The Fifty Factor

Sundays In My City #28 - Art!

2010-03-13T22:20:00.000-08:00

Unknown Mami hosts a great Sunday theme inviting YOU to get out and take pictures of your city and/or Sunday to share with the rest of blogland. Click HERE to see Unknown Mami's Sunday in her City today.

Friday was a perfect day for lunch with my gal pals and a trip to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art for a little culture......

We went to see the special exhibit by Pierre-Auguste Renoir....

It was of his later works-- Sorry, no photographs allowed but the paintings were of a lot of beautiful young women, mostly naked, a couple of interesting trees and some lovely houses in the south of France where he lived for a while. Although Renoir was clearly a great artist, his later works were not as interesting to me as some of the art installations outside by other artists....

This one, which looks like something I've seen many times in many different places was swaying in the wind....

But what I really loved was this huge installation-- All actual size light posts, by the way....

I want to go back and see it lit up at night!

How's your Sunday?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

CLICK HERE to visit more Sundays In My City

Photo Credit: Joanna Jenkins

Friday Fragments #2

2010-03-11T22:20:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Mrs. 4444 for hosting Friday Fragments.

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The beautiful earrings you see below are an extraordinary gift from Izzy of Stone Spirit. She had a very generous giveaway in January for a necklace made with stones that would "help give love and strength for whatever challenges come your way".

I didn't win the necklace but sweet Izzy made a gift for each of the people who entered! She asked us to give her a suggestion of a particular challenge we were trying to overcome and then she designed a treat for each one of us! At the time I was flooded with funerals and sick loved ones so I asked her for something to give me strength to help us all pull through.

The beautiful deep blue-green stone Izzy chose for my earrings is called Dioptase. It brings forth and helps one to understand the message that "Yesterday is but a memory, tomorrow is but a vision, and today is real."* Izzy said, "Living in the moment is the energy of this mineral!" It's exactly what I needed.

I can't begin to explain how touched I was that a near stranger could pick the perfect stone for me. But after thinking about it further, I realized Izzy has an awareness about people that helps her match stones to the individual. My sincere thanks to Izzy for her thoughtfulness and generosity.

When you have time READ THIS about Izzy and her biological mother. It's stunning. And visit often because she has another giveaway coming up soon on her beautiful blog!

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One of the earliest blogs I followed is by Cindy LaFerle. She is a published author and a writing role model for me. Cindy has such a beautiful way with words that paint a picture as clear as a sunny day. She also has an article featured in the current issue (March/April 2010) of Victoria magazine! It's a full page opposite the inside back cover, which gives her story The Art of Midlife Gardening prominent placement.

This is the cover of the issue, please be on the lookout for it and, when you have time, stop by and congratulate Cindy on her success.

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And speaking of awesome bloggers, Kristina P. of Pulsipher Predilections has definitely reserved a spot in blog heaven some day! She's collecting Snuggies for needy senior citizens during the entire month of March. So far, more than 110 Snuggies have been collected! But there's still time for you to send one too. CLICK HERE for details. She's already received mine!

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Thanks to Hilary of The Smitten Image for awarding me The Post Of The Week for Joy Ride. I am very flattered to be in the great company of the other nominees and recipients.

Do you know Hilary? She's a fabulous photographer and an avid blog reader. I've found a lot of new blogs via her POTW selections. Please check her out!

And with that, all I can say is thank gawd it's friday so I can sleep in on Saturday!

What are you doing this weekend?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna

Photo Credit--

Victoria Magazine

Snuggies For Seniors

Post of the Week

* From the book "Love is In the Earth"

She What?

2010-03-10T18:50:00.000-08:00

Have you ever done something that, in hindsight, was not your best choice? I'm not talking about a "Wow, I could have had a V-8" moment, I'm talking about a "For the love of god what was I thinking?" moment.

I can only imagine what Megan Barnes from Florida was thinking when she recently (allegedly) crashed into the back of a pick up truck because she was driving while shaving-- her coochie!

Swear on Scouts honor. True story!

Ms Barnes, who at the time was driving on a suspended license had, just the day before, been convicted of driving under the influence. With her ex-husband beside her, which in and of itself raises a red flag on her judgement, she was behind the wheel with her foot on the accelerator while her Ex was steering the car.

Why you ask? Ms Barnes was busy giving her "bikini area", as the cops called it, a little freshening up, you know, a trim of the bush so to speak.

Picture that for a moment if you would....

Sitting in the driver's seat...

Cruising down the road...

With her Ex-husband...

And a sharp object close to your va-jay jay!

Yep, I'm guessing Ms Barnes, or at very least her Ex-husband will be wondering "What was I thinking?" for a very long time.

But wait, there's more.

After the crash, the crazy couple allegedly drove further down the road and changed seats (and possibly put her panties back on?). When the police arrived, the Ex was behind the wheel with a deflated airbag and not a scratch. But Ms Barnes, covered in airbag opening evidence on her face and arms, was in the passenger seat, whose airbag did not open.

Uh-oh, busted!

Why would anyone make such bad choices? Ms Barnes told police she was preparing for a date with her boyfriend. No mention was made of the Ex-husband's lame excuse.

I've made some poor choices in my lifetime and I'll probably make a few more, but there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that I will never make a choice that bad.

How about you?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkin

Photo Credit - Bikini - © NatUlrich - Fotolia.com

Photo Credit - Clown - © Georg Preissl - Fotolia.com

Joy Ride

2010-03-09T00:01:00.000-08:00

Growing up, our family car was usually one of those huge station wagons with the third seat facing backwards. They were big and roomy and none of us kids ever felt squished sitting together, even with our bulky winter coats on.

My Dad was a car salesman so we never actually owned the cars, rather he drove what were called “demonstrators”, a perk from the dealer he worked for. Seats were always wrapped in plastic and the floors had those annoying paper mats to protect the carpet ones. But every car had that “new car smell” and were shiny and beautiful the classic way cars from the 50s and 60s were.

At the chance of sounding really old, gasoline in my youth, was only thirty-two cents a gallon, which was good since Dad loved to drive. He’d load my mom and us kids into the station wagons and go for rides on Sunday afternoons. We'd circle practically the entire county enjoying our “free entertainment” as he called it.

In the summertime, the windows would be rolled down and we’d sing along to the radio, country western music was his favorite. In the winter, we’d wait in the house until Dad warmed the car up and had scraped all the snow off before we piled into the two back seats to see where the road would take us.

