Boring? What can I do?

Yesterday, I received a comment that my lists of 25 are getting boring. You know something? I re-read those lists and realized I might BE boring. That is NOT a fun realization. I sure haven't changed much since the windfall. That's a good thing - for me anyway. I haven't blown it either. After converting to the "new blogger," I've been going back and labeling my posts. One thing, I don't seem to be enjoying myself as much as I could. I'm sure not expanding my horizons either.

So.....I filled out an application for my local "ritzy" Country Club. It's pretty much something I've always had as a "reach goal." I can use it for business reasons, but it would be fun to take my friends over for a nice lunch and dinner. I'm also going to take golf lessons. That's something I've always wanted to do. They also have fabulous fireworks shows, and I love those. Who knows? I may meet some interesting folks.....

Top 25 Reasons to Have a Significant Other

1. You have a readymade date for "date-y" things (office parties, weddings, funerals, etc.)

2. You have someone to at least think about on Valentine's Day

3. Hopefully, you have someone who is good at something you aren't and helps you

4. Someone to hug

5. Someone to argue with

6. Someone who calls you

7. Someone you can call

8. A co-holiday celebrator

9. Someone to cook for and to cook for you

10. Someone to cry with when you're sad

11. Someone to lavish gifts on (LOL)

12. Someone who listens to you vent

13. Someone to provide a different point of view

14. Someone to watch movies with

15. Someone to tease

16. Someone to complain about

17. Someone to brag about

18. Someone that makes you happy

19. Someone to laugh with

20. Someone to be with when you are scared

21. Someone to love

22. Someone to be your best friend

23. Someone to take you to the hospital

24. Someone to take care of you when you're sick

25. Someone to take care of

Did you notice my labels? Blogger virtually tricked me into converting to the new blogger. So far....so good.

SO........my list. I have a terrible feeling I'm missing something. Enlighten me? Please???????

May God Bless Him

I know many people are writing about Barbaro today. After thinking about it, I knew I had to celebrate his life after writing about his accident earlier this year.

What a beautiful horse he was! More importantly, what an unbelievable heart he had! May God bless Barbaro, and may he rest in peace.

Top 25 Things to Do on a Date

1. Go to a musical concert (someone you both like)

2. Get dressed up and go to a play or the ballet and have a glass of champagne

3. Go window shopping

4. Go to a romantic movie

5. Visit a spa, have massages side by side

6. Have a quiet dinner by some kind of water (river, lake, ocean) Hawaii is best for this......but any water will do

7. Fix dinner together at your place or his and watch TV (one of my favorites

8. Take a sleigh ride together

9. Go on a Halloween hayride together

10. Go to church together

11. Go for a walk together when the leaves are changing

12. Go for a drive in the mountains in the Fall

13. Sit together with just the Christmas tree lights on, a nice fire and hold hands

14. Go to an exciting athletic event together (you both have to be for the same team and enjoy watching the same sport) High school sports are great for this.

15. Dress for dinner and go somewhere old fashioned where the band just plays slow dances

16. Attend a NASCAR race (if you don't happen to live in a Cup city, this can be hard)

17. Go roller skating

18. Watch fireworks together outside on a blanket

19. This one is if you REALLY like him/her - Kiss during the ENTIRE date

20. Eat at a Mexican restaurant with roaming musicians

21. Go to a comedy show.....laugh alot

22. I've never done this but I'd like to -------go for a motorcyle ride with someone who knows how to ride!

23. Go to a bookstore, pick out some books, read, and sit and look at each other between reads!

24. Go to the beach, have a picnic, grab some rays, take your boombox

25. Go ANYWHERE in a limo!

What do YOU like to do on a date???

Top 25 Timeout

So......I'm like lounging on my bed having watched my 3 movies from Blockbuster. Lazy. Too lazy to drive 2 miles up the street and exchange them for more movies. So I click on my cable provider and see that they have new movies. Yep.....I'm paying $17/month for all the movies I can watch and I spend $3.99 to watch "Scoop." These are the kinds of wastrel things you can do with a windfall. It was a great movie with some very funny moments in it. I ought to be spanked for wasting that money. Hehehehehe.......

