Scrappy Dog Sunday!

Oh Mr. Milou! You are man of few words. I think it's because you won't stay still for five minutes to answer the questions.

What's the real story about Milou?
My secret weapon: not only do I look like Bolt, I also have a Superbark, just like my hero!

Do you really drive your mom crazy?
I do my best. ( I have a strange feeling you are doing it now)

How do you feel about the cat population?
They are very difficult to herd, and don't seem interested in playing with me.

What's your favorite thing to do during the day?
Fetch!! I also enjoy chewing, barking, digging, begging, going in and out of the house, and protecting the herd (aka Mom and the cats) from deliveries, survey takers, Mormons, and neighborhood kids.

Are those werewolf rumors true?
I can transform from sleepy, adorable pup to deranged large-mouthed fanged creature at the drop of the hat. This is why my Mom calls me her Miloup-garou

Happiness is.........
edible

I 100% agree with you. Happiness is edible! Thank you my sweet little Milou werewolf! I think you are just divine!

Feel Good Friday

It's Friday! Yahoo! I am ready for rest and relaxation after having way too much fun last weekend at the NW Tiki Kon. It was so awesome to have yummy cocktails and hang out with fun friends.

Thanks for the wonderful peeps over at Kind Over Matter for posting a link to an amazing website-Gives Me Hope. I'm giving your warning right now-have a tissue out! You will tear up over the stories people leave. I love that whenever I have a bad call at work or the news is just getting me down, I can go to Give Me Hope and read uplifting stories. Sure it's kind of sappy but don't we all need that in our lives from time to time?

Are you looking for something to do on August 28th and are in the Portland area? Even if you're not in the Portland area, you can still come on down (or over, or up) to the gala event, Safety In Numbers. Yes, I know it's a few weeks away but you need time to find the perfect outfit and gather your friends together for a wonderful event, awesome auction and help raise awareness for Domestic Violence/Sexual Assault survivors.

Now I know that everyone will be at Safety In Numbers but you might be looking for something that really completes the outfit you will be wearing. Well, you need to check out Voodoo Doll Designs on Facebook. She makes beautiful flower hair clips that will look amazing in those gorgeous locks of yours.


When I first saw these shoes I about fell over! Lucha Libre sneakers? Did I die and go to heaven? I love Sewsew-A-Gogo's embroidery and painting and, well, just about everything made by her. Not to mention, she is one of the sweetest sassiest people I know.

Okay, so you have websites to happy cry at, places to go and be seen, things to look good in-what more do you need on a Friday? Fine! I'll give you cute puppies and kittens!

Super Scary Stuff!

Before OMP was OMP, he was Dr. Tongue's 3-D house of Collectibles Toys. As a matter of fact-the majority of people know him as Dr. Tongue. It's only been within the last few years that he has become the OMP. Anyhoo, Dr. Tongue had an awesome toy store. It really was more of a hangout than anything else. If you needed to find anything at all, it was there and now might perhaps be in my garage or basement (if you are looking for anything special, email me-I bet we have it!) One thing that he would never give up is his scary children's board games. I can't think of anything scarier than these games. Okay, maybe bag of glass but that's about it.



The first game is the Canadian Haunted mansion game. It is from Lakeside and was made in the mid 1970's.This is a dimensional game with a cardboard backdrop of the haunted mansion from Disney. The object of the game was to run around the track and try to escape the haunted mansion without being captured by the ghosts. The Canadian version is rarer and the only difference is the box and the instructions are in French




The next game is the Voodoo doll game which was produced in the early 1970's. This game is just creepy and weird! Two players take turns sticking pins into the voodoo doll and when one player hits the right spot the witch doctor pops out of the hut.




One of my favorites is the Ideal haunted house game produced in the early 1960's. This game is fairly rare and is hard to find complete in the box. The game is played upright. The object of the game is to take your peg and go around the house and you win if you reach the attic and get the jewel out of the safe. The spinner is so cool! It's a hooting owl. You pull the lever and it tells you how many spaces to go.




The Green ghost is another Lakeside game from the late 1960's-early 1970's. It is another dimensional game, and should be played in the dark. The board and pieces glow in the dark-which is real spooky! The object is to go around a board collecting different items, such as keys, bat wings (feathers) snakes (rubber bands). This game was reproduced in the late 1990's.