Our rides often ended up at one of two places depending on the time of year-- Either to our town's small air strip to watch planes land and take off, or to rolling hills filled with apple orchids in “the country” for fresh cider and warm, homemade pies.

Fall was Dad's favorite time of the year. Autumns in Ohio might be short in days but they deliver a blaze of stunning colors and crisp air that had him raising his face to the sky as if to gulp in its energy.

Occasionally, my adolescent brain would wonder what the big deal was about seeing miles and miles of fall leaves along country roads, but I never said a peep. I knew when we were headed to the apple farm and I knew how much pleasure it gave my Dad to share his one day off work a week with us.

Sadly, for my dad, he didn’t see nearly enough autumns in Ohio. He died of cancer when he was only 59. It pretty much sucked and I mean no disrespect by that. But "suck" is the only four letter word I can use to describe cancer since this is a PG-13 blog. I'm still angry that he was taken so young after such a hard fight.

It's been more than 16 years since his death and I miss him as much now as I did when he slipped away. At times I actually forget he’s gone and still reach for the phone to call him.

I wonder what Dad would think of his five kids today-- Four daughters and a son all over age 40. He is so much a part of who each one of us is, yet we are all so totally different.

More times than I can count, I’ve wished Dad’s ten grandchildren could learn, first-hand, his down to earth common sense wisdom and his easy-going way with people. I think they would adore him.

It may seem odd, but for years I’ve felt closest to my Dad when I’m in the car. Maybe that’s why I always arrive an hour early to pick up Godson from school. I sit in the car-- alone with myself, and let my mind drift, often landing on memories of him.

Today would be Dad's 76th birthday-- Although I miss him terribly, my heart is full of love and reflections of the man who taught me how to drive, in a big, shiny, new car.

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Photo Credit- Car: © OlgaLIS - Fotolia.com

Photo Credit - Foliage: © Katie Chamberlain - Fotolia.com

Sundays In My City #27 - Montana Avenue

2010-03-06T23:12:00.000-08:00

Do you know Unknown Mami? She's hosts a great Sunday theme inviting YOU to get out and take pictures of your city and or Sunday to share with the rest of blogland. Click HERE to see Unknown Mami's Sunday in her City today.

For a pleasant afternoon walk, Montana Avenue in Santa Monica California between about 17th and 10th Streets is filled with wonderful restaurants, fancy boutiques and clothing stores, antique and designer shops and a lot of interesting signage. Take this for example...

Like I needed to be reminded of that!

There were no firetrucks in sight but Giselle was having a hot sale...

Entertainment is always available too...

Shop owners maximize their advertising on cute cars...

I figure the Dads are hanging out here while the wife and kids are shopping...

And this sign was on the side of a plumber's van. I wonder if he works Saturdays.

How's your Sunday?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Six Word Saturday - #1

2010-03-06T00:01:00.000-08:00

Look who's filming in my neighborhood!

Check out Cate at Show My Face to participate and link up to Six Word Saturday.

Will you be watching the Academy Awards on Sunday?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Photo Credit

My First Friday Fragments

2010-03-04T22:49:00.000-08:00

After way too many months, it feels like my blog mojo is nearly within reach, now all I need is for life to cooperate and free-up some good old fashioned blog time.

Until that happens, and with a thanks and a salute to Mrs. 4444 (that's Mrs. Fours) at Half Past Kissing Time, I'm hitching my Friday to her wagon and presenting my first Friday Fragments....

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Did you ever notice people tend to shy away from eating at restaurants that are empty preferring a jammed restaurant requiring a long wait for a table because they assume the jammed food restaurant is better than the empty one. I'm guilty as charged.

That kind of thinking probably explains why, when I recently entered a new doctor's office for a long awaited appointment with the "best in his speciality", it give me pause. His office was completely empty. Uh-huh.

When I was ushered into the exam room at my exact appointment time by the doctor I thought the appointment would be the equivalent of a really bad meal at an over-hyped restaurant. (Funny how my thoughts in a possible crisis always turn to food.)

Turns out however, the doc was great and very helpful! Maybe the next time I see an empty restaurant, I'll give it a try.

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I met a lot of my current blog friends and readers via the kindness and blogging generosity of Lill y of Lilly's Life. She recently took a blogging break but SHE'S BACK and is as fabulous as ever! Please stop by and catch up with her!

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Godson was named Citizen of the Month in February at his middle school! That's a very big deal around here. His mom was so proud at the awards ceremony and brunch, and Godson was beaming when he received his nice certificate and recognized for his kindness and consideration of others.

It was all great until we realized his Mom wasn't getting one of those My Child Is A Citizen Of The Month bumper stickers for her car. She deserves "bragging rights" and frankly, I wanted one too! The Principal claimed "budget cuts" despite having enough funds for bagels and donuts that morning.

To be honest, I used to find those stickers annoying, why I have no idea. But now I get it! We were so disappointed that I'm thinking of printing them up for the school so Godson's Mom and all the other proud parents can brag about their kids too.

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Repair work on our pool and deck started Wednesday -- sort of. The possibility of the pool popping out during draining has slowed things down a bit but there is other general prep work to be done (like removing the deck) so the project got started....

....Until a production manager for a big network drama series knocked on my door. They will be filming the TV show on our street for three days and the huge dumpster and all the power equipment noise will ruin the shoot-- And that's before the jackhammers started or the port-a-potty arrived.

So faster than you could say "That'$ All Folk$" they made me an offer I couldn't refuse, and the dumpster, potty, workers and noise will magically disappear on Friday for the actual filming with the show's stars!

How much $$$ you ask for the inconvenience and missed day of work? It's really a drop in the bucket, but it will allow me to feed our construction crew nicely several times over the course of the next few months. Plus it's one of my favorite TV shows. Now all I have to do is borrow someone's dog to take for a walk and maybe bump into my favorite cast members.

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For more Friday Fragments CLICK HERE.

Do you have a favorite TV show?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Photo Credit - Award: © mikess - Fotolia.com

PS Check out This Stop Willoughby's fabulous GIVEAWAY!

Give, Get & Pop!

2010-03-02T12:04:00.000-08:00

Two cool things are happening in blogland and I thought you might be interested.