Top 25 Memories of my Big Mama

My "Big Mama" was my maternal grandmother. I am named after her and my mama. The third. That's me. Again, here are my top memories in random order.

1. Her voice's natural vibrato (and her needlepoint!)

2. When she played the piano and organ and I sang with her

3. Her last Christmas spent at my house and the way she enjoyed my cooking

4. Holding her hand as she was dying

5. Shopping for "pocketbooks"

6. Our last Christmas shopping trip when she sent me to buy a tablecloth for my mama

7. The way she clapped her hands together just before she said something spectacular

8. Her laugh

9. The time she covered herself in a white sheet and sat on the porch at Halloween

10. The way she bought me things and said, "don't tell anyone"

11. The time she loaned me $250 when I couldn't pay my bills and wouldn't let me pay her back

12. The way she ate slowly -- just like I used to

13. The way she kept a tissue neatly folded under her watchband on her wrist

14. The time my college friends and I dropped in on her unexpectedly and she was watching the World Series and all my "guy friends" thought she was the coolest grandmother ever

15. All the times I said, I love you Big Mama and she said, " I love you too WFW"

16. Seeing her go to bed in her hairnet

17. Her gorgeous always polished and perfectly manicured nails

18. All the times she accurately guessed her presents before opening them

19. The way her eyes crinkled when she smiled and laughed

20. Her one grey eye and her one hazelish/green eye

21. All the times she wore orchid corsages

22. She had this cute little habit of saying "meow" to me. I've inherited this.

23. The way she drove her big car with a pistol in a cigar box underneath the seat

24. The way she read the entire Bible every single year

25. Knowing she really loved me the best. Everyone needs to feel that kind of love.

This list made me cry (in a nice way) to compile it. I loved my Big Mama. I miss her every day of my life. I challenge you to think of someone living or gone and make your own list. Who would you choose? How many memories would you have?

Top 25 Things I Do Well

1. Laugh

2. Design Christmas/Holiday cards

3. Cook

4. Feel Your Pain

5. Read

6. Lounge

7. Cry

8. Meet new people

9. Talk

10. Network

11. Shop

12. Plan and throw parties

13. Think

14. Drive

15. Sing

16. Remember

17. Lead people

18. Sell

19. Watch TV

20. Enjoy people

21. Give gifts

22. Write

23. Hug

24. Kiss

25. Love

**Please note that these are not in any particular order. By the way, what do YOU do well?

Top 25 Heroes

1. Walt
2. Belle
3. My dad
4. Pete Maravich
5. Chris Evert
6. Jan Karon
7. Every and Any soldier
8. My doctors
9. Big Mama (my maternal grandmother)
10. Mama Brown (my paternal grandmother)
11. Herschel Walker
12. Barney, his bacon and his special sandwiches
13. My former therapist
14. Barney's godfather
15. Mr. Shapiro
16. Mother Theresa
17. Father Marren
18. Billy Graham
19. Heather Whitestone
20. Auntie Jane
21. Sell
22. Jackie Kennedy
23. Jerry Lewis
24. Gerald Ford
25. Jill Connor Browne

Who are YOUR heroes? All of these people touched my life in one way or another in a POSITIVE way.

Top 25 Favorite Songs

1. Somewhere Over the Rainbow - Judy Garland
2. Fields of Gold - Eva Cassidy
3. Sweet Home Alabama - Lynyrd Skynrd
4. All I Ask of You - Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman
5. Gimme Shelter - The Rolling Stones
6. Not Fade Away - The Stones
7. Do You Hear What I Hear? - Whitney Houston
8. The Sound of Music - Julie Andrews
9. Waiting on the World to Change - John Mayer
10. One Fine Day (Un Bel Di From Madame Butterfly) - Opera Babes
11. Seasons of Love - Theme from Rent
12. Lullaby - The Dixie Chicks
13. You're Still You - Josh Groban
14. I'll Still Love You More - Trisha Yearwood
15. Let Me Let Go - Faith Hill
16. 100 Years - Five for Fighting
17. Both Sides Now - Joni Mitchell
18. I Walk the Line - Johnny Cash
19. Crazy Love - Van Morrison
20. Suspicious Minds - Elvis
21. Tupelo Honey - Van Morrison
22. He Stopped Loving Her Today - George Jones
23. Son of a Preacher Man - Dusty Springfield
24. Midnight Train to Georgia - Gladys Knight and the Pips
25. Whipping Post - The Allman Brothers

