Ode to Idah...and My Take on Catsup

Wow, I actually liked Forrest book review on Dal's. Well done, Forrest. I especially like the part about embracing different. Being normal is hard work...and boring. Being yourself is the only way to be!

I also like the words "...mellow class, wistfully, all of us would have." Wise words for a belligerent generation.

And look at that...he used the word "captions" again!

I wrote this little whatever this is last night:

Combat lies with kindness,
Counter hate with love,
Fight your wars with peace,
And you will rise above.

Anyway, it's a lot of fun to stumble upon books like that.

Okay, so I finally had time to read the question about F's military career. First of all, it's funny to note that of all the horrors Forrest must have witnessed, he chose a cute little story about a "catsup" bottle in the "mess" hall to tell us about. I like that. Remembering humorous anecdotes is much more pleasing in the retelling.

When I read this Q&A, certain things "stick out."

First, "memory harkens."

That's a different way of saying "memory listens (or hears)." Hmmm, a little odd phrasing, don't you think?

Harkens comes from a German word, kleu (also interesting), and means "to hear." So, we have Forrest's "hearing" this memory. Maybe his mind takes him back to the sounds of the mess hall--the clinking of silverware and plates being set down on tables, laughter, chatter, and the noises that frequently occupy a school cafeteria.

But there are other curious sound related phrases in this answer.

"His LOOK TOLD me..." The "Mess Sergeant's" LOOK spoke words to Forrest. Maybe that's why Forrest hates "texting machines." They don't have the ability of expression, which is a vital part of communication. It's very hard to communicate expression on a phone, and emoji's are a rather sorry reproduction of the thousands of expressions a human face can convey.

"...slapped in his face by his words..." Words can't physically hurt us...but they can wound, and are sometimes more damaging than people imagine. I remember one time Aidan, when she was about five, came downstairs with a dress that she couldn't quite get on a hanger. My ex MIL was visiting, and she used a forbidden word in our household, and Aidan has never forgotten it. My MIL snapped, "What are you? Stupid?" Then snatched the hanger out of Aidan's hand and put the dress on the hanger herself. I was appalled, as Aidan was clearly "slapped in the face" by her rash and unkind words. The sad thing is, she didn't realize how damaging the word "stupid" is to a child.

"...decided to shut up..." This shows us that Forrest took a minute to think before opening his mouth. Another good lesson. Sometimes being quiet is better than being right.

There are also a few interesting references to sight in this Q&A. I've already mentioned the "look" that told FF he should've eaten the glass-riddled "catsup."

Then there's:

"...rarely saw one (officers)."
"...battle chevrons glared with impunity." Now that's an interesting one. First, I didn't know there were "battle chevrons," because there aren't. Chevrons are the stripes that denote military rank, and six stripes is indeed a Master Sergeant. Five stripes (or "5 bar", or 5 inverted chevrons) in a "V"shape and one chevron (not inverted) at the top.

So, does Forrest imply earning those chevrons and moving up in rank was a battle in itself? To become a "Master" in anything is not usually an easy journey. Maybe that's why Forrest wasn't sure just being a "Major" didn't necessarily "rank" (left "out") a "Master." Being a "Master" sure sounds better, doesn't it?

And interesting that the word "master" originates from a word that means "to acquire complete knowledge." Another early meaning was from the German word, meister, which means "he who is greater."

Chevrons have also been used in architecture, and in ancient rock writing. Looks like the Indian symbol for water, doesn't it?

It's also sorta funny to note that Canadian forces refer to chevrons as "hooks," and the Dutch refer to them as "bananas!" Grab as many as you can to be come a "Master!" Lol.

Chevrons were also widely used in heraldry:

And if you really want to get some cool insight into chevrons, Google "petrasomatoglyph."

More references to sight:

"...focused..."

"...observed..."

"Look Sergeant..." There should be a comma between "look" and "sergeant," but there's not. To me, that could be a hint. LOOK SERGEANT, which tells us where to look.

And he not only uses the attention-drawing missing comma once, but again with "Well Private." Private well, maybe?

Now, let's look at some individual words. The word "sergeant" comes from a word meaning "servant." An alternate spelling was serjeant from Old French, which was used in the sense of men who served the king in matters of law.

It's interesting there are some "courtly" words in this answer, too. "Justifiably," "just," and "impunity." Impunity means without punishment. The phrase F used was  "...chevrons glared with impunity..." The word "glare" sort of implies punishment, but is followed by the word "impunity." Odd...