First, the awesome ByJane at Midlife Bloggers is having a giveaway for a gorgeous pair of "Jingle Dangle" earrings. I got a kick out of her simple entry requirements. Here's the scoop to win these babies:

Describe your lonely earlobes. Shout out for the Jingle Dangles in any way you like. Each comment will be a ticket in the MidLifeBloggers Jingle Dangle Earring Sweepstakes. If you Tweet about it, you’ll double your chances of winning (send me the link).

While you're there, take a look around Midlife Bloggers. It's one of my "must read" blogs.

And Snuggie Queen Kristina P. of Pulsipher Predilections has organized a fundraising drive to collect new Snuggies for needy Senior Citizens during the month of March. It never dawned on me how great this funky product would be for wheelchair bound Seniors, so I packed up a Snuggie and mailed it off to the Utah State Veteran's Nursing Home. I hope you'll consider sending one too.

Click HERE to get all the details on how you can participate. Or click her logo in my top right corner.

And last, a fast update on my sinking pool and deck saga.... Due to all the rain we've had in Southern California lately, there's serious concern about draining the pool. Apparently the water table might have risen and, gawd forbid, the pool could pop out during the draining.

Seriously. All I can do is laugh.... and wait. That's life in paradise.

Do you usually enter sweepstakes? (I do!)

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Road Trip

2010-03-01T00:01:00.000-08:00

We don't do it often enough, but a few times a year, Beloved Husband and I enjoy a 4 day weekend away. Palm Springs is a 2 1/2 hour drive East, so we pack up the car in search of rest, relaxation and sunshine.

But before we take off, there's so much work to be done. For example, the trip we just returned from started like this.....

One car, two adults, four nights away, and all this stuff-- And this picture was taken before we stopped at the outlet mall. And no, we weren't camping.

No wonder we rarely take long trips-- There wouldn't be any room left for us in the car. And for the record, I only packed three pairs of shoes. Most of this stuff belongs to my husband.

Honest!

We had a great time, napped, read, watched the Olympics, star-gazed, ate too much and just spent quality time together. I can't ask for more than that!

Now all I have to do is unpack all the stuff we just packed four days ago.

How do you travel-- light or loaded?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Sundays In My City #26 - Los Angeles Zoo

2010-02-28T00:01:00.000-08:00

Do you know Unknown Mami? She's hosts a great Sunday theme inviting YOU to get out and take pictures of your city and/or Sunday to share with the rest of blogland. Click HERE to see Unknown Mami's Sunday in her City today.

Recently I tagged along with Godson's school class on a field trip to the Los Angeles Zoo. We had a great time and the kids were thrilled with every minute of the day.

This exhibit had several gorillas that were so gorgeous and regal, the kids stared at them, in silence (!) for a full five minutes.

On one hand, I was sorry to see them in captivity, on the other I was happy the kids were so engaged and interested in learning more about them. Maybe we'll have a future veterinarian in the class...

Several giraffes were showing off for us. This baby was especially sweet...

The lion's den was another big thrill for the kids.....

And yes, the teachers had to point out this sign multiple times....

Thanks gawd we came home with as many kids as we arrived with!

How's your Sunday?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Doing The "Hollywood Thing"

2010-02-23T17:00:00.000-08:00

First things first-- The wonderful PJ of Seens From The Backs Of My Eyelids is having a fabulous GIVEAWAY for her one year blogoversary-- and I mean FABULOUS!!!-- As in multiple gifts including a $75 e-gift certificate from Amazon.com! You can enter once between Wednesday, 2/24 through Sunday, 2/28 so CLICK HERE to enter!

Every now and then I get to do the "Hollywood thing" and attend a movie premiere. In all honestly, some are more fun than others, but even the "duds" are pretty awesome in my book.

It's interesting to rub elbows with celebrities and watch the red carpet "circus" in progress with masses of photographers screaming the stars' names to capture the perfect shot.

I think it's actually pretty intense for the celebrities to be in front of so many cameras at one time, and honestly, it's a little unsettling for us "common folk" to watch from a distance-- There's a real "meat market" feel to it. But I admit, I get a kick out of seeing photographs in magazine that I've seen being taken.

Last week I was invited to a premier screening and party that ranked high on my "cool" scale. It was for a film called The Yellow Handkerchief that opens in limited release Friday, February 26th, then eventually goes wider in the U.S. and overseas. For my Australian friends, I know it opens there around June.

In the interest of full disclosure-- I know someone associated with this film which is how I was invited to the soiree, but I was not asked, nor am I being compensated to say, I LOVED THE MOVIE! I think my regular readers know me well enough to know if I didn't like it, I wouldn't be talking about it at all.

I got to meet the stars William Hurt (beyond nice-- so humble and such a gentleman), Maria Bello (OMG, she's gorgeous), Eddie Redmayne (he's going to be a BIG star) and the lovely Kristen Stewart of "Twilight" fame (she's a sweet young woman who seems a little intimidated by her movie star status).

When you see upcoming photos of Kristen in a stunning black mini dress with large rhinestones around the hem and side seams-- THAT'S the party I was at. Wink, wink. (And Diane, when I saw the dress I immediately thought of you! I looked it up-- She's wearing an Azzaro griffiti dress.)

The thing about this film, which is a love story, is that the performances are subtle and beautiful. And the cinematography is absolutely stunning.

Several times though the movie I thought about my blog friends who are so talented with their cameras and how much they would love seeing Yellow Handkerchief. It's set in southern Louisiana and the colors and images and style of the film are like watching a moving art exhibit.

The other thing I really liked about the movie was that it's a love story wrapped around real life dialogue that didn't include any profanity, nudity or exploding special effects! When was the last time you saw a movie like that? No body count, no F-bombs, no boobs, or butts-- just great dialogue, acting, directing and cinematography.

It's a PG-13 movie that I'll tell my 74 year old mother and my 18 year old grand-daughter to see. These kinds of films don't come along very often and I'm glad this one did.

What kind of movies do you like?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Photo Credit: © oxygen64 - Fotolia.com

PS Hubby and I are on vacation for a long weekend.

I'll catch up with you next week, xo jj

Sundays In My City #25 - Street Colors

2010-02-20T21:37:00.000-08:00

It was a gorgeous day on Thursday so I made a trip to the Fashion District in downtown Los Angeles. In addition to numerous manufactures with retail stores there are also several jammed pack blocks of fabric stores.