The last game is a Hasbro Marble maze. We have no clue when it was made. We've never seen another one. The object of this game is to hold it in the center and move your marble in the maze without falling in the holes. The game we have in our collection still has the original marble.
The graphics are just way too creepy!

OHHH!!! Scary Stuff kids! Have fun playing and try not to have too many nightmares.

You Down with OMP? Yeah You Know Me!

I have so many people ask me who is OMP? What is he all about? I could write paragraph after paragraph about him but I really think it's better to have it in his own words. Without further delay, I give you OMP

What is an OMP?
Well - I have a rather gruff attitude when it comes to life - not much of a social filter, if something bothers me, I say something about it. I rarely hold back (unless you insist). So a really good friend of mine (whom is also rather grouchy at times) deemed me Old Man Pedersen - OMP for short. Kind of the old man that gets after the kids - tells them to get off his lawn type.




You're a drummer, how long have you been playing?
Let's see - I'm 44 now, started when I was 6? 38 years now.



Do you have a website?
Yep I do - thanks for asking. Go to: drumlessonspdx for info on me and my drum studio/lessons.




Are you really that grouchy?
You tell me - you married me? Honestly, it really depends on the situation. I like to think of myself as an Egg Roll - Crunchy tough exterior outside not too pretty to look at but inside? All good, warm and tasty. (hee hee,,,,yes you are-WINK!)


What's your funniest moment with me?
Crap? Why couldn't you just ask me when our Anniversary is? Let's see - funniest? Your going to kill me but the time when Kato fell into the pond and you freaked out and jumped in after him. I came running out of the house and your trying to hold onto the dog and keep your head above water. Then there's me grabbing the dog and then trying to pull you out of the pond and you kept slipping on the sides of the pond back into it. It was scary at the time but quite hilarious now. (Yeah, that was real funny honey, I'm laughing about it now. Flippin' hysterical)


You are an awesome cook, what's your favorite meal?
Thanks honey but I am an average cook, your just a little bias - I just like to make stuff in the kitchen. Always have. My Mom use to sign me up for kiddie cooking classes when I was in grade school. Favorite meal? I would say a good Steak on the BBQ (marinaded in spices and beer), with side of roasted corn on the cobb with a chile pepper/lime/butter rub and a baker with the works! It is not a lot of work and the pay off is amazing! (You thought I was going to give away my Lime/Rum Chicken recipe didn't you? No chance)!! ( Damn! It was worth a try!)



BONUS QUESTION!
How much do you love me? YES! YOU HAVE TO ANSWER IT!
Well - lets see - I love you more then I have every loved anyone in my entire life. When I met you & fell in love with you - I truly became the luckiest man on the face of the earth!

It's me that's the lucky one! You are a wonderful, generous, beautiful man and I'm so glad I get to spend the rest of my life with you. To quote our wedding vows, you are the Boris Karloff to my Elsa Lanchester. I'm your OLP!

Tie One On Tuesday!

Ugh....my stuffy nose! There is nothing worse than having the flu or a cold in the middle of summer. Luckily I have a wonderful husband who makes me yummy drinks to clear my sinuses and put me in better spirits. No one likes a grumpy sick person! These drinks are a simple twist on the toddy that include tea instead of just water.


The first drink is the Hot Tea Grog
Ingredients
Several cloves
1 tablespoon of honey
1 oz. brandy
1 oz. dark rum
1 cup hot tea
Cinnamon stick



Mix all the ingredients together in a shallow pan over medium low heat. Once the grog heats up, pour into your mug. Guaranteed to cure what ails you.



The next "medicinal"(I use that in the loosest terms) is Hot Rum Tea.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon black tea
1 Cinnamon stick
2 cloves
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon honey
1 oz of spiced rum



Boil 1 cup of water with your tea, cinnamon stick and cloves. Let steep for 4 minutes. Strain but keep your cinnamon stick for later. Poor tea into a large mug and add lemon and honey. Float rum on top and use cinnamon stick for garnish.


Ahhh, much better now! OMP is taking a few sips as extra precaution to make sure he doesn't get the ick, at least that's what he's telling me. ;)

Innocence Lost

The Untimely passing of John Hughes was a small punch in the gut to me last week. Growing up in the 80's, I, like many of my friends fell in love with his movies and his characters. For some reason, this man really knew how to write about teenage angst. He had a knack for pointing out the differences in the high school class system but managed to peel those differences back and expose that we really are the same and in a few years, none of this will matter.

