Second Blooming

RTT: Rhubarb, Taxi Driver and Crone

Oh helloooo! Is it Tuesday already? Really? This three day weekend thing always confuses me.

I hope everybody had a lovely and relaxing Memorial Day. We had originally planned on going to some friends' annual beach party, but their daughter's softball team made it to the finals, so the whole thing was cancelled (go Marley!). I really thought that we'd end up just hanging out at home watching tv, but luckily, our friends Brian and Laura and their kids came over and we ended up having a really fun, impromptu burger and beer fest.

In fact, I made the first Mojitos of the season, and I may have had one or two. Or three. So if this is slightly rambling and incomprehensible, please blame them. But I will persevere.

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I also made this really excellent Strawberry-Rhubarb Crisp, which was so summery good that I will share it with you. Well, I will at least share the recipe with you. I would share the actual crisp with you if you were here, but you're not, so...sorry. Mojitos.

Anyway, I never ate rhubarb growing up, maybe it's not a Texan food or something. But I got some of it in my organic produce box last week, and figured I should do something with it, and damn if it didn't turn out great.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Crisp

• 4 cups diced rhubarb
• 4 cups fresh strawberries, hulled, and halved, if large
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons orange zest
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 cup orange liqueur (recommended: Grand Marnier or Cointreau, I must admit that I was out of them, so used Triple Sec)
• 10 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup light brown sugar
• Pinch salt

In a large bowl, combine the rhubarb, strawberries, 3/4 cup of the granulated sugar, orange zest, cornstarch and orange liqueur, and toss to thoroughly combine. Grease a 9 by 13-inch casserole or baking dish with 1 tablespoon of the butter and transfer the fruit mixture to the prepared casserole.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In a mixing bowl, combine the remaining 9 tablespoons of butter, flour, remaining 1/4 cup of granulated sugar, the brown sugar and salt and cut together until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle the topping evenly over the fruit and bake until the topping is golden brown and crispy and fruit is bubbly in places, about 45 minutes.

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Y'all have to check out this Volkswagen spot that Jimmy did last month. He's been "doing" De Niro for years, he finally got somebody to pay him for it! I think it's kind of brilliant...

 

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I had a tragic moment today. I went to the Home Depot to get a new propane refill for the grill. I had just taken a shower and washed my hair, and hadn't bothered to put on makeup or anything. As I was walking around the Home Depot, a couple of men kind of...looked at me. And I, naturally, assumed that they were checking me out. So I was walking around thinking I was looking pretty cute. But when I got in the car I caught sight of myself in the rearview and gasped in horror. My just washed hair was sticking up every whichaway. And in all seriousness, the word "crone" popped into my head. I guess they were looking at me because I was really rather frightening. Sigh...

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Sad, but true.

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Have y'all ever heard of a woman named Violet Jessop? Jude and I were poking around the internet looking at stuff about the Titanic (one of Jude's obsessions) and came across her name. What an amazing story! This woman was a ships stewardess and nurse who survived the sinking of the Titanic AND the sinking of the Britannic AND the collision of their sister ship the Olympic! I can't decide if this was just the luckiest woman in the world or the unluckiest woman in the world! I can't believe that nobody's ever made a movie about her. Especially because...

...she was gorgeous, right? Jude took one look at her and declared her "hot".

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And speaking of strange and vaguely inappropriate things my child has said...

The other day Jude and I were driving in the car and he suddenly told me "AJ said that Battleship is a really good movie.  He said that almost every scene is about blowing something up. And just so you know for the future, that's a subject which I'm extremely interested in."

I couldn't decide whether to be horrified that my son is extremely interested in blowing up things or gratified by the terribly mature way in which he said it.

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Alright. That's all for now. Go visit Stacy. I'm thinking that one more Mojito wouldn't do me any harm. What do y'all think?

Crazy Love Is All You Need

This is really kind of amazingly bloody brilliant...