The bolts of fabrics line the front of every store....

Yes, even in the Fashion District, it's a jungle....

These were a dollar a piece....

I love going to this part of the city. You can't help but be happy with all the fabulous colors and textures....

Maybe I'll apply for a job....

How's your Sunday?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Not "Mad Men"

2010-02-18T18:05:00.000-08:00

The fifth grade was when I decided I wanted to be a famous "window dresser" in New York City. Actually I wanted to be a famous bulletin board designer for school classrooms in my hometown but my teacher, Mrs. Fischer, suggested I stretch my career goals slightly higher.

Of course the fact that I always volunteered to "design" the classroom bulletin board and spoke with a slight French accent when I worked on them earned me the reputation as a bit of an over-the-top brown nose, but I figured that was the price of fame.

Fast forward to real life and "window dresser" wasn't a listing in the Help Wanted section of the newspaper so I moved on.

Eventually, I got into the advertising business in a roundabout way via a friend of a friend who knew a guy that had an entry level position available. It was a cool job for a real NYC publisher of a food magazine and the whole "creative process" kicked back in.

No, it was nothing like Mad Men. After all, I'm significantly younger than that era. It was the 80s-- *ahem* very early 80s. Honest.

Since then I've come to viewing advertisements with a different eye than perhaps those not in the business. I'm more critical and always wondering who the target audience is. But lately, say the last ten years, I've come to wonder who the heck the advertiser is too.

It seems advertisers are trying to be so cleaver and hip and cool that the brand name isn't mentioned until the end of the commercial or only in tiny type, if at all. Target stores has mastered this technique with their wildly successful bull's eye logo but most others-- not so much.

During Wednesday night's Men's Snowboard Finals on the Olympics I saw this ad and it cracked me up. But after watching it I couldn't remember what product was being hocked, so I looked it up on YouTube and soon found that not only was it not a new ad, it was also very popular-- Which told me the company was targeting younger males with their message (snowboarders), not middle-aged women (trying to stay awake late enough to see who won the gold metal).

Regardless, I loved this ad and although it would never motivate me to buy the product for "my man", I thought you might get a laugh out of it too.

What's made you laugh lately?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Cool Factor Upped-- Slightly

2010-02-16T22:30:00.000-08:00

It's not everyday I do something considered "cool". And by that I mean cool by teenage standards.

I've gushed about my recently turned 13 years old Godson in this space more times than I can count, but it's never been about anything cool I actually did.

Well, today that all changed. I got the rarely seen "you rock" smile-- the one that curves the corners of his lips ever so slightly so as not to actually lose his cool factor, but enough for me to know I'm getting a thumbs up from him.

It was easy really, all I had to do was listen to one song over, and over, and over again-- Blasting as loud as my car's stereo would play-- With all the windows down-- For 32 minutes on the drive home from school.

Yes, I thought I would lose my mind, but it was worth those curled lips and sideways glance from my guy letting me know I was rocking it for him.

Although the song is still banging around in my head several hours later, and even though I have absolutely no idea why he requested the "Ghostbusters" theme song, I have to say, it totally made my day.

And yes, I'm easy-- I'll do it again for that brief, shining, "cool" moment.

Done anything cool lately?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Photo Credit: © Andrea Berger - Fotolia.com

Sundays In My City #24 - Love & Chocolate

2010-02-14T00:01:00.000-08:00

This Sunday is all about L.O.V.E. and let me tell you-- My heart runneth over. I'm not a Valentine kind of girl, but today I am especially reminded of how many people I love and how blessed I am that so many love me too. I have a lump in my throat just thinking about it.

It's been a very busy February-- You might have noticed I've been missing in action lately. Most of my time has been spent with doctors, thermometers, heating pads, medications, tests, needles, scans, x-rays and everything thing that goes with annual check-up, flu bugs, mystery symptoms and the usual on-going junk associated with chronic illnesses for me and loved ones. But at the end of the day, we're all okay, if not a little exhausted from all the angst and running around.

One of my "patients" made me this lovely Valentine card. He's truly one of my all time favorite people in the world and this card was made by him in between sleeping and a sour stomach while he camped out on my sofa missing a few days of school last week. I love the card and him too. It made my Sunday perfect.

I have to admit, I am surprised at how much I've missed reading blogs and catching up with blog friends over the past few weeks. I kept meaning to get to it but the days simply weren't long enough with so many appointments to attend to. But now that the doctors are mostly behind us (we're all okay) I'll be back reading and commenting and sharing the L.O.V.E. again. Because, really--If you don't love blogging and connecting with great people, what's the point, right?

And speaking of great people... In the middle of all the craziness last week, the lovely Debbie of Suburb Sanity had a rocking good giveaway that I WON. Thank you Debbie!

In case you don't already know, Debbie's recently started a second blog specifically for reviews and GIVEAWAYS! And let me tell you, she gives away some really great loot! Like this.....

It's a gorgeous ceramic plaque that was practically made for me-- Seriously, have you seen my profile begging for chocolate? I L.O.V.E. it. A million thanks to Lorrie Veasy, a designer for Our Name is Mud - a National Pottery Company. She's a great blog friend of Debbie's and her work is beautiful. You can see more of Lorrie's great work at her Etsy shop.

So this Sunday I'm sending you all L.O.V.E. and hoping yours is a relaxing Sunday filled with chocolate.... Which I'm hoping Beloved Husband will deliver with his Valentine card very soon. Because chocolate for breakfast is, in my opinion, the breakfast of champions.

How's your Sunday?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Weather Or Not?

2010-02-09T21:20:00.000-08:00

It was a relaxing and easy Saturday until I got the brainstorm to take a power walk with Beloved Husband around 4pm. After a couple of days with massive amounts of rainfall, I had cabin fever and thought the break in the clouds would be a nice chance for us to get some fresh air and a little exercise.

We started off well enough, schlepping up and down hills that define our neighborhood, as we worked up a good sweat. The sun was out and shades of blue sky peaked from behind big, white, billowy clouds.... Until it changed-- In an instant-- To a very dark sky with heavy rain drops big enough to drench us before we made our way the last seven blocks to our house.

By the time we got inside, Beloved and I were freezing. At the chance of sounding like a West Coast wimp, soaking wet and 57 degrees outside is cold for this old girl.

Since the house thermostat was set at 60 degrees, the only way to warm up fast was a hot bath. Great idea until the power went out just as I was about to step into the tub.

