Awards....

Pam at 'Finding Pam' kindly passed this award on to me. Thanks m'dear.

This one comes with unusual instructions. You have to doctor the list of recipients below by taking out #1 and moving everyone up, then put your own name and link at the bottom. So #1 becomes #2, #3 becomes #2 etc., etc.


1. Lyla
2.Mr. D
3.Sweet_shelo
4. Chris
5. Kaye
6. Yami
7. Mizhelle
8. Hootn’ Anni
9.Thom
10. finding pam

So, the above list now becomes:

1.Mr. D
2.Sweet_shelo
3. Chris
4. Kaye
5. Yami
6. Mizhelle
7. Hootn’ Anni
8.Thom
9. finding pam

10. Akelamalu

Get it?

Also the lovely Thom at 'Thom's Place 4 Well Whatever' bestowed this award on me too.


Thankyou Thom.

I can't choose between you all so anyone who comments on this post I want you to take the awards for yourself and pass them on.


********************************************************************************



Do you know 5th November is Blogblast for Peace?

Bloggers all over the world will be posting the same post

Dona Nobis Pacem
Latin for "Grant Us Peace"

and flying a Peace Globe with their own message for Peace. The Title of the post is important. The goal is for all blog post titles to say the same thing on the same day.



Write about peace that day or simply fly your globe.



Be part of it, join in by going here and following the instructions of how to get your Peace Globe and join in the biggest Blogblast for Peace ever - it's really easy honest.

If there is to be peace in the world,

There must be peace in the nations.

If there is to be peace in the nations,

There must be peace in the cities.

If there is to be peace in the cities,

There must be peace between neighbors.

If there is to be peace between neighbors,

There must be peace in the home.

If there is to be peace in the home,

There must be peace in the heart.

-- Lao Tzu (570-490 B.C.)

Results.......

At long last here are the results of the

The Great Imagination Award #3

I asked you to vote on what you thought was the best/funniest comment in a southern accent on a post and you did in your thousands tens.       It was a close run competion but it was also a tie so, I hereby bestow THE GREAT IMAGINATION AWARD #3 to the two people with the most votes.    The award cannot be passed on it is just for you -

QUILLY &JULIA

Well done to you both and thanks for playing along, please take your award and I hope you will display it with pride.

Here are the winning comments fromt he two ladies.

Quilly said...

But Miss Akelamalu, I don't know nutin' bout no Southern accents!

Julia Smith said...

Lan' sakes, sugah. Yoh gunna hafta get a blawg that's just fah awawds.

Thanks to everyone else who played along, you're comments gave me a real chuckle and I couldn't choose betweeen you, which is why I copped out and asked for a vote.

Box of Chocolates and competition ........

The lovely Pam (Finding Pam)  has created this new award and graciously passed it on to me, among others.

 LIFE IS LIKE A BOX OF CHOCOLATES AWARD

Here's what Pam said about her award:
In my best southern accent, I would like to say that I have been thinking about a new award and what I would like it to say. People are like Forrest Gump said " Life is like a box of chocolates and you never know what you're gonna get".

You can see this box of chocolates is filled with different and unique candies and just like the chocolates we are all different and unique people. We are the same in that we all have common ingredients that make us more a like than not. Except for the frosting, which represents our personalities, we are indeed very similar on the inside.


Of course there are rules and they are as follows.

1. That you must pass this award to others.
2. Link back to me when you have passed them forward.
3. Write a nice post about this award.
4. You must read this award with a southern accent. I call it southern day where we all have to speak with a southern accent. I know that will be hard for some of you, but for the rest of us, we will be fine. So now, ya'll just enjoy this little ol' award and have fun with it.
5. And of course let your folks know that they have a nice award waiting for them.



Ahm plumb bumfuzzled cos bein Anglish ah don rightly know haw ta read or talk Southern but Bless Patsy ya'll  know was ah surprised to get this award, bless yore heart Pam fer thinkin' o'me. 


Well I did my best I just hope you can read and understand it!


Now I'd like ya'll to try and comment in a SOUTHERN ACCENT and take the Life Is Like A Box Of Chocolates award for yourself.     This is where the competition comes in.


I will then do another post listing all your Southern Accent Comments for folk to judge which they like best and the winner will get the following

THE GREAT IMAGINATION AWARD#3

It is number 3 because it is only the third time it has been awarded.   This means it will be unique to whoever wins it.  It can't be passed on.

I hope ya'll play along.

Partytime............

During our usual fortnightly trip to see Big Granddad (my Dad) with three of the grandchildren, Sam (10), Harry (5) and Gracie (3) the conversation went something like this:

Gracie: I went to my friend's party this week at Planet Play.

Me: That's nice, did you have a good time?

Gracie: Yes, I've been before.

Harry: I've been to Planet Play too, I'm having my birthday party there.

Me:  How lovely.   Are you having your birthday party there too Gracie?