 

"Things I Love" spins are in...

CaJoh at CaJoh - FIRST up on MONDAY!

Nain from View From Down Here - NEW on TUESDAY!!

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Gotta leave you with a litle Van the Man...

 

Memorial Day Rerun

I first wrote this on Memorial Day 2010. I feel it's worth a repost. Thank you to all who have served. Have a fun Memorial Day.

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My Daddy served in the Navy during World War II. He seldom if ever talked about it.

I knew that he served in the Pacific, and at some point lived on a island, but I never knew where. He told me that he wasn't really involved in any combat, that his age (he was already in his 30s by then) and the fact that he had a law degree kept him mostly doing administrative work. But he was never an officer. He seemed a little saddened by these facts, but never went into any details.

Once, when I was a little girl, we went to Georgia to visit an old Navy friend of Daddy's, a Mr. Brewer. I remember that the Brewers had a huge, Taralike home, and he and Daddy sat and told stories of M*A*S*Hlke military SNAFUs. It was a little bit shocking, listening to the "man talk" and hearing Daddy use what I considered to be bad words, like "bastard" and "son of a bitch", language he NEVER used around me. I remember one of their slightly "off-color" stories was about a time when the Navy powers-that-be decided that it wasn't decent for the native women of the island to be going around topless, so they issued t-shirts to be distributed to the natives. The women seemed delighted with their new shirts, and accepted them happily. The next day, the soldiers went to see the villagers, and all the women had cleverly cut holes in the front of their t-shirts and pulled their breasts through them!

But truly, that's all I knew about his Navy experience.

After Daddy died, I discovered a book in his bedside table. It was a self published book, put together by one of the men in Daddy's WWII unit, about the history of their experience. And it was absolutely fascinating.

It turns out that Daddy was with Argus (Aviation Radar Ground Units) 16, the unit that occupied the Tarawa Atoll following the Battle of Tarawa. The Tarawa Atoll is part of the Gilbert Islands, and was a valuable piece of real estate as the Americans hopscotched their way the Pacific and closed in on mainland Japan. Important because of it's airfield and strategic location for monitoring radio transmissions in the area.

The Battle of Tarawa was fought by the 2d Marine Division on November 20 - 23, 1943, and is considered one of the bloodiest and most savage battles of WWII. 1000 US Marines were killed, and almost 5000 Japanese.

According to this book, Daddy's unit arrived just after the battle, and it was their job not only to occupy the island, get the airfield operating, and set up radio operations, but also to "clean up" the island. Apparently, as they made their way ashore, the bodies of dead Marines floated around them and banged up against the sides of their boats.

So cleaning up meant dealing with the 6000 dead bodies. 6000 dead bodies.

 
Imagine the mixed emotions they must have felt. The bodies of their comrades who had fought and died. The bodies of the enemy. Feelings of sorrow. Feelings of pride. Feelings of shame that it was these Marines who had done the dying, while you weren't part of the combat forces, just the clean up and occupation. And of course fear, because the Japanese continue to bomb the island, long after the battle was over.

So on this Memorial Day, I'm remembering the lives of those 1000 Marines who fought and died on Tarawa Atoll. Because I'm sure that my Daddy never forgot them.

 

 

Spin Cycle: 10 Things I Hate

1. Idiots in the Car Line

Jude's school has parent volunteers who help with the pickup/dropoff every day. It's a mandatory/volunteer oxymoronic thing. Many forms of idiocy abound. My most hated -

a) Idiots who keep smiling and waving me forward in the line, when there is clearly another car stopped a foot in front of me. STOP TELLING ME WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU'RE NOT PAYING ATTENTION!

b) Idiots who chat on the cell phone when manning the crosswalk stop sign!

c) Idiots who don't pull up to the front of the dropoff area, then unload a van full of children who each have to get a backpack and a science project out of the back of the car and back the line up!

2) Anyways

THIS. IS. NOT. A. WORD!

