In Today's Sports News

The good news for (Mr. Pouty-face Mc-Cry Baby) Cam Newton?  He was paid a bonus of $51,000 for losing the Super Bowl!

The bad news?  Since The Big Game was played there, and based on its convoluted, confiscatory tax system, Newton will owe the state of Kalifornia $137, 900 in taxes on that little bonus. That's an effective tax rate of freaking 172.2%!!! Plus 40.5% to the IRS!!

Hardly seems worth the effort, does it?  Think again. If he had led his team to victory, he would have owed only 86.3% of the winners' bonus. Kinda makes you want to re-think that decision not to go after the fumble, doesn't it, Cam?

One must live with the consequences of his choices, young man. Take a lesson.

Also:

The oddly-named new Governor of Louisiana, John Bel Edwards, who apparently lied his way into office, addressed the State last night on this year's proposed budget. Louisiana's fiscal condition is kinda in quicksand right about now, and the Gov came up with an interesting idea for getting the citizenry on board with his plans for new taxes (after he had done a "Read my lips -- no new taxes" number on the voters before his election).

He let it slip that, theoretically, without an infusion of new funding, LSU would have to shut down before this spring semester is over, and, ultimately, that could result in no LSU Tigers football in the fall!!

I think that, rather than getting taxpayers on board, his suggestion is more likely to lead to what ultimately took out another populist governor, Huey P. Long. It is the SEC, after all.

And, unbelievably, Grandson #1 turns 16 today!  How can he be 16? He was just crawling yesterday! His father wished him a happy birthday on Facebook thusly: "Lookout, everyone! This young man is about to head out into the world in a 3,000 4x4. If you were scared before.....be very afraid now.

Proud of you, buddy. I love you. Happy 16th!"

But, The Son sent this text to our family: "No big party or anything, but if you guys want to drop by tonight to see Will, he will be home around 7. I'll be here drinking whiskey and trying not to think about what I just turned loose in the world." Ah, parenthood.

Happy birthday, Will!!!

61 and Counting!

This is what Mr. Google posted on its home page for me today:

How do it know?

Merry December 2014, and Happy 2015!

I love this time of year -- especially when things are going well and our loved ones are healthy and happy. And, praise be, that is the case again this year. No heart surgery for Pepper this year; no gut surgery for me! Plus, we have our Miracle Mysti who is back to her old sassy self:

And we still have one of the Litter -- now known as Bouie Junior by his new family -- among the living.  He has developed a habit of digging in the backyard, and had the misfortune of disturbing a sleepy Copperhead while engaging in that craft. This is what he looked like on December 23rd:

Doesn't that just break your heart?!?!  Fortunately, his new family knew him well enough to know he was in trouble and got him to the Emergency Vet (cha-ching!!) in the middle of the night where he received the lifesaving medical attention he needed. Here he was yesterday:

Much better! His eyesight doesn't appear to be impaired either, so he's the most recent Christmas Canine Miracle. I can't decide whether he favors Mysti more, or Bouie, but he's a handsome lad indeed.

Yes, the tree still stays up until Epiphany -- January 6, so I am still permitted to send out wishes for a Merry Christmas!  January 6th also happens to be the kick-off of the Carnival Season, so Moogie's Manor needn't go without excessive decor for even a moment! This was on Christmas Eve before the grands arrived and pandemonium ensued. Daughters thought that building gingerbread houses might be a good way to entertain the young ones (read "distract" them!) until time to demolish the wrapping paper:

I think they did pretty well! (And the distraction worked! For awhile.)

Although he was one of our best gifts of all times, Bouie was pretty wiped out on Christmas Day:

A week before the Christmas revelry, we celebrated Pepper's birthday at the Manor with a Family Dessert (spelled, "Moogie didn't have to prepare and clean up after an entire meal.") How cool, and yummy, is an Apple-Pie-Baked-Into-A-Chocolate Birthday Cake?!?! (I did bake the cake!  Recipe available on The Food Network.)

Dang that was tasty!

Included in the season's gatherings were the three yellow sisters from the litter. That's our Yap on the left, little Chelsea in the middle, and Persi (short for Persephone) on the right:

Here are a few more dog pics because, these days, I smile every time I look at our pups (as long as one of them isn't shredding something or tracking in muddy prints). And, I still marvel at Mysti's and Bouie's stamina and ability to heal from the most dire of mishaps. (P.S. -- Yap now has veterinary insurance!):

Daddy and Daughter

Mama and Daughter

 Playtime!