Gracie: No I'm having my party at the pub.

I think she's inherited my genes. LOL

Carrying on the party mood............

The lovely Thom (Thoms Place 4 Well Whatever) received this award recently

and passed it on to me.

Thank you Thom I'm truly honoured that you think my blog is inspirational.

As ever the award comes with rules;

# Write a post about your new award, linking to the person who awarded it to you.
# Award 10 more bloggers who inspire you, and link to them in your post.
# Comment on their blog, directing the blog owner to this post, so they may copy the code and display it on their side bar. Here is the link: http://tiny.cc/BlogItForward541
# Your blog name and link should have been listed in Mister Linky by the person who nominated you.
# Comment here once you have done all of this so we can read your inspirational nominees’ blogs.


My ten are as follows:



Julia (A Piece Of My Mind) for her poetry
Linda (Are We There Yet?) for her history lessons
Cloudia (Comfort Spiral) for her account of life in Hawaii and the history of that beautiful island.
Daryl (Out & About In New York City) - for her fabulous photos out and about in NYC.
G-Man (Mr. Knowitall) - for hosting 55 Flash Fiction and getting me hooked on writing it.
Stephen (Stephen's Thoughts) - for his amazing imagination.
Buff (Opinions & Rectums) - for his inspiring recipes with leftovers.
Spiky (Bit Player Reflects) - for her fantastic writing skills.
Raven (Views from Raven's Nest) - for hosting Saturday Wordzzles thereby encouraging creativity in others.
Mimi (Mimi Writes) - for flooding the blogosphere with Memes which are great when you can't think of anything else to write about!


So thankyou all, you are truly an inspiration to me.

Who won....

the Great Imagination Award?

As you know, I posted all the entries last week and you voted in your hundreds tens, deciding that this was the entry you liked best.



Dolly continued to work at the diner, waiting for Geoff to return. He sent her an occasional letter, which she cherished. She wrote him back, and sent letters much more frequently than she received them. He spoke about the strange places he was visiting, and about how much he missed her. She spoke about how nice it was to hear about such things, places and customs that she never dreamed existed, and told him about life there in the hills and about how much she missed him.


Although he had said he would be back in a short time, months passed and then years, and still she waited. The hill people were starting to feel sorry for her, she knew, but she still kept waiting. She even turned down the men who wanted to date her. As time passed, her brothers and sisters grew up and all got married. Still she waited. Finally a man came in, a stranger, who still looked somehow familiar. Then she realized it was Geoff, years older, his hair streaked with gray.


"I'm sorry it took so long," he said. "I meant to come back earlier, and almost did several times, but I was afraid that if I did I couldn't bear to leave again. I was trying to save up enough money so that I could retire and stay here with you. We could still travel sometimes, but then it would be for fun, and we could go wherever we wanted."


She looked at him, wanting to hug him, wanting to throw her arms around him and never let him go, but somehow reluctant to make any move toward him. She said, softly and with a little sadness, "Did it really have to be so long? Couldn't you have come back at least sometimes? You did get vacations, you know."

He looked back at her, then turned his face to the side. "I'm sorry, I just couldn't. I couldn't bear to come back and then have to leave again. I thought of you almost constantly, though." He turned his head toward her again, fear and pain showing in his eyes. "There isn't someone else, is there? Someone who has taken my place?"

Several seconds of silence passed between them. She almost started to say something, but then stopped. Her face was unreadable.

Then she finally said, "There is someone else, but he has not taken your place. Come in Tommy, and meet your father." A little boy came in, who looked like both of them, and they all hugged each other, tears of happiness running down their faces. He had come home, and he would never leave them again.

And the winner is............
 
 

Stephen (Stephen's Thoughts)

 
for the second time!    Stephen's ending was almost as long as the story I'd written.  You can read the story here. 
 
You will notice the Award says #2 - it is not an award to be passed on and can only be awarded by me, so it's very exclusive SwitSwoo!
 
 
Well done STEPHEN and to everyone else who entered the competition - all the endings were brilliant!   I hope you'll all play again next time, whenever that is, and thanks to all those who voted.
 
 

Pick a winner.......

Okay here's your chance to vote again on who gets this award........

If you read my last Portrait Of Words you will know that I made it a competition to win the above award by writing the ending to my story.    Well here are the entries and you can read the story for which they wrote the endings here, so you know what's gone before.

In the order they were in the comments...

Thom (Thom's Place 4 Well Whatever)

Geoff goes back home. Three weeks later he gets his okay from National Geographic to be settle in the hills. After getting all his ends tied up a week later, off he goes. All his wordly possessions with him, he arrives in the mountains and goes driectly to the diner. L'il Dolly Duke is no where to be found.

A voice from behind says, "May I help you"

"I'm looking for L'il Dolly?"

