It's Almost Christmas Friday Five!

As I told the RevGals, I have debated with myself for weeks about today's Friday Five.

• Self 1: It should be deep and theological.
• Self 2: But it's almost Christmas, it should be fun and warm and sweet.
• Self 1: But your last Friday Five was sort of silly. You should show your more serious side.
• Self 2: You worry WAY too much!

So after consulting with Soda Chicky, I went playful, pals o' mine! I love stories, so I hope you'll tell some about your favorite Christmas memories.

1. What was one of your favorite childhood gifts that you gave? It wasn't really a childhood gift, more of a young adulthood gift. I made some water color note cards for my mom. I knew it was a good gift when she rationed them out for only very special notes.


2. What is one of your favorite Christmas recipes? Bonus points if you share the recipe with us. One of my favorite Christmas recipes is something Mountain Mama makes called, "Sandwich Cookies." I think it came from some really basic cookbook. You make dough the consistancy of pie crust with flour, butter and cream. After rolling the dough out, you cut little circles, flip them in granulated sugar and prick with a fork so they don't puff up too much. Mountain Mama uses an old teaball to cut out the circles. It works best. After baking the cookies you make sandwiches with great frosting: butter, powedered sugar, a little cream and a tiny drop of color. When they're all done, you find that they are best eaten in one bite. If you try to bite them they crumble all over your clothes. They are the best. Papa Joe once left them as a "tip" for the housekeeper when we were having Christmas on the road. They're that good.


3. What is a tradition that your family can't do without? (And by family, I mean family of origin, family of adulthood, or that bunch of cool people that just feel like family.) Many years ago, Mountain Mama got tired of writing "Love from Mom and Dad" on the gift tags of presents given to me and my sibs. (We didn't do Santa Clause at our house.) Instead she would put down the names of fairy tale characters, tv people, movie stars, book characters... Some times the names were clues: Miss Goody gave a pair of two shoes; Pele gave a soccer ball; Julie Andrews gave the soundtrack to "The Sound of Music." Sometimes the names were just silliness. The Chick is adament that the tradition continue. And really, I hope I get at least one gift from Billy the Brownie!
   
4. Pastors and other church folk often have very strange traditions dictated by the "work" of the holidays. What happens at your place? When we were still a parish pastor's family, the tradition was that all three of us went to church on Christmas morning. (It is still my favorite service.) Bug Man would always vacuum. Soda Chicky would help with ushering or acolyting. I found that this quieter, smaller service was the time when I could most tune in to the joy that really is Christmas.
   
5. If you could just ditch all the traditions and do something unexpected... what would it be? I think it would be truly glorious to go to another country and experience the week around Christmas. What's it like in Paris on Christmas Eve? Or Jerusalem on Christmas Day? Or London on Boxing Day?

Blog Pals, I hope you have a very Merry Christmas!

The Delinquent Blogger

So when your blogging friends ask where you've been... it's clearly time to get back on the keyboard! I have been busy with work stuff, home stuff, holiday stuff.... blah, blah, blah. No real excuse. Perhaps I've had nothing to say. This is also a possibility.

Next week I am going on an actual vacation. BugMan, Soda Chicky and I are flying to see Mountain Mama and Papa Joe. We leave on Christmas Eve Day and come back on the 30th. This is the first vacation I have taken since starting my latest gig. I have five weeks of vacation time due me and I will manage to eat up three days of it. This is silly! And the vacation is so overdue. I can feel myself yearning for the wonders of laziness. Days of it in a row! I have no need to see sights or be entertained. I just want to hang with the family and enjoy the thrill of NO WORK!

So, one more day of work and then a couple days off to do last minute shopping and packing. Hopefully we won't get trapped at Midway Airport on our way west. Papa Joe is sure we'll get trapped on the way back. But hey! It's all part of the holiday!

WinterSong: Book Talk for the Rev Gals

To participate in Monday's Book Talk or to learn more about the authors of these pieces, go to my post on RevGalBlogPals. We're discussing the book WinterSong by Madeleine L'Engle and Luci Shaw.