I don't know about you, but our bathroom has only a small window with minimal natural light so it was pretty dark for a bath. I was hoping it was a momentary outage, because afterall, it wasn't "storming" anymore and the worst of the rains were a few days ago.

So I pulled on sweatpants and a cozy sweater in an attempt to warm up and waited for the power to come back on.

I waited.

And waited.

And waited, and there was nothing cozy about it.

After 45 minutes, Beloved pulled out the flashlights while I called the power company who, via recorded message, told us the power would probably be out until sometime Sunday.

So there we were, cold, sweaty and looking a mess, in the dark. Oh yeah, and it was nearly dinner time. So by flashlight, we tried to pull ourselves together and drove to a local joint of a restaurant that we knew had dark lighting so as not to scare the waiters.

Yes, the restaurant was just around the corner from us had power. Turns out in our pocket of the neighborhood, only two blocks were blacked out, including ours. How special.

Beloved and I ate as slowly as we could but how long does it take to eat a bowl of soup. We naively thought we might get lucky and the power would somehow be back on, so we headed home after 90 minutes. Wrong.

By now it was complete darkness in the house and frankly a little spooky. So we headed out again to get coffee at our favorite deli. Since we'd already eaten dinner, we thought we'd hang out at the counter and read the newspaper. Mind you, we'd already been to the deli that day for breakfast so the staff was a little surprised to see us again-- especially with our sweaty, rained on look.

Three hours worth of coffee and a piece of lemon meringue pie the size of my head later, we drove back home for a long, cold night.

There is a reason I never enjoyed camping, roughing it, or anything less than ideal sleeping conditions, but I toughed it out and didn't complain.... much. I pulled on some leggings, a long-sleeved cotton turtleneck shirt, sweatpants (that just happened to be neon orange and easy to see in the dark) a UCLA sweatshirt and toe socks in all the colors of the rainbow. Add that to the wild sweaty/rained-on hair and let me tell you, I was a vision.

Because there was no electricity, we did not turn on our security alarm that night. We knew it has a back-up battery but we decided not to test it's powers. Since the electric company's trucks were actually parked at the end of our driveway, with massive lights on generators, working on the repairs, it pretty much lit up the outside of our house so we felt safe.

What we didn't know was that the alarm automatically turned to the back-up battery when the power goes out. But as the battery started to fade, it also started "talking to us" in the middle of the night--letting us know that the battery was running low.

Yes, the alarm system "speaks" or rather "barks" words at us. It didn't dawn on us that even though the alarm was technically "off" the battery had in fact kicked in so the security company could still keep track of our property.

Anyway, at about 1am, in the middle of a deep sleep, I heard the alarm barking loudly "YOUR BATTERY IS LOW!" After I shook out the cobwebs from my exhausted and very cold brain, it was clear I needed to take action otherwise the "voice" wasn't going to shut-up.

If that wasn't enough, there was also banging on our front door.

As I fumbled around for the flashlight's on switch (They should make them glow in the dark!) I finally made my way to the front door-- And no one was there.

I headed to the kitchen to get my cell phone, to call the security company, to get the talking alarm to stop, because by now the talking also included a very loud and annoying high pitched beep that could wake the dead-- But, apparently, not my husband.

As I was talking to the security operator on the phone, the door banging started again, so flashlight in hand, I made my way to the front door.

Did you know you can't see squat through a peep hole in the dead of night?

The operator told me it was their "armed response guy"-- Translation-- A big guy with a gun, and that it was okay to open the door.

That gave me pause.

I stayed on the phone with the alarm company, rigged the flashlight in the crook of my arm shining up on my face and opened the door with my other hand. Judging by the guard's reaction, I looked worse than I thought. He jumped back about 3 feet when he saw me.

When he caught his breath, he explained we had to go to the "main alarm box" for the security system, and that my friends, is in our basement-- The basement you get to from an exterior door-- Which meant I had to go outside-- In the dark and cold-- Down a bunch of stairs-- Into the basement-- And then into the furnace room-- Where spiders live.

Did I mention Beloved was still sound asleep and oblivious to any of this?

Anyway, after about five long, cold minutes, security guard and I figured out how to turn the alarm completely off, locked things back up, dusted off the cobwebs, headed back outside, trudged up the stairs, into the house and then I sent the security guy on his way.

Finally, I returned to the bedroom-- to a snoring and very soundly sleeping husband. I then did what any loving, freezing cold wife would do... I took off my toe socks and planted my ice cube feet on his.... At which point he woke up and asked what was wrong.

"Nothing honey, go back to sleep."

How's the weather in your neighborhood?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Photo Credit: © Orlando Florin Rosu - Fotolia.com

Sundays In My City #23 - 100th!

2010-02-07T00:01:00.000-08:00

Do you know Unknown Mami? She's hosts a great Sunday theme inviting YOU to get out and take pictures of your city and or Sunday to share with the rest of blogland. This is the 23rd time I've participated and I have to say, I've met some really great bloggers and seen parts of the world I might not otherwise ever have had the chance to experience. I highly recommend joining in. I think you'll be glad you did. Click HERE to see Unknown Mami's City today.

Sunday is a big day around here. Beloved Husband and I are going to a party-- A 100th birthday party for our dear friend SG.

I've had the great pleasure of helping SG, along with his daughter, plan his centennial gala for the past year. Every detail has been taken care of, family and friends from across the country have arrived and at 6pm sharp, the celebration will begin. To say SG is excited his big day has finally arrived is a gigantic understatement.

Even at 100, SG has been extremely hands-on with all the party planning. He's burned up the cell phone and his computer tracking details and coordinating logistics. Yes, he's an Internet-surfing, computer savvy wiz with all the latest electronic communications gadgets. Amazing, huh?

When SG and I were at a meeting on Wednesday for a charity we're both involved with, they surprised him with this cake....

He was as thrilled as a little kid and I was choked up with joy for him.

Tonight Beloved and I will "officially" say Happy 100th Birthday and cheer SG on along with 163 of his closest family and friends.

It's going to be a great, great celebration for an amazing man!

Have you ever wished someone a happy 100th birthday?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Photo Credit: Joanna Jenkins

Love Is...

2010-02-04T20:20:00.000-08:00

What is your idea of love? That's what YorksandBeans at Elemental My Dear asks in her current Blog Challenge.

