IRISH DICTIONARY AND BIRTHDAY WISHES

 

First things first ... Happy Birthday to my very own leprechaun. Happy 22nd Birthday Prairie!

Like the warmth of the sun

And the light of the day,

May the Luck of the Irish

Shine bright on your day.

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Here are a few words you can incorporate into your Irish vocabulary. See if you can use them today. Here is my feeble attempt at using my vocabulary list ... Go out and plan some SHENANIGANS but don't get ARSEWAYS and end up CIRCLING OVER SHANNON unable to find a JACKS after to many BLACK STUFFS.

 

ARSEWAYS (adj) Mishmash. Complete disarray. Total mess. (usage) "Me car has been arseways since I ran over that pedestrian."

AWAY IN THE HEAD (expression) Insane. Not all there. (usage) Many Americans are away in the head. Disclaimer: I used American because today we are all Irish.

BANG ON (adj) Correct. Perfectly accurate. (usage) "That shot ye took at the ref's groin was bang on."

BLACK STUFF (n) Stout. (usage) "Nine pints of the black stuff and a gin and tonic for me mot, please.

MOT (n) Girlfriend. (usage) "Me mot drinks Black Stuff like there's no tomorrow."

BLARNEY (n) Nonsense talk used to charm foreigners. (usage) "They say the ghost of Finn MacCumhall still stalks the Grand Canal. Buy another round and I'll tell you all about it, my American friend."

CIRCLING OVER SHANNON (expression) Drunk. (usage) She stopped for a few pints after work and she ended up circling over Shannon.

DRAWERS (n) Knickers. Panties. (usage) "You could fit a hurling team into me wife's drawers. In fact I think she does on a regular basis.

GAMMY (adj) Damaged. Crooked. Useless. (usage) The entire government is gammy.

GARGLE (n) (v) Drink (alcohol). (usage) The staff single-handedly prevented the closure of the brewery by retiring to the pub for a gargle or two.

HOP (v) Play truant from school. (usage) "Let's go on the hop and get pissed. I'm fed up with teaching those bleedin' kids anyway.

JACKS (n) Toilet. Restroom. (usage) "Ye tink dat's bad? Wait 'til ye see de state of de jacks in de pub."

OUL' FELLA (N) Father. (usage) "Me oul' fella hasn't been seen since six o'clock last night when he went to the pub."

OUL' WAN (n) Mother. (usage) "Me oul' wan had me when she was sixteen."

ROUGH AS A BEARS ARSE (expression) Extremely hungover. Unwell. (usage) I don't think I need to use this in a sentence. You all understand.

SHENANIGANS (n) Mischievous, suspicious, underhand, devious goings-on. (usage) "Next item on today's agenda: planning shenanigans."

 

Happy St. Patrick's Day to All.

"The Feckin' Book Of Everything Irish" by Colin Murphy and Donal O'Dea helped me expand my Irish vocabulary.



STILL COLD



I've (mostly) refrained from talking about and complaining about the cold and snow this winter, but come on .... it's MARCH! I quit looking at the thermometer weeks ago. I dress warm and always have my scarf and mittens. For the fun of it, I looked ahead at projected forecasts. It looks like it will be reaching the 30's by July. Until then, here's a riddle for you ... If it's zero degrees outside today and it's supposed to be twice as cold tomorrow, how cold is it going to be?

NEW ORLEANS





With temperatures in Wisconsin making a habit of remaining below zero, it seemed like a good time to take a little vacation to the south. New Orleans, or as the locals call it, Nawlin’s was our city of choice. We arrived Wednesday evening in time to take a stroll down Bourbon Street. Crude, crass, yet entertaining is how I would describe the Street. I noticed that the local beggars roamed the streets with beer in a brown paper bag. Wanting to fit in, I did the same. $2.99 will get you a 24 oz. PBR and a brown paper bag. $11 will get you a Crown and Coke in a plastic cup. Yeah ... I'm a cheap date.  We didn't stay out late and retired to Dauphine Orleans Hotel in the French Quarter where we called home for 4 nights.

