendes pleads with the girl he loves to be careful with his heart. Clearly he feels she's more important to him than he is to her. Do you believe that, in every relationship, someone always loves more?

 

Probably. But I think it likely goes back and forth in waves. Sometimes it's one, sometimes it's the other, sometimes it's more equal (probably at the beginning, or in times of crisis, at least for the couples that aren't torn apart by it).

2) He says that he'd willingly drive through the night just to be near her. Do you enjoy your time behind the wheel? Or do you consider driving necessary but not necessarily pleasurable?

 

I love driving my red "spaceship," Ruby. But I get so tired so easily, now, I either have to bring my back-up driver, Rob, at all times, or we know I'm never going to drive on a particular trip at all. Even if it's just around the corner. It sucks. My 2021 Honda Odyssey Touring has so many fun bells and whistles, and I still haven't learned some of them!

 

3) He acknowledges that she has good intentions, but she hurt him anyway. Can you think of a time when you unintentionally hurt someone's feelings?

 

 

All the time. I am constantly sticking my foot in my mouth. I'm pretty dumb that way.

 

4) Shawn Mendes was a serious skateboarder during his high school years. Crazy Sam admits she's never even been on a skateboard. How about you? Are you more like Shawn or Sam, or are you somewhere in between? 

 

 

I was friends with some skateboarders back in my college days, and I always admired what they could do on a board. And what that board could do to me! So I never got on. And then our youngest youngster asked for a skateboard couple years ago, so of course I decided to see what was so scary. I'll tell you what: there is no braking about it. Those are my favorite feature of any moving object. Except maybe a ball. In fact, you know what, a ball should look into brakes, too, insurance rates being what they are. So anyway, I put one foot on there, it started to move, and I got off and noped right out of that situation!

 

5) While in his teens, he taught himself to play guitar while watching YouTube videos. Do you spend a lot of time on YouTube? If yes, what type of videos do you watch most often?

 

I've spent about 5/8ths of my time watching various types of musical videos, 3/8ths of my time watching some sort of craft tutorial, a minute smidge of a sliver in there watching random other stuff. Note, though, that this all doesn't amount to a huge amount of time: I hate videos. I do my best to accomplish 38 things at once, and 

 

6) When he's traveling or busy working, Shawn eats cold cereal for every meal -- breakfast, lunch and dinner. He says it's fast, tasty, and better than the fast food he'd grab otherwise. Will you be getting any meals "to go" this weekend?

 

I've got a bit of an upset stomach from doing that very thing yesterday, so I don't know that I want any meals right now! Take that kind of naughty talk somewhere else.

 

7) In 2016, the year this song was popular, Game of Thrones was TV's hottest show. Were you a fan?

 

 

Never watched a moment.

 

8) Also in 2016, a German shorthaired pointer won Best in Show at the Westminster Dog Show. Tell us about a dog who holds a special place in your heart.

 

 

Oh, my gosh, how much time have ya got? Paco has got to be my favorite dog ever, and we've had a few. He's going to be NINE YEARS OLD in three days, and he's definitely greying up now. But he still runs around playing with his toys with the energy of a puppy, tears up and down the stairs like nothing hurts him (maybe it doesn't? Blame good nutrition and DNA, I guess), and makes us laugh constantly. He's cute as a button - look at him! Amirite?! - and always makes mom and dad feel special, too. I made up that last part just to say because I needed to finish out that list of three things!

 

9) Random question: What's the subject line of the top email in your spam folder?

 

It says: "Adam Schiff is *concerned* Melanie"

 

Well, someone go help the lad out, will ya? I'm over here clutching my tum.

 

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Have a great weekend, every last one of you!

 

Fin.

Saturday 9: Over There

Welcome to the jungle. I've been trying to write this post since Friday, but between some serious anemia and a whole of a whole lot going on, it just hasn't happened 'til now: Sunday morning. Would you expect anything different?

Lots has happened, maybe, so that I don't want to say too much more in case I accidentally bump up against a question that addresses such a thing. You know how it is.  So if you haven't already linked up your post, here is where to go. Let's do this thing, latecomers, you and I!

