Where's Poor Deby?

Forget Waldo.  Where the heck is Poor Deby?  The last I heard, she had gone to Disneyland in January.  Then I heard she ran off to the Caribbean for a week in February.  Then there was a trip to Salt Lake City in March.  She's been so busy planning and having adventures that I guess she just hasn't had much time to experience her normal routine rations of Princess Problems!  So, now she's back and trying to get reacquainted with her laptop computer.  Seems like lately the only thing it's been used for is watching movies from a cramped airplane seat at 35,000 feet up in the air.  Poor Deby!

Somebody oughta clean these aeroplane windows!  Poor Deby!

Quote of the Day:  Hubby Dave saw that Poor Deby was hunkered down in the Man Cave typing on her laptop with "Night at the Museum" playing on the t.v. and he said "Oh good!  You're back!  You can be typing away in BlogWorld while the soccer game is on!  Everybody wins!" 

A Few Thousand More Words...

So, if one picture is worth a thousand words, this must mean adding, like, 3 more photos equals four thousand words total, right?  This one shows, from front to back, Spencer, Sarah, and Poor Deby just about to get soaked on Disneylands "Splash Mountain" ride:

Note how Poor Deby was pretty smart (and looking pretty stylish) with the hoodie on her sweater tied tight around her head to keep her hair from getting drenched!

This next photo shows, in the back row, left-to-right, Sarah, Spencer and Poor Deby being terrified out of their wits on the Tower of Terror:

But, where's Hubby Dave, you say? He's driving north on Interstate 5 heading back to Seattle. He had a 2-day drive ahead of him, so he left Poor Deby to sit all-by-herself on most of the rides of Disneyland.  With the seat next to her empty, Poor Deby was pretty sad and it was very, very hard for her to have a good time. You can tell by her expression in this next photo, sitting all-by-herself next to an empty seat on Space Mountain:

 

Too bad some Dummy in the front row had to go and throw her hands up in the air and block out Sarah's face in this photo.  The guy sitting next to the Dummy sure doesn't look very happy to be on that ride with her.  My guess is he was probably pretty embarrased and wanted to jump right off of Space Mountain.  Wouldn't you???  Poor Dummy!  Guess she didn't know any better!

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

So, Poor Deby got tricked into going to Southern California last week.  She hasn't been back there for over 13 years, but Dave enticed her with the promise that is Disneyland.  And the extra added Bonus Attraction, "California Adventure."  That's a "new" addition to the Disneyland Resort that wasn't even built the last time Poor Deby was there.

So, let me introduce the cast of characters in this photo, which was taken on the "California Screamin'" roller coaster at the California Adventure park;

Front row: Poor Deby's son Spencer and his girlfriend, Sarah.

Back row:  Poor Deby and Hubby Dave.

Does Poor Deby look like she's having Fun?  You bet she is! 

'Nuff said.

batteries not included

I think Poor Deby finally figured out exactly what happened to Lilly-the-Dog in the photo on the previous post! (scroll down to see it.)  Why is Lilly squinching her eyes shut like that?  It must be because Lilly probably never read the following sentence in her camera instruction manual:

"When operating the diopter adjustment control with your eye to the viewfinder, care should be taken not to put your finger in your eye accidently."

No Lie!  It really says that!  And Poor Deby knows this because she's one of those people who reads every single instruction manual that comes with every single thing she ever buys.  Sometimes she even reads instruction manuals for things other people buy.  Mostly that would be her husband, Dave.  He's a Man, after all, and everybody knows Real Men don't read instruction manuals.  So, Poor Deby reads the instruction manuals for stuff Dave buys, and then she tells him how to work the stuff.  Poor Deby gets to read the manual, Dave gets to pretend he's listening to her instructions... yada, yada, yada, blah, blah, blah... Everybodys happy!

So, not only does Poor Deby like to read Instruction Manuals, she also loves to read the Fine Print.  This would include Directions, Disclaimers, Lists of Ingredients, Adverse Effects, Warnings, Warranties, Exclusions, Expiration Dates, and Optional Equipment.  And in Poor Deby's world, Instruction Manuals are not limited to the written word.  Television commercials have opened up a whole new arena for what Poor Deby likes to call Verbal Fine Print.  These would mainly be advertisements for prescription drugs that show Happy People having a carefree time surrounded by loving friends in beautiful surroundings that leave you asking "How can I get that Life?"  But, Poor Deby has learned to listen with a keen ear for the Verbal Fine Print (VFP).  Her most favorite all time winner of the VFP Award has to be the following:

"May cause gas with oily discharge, a frequent urge to have a bowel movement, and an inability to control it."    

No Lie!  Of course, the announcer making this statement said it so fast that it took Poor Deby about 5 times of watching and listening to this commercial before she could even decipher the entire statement.  She doesn't even remember what the product was, and she sure hopes she never has a reason to use it, whatever it was!

So, there you have it.  Itching, swelling, anxiety, irritability, burping, farting, fainting, bloating, death, loss of consciousness, hair loss, memory loss, .... what was I saying?

  

"Objects in mirror may be dumber than they appear."

