A Nice Place In The Sun

Ohh Child

annclemmons@hotmail.com (Ann) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 07:31:00 +0000

Thanks Everyone

annclemmons@hotmail.com (Ann) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 09:13:00 +0000

First, I would like to thank you all for your comments and publicly commend my son on a well written "hospital post."

We often speak of how short life is, but I don't think we believe it. Or rather, we prefer to believe it doesn't apply to us personally. Illness and tragedy are the unfortunate happenstances of others in far away places. The power of the mind is an amazing thing. We have an enormous capacity for denial that often comes in handy. After all, if we didn't have denial many of us would have vanished already, because it's the minds way of getting used to things, in addition to nurturing our instinct for survival.

So, I never believed I could get seriously ill- ever- However, I am, but I'm still here and my instinct for survival and capacity to make believe are perfectly healthy. Also, thank goodness, the minds amazing abilities do not stop at denial. I believe we are what we think, and that illness is part of life. You just deal with it and move on. However, I do have one problem, and that is I need a little more rest. Therefore, I'm asking for your patience.

Don't worry, I learned long ago, that I can survive just about anything. So, I hope you all will not succumb to the notion that I will not return, for you are not going to get rid of me that easily. I will be back leaving silly comments on your blogs soon enough. In the meantime, please note that you have lifted my spirits in ways you cannot imagine. Next to life itself, friendship is a marvelous treasure, and cherish all of you.

God bless~

Annie

Elisabeth Kubler-Ross said, "Fear and guilt are the only enemies of man"

To The Readers of a Nice Place In The Sun

annclemmons@hotmail.com (Ann) — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 05:55:00 +0000

Regrettably, the author of A Nice Place In The Sun, Ann Clemmons, has been hospitalized. The past week has been tough, especially since she was the only one who knew the password for her blog.

Her family has been back and forth to the hospital and her computer, trying to learn how to open the site, find the image in her computer, and write an exclamation for her absence - therefore we're sorry for the delay.

On that note, we would like to extend our heartfelt thanks for your visit, as well as your patience in this matter.

We're hoping Ann will be home from the hospital by the end of the week- and if you know her as we do, it's safe to assume she will begin writing immediately.

Therefore, look for a published post soon.

Thank you for reading A Nice Place In The Sun

Happy Birthday America!

annclemmons@hotmail.com (Ann) — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 07:43:00 +0000

Happy Fourth of July, Independence Day, and Birthday America~

I wish my fellow Americans and my readers from around the world, a day filled with laughter, peace, and love on this special day for the United States, as well as every day of the year~

Who Was/Is Your Most Eccentric Family Member Or Most Embarrassing Family Memory? / Tuesday's Question

annclemmons@hotmail.com (Ann) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 15:10:00 +0000

Who Was/Is Your Most Eccentric Family Member Or Most Embarrassing Family Memory?

(Authors note: After reading this article don't forget to check out the comments posted after the post (that is, if you want a great laugh) they're hilarious.)

Hello and welcome to A Nice Place In The Sun's fortieth Tuesday's Question.

What began as a way to meet my fellow bloggers has exploded into a fixture on A Nice Place In The Sun. This feature has introduced me and many other bloggers to loyal and trusted friends in the blogosphere. (You know who you are) Because when we ask questions that tell us about each others life experiences we foster and nurture friendships. I think all of us are influenced by the combination of our experiences, whether planned or forced on us by our environment and other factors of by which we haven't much control or choice, such as our family life.

In addition, Tuesday's Question is a great way to share link love and have a blast, therefore, if this is the first time you've heard of it, I'm glad you're here.

All you do is give an account of your experience or answer the question in comments, after which I will publish your comment in "real time" and provide a link for my readers to visit your blog. Sound good?

Also, every question is original, meaning a crazy woman (me) made them up, hence, you'll either relate and instantly rush to the computer to get your comment published or you'll have a few questions yourself.

In any event, if this is your first Tuesday's Question, jump in, even if you don't know what's in the water, just do it, you may find a few new readers and you'll definitely find new friends.

