ANOTHER GEM

FROM CARL



It's winter in Wisconsin And the gentle breezes blow, 70 miles per hour at 52 below!

Oh, how I love Wisconsin When the snow's up to your butt; You take a breath of winter air And your nose is frozen shut.

Yes, the weather here is wonderful, You may think I'm a fool. I could never leave Wisconsin, Cause I'm frozen to the stool.

SNOWSCAPE



"The real voyage of discovery consists not of seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes."
Marcel Proust

I just came back inside.  They say the windchill is 3 below.  I believe it.

Sorry to hear of the passing of Texas playwright Larry L. King who gave us "THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS"

A photo of the sun taken by the NASA Solar Observatory.

AND, LET THERE BE LIGHT

The journal "Surgery" published a report, a few days ago, that says U. S. doctors leave towels, cotton balls, sponges and other surgical stuff in the bodies of patients about 39 times a week, on average.  Doctors also operate on the wrong body part or the wrong patient about 20 times a week.

But, don't worry, the good news is that they always seem to get the bill, they send you, absolutely right to the penny....and they won't charge you for all that junk they left in you....but I'll bet the would if they could.

Guess I'd better make a run over to Walgreens this morning.  20% off their house brands and 15% off on everything else, today only.

OUR COUNTRY NEEDS THIS RIGHT NOW



DONNIE AND HIS SHADOW

BEST END OF THE WORLD TWEET: "If the apocalypse doesn't happen tomorrow, don't worry.  It's not the end of the world."

Thomas Edison said it best.
"Until we stop harming all other living beings, we are still savages."

This comes from Ron and it is just too funny.  It's in German but there's no translation needed.  The young lady is asking her Dad how he liked the new iPad he got for his birthday.

I make a quick trip to the Co-op this morning.  Although there's bright sunshine, it was a cold 19 DEGREES AT NOON WITH A WIND CHILL OF 5 ABOVE.  Believe me, it was a brisk walk.  But, you know what they say, it could be worse.

I could be living in Yakutsk, Siberia, a bustling city of 269,486 folks who are a lot hardier than I am.  Yakutsk is famous for being the COLDEST CITY ON EARTH.  Their average temperature during a very brief summer is 67 in July and the average temperature during a very long winter is 37 BELOW ZERO in January.  That's the Average!  Their temperature at noon today was 29 below with fog.

See?  I told you.  It could be worse.

Here's a site you might want to save if you're planning any air travel.  KNOWDELAY will give you a good idea of what the chances are that your flight might be delayed due to weather.

You'll also notice, on the home page, there's a look at possible delays at major airports for the next couple of days.  Check it out.

The poll on the La Crosse Tribune website, is asking "how far from home do you plan to go for Christmas".  So far, it looks like most folks, around here, are going to stay home and, you know what they say, there's no place like home for the holidays.

Did you see that they got 19.5 inches of snow on the north side of Madison yesterday?  I guess we're lucky we didn't get any more than we did.

At 5:12 (CST), this morning, Santa had to hang on to the North Pole because it was at its farthest tilt away from the sun.  The Arctic will see a dim sun, just on the horizon, for about two hours.  So, if you think it's a short day here, go north, young man!

Now, daylight will last longer, faster, the farther north you are and, as far as I'm concerned, the faster the better!

IT'S COMING BACK THIS WAY!!!!!

THIS IS THE DAY

I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR

 

Logo Design by FlamingText.com THE SHORTEST DAY OF THE YEAR

Now I can start counting the days to spring.  I always think of Aunt Edna on this day.  It was her favorite day too.

I mentioned, the other day, that North Dakota is the fastest growing state in the USA.  CLICK HERE TO SEE THE FULL LIST OF THE TOP 10 FAST GROWING STATES

I know that our readers will be interested to notice that South Dakota,Wyoming  Texas and Nevada made the top 10 list too.

Apparently, the old phrase, "Go West, Young Man" hasn't gone out of style.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

MERRY CHRISTMAS

FROM

LIBERACE



My arthritic spine and thumb were killing me all day yesterday.  I'm guessing it was the miserable weather.  Anyone with back problems knows how painful back pain can be!