Cocktail of the Day:  Mind Eraser

2 oz Vodka

2 oz Kahlua

2 oz Tonic Water

Pour vodka, Kahlua, and tonic water into a rocks or old-fashioned glass.

Serve with a straw.

check out this and more recipes at: www.drinksmixer.com/drink5375.html

Degree of Difficulty of the Day:

What?

The Last Day

Poor Deby has been so busy trying to keep up with the Holidays she hasn't had time to update her blogs! She feels so ashamed! And her very good friend, Miss Radish(of http://www.radishandrose.blogspot.com/ fame) keeps reminding her that she is sick and tired of continuously checking and rechecking both the Poor Deby and Leapin Lilly sites only to see the SAME OLD POST, day after day after day..... So, Poor Deby is resolving to make a New Year's Resolution to create new posts on a very regular basis. In fact, she is working out a top secret schedule of regular "feature posts" to be debuted very soon. More about that another time. For now, Poor Deby would like to share this timely article from the New York Times. This being the Last Day of 2009, it seems appropriate:

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/12/31/opinion/20091231_opart.html

Enjoy, and a Happy New Year full of health, happiness, love, joy, and lots of good words to everyone!

Click Click Click Click Camera Song

Here's a fun video that gets Poor Deby tapping her toes.

Just click click click click on the link below...

photo: Bishop Allen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LpmrZbTu1o

Play Ball!

• Deby has been following her favorite baseball team, the New York Yankees, as they claw their way up through the muck that is the playoffs. While Deby doesn't harbor any bad feelings or hatred for any of the other teams in either the American or National league (well, maybe with the sole exception of the Boston Red Sox) she is having quite a bit of difficulty understanding the intense hatred so many people have for the Damn Yankees. When Deby encounters a fervent Yankee Hater, she can't help but ask them "why?" The reasons boil down to the following:
  

The Yankees have bundles of unlimited money to fund their payroll account.

The Yankees scout out the best up-and-coming players from other teams and steal them away.

The other teams can't pay their players what the Yankees can, so their best players leave.

When the other teams raise the amount they pay their players, the Yankees just increase their offer.

I don't know about you, but Deby thinks these things define the very concept of Capitalism. Think of Corporate America. In particular, think of Microsoft vs all-the-other-companies-that-do-what-Microsoft-does:


Microsoft has bundles of unlimited money to fund their payroll account.

Microsoft scouts out the best up-and-coming "players" (CEO's) from other "teams" (companies) and steals them away.

The other "teams" can't pay their "players" what Microsoft can, so their best "players" leave.

When the other "teams" raise the amount they pay their "players", Microsoft just increases their offer.


Hmmmm. You can pretty much swap out the word "Microsoft" and insert any number of large, competitive organizations. The "players" are what make the organization successful. The largest, most successful corporations willingly pay the highest salaries for the best talent. No surprise there.


Now, Poor Deby is not a professional baseball player, but if she was I bet she would jump for joy if she received a letter in the mail from George Steinbrenner that said "We want YOU to play for the New York Yankees!"...

And, no matter what people say, Deby doesn't believe it's all about the money. Sure, making oodles of dough playing baseball for a living doesn't hurt, but there is just something about putting on those Yankee pinstripes. It's about playing for the team alongside the ghosts of all those legendary players.... Gehrig, Ruth, Dimaggio, Mantle, Ford, Durocher, Berra, Jackson ..... the list goes on and on, and it's still continuing today.

C.C. Sabathia fires in a fast one...


Andy Pettitte post launch...


Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez...


A-Rod about to hit one of his 500+ home runs...


So, until the Baseball Commissioner puts a cap on the salaries allowed to be paid to professional baseball players, Poor Deby says "Go Yankees! Go Capitalism!" That's the American Way.


Degree of Difficulty of the Day: A Grand Slam Home Run!

As a side note, Deby's husband, Dave, happens to be a Minnesota Twins fan. You can imagine the warm, fuzzy feelings going on in their home during the recent American League Division playoffs between the Twins and the Yankees. Poor Deby had to call their good friend, Jim, over to be the referee.... and here's the proof:

Now, can't we all just get along???

Cocktail of the Day:

all photos by Deby Alm http://www.flickr.com/photos/debyc/

Manhattan

3/4 oz sweet vermouth ("Vya Sweet Vermouth" if you're a N.Y. Yankee)
2-1/2 oz bourbon whiskey ("Crown Royal" if you're a N.Y. Yankee)
1 dash Angostura bitters
1 twist orange peel

Combine the vermouth, whiskey, and bitters with 2 - 3 ice cubes in a mixing glass. Stir gently, don't bruise the spirits and cloud the drink. Place the cherry in a chilled cocktail glass and strain the whiskey mixture over the cherry. Rub the cut edge of the orange peel over the rim of the glass and twist it over the drink to release the oils but don't drop it in.


Variation: No bitters. Substitute a twist of lime for the cherry and orange. Hold the lime twist in a lighted match over the drink and then drop it in. The heat really zips up the lime flavor.

Find this and more great cocktail recipes at: http://www.drinksmixer.com/drink580.html