Can you believe how she's grown? Nearly 5 months.

These make our family complete.

So, we're still enjoying Christmas decor:

We're enjoying the decor, except for one item. Pepper received a gift that now graces the windowsill of the Water Closet in our bathroom. That's the perfect place to display it because seeing that smug, Imperial face leering down at you just scares the s**t out of you.

Who needs laxatives?!?!

Sorry. Couldn't resist.

Happy New Year!!

A Labor Day Weekend to Remember

The joint is jumping at Moogie's Manor!

The puppies are growing!  They're so very smart! At 3 1/2 weeks they figured out to go to the far end of the pen to do their business so they don't soil their sleeping area. We had to abandon the puppy pool because it ceased to be a containment area -- more like a mild obstacle to freedom. Several have been spoken for (including ours!), so I have no doubt they will all find good, loving homes -- many nearby, so we'll be able to follow their progress. They recognize us and want us to play whenever they're awake -- it melts my heart to see a puppy looking at me with affection. And probably hunger! We'll start them on cereal this weekend. Here's a little puppy playtime from this afternoon -- their 4-week birthday (featuring the escape artist I have nicknamed "Dora, the Explorer."):


I was spirited to a friend's cabin on the Little Red River last Friday (Elder Daughter volunteered to spend the night here to watch the puppies) for a delightful evening complete with good food, good conversation, and a long, heavy rainfall which we enjoyed from the screened porch. Pepper got to do a little fly fishing on Saturday morning, and we had a nice lunch at The Red Apple Inn before heading back to Little Rock to watch the Razorbacks "entertain" the Auburn Confused Mascots at The Son's House.

Except, we didn't watch the game at The Son's House. We watched it at Moogie's Manor along with a large number of our friends at my Surprise Sixtieth Birthday party!

To be honest, I had deduced that there was going to be a party, but I had no idea it was going to be here! Daughters cleaned nicely (thank goodness!) and moved (read, "hid") all kinds of tchotchkes so they could do a Moogie-centric decorating scheme, with Razorback flourishes. (I'm still locating stuff!) There was good food, lots of laughs, and semi-decent football (at least until the fourth quarter).

Is that a fabulous cake, or what!

The book is one I gave my mother years ago -- The Southern Lady. I love that my girls think of me that way.

 

Elder Daughter spent a lot of time in contact with the yearbook at the U of A. They sent her several pics of me that appeared in a Volume from a "few" years back. This is my favorite. It proves to me that I didn't really just make this up in my head. Here is Moogie, calling the Hogs, along with a few friens. Do you see me? There was a lot less of me to love back then:

And, as Younger Daughter pointed out, even Buddha was calling the Hogs!

I have a wonderful, sneaky family!

And, at age 60, I have nine puppies who need to be entertained several times during the night. So, I. Am. Tired!

Happy weekend!

Operating With a Heavy Heart

I've been AWOL.  Not really sure why. All I know is that I've been very introspective the last week or two. I've reached a stage in my life where time seems either to stand still or move past like a blur.

Last Thursday, my Daddy celebrated his 85th birthday!  Well, we celebrated it -- he tolerated it.  Pepper and I took lunch to him and had a nice visit.  He even agreed to come to our house on Sunday for a belated cake fest with his grandkids and great-grandkids. (Daddy has advanced COPD and requires three lung treatments per day, plus oxygen, so his trips out are few, even though he still drives during the day.) Everyone was going to be here -- what fun!

Except . . .

Except that  the previous Saturday, SIL#2's 24 year-old stepbrother was gravely injured in a horrific motorcycle accident.  He had been in what was supposedly a medically induced coma in ICU, undergoing tests and surgeries to stabilize his battered and broken body.  His father posted photos of the Crotch Rocket, before and after, on his Facebook page.  If you hadn't seen the Before photo, you wouldn't have been able to tell what was being featured in the After photo.

Daddy had already gotten here when Younger Daughter called.  They had been summoned to the hospital and wouldn't be able to come over.  Four hours later, Chris was gone, leaving behind a shell-shocked and grieving family, including a three year-old son.  He survived deployment to Iraq, but not Interstate 440.

Time stood still for his family for more than a week.