I'm not usually much of a Valentine's girl myself but this year, times have changed.

This year our family is all abuzz and "love, love, love!" is sprinkled in every conversation, day and night, in person or on the phone, via email or snail mail-- you name it, LOVE is the word heard in our corner of the universe.

Let me explain....

Remember when I introduced you to my mother? She's holding my oldest niece, Queen M, in this picture below. The babe was literally minutes old. I was there, blown away, and took the picture.

Queen M grew up to be this beautiful bride last summer. I was there and took this picture too. She took my breath away.

Yes, our Queen is blissfully happy and very much in love with her Groom Z. Our entire family make jokes about all the lllllooooovvvveee these two share.

And it's a good thing their love runneth over. Because in June, they'll have a little more to LOVE and so will all of us!

SHE'S HAVING A GIRL!!!!!!

The baby is due June 19th, and we are all absolutely in LOVE already!

So to answer the question, although my heart is full with many loved ones, at the moment, Love is.... PINK!

Join the Love Is Challenge HERE! Between now and Valentine's Day the challenge is to make a post, in the style of your blog, about what your idea of Love is... Then link up your post at Elemental My Dear to share the love with the blogosphere.

How about you?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Photo Credits: Joanna Jenkins

A Crazy Little Thing Called Blog: Part Nine - More Questions

2010-02-03T09:10:00.000-08:00

Recently one of the sweetest bloggers your could ever meet logged on to find she had a new Follower-- A Follower whose profile photo was an up-close and personal picture of a woman's um, err, ahh-- "private parts"!

Seriously. A va-jay-jay was staring back at her!

When I first read the email she sent asking for assistance to remove said private part, I laughed, really hard, until I realized it wasn't a joke. A Follower photo of this type is not funny.

I checked around and found out how to remove the Follower and emailed back but fortunately my blog friend had figured it out and the photo, and Follower, were gone.

Here's how to block a Follower, and their photo, in Blogger:

1. Go to your Blogger Dashboard

2. You will see a test link for Followers--it includes the number of followers you have. When your cursor is over Followers the type turns orange. Click on Followers

3. A window will pop-up

4. Click on the nasty photo/follower

5. You will see another box and the words "Block This Follower"

6. Click on "Block This Follower" and they will be gone forever

I took a closer look at my Followers and realized that, although I did not have a bird's eye view of a you-know-what, I too had a few sex blogs in my posse. Perhaps that explains my increased number of eye-opening comments promoting a slew of "toys", teenage contortionists, male "enlargements", celebrity nudity, and grandmas doing the wild thing.

I promptly dropped the questionable Followers and hope my comments lighten up to PG-13 again. But if anyone can tell me who the Anonymous commenter is that continuously thanks me for helping with college work, I'd greatly appreciate it. It's totally bogus and I'm pretty sure the "Follower" is up to no good.

I'm also still getting various "Anonymous" comments selling junk, promoting questionable financial offers, and the likes.

Can anyone tell me how do I eliminate Anonymous Comments on Blogger? I don't understand the difference between "Registered Users - Includes OpenID" and "Users with Google Accounts" (In Dashboard under Settings). Which is the button I check and will it still allow everyone else (with a user name) to leave comments???

That brings me to my last question-- Are there subjects you won't blog or comment about?

Considering I've blogged about growing marijuana in my backyard and my Botox and cosmetic enhancements, you'd think little would be off limit for me. Au contraire.

Generally, I will not blog about...

--My husband's family. They can start their own blogs if they want their stories in print.

--Sex. In the event that it could ultimately bite me in the butt should I decide to run for and elected office, I'll keep this topic to myself.

--I don't write to "send a message". If I have something to say to someone, I'll do it in person before I do it in print.

On the other hand, I generally will not comment on...

--Sex-- No matter how funny or how well written the post may be.

--I try not to judge and tell bloggers what they "should" do.

--If I can't say something nice I won't say anything at all, at least not in the comment section.

How about you?

Are their subjects you won't blog or comment about?

Do you have any other blog "how to" questions?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna

Sundays In My City #22 - UCLA

2010-01-31T00:01:00.000-08:00

Do you know Unknown Mami? She's awesome and she's created a fun Sunday theme inviting you to get out and take pictures of your city to share with the rest of us. Click HERE to see Unknown Mami's City today.

The University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) campus is about 15 minutes from our home. It's a gorgeous university and I'm usually in this building 2-3 times per month during the school year....

This is Royce Hall, an architectural landmark on the campus. It's one of the four original buildings and was completed in 1929. Classes are held here but the main attraction is the 1600+ seat auditorium that's hosted everyone from Duke Ellington to Yo-Yo Ma over the years.

I volunteer with Design For Sharing, the educational outreach program for UCLA Performing Arts. We raise funds to bring more than 20,000 public school children to Royce each year to see world renown music, dance and theater programs. It's pretty cool.

When the excited kids arrive on campus, via school bus, they line up in front of Royce, straining to see inside. For many, it's their first time on a university campus and seeing a live performance....

As the doors open, they step up to the building and see this....

When the kids look up and see this, the ohhs and ahhs start.....

And if a student stops to see this...

The entire line of kids behind them bump into each other like a domino effect because they're all looking up to and not watching where they're going.

I did the same thing the first time I entered Royce Hall.

How's your Sunday?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Photo Credit: Joanna Jenkins

HEY BLOGGERS: Please CLICK HERE and VOTE FOR VODKAMOM as a top Mommy Blogger. She really deserves it. When you get to the page, scroll down-- She's hovering at #6 or #7. Just click the "I Like This Blogger" button. It's easy. You can vote every day too. Hint, hint.

Would you tell the truth?

2010-01-28T22:00:00.000-08:00

In an effort to ease the pain on our shrinking bank account as we prepare to drop a bundle of cash repairing our backyard's sinking pool and deck, I came up with a money-making idea that I'm pretty fired up about.

California was the first state in the nation to legalize medical marijuana. Some people think it should all be legalized which means the demand for pot could go through the roof.

The debate over this issue is smokin' hot, as you might imagine, and it's constantly being reported on in the local news.

I found out that just before the Los Angeles City Council voted this week on its new medical marijuana ordinance, members were asked, one by one....

"Have you ever smoked pot?"

-Two could not be reached for comment. How convenient.

-Two would not answer. Wimps.