3. All Bicyclists in the City of Los Angeles

Bike riders in LA are all crazed daredevils with a death wish. They fly along sans helmets, veer in and out of traffic, fly through stop signs, and wreak all kinds of havoc in general.

4. Screaming Pundits

I don't care what their political affiliation is, I can't stand listening to people screaming their opinions on tv. When did everybody become so narrow-minded and opinionated and mean-spirited?! Can't we all just get along?

5. When the DVR Messes Up

Someone in our home, and I'm not going to name names, but it's not me, or the kid, but I'm not going to name names, but SOMEONE, keeps screwing up my DVR recording schedule by taping things at the same time that "clip" them. Nothing makes me madder than sitting down for the season finale of Smash, and discovering that only 28 minutes of it was recorded so that SOMEONE could record a 30 year old episode of The Odd Couple!

6. Being Poor

I am so tired of being poor. I have had ENOUGH OF IT. Is there enough? Will there be enough? Is that bill paid? Can we afford that? And the guilt over buying something for myself that is a litle bit of a splurge. I HATE it. I don't need to be rich, I just don't want to have to worry about it any more. And taking a real vacation would be nice. I hearby declare to the world that I am FINISHED with this being poor thing, and would like the universe to send me cash. Now.

7. I Always Put the Sheet on Wrong

Every time I put clean fitted sheets on our California King bed, I try to put the short side of the sheet on the long side of the mattress, then have to turn the sheet around and put it on the right way. EVERY TIME. I mean, what are the odds of that? You'd think it would be a 50/50 thing, right? Either the sheet's in the right direction or the wrong one. But I NEVER get it right the first time.

8. The LA Times Circulation Department

Sadly, we have stopped reading the paper.  Long ago, we got it delivered daily. Then we cut it down to just Sundays, and about a year ago, I cut it out altogether. While I am saddened by the decline in circulation of America's newspapers, I was more saddened by the piles and piles of paper which we never read. I now get all of my news online or from the tv. However, my guilt regarding my abandonment of the Los Angeles Times has been thoroughly assuaged by the unbelievably annoying behavior of their circulation department. I would say it borders on harassment. When I first called to ask them to stop delivery, it took about 20 minutes just to get them to say "okay, we'll stop delivery". They begged, they bribed, they came up with every deal and bargain they could. I finally had to SHOUT at the woman on the phone "What part of NO do you not understand?!" Now, they have started CALLING me. I would say that they call minimum twice a day. I have told them to please stop harassing me, that I am not interested in renewing our subscription, no matter how cheap the deal, but they don't seem to care.

9. Knee Jerk Political Assumptions

As a lefty, I am particularly sensitive to Republican assumptions about Democrats, but I feel certain that there are just as many idiotic assumptions that Democrats have about Republicans. The one that most angers me is how the right always accuses the left of being unpatriotic. This galls me. I am as patriotic as they come. I love America. I do not love war. I don't understand how being anti-war makes me even slightly anti-American. It's stupid and illogical. It also galls me that the Republican party is thought to be the party for Christians. WWJD? Jesus would END war. Jesus would also put an end to the death penalty. These things are thoroughly backed up by the words of Christ in the bible. Jesus did not, however, ever say anything that could be construed as an excuse to condemn homosexuals. Just saying. Okay, I just went off on a tangent. Sorry. Just to level the playing field, I will also say that I have many Dem friends who assume that anyone who is Republican is a stupid, hate-mongering religious fanatic. This too is stupid and illogical.

10. Having to Ask You to Pray For Gus

You see that sweet, funny face over on my sidebar? That's Gus, who is one of Jude's friends and fellow Cub Scouts. He has been very sick. He was much better, but now he's not. He's fighting hard, but he still needs more prayers. This makes me mad. It's unfair. PLEASE pray for Gus. Keep him and his family in your thoughts.

