CHILL

(Thanks, Gayle.)

7 DAYS AND NIGHTS

There is only one week left until Halloween.

Are you ready?

TRAVEL LOG

You Gentle Readers may have noticed recently that my blog posts have been short on words.

I've been doing this so long I lose my inspiration at times.

Fortunately I have a staff of thousands.

Well, not really but I do have friends who from time to time say or write something that deserves wider attention.

Such is the case today as I introduce a guest blogger, my friend of many years, Diane, who has just returned from a European river cruise.

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The following is my report on the Viking River cruise (plus some additional bus trips because of low water, insufficient to accommodate the long-boats Viking uses on the Danube, Main and Rhine Rivers.) 

They have not had rain since May. One sees many sand bars visible. Locals say you could walk across any one of the three rivers.

Not required reading but am writing this in response to many requests (well, I think it might have been TWO requests).

We flew from Phoenix on the 5th via Philadelphia to Budapest and returned on the 20th from Amsterdam via London, non-stop from there to Phoenix. 

The flights were smooth and since we were in business class, were able to lie down and really sleep on the plane. Nice! 

The meals served on board were excellent and the over-all service superb.

The weather the entire two weeks was perfect every single day -- always sunshine (though  they need rain desperately) with temps in the hi 60's to low 70's.

We had a suite on the ship with a balcony. 

Viking makes one feel like royalty with your every wish immediately addressed and whenever possible granted. 

The food on board is so wonderful. Each morning was a buffet breakfast with lots of fresh fruit, pastries and the usual breakfast fare of eggs, sausage, bacon, sometimes salmon, herring, cheeses. One can eat oneself into oblivion on board. 

Also each lunch and dinner there were local dishes offered from which to choose on the menu. 

The food in that area is very heavy. Always lots of meat, potatoes, sauerkraut (which tastes nothing at all like what we find in a can here in the USA) red cabbage, applesauce, gooey desserts, especially apple strudel. 

Champagne with breakfast, wine or beer offered for the other two meals. 

We had several presentations on history, local customs etc. along the way. 

Also special music. One night we had German musicians (accordian along with an antique hand organ) -- rousing, loud and such fun! 

Other times there was just background music from a pianist and sometimes a singer as well.

Each day there were tours, some lasted 8 full hours and were exhausting while being very entertaining, informative and just so wonderful. 

We toured numerous castles, palaces, churches and cathedrals. Some hundreds of years old and several even a thousand years old. Lots of gold leaf everywhere it seemed. 

I keep thinking nothing that is being built in today's world will be here a thousand years from now and, living in Arizona where nothing (hardly) is earlier than the 20th Century, it amazes me seeing such antiquated structures.

At one point one of our guides referred to our trip as an "ABC Trip"....which stood for "Another Bloody Castle" or "Another Bloody Church"..………….most amusing!

There are cobblestones everywhere making walking very challenging. I could not use my walker on them, so had to use a cane and watch my feet with every step. I was terrified of falling. 

Lee was such a help. she is 16 years my junior, is a competitive ballroom dancer, so quite fit and always ready to lend me an arm when I needed it. 

She and I worked together at the TV station 40 years ago. She was my assistant when I was hosting & producing the morning talk show "Today in Arizona". 

She also went to Rhodesia with my daughter Linda the second time she went there and has been close to our family all these 40 years.

I particularly loved being in Vienna where we had a concert of chamber music in a hall where Mozart had performed and Strauss, Bach and others had created such wonderful music. 

Lee had a waltz lesson while there. She was determined to do a Viennese Waltz while in Vienna and did dance to "The Blue Danube" while I watched.

Lee and I made it a point each evening whenever possible to sit with new people and get acquainted. We met very interesting fellow passengers, most of them from the U.S. along with several from the U.K., Australia and Canada.

It was a fabulous time. I enjoyed it twice as much as the Viking cruise we took about 18 months ago. There was just much more to see and do on this one.

I feel so fortunate I was able to have this fulfilling experience.

* * * * * * * * * *

I would like to point out that my friend Diane hinted at her age a couple of times in her narrative.

I asked for permission to state her age and she graciously allowed it.

She is 86 years young and always ready for a new adventure.

THE FELINES

A couple of random kids I photographed at a museum several years ago.

They were having a great time after visiting a face painter.

I think the second one thinks he's the Lion King.

What do they have in common?

THROUGH A GLASS, DARKLY

NOISY CHEVY

THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

Patience.

Only 19 more days of this.

And besides . . . .

All together now.

And on that happy note, I shall bid you a fond adieu for now with the hope that you will have a huge weekend, full of huzzahs and hoorays, avoiding hubbubs and hoaxers and hackers and happily harrumphing your way to true joy.

And always remember to KEEP LAUGHING!!!

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

ONE WORD: PURPLE

When I posted a picture of a crescent moon in an artificially tweaked purple sky recently, my friend Zhoen of the blog One Word commented that purple was her favorite color.

So when I was looking through my picture files today for inspiration I came across this photo from a car show of the perfect car for Zhoen.

You're welcome, Z.

STRESS CURE?

