Rereads…Yay or Nay?

I wasn’t going to write a post today. I didn’t have any ideas. I think I am still recovering from the fabulous lunch I had for my birthday yesterday. Garlic knots, Fettuccine and a wonderful Tiramisu…yum. Anyway…I wasn’t going to post anything.

UNTIL–

I saw the prompt given by WordPress and I knew I had a short one in me. Ready???

“What book could you read over and over again?”

HAHAHAHA…I got several, but let me ask you this, do you reread books, or do you just read it once and it’s done? I am not talking about a religious book like the Bible or anything like that. I mean a good fiction book or even a nonfiction that speaks to you. Tell me in the comments your favorite reread.

I have 5 books that I have reread throughout the years.

1. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott: I read this as a young girl for the first time and have seen most of the movie adaptations. I currently do not own it. Hmmmm, I think I donated a copy when I moved to Hawaii and never got another one. I think it might be time.
2. Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell: I know this book so well that I don’t even reread the whole thing all the time. I just open it up to my favorite sections and enjoy.
3. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger: I am always up for a little dysfunctional coming of age story where the main character is screwed up. I also haven’t read this in a while…gotta put it on the list.
4. The Godfather by Mario Puzo: Yes, I own all the movies, but I also own the book in paperback and on my Kindle. There is so much more backstory in the book. You actually get to know why Luca Brasi is so horrible. If you haven’t read it, I highly recommend it.
5. On the Road by Jack Kerouac: This book actually gave me the vague idea for the novel I have finished writing and am currently editing. I love the Beat writers. I am currently rereading this now.

I don’t spend a lot of my time rereading books. Of course, I would rather read as many new to me books as possible, but sometimes a reread as a palette cleanser is just the ticket. Sometimes I look through all the books I have collected and if nothing catches my interest at the moment that is when I will reach for an old faithful.

It really doesn’t matter if you read only new things or always reach for an old favorite, the point is to just keep reading!!

***Question for the comments: Do you reread books and if you do which one is your favorite go to?

***Blog posts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays

***Subscribe so you never miss a post

What To Do? Whatever You Want!

OK gang here we go…my birthday is on Sunday. If you have followed me for any length of time you will know that I am almost right in the center of the generation known as X. What does that mean? I was born in 1970…you do the math.

First and foremost, let me start by saying I do not have a problem with my age. I never have. I will say it loud and proud, because let’s face facts…I am fabulous at any age. The number doesn’t matter, it’s what you are doing at that number that counts.

So, how am I doing at my number?

I am pretty happy with my life. I have great friends and family, a wonderful man who totally gets me, I live in Hawaii, and I am currently pursuing a writing career. My first book is written and in the revision process.

Could anything make it better?

Well, of course. Anything can always be better, BUT that doesn’t mean that where I am isn’t great.

So what? Yeah, I could make a better effort to eat a little healthier and get in a little bit more exercise. But that’s only because I feel better when I do, not because of what others say I should be doing. I could be a little but more organized, etc., etc., etc. But, eh? It doesn’t really matter.

Let me fill you in on a “secret”, age is just a state of mind. You do not need to be doing anything just because you reached a certain age. I am about to be 54. Does that mean I have to start dressing like my grandmother did at my age? Because that is a hard no…I will not wear a housecoat, LOL. I am currently sitting here wearing shorts, a tee shirt and a backwards baseball hat. (my sister is thinking to herself, “of course you are” and rolling her eyes)

What can I say? I am forever Peter Pan. I wonder if that is just me or a Gen X thing?

Actually, that doesn’t even matter. What does matter is that we keep pursuing the things we want to do no matter how old we get. Because that is what keeps us young. I may need to adjust some things on my list because of bad knees or whatever, but that does not mean I just give up and sit around with a shawl over my shoulders waiting for the end. I come up with an alternative and keep having fun.

And that is exactly what I plan to do as I hit 54 and beyond. Check with me in 5-10 years and I will still be me, only better. Because like a fine wine…I only get better with age!!

***Question for the comments: what is one dream you would like to achieve no matter what age you are?

***Blog posts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays

***Subscribe so you never miss a post

Did You????

Come on, tell the truth…did you ever have a fake ID?

For those not in the know, the legal drinking age in The United States was 18 for a long time and then all of a sudden…poof…back up to 21. I mean, you could still join the military at 18 and still buy cigarettes, but no more booze for the college students.

