Upside Down Cats

Happy Birthday to this lady, my fabulous mother-in-law, Sharon. This year we get to celebrate with her in person...YAY!

I've got an idea...how about I bake the birthday cake?

Here's a preview...it's called Bonnie Butter Cake with French Silk Frosting. Oh, and don't forget the Oatmeal Butterscotch Walnut Cookies!

Today we celebrate all that you are, all that you give and all that you will be. Here's to many more celebrations throughout the years surrounded by your loving family.

I love you, Mom! You're more than my Sweetie's mother, you're my dear friend.

Wishing you the blessings of health, good fortune and happiness today and always.

Here's an unattributed quote I came across today that seemed perfect for the occasion:

"Birthdays are nature's way of telling us to eat more cake."

Enjoy!

About a year ago I wrote about a particularly harrowing encounter with "Spiderzilla." At that time I expressed my revulsion for spiders in no uncertain terms

...but then today, along came a spider, and...

Continue reading "Perfect Circles " »

George Carlin and I share a birthday - well, the day, not the year. That fact has always made me feel a special kinship with him, as fellow members of the May 12th Club. It's silly, I know, but I feel the same connection to Emilio Estevez, Katherine Hepburn, Yogi Berra, Burt Bacharach, Tom Snyder, Stephen Baldwin, Bruce Boxleitner, Billy Squier, Gabriel Byrne, our dear friend Stacy and, of course, Florence Nightingale. It never ceases to amaze me how much I have in common with each and every one of these intelligent, charming and talented people!

George has been among my favorite comedians - and public people - all my life. What a multi-faceted talent! His blend of sharp, insightful and fearless comedy makes me laugh and think simultaneously. He is responsible for a large part of my sense of humor and world view. It should come as no surprise that he appears on the guest list for my fantasy dinner party along with a plethora of other fascinating people.

Continue reading "George On My Mind" »

The best portion of a good man's life is his little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and of love. - William Wordsworth (1770-1850)



As a daycare provider I eagerly take on the responsibility of teaching children the basics of how to be nice people. Now that the youngest of our little daycare family is two years old, we are focusing more on behavior - and less on diapers (and I am not complaining about that!).

I am currently trying to teach my group of daycare children to choose to do the right thing...cooperation, altruism, the golden rule and all that rot...

Continue reading "Gina's Quotes Du Jour (Wordsworth & McCartney)" »

Submitted for your approval: Gina's Quote Du Jour 4/10/08

The hardest job kids face today is learning good manners without seeing any. - Fred Astaire

I had no idea the talented Mr Astaire was so astute...

My Sweetie Scott found this quote quoted on Execupundit recently and he knew I would want to comment on it.

Scott knows how I feel about manners - or the lack of them. It's a common topic of conversation when I return home from battling the crowds at the grocery store or debrief after a day spent with the children in my daycare.

I usually come home from my weekly excursion to the supermarket completely frustrated with the state of humanity. What a collection of selfish, clueless idiots I encounter! That's all it takes...two hours among the general public to convince me that the human race is headed down the tubes...

Continue reading "Lost (Manners) In The Supermarket" »

Happy Thanksgiving and welcome to my NaBloPoMo post (and quote) du jour!

Most holiday celebrations center around certain elements that distinguish each...family gatherings, gift exchanges, fireworks, picnics, goofy hats and noisemakers...

In recognition of the holiday we Americans celebrate today, I want to write about the power of these traditions to bring people together, and remind us of our place in the world and in history.

Continue reading "It's Tradition..." »

"You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take." - Wayne Gretzky

Who would ever think I would quote a hockey player...or even know without looking it up that Wayne Gretzky is/was a hockey player!

Anyway...I didn't have anything profound to say about this being my 100th post on Upside Down Cats, but I thought I'd mark the occasion subtly with an inspirational quote which includes "100."

Mr G. is right...if I don't try, I can't score! So here's to taking chances with the hope of racking up some points!

He's pretty wise for a hockey player...

"You finally figured out the girl in your heart isn't the girl in your dreams. Some people don't figure it out all their lives."

This is a quote from the movie, If Lucy Fell, written by Eric Schaeffer and Tony Spiridakis.

 

When I read this, I was immediately reminded of the times when I've realized that I'm not - strictly speaking - Scott's type. When he's mentioned the girls and women he thought were attractive in his formative and "pre-me" years, I am always struck by the fact that I don't resemble any of them in any way...Christie Brinkley, Raquel Welch, Cheryl Ladd or Judy Landers...

(sigh...)


It seems to me there are two possible reasons for the fact that he wound up with a girl who looks nothing like his fantasy girls...One, his tastes have changed - a lot.




Or, two, he is in love with something in addition to my physical appearance, which makes me perfectly suited for him. Like the quote from the movie...I'm the girl in his heart.



 



 

 

 

Of course, I choose to believe the latter is true.



Continue reading "Gina's Quote Du Jour (Schaeffer & Spiridakis)" »

Somebody recently told me that Zen practice can be summed up as waking up in the morning and saying “Whatever” and going to bed at night and saying “Oh, well.”

I discovered this quote recently while reading a blog written by Malvina Reynolds' daughter, Nancy Schimmel, called Writing Malvina.

I would love to live this way...to embrace each new day and all its promise, ready and willing to experience anything and everything. It would be so empowering to wake up in the morning feeling that I am at peace with whatever happens and that it is all ok...

I would know I'd truly made strides toward becoming the person I want to be if, at the end of the day, I could shrug off the day's shortcomings and disappointments with, not a flippant, but wise, "Oh well..."

I really am trying to grow toward that sense of peace. I suppose - like any new skill - it's a day by day process of learning and adjusting my mindset. The most important aspect for me to remember is that I am on that journey...

“Words make you think a thought. Music makes you feel a feeling. A song makes you feel a thought.” - E. Y. (Yip) Harburg, lyricist of ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’

Recently I was reading Malvina Reynolds' daughter, Nancy Schimmel's blog, Writing Malvina and I discovered this quote. It struck me as the perfect answer to a question Scott and I often ponder and discuss, "Are song lyrics poetry? Can they stand alone and convey the same meaning as they do when accompanied by their music?"

Our consensus was (usually) that although lyrics often can stand up to analysis in much the same way as a poem, there is some indefinable difference between the two.

I think this quote colorfully illustrates why, as far as a song is concerned, in order to convey the entire experience, the words and music are inseparable.