The word "overwhelmed" is really interesting. The word "whelm" comes from words that mean "to cover" and "to arch."

The word "overwhelm" means to "cover completely" or "completely submerge" and even "to turn upside down" (reminds me of the inverted chevrons which are simple V's).

The word "malplaced" isn't a word, so I think you have to take the word apart to understand what F is talking about. The prefix "mal" can mean "Bad, ill, evil, sin, slander, wrongly, mistake, or lie.

Something I find a little strange is that FF was "overawed," by the MSgt's survival of the Bataan Death March. Why was he OVERawed? It sounds like Forrest thinks this guy's survival wasn't quite as big a deal as he'd once thought.

So, I wondered if I might be able to find this guy. A MSgt in the AF in 1950 who survived the March...

There are a few survivors that caught my attention:

From Wikipedia:

Father Albert Braun was born John William Braun to German immigrants in Los Angeles, California.^[2] Braun was ordained in 1915 and his first assignment was to the Mescalero Apache Reservation in 1916.

St. Joseph's Catholic Church, Mescalero, New Mexico - 1975

In June 1918, he was permitted by his superiors to enlist as a US Army chaplain at Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas. He soon saw action with the 6th Infantry Division in one of the bloodiest World War I battles fought by American troops, the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Instead of staying in safety at the rear, the unarmed chaplain went "over the top" with the first assault and suffered shrapnel wounds to his jaw. Despite his injuries he remained on the battlefield to minister to the wounded and to give last rites to the dying. For these actions, Braun received the Purple Heart.

Following the war, Braun helped to construct St. Joseph Apache Mission Church, finished in 1939.

So, he was interesting, but wasn't in the Army Air Corps or the Air Force, so probably not him.

This guy, Albert Brown, with his ties to Buffalo Bill, is even more interesting (also from Wikipedia):

Albert Brown was born on October 26, 1905, in North Platte, Nebraska to parents, Albert and Ida Fonda Brown.^[4] His mother was the aunt of actor Henry Fonda.^[4] His father, Albert, was a railroad engineer.^[4] Brown was also the godson of Buffalo Bill.^[2]

Brown was raised in Council Bluffs, Iowa, following the death of his father, who worked as a railroad engineer, in a locomotive engine explosion.^[1] He joined the R.O.T.C.while in high school.^[4] Brown received a bachelor's degree in dentistry from Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1927.

Brown recorded the events he witnessed in secret using a small writing tablet and pencil hidden inside his canvas bag's lining.

A few other possible candidates caught my eye, but to save space, I'll let you Google them:

William Dyess

Samuel Grashio

Jesse Monroe Knowles

One other thing: The Bataan Death March was the subject of a documentary called The Forgotten Hell.

Maybe the reason why the survivor's look told Forrest he should eat the glass filled "catsup" was because that was like filet mignon compared to what he'd had to eat in the March. 

Anyway, I wonder if this Q&A was another "Who's Who" in those that influenced Forrest in some way. 

Of course, I recommend Googling "Bataan Death March" for more interesting correlations to this Q&A!

And as far as the whole "catsup" thing, I'm not sure it wasn't a diversion from the real meat. Unless we're talking about sound again. The origin of the word comes from Chinese ke-tsiup, which we didn't really have a sound for in America, and the closest we could come was "catsup" or "ketchup." I don't think he was trying to tell anyone they need to "catch up," unless by "catch up" he means catch up to whatever we're chasing. Or maybe it has to do with cats being up in a tree or something. Lol. 

Have a good day!

Oh Kittens in a Coke Box!

I slept late today. Usually if I don't naturally wake up around 4:00 am, my alarm goes off around 5:00-ish. But I forgot to turn my alarms back on after my vacation. Dang i....I mean Kittens in a Coke Box! Lol.

It may be one of "those" days...my iPad is acting up, too.

Yesterday when I got home, three little kittens with mittens were all lounging like mini Cleopatras on the carpet. They look at me like "Who dares to interrupt our lounging?"

I walked up and sat down to give them a couple zaps from the Taser I always carry in my pocket, and they all rolled over on their backs for "tummies."

How can anyone Taser these little pot bellied magicians of evil?

How can anyone zap these little pot belly magicians of evil?

Trina seems to be showing the spot I need to vacuum.
Trina: "This bit of paper and bwue wint (blue lint) -- pwease remove with your loud and scarwy yew ( scary yellow) monster...now."
Me: "You vacuum it yourself, you little evil maniac. And mop the kitchen while you're at it."