Unless you hung around outside a liquor store and paid a sketchy guy to go buy you your nightly haul…but I digress…

The suck part was when the law went into effect, it started mid-year. So, anybody that was already 18 was grandfathered in and able to drink and those poor unfortunate souls born after that date were out of luck. My brother fell into the latter category, and he was pissed. I remember him ranting about it and thinking to myself (at the age of 12), why doesn’t he just go get a fake ID?

This all came back into my memory last night when I started reading a new book, well new to me. It’s called “Deep Fried and Pickled”. So far it is a girl gone off to college in 1986 and after a couple of weeks this girl and her new dorm mates decide to get fake IDs so they can hit the local hotel bar. (I am hoping this is just a small town without a big bar scene…I mean come on, really? The local hotel, LOL)

It got me thinking. I was 16 in 1986 and while I was not a big party girl, I did from time to time have a beer or a wine cooler. (Don’t mock, Bartles and Jaymes was extremely popular in the 80s) I left it at a couple here or there until I graduated high school and then spent a week in Ocean City, Maryland. In the month of June almost every high school senior converges on Ocean City for a week of debauchery. Cars are packed with booze purchased by older siblings or said guy in the front of the liquor store, and it is a week of getting drunk and sunburned and eating nothing that can remotely be classified as healthy. I was hungover and red as a tomato and loving it.

Off I went to the local community college and did not drink at all. Most of my friends weren’t drinkers, so no problem. Then we wanted to start going to see some bands play. Well as is always the case someone knew a guy and for the price of 20 bucks in 1989 you could get a fake college ID. Yes, bars still took them for identification back then…fools.

So, there we were thinking we were all that hitting the bars and listening to the local bands with a cocktail in hand. Looking back, I have to say that we were morons. Not because of the ID or the drinking, it was because we acted like idiots. Think of any pack of stupid girls in a movie being annoying and that was us. 19 in the 80s is different than 19 now.

We started going to one particular bar with a surf theme until the night it got raided for underage drinking. Well….we were there that night, and I dragged my two friends through the kitchen and made it out the back door without getting busted. I got rid of my fake ID the next day. I waited until I was legal the next year before I went to another bar. We stuck to house parties after that…but that is a whole different blog post waiting to happen.

***Question for the comments: Did you drink underage? Did you have a fake ID? Let me know the details.

***Blog posts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays

***Subscribe so you never miss a post and tell a friend about The Squiggle Line Cafe

Who’s the Fool on April 1st?

This might be an unpopular opinion, but I am not a fan of April Fools’ Day. I get the idea of it, and I do appreciate a good prank every now and then, really, I do, but the idea of having to stay one step ahead of everyone else for a day is just annoying.

The exact origins are a little bit hazy, but some think the first reference made to this date is in “The Canterbury Tales” by Geoffrey Chaucer all the way back in 1392. But like a lot of other things that could just be chalked up to a copying error by one of the scribes.

There are other early references from the 1500s and so on, but that doesn’t really matter. The fact is it’s a yearly thing that is celebrated in most countries. Well, at least the countries have something in common. Maybe we should play a big game on April Fools’ Day and the last country not falling for a prank is the winner of the world. Just kidding!! It would be a massive episode of “Survivor” or “The Hunger Games” and I am definitely not here for that.

My mother would play the same joke on my grandmother every year. She would call Nan up and would tell her she was pregnant. I am talking even well past the normal childbearing years. And my grandmother would fall for it every year. Or maybe she was just pretending. Thinking about it now it would be just like her to humor my mother.

You may be questioning my dislike of these types of things. After reading my blog for so long now you might think it would be right in my wheelhouse. I will let you in on a secret…I am not very creative in that department.

I am the queen of the sarcastic one liner, and I am always available with a quick retort, but elaborate plans to fool someone is just not my area. Having said that, if someone comes up with the initial prank I can usually throw in a suggestion or two.

April 1st is typically spent trying to avoid all situations where a prank may happen. I don’t believe anything people tell me (unless it’s part of a continuing conversation from a previous time) and I generally will not help anybody out on that day…sorry, busy until tomorrow.

I can totally be a fool at times, I freely admit that, but April 1st. will not be one of those times!