For an example and my answer click on Read More below:

Hopefully my answer will shed some light on what I mean by an "eccentric" family member or most embarrassing family moment. That is, the following experience answers both sides of my two-sided question and has already been written. It's a post I wrote about my eccentric grandmother and it includes one of my most embarrassing family moments- It's also one of the most popular pages on my blog- I wonder why?

Here's a brief excerpt and a link below,

My grandmother, Nana, tortured her grandchildren and neighbors by taking outside showers, until the shower broke and no one within miles who knew how to fix it. The device was really a a three foot faucet with a shower head on it and a place to attach a hose on the side, like a shower/water faucet combination. There was a concrete floor under the shower so your feet didn't sink in the grass and form a muddy mess while you bathed.

Nana's property included the best of the old and new worlds: for instance, her garden and ancient shower were next door to her neighbor’s tennis court and paved circler driveway, whereas Nana’s driveway was gravel. However, the ingredients of the old and new worlds did coexist, and sandwiched between her back porch and the neighbor’s back door stood the outside shower. When I was a child, I assumed Nana used the shower mainly to take her outside showers, but it also functioned as a water supply to the garden and the rest of the side yard, when necessary.

She couldn't understand why her grandchildren refused to take an outside shower, although I think she did notice how eager we were to take a bath inside anytime. Our embarrassment wasn't fueled by her need to suds herself in the side yard, it was the fact that her neighbors had a clear view of her at their breakfast table. In other words, she never grasped the idea that the people next door may not wish to view her soap her body, underwear or not, in the gleaming sun while they drank their morning coffee...

The rest of this story can be read here.

Alright since this is a bloggers post, I want to hear your answers, and don't forget your comments will be published along with a link to your blog on this post shortly:

Oh, and thank you for playing along;

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My first comment is from my dearest friend Sandee, at Comedy Plus, who deserves a metal for answering Tuesday's Question. She also has one of the funniest blogs on the internet-

So if you're not familiar with Comedy Plus you missing laughs, therefore, follow one of the links above and you will not be disappointed- I've never been- Thanks again, Sandee~

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Okay Ann, no one I mean no one can beat this story. They just can't. I remember reading about this in your original post and well, what a story. Make me laugh out loud. Since I'm a grandma too it made me a little sick to my stomach as well. Bwahahahahahaha.

I just can't come up with a thing honey. My whole family are nuttier than fruitcakes. I'm the only sane one. Bwahahahahahaha.

Big hug and lotsa lovies. Off to the boat for a long weekend. Have a great 4th. :)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My next comment is from Jeni at Down River Drivel
Another great site and Jeni's comment is hilarious.

This post reminded me of a cousin of my Mom's. He had some "issues" I suppose you could say and wasn't exactly a speedy learner, to be nice about it. But he had a trait that he would always be comparing this or that family member to other people, living or dead, and announcing who he thought these relatives looked like. I think the best one was when he decided my great Aunt Esther looked like Martin Luther -yes, the Reformer one. No one thought anything of it until my uncle happened to see my confirmation text book on the table with a picture of a statue of Martin Luther on the cover and my uncle decided maybe cousin Birger wasn't that far fetched after all! (BTW -I think I have inherited cousin Birger's trait too as I often see resemblances of family members to people well outside our gene pool too!)

July 1, 2008 2:21 PM

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My next comment is from Dawn at Twisted Sister another dear friend and hilarious blogger. I suggest you hold onto your hats while you read this comment~

Ann I am so with Sandee on this one. Who could beat that story? My family is completely bonkers and I won't even try to pretend I'm sane! LOL

But if I had to pick one it would probably be my Aunt Winnie. She was widowed from a young age and never remarried. I was often sent to stay with her during the summer. Her hair was wild and frizzy and I often caught her talking to herself.
She was also very religious and loved to point her finger and quote bible verses at me and remind me that my soul was in peril if I did not change my ways. I wasn't quite sure what "ways" needed changing but I never spoke back!
But the most embarrassing thing for me was her name. She was the only "Winnie" I had ever heard of as a child and so I was totally convinced that she was named after Winnie the Pooh.
I wasn't the smartest kid on the block ;)

July 1, 2008 3:39 PM

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My next comment is from Ettarose at the Edge of Sanity, another bright and funny blogger, who I recommended you visit, that is, if you haven't already, at least once. hilarious.

