Dangerous Words (Six Sentence Story)

 ***********************************

"Heavens to Betsy, Hūnga, just give me a minute, we'll be out the door as soon as the cookies come out of the oven!"

Mimi laughed and then laughed a bit more as Tom growled, "'Heavens to Betsy', really, you can't even swear properly, you are a relic!"

"Our favorite family story about my Nana taught me about epithets, there were 12 people in a 3 bedroom, one bathroom house for Thanksgiving and everyone was tense and Papa decided for some reason, duck had to be on the menu.

"My Nana tried to dissuade him but he insisted and when she got back from their last run to the store for the supplies, she pointedly looked at him while emptying the bags and said, 'and I got your effing duck, too!'"

Mimi was pulling the cookies out of the oven as she continued, "Yes, my meek as Moses Nana dropped an f-bomb, her first, last, and only, right there in front of all the adults in the family and not only did my Papa learn his sweet wife had her limits, I learned from that story to save such language for when I really mean it."

As Tom just shook his head and she pulled out Hūnga's harness to head for the door, she added, "So just remember, if you ever do hear me use such a word, run!"

Linking up with Denise at Girlie On The Edge Blog, where she hosts Six Sentence Stories, and the cue is Relic.      

(I may have told this story before, but guess what?  It's one of my favorites, so it gets a repeat.)

***********************************

Sailors, Housecalls and So Far, So Good, a Ten Things of Thankful Post

 ***********************************

Nephew Dre is a sailor!  That's my first thankful and it's a big one.  Uncle J (my brother, my children's uncle, Dre's father) was able to go see him graduate from Navy Boot Camp.  He's been in JROTC all through high school, and this is his dream come true.

Last Saturday, i got to visit plenty with Grandma and her doctor made a house call to see her.  Yes, we're thankful she has a fabulous doctor.

Last weekend and into the start of the week, i had two cat-sitting jobs in addition to the rest of the work.  I'm thankful i was able to keep straight which cats needed care which days, and on Sunday morning when they overlapped, i was thankful to get it all done and still get to Becca's on time.

I'm thankful i only had to do the plant watering once, and thankful we've had rain since then as our lawns were needing it.

Several years ago, Ms. V and Mr. L admired a rug at Ms. S's house (across the street, but they'd decided it was time for a change.  Mr. L picked another rug, and this past Monday, i realized it's the same as Ms. S's other rug!  I think he's been subconsciously admiring it all this time.  I'm thankful Ms. S and i had a good laugh over it.

Ms. G didn't get back in town until Thursday morning, so i had an easier Wednesday after a night with very little sleep.

I'm thankful the check engine light on GusGus die Fledermaus turned out to just be that pesky gas pressure reading getting wonky again.

We're both very thankful the noise i heard Slow-Moe making was nothing big.

Kevin and Lenny got to see us 3 times this week, with each car and for the monthly cleaning.  I'm thankful they are such cheerful, happy people.

Sweetie went to his ear doctor, we're thankful all is well.  (He had surgery on his ears a long time ago but has to have them checked every 2 months for the rest of his life, we're always thankful for no trouble there.)

When one of my errands for the out-of-town Ms. G was also over in another town, i'm thankful i was able to use Slow-Moe, the car with working A/C.  It makes a huge difference, especially when it's raining and you can't roll the windows down.

The cat shelter is doing well, we had extra help, and people looking to adopt.  We also sent a couple of kitties to their new forever homes after their surgery.  It makes for a happy, thankful Friday evening to get to go there.

Please write up your own list and link up to Ten Things of Thankful.

The tradition of Ten Things of Thankful is undergoing a transition.  I do not know if the new host will be posting to the TToT blog, sending out links, or quite what to expect.  No matter what, though, this next Friday is rEcess and i will be thankful and there will be a post from me, "If G-d says the same," as my Mawmaw used to say.

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

***********************************

Today is:

Be Kind to Humankind Week: Speak Kind Words Saturday 

Day of Solidarity and Freedom -- Poland (Anniversary of the 1980 August Agreement)

Eat Outside Day -- as long as you won't pass out from the heat

Eleusinia Games -- Ancient Greek Calendar (date approximate; 3 days of games with grain as prizes)

Festal Day -- Order of the Eastern Star

Independence Day -- Kyrgyzstan(1991); Malaysia (Hari Kebangsaan/Freedom Day, 1957); Trinidad & Tobago(1962)

International Bacon Day -- good day for a double decker BLT with grilled onions and Swiss cheese (unless, of course, you are a pig)

International Day of Blogs and Bloggers 

International Overdose Awareness Day -- prevention and remembrance

Invent A New Sandwich Day -- spread around the internet like good mayo; go ahead, have fun with this

Limba Noastra -- Moldova (Day of Our Language)