I can't remember Dad being sick very much, and if he was he didn't complain about it, but he had back problems, too, and when that pain came it laid him low.

Got a note from Ron and Penny.

 

"We have squirrels and cats who drink out of our bird baths just like Donnie and Linda have.

 

Yesterday, we finally saw an Albino squirrel run across the road into the cemetery.  Other people have seen it too.  Pure white.  Wish we would have had our camera."

 

Interesting that they mentioned Donnie and Albino Squirrels in the same email considering that it was in Austin, at the University of Texas,  that the "Albino Squirrel Preservation Society" was formed in 2001.  The club was formed because of the dwindling population of albino squirrels found on the University of Texas campus.  There are now chapters of the Society at other colleges around the country.

 

White or albino squirrels are protected in some cities across the USA and Canada where killing one is punishable by law.

 

White squirrels are rare and most are found in Thailand and east Asia.

 

It's important to remember that Squirrels come in several different colors and white is one of them.  The only way you can tell if it's a white squirrel or an albino squirrel is to look at their eyes.  An albino squirrel will have pink or blue eyes.  A regular white squirrel will have black eyes.

TODAY'S BIRTHDAY GIRL

HAVE A GREAT DAY

LYNNE!



WINTER SOLSTICE AT 5:12 am CENTRAL TIME.

This is the earliest Winter Solstice since 1896.

About 350 flights cancelled at O'Hare due to the storm.

I was just looking at snow totals around the state.  Officially, 4.5" around Bob and Lynne's house and Eric and Bert's place as well.

Snow blowing off the roof.  Winter was slow in coming but it's here now!

I never thought I'd live to see the day that NORTH DAKOTA would be the FASTEST GROWING STATE but, according to USA TODAY, I have.  In fact it's growing 3 times faster than the national rate.  That's what OIL will do for 'ya!

As soon as I told Rita it wasn't snowing here, it started to snow.  I had to get down to ground level to check it out.

I didn't really need to go out but I wanted to see what it was like at ground level.  It doesn't look as nice down there as it does from the 5th floor looking out from a nice, warm apartment.

I walked over to Co-op and the parking lot was nearly empty.  Inside the store there were a lot more employees than there were customers.  In fact, at the check-out counter, I had four employees to ring me up and put the 3 items I bought in the bag.  They assured me they were enjoying the slow day.

We don't have the 5 inches of snow that Rita and Roger have but we're, probably, up to 3 inches now and the wind has picked up.  It's definitely a good day to be home.

A lot of folks started their morning like this.

Looking west over La Crosse.

WEATHER WITHOUT THE POINTER

I watch WGN MORNING NEWS which they live stream on their website and I especially like their weather.  They do what I have been talking about for years.  They actually let the maps fill the screen...no cutsy weather person standing in front of them wildly waving their arms and pointing.  You can actually SEE THE MAPS while the weather person does a voice over.

Why TV stations and networks think we need a "personality" doing a dance in front of the maps is beyond me.  Well, it isn't beyond me.  I know that, nowadays, TV news is more about entertainment than it is news but it's nice to see one station in the country doing it right.

SPEAKING OF SNOW

DID YOU EVER

WONDER WHAT

2 FEET OF SNOW

LOOKS LIKE?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



TALK ABOUT MISLEADING THE PUBLIC!

I see three senators are criticizing the new movie "Zero Dark Thirty", saying torture scenes are "grossly inaccurate and misleading" in the events leading to the death of Osama bin Laden.  I'm sure the scenes we're more fiction than reality.  There aren't many people around who don't know Hollywood takes great liberty in bringing a "true story" to the screen.

What bothers me about the senators pointing the finger is that, considering the last run of campaign TV commercials, as just one example, it has been made abundently clear, to most Americans, that no group of people on earth is better at making "grossly inaccurate and misleading" statements than the members of the Congress of the USA.  Talk about the pot calling the kettle black!

DONNIE WAS RIGHT

Donnie said they were expecting a cold front and it sounds like they're getting it.  In fact, down in GALVESTON (Rita and I had good times there), early this morning, they were getting WIND GUSTS OVER 55 MPH and the temperature dropped 13 degrees in 30 minutes.