Anyway, Aidan has found homes for all but one. I'm not sure which one, but I think my friend Karen K will take it.

The X-ray machine at work blew a fuse yesterday around lunchtime and won't be up and working again until Thursday. And the doctor will be out for the next three days, so we've got some time to work ahead, which will be nice. I'll miss my X-ray workouts though.
 
I used to tease Callie that she was angsty, with her headphone listening teenage ways. She never really was, because she's almost always cheerful. She sent me this pic yesterday, and I just can't get over how amazingly Kittens in a Coke Box beautiful she is. I love her so much!

She's my amazing sixteen year old slice of heaven. Straight A's, and a budding author. :)

Have a wonderful day everybody. A day isn't spent well unless you treat all you meet with kindness. So, spend well.

And in case I haven't been silly already:

A Terrible Surprise

So I wake up early, and like every morning, I stumble half blindly into the kitchen to get my morning Zero...Coke Zero, and toast.

But today, I nearly tripped over a twelve pack of Coke lying in the middle of the floor.

In my sleepy stupor, I thought, "Oh, how nice. Aidan picked up some Coke to replace all that she drinks. Woulda been nice if she coulda put it on the counter."

I was too tired to realize the terrible truth.

Have you ever been unfortunate enough to step on or smack a pregnant spider with a shoe? You know that feeling...where you shriek like a schoolgirl as you scramble to get away from the sheer horror of the wave of thousands of tiny siders pouring over themselves to get at you?

That was almost what I felt when kittens, instead of Coke, came pouring out of the box.

Oh, kittens. They're the bane of my existence.  I think that'll be my new swear word. Instead of "Dang it!" I'll say "Kittens in the Coke!"

Thankfully, they'll all be going to new homes by the end of this week.

Sorry, James...I love you, but the kittens have gotta go!

Speaking of James, he's the best. Really. I feel very blessed, every day.

This pic is literally not photoshopped. His house and being with him is literally that magical. Stars everywhere and just makes you feel so young! Lol.

(PS-the Gucci photo was not stretched, lol)

Work yesterday was a little crazy as I caught up with an onslaught of new surgery cases added while I was gone. But I did get caught up so I can concentrate on just x-ray today.

I had a dream about work last night, but it was weird, because it also incorporated the chase. There was a patient who was also a searcher and he was a well known screen name, but I can't remember what it was. I do remember his real name in the dream (I don't know his real name in real life), but he stopped by the office to pick up his statement for some reason, and I wasn't wearing scrubs, but a tee shirt and shorts. Lol.

The weird part is I don't know where I got this guy's name from, and I'm wondering if the name is the name of an actual patient (I don't think it is), or the name of an actual searcher (I don't think it is, but I get a ton of email from the blogs and I'm struggling right now to try and answer them all).

Weird, though. What would be really weird is if the name in my dream was actually the real name of the searcher. I think the screen name had Wyoming in it, but it's not Wymustigo, cause I know his real name. According to MW, it's God. Lol. :)

Anyway, time to get ready for a very busy day!

May your journey today be graced with laughter and smiles. Lighten up, have fun, and be kind to one another. It's amazing how good it'll make you feel.

Special shout out to Rocklin, CA, who visited my blog for the first time (this month, anyway) yesterday!

Back to Our Regularly Scheduled Program...

Miss me? I know you did...lol...

But, no worries -- I'm back!

James and I had a wonderful five days off! Well, James only had four days (he had to work Wednesday), but it was all awesome.

I got there late Tuesday night and so pretty much crashed right when I arrived. But first I noticed a couple new things James had added to the decor...he set these mirrors up in the shape of the constellation of Virgo (my sign):

And he had this cool spiral light thingy in the bedroom. It changes colors... :)

Wednesday morning, James had to work, so I slept in a little, watched a little TV in bed, and practiced a few songs on my piano keyboard. The problem with learning new songs is that I get one song down decently, but then I find another I want to learn, thus leaving the other song to rot. Lol. That's called "easily distracted." But I can almost play "Hallelujah," and "Paradise" and one other song that's still a secret cause it's a surprise.

James also has this soon to be mama duck living just outside his front door. James gives her treats.

Then, about an hour before James got home from work, I fired up the BBQ and cooked us some teriyaki bbq filet mignons and baked taters and corn and bread. They were delicious.