This Top 25 was ROUGH! I went with songs that no matter how many times I hear them......I still LOVE them. I know, I know. I'm sure I've missed one (or more). Tell me who you like and who I'm missing.........I'm curious.

We interrupt the series of 25 for a survey......

Top 25 Places to Spend Money

1. Victoria's Secret (enough said)
2. Nordstrom shoe department
3. Nordstrom ladies department
4. Williams Sonoma
5. The Ritz for tea
6. The Ritz Spa
7. The Ritz for Thanksgiving Brunch/Lunch
8. Neiman Marcus' shoe department
9. Nordstrom's handbag department
10. Neiman Marcus' handbag department
11. Ann Taylor
12. Antique Markets
13. Amazon.com
14. Barnes and Noble
15. Fye Music
16. Whole Foods
17. A local boutique - Veronica's
18. Starbuck's
19. Sephora
20. Office Depot
21. The Bakery
22. Movie Theatres
23. Ticketmaster.com
24. Virtually any shop in Savannah, Georgia - my favorite city of all
25. Church

Where do you LIKE to spend your money? By the way, I am enjoying these lists of 25, I hope you are. All of these 25s were first inspired by my appearance on 25peeps which I am still "hanging" in there sans my head. As one of my blogger friends noted making lists of 25 can be hard. I find it is forcing me to think -- in a good way. In an ironic turn of events, I chose a new nail polish color yesterday. Eerily, I turned the bottle upside down - it's name was "Quarter of a Century."

Top 25 Favorite Things To Do

1. Read a good book
2. Watch a good movie
3. Have lunch with my girls' club
4. Have a massage at The Ritz
5. Watch people open my Christmas presents
6. Cook Christmas dinner
7. Eat Christmas dinner
8. Nap by a fire
9. Nap when it's raining
10. Go on a fun date
11. Attend a concert by an artist I love
12. Soak in a jacuzzi
13. Drink champagne with a special guy
14. Go to a Broadway show
15. Have someone else wash my hair and dry it
16. Kiss
17. Go shoe shopping
18. Be snowed inside, unable to drive anywhere, but have power and plenty of food
19. Laugh
20. Watch trash TV (to include certain reality shows, Lifetime movies, etc.)
21. Take a nap with my kitty on my chest
22. Sleep in fresh, clean sheets after a shower
23. Sit in Barnes and Noble with a stack of books, reading one and sipping Chai Tea
24. Holding hands with someone I love
25. Going to my old church and passing the "peace"

What are your favorite things to do? Are you taking time to do them? I'm not. But I'm going to!

Top 25 Favorite Foods

1. My cornbread dressing
2. My own Poppyseed Chicken Casserole
3. Chicken wings by my local restaurant
4. Crème brulee’
5. Yeast rolls from my local bakery
6. Orange chicken from Panda Express
7. Hot dog from Chicago Mike’s
8. My dad’s Belgian Waffles
9. Barney’s bacon
10. Mongolian beef from Mandarin House
11. Ham and pineapple cream cheese sandwich from The Patio
12. Moist chocolate layer cake
13. A really good barbeque plate with sliced pork, brunswick stew and white bread topped off with peach cobbler
14. Homemade vegetable soup with cornbread muffins
15. Sweet iced tea
16. Homemade mashed potatoes
17. Glazed chocolate doughtnut from my local bakery
18. Guacamole dip with crisp corn chips
19. My own Chicken White Bean chili
20. My own Apple Cake with Rum Glaze
21. Houston’s Cobb Salad
22. Fried chicken
23. My own banana waffles
24. My own coleslaw
25. My mom’s pimento and cheese sandwiches on white bread

Hungry? If you want, keep a clothed person on 25peeps and vote for me. I'm headless but hanging on!

