Honoring our Veterans

A salute to the veterans in my family who represent all branches of the military-

My uncle - Army- Tank Infantryman who liberated the death camps in World War 2.
My brother in law - Air Force - Helicopter Medi Evac pilot during Vietnam.
My cousin - Coast Guard - Served in U.S. and the Pacific waters.
My cousin's daughter - Navy, just finished 6 years on the Nuclear Carrier, the Nimitz.

We are lucky, you all made it home and safe. God Bless to all who have served.

Orange You Glad It's A Mirrored Woman for Weekend Reflections

I was fascinated and enjoyed this mirrored female sculpture seen at a recent Arts Festival near my home. I did not discover her somewhat malevolent gaze until I looked at the photos.
Thank you to my hosts, Yaya for Orange You Glad, and James of Newton Area Photo for Weekend Reflections, and to you for your visit.

Glass Pumpkins for The Color Carnival

These colorful glass pumpkins were on sale by the artist at the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica. I love the blue ones, I've never seen a blue pumpkin before and it's my favorite color.
Thank you to Martha, host of The Color Carnival and to you for your visit. De Colores!

Dish and Disgruntlement - Blogger Disclosures

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that any new source of media or revenue, to the government, must be in want of regulation.

Blogger disclosures are appearing all over blogland in response to the Federal Trade Commission's new guidelines on social media advertising and promotion. I do not have ads on my blogs or blog "commercially" or "professionally". But like the pros, I do have some blog disclosures to share-

The title of my blog, A Sense of Humor is Essential, was inspired by the Six Word Meme where you summarize your life in six words.

Regarding Memes and Awards, Tag at your own risk. I have some awards to catch up on and they all seem to come in batches. Thank you to my Nominators, I appreciate you all. I am in awe of folks who post these immediately. It takes me a long time to come up with semi interesting facts about myself, link up all the blogs, and adhere to the rules that these memes require.

Blogging is a hobby, akin to my gardening versus that of a professional landscaper. I don't even have a traffic, hit counter gadget downloaded. That would just dredge up too many insecurity issues from my adolescence.

I need to go on a blog diet. My blog list and general blog housekeeping feel flabby and out of shape.

I am intrigued by the same two cartoon women who seem to be very popular in Blog header designs. Where did these cartoon people come from? Is it many bloggers' dream to appear as Betty and Wilma from the Flintstones?

Disgruntlement disclosures:

Big flashing graphics and widgets, super loud music, hours to load the page, and brown lettering on a black background are my blog visit nemesis-es. Do these folks ever click on their blog like a visitor to see how it looks? Or do they just add their widgets and gadgets in the dark after imbibing?

Bloggers who never return a comment, Ever, Ever, Ever. It's like an one sided conversation whose deafening silence is saying that "You and your blog are chopped liver." (Old, moldy chopped liver.)

Mean commenters. What rock did these losers crawl out from under? Hey, I shouldn't be insulting Rocks! Luckily, I have only had one troll in 18 months of blogging, so turning off Anonymous comments works.

Thank you for reading this disclosure. Any disclosures you would like to propose, defend or refute?


No trees or small animals with big pretty eyes were harmed in the making of this entry. I did however neglect my dog's walk to bring this to you.
(Extra Credit Point Opportunity for identifying the author and book whose title and first sentence I mutilated for this post. ;o)

How to Survive the Holidays Without Ending Up in The Newspapers

Please stop over at The Motivation Station (TMS) today where I am hosting the topic of holiday planning and budget ideas. This includes Regifting gift cards, minimizing holiday meltdowns of the culinary and psychological type, avoiding inviting the slacker relative, and Not dressing like a certain Pop icon.

I am delighted to Welcome our new TMS host for Fridays, The Head Eagle of The Eagle's View.

Thank you so much for your visit.

What are your tried and true coping strategies for the hectic holidays? Or do you just throw china across the room and leave town?

Etiquette for Flower Recipients

When your adult daughter has flowers delivered for your 79th birthday, please do not make the first, second, and third statements about the flowers, Questions about Why You Purchased Said flowers at a florist shop way downtown and Not a local florist shop near your house. Because you know, you are Concerned about how much your Adult daughter paid for the flowers and you didn't want her to Overpay! Heaven Forbid. And also, a local florist shop went out of business last year and there is only one florist left in town.

Please kindly remember that many adults use internet floral sites and have no control of where the Flowers Originate, only where they End Up. There are a multitude of discounts available for flowers and your daughter is a savvy shopper. Also, please keep in mind that the Giver is Not Responsible for the Local Economy in your community.

Thank you, No, I don't need the name of your local florist for the next time. There, unfortunately, will not be a next time. My sincere apologies.

Perfect Moment Monday - Virtual Connections

Welcome to Perfect Moment Mondays where we gather to warm our collective tootsies on the fires of appreciation and mindfulness. I would like to share two moments that occurred in my "virtual world" that sincerely touched my heart.

The first moment occurred when I decided to go to website of the author and consultant, Gavin de Becker after I recommended his books, The Gift of Fear and Protecting the Gift for literally the hundredth time. I read his books after I saw Mr.de Becker on TV almost a decade ago where he talked about trusting your instincts when it comes to your safety and the safety of your family. He consults with celebrities, the wealthy, and the FBI on risk assessment, security, and profiling. His subject matter is highly sensitive and heart wrenching including the topics of abuse, domestic and workplace violence, abduction, etc. His books are well written, clear, concise, with many anecdotes and real life examples as Mr.de Becker is a long term student, survivor, and orphan of domestic violence from his childhood. These books are not escapist reading, but incredibly educational and empowering in the truest sense of the word.

The website had a guest book to sign in and comment and here is what I wrote-

I want to sincerely thank Mr.de Becker for writing the books, The Gift of Fear and Protecting the Gift. I am a pediatric nurse and mother of teen boys and I find myself recommending these two books multiple times per year both personally and professionally. It must have been extraordinarily painful to write these books as it was very painful, yet necessary, to read. Mr.de Becker has empowered and educated me to not only teach my own children, but also those I come in contact with to trust their own instincts. My best to you all for continued success.

Imagine my surprise when later that day, I received this reply -

You’re kind to let me know the books have value to you.

I’m grateful you took the time, and very glad you find benefit in those books.

Best in your important work –

Gavin de Becker


That was really cool for me to get a response from Mr.de Becker. He's been on Oprah and worked with the Clintons and The Sheik of Dubai and he thanked me for My Important Work!!

The next virtual connection occurred from our Perfectly Marvelous Host of Perfect Moment Mondays, Lori of Weebles Wobblog, when she gave me a Shout Out on her blog for the New meme, Shout Out Sunday hosted by Melissa of Full Circle. The details of Shout Out Sunday are to:

Choose a blog that has moved you. A daily must read. One you stalk. One that makes you laugh, cry or scream at the monitor. A new one you would like to give exposure to. Someone you would like to introduce to your readers and send a warm fuzzy while you're at it.

Thank you, dear Lori for this warm, fuzzy perfect moment. I so appreciate it and You.

For my Shout Out, I would like to introduce my long term blog buddy, Mom to Twins plus One whose honesty, caring, and sharing about herself and her family also touch my heart and spirit.

Thank you for your visit, I appreciate it. May many perfect moments be yours whether virtual or up close and personal.