Love Litigating Lawyers Day -- yes, G-d tells us to love everybody, even litigation attorneys but He never said doing it would be easy; sponsored by Wellcat Holidays

National Trail Mix Day

St. Raymond Nonnatus' Day (Patron of babies, childbirth, children, expectant mothers, falsely accused people, infants, midwives, newborn babies, obstetricians, and pregnant women; Baltoa, Dominican Republic; against fever)

Birthdays Today:

Jeff Hardy, 1977

Chris Tucker, 1972

Debbie Gibson, 1970

Glenn Tilbrook, 1957

Edwin Corley Moses, 1955

Richard Gere, 1949

Itzhak Perlman, 1945

Van Morrison, 1945

Jack Thompson, 1940

Marva Collins, 1936

Frank Robinson, 1935

James Coburn, 1928

Buddy Hackett, 1924

G.D. Spradlin, 1920

Alan Jay Lerner, 1918

William Saroyan, 1908

William Shawn, 1907

Arthur Godfrey, 1903

Maria Montessori, 1870

Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Alice"(TV), 1976

"The Great Gildersleeve"(Radio), 1941

"The Threepenny Opera/Die Dreigroschenoper"(Play), 1928

Today in History:

Traditional date upon which Ayonwentah (Haiwatha) and Deganawidah (The Great Peacemaker) assist the Iroquois tribes in establishing the Confederation of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois Confederacy, or League of Five Nations), 1142

Lewis and Clark begin their expedition, 1803

A nuts and bolts machine is patented by Micah Rugg, 1842

The first professional football game is played in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, 1895

Edison patents the Kinetograph, 1897

Mrs. Adolph Landenburg, a horse rider, debuts the split skirt, 1902

Debut of Foghorn Leghorn, 1946

Solidarity Labor Union forms in Poland, 1980

Diana, Princess of Wales, her companion Dodi Al-Fayed and driver Henri Paul die in a car crash in Paris, 1997

Stolen on August 22, 2004, Edvard Munch's famous painting The Scream is recovered in a raid by Norwegian police, 2006

In Sudan, the People's Liberation Army announces it will demobilize its child soldiers by the end of the year, 2010

A 19-year-old Indonesian man is rescued after 49 days at sea on his floating fishing trap, 2018

Mary Peltola becomes the first Alaskan Native to be elected to US Congress, 2022 

US life expectancy falls to its lowest level since 1996 (76.1 years vs. 79 years in 2019), with COVID-19 thought to be the main contributing factor, 2022

All Right, Who’s the Wise Kitty? (Feline Friday), Friendly Fill-Ins, Nature Friday and Photo Fails

 ***********************************

Feline Friday was originally started by Steve, The Burnt Food Dude (may he rest in peace), and i'm going to believe it's because he liked cats.

He handed hosting duties off to Sandee at Comedy Plus, and now she's entrusting it to me.

Feline Friday is simple to join.  All you have to do is: Post a picture, drawing, cartoon or video of a cat (they may be silly or cute).  Then add your link!

One thing for sure is this is a fun and easy meme to do.  So come and join us in Feline Friday.

What better way to start the weekend than with a feline!

Wednesday morning at the cat shelter, i noticed my garbage bag was disappearing and had to ask, All right, who's the wise cat?"

The bag started to disappear under the door and kitty claws snagged it and tried to drag it in.

I stepped on it to keep it from being pulled all the way under, then started trying to work it back out in spite of their tuggings.

The main culprit and ringleader of the room's mischief.

I was taking the photos as the kittens were trying to claw the bag and pull it in the room with them, under the door.  Then i got pictures of the cats, through the glass because if you try to open the door even a crack, they rush it and want to escape the room.  The pictures are rather awful, but they tell the story and to me, they also qualify as Pet Photo Fails, which is hosted by Melissa's Mochas, Mysteries & Meows.     

***********************************

Friendly Fill-Ins are easy to do. There are four statements: the first two statements are provided by Ellen of 15AndMeowing, and the final two are offered by Lorianne The Menagerie Mom of Four-Legged Furballs. They try to make sure the statements will be fun to both answer and share. The linky will be posted at or about 12:00 AM on Friday. Please head over to one of their sites, link up, and share your thoughts!      

Here are this week's statements with my responses underlined:

1. The summer is just about over and I have yet to _________.

2. The highlight of my summer was _________.

3. _________ is a fictional character I really relate to.

4. My interest in _________ began when _________.

1. The summer is just about over and I have yet to   dip my toes in water and sand.  It's been two years since we went and i miss it very much.

2. The highlight of my summer was _________.    My belief is summer is not over quite yet, not here in the swamps, and my granddaughter should be born before it does end, that will be my highlight.