After Annunciation

This is the irrational season
When love blooms bright and wild.
Had Mary been filled with reason
There'd have been no room for the child.
- Madeleine L'Engle


Winter Nights

Your father, when he died,
left this thing behind, his head thing,
he called it - a square
of knitted wool, beige, blue,

to tuck around his head,
like a small rug. I finger it
now, (the stitches like
his body cells, like all

the intricate minutes of his life),
almost the way I fingered it
growing on the needles
knitting for him a meager defense

against those Illinois nights
in December when he'd wake
with a headache
from the cold. Afterwards

I slept with it hugged
to my chest like a stuffed
animal - a brief blanket for
my heart, a comfort. like him.
-Luci Shaw


That Tiny Flame

I think of James Clement (in The Love Letters and Certain Women) telling of the making of cider in the winter, when it is put outdoors to freeze. In the center of the frozen apple juice is a tiny core of pure flame that does not freeze. My faith (which I enjoy) is like that tiny flame. Even in the worst of moments it has been there, surrounded by ice, perhaps, but alive.
- Madeleine L'Engle

The Winter Concert

Tonight was Soda Chicky's high school Winter Concert. At 3:15 the Chick called to say that she needed to be at school at 5:45pm. I said, "I can't do that." I said, "Call your father." When contacted, the Bug Man said that he was in the Little State across the river and there was no possible way he would be done killing pests in time to get her to the school. So I adjusted.

I told the Chick that she and her friend Barnum had better be ready to go when I walked in the door. (Barnum's mother a lower GI thing going on and couldn't make the drive. Been there. Empathize deeply.) Aside from putting on earrings, they were ready and away we went.

The high school is a definite "Main Line" institution. (You drive through the campus of a hoity toity famous women's college to get there. You guess which one...) I usually feel under dressed and outclassed, but that's life.

The concert was the Jazz Band, Concert Band, Orchestra and four choirs. A long night... I enjoyed most of it but was fascinated by the selection of music. There was lots of Christmas music both sacred and secular. There was non-Christmas sacred music. There was a long piece from The Pirates of the Caribbean. But no Hanukkah music! There are a lot of families at the school celebrating Hanukkah this week, but no Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel! The choirs are doing a combined concert with the local middle school next week at one of the local synagogues. I asked the Chick if there would be Hanukkah music then. "Not from our choir." Hmmmm...

Waking up with Arthur

At 6:45am Soda Chicky leaves for school. She hollars that she's leaving, which really means, "Mom, if you don't wake up now you have nobody to blame but yourself." I turn off the alarm and look for caffeine. After watching the first half hour of the Today show, I turn to PBS and watch Arthur. The Chick hasn't watched Arthur for a few years, but I keep watching. Why? Oh why? There is no intelligent, adult reason, I just watch Arthur. It's a secret pleasure or at least it used to be. Anyone else out there still watching the shows their kids are now too sophisticated to view?

It's beginning to look a lot like the Friday Five!

This week's Friday Five comes from Wills Mama. She says, " I know, I know.... pretty grumpy for November but why not get it out of our systems now so we are free to enjoy the rest of the festivities."

Please tell us your least favorite/most annoying seasonal....

1. dessert/cookie/family food: This would have to be any cookie that looks good, but tastes bad. Stale is bad. Hidden coconut is bad. Candied fruit is really bad. But the worst is something that should be a chocolate treat but turns out to be yucky tasting!


2. beverage (seasonal beer, eggnog w/ way too much egg and not enough nog, etc...) Real eggnog is kind of nasty in my book. On the other hand, the store bought kind with a little something to warm it up- good. And if you can mix it up with some good vanilla ice cream and a little warming agent- real good.


3. tradition (church, family, other) Sunday School Christmas Pageants when the kids are paraded around just for the Kodak moments. Or when the rehearsals involve middle aged women yelling at little kids who are BORED.


4. decoration: Santa and the baby Jesus in the same venue. Santa does not belong in the manger scene. Jesus should stay out of the sleigh.


5. gift (received or given) How could you have a least favorite gift? I sometimes wish they hadn't invented gift cards. I know that Soda Chicky likes the shopping part, but it means that the gift giver doesn't have to use their imagination. I like the creative part of gift giving. I love when the gift I've received reflects thought and care.
   
6. BONUS: SONG/CD that makes you want to tell the elves where to stick it: I really think that Santa should stop running over the reindeer. Also, I want sacred music to stay away from commercial products.