Love and Time

A girlfriend and I watched "The Lake House" yesterday (one of the benefits of my new Blockbuster membership). It began a bit slowly, but the overall feeling I was left with was rather bittersweet. Even despite the ending which I won't spoil if you haven't seen it. By the way, it was definitely worth watching.

It has caused me to ponder. Is love really like the movies? Do people flirt any more? Does romance exist still?

Holiday

I'm interrupting my series of "25" to celebrate MLK's birthday. Good Morning America just showed his report card, and he received a "C" in Public Speaking!!!???!!! Interesting, isn't it?

I feel a little guilty; I'm not doing any public service work today. Did I miss a memo? The news just said that today is a National Day of Service. Ummm...did I know that?

The "clean up and out" continues in my house. When I sunk into my depression last year, I let things pile up. Now that I've emerged, I'm ready to get my environment "nice" again. I can't pay someone to do that; I have to do it myself. How are you celebrating MLK Day?

The First of my Top 25

Snake left a comment that has inspired (thank heavens) me to begin a series of Top 25s. (Referring of course to being on 25peeps (yes, I'm still on it) .......which has been referred to as "25creeps"........LOL. Anyhow, since he asked what movies I rented last night, and I DO have this incredible FREE trial (yes, we rich people love pinching pennies).....I thought I would start with my favorite 25 movies (in no particular order). I'm going to make lists of 25 for all sorts of things. So stay tuned.

First, I saw "My Super Ex Girlfriend" last night. It had all the makings of being a "Blockbuster" hit; but it just ran.... Luke (Wilson)warm. Uma Thurman (I like her in movies) was the "Superhero," but it was just too nuts. Also, don't let your kids see it. There are alot of ....sexual references in it. (My Girl Scout troop wanted to see it.) By the way, if you need a Super Hero fix, go read Henry the Adequate - a new friend who dubbed 25peeps 25creeps.

Here they are in random order, WFW's top 25 movies:
1. To Kill A Mockingbird (Gregory Peck good)
2. Duel in the Sun (Gregory Peck bad)
3. The Sound of Music (has it all…great music, great love story, great family)
4. Where the Heart Is (watch it when you’re depressed or need to get “up”)
5. The Birds
6. Home Alone (modern favorite Christmas movie)
7. It’s a Wonderful Life (favorite classic Christmas movie)
8. The English Patient (possibly the most romantic, sexy movie ever made)
9. Elizabeth (favorite historical movie)
10. Bridget Jones’ Diary (Colin Firth is dreamy)
11. Air Force One (Harrison Ford when he was sexy and a REAL kickass President)
12. The Notebook (true love transcends boundaries and the leads fell in love with each other)
13. Lean on Me (Morgan Freeman inspiring)
14. Driving Miss Daisy (Morgan Freeman heartwarming)
15. Legally Blonde (Reese Witherspoon triumphs over the smug ex)
16. Gone With The Wind (Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable are riveting)
17. Mildred Pierce (Joan Crawford – fantastic!)
18. Castaway and Big (Tom Hanks is just great)
19. Any movie with Sir Laurence Olivier - Wuthering Heights is my favorite though
20. The Count of Monte Cristo ( with Jim Cavaziel)
21. The Pursuit of Happyness
22. Any Jack Nicholson movie – A Few Good Men (“You can’t handle the truth); Terms of Endearment; As Good as it Gets
23. Sliding Doors (Gwyneth Paltrow is marvelous in this one!)
24. An Affair to Remember – but ANYTHING with Cary Grant
25. Love With the Proper Stranger (Natalie Wood and Steve McQueen – a twofer)

Any comments? Your favorites?