                                                                                        Day One found us wandering the streets of the French Quarter. We took in some of the tourist attractions but learned more about the people and culture by getting off the beaten path. Finding a local bartender was always a plethora of information. We meet a young artist that has only been living there for 3 months. He moved there from California and is interning with a local artist and living out his dream. We were entertained by musician friends playing for tips. As 1 of the friends switched from playing the wash tub to having a PBR, he stated, "I love my friends." I have no doubt that he does. The more we absorbed the local culture the more I appreciated the diversity and an individuals definition of a "quality lifestyle". We had plenty of locals beg for money or offer to give us directions for a price. We learned quickly to ignore them and focused on the artists that had something to offer for a few dollars in donations. I was more anxious to try the local cuisine than Bruce was so we started out slowly with Po-Boys at Johnny's and  baguettes and coffee at Café Du Monde. A stroll through Jackson Square was rich in history and entertainment. Flanked by St. Louis Cathedral, antebellum buildings and the Mississippi River it is the hub of the city. Artist, musicians and fortune-tellers crowd the plaza. An occasional beer stop had me abiding in Abita Amber, the local beer and doing a little research with my travel guide book and the bartender.

                               

 
                               

 

As the sun began to set, it was time to head back to Bourbon Street. I indulged in Garlic BBQ Shrimp at Embers Bourbon House before our evening stroll. We never set foot in  a bar along the street but would get a drink from a convenience store bar front window and cruise up and down doing people watching. Tonight's entertainment included a Flame Swallower and a Dead Dog. Now don't get all upset, it was just a dog playing dead. Anything for a buck.

 

 

 

Day Two found the Polar Vortex reaching all the way to us. A little cold weather didn't slow us down. I was thankful for packing my gloves at the last minute. Today we checked out the Riverwalk along the Mississippi and rode the trolley system to the Garden District. The trolley proved to be a great way to see the city ... especially since we didn't understand transferring to a different trolley to reach our destination. Along the way we explored Lafayette Cemetery. The cemetery was built in the early 1800's to accommodate the immigration of Italians, Germans, Irish and Americans from the North. Many who had played a role in the Civil War have plots here. There is also 2000 yellow fever victims buried here from an epidemic in 1852. By midafternoon we reached our destination of the NOLA Brewery. (New Orleans Lager and Ale) The Brewery features a tour and free beer from 2:00 - 4:00. What a great way to make new friends. While Bruce enjoyed the tour, I enjoyed the taproom. As the 4:00 hour was approaching we realized it had started to rain and it was a 1 1/2 mile walk back to the trolley. No Problem ... we have all these new (beer drinking) friends. A retired couple from Detroit came to our rescue and took us back to the French Quarter with tips on the best places to eat and hear Cajun music. They winter near New Orleans and partake in the Mardi Gras festivities. They sent us on our way with the official Mardi Gras magazine, beads and parade knowledge. Their suggestion of supper at Mulate's was spot on. I completely enjoyed my Crawfish Etouffee and Mulate's Jambalaya accompanied with an Abita Amber. Bruce was adventurous and had gravy with his burger instead of catsup. :) A brisk rainy walk back to our hotel had us ducking through Harrah's Casino for a shortcut. I put some coin to a slot machine and cashed in with a profit of $10.50. That came in handy for a cab when we became a wee bit lost on the way back to the hotel.

