K is for Kid's Movie - UP

If you haven't seen the movie UP, you need to because it is more than a silly kid's movie. Pixar has done it again.  It is a very funny and endearing movie.  It tells a story about a lonely, elderly gentleman and an energetic, lonely little boy.  There are lots of kid's movies out there and - several of them are good.  I just chose this one, because I actually cried in this movie.  It got my attention.  I especially loved the dog, DUG (as seen below).  Wouldn't it be great to have a talking dog.  I always wonder what they are really thinking.  Would we still be "best friends" ?? Would they really love us as much as we think??  OR would they listen and act more like our kids or continue to obey and be thrilled when we walk through the door??  It would be hilarious.  Enjoy the show!!! 

see more dog and puppy pictures

J is for Bond, James Bond

James Bond 007.   Commander Sir James Bond, is a fictional officer of the British Secret Intelligence Service (SIS; commonly known as MI6).  He was created in January 1952 by British journalist Ian Fleming while on holiday at his Jamaican estate, Goldeneye.  The hero was named after the American ornithologist James Bond, a Caribbean bird expert and author of the definitive field guide book Birds of the West Indies.  (interesting).  Fleming, a keen birdwatcher, had a copy of Bond's field guide at Goldeneye.  Of the name, Fleming once said in a Reader's Digest interview, "I wanted the simplest, dullest, plainest-sounding name I could find, 'James Bond' was much better than something more interesting, like 'Peregrine Carruthers.'  Exotic things would happen to and around him, but he would be a neutral figure — an anonymous, blunt instrument wielded by a government department." 

Wikipeda informs us that the James Bond movies inspired shows/movies such as Flint, Matt Helm, I Spy, Man from UNCLE (where Napolean Solo was named after a character in Fleming's novel Goldfinger), Get Smart, and Austin Powers.   George Lucas has said on various occasions that Sean Connery's portrayal of Bond was one of the primary inspirations for the Indiana Jones character, a reason Connery was chosen for the role of Indiana's father in the third film of that series. 

(Photos of my favorite Bond men). . .

  

My Favorite Character (other than James Bond):   M is a fictional character in Ian Fleming's James Bond series, as well as the films in the Bond franchise. The head of MI6 and Bond's superior, M has been portrayed by three actors in the official Bond films but my favorite is Dame Judy Dench.

We haven't even started to enter the world and mind of James Bond.  There are the Bond Girls, great music and sound tracks, characters.  Oh well, in the meantime, I will take mine shaken, not stirred, please.

I is for Interesting British Words

In honour of the Royal Wedding in England, Merrian-Webster has created its "Top 10 British Words."  Although Merriam-Webster is a dictionary of American English, it contains a range of words rarely heard outside Britain. Here are some of our favourites.

#1  Prat:  a stupid or foolish person; probably comes from the 16th century prat meaning "buttocks."  The original 'pratfall' was a fall on the buttocks.

#2 Twee:  affectedly or excessively dainty, delicate, cute, or quaint; a baby-talk alteration of the word 'sweet.'  It first appeared in print in a 1905 issue of the British magazine Punch.

#3 Knackered:  tired, exhausted; the slang knackered means to 'kill or tire.'  Etymologists cannot be sure if there is a link between the adjective and the word that means 'horse-slaughter.' 

#4 Jiggery-Pokery:  dishonest or suspicious activity, nonsense; it is an alteration of 'joukery-pawkery.'  Both joukery and pawkery are English regionalisms for 'trickery.'

#5 Plonk:  cheap or inferior wine; is a shortening of the earlier plink-plonk and may be a modification of 'vin blanc' which means "white wine" in French. 

#6 Chunter: to talk in a low inarticulate way, mutter; is sometimes used as a synonym of "complain."  The word is probably imitative in origin, when people are chutering and sounds a bit like "chunter chunter" (or mutter). 

#7 Whinge:  to complain fretfully or whine; the Old English ancestor meant "to moan." 

#8 Gormless:  lacking intelligence, stupid; the word 'guam' exists in some English dialects and means "attention or understanding."  Someone without 'guam' lacks understanding.

#9 Boffin: a scientific expert and especially one involved in technological research; dates back t0 1945.  Although its origin remains a mystery, it may have originated with scientists engaged in wartime efforts.

#10 Pukka: genuine, authentic, first-class; Chef Jamie Oliver rejuvenated 'pukka' with his BBC series 'Pukka Tukka.'  That's fitting since pukka comes from the Hindi and Urdu words for "cooked" and "solid." 

H is for Happy Holidays

I have always loved holidays.  Thanksgiving is my favorite.  However, I love them all.  I love the food, decorating, friends, family and time off.  Here are some graphics to share the holidays with you.

Hoppy Easter.  Spring, flowers blooming, birds chirping, spring colors, outdoors, and daylight savings time.  Growing up in South Florida, we did not have seasons.  We had a few weeks of really cold weather and the rest of the year was Summertime.  Living in Colorado, we enjoy the change of seasons.  We  love snow but we enjoy the Spring.