Now, time paces inexorably forward and the healing struggles to begin.  The family has a very strong faith and knows that they will all be reunited in the next plane. But, even holding onto that promising certainty, they are hurting. And we hurt for them.

Elder Daughter is also hurting for the loss of a college friend the day before the accident -- a sorority sister who always stood beside her -- and who left this world by her own hands.  She grieves the loss of her friend, yet the friend's passing gave Elder Daughter the impetus to communicate with their pledge class, and, in the process, to exorcise -- in a healthy way -- some demons she's been carrying around for years.

So, even though it's Spring and life is popping out all around us, a cloud hovers over the sun.

Still, I just walked down the hall and spied a little stuffed hippopotamus (or "hickeymapotus," as Elder Daughter used to say) hanging out by a door, where Grandbaby #4 left him yesterday in all his toddler busy-ness.  How can seeing that not bring a smile to the face?  There is joy yet in this sometimes cruel world. And, I intend to hold onto that joy.  So, here is the picture I posted to my Facebook page yesterday while the party was going on, captioned, "Pants and shoes?  I don't need no stinkin' pants and shoes at Boompie's 85th birthday party!"

And time marches on, clutching joy in its weary hands.

Don't you just want to smooch that precious, innocent face?

COLLEGE GAMEDAY and 17 Candles . . .

. . . for our little Rosie!  Since she can't see them to blow them out, the 17 candles are metaphorical, but we wish her the happiest birthday ever anyway!  Here's last year's birthday post:

Happy Belated Birthday . . .

. . . to our Rosie! On January 6th she attained the ancient and revered age of 16. In people years!

These pics were made back when she could still see and get around by herself outdoors. She used to love to sit on the porch in the sun and watch the world go 'round, and yap at me to prepare her supper faster.

She's still a feisty little thing, despite having suffered several strokes that took her voice. She's recovered her hearing now and her sense of smell. She still likes to sniff around the front yard (and our dinner plates!), but I can't leave her unattended outdoors anymore. She walks in circles, and I'm too scared she'd somehow get under the house and I couldn't get to her.

She may not be with us too much longer, but I'm going to treasure each and every day that she walks around in circles on the bed and wipes her face on me after she eats.

Sixteen years is a long time to love someone.

If she could only tell all the stories she must have on my kids!

She has fallen off the bed two nights this week and hit the ground pretty hard.  I'm afraid her back legs are getting to be a little more than she can handle -- they aren't working too well lately.  I don't want her to suffer, but we're not quite to that rainbow bridge yet.  I get to cuddle with her a little bit longer.  Because . . .

She certainly wouldn't want to miss hearing the Razorbacks rough up Kansas State in the Cotton Bowl tonight!!  WPS!!!

Those Undomesticated Pussycats are gonna find out that they aren't in Kansas any more.

Army Birthday and Flag Day 2011

A very important day in the U.S.A.!  Sa-lute!

This yummy cake was served at the Grand Opening of the new Commissary at Belle Chasse NAS/JRB in March.  I've been saving this picture just for this day!  Hooah!

(Plus, the Brass finally came to its collective senses, listened to enlisted and non-coms, and did away with that cumbersome beret for everyday ACU.  Back to the field cap at last!  The beret is all right for dress uniforms, but it's kinda silly and a pain in the neck for ACUs.  I just wish they'd done it 9 years ago so that Pepper wouldn't have had to spend all that time shaping and shaving the silly things.  But, I'm still not sure why the term switched from "Battle Dress Uniform" to "Army Combat Uniform."  I guess hopey-change-for-change's-sake has been going on longer than we suspected.)

Moogie Gets Reflective -- and More Smarter

Now that life seems to be returning to normal around Moogie's Mansion (whatever that may be!), I'd like to share a few ruminations that have been rattling around in my head.

First off, our precious granddaughter, Princess Lizzy, turned 3 on January 14th!  Oddly enough, this odd blog also turned 2 on that very same day.  So Happy Birth-iversary to us, Lizzy Lou!!!

I looked back at last year's Blogiversary post, and found it pretty tame and standard.  It was, however, absolutely true in its simplicity.

Nonetheless, I've learned a lot about life, and the blogosphere, since last year. 

Life is mainly about relationships.  It's odd how the human psyche craves relationships.  We may have the best friends and families on the face of the Earth that fulfill us to no end, yet we still yearn for more contact.  We "adopt" pets, we cultivate plants, we name our automobiles.  Even the Cast Away dude made a friend of Wilson, the basketball, and grieved its loss at sea.