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Whoa! Lots of hate spins. I'm glad I could provide an outlet for everybody to let it fly!

Kendra at Life in the slow lane

Cajoh at Ca-Joh

Keely at The Unmom

SuziCate at The Water Witch's Daughter

Jan at Jan's Sushi Bar

Vandy J at The Testosterone Three and Me

Arnebya at What Now and Why? - NEW TO THE SPIN CYCLE!!!

Nain at View From Down Here - NEW on FRIDAY!!

Ginny Marie at Lemon Drop Pie - NEW on FRIDAY!!

PLEASE visit everybody and leave a comment!!

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Next week on The Spin Cycle...

Things I Love

Well, you knew this was coming. In order to clear the air of all the negativity, I think we should all think positive, loving thoughts this week. It's sort of a verbal burning of sage thing. Let's clear the bad vibes out of our spaces. Next week, it's all about peace, love and understanding. What makes you happy? What always brings a smile to your face? Your kid? Your fuzzy slippers? A big fat margarita?

Write your post, leave me a comment and I'll link you here. Don't forget to add my button!

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Trudging

This has been my life lately...

...that is Jude, in a picture taken by me, while standing far up in the Hollywood Hills, over the Hollywood Sign. Yes, Jude has discovered hiking. Jude hikes. I trudge. Which I would define as begrudged hiking.

Sigh...

In the past week, I have trudged to the Hollywood Sign, trudged miles and miles around Catalina Island at Cub Scout camp, and trudged about 3 more miles on a school field trip through Downtown LA.

I fear that this is only the beginning of the summer, and therefore the beginning of the trudging. We sat and made a list of things we wanted to do over the summer, and 9 out of 10 of them involved more trudging.

And it has suddenly occurred to me that...I don't particularly like trudging. In fact, I'm not even really particularly outdoorsy. I much prefer to be indoors. Reading a book or watching tv or fiddling on my computer. But suddenly here I am, standing over the Hollywood Sign with sore feet and a sunburn.

And a happy little boy.

And of course that's all it's about, really. When did that happen? When did I start ignoring my exhaustion and misery and needs and comfort in order to make that little boy happy?

This parenting thing can be kind of a bitch, can't it.

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This post was inspired by...

#4 - Share a picture that you think captures Spring for your family this year.

RTT: Death of Disco, Evil Clowns and Subversive Home Decorating

Disco died this week. It's sad. Though I tended to lean toward the "Disco Sucks" camp, and was often found slam dancing to The Ramones, I also spent a notable amount of time during my late high school/early college days discoing my butt off in various Austin gay discos. And therefore, I have a soft spot in my heart for Donna Summer and Robin Gibb, who both passed on this week. So I will begin and end today's post with musical tributes.

First up, RIP Robin Gibb - 1949 - 2012. Also known as the "not as cute Bee Gee". I dedicate this first video not only to Robin, but also to my husband, Jimmy, who, in his youth, totally rocked the tight white suit and disco moves. "Don't touch the hair!"

 

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Run out of ideas for your kids next birthday party? No worries! For a fee, you can now hire Swiss actor Dominic Deville to pose as an evil clown and  stalk your child for a week before showing up at his party to throw a pie in his face.

According to this article in the Huffington Post, the creepy clown will send the birthday child threatening notes and texts, and leave them creepy phone messages for a week, "warning them that they're being watched and that they'll soon be attacked." Then, on the day of the birthday party, the clown shows up and attacks your child with a cake, scaring the bejesus out of him/her. Deville says that it's "all in fun" and that "most kids absolutely love being scared senseless." Apparently, the fee for this service is pretty reasonable, but they don't mention the cost of the many years of therapy which would be required in the future.