I hate to tell you this but I have two things, One , I have not been by in so long and I am sorry. Two, here is my story. When I was growing up, I did not have any black friends only because where I grew up was predominately white. I remember my Father being so upset that a black family was moving in our neighborhood. Well as time went on we had more exciting neighbors. My Uncle came to visit one day and my little Sister had her girlfriend over(they were only around ten). When he saw her (yes she was black) he freaked out and left yelling. Needless to say he never as long as he lived came back. Now that is embarrassing! To this day I hate a racist.

July 1, 2008 4:46 PM

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yes, another great comment from Ferd at The Best Parts
whose family is perfect, however, he did manage to think of someone...who actually does sound pretty close to perfect to me... Thank you Ferd~

Great comments! I don't know if I can answer this one. My family is perfect.

Perfectly crazy that is! I don't know whom to choose!

I won't tell any stories, but among the most eccentric is my youngest daughter, Kelly, and I say that in the proudest way! She is her own person. She graduated with a chemistry degree from Arizona State, and her first job? Teaching dance lessons, of course! She is a top notch salsa dancer, and everything else. She wants to go to medical school... in Argentina! She is fluent in English and Spanish, and passable in French and Portuguese. She always has done things differently. It has sometimes been a wild ride being a parent to this exceptional (and eccentric) child.

And I agree with Dawn that she's insane.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My next comment is from Maunie, another pal who left an hilarious comment~

Thank you Maunie~

Ann...I win....I had an aunt Lil...she rode around in a convertible with her hair at least three colors and had the loudest voice ever...she thought the best complement was to tell the nieces that they were beautiful and...wait for it...looked just like her...everyone agreed that I looked the most like her...do you wonder why I'm nuts?

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My next comment is from the great "Speedy" at Speedcat Hollydale Page

When I was young and the family would visit my Great Grandparents, there was ALWAYS a routine. First they would get the 4 toys out for us, then everyone would sit down.
Grandma had a pillow collection, and they all had a story to go with ... and we heard each story every visit.
Grampa had a pipe, and coughed a lot. He had a bucket along side his chair to spit out the chunks of phlegm, and after he placed a kleenex on top. This was one ugly sight!
Grampa sang us songs and loved the hand trick - the one where the church doors open up and you can see all the people

"Here's the church, here is the steeple, open up the doors and look at all the people". ~ then he would ask me to go get him some lemon sour.

Sorry I'm late again. Today was my one day off :-)

Hugs to you

ps .... I noticed your personality test results were identical to mine. How interesting!! I took the same test and placed it in a post about a month back.

July 2, 2008 7:08 PM

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have two more great comments and it's July the third~ I think this is one of the best responses I've had on Tuesday's Question. I'm gonna have to keep leaving the post up longer. I've had a blast~

First, Sue at Farvel Cargo stopped by, and made me laugh for the second time today~ Thanks Sue~

They are all so very weird it's hard to pick just one! LOL! My mom had an uncle that lost a couple fingers and they called him Uncle Nub!

July 3, 2008 5:18 PM

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Then, I meet a new friend with a great blog. Karen at My Funny Dad, Harry which is Karen's blog based on her book of the same title. You really should check out Karen's site. I enjoyed myself and I'm couldn't be happier she stopped and contributed to Tuesday's Question. Thanks again, Karen~

My dad wasn't big on traveling. An hour trip was about the farthest we would go. One Sunday we went to our church campgrounds at Beulah Beach for a missionary rally.

Some people lived in cottages all year round up there. It had no parking lot but a lot of open grassy areas where cars could park for special events like this.