 

 

 

Day Three ... after breakfast at the hotel we headed to the corner convenience store for a cappuccino. Along the way we got to witness what Bourbon Street looks like the "morning after." Because the street is barricaded when the sun goes down for foot traffic only, the area becomes one big sidewalk. A better description would be a gutter. Lets say if you drank to much and feel the need to "blow chow", go ahead and just do it in the street. Therefore, it takes a mighty pressure washer to rid the remains of the "night before."  At noon we got picked up by an adventure bus and headed out of town for a airboat ride in the bayous. We headed to the bayous off of Lake Salvador. Along the way we saw rebuilt homes and new levees all resulted because of Hurricane Katrina. (Our cab driver that returned us to the airport was a survivor of Katrina and he shared some of his story. His family went to Houston but he was stuck in his car for 3 days with 2 bottles of water. He told us details that we never heard on news reports.) Fortunately, Saturdays weather was warm(er) and the sun was shining. Our airboat driver was Captain TickTock and was born and raised in the bayous. Think "Swamp People."  We took a 2 hour tour and covered a lot of ground. Unfortunately alligators are hibernating this time of year so we didn't see any in the wild. We did see a large variety of birds and got to hold a small 'gator they surprised us with. It's amazing how different a body of water can be compared to what we are use to. Back at the French Quarter we spent our last evening wandering past bars and restaurants catching notes from a large variety of music wafting to the sidewalks. With a beer in hand I absorbed as much visual and sound culture I could. We found a treasure in Pat O'Briens Bar. They have an open air bar with a cool fountain and atmosphere. It was a great place to relax and reflect on our wonderful trip.

 

 

 

 

 

Here are a few sights around town.

 

 

 

 



LAKE WAZEECHA

 

Growing up, I didn’t appreciate Lake Wazeecha as I do now. I took advantage of growing up next to the lake but never realized what a gem it really was. Back in the 60’s my girlfriend and I couldn’t go to Red Sands unless one of our older siblings would go too.  I’m not sure of the significance having them take us, they never kept an eye on us. Now that I think of it, I don’t remember seeing them at the beach … where could they have been? I think their biggest responsibility was to get us across 80^th Street. Once we crossed the (not so) busy highway, we were on our own. We pedaled our bikes down South Park Road, turned into the woods between 2 trees and proceeded to Red Sands. As we approached the beach, in one smooth move, we leaped off our bikes, dropped our towels and plunged into the lake. We spend the afternoon rolling down the hill, building sand castles and … wondering where our older siblings disappeared to. By 4:00 our peanut butter and jelly sandwich was wore off and it was time to head home for supper and hose the red sand from our … well, everything.

We "matured" into the age that we became the regular kids hanging out on the raft executing our Olympic dives. When I say “Olympic dives” I mean playing “King of The Raft”.  We would hang on the buoys surrounding the swimming area and would reluctantly get off after the lifeguard would blow their whistle at us. From a distance we admired the “cool kids” swinging from the rope around the corner out of view from the lifeguards. On slow “cool kid” days, we made feeble attempts to swing from the rope and usually ended up in about 6” of water or slamming back onto land.

When our teen years began, we discovered the other end of the lake … White Sands. Traveling to White Sands took us through the woods on a dirt path and across the dam to a place that was mystical. Who were these other kids we had never seen before? By now, I had my first job. I was babysitting every morning. I would tuck those hard earned quarters into the front pocket of my cutoff jeans and head to White Sands Miniature Golf. The days of building sandcastles had crumbled and lying in the sun, playing miniature golf and riding our bikes was how the afternoon was spent. When we left our little country school and attended school in Rapids, we saw some of the kids we thought of as strangers. Wow, there is life outside of Kellner.

 

Entering high school and obtaining our drivers license opened up new opportunities at the lake. The beach scene was for taking naps and drinking “Jolly Good” after spending an evening at Willow Run. We became brave enough to take a dip in the forbidden territory of the dam. When the lake froze over and the snow began to fall, we could be found skating, sledding and warming up in an ice fishing shack or by a campfire on the lake. By our senior year, we owned the lake. The campground was full of campers and coolers. The lifeguards and rafts were long gone. 