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I have a question for y'all. Does anybody actually use the "Plate Warmer" function on your dishwasher? Every dishwasher seems to have it, so I'm assuming that it's used by somebody somewhere, but...really? Is this a selling point for a dishwasher? Do people avoid purchasing a dishwasher without a plate warmer? I mean, I guess hot food tastes better when it's actually hot, but is this keeping food hot thing a big problem that most people have? I can't say that I have ever once thought "Damn, if only the plates had been warm the dinner party would have been a success." Thoughts? Is this something I'm seriously missing out on?

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Love this idea! Repurpose your old tv as a bookshelf...

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Another excellent website from my friend Amanda. PROFANITY ALERT. Fuck Your Noguchi Coffee Table.   How to describe this one? Hmmm ... how about...a hysterically subversive home decorating blog. Pulls no punches, and totally calls designers on their pretentious overdecorating. Example:

...which inspires them to say f&%$ your "typographic wall art pair, ethnic wall hanging, faux fur throw, atomic floor lamp, convex mirror, bingo cage, buffalo silhouette,  milk crate, floor skull, wall skull with antlers and an accessory, and your tiny succulent array."

Hehehe.

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So I'm gonna wrap things up here with the final part of my Death of Disco salute.

RIP Donna Summer - 1948 - 2012. Saw her at the Hollywood Bowl just a few years ago and she ROCKED. This was always the last song played at the end of a long night of dancing in a disco, right before the lights came up and you saw what everybody really looked like. So put on your platform shoes, chug down the last of your Cuba Libra, take a hit of poppers and crank this UP!

 

Oh, and go visit Stacy!

I'll Take Where I Can Get It

You know...this 9-years old thing is kind of freaking me out. All of a sudden, Jude is so...independent and...big. And I'm afraid I have mixed emotions about it. Because while his new-found independence gives me a certain amount of independence, which I enjoy, it also means...that he no longer needs his Mama. Which is sad. Sigh...

This weekend we went Cub Scout camping on Catalina Island yet again. This is our third year to make the trip. We love these little camping expeditions, and the Catalina trips are particularly cool. A 2 hour nausea-inducing ferry ride to the island, ocean swimming, kayaking, hiking, a place called Pirate's Cove, terrible food in the mess hall, lots of good stuff. And in the past, we did absolutely everything together, he was my little shadow, he wanted his Mama with him for everything. But this year...

It started when we arrived down in Long Beach where we catch the dreaded ferry. Los Angeles traffic on a Friday afternoon is deadly, so we headed out early to beat the traffic. This meant that we got down there with about an hour to kill before the ferry left. Luckily, several other boys and their dads had already arrived, so we all decided to head over and explore the Queen Mary, which is docked there.

When we all got aboard the beautiful, historic ship, Jude told me he wanted to go off with his friends and explore. Without me. I was stunned. But then the dads suggested that we go up to the Lido Deck, or whatever, and have a lovely cocktail...

Which was rather pleasant.

When we finally got on the ferry and headed over to Catalina, I think the kid actually checked in with me twice, in two hours. TWICE. The rest of the time he was running around with a pack of boys wreaking havoc. Without me. I was stunned. But then I got to read my book for TWO hours. Which was rather pleasant.

On Saturday, when we all had to take the hideous ocean swim test, which qualifies you to be able to kayak, Jude decided that instead of taking the "beginner" swim test, which most of the boys take, he wanted to take the full "swimmer" test, which meant he could pilot his own one-man kayak. We all plunged into the FREEZING ocean water, and swam the four laps from the dock to shore...

...and then, Jude opted to swim the extra lap back to shore with one of the dads. Without me. I was stunned. But then I realized that I didn't have to swim that extra lap in the arctic water with him. Which was rather pleasant.

After a morning of kayaking in our separate one-man kayaks, Jude suddenly announced that he and his pals wanted to go off and "explore by ourselves". Without me. I was stunned. But then I decided to go back in the water and kayak BY MYSELF for an hour. All alone. SO peaceful and relaxing. Which was rather pleasant.

But then that night, after a day of being the super independent 9-year old, we did climb into our bed in our little tent, and he was snuggled up close. All night. With me. Which was rather pleasant.