3. Valency Stirling  is a fictional character I really relate to.

4. My interest in   helping with special needs kids   began when   we realized our Bigger Girl was one of them.

***********************************

Nature Friday is hosted by LLB in Our Backyard.  Simply post a picture of the natural world, and link up!   https://llbinourbackyard.blogspot.com

Mr. BA's zinnias

***********************************

Today is:

Be Kind to Humankind Week:  Forgive Your Foe Friday 

Blackpool Illuminations -- The Promenade, Blackpool, Lancashire, England (five miles of spectacular lighting; through Jan. 1, 2024)

Constitution Day -- Kazakhstan

Day of Satisfying the Hearts of the Ennead (Nine Major Gods) -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)

Festival of Charisteria -- Ancient Roman Calendar (a day to give thanks)

Frankenstein Day -- in honor of Mary Shelley 

Huey P. Long Day -- Louisiana, US

International Day of the Disappeared -- Latin American Federation of Associations for Relatives of Detained-Disappeared

International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances -- UN

International Whale Shark Day -- WiseOceans has more information 

National Holistic Pet Day -- celebrating the growing interest in natural/holistic medicine for animals

National Toasted Marshmallow Day

Popular Consultation Day -- East Timor

Santa Rosa de Lima -- Peru

St. Fiacre's Day (Patron of box makers, cab drivers, costermongers, florists, gardeners, hosiers, pewterers, taxi drivers, tile makers; against barrenness, fistula, haemorrhoids, piles, sterility, syphilis, venereal disease)

Talk Intelligently Day -- holiday thought up by someone tired of non-intelligent conversations (maybe with co-workers?)

Victory Day -- North Cyprus; Turkey

     Turkey's Hellespont Swim -- one of the world's busiest shipping lanes is closed so that over 300 participants can swim the Hellespont from Europe to Asia, a Victory Day commemoration of winning the Turkish War of Independence in 1922 against the Greeks

Anniversary Today:

Roman Polanski marries Emmanuelle Seigner, 1989

Birthdays Today:

Cameron Diaz, 1972

Michael Michele, 1966

Michael Chiklis, 1963

David Paymer, 1954

Timothy Bottoms, 1951

Lewis Black, 1948

Peggy Lipton, 1947

Frank "Tug" McGraw, 1944

Jean-Claude Killy, 1943

Elizabeth Ashley, 1939

Warren Buffett, 1930

Kitty Wells, 1919

Ted Williams, 1918

Fred MacMurray, 1908

Roy Wilkins, 1901

Shirley Booth, 1898

Huey P. Long, 1893

Claire Straith, M.D., 1891

Ernest Rutherford, 1871

Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, 1797

Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Anna Lucasta"(Play), 1944

Today in History:

European leaders, in an attempt to end war "for all time", outlaw the crossbow, 1146

One of the largest naval battles in history, during the last decade of the ailing, Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty, begins between the forces of two Chinese rebel leaders, 1363

Capture of the entire Dutch fleet by British forces under the command of Sir Ralph Abercromby and Admiral Sir Charles Mitchell, 1799

Founding of Melbourne, Australian, 1835

Founding of Houston, Texas, 1836

Hubert Cecil Booth patents the vacuum cleaner, 1901

The Lake Pontchartrain Causeway in south Louisiana, the longest bridge over water (continuous, not aggregate) that is not also a viaduct, opens, 1956

The Hotline between the leaders of the U.S.A. and the Soviet Union goes into operation, 1963

Thurgood Marshall is confirmed as the first African American Justice of the United States Supreme Court, 1967

Guion Bluford becomes the first African American astronaut in space, 1983

NATO launches Operation Deliberate Force against Bosnian Serb forces, 1995

A commercial expedition to raise part of the sunken British luxury liner Titanic ended in failure, 1996

Harley-Davidson celebrates its 100th anniversary in Milwaukee with a parade of 10,000 motorcycles, 2003

India and Pakistan agree to release hundreds of fishermen and other civilians in each other's jails as part of their ongoing attempts to negotiate peace between their nations, 2005

Sumatra's Sinaburg volcano continues to erupt, two people are killed and 21,000 are evacuated from the vicinity, 2010

In Chile, 33 miners trapped half a mile beneath the surface make contact with their families for the first time in three weeks since the incident, 2010

Late author Terry Pratchett’s unfinished works are destroyed as per his request, 2017

For the second time, Ukrainian amateur astronomer Gennady Borisov discovers an interstellar comet, 2019

Algeria becomes the last country to stop selling leaded petrol/gasoline, 2021

The largest water treatment facility in Jackson, Mississippi, US, fails leaving thousands without clean drinking water, closing schools and businesses, 2022

Over 100 schools in the UK are told to close buildings days before the start of the school term because of concrete in danger of collapse, 2023