We left the lake for the next generation. It wasn’t as in good of shape as when we used it. Years passed and the lake and its surrounding began to show its age. The creeks were silting into the lake, the weeds began taking over and the buoys for the swimming areas were gone. The lakeside picnic areas had missing seats on the swings. There were rusted charcoal grills and picnic tables floating in the lake.

Life happens and years passed before I started using Lake Wazeecha again. During my time away, the lake was dredged. The campground was given a family friendly atmosphere and the picnic areas starting swinging again. All of this was completed in time to start taking my family camping, swimming and boating. To this day, although we only live a few miles from the lake, we camp there every summer. A 4 mile walking/biking trail will have you crossing paths with all ages and some of those friends from way back when ... when I saw you at Red Beach, first met you at White Beach or shared a bottle of TJ Swann with.

If you haven’t done so lately, go catch a fish or a sunset on the lake.

YEAR IN REVIEW

 

Brought in the New Year with Friends.

Made Royal Icing (for the first time) to decorate cookies.

Celebrated Christmas in January because Prairie was in New Zealand/Australia for the Holidays.

Added to my Chapstick collection.

Drank some beer.

Bought matching “lazy” chairs for Bruce and me … they’re working really well.

Bought new luggage.

Celebrated Prairie’s 21^st birthday in Las Vegas … good excuse to try out the new luggage.

Saw Phillip Phillips in concert at WSU with Laura and Prairie … who names their kid that?

Drank some beer.

Decorated a lampshade with Leinenkugel bottle caps.

Drank some beer … for the sake of future arts-n-craft projects.

Bruce bought a Polaris Razor UTV against my better judgment … don’t tell Bruce, but I love it.

Partied like a Rockstar for my birthday … felt like I had rocks on my head the next morning.

Started this Blog.

Upgraded my camera lenses.

Sold our canoe and pop-up camper and bought a 1992 5th-wheel. I once said I would never own a camper with an air conditioner or bathroom … never say never.

Went to Nashville with family … laughed, sang, danced and got some red cowboy boots.

Drank some beer.

Made strawberry/rhubarb jam until it was coming out of my ears … that’s a lot.

Celebrated Independence Day with friends in the Northwood’s … drank some beer. J

Saw a Fun concert at Taste of Chicago … for you that aren’t cool … Fun is the name of the band, not an adjective.

Enjoyed a Don Williams concert in the Dells with the hubby and parents.

Got to spend some time with a lifelong friend and had some childhood flashbacks.

Went camping/UTVing in July and needed mittens.

Saw Randy Houser in concert at the Wausau Fair.

Won a gun at the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Banquet … anyone want to buy a gun?

Drank some beer.

Saw Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in concert at the Wausau Fair … wish I would have worn a twirly skirt.

Added to my Chapstick collection.

Hosted 2 talented kids from Kids From Wisconsin.

Saw Josh Thompson in concert at Witter Field.

Enjoyed a long, long, long lunch date at the Harbor Bar in Waupaca with a couple of girlfriends.

Bruce and I attended a Packer pre-season game … now we’re anticipating the Wildcard game.

Participated in CMN Kolor For Kids 5k Funfest.

Saw Justin Moore in concert at the Marshfield Fair … this might have been my favorite concert of the year.

Stained the house … this was not fun like everything else on my list.

Started a new job … 4 months later and I’m still lovin’ it.

Went camping/UTVing in September and needed the air conditioner … hot, hot, and hot!

Got to enjoy the UW Marching Band at a Rapids football game.

Attended the Packers/Lions game and again, got to enjoy the UW Marching Band and a Packers win.

Drank some beer … with friends at Dells On Tap. According to the pictures, we had a blast. J

Had a successful shopping and social trip with high school girlfriends in Minneapolis and enjoyed a Brian Setzer Concert and Maiden Dixie Band.

Created a YouTube account.

Celebrated Andy’s 25^th birthday … really, 25? How can that be?

Hosted my family for Holiday celebrations.

… coming around full circle … heading out for our traditional New Year’s celebration with friends.