After a record high of 84 yesterday, in Austin, their highs will be in the 50's today.  In Houston 20 to 30 MPH winds are expected.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

MERRY CHRISTMAS

FROM

NEIL DIAMOND



NO MOVING TODAY

This was supposed to be moving day for Aunt Wilda but that is, obviously, not going to happen.  Nobody will be moving far today.

 

Lynne reports, "We just found out that she won't be moved until the 27th now as no one who does the moving of patients will be working Friday through Christmas.  It's very upsetting to us all as our kids, including Dawn from Georgia, will be here and wanted to see her in the Maplewood apartment.  I wish they would let us move her but it "has to be by the book".  She wants to move from the Bethel Home now.

 

Dawn and her neighbors are driving up here.  The neighbors have relatives in Elgin, Illinois, which is about 1.5 hours from here so she will have someone to ride with her and share the driving.  Her little puppy is coming too.  He has never seen snow so that will be fun to see."

WEATHER EXTREMES

This was in my inbox from Donnie this morning.  "8 p.m. and Linda is complaining about the heat.  Just turned on the A/C.

"We do, however, expect a norther tomorrow with freezing nigh time temperatures."

GET RID OF THAT GOOFY PRESENT YOU GOT LAST YEAR

WEATHER UPDATE

WEATHER ALERT for WI - La Crosse Count.

HIGH IMPACT BLIZZARD NOW TO AFFECT MORE OF REGION.

A DANGEROUS BLIZZARD IS DEVELOPING & WILL MOVE ACROSS EASTERN IA. PORTIONS OF SE MN & MUCH OF WESTERN AND SOUTHERN WI TONIGHT.

LASTING THROUGH THUR EVENING. THE STORM SYSTEM IS ALREADY PRODUCING HEAVY SNOW IN THE CNTL PLAINS.& IS HEADING THIS WAY. SNOWFALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN THIS EVENING.BECOMING HEAVY OVERNIGHT.

PLAN ON THE HEAVIEST SNOW FALLING FROM NE IA.INTO SW & CNTL WI WHERE SNOW RATES OF 1 TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR ARE EXPECTED.PARTICULARLY BETWEEN MIDNIGHT &LATE THURSDAY MORNING.

CONFIDENCE HAS INCREASED THAT BLIZZARD CONDITIONS WILL BE SEEN NEAR THE I-90 CORRIDOR & SOUTH. THIS WILL BE ESPECIALLY TRUE IN THE OPEN AREAS & RIDGE TOPS WHERE THE COMBINATION OF 6-14 INCHES OF SNOW & STRONG WINDS WILL RESULT IN DANGEROUS WHITEOUT CONDITIONS. THUS THE BLIZZARD WARNING HAS BEEN EXPANDED WEST ALONG THE I-90 CORRIDOR IN WI & MN.& FOR ALL OF NORTHEAST IA. HOWEVER WE ARE ANTICIPATING THE MOST LIFE THREATENING IMPACTS & CONDITIONS IN EXTREME NE IA INTO SOUTHWEST WI.

IT CAN NOT BE STRESSED ENOUGH THE SEVERITY & HISTORICAL NATURE OF THE SITUATION FOR THOSE LIVING IN SE MN AND NORTHEAST IA.INTO SW & CNTL WI. PROTECT YOURSELF & OTHERS BY STAYING HOME.  GETTING TO YOUR TRAVEL DESTINATION BEFORE THE SNOW BEGINS.& PREPARING NOW FOR SIGNIFICANT BLOWING/DRIFTING & WHITEOUT CONDITIONS. ROAD CREWS WILL NOT BE ABLE TO KEEP UP WITH THE INTENSE SNOW RATES.

SNOWFLOWERS

I'M SORRY I MISSED THIS GATHERING

Christmas Dinner

This is an article submitted to a 1999 Louisville Sentinel contest to find out who had the wildest Christmas dinners. It won first prize.

As a joke, my brother Jay used to hang a pair of panty hose over his fireplace before Christmas. He said all he wanted was for Santa to fill them. What they say about Santa checking the list twice must be true because every Christmas morning, although Jay's kids' stockings overflowed, his poor pantyhose hung sadly empty.