What about you? Are you a prankster or do you avoid such things like the plague?

***Question for the comments: Do you like April Fools’ Day? Tell me your best prank or one that someone did to you…can’t wait to read them!!!

***Blog posts on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays

***Subscribe so you never miss a conversation!!!

When I Grow Up…

How many things did you want to be then you were younger? Did you change “career” choices daily or did you find the one for you and stick to it?

The writing prompt from WordPress today asked, “When you were five, what did you want to be when you grew up?” And my first thoughts for myself made me laugh. If you have read this blog for any length of time you will not be surprised. I laugh at myself all the time for my silliness.

I don’t know what I wanted to be when I was five, but I can tell you a couple of choices I had in mind at the age of six.

What did you want to be? Let me know in the comments.

Two major events happened in 1976…yes, that was when I was six, that gave me some clear job goals. let me state right here, they did not last long.

The first one was I fell in love with Steve Austin from “The Six Million Dollar Man”. I ran around the house in slow motion like they showed him doing on the show. I even made the “nanananana” noise for even more effect. Actually, this might have been when I was five. I will ask my sister to clarify in the comments. I thought I was going to marry Steve Austin and be his partner as the bionic woman. But that dream was crushed when I saw on television there already was a Bionic Woman…darn you Lindsey Wagner.

The next event was the 1976 Summer Olympics. I have talked about this before, but it is worth mentioning again because I am not above repeating myself for comic relief. Like most young girls, I was fascinated by the gymnasts. And that year Nadia Comaneci reigned supreme. I remember sitting on the floor being mesmerized by all the things she could do. This led to me tumbling all over the house making up my own floor routine. All I can say is that my mother did not ooh and aah over my attempts and did not try to sign me up for gymnastics.

The one thing I have always clung to from a young age was being a writer. It may have spent a lot of time on the self through the years, but it is what has stuck. It was a goal ever since I learned how to read.

Now it is your turn. What did you want to be at five years old? Cop? Fireman? Teacher? Doctor? Nun? Don’t laugh at the last one…I did contemplate it for a minute or two. Come on, let me know.

***Question for the comments: What did you want to be at five years old? Did you end up in that career? If not…do you wish you would have done it?

***Blog posts on Mondays and Thursdays

***Sign up to never miss a post

An English Love Affair

By me from Canva

Hi gang, I was going through this week’s fun holidays and I saw it was English Tourism Week.

I have always been a fan of all things English. I even wrote a small piece for a contest about being in love with London, but I screwed up the date. Actually, I saw two submission dates and apparently, I chose poorly.

Anyway, in honor of the week, I thought I would post my little article here. Let me know if you have been to England in the comments and what you think of it.

                    London Calling

The first time I fell in love with you, London was when I met one of my best childhood mates, Paddington Bear. We would go everywhere together, and he would show me the sights of your wonderful town, all the while eating marmalade on toast and drinking endless cups of tea.

The next time we met was when a lady married a prince. My mother and I watched for weeks as the time drew near. We watched her in a beautiful drawn carriage. We sat side by side drinking tea and nibbling buttered toast, living out a fairy tale. Years later she was gone, and we watched her procession through your streets, always lovely, but this time a little sad. Goodbye England’s Rose.

The next time I felt emotions for you, London, I was a teenage girl in Austria. On a missions trip, my team included a bunch of youthful lads. They told me tales of growing up in their various little neighborhoods and I saw myself there running through the streets with them playing childhood games. My heart went pitter patter in the throes of youthful crushdom. To this day, an English accent can make me almost swoon.

Late teens turned to early twenties and I found myself up and down all sorts of fun streets, meeting all sorts of new characters in my Hugh Grant years. I followed him to many weddings, to a bookshop in Notting Hill and then, all the way to him becoming Prime Minister. I even followed him when he made silly life choices. But he redeemed himself and I watched him fight with another favorite, Colin Firth, for the affection of one girl.

It has been a long time since something new from your town fanned the flames of my love, but the flame still flickers by various shows, books and movies I watch and read over and over again.

The next time I fall hardcore in love with you London, will be the first time I actually set foot in your town in real life. You see, I am a distant admirer of yours from across the pond. I have never had the privilege to show you my love in person. But, I can promise you with my whole heart, that even is I never get to walk along the Thames or see your lovely tower in person, my love affair with you will never diminish.

