Sunday Funnies: The Angel Tree (A Koch Family Classic)

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Every family has their own “family lore” – stories handed down from generation to generation.  These are generally told around the campfire, on the front porch, or around the dining room table.  The good ones are side-splittingly funny; the really great ones are the ones which manage to embarass one or more family members.

Every year, Paul or I will drag out this old chestnut – it never fails to leave friends and family rolling in the aisles:

When Rebecca was a baby, Paul would oftentimes get Sarah and Michelle ready for school in the mornings.  Since they were ages 9 and 10 at the time, this consisted of waking them up. telling them to get dressed/ready, and driving them 3 blocks to the school.

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Posted in Annual Posts, Family, Holidays, Humor, Messin' with my kids, Sunday Funnies, Think about it | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Foodie Friday – Chocolate and Whiskey Liqueur

Chocolate Liqueur 7
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With holiday parties coming up, here’s a neat idea for either bringing along to share, or giving as a hostess gift. It is delightfully easy to make, and it is decadently delicious.

If you don’t like alcoholic drinks, you can always leave out the booze and just have a really yummy chocolate sauce. This is great straight, over ice, or over ice cream:
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Chocolate & Whiskey Liqueur

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1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup water
1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate
One 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup Irish whiskey (or vodka, for a more neutral flavor)

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A Thanksgiving Classic – Flying Turkeys

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From 1978, this classic clip from the sitcom “WKRP in Cincinnati” never fails to leave me in stitches:

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Turkey Day’s comin’!
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Tuesday Tunes: “Come Ye Thankful People”

Norman Rockwell Thanksgiving

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Whenever I think of Thanksgiving, this is the song that comes to mind – and this is a beautiful arrangement sung by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir:
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Sunday Funnies – PETA: Come for their Outrage, Stay for their Porn….

(This post originally appeared on October 2, 2011)

So the New York Times put up a really cute picture of a sassy little bird:

You know you want it…..

It’s got that certain je ne sais quoi , no?  I don’t know about you, but when I saw it, I laughed and smiled, because That.Bird.Has.Attitude.  It’s sweet.  It’s funny.

It’s playful and – dare I say it? – sexy.

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Posted in Humor, Just Because, Liberal Nonsense, Rule 5, Sunday Funnies, Things That Make Me Crazy, Think about it | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

“Of the People, By the People, For the People”

Gettysburg Memorial.

Today marks the 151st anniversary of a most solemn occasion:

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Tuesday Tunes: “Simple Gifts”

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There are plenty of videos with this beautiful song out there, but I absolutely LOVE the photography used in this one – it’s full of the people and things that make America such a great country:
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(“Simple Gifts” from “Appalachian Spring” by Aaron Copland, performed by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, and conducted by Leonard Bernstein, is available in CD and MP3 formats)
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Posted in Classical, Contemporary, Elections, I Love America, Inspirational, Just Because, Music, Think about it, Tuesday Tunes | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Sunday Funnies – You CAN teach an old dog new tricks…..

Our longtime friend Jack is always sending along helpful tips to us “youngsters” (he’s about 20 years older than we are).  When Paul purchased a new Glock a few years ago, Jack found this helpful video and sent it to us in an e-mail with the following message:

What an informative training film. Should be distributed to our military and all Law Enforcement agencies. Certainly kept my attention. I watched this 4 times and now I’m ready to buy a Glock!!!


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Thanks for that, Jack – Paul has watched this video over and over and over, making sure that he gets it right…..  😛

(We have the BEST friends!)
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Posted in Humor, I Love America, Just Because, Rule 5, Sunday Funnies, The Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth, Think about it | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

On Jonathan’s Birthday – “Autumn Leaves”

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Today would have been my friend Becky’s oldest son’s 32nd birthday.  Jonathan left us much too soon (a car accident in 2001), but he left lots of great memories behind for those who loved him best.

One of the things that his family ran across while looking for things to include in his memorial service was a poem that he had written in one of his classes about a leaf falling to the ground.  It gave them great comfort, and ever since then whenever Autumn rolls around I like to think that Jonathan is surrounding everyone who knew and loved him with his presence.

Every time I hear this song, I think about Jonathan and his family:

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(“Autumn Leaves” sung by Eva Cassidy is available in CD and MP3 formats)
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Posted in Annual Posts, Contemporary, Just Because, Music, Tuesday Tunes | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Sunday Funnies: “How Long Does It Take You People To Shop?!?!?!?”

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They’ve started already – the ads for Christmas come earlier and earlier each year. I’m old enough to remember when we actually got through Thanksgiving before we started seeing and/or hearing Christmas stuff. I may not always agree with Lewis Black’s political views, but when I heard this bit about Christmas years and years ago, I was laughing so hard that I was in tears.

STRONG warning for language – even stronger warning to go pee before you watch this:
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Posted in Holidays, Humor, Just Because, Sunday Funnies, Things That Make Me Crazy, Think about it | Tagged , | Leave a comment