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| Warsaw, 1946 [Photo by Michael Nash, Associated Press] |
Wednesday, 28 December 2011
Tuesday, 27 December 2011
Celebrating a lifetime together
Mrsgunka had a Christmas scare when Ray was suddenly ill and had to be taken to hospital. Fortunately, Ray is making good progress.
Today is their 53rd wedding anniversary and although they won't be physically together, their hearts will be as close as ever.
Let's accompany Mr & Mrsgunka on a trip back to 1958, when they tied the knot.
Eisenhower was the president of the United States, Khrushchev was the leader of the USSR and Harold MacMillan was the UK Prime Minister.
1958 saw the birth of NASA and of the John Birch Society.
South Pacific was the top grossing movie and The Bridge on the River Kwai won 7 Academy Awards, including best picture.
Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward were also married in 1958:
The world of fashion, from the December issue of Vogue:
People drove very big cars:
These two songs topped the Billboard charts:
Dear Mrsgunka, you and Ray saw many changes over all these years together, but the best thing is what hasn't changed: Your enduring love for each other.
Happy anniversary!
Today is their 53rd wedding anniversary and although they won't be physically together, their hearts will be as close as ever.
Let's accompany Mr & Mrsgunka on a trip back to 1958, when they tied the knot.
Eisenhower was the president of the United States, Khrushchev was the leader of the USSR and Harold MacMillan was the UK Prime Minister.
1958 saw the birth of NASA and of the John Birch Society.
South Pacific was the top grossing movie and The Bridge on the River Kwai won 7 Academy Awards, including best picture.
Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward were also married in 1958:
The world of fashion, from the December issue of Vogue:
People drove very big cars:
These two songs topped the Billboard charts:
Dear Mrsgunka, you and Ray saw many changes over all these years together, but the best thing is what hasn't changed: Your enduring love for each other.
Happy anniversary!
Labels:
anniversary
Monday, 26 December 2011
Saturday, 24 December 2011
Still laughing
I think we had enough Christmas and holiday themed posts, so let's have a laugh. View_From_Here sent me this joke:
NORWEGIAN VIRGIN
Olof Swenson, out in his pasture in northern Minnesota, took a lightning-quick kick from a cow... right in his crotch. Writhing in agony, he fell to the ground.
As soon as he could manage, he took himself to the doctor. He said: “How bad is it Doc? I'm going on my honeymoon next veek and my fiance, Lena, is still a virgin - in every vay.”
The doctor told him “Olof, I'll have to put your willy in a splint to let it heal and keep it straight. It should be okay next week, but leave it on there as long as you can.”
He took four tongue depressors and formed a neat little four-sided splint and taped it all together... quite an impressive work of art.
Olof mentioned none of this to Lena, married her and they went on their honeymoon to Duluth.
That night, in the Motel 6, Lena ripped open her blouse to reveal her beautiful,untouched breasts. She said: “Olof... you' re the first vun! No vun has EVER seen deez.”
Olof immediately dropped his pants and replied: “Look at dis, Lena ... still in DA CRATE!”
Thank you, View.
NORWEGIAN VIRGIN
Olof Swenson, out in his pasture in northern Minnesota, took a lightning-quick kick from a cow... right in his crotch. Writhing in agony, he fell to the ground.
As soon as he could manage, he took himself to the doctor. He said: “How bad is it Doc? I'm going on my honeymoon next veek and my fiance, Lena, is still a virgin - in every vay.”
The doctor told him “Olof, I'll have to put your willy in a splint to let it heal and keep it straight. It should be okay next week, but leave it on there as long as you can.”
He took four tongue depressors and formed a neat little four-sided splint and taped it all together... quite an impressive work of art.
Olof mentioned none of this to Lena, married her and they went on their honeymoon to Duluth.
That night, in the Motel 6, Lena ripped open her blouse to reveal her beautiful,untouched breasts. She said: “Olof... you' re the first vun! No vun has EVER seen deez.”
Olof immediately dropped his pants and replied: “Look at dis, Lena ... still in DA CRATE!”
Thank you, View.
Labels:
funnies
Friday, 23 December 2011
Time for some festive songs
Sleuth sent me the first video and I had bookmarked the second. We love our pets and animals in general, so this is a fitting way to wish all What Timers a happy festive season! [There's a fading celebrity out there complaining that a pet is not appropriate for a Christmas card...]
The guy who made these is the same guy who gave us the now classic video of the talking dog:
(You may watch all his great videos on his youtube channel.)
Happy holidays to all of you and your loved ones!
The guy who made these is the same guy who gave us the now classic video of the talking dog:
(You may watch all his great videos on his youtube channel.)
Happy holidays to all of you and your loved ones!
Thursday, 22 December 2011
Playing with words
TempestNVA sent me these. Puns can make you cringe, but these are quite clever! Thank you, Tempest.
To all you Lexophiles .... (those who love words)
- Writing with a broken pencil is pointless.
- Fish in schools sometimes take debate.
- The thief who stole a calendar got twelve months.
- When the smog lifts in Los Angeles, U.C.L.A.
- It seems Professor Buck's earthquake theory is on shaky ground.
- Batteries were given out free of charge.
- After the dentist and manicurist married, they fought tooth and nail.
- A chess tournament occupied all the hotel's conference rooms. Between matches, players stood around the foyer bragging about their victories. This eventually got on the manager's nerves. "Go away!", he shouted. "I can't stand chess nuts boasting in an open foyer."
- A will is a dead giveaway.
- After the parents refused to pay the exorcist, their daughter was repossessed.
