PENSIEVE

If at first you don't succeed...

...solicit the help of everyone in your email address book then try, try again.

Ladies and gentleman, I was beginning to have my doubts, but after getting a little help from her friends........we have a winner for this month's Pensieve Picture Puzzler:

Jeannie, Musings from Left Field

"It looks like a tool that was used to bind or tie up things with a rope being put through the eye and the iron tool is placed in a secure place to hold whatever is being tied up or bound."

What she was describing is a rope hasp, a 1900s version pictured here in its entirety:

I can't give you much history on this blasted thing because in my limited extensive research I never could find another!  Other hasps, yes, this one, no. 

Jeannie wins a FANTASTIC Paula/Bobby/Jamie Deen prize pack, including the boys' new cookbook and some other PD goodies.  Thanks to Phil (seriously, my webmaster friend) for providing this month's Puzzler prize!

For a runner up, oh, my........comments amused me continuously over the past several days--DID ANYONE REALLY BELIEVE ANY WOMAN WOULD LET ONE OF THESE THINGS NEAR HER "a r e a s" to pull out a baby (or perform any other manner of medical procedure!!)?  Tiger Lamb Girl had me grinning from the get-go with her introductory question, "Would I count if I'm a Texican living in UK, but coming home for a visit this summer, therefore I have a US address?"  She was all over the place with her guesses (and actually, not too far off with one).  Joy T. revealed her "relationship" with MY Phil is blossoming...(hmmmm, hand's off sistah!). Sarah halfway suggested they might use one in an autopsy scene of CSI and Karmyn's children's guesses were charming (a slingshot or "shooter").

And the suggestions that deserve s o m e t h i n g for persistence and the smile factor and Fantasiatic Imaginations??

Kim Davis at Mom Unscripted.  She reeeally had her thinking cap on with "A chastity belt? for males? a musket ball molder? An old timey car jack? An ice cream scoop. A noose holder for public hangings. A weapon...".  THEN, she dreamed about it and had some more guesses:  It's a surgical piece used in hip replacement surgery. Pre-911 airport security days. Pre-airplane day.

DID YOU GET THAT PEOPLE?  SHE DREAMED ABOUT THE THING!  (Me thinks Mom Unscripted needs a bit of a blogging break ;) ).

And then there's CPA Mom, bless her heart.  She guessed (a clamp of some kind, perhaps used to hold the leg of a horse while it was being shoed).  Then she guessed again (for melting metal - or for smelting).  And again (clamps for getting a baby out (human or farm animal) ).   Then she remembered the name of those "clamps" (vaginal speculum or forceps).  She persisted (this is hard but I LOVE Paula Deen and am willing to work for it!)...and she eventually resorted to schmoozing other bloggers, although I'm not sure what good THAT does (I think Karisma is a very smart woman.  I'm adding her to my blog roll now)!

So...there ya have it.  Jeannie wins the whiz-bang prize pack and Mom Unscripted and CPA Mom win some kind of second-rate runner up prize (please email your addresses, ladies...even though I think you've all sent them before).  OOooo, and THANK YOU to ALL of you who have linked the Pensieve's Picture Puzzler on your blogs!!!

THANKS to all of you who made this FUN for anyone reading along (especially me!)

 

Murphey's Law...

Believe it or not ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner for Pensieve's Picture Puzzler......and I'm having techie difficulties in getting it posted :/! 

As soon as I can get to my pictures, I'll let ya know who came up with the winning entry AND who wins for Fantasiatic Imagination :).

Stay tuned..................

Inspired by Naked Trees - 15 Words or Less Poetry

My very quick offerings for this week's "15 Words or Less" challenge at Laura's blogging spot.  You can tell when I'm in a mood, I'm in a mood.  Time is the only thing keeping me from writing a thousand of these ;).

Despite circumstance
And elements beyond control
Eyes set Godward
Rising above.

Lonesome branches
bared to all
stripped to nothing
after Fall.