***Question for the comments: Do you have a love for a country not your own that you would love to visit? Let me know in the comments.

***Blog posts on Mondays and Thursdays

***Subscribe to never miss a post. Thanks for being here.

Messed Up March

I can’t believe it…I mean…I just can’t believe it.

Most of you know I am a go with the flow type of girl. I roll the dice and let the art flow over me. I am usually really good about rolling with the punches.

But you also know I am a girl who likes her little rituals. Each season has its own time frame. Don’t display Halloween candy in the summer. Don’t put out the Valentines displays until after Christmas. I do not want to see Christmas trees next to the Halloween costumes. Please do not tell me in August you are already drinking a Pumpkin Spice latte.

Okay, okay. Some people like that early display of holiday cheer, I get it. Go do your thing and enjoy. I will stand on the sidelines and wait until I am ready, then I will dive in full on right next to you. My only exemption to my rule is the school supply displays they bring out in July. I am a sucker for all things school supplies. A marble composition book will end up in my cart EVERY time, lol.

This year another early attempt was tried, and it has failed me. I am hoping for a miracle, but I am not sure it will happen.

I am talking about McDonalds bringing out the Shamrock Shake in February. Ever since I can remember, they have been available on March 1st. and they seem to go away around the 31st. The perfect time frame. Why would they think to mess with it?

Ok, like I said before, go do your thing and I will wait until I am ready to do mine. But…

I have been to my McDonalds (here in Hawaii) about 3 times now in the month of March and they have been out of the Shamrock Shake every time. It’s March!!! It’s not even St. Patrick’s Day yet…how are you out?????

Just last night we rolled through the Golden Arches Drive-Thru and were told they were out. We paid and drove up to the other window to pick up our food. Neil asked the guy if they would be getting any more of the mix for the Shamrock and we were told they were out for the season…

WHAT????

You might be thinking, well maybe they just have a problem shipping to Hawaii…No. I have lived here for 12 years now and even during the pandemic my green goddess of a milkshake treat was available right on time. Never has it been sold out in March.

I am hoping (fingers crossed) that it is just the one closest to our condo that’s out and we can find another location that has them available. I mean, I am not going to make Neil drive to the other side of the island for one, but we will hit up another location in the next few days.

Wish me luck!

***Question for the comments: Have you ever been in the situation where you haven’t been able to get the one thing you wait for every year? Or you go to the store and your favorite thing always seems to be out of stock? Let me know in the comments.

***Blog posts on Mondays and Thursdays

***Sign up to never miss a post. Thanks for being here.

And The Award Goes To

Oscars, Emmys, Grammys, Tonys- award season used to be huge in my house growing up.

We would make snacks, and all sit in front of the television watching people walk down the red carpet and talk about what they were wearing and how they looked in it. That is actually how, at the age of 9, I knew names like Dior, Westwood and Pucci and their importance in the fashion world. Later on, I would learn about jewelry and shoes, and I would look for the tell-tale signs of a Manolo Blahnik and Harry Winston.

The red carpet was so glamourous to me. The beautiful people, the excitement to win for their movie, song or show. I was glued to my seat on the living room carpet.

As I got a little older, I knew who more people were at the shows, and I was able to cheer on some people from the movies I watched and groups I listened to. I remember actually thinking that maybe, just maybe “Fame” would have won Best Drama Series in 1982 at the Emmy Awards. Hahahaha…I was too young to hear of a “little” show known as “Hill Street Blues” My mom thought it was cute, my brother thought I was an idiot.

I don’t know when I stopped watching. Maybe I just started going out more as I got older and wasn’t home. Maybe we just stopped watching things as a family like we used to once I got a television in my room. Or, maybe, and this seems more likely, I just lost touch of who the celebrities are.

I don’t want to go on a “I’m old and don’t understand the new music, movies, tv shows” rant, but…stuff just doesn’t get me anymore like it used to. Okay, okay, I do know some things. I was happy Robert Dowing Jr. won a Best Supporting Actor award last night. I have been a big fan since I first saw him in “Weird Science” 1985. I was disappointed to learn Bradley Cooper did not win any awards for his movie “Maestro”. I haven’t seen it yet, but it is on my short list of new movies to watch.