"Why she done moved after she married her childhood sweetheart. His dad decided to pick up and start a new business in the mountains just east of here. Cow herding is better there." Betty Sue said.
Heartbroken, Geoff starts to saunter out. Betty Sue continues, "Well Sugar, I remember you. I was one of those mud wrestling girls you saw the day you met L'il Dolly."

Geoff eyes lit up. Well I'm here so why not. Off the two went and Geoff thought, the hills would come alive yet again.



Dr.John (Dr.John's Fortress)

Several days later L'il Dolly Duke pays the diner owner for letting her play hillbilly girl waitress. Takes the one taxi out to what passes as an airport and flys her plane back to New York where she ceases to be L'il Dolly Duke and become Maggie O'Toole the author. She starts work on her new book "Hillbilly Murder".


As she writes she wonders if she can get that Geoff guy to sell her some of his pictures for the book.


bettygram (Betty's News)

Letters came on a regular bases, with tales of Geoff's travels. One day a package arrived with a copy of the National Geographic. The Photo were beautiful of their little community.


Dolly had a jar where she put away a little each pay check, hoping for Geoff return. As the sum grew she put it in the bank.


A few years passed and the letters grew fewer and fewer. The bank account grew, and Dolly found she could attend college. College or Geoff? She still cared for Geoff but a college education would prepare her more for a life of travel.


Dolly left her family and the diner. Geoff became a memory but he was the inspiration for her.



Daryl (Out and About in New York City)

While driving off Geoff thought of nothing but Dolly ... his mind focused solely on her and when he would be able to return.
So involved was he that he wasnt paying attention to the road and he lost control of the car, driving off a cliff .. his last words were Dolly, oh my Dolly.....


Mimi Lenox (Mimi Writes)

Geoff ran away with the next floosie he met on the street.


Pam (Finding Pam)

Geoff had kept all of his promises to Dolly. After the latest edition of National Geographic was printed, Dolly became a national treasure from all the exposure. She became an apprentice to Geoff and they traveled the world together taking photos of one adventure after another. Life was good. Dolly was happy and that was all that really mattered to Geoff because he was a man in love.


Stephen (Stephen's Thoughts)

Dolly continued to work at the diner, waiting for Geoff to return. He sent her an occasional letter, which she cherished. She wrote him back, and sent letters much more frequently than she received them. He spoke about the strange places he was visiting, and about how much he missed her. She spoke about how nice it was to hear about such things, places and customs that she never dreamed existed, and told him about life there in the hills and about how much she missed him.


Although he had said he would be back in a short time, months passed and then years, and still she waited. The hill people were starting to feel sorry for her, she knew, but she still kept waiting. She even turned down the men who wanted to date her. As time passed, her brothers and sisters grew up and all got married. Still she waited. Finally a man came in, a stranger, who still looked somehow familiar. Then she realized it was Geoff, years older, his hair streaked with gray.


"I'm sorry it took so long," he said. "I meant to come back earlier, and almost did several times, but I was afraid that if I did I couldn't bear to leave again. I was trying to save up enough money so that I could retire and stay here with you. We could still travel sometimes, but then it would be for fun, and we could go wherever we wanted."


She looked at him, wanting to hug him, wanting to throw her arms around him and never let him go, but somehow reluctant to make any move toward him. She said, softly and with a little sadness, "Did it really have to be so long? Couldn't you have come back at least sometimes? You did get vacations, you know."


He looked back at her, then turned his face to the side. "I'm sorry, I just couldn't. I couldn't bear to come back and then have to leave again. I thought of you almost constantly, though." He turned his head toward her again, fear and pain showing in his eyes. "There isn't someone else, is there? Someone who has taken my place?"


Several seconds of silence passed between them. She almost started to say something, but then stopped. Her face was unreadable.


Then she finally said, "There is someone else, but he has not taken your place. Come in Tommy, and meet your father." A little boy came in, who looked like both of them, and they all hugged each other, tears of happiness running down their faces. He had come home, and he would never leave them again.



OK so there you have the entries.   Stephen won the very first Great Imagination Award, will he do it again?  It's up to you.
Leave a comment to vote for who you want to win.  In the event of a tie we'll have another vote.

Humane and spreading the love....

It's award time again...

This one's from Thom (Thom's Place 4 Well Whatever) again, and of course it comes with rules.

Thankyou Thom I'm honoured.

The Rules:

“The Humane Award is in order to honor certain bloggers that I feel are kindhearted individuals. They regularly take part in my blog and always leave the sweetest comments. If it wasn’t for them, my site would just be an ordinary blog. Their blogs are also amazing and are tastefully done on a daily basis. I thank them and look forward to our growing friendships through the blog world.” Recipients of this award should write a post about it, linking to the person gifted the award, along with ten of their own nominees.”



There are so many bloggers who comment on my blog that this award applies to it would be impossible for me to choose just ten, so PLEASE if you comment on this post take the award with my love.



