B – I – N – G – O !

Last night Andrew and I attended his company’s annual post-Christmas party. They hold it in January to be more accommodating to everyone’s busy holiday schedules, which is much appreciated. Plus, it’s always nice to have something to look forward to in January.

Every year there’s a theme. We’ve had a French chef cook for us (back in the old days when the company was much smaller and we could all fit comfortably in the company president’s living room), played “Family Feud” a couple times, attended a magic show, watched a comedian at a comedy club, etc. This year’s theme was BINGO, which was definitely one of my favorites.

This might also be a memorable theme for my husband who informed me he has never actually played BINGO before, though they do play it in England. Lucky he had me nearby since I would consider myself a well-advanced amateur. I wouldn’t call myself professional. I would only use that designation if I was someone who played several cards at once on a fairly regular basis (like my late aunt who played it religiously and even named her dog Bingo). I’m not old enough for this to be a serious interest yet (and they only do BINGO at my church's annual summer festival).

Andrew soon caught on and even won once. Each winner received a ticket on which you wrote your name and put it in the box with the rest of the company tickets hoping yours was drawn at the end of the evening for one of the many prizes on the table.

My favorite BINGO round was Music BINGO where about 15-30 seconds of a song from the 80s & 90s was played and you had to locate it on your card hoping it was in the position where it counted for the ‘X’ we were trying to get. This was a game where the older you were, the easier it was. I was definitely the oldest at my table, so Andrew and I had to occasionally assist the two millennials at our table. Needless to say neither of us won at that,

Mohawk man won the Music BINGO

but I didn’t care because it was so much fun, and I think most of his coworkers would just as soon they played all of each song because there was a lot of singing along. Maybe Karaoke will be considered for next year.

The last BINGO of the night netted the winner 5 tickets if they managed to fill every space on their card. By this point in the evening there was a lot of moaning and groaning by sore losers, so it’s just as well that it was the last round. Neither of us won at that either, but came awfully close.

After a quick bathroom break, or a return to the drinks station, everyone gathered around the prizes table as names were methodically drawn out of the box. The caveat was that ‘you get the prize you get; no trading, no whining.’ The prize we won might be the reason for that rule.

I was a little surprised to hear my name called (we each got a free ticket upon entry which is how my name ended up in the box). In spite of Andrew’s coworker shouting what each prize was, I still didn’t completely comprehend what it was until I squinted at the small print.  I won a voucher for an hour and a half AXE THROWING SESSION FOR TWO at a place in Columbus. Honestly, that’s not something I’ve ever given much thought to, and brings to mind the time Ed Ames (Mingo on “Daniel Boone”) was on Johnny Carson teaching him to throw a tomahawk.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0L5QC9ZJkM8

Still, it should be fun, and I think would be a good annual resolution to try something new every year that’s at least a little bit physical (last year was a Segway tour of Columbus). Andrew’s coworker said he’s done it and was quite sore afterwards, so perhaps we should do a little weight lifting or push-ups or pull-ups or something to build up our arm and shoulder strength.

Puzzle Meister...

Readers Paradise (by White Mountain)

If someone should ask me what I did during the deep freeze in January 2019, I’d tell them I put together a puzzle, or rather assisted, but did very little of the actual construction. Apparently I’m married to the Puzzle Meister who eagerly rolled up his sleeves and dug in last weekend once I prepared the piece of cardboard to go underneath (that was hard enough getting the measurements correct, which still ended up being slightly off).

To get started I suggested we maybe sort the pieces by color using some extra Cool Whip containers we had, so I worked on that while Andrew got busy constructing the frame. Needless to say he was done with that long before I was finished. In my own defense, 1000 pieces takes a while to sort.

He then kept studying the box before carefully selecting and placing pieces, much like an engineer might do I imagine. Not being left-brained, all I could see was a sea of color and lots of broken up books, none of which I could see any correlation between. Andrew said it also probably helps to have good vision (of which his is superior having eyes four years younger than mine).

 

Hence, my enthusiasm for this project never matched Andrew’s who was driven to complete this challenge. I am grateful for that as we finished it in four short days (or rather evenings as we usually worked on it after dinner). I was usually the first one to cry uncle as my back and knees got stiff from leaning over our pub-style table, though Andrew usually agreed it was time to call it quits for the night.

Anyway, so after Andrew laid the last piece this afternoon our fears were realized that we are, indeed, missing a piece. After a thorough search and a check on the internet (no, you can’t order missing pieces), 

I did the next best thing and attempted to isolate the area using my camera and Adobe Photoshop Elements. Needless to say this isn’t my strong suit either – using percentages to get the patch I created to fit the empty space. I came close and then decided to embrace the Japanese concept of Wabi Sabi, “In traditional Japanese aesthetics, wabi-sabi (侘寂) is a world view centered on the acceptance of transience and imperfection.” (Wikipedia) Good Enough! (which is apparently the Weer family moto, according to my sister).