One year I decided to make his dream come true. I put on sunglasses and went in search of an inflatable love doll. They don't sell those things at Wal-Mart. I had to go to an adult bookstore downtown. If you've never been in an X-rated store, don't go, you'll only confuse yourself. I was there an hour saying things like, 'What does this do?' 'You're kidding me!' 'Who would buy that?' Finally, I made it to the inflatable doll section.

I wanted to buy a standard, uncomplicated doll that could also substitute as a passenger in my truck so I could use the car pool lane during rush hour. Finding what I wanted was difficult. 'Love Dolls' come in many different models.

The top of the line, according to the side of the box, could do things I'd only seen in a book on animal husbandry. I settled for 'Lovable Louise.' She was at the bottom of the price scale.  To call Louise a 'doll' took a huge leap of imagination.

On Christmas Eve and with the help of an old bicycle pump, Louise came to life. My sister-in-law was in on the plan and let me in during the wee morning hours. Long after Santa had come and gone, I filled the dangling pantyhose with Louise's pliant legs and bottom. I also ate some cookies and drank what remained of a glass of milk on a nearby tray. I went home, and giggled for a couple of hours.

The next morning my brother called to say that Santa had been to his house and left a present that had made him VERY happy, but had left the dog confused. She would bark, start to walk away, then come back and bark some more. We all agreed that Louise should remain in her pantyhose so the rest of the family could admire her when they came over for the traditional Christmas dinner.

My grandmother noticed Louise the moment she walked in the door. 'What the hell is that?' she asked. My brother quickly explained, 'It's a doll.' 'Who would play with something like that?' Granny snapped. I kept my mouth shut. 'Where are her clothes?' Granny continued. 'Boy, that turkey sure smells nice, Gran,' Jay said, to steer her into the dining room. But Granny was relentless. 'Why doesn't she have any teeth?' Again, I could have answered, but why would I? It was Christmas and no one wanted to ride in the back of the ambulance saying, 'Hang on Granny, hang on!'

My grandfather, a delightful old man with poor eyesight, sidled up to me and said, 'Hey, who's the naked gal by the fireplace?' I told him she was Jay's friend. A few minutes later I noticed Grandpa by the mantel, talking to Louise. Not just talking, but actually flirting. It was then that we realized this might be Grandpa's last Christmas at home.

The dinner went well. We made the usual small talk about who had died, who was dying, and who should be killed, when suddenly Louise made a noise like my father in the bathroom in the morning. Then she lurched from the mantel, flew around the room twice, and fell in a heap in front of the sofa. The cat screamed. I passed cranberry sauce through my nose, and Grandpa ran across the room, fell to his knees, and began administering mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. My brother fell back over his chair and wet his pants. Granny threw down her napkin, stomped out of the room, and sat in the car.

It was indeed a Christmas to treasure and remember. Later in my brother's garage, we conducted a thorough examination to decide the cause of Louise's collapse. We discovered that Louise had suffered from a hot ember to the back of her right thigh. Fortunately, thanks to a wonder drug called duct tape, we restored her to perfect health.. I can't wait until next Christmas.

WHERE DO THE PROFESSIONAL TRAVELERS WANT TO GO?

National Geographic asked their travel staff where they would like to go in the New Year.  Here's the places they picked.

*Bhutan
*Chile
*Costa Rica
*France
*Greenland
*Kazakhstan
*Madagascar
*New Zealand
*Peru
*Tasmania

Surprisingly, not a single vote for Holmen.

WHERE WILL THE SNOW FALL?

DOG AND CHILD WITH DOWN SYNDROME

No offense but, this is why I much prefer the four legged animals to the two legged variety.  (Beware: you might shed a tear or two).

Sometimes I think about how beautiful it would be if we let the dogs run the government and sent all the people home.

COUNTING HEADS

WE HAD 328 PAGE VIEWS YESTERDAY

THANK YOU

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

TODAY IS

LOOK FOR AN EVERGREEN

DAY

 

THE LATEST ON THE COMING STORM

The big, bad storm is still on the way for tonight and tomorrow.

In addition to the heavy snow, winds of 25 to 40 MPH will result in DRIFTIING SNOW AND POTENTIALLY WHITEOUT CONDITIONS.  There will be ROAD CLOSURES AND TRAVEL WILL BE DANGEROUS AND POSSIBLY LIFE THREATENING.

THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS FRIGHTFUL

Got a note from Carl about yesterdays snow shower.

"You may have had a "brief" snowfall to accumulate 1.5 inches but, at our house, 1.5 miles away, it snowed from 9am to 3pm and accumulated, probably, just under 4 inches."

BRACE YOURSELF

It looks more and more like this is going to be a big one.  If the national weather service is right we're looking at Heavy snow, near blizzard conditions, winds to 40 MPH, drifting snow and road closures.

Winter storm warnings are in effect from Charles City, Iowa to La Crosse to Wausau.

THIS COMES FROM BERT

..... The Suburbanites .....
(unknown author)

GOD: St. Francis, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there in the USA? What happened to the dandelions, violets, thistle and stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect, no-maintenance garden plan. Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honeybees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But all I see are these green rectangles.

ST. FRANCIS: It's the tribes that settled there, Lord, called the Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers weeds and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.

GOD: Grass? But it's so boring. It's not colorful. It doesn't attract butterflies, birds and bees, only grubs and sod worms. It's temperamental with temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?

ST. FRANCIS: Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.

GOD: The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy.

ST. FRANCIS: Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it, sometimes twice a week.

GOD: They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?

ST. FRANCIS: Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.

GOD: They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?

ST. FRANCIS: No, Lord -- just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.

GOD: Now, let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?

ST. FRANCIS: Yes, Lord.

GOD: These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.

ST. FRANCIS: You aren't going to believe this, Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.

GOD: What nonsense! At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stoke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. Plus, as they rot, the leaves form compost to enhance the soil. It's a natural circle of life.

ST. FRANCIS: You'd better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.

GOD: No! What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter and to keep the soil moist and loose?

ST. FRANCIS: After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.

GOD: And where do they get this mulch?

ST. FRANCIS: They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.

GOD: Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore. St. Catherine, you're in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?

ST. CATHERINE: Dumb and Dumber, Lord. It's a real stupid movie about.............

GOD: Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis.

YOU'RE DRINKING WHAT?

According to the Houston Press, the #1 Texas brewed beer is "Jester King Beer Geek Rodeo.  What kind of name is that for a beer?  They say this is an oatmeal stout with coffee and pepper.  They put oatmeal, coffee and pepper in a beer?

Those Texas boys need to come up to Wisconsin to find out what real beer tastes like!

SNOWFALL

Some snow totals from the quick brief snowfall we had this afternoon.

Prairie du Chien: 0.3"
La Crosse:          1.6"
Richland Center:  1.8"
Viroqua:              2.5"

HOW DRY I AM

With the Texas drought, even the squirrels have to to get a drink where they can find it.  This little guy took a sip at Donnie and Linda's birdbath.

WHAT NEXT?

This tops everything I've seen, so far, today.  There's a burger chain in Brazil that is now wrapping its burgers with edible wrapping paper!!  You don't even have to unwrap the burger...just put the ketchup and mustard on the wrapper and eat the whole thing.

Now, we've come full circle.  You're eating junk food and you're also the waste basket to throw the garbage in.  And, yes, people are actually going along with it...eating wrapper and all.

Put that under your golden arches, McDonalds!

SOME GOOD THOUGHTS

Anyone who has even the slightest feeling for the children and teachers killed this week really needs to read this article in the SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE

WINTER WEATHER IS HERE

Another dark, cloudy day and it looks like winter is here to stay for a while.

Ahead of the big storm coming tomorrow night and Thursday, we'll get some light snow today across  northeast Iowa and southwest Wisconsin.  We could have an inch on the ground by this evening.  That should make a nice foundation for the foot of snow on the way.

PLEASE SEND A CARD TO DALTON

DALTON'S ADDRESS IS

Dalton Dingus

HC62

Box 1249

 Salyersville, KY

41465

This story has been on the TV networks and in other news media but, in case you missed it, here it is again.  Please send a card.



 

 

 



I JUST FEEL LIKE THE OLDEST MAN IN THE WORLD

With the death of 115 year old Dina Manfredini, in Iowa, a couple of weeks ago the oldest person title now moves to Japan.  Jiroemon Kimura is also 115 and just 15 days younger than Manfredini.