And this one from Mae (Touch of Life)

Having only recently discovered Mae's blog I feel very priviledged that she has passed this award on to me.

Thankyou Mae

This too comes with rules:

1. Copy the badge and put it on your blog.
2. Link back to the person who passed you this award.
3. Spread the love to at least 10 more bloggers.


As I broke the rules on the previous award I suppose I should abide by them with this one, so I'd like to pass this award on to the following people and hope you will spread the love too.

Julia (A Piece Of My Mind)

Cloudia (Comfort Spiral)

Dianne (Forks Off The Moment)

Jo (Jo Beaufoix)

Cheshire Wife

Thelma & Louise (Girly Ranch)

Marmie (Twaddle Everyday Rubbish)

Raven (Views from Raven's Nest)

Emmie (Emma's Dilemmas and Great Expectations)

Snowelf (Just Another Ironic Coincidence)

And the winner is.......

Last week I invited you to vote on who would be the very first recipient of this award

which MWM made especially for the occasion.

Those of you who read my Wordzzle #69 post (27.06.09) will have noticed I asked for reader's to give their answers to the questions asked by Carol's friends after her untimely death in Iran. Here's the end of my story:



Some months later the girls were moving out of the house and found a photograph that had slipped down the back of one of drawers that Carol had used in the bedroom. The photograph was of Carol and a good looking, dark skinned man and there was some writing on the back which said

“Here’s to the next mission!”


“Whatever could it mean? Who was the man? What had really happened to Carol?” the girls asked each other.


You can read the whole story here.

So you voted and here's the winner's ending:


This is my version of the ending: She faked her death. The body looked only slightly like her, but after laying in the sun for a few days it didn't really matter. The passport left with the body was all that was used for identification. She was now diguised as an Iranian, working with the dark skinned man and others to try to find out where the votes of the presidential election were kept and then take digital pictures of all of them and transmit copies to other countries so a recount could be done outside Iran. If the recount showed that the other person actually won, this would turn world opinion more strongly against Iran's leaders and give the protesters in Iran a stronger reason to fight.


So Congtratulations and take the stage to collect your award

Stephen

(Stephen's Thoughts)

Well done,YOU are the very first recipient of this award and I hope you will display it with pride.

You do not get to pass on this award, it is just for those I award it to.

Great Imagination......

Here's your chance to vote on who gets an award!

Those of you who read my Wordzzle #69 post last week (27.06.09) will have noticed I asked for reader's to give their answers to the questions asked by Carol's friends after her untimely death in Iran.  Here's the end of the story:

Some months later the girls were moving out of the house and found a photograph that had slipped down the back of one of drawers that Carol had used in the bedroom. The photograph was of Carol and a good looking, dark skinned man and there was some writing on the back which said

“Here’s to the next mission!”

“Whatever could it mean? Who was the man? What had really happened to Carol?” the girls asked each other

You can read the whole story here.

Those of you who gave answers have fantastic imaginations and I thought everyone should see what you came up with.      So here they are and I'd like everyone who reads this post to vote for their favourite.  The person with the most votes gets this award

which MWM made especially for the occasion.
It is not an award to be passed on, it is just for those I award it to.


So here they are:

Charlie Facwet closed the file at the CIA headquarters and turned to his partner.

"We never should have sent her to Iran. She just wasn't ready.
Dr. John (Dr. John's Fortress)


Oh, a serial killer and a spy. Maybe Carol was going on a mission as a spy in Mendelsholme's house because she knew he was a serial killer but he discovered her plot and killed her.
Nessa (The Crysalis Stage)




Gertrude and Helmer were flying back from Iran.The two dragons had deposited the motorcycle and Carol as she instructed. They told her it was not a good idea but she insisted. Now she was dead.
"She wouldn't be Gert , if you hadn't let go of her and the motorcycle too soon." said Helmer
Fandango (Dragon's Lair)



Carol had found a message from Iran on her E Mail. The message was from the dark skinned man telling her of how he was aiding those wanting freedom. He talked Carol into joining him. Carol used a rented motorcycle to travel in Iran but lacked the skill to travel their roads.
Bettygram (Betty's News)

 My ending is that the dark haired man was her half-brother who unbeknownst to her had been left behind by her father on a trip to pre-Shah Iran. Nursing hatred of his father who abandoned him and his mother for the pretty girl in the U.S., he located her, courted her, lured her to Iran and then had her killed. Now Carol's younger sister had better watch HER step.
Reston Friends




I think the man is a freedom fighter and Carol went to Iran to help and well ...
Dianne (Forks Off The Moment)




I think Carol went off with Mike. When she heard his gang was called the Blue Jays, she thought fate had brought them together. Little did she know that Mike was an undercover infiltrator gathering evidence on gang violence. The Iranian-born leader of a rival motorcycle gang killed them both and shipped their bodies & motorcycles to Iran for disposal. Mike's will show up soon.
CJ (Pro Artz)