Oops! Grandma got run over by a reindeer! Thanks for helping me see the error of my ways, Songbird. As you will read in the comment below, I have Santa issues.

So that's my list. That wasn't too grumpy, was it?

Blogging Buddies

So I got to meet Lutheran Flavor in the flesh today! This is the second time I've met a blogging friend. And on the same afternoon there was a piece on NPR talking about virtual friends and why "Seinfeld" was such a good show.

The premise of the essay was that "Seinfeld" although its characters could be fairly unlikeable, showed a group of four people who always stuck with each other. They were friends through thick and thin and even thinner. The writer suggested that this something we all long for, but that we can't find the same thing with our virtual friends.

He makes a good point. You can only have virtual coffee with your virtual friends. And yet, I have remembered Lutheran Flavor in my prayers. I have listened as she has discussed her calling and vocation. And I care about what happens to her next. Meeting her in person was a bonus!

Perhaps blogging friends and real time friends are similar in that, the depth of the relationship depends on how much you share. And how much you care. Granted, it's not the same kind of friendship, but blogging buddies- I am ever so thankful for you!

Friday Five: After the Tryptophan

The Friday Five is all about the day after Thanksgiving.

1. Did you go elsewhere for the day, or did you have visitors at your place instead? How was it? We spent the day at home. The Tin Man joined us for dinner after he spent the day working at Starbucks. Yikes! We had a great time and Soda Chicky was delighted that her "Pretend Brother" could join us for dinner.


2. Main course: If it was the turkey, the whole turkey, and nothing but the turkey, was it prepared in an unusual way? Or did you throw tradition to the winds and do something different? Since there were only four of us, we had a turkey breast. I had bought three legs because they DON'T SELL NECKS at our grocery store. What's that all about? So two of the legs went into making stock for the stuffing and gravy. The third leg was devoured by the Chick. ........................ My family of origin never had turkey. Papa Joe and Lil Sister 1 don't like it. As a result, we always had home made Cornish pasties. A meat pie made with potatoes, onion, rutabega and ground beef. Slathered with butter it is the best! Today I will make it in honor of MY Thanksgiving tradition. Yesterday was the Bug Man's day!


3. Other than the meal, do you have any Thanksgiving customs that you observe every year? No traditions in my family. My grandmother however, has a tradition of making chop suey the night before and then in days gone by, the grandkids who were present would make a Christmas ornament. We never lived nearby so I only made one ornament when I was about 19. It is still one of my favorites made out of popcycle sticks. It's a sled.


4. The day after Thanksgiving is considered a major Christmas shopping day by most US retailers. Do you go out bargain hunting and shop ‘till you drop, or do you stay indoors with the blinds closed? Or something in between? I have no desire to shop but the Chick and four of her friends are going to the local mall. I think I'll unload the dishwasher and take a nap.
   
5. Let the HOLIDAY SEASON commence! When will your Christmas decorations go up? I'm not really sure what we'll do. This year we are going to visit Mountain Mama and Papa Joe for Christmas. Plus, our tree is seven feet tall and our new living room is not that tall. (I'm 5'5" and I can put my hands flat on the ceiling.) We'll probably do a little decorating in the weeks to come. But no full fledged whoop-dee-do this year.

You've got to be kidding!

I was reading the latest Bed, Bath and Beyond flyer and I could hardly believe this was a real thing! It seriously made me laugh out loud.

MANGROOMER™ is the essential do-it-yourself electric back hair shaver for men. The unique design enables a man to remove unwanted back hair by himself in the privacy of his own home or while traveling. It's quick, easy and painless. The fully extendable and adjustable handle locks into place at various lengths to reach the most difficult portions of the middle and lower back. Its sleek, lightweight, compact design folds completely flat and opens to 135 degrees for instant use. The large 1 1/2" cutting edge blade enables extremely close and smooth results without the potential of ingrown hairs. Measures 9 1/4" L x 2" W x 1 1/2" H. Uses two AA batteries, not included.

I suppose it's better than getting a wax, but do men really worry about this? And why?

Is anyone surprised?

My Liberal Identity:

You are a Peace Patroller, also known as an anti-war liberal or neo-hippie. You believe in putting an end to American imperial conquest, stopping wars that have already been lost, and supporting our troops by bringing them home.

