You Might Be A Bad Potato

Something woke me recently...it sounded like a murmuring of voices.  As I quietly tiptoed down the stairs, I realized it was coming from my pantry.  I opened the door and...

What?  Aren't you just waiting on tenterhooks wanting to know what happened?  Of course, you know I will tell you but the title of this post might give you a clue!  Okay then,  here is the rest of the story!

... I was shocked to see three potatoes angrily staring at me with their beady black eyes.  "What are you looking at?", said one with a snarl.   My reply, " I thought you were just potatoes!"
Then, the second one spoke up, 
"No, we are aliens.  When you eat a bad potato, you become one of us and we are going to take over the WORLD!"


Now, was this a dream?  Or did this really happen?   My friends, you have been warned!  Don't eat any bad potatoes. Keep the world safe from these alien creatures, they are plotting against us as we sleep, with their beady black eyes...
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My friend Dusty, who died recently, would have loved this! I have to share this with you...one of the main things that I remember him saying to me was simply this: "You're funny". 
  I treasure that!  

You're Wondering Now

"Murder In Paradise" is a TV show that my husband and I both enjoy and one of the main reasons is for the gorgeous scenery.  Filmed on the fictional island of St. Marie it is really the lovely Guadeloupe in the Caribbean.  The theme music is a tune that I had never heard before (and they didn't list it in the credits so I couldn't look it up!)

However, in the last episode that I saw, the music playing in the background at the end of the show was the same as the theme music! The song is "You're Wondering Now". Many artists have redone this song over the years but it pleased me that they chose to use the original ska version by Andy and Joey from 1961 at the end of that particular show.

Now, there IS a name listed in the credits for the music in "Murder In Paradise" and that name is "Magnus Fiennes".  Hmm....could he be any relation to the actors Ralph Fiennes and Joseph Fiennes?
He is, they are all brothers!  They have one other brother who is a conservationist and two sisters, both film makers.

Here, I have the theme music for you from "Murder In Paradise"
(I will miss the very tall Kris Marshall who has left the show but I know I will also like Ardal O'Hanlon, an Irish comedian/actor that I remember from "Father Ted" and "My Hero".) 

No tropical beaches for me but I do know someone who has a nice pool!

Great Britain

In 1977, the James Bond film "The Spy Who Loved Me" was very popular.  Richard remembers seeing this in London that year in Leicester Square and at the end of the video that I have shown you above,  he said that the whole audience cheered! (And I noticed that one of the comments on YouTube for this clip said exactly the same thing!)
Sir Roger Moore died today.  He will always be 007 to me!
Safe landings to him.

The tragedy in Manchester weighs heavily upon the world.
Praying for all.

The Flowers That Bloom In May

Though April showers may come your way,
They bring the flowers that bloom in May.
So if it's raining, have no regrets,
Because it isn't raining rain, you know, (It's raining violets,)
And where you see clouds upon the hills,
You soon will see crowds of daffodils,
So keep on looking for a blue bird, And list'ning for his song,
Whenever April showers come along.

My friends, I have found it impossible lately to blog and I do hope you have all managed to somehow get along without me! (Yes, I know it must be very hard but you are all so strong!) 

Richard and I attended Dusty's funeral on Saturday.  It was very sad, of course but it was also very uplifting and moving.  There was music and laughter along with the tears.  One young man, who told us that Dusty was a mentor for him, sang a song on his guitar that he had written about Dusty.  One of the lines, "He lived his whole life putting smiles on the faces of the people he met", had everyone nodding in agreement.  At the end, he was given a standing ovation. How Dusty would have loved that!

At the end of the service, two guitarists played and sang the beautiful hymn,  "How Great Thou Art".  I love that song so much, I quietly sang, wishing that they would ask us to sing too.  Then, they DID ask us to sing along! (Did they plan that or did they hear others singing too?) It was beautiful, "Sing for Dusty!", one of them said and you know I did!

It is a beautiful hymn but it was perfect for Dusty, for someone who loved life and nature and expressed joy and love as best as anyone I ever knew.

I found a video of Alan Jackson singing the song for you.

Like Dusty, he is a Georgia boy!

Dusty Gillham, Southern Gentleman- Rest In Peace

Dusty Gillham lost his battle with cancer today.  Besides being an all around great guy AND an Eagle Scout,  he was also an award winning songwriter.  I found a video of him on YouTube talking about songwriting and even though the picture is grainy, I can hear Dusty's wonderful voice and that makes it very special to me.  I worked with Dusty for many years at the travel agency and worked there when I was pregnant with my son.  (Several of us were pregnant at the same time, it was great to leave the notes on Dusty's desk telling him of our pregnancies! You should have seen his face, priceless!)

Remember when our son formed a band a few years back?  When I called Dusty and told him that Christopher was going to be on stage, he made sure that he was there!  He got there that night before Richard and I did and he even bought food for all the guys in the band! That was Dusty for you.
If you ever wonder what a Southern gentleman looks like or sounds like, just watch the video that I have here for you.  Now you know.