A lady found dead in Iran, That is a sad thought. Maybe she just wanted to vote and an uprising broke out
Heather (Random Wandering Thoughts)


 She worked for the CIA, the dark skinned man was both her lover and her control in Iran, and she had been running from the Iranian secret police when she was viciously gunned down and dumped in the quarry.
Richard (Mr Richard's Bloggerhood)




This is my version of the ending: She faked her death. The body looked only slightly like her, but after laying in the sun for a few days it didn't really matter. The passport left with the body was all that was used for identification. She was now diguised as an Iranian, working with the dark skinned man and others to try to find out where the votes of the presidential election were kept and then take digital pictures of all of them and transmit copies to other countries so a recount could be done outside Iran. If the recount showed that the other person actually won, this would turn world opinion more strongly against Iran's leaders and give the protesters in Iran a stronger reason to fight.
Stephen (Stephen's Thoughts)

 
So who, in your opinion, deserves the Imagination Award?   Let me know in the comments who get's your vote.

Lovely Blog.....

Well it's been a while since I received an award but the lovely Thom at

Thoms Place 4 Well Whatever

has bestowed this one on me....

Like all awards it comes with rules:


1. Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award and his or her blog link.
2. Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you have newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.


So I pass this award on to the following who I have only recently got to know:

Mama Zen (The Zen of Motherhood)

Nessa (The Crysalis Stage)

Spiky Zora Jones (Bit Player Reflects)

Cloudia (Comfort Spiral)

Pam (Finding Pam)

RLL (Real Live Lesbian)

Shrinky (Shrink-wrapped Scream)

Debbie (I overcooked my family)

Aims (Big Blue Barn West)

Connie (Connie's World, My Thoughts, My Photos)

Fandango (Dragon's Lair)

Deb (Nourish the Soul)

The Watercats (The Watercats and All The Things)

Stephen (Stephen's Thoughts)

Mae (A Touch Of Life)

If you haven't already, go have a read of all those great blogs.


Also Mike at Rambling Stuff gave me this little beauty- The Best Follower Award!


Of course it comes with rules:
Put this Award in a post on your blog
Invite 10 people to take this award
Don’t forget to link back to the person that gave this award to you.
Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog
Share the love to those who get this award.


Mike was awarded this by Sandee who gave it to her top 10 commenters, so Mike did the same and I'm going to do the same too. So please will the following please accept this award with my thanks for reading my drivel and commenting so regularly.

Thom (Thom's Place 4 Well Whatever)

Daryl (Out and About in New York City)

Ron (Vent)

Bee (Muffin 55)

Dr. John (Dr. John's Fortress)

Buff (Opinions & Rectums)

Trav (Trav's Thoughts)

CG (The Compulsive Worrier)

G-Man (Mr. Knowitall)

Julia (A Piece Of My Mind)

I hope you will all accept the awards and pass them on but of course it's not compulsory, just know that I appreciate you all.

Honest Scrap........

is an award that has been bestowed on me by Emmie (Emmas Dilemmas and Great Expectations).  Yes, I know what you're thinking "she's got another bl**dy award!"    Well I like them and if people think I'm good enough to receive them it would be very churlish of me to refuse wouldn't it? 

So my thanks to you Emmie I'm honoured m'deario. x


So here it is:

Anyway like most awards it comes with rules:

"The Honest Scrap award comes with a caveat or 2. Firstly you have to tell your readers 10 things about you they may not know, but that are true. Secondly you have to tag 10 people with the award."

I now have to think of 10 things about myself that you may not know, not sure I can do this but I'll try.

1.  I've been on a diet since 7th January 2009 and have lost 16lbs to date.  I have another 28lbs to lose to reach my target weight.

2. I will celebrate my 60th birthday in November 2009, and retire in December.

3. I broke my ankle when I was 12 years old during a gym lesson at school.   It still aches during cold weather.

4. I tore my anterior cruciate ligament in my right knee when I was 14 in another gym lesson at school.  This led to arthritis and a total knee replacement two years ago.  This has given me a new lease of life after struggling to walk for the past 10 years.

5. I hated gym lessons at school - can you blame me?

6. I have a condition called Heberden's Nodes, bony growths on the terminal interphalangeal joints of the fingers caused by osteoarthritis. At the moment is is only my index and middle finger on my right hand which are affected at the moment.   However, there are signs that the index and middle finger on my left hand are heading the same way.  Not pretty but unavoidable it would seem.

7. I had a total hysterectomy four years ago.

8. I had my ears pierced when I was two years old by my grandmother who used a darning needle! Ouch!

9. I have a high pain threshold.

10. I won't be leaving this world with everything I arrived with!

Now I have to pass this award on to (i.e. Tag) ten more bloggers, so here goes.   It's not compulsory if you really don't want to it but if you do please let me know so I can read the 10 things about you.