Live Long and Prosper!

 

 

THE MAGIC YELLOW CHAIR

 

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

PEANUT-ISMS

 

I love all the Peanuts cartoons. Snoopy is my favorite character and at one point in my life, my bedroom was decorated to reflect this. Bruce finally said enough was enough and he made me redecorate. Below you'll find some of the endearing quotes from the cartoon.

 

Linus VanPelt: I never thought it was such a bad little tree. It's not bad at all, really. Maybe it just needs a little love.

 

Charlie Brown: Thanks for the Christmas card you sent me, Violet.

Violet: I didn't send you a Christmas card, Charlie Brown.
Charlie Brown: Don't you know sarcasm when you hear it?

Patty: Try to catch snowflakes on your tongue. It's fun.
Linus VanPelt: Mmm. Needs sugar.
Lucy VanPelt: It's too early. I never eat December snowflakes. I always wait until January.
Linus VanPelt: They sure look ripe to me.

Charlie Brown: “Pigpen, you’re the only person I know who can raise a cloud of dust in the snowstorm.”

Sally:  “If it seems too complicated, make it easy on yourself—just send money. How about tens and twenties?”

Lucy VanPelt: "Are you going to let all this beauty go to waste?"

Sally: "Dear Santa Claus, How have you been? Did you have a nice summer?"

... and we all remember this one ...
 “Get hot water! Get some disinfectant! Get some iodine!” - Lucy about being licked by Snoopy

'Tis the Season ... Dance as if no one was watching!

 

THANKFUL

 

It's been awhile and I've missed you. With Thanksgiving on the horizon I took some time to reflect on what I'm thankful for. Come to find out, I have a hand full of things. My family is my life line but I'm also thankful for waking up each morning, my health, my friends, my job, music and opportunities. I'm thankful for living in Wisconsin as I love the changing of the seasons ... yes, that includes the "s" word, snow. Research shows that saying "thank you" for the good stuff in life makes for a happier, healthier you. And it makes those around you feel pretty darn good, too. So spread the love, be thankful, and say thank you ... Thank you for reading my blog.

BONUS: Here's a video to put a smile on your face ... Things We Should Say More Often
http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-11785/20-things-we-should-say-more-often.html

FAVORITE THING(S)

What is your favorite thing? Besides the obvious of family, friends a cold beer or a good Bloody Mary. Is it shopping, hunting, reading or is it something more like a worn out sweatshirt, comfy shoes or like me, a camera? I have many favorite things but much of them involve my camera. If it's something I love, it's getting photographed. The ever learning process in the art of photography is training my eye to pay attention to details and to notice things I never had before. Therefore, I've added many favorite things to my list. Yet it still boils down to my camera that brought me new favorites so it remains at the top of my list. My camera is with me on vacation, when I go for a walk, when I'm cooking, when I'm filling the birdfeeder, when I go to the mailbox ... I think you get the picture. Then there are the times I don't have my camera and I wish I did. Whenever I have my camera, I am not alone.

When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence. ~Ansel Adams~

 

GOOD DOG CEDAR

This is Cedar. She's been part of our family since I subconsciously replaced my oldest son Andy with her when he went off to college 7 years ago. Just kidding Andy, you're irreplaceable. She's an "outside" dog and has a dog bed on the porch, in the garage, in the house and in the camper. Her favorite place to be is curled up in front of the fireplace this time of year. So much for claiming she's an "outside" dog. We all argue over who she "likes" best. She "likes" us all for different reasons. Bruce's purpose is to feed her and take her for 4-wheeler rides. Andy and Cedar are hunting buddies and she'll do anything to please him. She adores Prairie because she doesn't get to see her very often and soaks up all the love when she comes home to visit. My purpose is to give her treats and for her to take me on walks. She likes the UPS driver too, she has treats and scratches her ears. Life without this doggy would be lonely, she's a good listener too. Good Dog Cedar.