By the time we arrived though, the place was packed and the only parking left was on the lawns of the cottages. Well, my dad said it wasn't right to park on people's grass and he refused to do it, so we just came back home. I don't think we even got out of the car!

We did stop at McDonald's though which made us kids happy. We even had one of our friends with us which really caused embarrassment to my mom.

July 3, 2008 5:57 PM

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Just hanging out

annclemmons@hotmail.com (Ann) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 13:08:00 +0000

Hello, I ate the old author of this blog. I'm the new owner and I know it's Monday, Monday, but I'm tired...

Therefore, I put some of those other videos in draft and posted myself in the backyard hanging out on my new hammock- Why? Because it's fun and I don't like being responsible...so I'm not. I'm the new author of this blog and I'll do what I want...

I wonder if I have any peanut butter? Or better yet, peanut butter swirl ice cream...Hmmmm

Anywaaaay, while I'm resting please enjoy my most recent or most popular posts linked in the sidebar and further down the landing page. That is, if you're not like the average bear...too tired to scroll down.

But, it's o.k. if you're a bit sluggish- sometimes I'm bit idle myself - besides, I think the best posts are linked in the sidebar...or maybe not, I don't know...

looks to me like she has posts all over the place...

Gotta go...

Video from Bear 3360 on You Tube

I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Out Of My Hair

annclemmons@hotmail.com (Ann) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:34:00 +0000

I looked in the mirror after showering today and saw the first few strands of old lady hair, well actually, white grays that once were blond. I think of things out of the ordinary in the shower and today wasn’t any different. I sang the song, “Gonna Wash That Man Right Out Of My Hair” from the movie South Pacific, and thought about my past. And my past includes my ex-husband, who I think about every time I hear that song. I imagine washing him out of my hair then watching him swirl with the water down the drain in circular motion.

I considered other song titles that would have worked nicely for that South Pacific song, such as, "I ’m gonna cram that man right down the tub drain," or "toss his bags right out the front door"...I’ve come up with a few more, but I don’t want to bore you...

This morning, I contemplated how joyful it would be to have magical powers, like Samantha (Elizabeth Montgomery)Stevens had on the Bewitched Show. A few minutes with super power is all the time I need to shrink him to the size of Stuart Little, like "Endora" Sam’s mother did to Darin (Dick York) on the show. I laughed to myself at the thought of my downsized ex-husband.

Whose name I can’t use, by the way, because it's redundant and he may sue me for Simon. (My cat) Hence, I will call him "Dagwood", borrowed from Endora's incorrect use of Darin's name. Oh, it would be lovely to see Dagwood spin down the drain, shouting in a small voice....help me Annie, hon----ey, wha...in-the...Annie?

Only I can’t seem to wash any of the Dagwoods out of my hair, head, or heart. And I don't know why I would need Bewitched either, since this is my day or night dream but, I guess the show helped me create imagery.
I don't have dreams about past relationships often, or at least, I don't think I do, if I do, I don't recall them. So I whatever I dream at night sticks in a corner of my brain until morning, therefore when I awake it's a daydream. And although it's a daydream it still awakens my weary subconscious (a pushover anyway) which lets waves of nostalgia wash over me, and take me far away from now and tomorrow...to deal with wistful memories that belong to yesterday.

And yesterday is where my mind was this morning, when I was in the shower watching Dagwood twirl...After Dagwood and I split up, I remembered driving our two-year-old son to the park. And as I drove our baby, I pretended I was talking on his plastic toy phone in the car when we stopped at red lights- just to make him laugh. This was before cell phones, so people didn’t see each other using a phone in the car often, although, I’m sure all the super heroes and spies had phones, like Batman and Robin. My little boy loved to watch me talk on the phone in the car and I have to say a few grown-ups laughed too until the light turned green. Then, we went home to eat, read, and sleep- our golden retriever between us- but that was yesterday.