Step up to the plate:

Thom (Thom's Place 4 Well Whatever....)
Dr.John (Dr. John's Fortress)
Connie (Connie Picture That)
JAPRA (Just A Plane Ride Away)
Nick (Nick's Bytes)
Daryl (Out & About In New York City)
Dianne (Forks Off The Moment)
Smalltown RN (A Place I Call Home)
Coudia (Comfort Spiral)
Pam (Finding Pam)

Guess what?.......

I got more awards!

Dumdad from The Other Side Of Paris (literally) bestowed two, yes TWO awards on me.  Now you know me, I've always got room on my mantlepiece, well trophy room (just bragging) for more awards.

The first one is the Premio Dardos Award.

Premio Dardos apparently means “prize darts” in Spanish. It is given for recognition of cultural, ethical, literary, and personal values transmitted in the form of creative and original writing.


The second jolly award is this one.

The Coffee Award.       The premise of this award is blogs that one couldn't miss each morning - how lovely is that?

I am meant to pass on the first award to 15 other bloggers and the second to five other bloggers.
Tough to whittle down to 20 favourite blogs because I love you all,  so I'm going to chicken out and the first 15 commenters please take the Premio Dardas Award and the next five commenters please take the Coffee Award.


Also Thom (Scuttle Butt Mo TV) gave me this

I'm absolutely thrilled to have received this award for the second time thankyou Thom.

The rules on this one:



Proximidade, created by Dawn at Twisted Sister and passed on to me by Thom, is described as follows. This blog invests and believes in proximity – nearness in space, time and relationships. Nominated bloggers are exceedingly charming, they aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes for self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. This blog award should be sent to another eight bloggers and they, in turn, should forward it to eight of their favourites. You should include the text for Proximidade in your blog announcement. And please not that all awards and tags are option.

I need to pass this on to eight blogger so will the 21st to the 28th commenter please take it  - I'm presuming I'm going to get at least 28 peoplel who will be kind enough to comment on this post!

Proximidade.......

Pam (Finding Pam) passed this beautiful award on to me and others.  Here's the description of the award:


Proximidade is described as follows. This blog invests and believes in proximity- nearness in space, time and relationships. Nominated bloggers are exceedingly charming, they aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes for self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. This blog award should be sent to another eight bloggers and they, in turn, should forward it to eight of their favorites. You should include the text for Proximidade in your blog announcement. And please note that all awards and tags are optional....

I'd like to pass it on to the first eight commenters who may pass it on however they wish.

Thankyou Pam. x

Lemonade.........

Award..........

Yep another award folks!  Thanks to Storyteller (Small Reflections), who graciously passed this award on to me with the following rules:

1) You must link back to the person you received the award from.

2) You have to nominate 10 bloggers who are deserving of this award!

 
 
Well that's simple enough isn't it?   No it's not because I can't choose 10 from all my blogging pals, so I'm going to use a complicated formula.    As I have to pass it on to 10 bloggers I'm going back 10 previous posts, which was Flash Fiction #59, and awarding it to the 1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 11th, 13th, 15th, 17th, 19th commenter - that's fair isn't it?

So step onto the red carpet

Ron (Vent) - the most versatile blogger I know.  He's an actor, writer, blog enthusiasts, holistic healing practitioner, teacher, make-up artist, retail sales promoter.

Elaine (Leibfraumilch & Lipstick) - a talented and funny writer and a great photographer.

RLL (Real Live Lesbian) - a frank, funny and beautiful lady.

 Bee (Muffin53) -  Empress of the High Seas who you will either find on a cruise, in Florida or Podunk eating cake!

Linda (Are We There Yet?) - An ambulance dispatcher who missed her calling - she should have been a History teacher!

Jeff (A Word In Edgewise) - Such an eloquent narrator and the resurrector of Portrait Of Words writing challenge.

Mojo ( Why? What have you heard?) - I've not been reading Mojo's blog for long but I can tell you he's ACE at 55 Flash Fiction.

Deb (Nourish The Soul) - Feisty and Funny, do yourself a favour and go read her blog.

Mike (Rambling Stuff) - such a caring blogger who brings the plight of others to the fore when they most need prayers.

Dr. John (Dr. John's Fortress) - A man who's sermons never sound like preaching.

So there you go.   Take the Lemonade Award and enjoy it's FIZZ!

Van Gogh's Ear?............

This is the Van Gogh's Ear Award as created by Roger of Idaho Photo  This is what he wrote about the Van Gogh's Ear Award:


"Every year I like to make up a award and hand it out to people that make a difference in the blogsphere. I like to make it a award for all to enjoy and pass out if one so wants to, I just ask if your going to give it out to link back to me as the creator of the Van Gogh's Ear Award."