Happy Valentine's Day

July 4th - Independence Day. 
Thank you to the veterans (including my daughter).
The land of the free and home of the brave.

Halloween.  We start decorating mid-October and my kids like to add all the scary decorations, spiders on the roof, ghosts in the trees, put on scary music, and even dress up the dogs. We usually dress up at work and then we stay in costume and greet the trick or treaters in costume.  After Halloween, we merge the decorations into fall and Thanksgiving.  Multi-purpose (recycle-reuse...)  We love the fall in Colorado.  The leaves change color and the weather cools down.  And, of course, did I say, FOOTBALL.

Thanksgiving.  My favorite holiday.  Even when I was young and there were only four of us in the family, my mother made a huge feast.  We had a 20 pound turkey, homemade stuffing, lots of fresh veggies, breads, desserts.  My husband and I always have a great feast and invite lots of our friends to share dinner (and football) with us. We then cook another turkey on Friday and start putting up our Christmas tree and decorations.  (Did I say watch football).

Christmas.  When I was growing up, my mother always made lots of food for Christmas.  We made dozens of different kinds of cookies, candies, breads, and other goodies.  We set up extra tables to place everything on.  During the Christmas and New Years holidays, friends and family would come to visit and eat lots!!!

G is for Gabriel's Grandmother

What an honor and privilege it is to be a Grandmother.  I never understood what it was all about until my little Gabriel was born.  I actually was in the delivery room and saw him enter the world.  Here are some funnies and thoughts to share with you.  Cheers to all of you with Grandchildren.  What a joy and blessing. 

The reason grandchildren and grandparents get along so well is that
they have a common enemy.  ~Sam Levenson

Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting.  ~Author Unknown

What a bargain grandchildren are!  I give them my loose change, and they give me a million dollars' worth of pleasure.  ~Gene Perret

It's one of nature's way that we often feel closer to distant generations than to the generation immediately preceding us.  ~Igor Stravinsky

To become a grandparent is to enjoy one of the few pleasures in life for which the consequences have already been paid.  ~Robert Brault       

    

Grandparents bestow upon
their grandchildren

The strength and wisdom that time

And experience have given them.

Grandchildren bless their Grandparents
With a youthful vitality and innocence
That help them stay young at heart forever.

Together they create a chain of love
Linking the past with the future.

The chain may lengthen,
But it will never part....

- Author Unknown

F is for FEW moments from Star Trek

We were recently discussing famous movie and television quotes.  It is hard to narrow down a few quotes from some of our favorite shows.  Star Trek ranks as one of the most culturally influential television shows of all time and clearly the most influential science fiction TV show of all time. The original series, which aired on the NBC network from 1966 to 1969, has spawned four successor shows starting in the 1980s and ten movies. Countless toys, books, and other products have been marketed by Paramount, the company that owns the Star Trek "franchise." But the show's cultural influence goes far beyond its ability to replicate itself and make money for its owners.

The original series and cast were the best. 

Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its 5-year mission:  to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.    (James T. Kirk)

Beam me up, Scotty.

She cannae take any more, Cap'n!

I'm a doctor, not a (you name it, McCoy said it.)  "Bricklayer, engineer...."

Live long and prosper.

Kirk, Spock, McCoy and Ensign Ricky are beaming down to the planet.  Guess who's not coming back.

Expendability.

Trouble with Tribbles.

[asking about the tribbles]
Capt. Kirk: Scott, you didn't transport them into space did you?
Scotty: Captain Kirk, that'd be inhuman.
Capt. Kirk: Well, where are they?
Scotty: I gave them a very good home, sir.
Capt. Kirk: WHERE?
Scotty: I gave 'em to the Klingons, sir.
Capt. Kirk: You gave them to the Klingons?
Scotty: Aye, sir. Before they went into warp, I transported the whole kit'n kaboodle into their engine room, where they'll be nay tribble at all.

As in the Star Trek movie, V'Ger was searching for the "Creator"

Creator, Gene Roddenberry and his wife (Majel Barrett).  Majel was Nurse Christine Chapel in the original Star Trek series;  the voice of most onboard computer interfaces throughout the series; and Lwaxana Troi  (Deanna Troi's mother in Next Generation).
  

Next Generation.

Space... The final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. It's continuing mission, to explore strange new worlds. To seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no one has gone before.  (Jean Luc-Picard)

Make it so.  Engage.
Tea, Earl Grey, hot.

Freedom is irrelevant.  Resistance is futile.

You have the Bridge, Number One.



 Locutus, the Borg. 

And more . . .
We could go on about all the various movies and other series such as Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise.  All well done.  However, I will end with a photo of the new Star Trek movie.  Wow.  Well done in selecting the cast and historical content.  I look forward to seeing more . . .

Live long and prosper!!

E for the English are Coming

or whatever he really said.  Most people remember him for his famed midnight ride, which took place 236 years ago this evening. But there's a lot more to the story of Paul Revere, from his dabbling in dentistry to his dismissal from the military. Find out 12 things you may not know about Paul Revere at 12 Things You May Not Know About Paul Revere.