After we ate, we played a couple of high stakes games of pool, but since I thought he'd win, I didn't take time to decide what I wanted in exchange should I have won. Well, we played best two out of three, and I won every game. Then we played three more, and I was trying to give him every chance to win, because I know what he wanted as a prize. But I still won. To be fair, I think James lost two games on a technical error of scratching when shooting for the eight ball.

Here's James, in the process of losing. He loses very rarely, but when he does, he loses very well. :)

Then, I thought he would redeem himself with one on one basketball. I haven't played since college, and James is super athletic and proud of his basketball skills. But playing for a college team helped, and I beat him 10 -3 (we counted each point as 1).

He did beat me in H-O-R-S-E, though. And he beat me in a free throw contest, but we had a disagreement on rules. He wanted to shoot like the NBA players do, taking an infinite amount of time to set up their shot, bounce the ball, aim, bounce the ball some more, aim again, then shoot.

My way is to shoot as soon as the ball hits my hands. So we played first one to get four out of five, wins. He finally got the four, and I'd just gotten three. Free throws are for pansies anyway. Lol.

James is an awesome opponent, though, and usually wins at that kinda thing. But it doesn't take
 me long to catch up.

Thursday, we went to look at Tesla's. The Tesla dealer is located in an uppity outdoor mall, and I couldn't resist posing for Forrest Fenn.

Here's James looking at a Tesla:

Then, we went home and I cooked the rest of the filet and made a teriyaki steak and rice meal. It was yummy too.

Then, on Friday, we did a little shopping, a little walking on the beach in Marco Island, then did an Xtreme Escape game. We did Cell Block M, which was fun. We discovered that we have different ways our minds process and solve puzzles. But we still figured it out in the required time, even though not officially because of a host's error. That particular room had a 21% solve rate with 6 people involved. Our chances were statistically much lower, but we didn't find the game too difficult.

It was a lot of fun.

Saturday morning, we laid out in the sun and went swimming for a while. It was awesome, and so much fun. Saturday night, we left to pick up Joe from the airport, with James following because we needed two cars.

He caught this pic of me texting while driving. Yes, when I text and drive, I do it with one hand out the sunroof. What you can't see in the pic is the fifteen toddlers I was carting with me, and none of them were wearing seatbelts. You also can't see the four or so puppies that were cavorting around the brake and gas pedals. Has anyone ever heard of speech to text, question mark? Lol period.

Then, this morning (Sunday) we slept super later, then went to Wal Mart for doughnuts and stuff.

Wal Mart is magical, and James, while standing in the checkout line, got "Unicorned." You can see how he can barely contain his euphoria at being graced with the Pink Wal Mart Unicorn of Magical Bliss.

Just after I took this picture, he vomited a rainbow.

Back at my house, we watched some Tosh.O while eating the breakfast of winners, doughnuts with white frosting and sprinkles. Then we had an idea we got from Sports or Consequences off Daniel Tosh's show, and decided to do one of our own. The first person to  throw a nerf football at the other's head and hit it, wins. The consequences were that the loser had to be swiffered with Maple Syrup.

James won after what seemed like an eon of attempts, and I was fully prepared to go out in a bikini top and be swiffered so we could be on Tosh.0, but James couldn't bring himself to do it...this time. Lol. Here's the Intro to that video:

But we also did a kitten race, which was fun! And the little girls across the street loved it and offered me a sour skittle, which I ate, then promptly died, sending the little girls into hysterics. I hope that part is on the video. Lol.

Here's the Intro to the Kittens or Consequences video:

The kids were funny. We videoed a little of our conversation with Elaina and Auburn, but we didn't get this part:

Little Girls (speaking in eerie unison, even though they aren't twins): How old are you?
Me: Fourteen.
Little Girls (how they can make innocent questions sound like exclamations is one of the world's mysteries): How old is he? (pointing at James)
Me: Eleve--
James (with authority): FIFTEEN.

Lol!

James and I also did a spew contest, and here's a small segment featuring the voices of Elaina and Auburn.

Anyway, it was a great little vacation!! Can't wait to do it again soon!

Made it Through Day One

I got some pretty good news from the eye doctor yesterday morning...my left eye is 100% better, and my right eye is now 60% better. She said she was happy with the progress, and by my appointment next Monday, it should be much better than it is now.

Today, I have another doctor appointment early, then have to hurry to work for a really busy day full of broken bones. I don't know what it is this year, but lots of people breaking things left and right.

And I think I'm in X-ray today, although we only have two providers.

Joe made it to LAX at 4:00 am EST. We got through Orlando Int'l airport without incident, then he flew to Minneapolis, then on to LA. I made him text me at each stop, so I had frequent wake ups. Lol.