Phoenix risen from the ashes
Life renewed, season's flashes.

A p3 "Do-over" and A SURPRISE FOR EVERYONE WHO COMMENTS (compliments of my "close friends"** Paula , Bobby & Jamie Deen...and of course, the infamous "Phil")

I t h i n k the original mystery picture might've been a bit too difficult to guess what it is; let's look at a more complete view of this unusual 1900s antique and see if anyone knows what it is now.  Remember, a fantastic Southern "Lady and Sons" prize pack ($50 value), including an autographed copy of those darlin' Deen brothers' new cookbook, awaits the lucky correct guesser! 

And guess what, y'all?  There's gravy for the biscuits!!  Anyone who comments to either of these Picture Puzzler posts is eligible to receive a 20% discount to Paula Deen's online store !  Now's the time to sample all those things you've been drooling over from her shows!  Or get a new cookbook!  Or copy-cat reading glasses...or a travel mug...or somethin' a bit spicier.

Chopchop!   Winning prize pack is limited to U.S. residents only, but EVERYONE is eligible for the creative guess winners (please read the p3 link for details). 

And everyone who comments can take advantage of the 20% promotional discount (I'll email the code to you directly).

**By "close friends" I mean we're all livin' in the Southeast...which is closer than if I lived in say, Texas...right?

 

A fabulous "40th" birthday gift

Re-submitted for today's (4/2/08) "Greatest Hits" edition of Works for Me Wednesday, this is a post that Googler's reach almost daily (which prompted me to use it for today).  I'd love to hear YOUR ideas for great "milestone" birthday gifts...so if you're dropping in, please...let me know you did! :)

It's not surprising that if my favorite gift of all time to have received is one of "words", my favorite gift of all time given would also be. 

My husband hit the Big Four Oh a few years ago, and because I love him and completely understand and respect his aversion to surprises and parties...I managed to pull one on him, anyway.

A few weeks before his birthday, I sent out this letter that explains the gift:

I made it as easy as possible, including an 8 1/2" x 11" cardstock piece of paper and a pre-addressed large manila envelope with each letter. 

Completed pages began coming back in days, and although this was a gift for Tad, people were blowing my mind and blessing my socks off with their "word gifts".  Each page amazingly, perfectly radiated the personality of the sender AND reflected his/her relationship with my hubby. 

I'll share a few of my favorites (some I can't share because they give too much personal info--mainly our family :/)--

Mine:

Apparently Tad was born the same year as several notorious notable athletes (Michael Jordan, Roger Clemens, Jerry Rice....).  This was the actual "Sports Illustrated" cover a few weeks before his birthday; as soon as I saw it, I KNEW what I was going to do for my page.

My children's pages were precious to us.  At the time, they were 10, 8 & 5 and this is their work, not mine (well, Stephen's I helped more with, but it was his words).

I'd upload more pages, but you get the idea (and TypePad is slow right now); suffice it to say, it's a treasure made of paper.  More than words on a page, it reflects life lived with those he loves, those who know him best. 

So...if you're looking for a great milestone gift idea, something special to commemorate an important birthday or anniversary, you're welcome to take this idea and make it your own!

Dancing (not-quite) Queens (Wordless Wednesday)

They might be dancing, but their eyes say it all...
Statuettes discovered while rummaging through an antique shop last month.

Be sure to check out this month's Picture Puzzler--correctly guess and win a "Lady and Sons" prize pack!

Wordless Wednesday HQ

wordless wednesday

I'll be shocked if you can guess what this is...($50 prize pack up for grabs!)

Several weeks ago, we had a family outing downtown.  After frisbeeing in Coolidge Park, we found ourselves on a path that led to an evolving retail district--interesting shops beyond typical mall fare.  One of our first stops was Rock Creek, a fantastic outdoors retailer whose employees actually know what they're talking about.  An antique shop had caught my eye down the street, though, so I seized opportunity to leave Tad and the kids where they were happily occupied, leaving me the freedom to scavenge ancient ruins. 