Take the quiz at www.FightConservatives.com

The Friday Five

This week Sally has posted the following:

I am looking at the possibility of finding little gaps in the day or the week to spend in extravagant unbusyness ( a wonderful phrase coined by a fellow revgal)... So given those little gaps, name 5 things you would do to:

1. to care for your body: I've been having troubles with an old shoulder injury. (I broke my humorous two years ago decorating the sanctuary for Christmas Eve. Hospitals are a very strange place to be when you're supposed to be preaching.) Scarecrow has suggested I call the doctor. The Bug Man says I have arthritis. If I am smart, I'll take time this week to do the physical therapy exercises from two years ago... But what I'd really like is a massage.


2. to care for your spirit: I need a vacation! I need some solitude. Hopefully I'll get some after Christmas.
   
3. to care for your mind: I read a WHOLE book last weekend. The Children of Henry the VIII. I need another good book to read to get my brain going.
   
4. to bring a sparkle to your eye: A nap might be good....
   
5. to place a spring in your step: See number four.

Enjoy the time to indulge and dream.... and then for a bonus which one on the list are you determined to put into action? I think I'm most determined to do number one. Plus, I really need a haircut. If I don't get THAT done before Sunday morning I may go completely nuts!

Elvis has left the building!

Let me begin by saying that I am not making up any of this. It is too strange to be a fabrication!

In 1993, the Soda Chicky was only 6 weeks old. My family of origin had all arrived at the outskirts of St. Louis to celebrate the baptism of the Chick and her slightly older cousin. (Lil Sis #1's boy-child who is four months older.) We travelled one afternoon to Wright City, MO to have lunch at the Ruiz Castillo, home of some of the best green pork chili nachos you'll ever have. On the way to or from, Baby Sister noticed that there was possibly the tenth or eleventh wonder of the modern world in Wright City- The Elvis Is Alive Museum.

The people in the photo are not my relatives but they are standing at the place. We paid our money and went in. After all, it's not often one gets to see proof that the FBI, the CIA and Nixon were all in on some plot to fake the death of a rock and roll icon.

The museum was housed in a double wide trailer with an add on. It was hoaky, repetitive and silly. But this week the Associated Press actually reported that the museum was closing.

Bill Beeny, the 81-year-old proprietor of The Elvis is Alive Museum, said he has placed his Elvis Presley memorabilia on eBay in hopes that someone else will take up the cause. His collection includes photographs, books, FBI files, replicas of the Cadillac the King drove and of the casket and gravestone from his 1977 funeral, even a painted Elvis head.

Beeny, a self-described "western Kentucky hillbilly" Baptist minister who wound up in Missouri 50 years ago, is selling the contents of his roadside attraction, a transformed coin-operated laundry 55 miles west of St. Louis that he opened in 1990, to satisfy something else that drives him.

"I have a burden to help people," said Beeny, wearing the penciled dark mustache, long sideburns and slick black hair of an Elvis aficionado. "Someone else can run, will run, the museum. No one in the whole county is doing the job I intend to do."

Beeny wants to put his energy into serving the needy in rapidly growing Warren County by providing child care, senior services, a food pantry and counseling for the addicted.
Beeney said he'll miss Elvis, "but life has its changes. You have to let go."

He hopes someone will buy the collection and open a new museum dedicated to the theory that Elvis lives — although the look and feel of Beeny's place could be hard to duplicate.
Outside, a 16-foot sign of a rhinestone-belted Elvis holding a microphone dominates an otherwise humdrum small-town landscape. A replica of Elvis' old Cadillac that hasn't been started for years is parked out front.

Inside the small museum, signs in large, bold letters and exclamation points scream out, "FREE MUSEUM," "SEE FUNERAL ROOM," "10 REASONS WHY I BELIEVE ELVIS IS ALIVE!" and "DNA PROVES ELVIS IS ALIVE."

Visitors wind their way around a casket, complete with a mannequin that doesn't look anything like Elvis, hundreds of photographs and yellowed news clippings, and a poster of the famous photo of President Nixon and Presley from 1970.

Visitors can hear what is said to be a tape recording of Presley's voice, supposedly copied off a telephone answering machine six years after the funeral, as well as see piles of documents that Beeny said are FBI files proving Presley's involvement with federal authorities.
Beeny, who had been only a nominal fan of Elvis Presley, started to doubt his death when customers at Beeny's former 1950s Cafe in Wright City asked questions that couldn't be answered.