Inspiration of the Van Gogh's Ear Award


"You may know the story of Vincent Van Gogh a well known artist in history. Although a brilliant painter in his later years went quite insane he received the nickname of fou roux ("the redheaded madman"). The most bazaar of Vincent's behavior is when he cut off the lower part of his own left ear lobe, which he wrapped in newspaper and gave to a prostitute named Rachel in the local brothel, asking her to "keep this object carefully. After this he suffered recurrent bouts of mental illness, which led to his suicide July 29, 1890 he was 37 years old. His works of art are priceless."

The point of this award

"We are all artist in are own way be it art, photography, writing, philosophy, comedy, blogging and we all go a little crazy sometimes. But if you ever feel so crazy to cut off your ear and give it to a prostitute 'Seek Help'!"


Always remember you're unique.

Just like everyone else.



Roger passed this award on to lots of bloggers including Storyteller (Small Reflections) who in turn passed it on to lots of other bloggers including me!  Thankyou Storyteller. x

Well I'm not as mad as Van Gogh (yet) but I may be getting there so, before I do I'd like to pass it on to the following people, trying not to duplicate those who have already received it because there's quite a lot!

Citizen (A Little off Kilter)

Mary Ann (A Place I Call Home)

Cloudia (Comfort Spiral)

Nick (Nick's Bytes)

Daryl (Out & About In New York City)

Marmie (Twaddle Everyday Rubbish)

RLL (Real Live Lesbian)

CG (The Compulsive Worrier)

Shrinky (Shrink Wrapped Scream)

Emmie (Emma's Dilemmas & Great Expectations)

Pam (Finding Pam)

Catch (A Penny For Your Thoughts)

Cheshire Wife

Daisy (Fresh As A Daisy)

Please feel free to pass it on to your favourite bloggers mentioning the origin and the sentiments behind it please.

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And just for your amusement:

YOU KNOW YOU ARE LIVING IN 2009 when...

1. You accidentally enter your PIN on the microwave.

2. You haven't played solitaire with real cards in years.

3. You have a list of 15 phone numbers to reach your family of three.

4. You e-mail the person who works at the desk next to you.

5. Your reason for not staying in touch with friends and family is that they don't have e-mail addresses.

6. You pull up in your own driveway and use your cell phone to see if anyone is home to help you carry in the groceries.

7. Every commercial on television has a web site at the bottom of the screen

8. Leaving the house without your cell phone, which you didn't even have the first 20 or 30 (or 60) years of your life, is now a cause for panic and you turn around to go and get it.