There are so many of his movies that I love, it was hard to pick which ones to talk about. These are only a few of many that he has either directed or written


Can I just tell you how much I loved Jake Ryan in Sixteen Candles! I wanted to be Molly Ringwald SO bad just so I could kiss Jake at the end. How adorable was John Cusak in this movie, I know he had a bit part but c'mon he was a cutie even then. I love this twist of the girl pining away for the boy and trying so hard to meet him. Not only does she have to go through the embarrassment of giving her panties to a "geek", her family forgets her birthday AND her grandma grabs her boobs. If you are a 16 year old-all of this is mortifying. I love that to this day, I can still quote lines from this movie. The angst of being 16 and crushing on someone is one that will never grow old. We have all been there and know that pain and that's what makes this movie so awesome.

Another teenage angst movie is Pretty In Pink. Although he didn't direct this, he did write it. The only thing I have to say about this movie is -she should have gone with Ducky and why did she ruin the dress? Oh yeah, the soundtrack is awesome

What? You want MORE teenage angst? The acme of teenage angst movies-The Breakfast club. Oh my goodness-how many times did I see this movie? I can't even begin to count! Judd Nelson before he was all creepy and low budget-I loved him! Once again, we see Molly Ringwald, pouty lipped, complain about how hard her life is, but we still felt for her!Who knew that the people you made fun of, that you wanted nothing to do with had feelings? This is the classic example of what John Hughes did best, make us examine our own behavior, know it wouldn't change anything but still laugh at ourselves. You know that you still love the song "Don't you forget about me." Don't deny the love.

Possibly the best of all movies for any John Hughes fan, hell, anyone anywhere would be Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Just this morning at a meeting, someone referenced, "Bueller, Bueller, anyone." and it STILL got a laugh! Yes Ferris got his way but we loved him for that. We loved that he was smart, cute, had a great girlfriend. We just couldn't hate him. The best character in the whole movie is not Ferris but Grace, the secretary. I love her so much! This movie really does stand the test of time. It is a classic.

There are so many more John Hughes films that I'm missing-Weird Science, Some Kind of Wonderful, Uncle Buck, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, European Vacation (he wrote it, I never knew) that everyone has a favorite.

I'm really gonna miss John Hughes. For some reason I think I lost a little bit of my innocence when I heard he past away-it was like I grew up a little more and lost a little bit of that teenager inside me.

Scrappy Dog Sunday!

Gus, Gus, Gus, what can I say about you that hasn't already been said? He is a sweet, cute little man that I just want to hug and kiss! Just who is Mr. Gus? What makes him such a lady's man? Let's find out.

Gus, you seem like a man of mystery, can you tell the us more about yourself?
Well my name is Gus. My mom calls me Gusgus, gustus, pappa. I am a Boston Terrier and I was sort of an ugly duckling but now I am becoming a handsome fella. Mom loves me no matter what. I have a great personality and pretty much am quite the charmer. I am pretty well behaved and love to learn new tricks. So far I can sit, shake, lay down, high five, jump, and roll over. Mom wants to teach me to play dead... sort of morbid if you ask me. I am the mascot of my mothers craft group and love to give kisses and nibbles. I have an under bite so I have a silly little voice that I talk to mom with.

When you are not being a man of mystery, what are some of your favorite things to do?
I love to herd the chickens in their coop, sleep under the covers, snuggling, run and dig at the beach, playing with my stuffed duck, walking around the lake, going to the dog park, bugging my dog aunt Lola, Eating June Bugs, hopping around in the bushes.

Are you a momma's boy or a daddy's boy?
Mommas boy.... HELLO!

Do you have a favorite toy, food, treat, song?
My favorite toys are my kong, tug-a-jug, my lobster, stuffed duck, and any water bottle laying around. My favorite food is ice cream cones, I love to share with my mother. Mom said they are not good for me but I give her puppy eyes so she lets me have a lick! My favorite song is "Who let the dogs out"


What's your motto in life?
You smelt it you dealt it....

Good words to live by Gus. This is why I love you!