As is the case with any antique store, there is trash, treasure (and a strong case for "beauty in the eye of the beholder")...and a few sights that left me reaching for the tag to identify what in the world I was looking at.  Like this--

Does it look familiar to you?  Guess correctly and you'll be the winner of the Paula/Jamie/Bobby Deen prize pack (retail value $50!), compliments of my favorite webmaster (and those sweet Deens):

--A Lady and Sons bag (if we're lucky, autographed by the Lady herself!)
--Paula's Grits
--Paula's green pepper jelly
--Jamie's and Bobby's new book (Phil's working on an autographed copy of this, too)

Guess creatively and you might win a little something, too.

PLEASE be sure to read the link to the guidelines for Pensieve's Picture Puzzler; last time there were some FANTASTIC creative guesses, but they were disqualified because they didn't follow directions :(.   

I'm soooo sorry to have to limit this contest to U.S. residents only, but I learned this the hard way after my cookbook, butter mint and Bloggy Giveaways recently  (you're more than welcome to guess...I just can't guarantee you'll receive a prize if you're correct or super creative).

Want in on a little secret?

It's time for...

Wanna know what you're playing for?

 

Mystery picture coming soon...check back between now and tomorrow morning :).

(Thanks to Phil for putting together the Paula, Jamie & Bobby Deen prize pack!)

Plácido Domingo, José Carreras, Luciano Pavarotti and PAUL POTTS?!

This is heart-warming underdog story, sure to move in the hearts of even the most skeptical cynic.  If you haven't heard Paul Potts sing, please...PLEASE do yourself a favor and listen to this gifted man use a voice that surely gives angels reason to weep.

Watching this mesmerizing performance of Puccini's "Nessun Dorma", I became an instant fan of opera...and Paul Potts. 

His is a precious Cinderella story that leaves you applauding his triumph and having been given the rare opportunity to watch a cocooned butterfly spread glorious newfound wings.

While this is hardly current news--he won Britain's version of "American Idol" last June--my introduction to Potts occurred in church of all places (to introduce a series of discovering your own God-given talent and using it fully to serve those inside and outside the church).

Read more about Potts' story here.   

Nailed. Or Screwed. (Does it really matter which?)

The culprit:




Let's take a closer look...

1)   For some bizarre reason, this little illustration reminds me of "The Lion and the Mouse".  Except I think "David and Goliath" is much more accurate.

2)  While I could've posted these pics with the pancake tire photos, I wanted these to have their own title. 

3)  But I wonder if it's offensive....  It's (p)funny to me, but when people drop my blog from their readers, I wonder if it's because I've written something that offended them.

4)  I'm spicy...I cross lines...but always, ALWAYS, I'm aware that a) my children might read my blog; b) I would NEVER want to disparage the name of Christ as a follower who loves Him dearly (albeit imperfectly).  That's why I reference being a JesusFreak from time to time.

5)  Bless his heart, my husband drove home (30 minutes) to change my tire.  He let me "help". 

    A)  He remembers to go right to the owners manual to find all the parts he needs (I would've looked and looked and looked (not even knowing what I was looking for) and THEN checked out the manual.

    B)  He laid out all the parts, then let me jack the car up (until I was going so slow he helped finish). 

    C)  Know how I know I'm miserably out of shape???  I got out of breath turning the jack handle :/. 

    D)  Tad then "let" me unscrew the lug nut.  Please commence to laughing out loud right now--I could not turn the blasted thing!  Even with all my weight against it!  P.i.t.i.f.u.l.!

6)  That little screw/nail did a really fine job.  A "repair" isn't good enough to fix it; a new tire is.

7)  We're going to "let" our daughter (15) put the new tire back on.  I'll supervise (**snort**).

That's all, I gotta run...I'm waiting on a return call from membership at AAA :)....