Beeny said he eventually showed that the tissue samples of Elvis he says he obtained from a Memphis doctor did not match samples he says were taken from the cadaver "purported to be Elvis." Beeny later wrote a book, "Elvis' DNA Proves He's Alive!"

He also claims Presley had good reason to disappear: He's in the federal Witness Protection Program for assistance he provided federal law enforcement authorities.

David Beckwith, a spokesman for Elvis Presley Enterprises, which manages Graceland, the King's estate and mansion in Memphis, Tenn., said the company has no comment.

So if you ever get to Wright City, Missouri- you can still stop at Ruiz Castillo and order the nachos. (They also make a great chile relleno.) But unfortunately, you won't be able to check out Bill Beeny's museum and his assertion that, Elvis is alive!

This must be the day for interview questions!

My friend the Lutheran Zephyr was recently interviewed by a fellow blogger over at The Heart of a Pastor. He then offered to interview another blogger. I jumped at the chance because I was curious as to what LZ might ask me. So here are the questions.

1. You are ordained and currently serving in a "specialized" call. What do you miss most about the parish? What I miss most is other people's kids. I miss doing baptisms. I miss being hugged about the knees. I miss having kids ask me important questions about life and God and everything else.


2. What do you like most about your current call? Grown up kids asking me questions and really wanting to hear the answers.


3. What is the most important thing you learned in seminary? Tell the truth and live God's love in word and deed.


4. What did you not learn in seminary that has been most helpful for your ministry? Technical stuff. Practical stuff. Budgeting. Creating a website. How to buy a copy machine.


5. If you were not a pastor, what can you imagine yourself doing? Being a teacher.


6. You've moved a few times in your life. Which place that you have called "home" is your favorite, and why? Colorado. As much as the Bug Man misses Missouri, I want to retire in Colorado.


7. Bonus Question: Please ask and answer a question you would like someone to ask you. Would you like to go to a dinner and a movie? Yes.

For anyone interested in being interviewed, here are the rules. You have to post these at the end of your interview response.

1. If you are interested in being interviewed, leave me a comment saying "interview me."

2. I will respond by posting 5 questions for you. I get to post the questions.

3. You will update your blog with a post containing your answers to the questions.

4. You will include this explanation and offer to interview someone else in the same post.

5. When others comment, asking to be interviewed, you will ask them 5 questions.

Friday Five - All About the Interview

This week's Friday Five is about interviews.

1. What was the most memorable interview you ever had? Well this is a challenging one... Would it be the time that the manager of Waldenbooks asked me if, since I had worked at a church camp, I would be disturbed by having to sell Playboy? Or would it be the time the call committee expected the Bug Man to participate in the interview and actually asked him questions? Or maybe the one when I fully expected that there would be at least an hour of questions and instead they offered me the job.

2. Have you ever been the interviewer rather than the interviewee? If so, are you a tiger, a creampuff, or somewhere in between? I tend to be a creampuff during the interview but a tiger when I'm looking at resumes.

3. Do phone interviews make you more or less nervous than in-person ones? Phone interviews seem to be less intimidating but there was a time when the interviewer completely spaced the call and I waited for an hour. This was followed by a comment from a loved one that this "was probably a sign..."

4. What was the best advice you ever got to prepare for an interview? How about the worst? Best advice... being nervous will give you an edge. Just be yourself. Worst advice... can't think of any.

5. Do you have any pre-interview rituals that give you confidence? No. Just the usual self doubt and nausea.

Trick or Treating at Tiffany's

Soda Chicky was determined to go trick or treating tonight. She wanted to be "something real." I was never quite sure what this meant except that she rejected some of my more creative costume ideas.

On Friday I took her to the doctor because she had sinusitis. We bought some scrubs at the medical center pharmacy, thinking she could be a crazy doctor. A little fake blood. A fake knife. But after a few days this idea was rejected. (Of course there is no returning the scrubs...)

The Chick has a little black dress that she thought might be the basis of a costume. We decided she could wear her "Audrey Hepburn" sunglasses and a french twist- a costume was born! And then I realized on my way to work... I was going to dress my daughter up as Holly Golightly! Fortunately, she probably won't be watching "Breakfast at Tiffany's" any time soon, so she just thinks she was cute while asking the neighbors for candy.