O.K. what was my topic? Oh yes, yesterday, and washing men out of my hair. I'm sorry, I was half awake when I started this post and I don’t think you ever get pass some loves; and sometimes more than one love will remain transfixed in your head awhile. I met someone I thought I may start over with but it didn’t work out, hence, I have to wash him out now too- I guess, I should replace my ex with him... a... let’s see, what should I call this one? - Dogwood- Yes, from now on the new small man going down the drain shall be Dogwood, the last man to bite the dust, spin in the wash, or go down the drain.

Although it doesn't matter, because I’m fine on my own- Also, I have Simon, my business partner (the computer) the fax machine and many friends. Although, they say married people live longer than single people, and that if you remain single too long...well...you begin to go cuckoo like a clock-

For example, if I began personifying objects and stuff like that I'm in trouble, but that’s not me...

I’m sorry excuse me a minute- my Microsoft Paper Clip just reshaped himself into what looks like a exclamation mark, then quickly acted as if he didn’t move...cheap trick- I wonder why the Paper Clip is mad at me now? I guess it’s just another way to attract my attention. "Hey you up there, I’m trying to write down here, some of us have to work, geez.."

You see Clippy Clip thinks I can’t write without him and gets mad when I ignore him. I remember writing the first draft of manuscripts in a notebook then typing the final draft on a typewriter. Where was Mr. Clippy Clip then?

I know you can't see him, but he's looking at me with his beady eyes because he realizes that people did write without him at one time, and it actually wasn’t that long ago- and I might add some still do- Moving on again, as I was pointing out, I’m fine and dandy, except that my undependable business partner (the computer) began to moan- groan- freeze and crash...this morning again. (His update said he was shutting down, because he didn’t feel good.) Hey, who does feel good, especially when they have three gray hairs…?

The Computer is such a baby; he will not even try to work through it when he feels bad- (some dedication) It’s sad, but my Computer, Clippy Clip, and the Scanner are my only co-workers and I believe two are males- I can tell that the scanner is a female because she can do more than one thing at a time.

That's another thing, if I did have another male here, he would probably be in my way, and my world would drive him bonkers. Besides, I'm not personifying anything yet, when that happens maybe I'll think about joining some kind of dating service.

Oh my gosh, Clippy Clip is rolling himself into a ball, like a doodlebug. All I see are eyes...oh he looks weird...now, it looks like he’s scratching his nose, and...wait...oh my gosh, what is he doing, oh I see, he’s putting on a pair of pants.

(I wonder if he is leaving because he's mad again?)
Have you ever seen your paper clip do this? O.k. now, I really do have to end this post, because Simon is squeezing his body through the window I left open upstairs- I can see his behind, but it looks as if the front of his body his halfway through... I better go get him….

Link to Dick York Image from google images.

Are We Born To Fulfill A Destiny? Readers Comments in Post-

annclemmons@hotmail.com (Ann) — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 16:33:00 +0000

Readers/Bloggers comments are posted after the main post with a link to their blogs~

This group of Tuesday's Question Participates had some interesting opinions about whether we're born to fulfill a destiny. What do you think?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hello, and welcome to the 38th Tuesday's Question posted on A Nice Place In The Sun. All participates answers will be posted today in this very post along with a link to their site, but you don't have to own a blog to participate. All you have to do is write your answer in comments and I will do the rest~

All participates are welcome to a Tuesday's Question Brag Badge posted with a code in the sidebar. The Brag Badge gives you the opportunity to bring your visitors to archived Tuesday's Questions where you can show off your ingenuity in past comments

Whether you are participating or reading I thank you for stopping by for a visit. Answers will be posted as quickly as possible throughout the day with a link to the bloggers who commented, therefore, don't forget to visit the participating bloggers blogs. Chances are if you liked their comments you will like their blogs. Have Fun, and remember Tuesday's Question is a weekly post of original questions, well, questions off the top of my head anyway. ~
My answer: When I was in the first grade I remember staring at the word author in a book we were reading. I don't know how to explain how I knew, but I knew I would write books or be a writer some day.