- With her marriage, she got a new name and a dress.
- Show me a piano falling down a mineshaft and I'll show you A-flat miner.
- You are stuck with your debt if you can't budge it.
- Local Area Network in Australia: The LAN down under.
- A boiled egg is hard to beat.
- After you've seen one shopping center, you've seen a mall.
- Police were called to a day care where a three-year-old was resisting a rest.
- Did you hear about the man whose whole left side was cut off? He's all right now.
- If you take a laptop computer for a run you could jog your memory.
- A bicycle can't stand alone; it is two tired.
- In a democracy it's your vote that counts; in feudalism, it's your Count that votes.
- When a clock is hungry, it goes back four seconds.
- The man who fell onto an upholstery machine is fully recovered.
- Another fell into a lens-grinding machine and made a spectacle of himself.
- His photographic memory was never fully developed.
- Those who get too big for their britches will be exposed in the end.
- When she saw her first strands of gray hair, she thought she'd dye.
- Acupuncture: a jab well done
Two cures for excessive punning:
- Medical -- performing an apundectomy
- Legal -- a sentence in a punitentiary.
Labels:
funnies
Wednesday, 21 December 2011
Suzy
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| Billy and Suzy at his leaving do, just before he went to Australia |
Suzy, a friend of Billy's since playschool, did American Studies at Nottingham University and her final year was spent in Tennessee, where this video was recorded. We've been friends with Suzy's parents for over twenty years and her father could do with our good thoughts...
Go Suzy!
Labels:
music
Tuesday, 20 December 2011
Awww...
Today's awww moment comes courtesy of Lillibird.
Thank you, Lillibird.
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| New baby friends meet each other |
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| Kitten being given some oxygen |
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| How cute is this baby owl? |
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| As big as a grape... |
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| A shy walrus |
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| This cat has a permanent top hat |
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| A special bubble bath |
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| Finally, here's a proud new mom |
Thank you, Lillibird.
Labels:
animals
Monday, 19 December 2011
"Carefully" placed stickers
View_From_Here sent me these very funny examples of carelessly placed stickers:
Thank you, View, they're hilarious.
Thank you, View, they're hilarious.
Labels:
funnies
Sunday, 18 December 2011
Lebkuchen
These lovely cookies were mentioned in the last thread, so I searched for a relatively simple recipe to share with you. You may vary the icing, using chocolate or almond instead. This recipe yields 72 cookies.
Ingredients
Cookies
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup molasses
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/3 cup diced candied citron peel
1/3 cup chopped hazelnuts
Icing
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
Preparation
In a medium saucepan, stir together the honey and molasses. Bring the mixture to a boil, remove from heat and stir in the brown sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, and lastly the egg.
In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, allspice and nutmeg. Add the molasses mixture to the dry ingredients and mix well. Stir in the citron and hazelnuts. Cover dough and chill overnight.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease cookie sheets. Using a small amount of dough at a time, roll out on a lightly floured surface to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into small rectangles and place them 1 inch apart onto the prepared cookie sheet.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until no imprint remains when touched lightly.
Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan. Heat to between 234 and 240 degrees F (soft ball stage). Remove from heat and stir in the confectioners' sugar.
Quickly brush the icing over the cookies while they are still hot (Important!) and remove them to wire cooling racks. If icing becomes sugary while brushing cookies, re-heat slightly- adding a little water until crystals dissolve.
Store in an airtight container with a few pieces of apple peel for a few days to mellow.
Alternative glazing ideas
Chocolate glace:
200g (7 oz) powder (icing) sugar, sifted
30 g cocoa, sifted
enough hot water to make thick runny mixture to brush on
Almond glace:
200 g (7 oz) powder (icing) sugar, sifted
1 or 2 drops of almond extract
enough hot water to make a thick runny mixture to brush on
Saturday, 17 December 2011
Getting into the Christmas spirit
Tumbleweed sent me this touching Christmas story:
A couple was Christmas shopping at the mall on Christmas Eve and the mall was packed. Walking through the mall the surprised wife looked up and noticed her husband was nowhere around and she was very upset because they had a lot to do. She used her cell phone to call her husband because she was so upset, to ask him where he was. The husband in a calm voice said:
"Honey, remember the jewelry store we went into 5 years ago where you fell in love with that diamond necklace that we could not afford and I told you that I would get it for you one day?"
His wife said crying:
"Yes! I remember that jewelry store."
He said, "Well, I'm in the bar next to it."
*****
Mrsgunka sent me some seasonal cartoons:
And a video of some very fancy Christmas lights:
Thank you, Tumbleweed and Mrsgunka.
A couple was Christmas shopping at the mall on Christmas Eve and the mall was packed. Walking through the mall the surprised wife looked up and noticed her husband was nowhere around and she was very upset because they had a lot to do. She used her cell phone to call her husband because she was so upset, to ask him where he was. The husband in a calm voice said:
"Honey, remember the jewelry store we went into 5 years ago where you fell in love with that diamond necklace that we could not afford and I told you that I would get it for you one day?"
His wife said crying:
"Yes! I remember that jewelry store."
He said, "Well, I'm in the bar next to it."
*****
Mrsgunka sent me some seasonal cartoons:
And a video of some very fancy Christmas lights:
Thank you, Tumbleweed and Mrsgunka.
Friday, 16 December 2011
Some old news
Today we're taking a trip back to 1933, courtesy on Grasshopper. Among the items he secured at a recent auction were some large books of clippings from old newspapers. Please click on the images for a larger view.
Thank you, Grasshopper.
Thank you, Grasshopper.
Labels:
history
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