And if like the Scarecrow and GinnyLee you are too young to remember who Holly Golightly is.... let's just say that you don't want your 14 year old to follow in her occupational footsteps.

Details of the Last Supper

As of this weekend, you can now view DaVinci's The Last Supper in 16 billion pixels. Now for art historians this is a big deal. Even for those have only a passing interest it's kind of cool to look at the close ups of paint and brush stroke. But it seems that this wonderful advent in technology, meant to help artists study the painting, has led to more goofiness over the DaVinci code.

The figure above has never seemed very feminine in my estimation. And if she was really Jesus' favorite gal pal, would Leonardo have painted her in this manner. Doubt it. Plus, The DaVinci Code is a novel! Fiction! Yikes!

Some guy has done studies to prove that the Mona Lisa once had eyebrows. Give me a break. Why can't we just enjoy the art and marvel at the technology rather than getting all wiggy about some big secret? Sheesh!

The Friday Five: Celebrating Halloween

This week the Friday Five is about celebrating Halloween.

1. How did you celebrate this time of year when you were a child? When I was a little girl we weren't home for a lot of Halloweens. My dad managed the LA branch of what was then the Lutheran Church Supply Store. Later it became Fortress and now Augsburg Fortress. Every year for eight years we went to the Lutheran Church Women's annual convention held near Monterey at the Asilomar Retreat Center. It was much better than trick or treating! We got off from school for the week. Hundreds of "ladies" watched my sisters and I grow up. They brought us treats, took our picture and generally fussed over us. One memorable year Papa Joe asked us to each read a book. Then he put us on stools on a stage (see below) in front of hundreds of women and interviewed us. We gave our book reviews and of course, Dad sold out of those three books in a flash.


I think if you asked my sisters we would gladly trade a big bag of candy for a week at Asilomar any time.

2. Do you and/or your family “celebrate” Halloween? Why or why not? And if you do, has it changed from what you used to do? We don't overly fuss. There's way too much candy and decorations are usually to a minimum. Soda Chicky still wants to dress up. "It's free candy, Mom!"

When I was in the parish there was always a night of youth ministry that required dressing up. I kind of miss it.

2 again... Candy apples: Do you prefer red cinnamon or caramel covered? Or something else? I would rather not eat it if it's red cinnamon. Caramel by all means and if it has salted nuts and chocolate- even better!

3. Do you do Jack O'Lanterns? Any other ideas what to do with them? Sometimes... One year when I was in seminary and feeling very "Less is More" I cut up the pumpkin after Halloween and froze the pulp. We had pumpkin soup and later a fresh frozen pumpkin pie. I prefer the canned to the real stuff.

4. Do you decorate your home for fall or Halloween? If so, what do you do? Bonus points for pictures. Nothing worth taking pictures of.

5. Do you like pretending to be something different? Does a costume bring out an alternate personality? I love dress up! Always have. Dressing up tends to bring out the comic actress that lies somewhere beneath the skin.

Bonus: Share your favorite recipe for an autumn food, particularly apple or pumpkin ones. I love your basic Betty Crocker apple crisp with some pecans thrown in for fun. Then serve it with really expensive vanilla ice cream and the richest caramel sauce you can come up with.

Just Curious, I Guess...

I haven't had anything in particular to say in the last few days. (My family would find this odd.) But there are a few things I am just curious about.

I saw an elderly woman crossing the street yesterday using a sponge mop as a cane. Was this her normal walking stick? Or was it just convenient as she needed to take the mop somewhere? And if it's option two, where on earth would she need to take this used mop? She had no bucket....

Why do people persist in thinking that Pseudo Grandbaby's dad, the Scarecrow, is babysitting? He's not babysitting, he's parenting. Nobody ever asks me if I'm babysitting for PG. When will people finally figure out that fathers are parenting and not providing some sort of unusual service for their spouse?

Why are shows like Entertainment Tonight spending so much air time on the fact that Marie Osmond fainted on Dancing With the Stars? And why does the Bug Man find these stupid shows so entertaining? If we had learned that Marie was seriously ill- well that might be a news story. But the woman is simply tired. She's doing this physically draining show, touring on the weekends, she just got divorced and she's got eight kids. No wonder she passed out! She needed a nap!