10. You get up in the morning and go on line before getting your coffee.

11. You start tilting your head sideways to smile. : )

12. You're reading this and nodding and laughing.

13. Even worse, you know exactly to whom you are going to forward this message.

14. You are too busy to notice there was no #9 on this list.

15. You actually scrolled back up to check that there wasn't a #9 on this list.

~~~~~~~~~~~AND FINALLY~~~~~~~~~~~~

NOW U R LAUGHING at yourself.

Thanks to the friend who emailed this to me.

Friends........

Riverpoet (Poetic License) gave me the above award just before Christmas, she said:

Akelamalu over at Everything and Nothing for her continued comments even when I don't make it over to her place on a regular basis

Well I have to tell Riverpoet it's entirely my pleasure!

This is the thinking behind this particular award:

These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award.

So, in the spirit in which it was given I hereby pass it on to the following, in no particular order, fellow bloggers who show the spirit of friendship as detailed above.

Marmie (Twaddle Everyday Rubbish)

Linda (Are We There Yet)

Cloudia (Comfort Spiral)

Flowerpot (Flowerpot Days)

Storyteller (Small Reflections)

Ron (Vent)

CG (The Compulsive Worrier)

Ciara (Ramblings & Whatnot)

If you don't already visit them do yourself a favour and drop in, you won't be sorry.

I'm adding to this post as Mike (Rambling Stuff) just left me a message to say he has given me an award -

Mike passed this litte beauty onto  all those who commented on his blog in the Month of December, so I'm going to do the same.   So folks, you know who you are please take the award with my love.

Premio Dardos..........

No Saturday Wordzzle today sorry. I have just been too busy this week to write one and I will probably miss next week's too cos I'll be busy eating, drinking and entertaining. Anyway it's award time.


San (A Life with a View) passed this Premio Dardos award onto me.

The PREMIO DARDOS award is "given for recognition of cultural, ethical, literary, and personal values transmitted in the form of creative and original writing."

I'm honoured that San thinks my mutterings are worthy of such an award! Thankyou San.

It didn't come with any rules so I'd like to pass it on to all who comment on this post because you all fit the description in my view.

The Pink Sisterhood.....

Storyteller (Small Reflections) invited me to participate in the Pink Sisterhood meme and as it's in a great cause here goes...


Here's the rules:


1. Put the logo in your blog.

2. Add a link to the person who shared it with you.

3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs

4. Add your link to the list of participants below

5. Leave a message for your nominee on their blog.

PINK Sisterhood

1- Fara 2- Massy 3- N.O.Y 4- Mariuca 5- A Great Pleasure 6- LadyJava 7- Kim 8- Pink Thoughts 9- Turn-u-Off 10- Roxiticus Desperate Housewives 11- STAY AT HOME MOM 12- Fida Abbott 13- Also Mommy 14- Janice Ng 15- Juliana’s Site 16- The Painted Veil 17- Heart of Rachel 18- Mga Muni-muni 19-Picture Clusters 20- Scraps of Mind 21- Antoinette 22 - Hootin' Anni 23 - storyteller 24 Akelamalu


Please join 'the Pink Sisterhood', keep it going and leave me a link when you do.

Queenie (Queenie's Random Ramblings)

Bee (Muffin 53)

Daisy (Daisy's Daily Diary)

Flowerpot (Flowerpot Days)

CG (The Compulsive Worrier)

Shrinky (Shrink Wrapped Scream)

Jo (Jo Beaufoix)

Thanks in advance Pink Sisters.

Bookworm.......

Emmie (Emmas Dilemmas & Great Expectations) has bestowed this award on me, how kind is she?  Thankyou Emmie. x

Now there's rules with it

Rules: Pass it on to five other bloggers, and tell them to open the nearest book to page 46. Write out the fifth sentence on that page, and also the next two to five sentences. The closest book, not the coolest, or the one you think will sound the best. THE CLOSEST

The closest book to me at the moment is 'The Boy in Striped Pyjamas' by John Boyne, so here's the sentences from page 46.

'Yes, Father,' said Bruno.
'You were a help to your mother and sister in closing the house?'
'Yes, Father, said Bruno.
'Then I'm, proud of you,' said Father approvingly. 'Sit down, boy.'
He indicated a wide armchair facing his desk and Bruno clambered onto it, his feet not quite touching the floor, while Father returned to his seat behind the destkand stared at him. They didn't say anything to each other for a moment, and then finally Father broke the silence.
'So?' he asked.  'What do you think?'
'What do I think?' asked Bruno. 'What do I think of what?'
'Of your new home. Do you like it?'

I decided to read this book when we returned from Krakow and our visit to Auschwitz and Berkenhau, as that is where the book is set.

Now I have to pass it on to five bloggers.   No pressure, do it if the mood takes you.

Julia (A Piece of My Mind)
Laney (Liebfraumilch and Lipstick)
Linda (Are We There Yet?)
Cloudia (Comfort Spiral)
Anndi (Transition)

What's in a name?.......

I came across this at Storyteller's place and as it seemed like fun I had a go. It's alarmingly true! Have a go, see what your name means.

What Akelamalu Means

You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection. You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive. You have the classic "Type A" personality. You are a seeker of knowledge, and you have learned many things in your life. You are also a keeper of knowledge - meaning you don't spill secrets or spread gossip. People sometimes think you're snobby or aloof, but you're just too deep in thought to pay attention to them. You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone. You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together. At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together. You are relaxed, chill, and very likely to go with the flow. You are light hearted and accepting. You don't get worked up easily. Well adjusted and incredibly happy, many people wonder what your secret to life is. You are confident, self assured, and capable. You are not easily intimidated. You master any and all skills easily. You don't have to work hard for what you want. You make your life out to be exactly how you want it. And you'll knock down anyone who gets in your way! You are a very lucky person. Things just always seem to go your way. And because you're so lucky, you don't really have a lot of worries. You just hope for the best in life. You're sometimes a little guilty of being greedy. Spread your luck around a little to people who need it.

What's Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

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AWARD

Cheshire Wife has given me the Arte Y Pico award.  

You may remember I received this very same award a couple of weeks ago, but a girl can't have too many awards so I gratefully accepted it, hell I nearly ripped her arm off!  Thanks Cheshire Wife. x

Anyway as the last line in the 'What's in a name' thingie above says

You're sometimes a little guilty of being greedy.

Spread your luck around a little to people who need it.

I'm going to do just that (not that you need it awardees) according to these rules:

The rules of Arte Y Pico are that it is passed onto five blogs that you consider deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting comment, or for contributing to the blogging community, whatever language. Each award winner has to show the award on their blog and link their blog to the blog that has given them the award.

I'm going to pass this award on to some relatively new (to me) blogs who have impressed me for one reason or another.  I hope they will pass them on according to the rules.     
 
If you haven't read these blogs do go visit I think you will like them too.
 

Daryl - Out and About in New York City

 

Aims - Big Blue Barn West

 

Lu - Pagreenery

 

Deb - Nourish The Soul

 

Crystalchick - Mary Says

Wait there's more.........

Storyteller (Small Reflections) gave me this beautiful award too.

She passed it on to all her 'followers' - you know that new blogger thingy that you can put in your sidebar to show who is following you?   It's up there at the top of my sidebar.   

Well I think all bloggers are 'Lights Across The Web', so all who comment on this post please take this award for yourself and pass it on if you so wish.