I'm gonna try to head to James's after work. I think I'll miss the majority of traffic...but I won't get there till about 11:00 tonight...

There are two kittens trying to claw up my legs right now. Geez.

Digging Gypsy posted a neat story on Dal's called "Redemption." You all should check it out. She's going to Fennboree, or at least she better, because we need to celebrate. Lol.

I guess it's supposed to be cold tomorrow and throughout the weekend. Yikes. So much for laying out in the sun...unless it's much warmer in Naples, which it might be...

Anyway, happy Tuesday that might as well be Friday!!

Two Day Week

I'm looking forward to a little Spring Vacay this week. Joe heads to CA tonight, and tomorrow night I'll head to Naples. James has to work Wednesday, and I thought I'd spend the day out by the pool. And then cook him a nice dinner timed so it's nice and hot when he walks in the door.

We  had a nice weekend...we played with the Terribles for a while. They are proving to be magical with their antics intended to fool you into loving them. Luckily, I'm not easily fooled, and I only sorta think they're okay. They're still leaving the minute they start eating real food.

James, however, is more prone to fall under their evil spell. Their personalities are all markedly different. Trick Daddy, who I've renamed Trixie, is the most adventurous, and probably thinks he or she is a ninja because she's in all black. No-one told her ninjas don't wear mittens.

My favorite is Boo Boo (aka Boosie), who is the second most adventurous, and I like her because she's the most adorable and will flip over for tummy rubs.

Then there's Trina, the runt, who sometimes surprises us with her moments of brilliance. We tried to offer them milk, and none of them were interested, but Trina took a brave drink yesterday without me having to first stick her nose in it. But, the momma cat ultimately drank it all.

The most reclusive is the largest of the four, Webby, who I haven't renamed yet, because he or she is somewhat shy...well, not shy, but more calm and reserved. He or she likes peace and likes to just watch the rest from the fringes. Webby has the most interesting coloration, though. Really unique and pretty.

Saturday, we took Joe thrift shopping and found a couple things we can sell for 3-4 times of what we bought it for. Joe helped us research the items, and he's pretty good at it.

Then we went across the street, and while Joe got a haircut, James and I went into Pet Supermarket and bought the Terribles a few little toys.

Then we went to lunch at Texas Roadhouse, talked about a summer trip to Wyoming, and ate too much. When we got home, we promptly laid down and all three of us were asleep within ten minutes. Lol.

Then James and I did some Internet shopping. Here's one thing he wants to buy me. It reminds us of the chase. It's a Navajo nana symbol and the "telephone pole" looking thing is a dragonfly.

Yesterday morning, James and I tackled my garage a little bit. We dumped some stuff in the trash, pulled some stuff out to sell, and put some stuff in his Jeep to take down to Naples. He was able to fit my bike in there, so I bet we'll go on a nice bike ride this week.

We still need to play our basketball game for high stakes this week, too.

This morning, I hopefully have my last eye doctor visit. My eyes are doing much better, despite a few hours of watery pain on Saturday. So, I think I narrowly escaped going blind in my right eye. Whew!

Today, I think I'm in x-ray, but I think Brandy is going to come in tomorrow to help out so I can work ahead and make sure everything is done before I take the rest of the week off.

I'm really looking forward to spending more time at James's house o'fun!

Forward and Backward

I think I took a teeny step backward this morning. I woke up with a little more --not pain, but more like discomfort -- in my eyes than I had yesterday. The bathroom light this morning was a tiny bit bothersome. I don't think it's a big deal--I probably just over-strained my eyes a little at work yesterday. My boss told me I should go home around noon, but I was doing fine, so I stayed until 4:30  or so.

I'm supposed to put this antibiotic drop in my eyes every two hours, but only remembered to do it once yesterday. I'll do better this weekend, and I'm sure everything will still be much better at my appointment on Monday.

I feel one of the Terribles batting my toe right now. Oh look, it's my favorite, Terrible #2, aka "Boosie." Joe and I hate that name, so we're coming up with new ones.

And look, Terrible #3, aka "Trick Daddy," or the better "Trixie" (cause I think he's a she) has come to join the toe terrorizing.

I can't wait for these things to go to their new homes. Although they are pretty funny to watch gambol around.

James is coming over tonight! Can't wait for him to get here. I don't think we have any major plans, but maybe we'll take Joe to a movie or something.

Anyway, guess I gotta get ready for work...