 

With all the aches and pains I have at 72, I can't imagine why anyone would want to live to 115.

YOUR CAR NEEDS A NEW PAINT JOB

So, you think you drive a great car.  You think you're really impressing the folks when you drive down the street.  Unless you're driving one of these, your driving a meat wagon.

This little honey is 18K WHITE GOLD plated with a V10 quad turbo with 1,600 horsepower and 2800nm torque 0- (Whatever that means).

This car is owned by Oil billionaire Abu Dhabi.  You, of course, made this all possible with your contribution at the gas pump and Abu thanks you.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

BRAD PITT

49 TODAY

A LITTLE TOILET HUMOR

I am so out of the loop.  When I was 20 I knew everything.  Now that I'm 70+ I know a little bit about a couple of things and that's it.

So, I read that Rodney Carrington is coming to the La Crosse Center in April.  Naturally, my first thought is, "Who the hell is Rodney Carrington"?

I go to You Tube where they have, at least, one video of everyone who has ever lived.  There he is!  Rodney Carrington and he has a TON of videos.

My first thought was, "He's another Larry the Cable Guy" only a little dirtier.  Most of the videos are really X-rated but I found one that is a mild R-Rated and it was, actually, kind of funny, plus it features on of my favorite songs so I'll share it with you.  What the hell. We're all adults with a touch of second childhood.

EVERY DAY IS A HOLIDAY

Logo Design by FlamingText.com

LATEST WEATHER ADVISORY

*WINTER STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM WEDNESDAY EVENING THROUGH THURSDAY AFTERNOON

*HEAVY SNOW COULD OCCUR IN THE WATCH AREA WEDNESDAY EVENING THROUGH THURSDAY.

* A TOTAL OF 6 TO 12 INCHES OF SNOW IS POSSIBLE.

* WINDS OF 20 TO 30 MPH WILL ACCOMPANY THE HEAVY SNOWFALL AND COULD MAKE TRAVEL DANGEROUS.

* THOSE TRAVELING OR COMMUTING COULD FACE DANGEROUS CONDITIONS.

EARTH FACT

If you're standing on the equator you are spinning through space at just over 1,000 miles per hour.  At the North or South Pole you're perfectly still.  Between the two points the speed of your spin depends on where you are.  The farther south you go the faster you're spinning.  And, here you thought you were having dizzy spells.

FOOD

I don't know how much it costs and, I guess, I'd have to fly to London to get one but I sure would like to try a CHRISTMAS BURGER with the cranberry ketchup.  Get a load of what's between these buns right here.

12 PAINS OF CHRISTMAS

THIS IS MY

FAVORITE VERSION



GROCERY RUN

It's going to be so cold today that I thought I'd wait and get groceries tomorrow.  Not good.  Tomorrow they're adding snow and rain to the cold.  I'll get the groceries today.

CLOUD LAMPS

I suppose some would call these lamps cheap and tacky but I've always liked cheap and tacky and I LIKE THESE LAMPS! Click here and have a look.

TODAYS HISTORY

It was 109 years ago today, December 17, 1903, that Orville and Wilbur made their first successful man-powered airplane flight near Kitty Hawk. 

109 years later, flying is about as glamorous and comfortable now as it was then and it was a hell of a lot cheaper.  That's what they call "progress".

IF YOU SAY SO......

"Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts."

~Albert Einstein~

PICTURES FROM NORWAY

I follow a couple of U.S. ex-pats who now live in Norway in the town of STAVANGER.  Isn't that where Grandpa came from?  I know I've heard about Stavanger before.

In any event, these folks have an excellent travel blog and there's an article on a recent record breaking snow storm they had in Stavanger.  There are some really great pictures of the snow and the city that you might like to look at here.

There's another photo essay, on their blog, that I don't want you to miss so CLICK HERE to see "Colorful Stavanger".  Let me tell you, snow or no snow, cold or no cold, I would move to this city in a heartbeat.  It looks FANTASTIC!

TWITTER

I hit a milestone this morning.  I have "tweeted" 3,000 TIMES.

LA CROSSE HISTORY

I often think about the old WISCONSIN THEATER when I walk through the parking lot, next to the Cathedral, where it used to stand.