Today, we spend hours in cyberspace, both in Social Media and the blogosphere, trading yarns, opinions, and barbs with people we've never laid eyes upon in person, yet feel as comfortable around as the chums we made in elementary school.  That's the spot where I find myself today. 

That's also where I didn't find myself in late December - early January when my routine was discombobulated by the holidays, merriment, serious footballage, and the onset of Carnival.  And I have since learned that the discombobulance made a difference to, and had an effect on, me on several levels.

First off, I missed you guys!  I missed having the opportunity to visit your spots a couple of times a day to catch up on what you were doing and to leave a snarky (or supportive) comment.  I missed having the time to post the fruits of my brilliant discourse and analysis, prodding some of you to leave snarky (or supportive) comments here.  I may not ever say it, but I truly do appreciate your comments.  As many of you have already admitted, I now openly acknowledge that it really does mean a lot for people to take the time to think about what I've come up with and type a reaction or two.  That's a connection that is very, very real, regardless of tactility. 

And there.  That word, tactility.  I wouldn't have come up with that word last week.  I wouldn't have come up with that word because of the Second  Lesson I've learned about this blogging thing.

Bloggers are among the best informed folks around; they're the best researchers, the cleverest wits, unafraid to express their true opinions and duel with those whose opinions differ.  Becoming that type of folk requires a great deal of intellectual work.  And that was another thing I missed during the holiday hiatus -- the intellectual work.  I physically worked my derriere into near exhaustion with important, yet mundane things, like hostessing and housework and feast-making, but I finally recognize that I need more than that to keep my brain on its toes. Use it or lose it is a very real concept.  Probably more so as we age.  It hit me square in the noggin last week when I had to ask Pepper while we were watching a movie what the name of that town is -- you know, the capital of Norway.  Not the capital of Sweden; the capital of Norway.

Today, after just a few days of regular research and blogging, I'd never have to Google Oslo. 

That's pretty much of a major relief in the Alzheimer's fear sphere.

So.  To keep me properly befriended and on my mental toes, I vow not to let my research and blogging slip as much in the future.  Watching non-stop movies in the company of family, and sharing drinks with corporeal friends are important, but the ol' brain needs its daily recommended dose of gritty stimulation, too.

(It probably didn't hurt the mental mush, either, that Congress was in recess and I could shove them into a drawer in my head and ignore them for a few weeks.  Congress is definitely a stimulus, both to lucidity and to the blood pressure.)

Again, so.  Here's to another year rattling around the blogosphere, and to my friends and families, both physical and virtual!!!  Good health, good times, and bon mots!!!!!

Love, MoogieP.

Happy Belated Birthday . . .

. . . to our Rosie!  On January 6th she attained the ancient and revered age of 16.  In people years!

These pics were made back when she could still see and get around by herself outdoors.  She used to love to sit on the porch in the sun and watch the world go 'round, and yap at me to prepare her supper faster.

She's still a feisty little thing, despite having suffered several strokes that took her voice.  She's recovered her hearing now and her sense of smell.  She still likes to sniff around the front yard (and our dinner plates!), but I can't leave her unattended outdoors anymore.  She walks in circles, and I'm too scared she'd somehow get under the house and I couldn't get to her.

She may not be with us too much longer, but I'm going to treasure each and every day that she walks around in circles on the bed and wipes her face on me after she eats.

Sixteen years is a long time to love someone.

If she could only tell all the stories she must have on my kids!

Happy 374th Birthday!

To the National Guard!  Take a big breath and blow out all those candles!

Musings on Pop Culture and Friendship

Moogie recently watched age 55 disappear in the rear-view mirror.  It was a little-heralded birthday, but pleasant nonetheless, especially so because Pepper took me out to dinner -- even made the reservation all by himself! -- and I didn't have to clean up the kitchen.  I love to cook; don't like to clean up the kitchen.

I'm not sure why, but one of my very favorite things in the world is goofy cocktail napkins.  My bestest buddy Diane, who lives most of the time in Hong Kong now, called on my birthday and I opened my gift from her while we were chatting and sharing a long-distance cup of coffee (isn't that skype thingy amazing?!) 

Are you ready for this?

She knows me waaaay too well!