I also hope to glue the puzzle down or put it in a frame, whichever is easiest and/or cheapest, but that’s another project for another day.

Incidentally, I have another puzzle (of the United States made up of license plates) that I am debating whether or not to construct (I can buy the same piece of art for $40 at At Home), but knowing that I’m married to the Puzzle Meister makes that decision a little easier.

Have a good week everyone!

Mid Week Merriment - Cat Tales

At the beginning of the new year, as I do every year, I start on my spring cleaning. Out with the old, in with the new:  old calendars down, new ones up, sort Christmas cards - some that can be sent to St. Jude's, others kept for sentimental reasons, and the smallest pile to be discarded/recycled, etc.

I noticed I had an extra ASPCA calendar and I had an unwanted (& I mean that in the nicest way mom & dad) gift with a similar theme. I immediately thought of my bestie, Leslie who has the biggest heart when it comes to animals, so I knew she would be a grateful recipient. Hence, I packaged up the items, drove over to the post office on my lunch hour, and then waited to hear if she got my package. In just a few short days I received these photos (via text) with the following message:

"The other cats are following him around. I think they're jealous. He (Pip, the one in the sweater) tried cleaning his side and fell over. Thanks for the entertaining gift."

Wearing a sweater must throw off their balance as we have seen this reaction previously. Many, many moons ago my family had a cat - which one it was I don't quite remember, but we had a cat sweater that I probably bought cheaply thinking it would be fun to dress up the cat and see what happens. What happened is our cat staggered drunkenly around the kitchen while we all held our sides tears streaming down our faces from uncontrollable laughter until we finally had mercy and removed the sweater from our unhappy cat. Remembering this, I believe is the reason my husband and I were gifted a sweater for our fur baby. 

Having sympathy for our cat, and not wishing to get scratched within an inch of our lives, we decided 'maybe not' on the sweater. I'm glad my friend Leslie was braver than me and took the chance that one of her kittens would like it. The moral of the story here is, sometimes regifting can be a good thing as the sweater has entertainment value for my friend, and my husband and I remain scratch-free and on good terms with our precious angel.

Leslie's text concluded, "Well crap, he got if off."

Enjoy the rest of your week everyone.

Two Movie Reviews for 2019

Several weeks ago my husband and I saw the cutest movie, “Ralph Wrecks the Internet.”  Before you immediately dismiss it, I can tell you animated movies aren’t just for kids. In fact, I can recommend this movie for all ages, especially you Baby Boomers who would find this a good primer on the latest in social media (I learned a lot too). For anyone who has never been on Ebay and has no idea what an internet auction is, this movie is for you too.

Anyway, educational lessons aside, this movie is also very entertaining and cute. I challenge you not to smile or laugh most of the way through.

I especially enjoyed the scenes where Vanellope visits the Disney princesses. I can see lots of little girls absolutely cooing seeing them all gathered in one place. I love the discussion as they each compare their different realities. Those scenes are just one reason I would definitely see this movie again.

If you don’t find anything very funny, stay seated through the credits. “The teaser trailer ended on a sequence showing Ralph and Vanellope gatecrashing a mobile game where players feed a cute cartoon cat and rabbit with milkshakes and pancakes respectively

…..Ralph feeds the rabbit until it explodes - terrifying the little girl playing the game.” 

https://screenrant.com/ralph-breaks-internet-post-credits-scenes-explained/  My husband and I both laughed and laughed, so it was definitely worth staying for.

On New Year’s Eve we went to see the historic period comic drama, “The Favourite.” We were especially convinced to go see it after watching an interview with Emma Stone, the only American in an all British cast. I’d say she did a pretty convincing accent and was excellent in her role as one of “two cousins vying to be court favourites of Queen Anne in the early 18th century.”* The movie also stars Rachel Weisz as the other cousin (who was there first, it must be said), and Olivia Colman (who takes over the role of Queen Elizabeth in the next season of “The Crown.”) as Queen Anne.

* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Favourite

The movie is interesting and entertaining. It’s both kind of funny and sad that the queen had a colony of (17) rabbits (one for each child she lost) that were sometimes kept in cages, and sometimes let loose to wander around her large bed chamber.

The movie though turns quite dark (as Queen Anne’s health slowly deteriorates) by the end, so, quite honestly, I was very glad when the movie was finally over.

According to Wikipedia, Hampton Court Palace was one of the filming locations (probably the scenes where Emma Stone’s character participates in several pigeon shoots). Andrew and I last visited in 1994, which is why we both thought it looked familiar in the film.

Also, I should add that perhaps this movie is aimed at an older audience, or maybe we just like things that older people like, but we were definitely amongst the youngest in the crowd of seniors who showed up for the 4pm viewing.

I can recommend both movies – but maybe see “The Favourite” first, then “Ralph Wrecks the Internet” to cheer yourself up.