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Saturday 9: Over There (1942)
... because it's 4th of July 

Unfamiliar with this rendition? Hear it here.

 

1) George M. Cohan wrote this song in 1917, inspired by our country's entry into WWI. It was not only popular with the young men who enlisted, it was reassuring to their families. Tell us about a time when music was a comfort to you.

Oh, right away, I thought back to the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic when Lady Gaga and Global Citizen organized this worldwide concert for all of our doctors and nurses and other medical personal, who were being sung to and applauded, and then finally this YouTube concert, in 2020, of course. I definitely found some solace in it.

 

2) "Over There" was revived at the start of WWII, and President Franklin Roosevelt cited this song specifically when he awarded Cohan with the Congressional Gold Medal. What's your favorite patriotic song?

 

Oh, ask me this tomorrow, and you may get a different answer.

 

But today, this one's for my dearly departed grandfather. You see, when I was 16 or so, Grandpa had a major heart attack, which required a sextuple bypass. But they gave him pretty stiff and stern instructions for healthy eating and activity if he wanted to stay alive, and he was bound and determined that that was what he was going to do. And for his activity, he got himself a Walkman, a JP Sousa cassette (or three), and would either walk around their neighborhood or a local park. I went with him several times, which was an occasion because: (a) he had headphones on, so I couldn't hear his music or talk to him, and (b) he ACTUALLY did march. And his ticker lasted almost another 20 years.

 

♥ He was the real deal. ♥

 

3) This rendition of the song is from the 1942 film, Yankee Doodle Dandy. James Cagney won an Oscar for his performance as George M. Cohan. Also nominated that year was Gary Cooper, who portrayed a different Yankee, Lou Gehrig, in Pride of the Yankees. Tell us about a movie biography you have enjoyed.

 

 

I rather liked Monster, the bio in which Charlize Theron played actual sexually abused kid - turned homeless teen - turned sexworker - turned six-time convicted murderer, Aileen Wuornos. Ms. Wuornos died on death row in the town of Starke, Florida, a town I used to drive through fairly frequently. This isn't a terribly patriotic answer.

4) Cagney had a rebellious streak. His boss, studio head Jack Warner, nicknamed Cagney, "The Professional Againster." Cagney joked that he was proud of the title. How about you? Are you rebellious?

 

I prefer to say I'm MISCHIEVOUS!

5) In the clip linked above, a woman sings with Cagney. Her name was Frances Langford, nicknamed the "GI Nightingale" because during WWII she performed for the troops at bases throughout Europe, North Africa and the South Pacific. Do you have any nicknames?

 

Well, aside from Smellyann, which most of you will know and which I'm trying to unchain myself from, what else is there? Does Wifey count? What about Mom! Mommy! Mama! Mum! Lois! Mother!

 

6) In 1942, when audiences were enjoying this performance of "Over There" in movie theaters, the fashion trend was for mothers and their young daughters to wear identical dresses. Moms would buy lots of fabric and patterns for the same casual day dress in both their own sizes and their little girls'. Can you sew?

 

I am miserable at the craft. But two summers ago, Noah asked for a sewing machine and classes, and new neither is getting used much. I'm hoping to buy them some fabric and patterns soon to give them a bit of inspiration, whenever that magical date is that money isn't so tight.

7) The Fourth of July means we're in the middle of summer. Are you careful about applying sunscreen?

 

Not as careful as I KNOW I ought to be!

8) Mosquito bites an be a major summer annoyance. Are you scratching any itches right now?

 

Shhh! No, but don't jinx me!

9) Celebrity chef Rachael Ray says she considers mini-hamburgers, or "sliders," the All-American food. What will you be eating this 4th of July? 

 

OH, please no. I've had an upset stomach for days. I don't even want to think about, much less eat, any food! So... TUMS.  Hope you'll all fare better, if you're celebrating!

 

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On the other hand, I may be going to fireworks shows tonight, tomorrow, and the 4th, just to watch the explosions. All the different towns around here are giving them at different days and times. Fun, fun. Would y'all do that, even during these tumultuous times in our country?

 

Stay safe, 'Murica.

 

Fin.