And the next morning, he decided that he wanted to take me on a hike, and show me what he and his pals had discovered the day before. With me. Just me. I was stunned. We hiked up, up, up and around, around, around. He showed me all the cool sites he had discovered without me the day before...

...which was rather pleasant.

Hate Mongering

This week's Spin Cycle topic is...

Things I Hate

The first Spin rolled in on Saturday. Don't you love that?

Unfortunately, I was camping in the middle of nowhere and couldn't get it posted. Don't you hate that?

So I'm managing to post it on Sunday. Don't you love that?

Unfortunately, I'm too tired from the aforementioned camping to write anything funny. Don't you hate that?

Please visit our Hate spins, and then write up your own post and link it here! We'll be full of hatred until Friday.

First up...

Kendra at Life in the slow lane

Cajoh at Ca-Joh

Keely at The Unmom

SuziCate at The Water Witch's Daughter

Jan at Jan's Sushi Bar

Vandy J at The Testosterone Three and Me

Arnebya at What Now and Why? - NEW TO THE SPIN CYCLE!!!

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Spin Cycle: The Blumbergs

For many years, Jimmy and I studied acting with a brilliant woman named Susan Peretz. Susan was an amazing actress and teacher, and became a mentor to both of us. We actually met in a class with Susan, and we spent many, many years in her classes and in productions at her theater. Her theater really was a home for us both, and the friends we made there will be with us forever.

During my time studying with Susan, I worked on countless scenes. That's the way acting classes work - you find a partner in class, choose a scene from a play or film and work on it during class. The teacher watches your work and critiques you and helps you discover what you need to work on for your work to grow. Scene work is done on a bare stage, using minimal furniture and props. You could bring props from home, but Susan always kept a prop closet, full of a variety of junk, accumulated from random sources over the years.

As time went by, I developed a silly inside joke, known only to me. In this aforementioned prop closet, were two paintings...

Both paintings were signed in the lower left-hand corner...

...Miriam Blumberg. I had no idea who the hell Miriam Blumberg was, but I soon started thinking of them as "The Blumbergs", and insisted on having one in every scene I ever worked on. A Blumberg hung in Maggie and Brick's bedroom, George and Martha's living room, Sister Aloysius' office - you get the idea. Having a Blumberg on the wall made me feel grounded and gave me a wonderful "sense of place", as we method actors call it.

In 2004, Susan died of breast cancer. It rocked our little group of actors, and sadly, ended our time together at the theater. She was the heart and soul of the place, and we just couldn't go on without her.

When it came time to close the theater, her roommate, who was clearing the place out, called me and asked me if there was anything from the theater that I'd like to keep as a remembrance. Immediately, I asked for The Blumbergs. He, of course, had no idea what I was talking about, but when I explained my attachment to these two paintings, he gladly gave them to me. They have hung on the wall of our house ever since.

A couple of months after I received The Blumbergs, we threw a big blowout Christmas party. About halfway through the party, I was approached by my friend Craig, and his siblings, Bruce and Lynn. I've talked about their big, crazy Hollywood family before - HERE I tell about their traditional family dinners at Lawry's Prime Rib, and HERE is my salute to their late dad, who was best known as the voice of The Robot on Lost in Space.

"Gretchen?" said a puzzled-looking Craig "You know we love you, but we're a little confused. Why on earth do you have two of our Grandma Miriam's paintings on your wall?"

HA!

Turns out, old Grandma Miriam (Blumberg was their mom's maiden name - who knew?) had at some point in the '70's decided to take up "art". She had taken a class, and ended up a rather prolific "artist". She had developed a passion as only an aging, wealthy, Jewish housewife in the suburbs could. When Grandma Miriam died, she left behind HUNDREDS of these very mediocre paintings. No one knew what to do with them! Their mom refused to just throw them away, they were painted by her mother, after all, so she started giving them away to whoever would take them.