It's Hot HOT HOT

So.....this year goes on record as the warmest ever. And it was warm today. I didn't even have coffee today. You can see that I'm certainly not wearing a sweater! What a wonderful weekend already! I joined Blockbuster's equivalent of Netflix. I got two movies tonight and queued up my next 25. We'll just see how this delivery thingie works. I am continuing with my clean up efforts. All clothes are aligned in the closet and the dressing room floor is completely CLEAR. A clean house, homemade brownies and three movies today! MMMMMMmmm. That's my idea of heaven on earth. I think I'm just a simple girl.

By the way, I'm hanging in there at 25peeps.com. I really appreciate your votes - which, if you had a mind to, you could click on EVERY hour. LOL. I posted almost all of the posts to whether I should be on that site or not. I've decided that I'm going to stand for wholesomeness on there with some others. Again, I'm a simple girl.

Cleaning up and out

Yes, I've been kicking up my heels for sure. In my cleaned out closet. I finally tackled it, but it almost tackled ME. I wasn't sure I was going to emerge. Armloads of clothes went to Goodwill. Isn't it funny how your clothes remind you of certain times? Anything associated with a bad memory went OUT. I certainly must have gone through an animal stripes phase because I had shoes, dresses, etc. All that stuff is gone! Have some fun. Dance in your closet. I dare ya! You get extra points if you GROWL or ROAR. LOL.......

To Click or Not to Click

I've been reposted over at 25peeps.com. Now, herein lies the dilemma. My head's been cut off just showing my body. Seeing as how I am sandwiched in the midst of rather risque (putting it a bit mildly) pictures, I've been debating about even asking for clicks. Being one that has always enjoyed competition, part of me says YES! Please vote for me! There's also a part of me that wants to show that a "not risque" blog can stay with the best of everyone over there. Tell me what you think - and, if you want to - here's my referral link to click: 25peeps.com. You'll see me all headless and in blue. Seriously, I do want to get your input.

A fun quiz

Found over at Phoe's Chronicle's of an Ugly Duckling.

You are The Hierophant

Divine Wisdom. Manifestation. Explanation. Teaching.

All things relating to education, patience, help from superiors.The Hierophant is often considered to be a Guardian Angel.

The Hierophant's purpose is to bring the spiritual down to Earth. Where the High Priestess between her two pillars deals with realms beyond this Earth, the Hierophant (or High Priest) deals with worldly problems. He is well suited to do this because he strives to create harmony and peace in the midst of a crisis. The Hierophant's only problem is that he can be stubborn and hidebound. At his best, he is wise and soothing, at his worst, he is an unbending traditionalist.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

The Pursuit of Happyness

I have just returned - still hanky in hand - from seeing "The Pursuit of Happyness." If you don't see another movie all year, you need to see this one. It's a true story. See it. You'll be glad you did.

What a difference a day makes!

What a difference a day makes! My medicine kicked in last night. No headaches today. I am feeling not completely back to normal, but I am closer than I've been in 2007. Thanks for your prayers and well wishes. As we speak, I'm roasting a turkey breast in the oven (I love turkey) and preparing some mashed potatoes and biscuits with honey! MMMMMM.....What are YOU having for dinner???

Middle of the Night and Headaches

I awoke in the middle of the night with my dreaded headache's return. I have had it off and on today, and it is bad enough that I called my doctor. He believes it is because I've changed my medication. I'm to begin trying the different dosage today. I know to watch chocolate and caffeine and get enough rest. I'm excited about 2007 and have so many things to do. These headaches are messing up my progress. Not to mention scaring me.

Happy 2007!

HAPPY 2007! I'm especially happy today on the 2nd as I put out an SOS for help on adding blog links. I'm going to have to get permission from my "rescuer" to publish his name, but he designed my "Rich Reads." I love having the links I read frequently over there! I am still missing a few as I had them haphazardly in my favorites. PLEASE, if I've missed you somehow, send me an email and I'll add yours! About the only crummy thing going on is that I was laid up yesterday with a migraine headache, and it has returned this afternoon. I'm so happy looking at my links though! Thank you to the Big guy!