THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

What can I say?

It's been yet another depressingly awful week.

So let's go directly to some humor.

That's it, my friends, the humor is depleted.

Now I hope you all will have an almighty, awesome weekend.

And always remember to keep laughing!

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

( . . . ah, I see you've brought a friend . . . )

THE ARTIST'S BRAIN

 The BAD (Beautiful Artistic Daughter) has taken on a new challenge.

Using colored markers on blank pages of a notebook to see what comes out.

Here's what has come out so far.

It looks to me like she's reverting to the 60's and I jokingly said "Those LSD trips must still be affecting you!"

Tell me what *you* think of her latest adventure in art.

ARIZONA BLIZZARD!

I woke this morning to find feet of snow from an overnight blizzard blanketing the landscape for as far as the eye could see.

Well, that might be a slight exaggeration.

A lie, even.

Here's a wider shot.

As you can see, it's a light dusting on a small shrub outside our front door.

The rock-covered front yard has less than that.

Still with the leaden sky, it's a wintery scene here in the Central Highlands of lovely Arizona.

But with the sun struggling to break through and the mercury climbing into the 40's today and no more snow in the forecast, Old Man Winter will suffer another defeat.

Especially by Monday, when our high temperature is forecast to hit 71 degrees!

Guess I'd better search around and find a pair of shorts.

CATS

"Hey there, Blue Cat, you look cold.  Why don't you come over and play with me in this warm, sunny flowerbed?"

SNOW

Winter, such a it is, has finally arrived in my part of Arizona - the Central Highlands.

We have our first snowfall today.

Granted, it's varying from big flakes falling gently to small pieces spitting through the air.

And it's too warm, so far, to allow much of the snow to stick.

But it's moisture, which is good.

So here are a couple of pictures of our mighty snowstorm.

(You may have to squint to see any actual snowflakes.)

EVENING LIGHT

 

FRIDAY NIGHT 'ZA

My Friday nights in the kitchen are spent experimenting.

The subject is a frozen pizza from the store.

Last night I went all out.

Brushed melted butter on the crust all around the edge, then sprinkled Everything Bagel spice on it.

Chopped up a red and a yellow mini-pepper and some onion and tossed them all over the surface.

Then added a lot of mini-slices of pepperoni and some small chunks of mozzarella.

Topped it all off with Italian spice mix and oregano and a tad of crushed red peppers.

Out of the oven and rested for a few minutes, then sliced it and dove in.

SWMBO, who loves pepperoni pizza, pronounced it excellent.

I have a few pieces left over to be reheated for my "breakfast" today.

THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

It has been a trying week, from the West Coast to the East Coast, from the Dakotas to Florida and Louisiana.

I could write about some of that but others with better skills than mine have done that and continue doing that.

So let me get your minds off of those troublesome topics, if even for just a minute or two.

Remember the value of laughter and the good it does to your sense of well-being.

And now, ladies and gentlemen, I'm sending out a fervent wish that you all have a fastidiously fine weekend, full of fun and frolic and feasting.

And, like I said before, always remember to keep laughing!

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

( . . . HERE, I said, and bring your friend . . . )

WEATHERING THE WEATHER

Here's an anecdote from my past life in the television news business.

I was working in Phoenix one winter when a national governor's meeting was being held in the Valley of the Sun.

I got a telephone call from a reporter in Buffalo, New York where winter meant WINTER!

In my chat with him he asked what the weather was like and I told him it was around 75 degrees and sunny.

He groaned and said something like "You really know how to rub it in, don't you."

I then added that the conference wasn't really going on in Phoenix but in a suburb called Paradise Valley.

He responded with a sarcastic "Oh, thanks a lot!"

Those were good times for me.

I am still in Arizona but now about 80 miles northwest of Greater Phoenix and around forty-one-hundred feet higher.

True, we are further south than Denver, Colorado but our elevation is nearly the same at around 5 thousand feet.

And it's a bright sunny day here but the temperature as I'm typing this at 11 a.m. is only 39 degrees.

And while I grew up in North Dakota, only about 50 miles from Canada, I've been gone a long time and have spent over half my life in Arizona.

My blood has thinned and I'm shivering and complaining about the cold a lot.

But unlike the other Sunshine State, Florida, we do not have 8 inches of snow on the ground!

And to my way of thinking that is a blessing!

So we struggle along here in the sunny Southwest.

I think I can get through it until Summer is back and I can complain about how blasted hot it is.

SOUTHERN SNOW

In spite of that header picture above, we have had no snow in my part of Arizona.

But the same can't be said for much of the southeastern United States.

From Texas to Florida, residents woke to find snow covering the ground.

In Arkansas, where the normal yearly snowfall is 3 to 4 inches there were reports of 10 inches from yesterday's blizzard.

Here's an Associated Press photo from Nashville, Tennessee.

Children are loving it, drivers are cursing it.

But there's hope  . . . .

In the meantime, just keep shoveling! 😄

FISH-EYE

 This winter driving tip was aimed at Minnesota drivers but it could be equally valid for North Dakotans or Canadians.

Always stay alert, no matter the hazards.

Right, Red?

JANUARY 20TH, 2025 - COMMENTARY

COFFEECAKE

I didn't spend all day yesterday dancing around to music by the Pointer Sisters.

But I did spend quite a bit of the day on my feet.

In the kitchen, where I baked an Applesauce Coffeecake.

It came out of the oven high and mighty and though it was meant for Sunday morning breakfast, SWMBO just had to sample it while it was still warm and I joined her.

She pronounced it a success while I was iffy on it.

Later in the day I baked a Chicken Enchilada casserole I brought from the grocery store.

With some refritos (refried beans) and some leftover fruit Judy had in the refrigerator it was a fine meal.

Quite a bit later I had another piece of that coffeecake and decided time had done it some good.

I told her I couldn't understand how women who cooked and baked day after day for their family ever did it.

I was exhausted.

But then I noted that I hadn't begun in earnest until I was 84.

So there's that.

I'M SO EXCITED

Saturday being the first day of a weekend, it's a day for fun.

So let's have some fun with this remarkable video put together a few years ago from old movies and the Pointer Sisters singing "I'm So Excited".

You may want to "embiggen" it to full screen once it starts to fully appreciate it.

And note: If you enjoy it there are many other of these type of videos available free on YouTube.

THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

You know how it goes.

Life is just one thing after another.

It's kind of like . . . a week is just one day after another.

You start out and before you know it people are shouting TGIF!

It's Friday once again.

But it's a good thing there is only one Friday in a week.

I don't think you could stand more days than that of jocularity.

Let's see how you handle this Friday's dopey dizzy dose of daffiness.

Wordplay.

It's a strange thing.

Some people (your scribe included) love 'em, some people hate 'em.

Nevertheless, as long as the Trekkies are around puns will continue to exist.

Existence.

Now that's a strange thing too.

(Oh shut up, Catalyst!  We've had enough!)

So that's how you feel.

Well then just take my wish that you have an absolutely wonderful weekend and that's it's not just a weak end.

But always remember to keep laughing!

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

( . . . I think you're not the only one, pal . . . )