PURPLE RAIN NIGHT

Yes, I did tweak it a bit with my photo editing tool.

But . . . I like purple.

COLORFUL CLOUDS

ALL FOR A LIGHT BULB

My favorite guest blogger, Judy aka SWMBO, takes over today.

* * * * * * * * * * *

A few months ago the microwave oven in our rental home suddenly had a broken door panel.  

Since both of us oldsters have pacemakers we were leary of escaping microwaves and the possible effect on the devices.

So a call to the management company brought a handyman to survey the situation.

He decided we did, indeed, need a new microwave.

A few days later "said handyman" arrived with a new oven.

He brought along his wife and adult daughter to help with the installation.

It took three and a half or four hours of effort, calls to the manufacturer, and milling around before the project was completed.

We were delighted that the old black oven was gone and a new WHITE one was in place and matched the other appliances in the kitchen.

What a concept!

Fast forward to a few days ago when the light bulb in the underside of the oven burned out.

It was the only source of light in the stove-top area.

The man of the house removed the glass cover from the bottom back of the microwave and unscrewed the burned out bulb.

It came out easily . . . without the metal socket!

He had apparently turned the bulb the wrong way and broke it off in the socket.

Repeated efforts to get the rest of the light bulb device out were fruitless.

Nothing either of us could do worked.

Alternate plan:  Buy a couple of under-the-cabinet type fixtures or rope lights for the cabinets on each side of the microwave oven.

Great idea!

The rope lights I bought were too dim.

Back to the hardware store for under-the-cabinet light fixtures.

We came home with two different types.

One was a plug-in LED light fixture that required two tiny screwed-in brackets to hold it in place.

The other was a battery operated LED light fixture that required two tiny screws to attach its holder to the under side of the cabinet.

Each of these were nigh-on-impossible to install for a couple in their dotage.

Eyes and hands don't work like they once did.

But after a couple of hours (with a rest break in between) both were in place and functioning.

And it only cost $39.46 to replace that little broken light bulb!

* * * * * * * * * * *

(A note from Catalyst:  Not only did I allow her to pick out the lights with only a bit of commentary from me, I followed her suggestion to leave her the hell alone while she did the installation work herself.)

RAIN IN THE FORECAST

THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

I love penguins.

Somehow they just know how to bring a comic feeling of well-being into my life.

And yours.

Because . . .

So let's get on with the weekend merriment, shall we?

Take your time with this first one, a meme I was made aware of thanks to Kate, of Visual St. Paul over there on the right.

And with that I shall leave you Gentle Readers to your own devices.

Have a great weekend and always remember to keep laughing.

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

(oh, no)

CONFUSION

Years ago, when SWMBO and I lived in Mexico, I had a little problem.

I would forget what day it was.

I think it happens to people in retirement and since we were enjoying a little early retirement maybe that's what caused it.

The odd thing about it was that I would always ask Judy what day it was and she always answered the same thing: "It's Thursday!"

Now I have no idea why I had a problem with Thursdays but that was always the day I'd forget.

Tell me, Gentle Readers, I know we all have problems with our memory as we get older but do you have some weird recurrent memory problems that are always the same?

I'd really like to know.

BITTERS

I was reading an article yesterday about the strange custom among residents of Wisconsin of drinking bitters by the shot.

It is so popular that bars get $4.50 per shot and one bar even has a deal with a distributor to buy 20 gallon kegs of the stuff so he can have the bitters on tap.

Now I knew that Angostura bitters were a tiny component of various cocktails.

My research showed they are absolutely necessary for a good Manhattan.

But I learned that a combination of Angostura and Peychaud bitters, as well as a number of other things make for a Sazerac cocktail - a New Orleans favorite.

I don't think I've ever had a Manhattan and I've never been to New Orleans or had a Sazerac and I don't think I'd ever tasted bitters by themselves.

So I went and found the bottle of Angostura bitters tucked away in our pantry and shook a few drops into a glass and tasted it.

Not bad, though I can't imagine drinking a shotglass full of it.

It tasted to me like a combination of sweet and bitter.

One of the Wisconsin drinkers said it tasted "like Christmas."

I'm not sure what I'll use them for.

I looked up "cooking with bitters" and learned that they don't react well to heat and that some recommended uses include a few drops in salad dressings or whipped creams or on ice cream.

I guess I'll experiment.

I'll let you know if I come up with anything sensational.

And if any of you Gentle Readers know of something to use them for, let me know.

EAT ITALIANO!

Today is Columbus Day in much of the country.

But several states and more and more cities are celebrating the second Monday in October as Indigenous People's Day, honoring the first people to discover what became America.

Whatever your feelings are I hope you won't give up the excellent food and wine the Italians have taught us to enjoy.

SHHHHH.

(Mum's the word)

STAR MAP

THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

At last it is here.  

The end of another brutal week.

And what will the vote be?

I vote . . . . for the WEEKEND!

That reminds me - I'm due for a shower.

So, Gentle Readers, I will leave you with whimsical wishes for a weightless weekend, wending away the hours with weisenheimers and watchamacallits.

And never, ever forget to keep laughing!

Here, kitty-kitty . . .