-The two ex-cops "Just Said No".

-Three others said they had never smoked pot, one of which was the daughter of a former LA mayor who feared if she did, she would embarrass her dad.

-Two others said they had indeed smoked marijuana but offered stories of explanation-- College, girls and parties were involved.

-Speaking of parties, this guy (above) would only say that he went to college in 1969. Wink-wink.

-And the Council President gave a firm "yes" but was none to happy about having been asked. Poor baby.

But what I found so interesting was that this guy (below), said he "had" smoked pot in the past, but refused to answer if he "still" smoked it today. And that got me thinking....

With medical marijuana being such a hot commodity, and since I have a green thumb, why not pull out my rose bushes and plant some pot in our backyard!

It's estimated that Los Angeles has nearly 1,000 legal medical marijuana pharmacies! And even if they limit the number of pharmacies, the demand for marijuana is still apparently, high-- no pun intended.

Somebody has to grow their pot, why not me?

From what I've read on the Internet (and yes, I take that with a grain of salt), I potentially could legally grow as many as 99 marijuana plants on our property and I wouldn't have to fill in the pool with dirt to do it. And since the backyard is going to be all torn up from the repair job anyway, when it's time to replant, I could grow some wacky terbacky and replenish our bank account!

Think about it, how hard could it be to plant some seeds, water regularly, harvest our crops (hopefully multiple times per year) and pull in some new found greenbacks for our gardening efforts?

Yes, I realize money doesn't grow on trees, but it might, in this case, grow in the grass and perhaps be a simple way to help pay for the repair job.

Of course I still have research the legalities involved, and then I have to get the nerve up to run this brainstorm past Beloved Husband. After all, he is very fond of our backyard. Ninety-nine marijuana plants would pretty much take up the whole space, and it could crimp his bar-b-queing-- Gawd forbid a spark caused our crops to go up in smoke.

Growing marijuana could solve a lot of problems. Beloved and I have talked numerous times about how much I dislike being retired. This could be the perfect solution-- A home based business, utilizing a hobby I enjoy, that's potentially very profitable! And it is only 99 plants.

If someone asked you if you ever smoked pot, would you "go on the record" and tell the truth?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna

Hidden Treasures

2010-01-27T09:48:00.000-08:00

Mrs. Smith taught me how to "keep house" as she used to say. And, she taught me how to "stash my loot for safe-keeping". Even though I didn't have any "loot" as a kid, I learned from a master and have put her lessons to good use in my own home today.

I was 13 when I met Mrs. Smith. (I first told you about my dear friends Mr. and Mrs Smith here.) Every Saturday for years we spent four hours together cleaning and doing chores around her house.

She had a gorgeous collection of handmade oriental rugs covering beautiful hardwood floors throughout her house. Each week, I'd dust the floorboards, on my hands and knees, then I'd vacuum the rugs using the small attachment generally reserved for drapery cleaning. She said we cleaned this way to protect the workmanship for the rugs which were easily a hundred years old and the original wood floors circa 1930-ish.

We were fast friends and I looked forward to our time together. After about six weeks of Saturdays, Mrs. Smith trusted me enough to start peeling back her rugs to share the "loot" she'd hidden under the padding. I'm here to tell you, it was a wealth of booty and mementos from the Smith's long, happy marriage.

They were world travelers and Mrs. Smith was a "saver". Tucked under the rugs were stunning hand written menus from luxury ocean liner trips across the Atlantic, cocktail menus from some of the finest restaurants and night clubs of old New York City, telegrams and opera playbills from Italy, and love letters from Mr. Smith to name a few.

She called them her "flat treasures" and it took two full years before we'd peeled back all of the rugs and talked about all of the items and where they'd been collected from. Some were dated in the early 1900s and a few items were passed on to Mrs. Smith from her mother.

The hidden loot was a big secret that I felt privileged to be trusted with. I always smiled when folks would pay Mrs. Smith a visit and comment on the beautiful rugs. With a wink, she never let on that her guests were walking on worldly treasures.

Once we worked our way through all the rugs in the house-- nearly 20 as I recall, I was introduced to the "secret sofa". Mrs. Smith's sofa belonged to her late mother. The mahogany carved wood with rose velvet upholstery was usually draped with a sheet to "protect it from the sun" because it was close to a hundred years old.

Thinking about it now, I didn't even know what color the sofa was for the entire first year I knew her-- It was that well covered and "protected" giving the living room a don't-sit-on-the-furniture warning.

On this particular Saturday, it was time to move and clean behind the sofa. That's when I discovered the "secret". Behind the sofa, on the beautiful mahogany, was a long row of small nails, each exactly an inch and a half apart. (Mr. Smith was an engineer and his attention to detail was legendary.)

On the nails hung Mrs. Smith's impressive collection of fine jewelry. From diamond and emerald rings to pearl and sapphire necklaces, her lovely and quite valuable collection of jewels hung out of sight on the back of sofa in "a safe place".

Mrs. Smith was sure, no one would ever look behind her sofa for "the loot". And fortunately, in the 30+ years she lived in the house, she was right.

One by one, I heard the story behind each cherished piece of jewelry and how they came to be Mrs. Smith's. Some were family heirlooms, others "tokens of affection" from Mr. Smith throughout their marriage. With few exceptions, she never wore the jewelry but she loved showing it to me.

But it was the small, beautifully wrapped gift box, the kind you can lift the wrapped lid off without tearing the paper, that amused me the most. Inside the gift box was several hundred dollars in cash-- Mrs. Smith's "emergency loot". On the box was a card addressed "To Little Billy - Love, Auntie Mary".

Here's the thing-- Mrs. Smith's first name wasn't Mary and she didn't know anyone named Billy. The package was wrapped and addressed this way because she didn't want a robber to know her real name. And, she was positive, no self-respecting robber would steal a wrapped present for a little boy. I kid you not. She actually used the words "no self-respecting robber"!

Before living in the house, Mrs. Smith honed her "loot stashing" skills by living in fancy hotel suites for extended periods of time with Mr. Smith while he was a project engineer on huge construction jobs. Yes, she kept some things in the hotel's safe but she also figured out that people by nature, generally do not pull back rugs, move sofas or "swipe" wrapped packages when a hotel suite was being cleaned.

So when Mrs. Smith settled into her own house, she took things one step further and incorporated her unique, do-it-yourself-security-system and stashed her "loot" in plain sight, under foot, and behind furniture.