I had read the history of the theater and knew it burned down but I had always thought the fire was long before I was born.  I was surprised  to discover, however, that the fire was in 1952.

There's a very rare photo of the building in the LA CROSSE TRIBUNE and I have no memory of ever seeing it, although, I must have. I remember Rita, Carl and I taking the bus downtown when we came to La Crosse on summer vacation.

I remember the Hollywood, Rivoli and 5th Ave. theaters and the theater that stood near where the West Avenue Walgreen's is now but I draw a blank on the Wisconsin, which surprises me.  It would have been hard to miss with its huge marquee, the biggest in the state, outside of Milwaukee, at the time.  It would have gone down in flames just two years before we moved to West Salem.

COLD WEATHER

No more "mild winter" talk for a while.  It was 24 when I got up with a wind chill of 14.  We won't get much warmer than 29 this afternoon.

BOOKS

There's a new book in the stores that I'll be looking for at the library.  "I could pee on this...and other poems by cats" sounds like a delight as this video makes abundantly clear.  There's a very close cousin of Thunders in this piece and, sure, it brought some tears but I think I need it to bring back memories of our good times.

WEATHER

TALK ABOUT GLOOM AND DOOM!



DRINK UP!

HAPPY HOLIDAY PUNCH

 

 

1 quart of lime sherbet

1 quart bottle of 7up

6 ounces Rose's Mojito mix

1 cup white rum

 

Mix it all up, put it in a punch bowl and garnish with lime slices and mint leaves.

 

I'll bet that would go good with lefse.

MEDICAL UPDATE

I got an email from Gunderson Clinic to check the "My Care" account for the latest lab test results.

I noticed that I'm in the "safe range" but a bit low on vitamin B.  I thought, maybe, I could check on what foods might be good for that.

The list included moose liver, turkey liver, caviar and dried smelt.  Now I know why I'm a bit low on that vitamin.

COLD WEATHER AHEAD

It looks like our "mild winter" is coming to an end.  Temps are in the mid-30's, this morning, and that's as warm as it's gonna get.  It will continue to slowly cool off to about 30 by 5 PM and drop to near 20 overnight.

I've held out as long as I could.  Now it's time to get the long johns out.

ROCK & ROLL HISTORY

There's an interesting column by Doug Moe in the Wisconsin State Journal about the plane crash that killed Otis Redding 45 years ago.  YOU CAN READ IT HERE.

BREAKING UP IS HARD TO DO

Wedding pictures are nice to look at but divorce pictures are fun, too, when they're of some of the biggest stars of all time.  This page DAILY MAIL has some wonderful divorce court pictures of Elvis, Bette Davis, Debbie Reynolds and more.

NOTE TO DONNIE: You'll even find a great shot of THE KILLER, JERRY LEE LEWIS in Divorce court.

And, while we're on this subject, we have to include the best D-I-V-O-R-C-E song of all time from Tammy Wynette.

 

GOOD LUCK GRADUATES

It's mid-winter graduation at UW-LACROSSE today.  That means we'll have some folks moving out of the building in the next few days.  They come and they go but I hang tight.

ODE TO JOY

HAD HE LIVED,

BEETHOVEN WOULD HAVE BEEN

242 YEARS OLD TODAY

Even if you don't care for Classical music you will recognize this.  It's one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written and perfect for the Christmas season.



NEWS FROM LYNNE

"We talked with Mom and she is doing OK but really hates the food. She isn't the only one. Many complaints.

She attended a good bluegrass concert, the other day. There will be more of that at assisted living which is nice for all who live there.

At this time, Thursday sounds like "moving day". We are hoping for snow free roads during Christmas week as all of our family want to visit her. We may go at different times due to their work schedule."

HE'S NOT ALONE

One poor soul, on TWITTER this morning, said, "I'm going to give everyone I know hand-made gifts for Christmas this year.  In other words, I'm broke."

D@@# COMPUTERS

I was fighting the computer again yesterday.  I know this machine is doing it on purpose to slowly drive me insane.

I think Andy Rooney had it right.  "Computers make it easier to do a lot of things, but most of the things they make it easier to do don't need to be done".

DONNIE WITH BARBER SHOP

This is just too funny.  Does he look like he needs a barber shop?