I remember it like it was yesterday, because I didn't want to write books; I wanted to be a veterinarian.

I've heard others say the same thing about their professions. An old friend of mine used to say she knew she would be a doctor. We've known each other since childhood, and all she did was talk about becoming a physician, the opposite of me, who avoided a scholarship to study English Literature at L.S.U.

Anyway over the years, my friend and I took many twists and turns that were taking us down an altogether different highway. I never dreamed that she would make it through medical school, or that I would live to write about anything. But she did become a doctor and I continued to turn down the wrong roads for awhile, until something miraculous happened- I grew up- and turned down the highway that brought me back to my passion- writing.

I took many chances and made some major mistakes that kept me away from writing for a long time. Although, I always wrote something down on paper, I didn't understand that what I was doing meant something deeper. And I didn't appreciate the gift I'd been given or what it meant... I had short stories, magazine articles, poems etc, stashed away in dusty piles in my mother antic-

In closing, I believe we are born with a destiny and as time marches on we either bump into it by accident, friendship, or opportunity.

It is up to us to keep our eyes open for the signs that help us make the right choices. Because fulfilling a destiny is what many call the road less traveled- if you're following the road your authentic self should be traveling, it will be a challenging, if not rewarding experience. However, if it's easy and comfortable, something is wrong with the road you're on - and you need to turn around~

Now, it's your turn: Is it determined before we are born what we will contribute to the world, or is it left up to chance?

My first comment is from my dear friend Dawn at Twisted Sister

"I don't know how to explain how I knew, but I knew I would write books or be a writer some day."

These kind of statements have always fascinated me because I have never felt that in my life. I often wonder why some people know what their calling is while others of us have no clue.
I missed the boat on this one Ann! If I'm here to fulfill some kind of destiny then I wish someone would let me in on the secret :D
I think this is one of your best questions so far... I only wish I could have answered it!

June 24, 2008 4:49 PM

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Next, another great friend Ferd from The Best Parts
gave a very well-written and articulate response:

I don't believe there is a pre planned destiny. But I know that each of us is blessed with a set of skills and talents, and cursed with a set of character defects. None of us are perfect. And then there are the factors of the family and socioeconomic conditions into which we are born, providing us with nurturing and opportunities or lack thereof. What we do with our lives comes out of all this.

As we develop as people, and come into our own, we do stuff. This stuff we do affects other people, in good ways and in bad. We do have a lot of choice in that matter. The facts and consequences of these actions become our "destiny."

I do hope that wasn't just a bunch of BS. I read it over and it sounds a little weird. I almost deleted it, but here goes.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Then, Dawn remembered that she did look for her destiny once:

Ann,
I often thought I must have hidden talents and I just need to find them... but I didn't have a map!
You're not the only one who wasn't born to perform brain surgery.LOL!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Then, my other dear friend Sandee at Comedy Plus gave us her opinion and another well-written perspective:

I think I was destined to have each different position that I had through the years and would grow to the end of that and realize that there was more that I could or needed to do.

When I was a waitress I thought that was the best job ever. Then I ran cocktails and that was even better. Then I was a bartender and I thought that would be my last job. Of course it wasn't, but you get the idea.

The last 25 of my working years I was truly doing what I was meant to do. So yes, I do think destiny plays a part in what you end up doing. There are many jobs, but when you find what you love destiny has shined on you. :)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My next comment came in on Wednesday from Maunie at Spring Wonderful Spring

Ann, honey, I still don't have a clue...In girl scouts we had to write letters to various people for different reasons..my letters were always chosen but my penmanship was so bad someone else would have to copy it over for me...my leaders said I would be a great comedy writer some day...
yeah sure..
anyway I too have tried many different things but still haven't found what I'm looking for...I think I was made to work with children in some capacity but what do I know...as usual I am rambling..I hate that about me..hope this gives you some insight...laughing...