After a bit of detective work, we figured out that Craig's sister, Lynn, had donated a few of the paintings to the prop room at The Actor's Studio, and they must have eventually made their way to Susan's theater!

For years now, Craig has been trying to get me to take yet MORE Blumbergs, it seems they still have a storage facility in North Hollywood full of them. But, alas, I have begged off. I've tried to explain that my attachment is to my history with the paintings more than the actual quality of the paintings, but he doesn't seem to understand.

I do, however, love my Blumbergs. They're bright and have a certain lovable folkartsy quality. I've been saying for years that I was going to start a collection of "old woman art". Aunt Grace has a sort of dreary painting done by her late bosses wife, Eugenia Ramsey. I've mentioned how much I long for it, but I think she thinks I'm joking. But I think a Ramsey would look lovely hung between my Blumbergs.

Anybody have any Grandma art in the back of a closet that they want to find a home for?

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Lots of fabulous "Pictures" spins this week!

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE visit all of them!

SuziCate at The Water Witch's Daughter

Peg at Square Peg in a Round Hole

Claire at Incognitus Scriptor

Michele at It's a Dog's Life

Ginny Marie at Lemon Drop Pie

Kendra at Life in the slow lane

Nain at View From Down Here - NEW on FRIDAY!

VandyJ at The Testosterone Three and Me - New On FRIDAY!!

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Next week on The Spin Cycle...

Things I Hate

I've been in a rotten and contrary mood all week. Grumpy, grumpy, grumpy. So...inspired by THIS post by my friend, Elizabeth, we're going nasty this week.

That's right, here's your chance to VENT. What makes you mad? What drives you crazy? Your kids? Your boss? Your spouse? That idiot in the Express Lane at the grocery store with 21 items?

Just let it spew. Consider it free therapy.

Vent it, share it, link it. Questions? CLICK ON THE TAB UP THERE! STOP BOTHERING ME, I'M GRUMPY!

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RTT: Paint Chips, Breastfeeders and Hot Ashes

I am fascinated by this site - Chip It! by Sherwin Williams. You can link to any picture on the internet, and they'll create a paint chip palette for you. For instance, I had these pictures on my Pinterest page...

Isn't that the coolest thing?! I can't wait to try it out on a room in our house.

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Someone posted this on Facebook. It is bad, oh so bad...

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Okay, y'all know that I don't like to get controversial, or pick a fight, but have you seen the cover of the latest Time Magazine? It features a mother breastfeeding her almost-4 year old son, and it has sparked a ton of controversy. Here's a link to an LA Times article on it with the picture. I have to say that even though I'm a huge supporter of breastfeeding, I think this cover is absolutely horrible. It's not that I think it's offensive to breastfeed your almost-4 year old child, I think people can do whatever they want in private, and you can't argue the benefits of breastfeeding. I don't even think it's offensive to breastfeed in public. But all I can think about when I look at this picture is that this poor little boy will always be known as the kid who sucked his moms boob on the cover of Time magazine. I just couldn't imagine any mother deliberately subjecting her child to that kind of future torment and ridicule. What do y'all think?

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Jimmy and Jude have become obsessed with a new cable tv channel they've discovered - Me-TV. It's all old tv shows from the 50's, 60's and 70's. Yesterday, I heard Jude talking to his friend George at Cub Scouts - "So there are these two dudes, and one of the dudes, Felix, is really neat and the other dude, Oscar, is a total slob and they are so FUNNY!" He's been singing the Odd Couple theme song for days. The kid has also, at long last, discovered I Love Lucy, which he deems "hysterical" and dramas like The Rifleman, Mission: Impossible and Gunsmoke. I love it!

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Yesterday, I noticed this, written on the top of the recycling bins at Jude's school...

PLEASE tell me that someone other than me read this as "No Hot Flashes"!

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Go see Stacy and the other members of the band of Random Tuesday Thinkers!