And for the record, she laughed at the notion of hiding her jewelry in the freezer. She thought that was too obvious and easy to find.

Today, in my home, I have several area rugs on our wood floors. Although the great art of hand written menus is long past, I've managed to accumulate numerous "flat treasures" that I walk on every day.

A few months ago, when Godson turned 13 years old, I repeated the tradition and started peeling my rugs back to share my loot with him. I have some of his first grade artwork, a couple of cool showbiz award programs, an autographed movie poster, and newspaper articles with Beloved husband quoted. It's no where the quantity of "loot" Mrs. Smith had under her rugs, but they are my bigger items that lend themselves to being flat. And, Mrs. Smith had a 65 year head start on me so I'm confident I'll eventually catch up.

Do I have a small gift wrapped box addressed to "Billy" with my emergency cash? Not exactly, but I do have something very similar. As for my jewelry hanging from the back of my sofa-- No way, not even with our security alarm system. Sadly, times have changed a little too much for me to be comfortable with that. But I truly enjoy walking around on my "flat loot" every day.

Are you a treasure saver?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Conversations

2010-01-25T13:00:00.000-08:00

The conversation, actually several of them, keep playing over and over again in my head. It keeps me awake at night. It occupies way too much space in my brain. And, it's so old and boring I don't know why I bother, other than it still really bugs me.

I'm talking about the "I coulda-shoulda-woulda-said" conversations that I just can't shake-- The ones when I regretted the words the moment they crossed-- or rather didn't cross my lips and I knew I'd be replaying them for years to come.

95% of the time, I was "being polite" to the person I was talking with instead of really speaking my mind. The other person was usually telling me my business but I either kept my mouth shut or I made light of the load of you know what they were shoveling my way.

The other 5% of the time, I was just too stinking slow to think of a good comeback line. Damn!

Countless times I've rerun these little chats with myself, remembering every detail of the original conversation, only this time, in my head, I find my mojo, my voice, my nerve, my attitude, my balls-- whatever you want to call it, and speak up for myself saying what I really mean.

Like my sixth grade teacher-- The meanest woman an 11 year old ever met. Every single conversation we had for an entire year started with her saying some less than encouraging remark like "I knew you'd get it wrong." Oh yeah, she was a real inspiration. But every time she blasted me, I was polite, and frankly, I was afraid of her, so I didn't let on that she was a mean old battle ax with bad breath who didn't know squat about my academic potential.

Imagine having that conversation with yourself for the past 40 years! Like I said, some things take up too much space in my brain, but I still remember each instance and know exactly what I should have said.

My last conversation with my high school sweetheart rattles around my head too. In short, he wanted to get married, I didn't, so he cheat on me. Yes, the same guy that was going to marry a virgin (aka me!) slept with somebody else. And then he told me it was all my fault-- To which I responded...

"Oh Bob, I am so sorry, I didn't mean to make you cheat on me."

You can only imagine the talking to I've given myself over that one! If I had it to do over again, I would bitch slapped Bob until he begged me to stop and then I'd slapped him some more.

But the conversation repeating in my head is not to the teenage boy, it's to the grown man of today, who is why I have never made apologizes for a man's shortcomings ever again.

Some of my other conversations are too colorful or just plain ugly to repeat but suffice it to say, I would have taken a whole lot less hatefulness and fired way more attitude back in my defense.

It only takes a song on the radio or seeing a particular style of clothing to spark a memory that rewinds a conversation. Other times the taste of a certain food or the smell of a certain scent is so powerful it gives me pause-- Until the I-coulda-shoulda-woulda-said conversation starts up again.

The good news is that none of my original conversations on instant replay have happened in the last 25 years, rather they are conversations from "my youth". And in each case, they were a significant life lesson that, although painful at the time, shaped in part, who I am today. At least that's how I justify it....

But let's face it, I talk to myself way to much.

Do you have I-coulda-shoulda-woulda-said conversations?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Sundays In My City #21 - Soggy!

2010-01-24T00:05:00.000-08:00

Do you know Unknown Mami? She's awesome and she created a fun Sunday theme inviting you to get out and take pictures of your city to share with the rest of us. Click here for details and her logo and click here to see Unknown Mami's City TODAY.

You might have heard that it's been raining in Southern California-- A LOT! We aren't in an evacuation area but the storm captured our attention throughout the week and at times the intensity was a little scary. My neighborhood is doing okay and the storm, although it rained buckets, did not do the major damage to burn areas as expected. Phew!

Below is the picture I showed you January 4th. A huge tree had fallen off our backyard and exposed this gorgeous view with the Hollywood sign on the right. We can see for miles and miles...

This is what that same view looked like countless times this past week compliments of the storm. Foggy, dark and pouring rain. The view is completely gone...

When you'd least expect it, the rains would stop and the clouds would part....

The clouds created interesting colors including parts of the mountains looking almost black...

On Friday, the craziest thing happened. I opened our front door and took this picture. It's not snow......

It's hail and it covered everything-- for about 5 minutes, then it was washed away by the rain.

Finally, Saturday morning, the rains stopped and this is the view. Yes, that's snow on the mountains in the distance.

Rain is forecast again next week. That means our sinking deck and pool repair will be put off for at least another week until things dry out. So far so good. Everything is still in place! Yippee!

How's your Sunday?

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna Jenkins

Photo Credit: Joanna Jenkins

Look Who's Talking - David McMahon!

2010-01-23T10:40:00.000-08:00

Barely into blogging, I discovered David McMahon's Authorblog and hung on his every word. His blog was all about "encouraging others in excellence" and he did-- every single day!

David is the source of Blogland's wildly popular, Post of the Week, an honor he bestowed on my twice and The Sunday Roast, which he also asked me to participate in. His recognition was HUGE for this newbie blogger and greatly appreciated.

David stepped away from blogging in September, 2009 (gasp!) to work on his novels. But, Eddie Bluelights-- the current father of The Sunday Roast has lured David back for a great interview in blogging.

Please stop by and show David some blog love-- Eddie too!

Truth be told, I kind of stalked David in the early days but he was gracious and offered feedback and encouragement, rather than calling the cops.

READ DAVID'S INTERVIEW HERE!

Hope you're having a great weekend!

Welcome to The Fifty Factor - Joanna

Photo Credit: David McMahon