I don’t know, for the longest time it just seems like most things are just repeats of things we have already seen. How many sequels do we need? Maybe there just isn’t anything new to do anymore. Has Hollywood run out of fresh ideas forever?

Or…maybe it is me. I don’t know. I complain about it, but I haven’t really given anything a chance lately. Damn, I hate it when I realize I may be the one to blame. Alright, maybe I will start checking out some new stuff and see what I think of it.

***Question for the comments: Help me out here, tell me a NEW movie, television show or music group to look into. I want to see what everybody else is listening to and watching. I’ll let you know what I think after I watch it.

***Blog posts on Monday and Thursdays

***Subscribe to have it delivered to your inbox. Never miss a post.

***Thanks for being here

Today Year’s Old

By Me thru Canva

Let me start by saying, for the record, I am not a fan at all of this phrase. It is just so grating to the ear, in my humble opinion. Whatever happened to sayings like, “I just found out that…” or “How did I never know until now that…?”

Look, I understand that things change, and people make up new slang terms all the time. I am down with that. Every generation needs their own vocabulary. This is nothing new.

We have lived through phrases like Dig it, Right on, Groovy, Bae, Ghosting, Adulting, OMG, and one of the popular phrases from the Gen X Valley Girl era…Gag me with a spoon. But since this isn’t a rant about fun catch phrases, I will move on. But look for this topic sometime in the future.

Today we are talking about finding out something for the first time and then wondering how you never knew it before. You know what I am talking about, right? I see it all over social media. I was today years old when I found out that…fill in the blank.

I had my own experience with this reading a book the other day. It’s not a very exciting example for most, but it did get my mind turning about what else I didn’t know. I was reading this travel book about a guy who has traveled most of his life. Through the backpacking/hostel scene of his 20s to settling in one spot for a few months or longer to really get the feel for the place.

He was spending some time tooling around Australia and hitch hiked to a city called Alice Springs. My first thought was, “Oh, like the chicken dish from Outback Steakhouse.” Then I felt stupid for the rest of the day because OF COURSE an Australian themed restaurant would name a dish in that type of manner.

Anybody else ever have this feeling?

So, this led me to on a search of other things I didn’t know about. I will only give you a few examples:

1. The houses in Spongebob Squarepants are really just things like mufflers that are at the bottom of the ocean.
2. In the TV show “That 70s Show”, Fes stands for foreign exchange student. The other characters couldn’t pronounce his real name.
3. The character Goofy actually does have a name…George Geef…who knew?
4. The handle of a screwdriver is shaped that way so you can put a wrench on it and get a better turn if a screw is wound too tight.

Like I said, just a few examples, but there are so many out there. But, as the old saying goes, you learn something new every day.

***Question for the comments: Tell me one thing you learned recently that you feel like you should have known before. Give me an “I was today years old” example.

***New blog posts every Monday and Thursday. Subscribe to never miss a post.

***Thanks for being here!!!

What Bores Me??? I Do!!!

Photo by Vika Glitter on Pexels.com

Have you ever been in this situation?

I don’t usually get bored by other people or situations, I get bored with myself and what I am doing (or not doing, which is usually the case). I just get tired of my own nonsense.

What nonsense, you may ask. Fair question…here it goes…

I am the type of person that has a lot of ideas about everything. They come fast like a freight train and I am excited about all of them. Like a puppy with a new toy, I want to forget about all the other ideas and just do the new one, UNTIL the next time a new idea comes into my mind. It’s exhausting being in my brain sometimes.

So, what happens is that I really don’t get all the things I want to do done. Because I leave it abandoned for a while and maybe (a big maybe) I will circle around back to it. Then I will play with it for a little bit and leave it again.

Even this blog, which I LOVE. I leave it to go try other things, but thankfully, I always circle back to it. I will never get The Squiggle Line Cafe out of my system. I will be adding a little bit of flash fiction to it, just to keep the creative juices flowing. I need to keep it lively so I won’t have The Clash in my head all the time with “Should I Stay, or Should I Go”

Don’t worry though, I am not going anywhere. Be on the lookout for new things…they are coming soon.

***Question for the comments: What bores you? It could be anything. Doesn’t need to be crazy minded like mine. Let me know in the comments.

***Blog posts on Mondays and Thursdays. Sign up so you never miss a post. You never know when I may add an extra one during the week just for fun.

***Thanks for being here!!!