Why are Kristin Chenowith, Swoozie Kurtz and Ellen Greene co-starring on ABC's Pushing Up Daisies? These are three extremely talented stage actresses. Award winning, acclaimed and all that jazz. I suppose time will tell if this was a good choice for these three. It just seems a little strange is all.

Chenowith plays Olive Snook, a waitress at the Pie Hole, as well as Ned's neighbor, Olive is a tenacious sprite. Her can do attitude can do anything, except win the heart of the Pie Maker. She must settle for the company and affection of Digby, who relishes her caring touch. (BTW, Ned is the lead character, bakery/restaurant owner, who can bring people back from the dead by touching them.)


Kurtz is Lily Charles, formerly one half of the renowned synchronized swimming duo the Darling Mermaid Darlings, Chuck's aunt is now a one eyed shut in with a glib, grim outlook on life. After Chuck's father died, Lily and her sister Vivian moved into Chuck's house to take care of her. Lily and her sister share matching social anxieties and a love for fine cheese. (BTW, Chuck is a girl and the Pieman loves her. Oh and she used to be dead.)

And Ellen Greene portrays Vivian Charles. The other half of the renowned Darling Mermaid Darlings, gentle and moony Vivian does not enjoy being touched. The more "artistic" of the sisters, she and Lily share a love of fine cheese and a fear of the outside world.

The Friday Five: Homage to the Top Chef!

This week I have the privilege of writing the RevGalBlogPals Friday Five. I thought about doing something cosmically theological but went with silly instead. Here it is...

This Fall my family has been energetically watching Top Chef on the Bravo channel. My teenage daughter watches with the dream of some day being a chef. My husband watches because he loves reality shows and I mean, really loves them. Plus the whole competition thing really works for him. Me, I love cooking and good food. Every so often I get an idea from this group of talented young chefs who are competing for big money and honors galore.

The winner for this season was Hung. Not the fan favorite, but he won fair and square. In his bio, he says if he were a food "I would be spicy chili - it takes a while to get used to, but once you eat it you always come back for more!" With that in mind, here is this week’s Friday Five.

1. If you were a food, what would you be? Mashed potatoes with a little horseradish and sour cream stirred in. Pretty ordinary stuff but every so often, a little surprise.
2. What is one of the most memorable meals you ever had? And where? My parents and I were on holiday in Paris. (They paid. Thanks, Mom and Dad!) We went to a Basque restaurant and had the most wonderful meal. My first course was a small canteloupe filled with port. The entree was fabulous veal with a sauce. And dessert- chocolate. Nobody shared tastes with anyone, it was all so good! However, Mom and I think the reason the owner kept hovering was because Dad ordered calf brains. He insists it was not, but the word for rice and the word for brains only differ by one letter. And Dad did NOT get any rice.....
3. What is your favorite comfort food from childhood? Corn chowder or creamed tuna on toast. (I know it sounds strange.)
4. When going to a church potluck, what one recipe from your kitchen is sure to be a hit? My mother's recipe for fudgy brownies
5. What’s the strangest thing you ever willingly ate? Chocolate covered grasshoppers.

Bonus question: What’s your favorite drink to order when looking forward to a great meal? If it's Italian: campari and soda with a lime. If it's steak, a martini with 4 olives.

The Stages of Life

Pseudo Grandbaby is going through a new phase. At almost five months he is totally into oral stimulation. (Freud would be so proud!) He drools, he sticks out his tongue and he can almost blow a good raspberry! Everything goes in his mouth. His thumb, my thumb, your thumb. The postcard from Tanzania that Auntie Amanda sent. The FedEx envelope that looked so good with all that red ink! The antlers on his toy giraffe. It all gets covered with drool. And if the chewing comes too soon after having his "elevensies" then sometimes there's more than drool covering things! It's been a long time since the Chick went through this whole process. I'd forgotten that there's a reason that desperate parents let their kids chew on the car keys when they're standing in the grocery line. Recently we found that clerical shirt tabs are not a bad chew toy. PG can hold it himself and it has a pleasant bendiness to it. Do you suppose there's a market out there for such things? Hmmm.....