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well, Maunie, you haven't just given me insight, you given me laughter~ Thank you~

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Special thanks to all of you for letting me get to know you a little better each week~ In some special way, I truly care about each of you, and thank you for sharing a piece of who you are individually with me each week~

Cheers and see you next week, if not, before...wait a minute...I don't suppose I will see you...anyway you know what I mean~ Cheers, until we meet again~ Bye~ Annie

Anyone else who would like to still comment I will be happy to post your answers, and share some link love- Also if you answered a comment you are eligible for a Tuesday's Question brag badge displayed in my sidebar.

A Tribute To George Carlin: "Take Care Of Yourself And Take Care Of Somebody Else."

annclemmons@hotmail.com (Ann) — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 15:57:00 +0000

George Carlin "passed away, expired, or met the big electron" yesterday at the age of 71. MSNBC described George as the "Anti-establishment icon who gained fame with his Seven Dirty Words routine." In addition, to mentioning the "legal legacy that led to a Supreme Court decision on broadcasting offensive language." MSNBC also noted that George was "The counterculture's hero;" a statement the comedian would've been pleased to read. Many of us, regardless of age or background, remember a George Carlin line or routine.

I remember my parents laughing at George on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson in the 1960's; and my friends and I laughing at the comedian on the same show years later.

My favorite George Carlin line is "Where's The Blue Food?" which I linked to here in another You Tube Clip.

Thank you for the laughs, George, and "I'll take care of myself and take care of somebody else."

George Carlin is one "countercultural hero" who will be sorely missed and remembered fondly by many generations- I hope he finds "blue food" in heaven.

Saturday's Favorite Movie Moment: Cat On A Hot Tin Roof

annclemmons@hotmail.com (Ann) — Sat, 21 Jun 2008 22:47:00 +0000

This Saturday's favorite movie moment is my favorite scene from the film adaptation of Tennessee Williams Pulitzer prize winning play by the same name Cat On A Hot Tin Roof.

The film stars Elizabeth Taylor as (Maggie "The Cat") and Paul Newman as (Brick Pollitt,) whose marriage is falling apart, although, as long as Maggie has anything to do with it, their marriage will appear just fine to the rest of the world, including family. The play centers around Maggie and Brick's visit to his families home in Mississippi to attend the birthday party of Brick's father "Big Daddy." (Burl Ives)

Tennessee Williams felt some parts of Bricks character and a High School friend's suicide bowdlerized or toned down the adaptation of the play, however, I enjoyed the film version and the written play. Brick Pollitt is an extremely complicated character, therefore both the play and the film adaptation are engrossing work.

This scene in the film depicts Maggie's unconditional love for Brick, and although Brick is conflicted, and angry, he does love Maggie as well- The movie and screenplay are made the way movies used to be filmed: that is, this finely tuned cast's acting is understated, yet passionate; and they perfectly time the melodramatic flare-ups common in a Southern household -

To wrap up my professional review (which gets three scoops of peanut butter fudge swirl: the highest rating) I listed some of my favorite dialogue...

The dialogue begins with Maggie, which is also in the clip:

Maggie:

Maggie: You know what I feel like?

I feel all the time like a cat
on a hot tin roof.

Brick: Then jump off the roof, Maggie.

Cats jump off roofs and land uninjured.
Do it. Jump.

Maggie: Jump where?

Into what?

Brick: Take a lover.

Maggie: I don't deserve that!

I can't see any man but you.

Even with my eyes closed, I just see you.

Why can't you get ugly, Brick?

Why can't you get fat or ugly or something,
so I can stand it?

Brick: You'll make out fine.
Your kind always does.

Maggie:I'm more determined than you think.

I'll win all right.

Brick: Win what?

What is the victory
of a cat on a hot tin roof?

Maggie:

Just staying on it, I guess...

...as long as she can.

Thank you Drew's Script-o-Rama for excerpt of Dialoque, and Wilkipedia for information about the play and movie. Link is in post

I hope you enjoyed this Saturday's Favorite Movie Moment, and that you're having a fantastic week-end.~