P.S.  If any of Dusty's family or close friends stumbles upon this blog, please know that I am thinking of you all and you have my sincere condolences. Dusty, you were right, there are a LOT of people who are missing you.

Masterpiece Theatre- Home Fires

Next week on Masterpiece Theatre...NOT Home Fires!  What?

If you live in America, you might enjoy Masterpiece Theatre on PBS as much as I do.  The most recent series shown was "Home Fires" about the Women's Institute in England during World War II.  Marvelous storyline and great acting as you would expect from a fine British cast.  Were you shocked recently when you were shown the previews for the following week and they showed us scenes about ...oh, I don't know, something about a film of Charles becoming King?  Say what? What happened to "Home Fires"?

I looked it up and it seems that those who were behind "Home Fires" were as shocked as we were when it was cancelled.  The writer, Julie Summers, has written about it and I have a link for you just here.  She calls this piece "Home Fires Extinguished".   There are worst things in life but honestly, the last episode really left us all hanging!    (Julie Summers wrote the book "Jambusters" about the Women's Institute and "Home Fires" was developed from this.  What does "Jambusters" mean?  I have a link to a piece in the Daily Mail where Julie Summers will tell you all about it! Read it here!)

There have been times lately that all that keeps me going is a soft, comfy chair and lovely English accents washing over me.  And yes, they very often send me off to sleep and I have to re-wind the episodes to catch up on what I have missed!  (Hey, you don't have to know ALL the great excitement of my life, do you?)

Tomorrow is Mother's Day in America, so I have a photo here of Richard's mother, Joan and his aunt, Doreen in England.  There, I have given you two mothers and I know that Joan was also in the Women's Institute, they call it W.I. over there.

Happy Mother's Day to all my sweet friends and family who are mothers.  Keep the home fires burning!

Moina Michael-The Poppy Lady

Moina Michael, a fellow Georgian, was the woman behind the idea of using the poppy as a symbol of  remembrance for veterans of war.  She is buried in a small family plot in Monroe, Georgia. 
She got the idea from the poem "In Flanders Fields" by the Canadian,  Col. John McCrae.  I encourage you to learn more about Moina Michael and one of the best links I have for you is from the UK, of course! You may find it just here.  Moina Michael titled her autobiography "The Miracle Flower" and dedicated it to Col. John McCrae.

Debra, also from Canada, has a wonderful blog and she has written of her family's connection to Charles Walker, who died at the battle of Vimy Ridge on May 8, 1917.  Please, take the time to read her post.  We need to remember Charlie and others like him.  Her post is  just here.
(If anyone ever asks me why I like to blog, I think I would direct them to this one post by Debra.)

                                Poppies at the Tower of London, each poppy representing a fallen soldier from Britain or the Commonwealth. By the time this exhibit was finished, the moat was full of these ceramic poppies.

C.S. Lewis, Tolkien, Lewis Carroll, Rudyard Kipling, And J. M. Barrie-All British!

Last weekend, I went to a baby shower that was at a children's bookstore! Isn't that a great idea? It was a fabulous place, beautifully decorated. In the photo above, just to the right beside the teepee reading area, there is a circular door in the wall and that is the Hobbit reading room!

   The theme for the shower was "Neverland" and of course, is from "Peter Pan". 

There is a very large wardrobe and when you open the doors...

You walk past the hanging coats into Narnia! (Also used as their story telling area.)

It did make me wonder if anyone who comes into this book store realizes how many of the authors represented here are from the British Isles.

Now, let me just say that I love children's books and they do not HAVE to be written by someone from Britain to be wonderful.
Haven't I told you of my love for Dr. Seuss? (Theodore Seuss Geisel was a genius in my book.) And not to mention the man who gave us the characters of Charlie Brown, Snoopy and Lucy, among others...Charles Schulz!  (Strictly speaking, he was a cartoonist but hey, these were made into children's books too, you know!) Both of these men were Americans and in my opinion, should have their own tables represented at this bookstore!  Hey, maybe the owners should ask me...you know I would tell them! 

Eric Carle is another author that had his own table in the bookstore and he is American!  He was one of our son's favorite authors!

So, don't anyone get into a huff that I noticed all these British authors, but being Georgia Girl With An English Heart, you knew that I would and have to point it out to you!

Oh! And it was a beautiful baby shower, by the way!

Can you spot my present above?   Here, I will make it easier for you...

Well, you know I must have a song for you!  Ralph McTell is from Croydon, England and his "Alphabet Zoo" was a favorite of our son's.  Holly the Hedgehog!

I Dream of England (And New Luggage!)

I dreamed that I was in England...but then, I woke up.

So, I just went back in time and looked at some photos.

Hope you like these too!

Never fear, my trusty American Tourister carry on will be ready when I am!  I received this as a high school graduation present in 1975.  They don't make luggage like this anymore!  Like me, it's not old, it's VINTAGE!
Am I the only one who holds on to old things because I am so cheap thrifty?
Come on, tell me something that you have that is older than this golden carry-on bag!