Thursday, April 30, 2009

Blogger, Whooz Ur Daddy?! Installment 2



It takes a certain amount of bravery and perhaps even brain damage to offer oneself up as a guinea pig to the "Idol, Whooz Ur Daddy?!" DNA Macheen.


It looks as if The Macheen was feeling particularly happy today. Could anyone out there more lucky than to have the genetically blessed pair of Ted McGinley and Christie Brinkley as the DNA matches?!

Now, I've met Lauren's true DNA donators and they are just as attractive as Christie and Ted. I would even venture to say, perhaps even more so, because not only are they good-lookin' people, but they are also good people. And by good, I mean great!

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Blogger, Whooz Ur Daddy?! Installment 1


Per Tiburon's request,
"What do I have to pay you to do one of this for the Tibster?"
I put her picture through the "Idol, Whooz Ur Daddy?!" DNA Macheen. I cannot be held responsible for what comes out. The Macheen has a mind of its own.
Ed Begely Jr. + Bonnie Hunt + Hotness + Charisma = Tibs


Tibs has always reminded me of Christina Applegate.

If you go to MorphThing.com and combine Tibs and Christina, this is what you get!

Christina should be so lucky.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Anniethology on Idol: Idol, Whooz ur daddy? Season 8, Part 8

Greg Proops + Sally Field = Danny Gokey


I'm the long-lost Shue sibling! Do you think my sibs will share the "Karate Kid" or "Melrose Place" residuals with me?

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Turning blog buddies into IRL friends!

I love these ladies!
When I started blogging over three years ago, I did it because I had a lot of ideas that I needed to get out of my head. I didn't anticipate that I would make bloggy buddies and then eventually meet them in person, making them "In Real Life" friends.
I'm really tired and I should be packing, but I wanted to say that although my posts have been few and far between lately, I love blogging. I love the friendships that I have been able to cultivate through blogging and I look forward to 3+ more years.

Monday, April 13, 2009

Domestic Diva, Lazy Lady of Leisure or somewhere in between; What kind of housekeeper are you?


The inspiration for this week’s Home and Garden article came from Facebook. If you don’t know what Facebook is, I’m sure you know people who do. It seems like everyone is joining the Internet social networking scene, lately. A popular pastime of Facebookers, aside from sharing photos and messages with family and friends, is taking quizzes.

Gentle readers, you don’t have to take a bunch of online quizzes to find out who you are. If you forget, I’ll tell you. That’s what friends are for. I’ve created my own quiz to help you assess your attitudes toward keeping house.

Now, men, don’t feel slighted if I’ve left you out of the loop. I know there are many of you that do your share around the house. If it makes you feel any better you can come over to my house and make bread and fold laundry. But you can’t use my Dyson. Then what would I do for fun?

How would you characterize your cleaning routine?

A. It’s a top priority. Nothing else happens until the house is in order. Certain chores are done on specific days.
B. I clean when I have time and when company is coming over.
C. Love me, love my mess.

Which answer best describes your attitude towards laundry?

A. I pre-treat stains. I fold promptly. I never let ironing or laundry sit.
B. I have a regular laundry day.
C. I get dressed out of the dryer.

How would you characterize your feeling on household cleaners?

A. I’ve tested and compared several different cleaners. I’ve settled on what works best, regardless of the price.
B. I buy whatever is on sale, regardless of whether I know it works or not.
C. I use Windex on everything.

Which answer best describes your attitude towards your bed?

A. I make my bed first thing in the morning. I arrange each of my fifteen pillows with tender loving care. I vacuum my mattress. I regularly launder and iron my sheets. For an extra bit of luxury, I use a lavender spray on my pillows to help me relax at bedtime.
B. My bed serves more for function than fashion. I wash my sheets regularly and flip the mattress when I remember. I’ve been known to fold and stack clean laundry on my bed. I might skip making my bed on the weekends.
C. My greatest joy is to eat in bed. If there is laundry on my bed when it’s time to sleep, I just climb under the clothes. Another name for my bed is “couch,” because I watch TV there, too. I don’t usually make my bed, because I might want to get back in it in a couple of hours.

Which answer best describes your attitude toward your floor?

A. I have a “Hawaiian-style” home. All shoes come off at the door.
B. I’ll ask people to take off their shoes if I just swept, vacuumed, or mopped. I don’t ask my guests take off their shoes. I don’t want to embarrass them in case they have holes in their socks.
C. I don’t ask people to remove their shoes. They may need them to protect their feet from what’s on my floor!

How would you describe the division of responsibilities when it comes to household chores?

A. If you want it done right, you’ve got to do it yourself.
B. I do most of the work around the house, but leave the least desirable chores to the kids. Isn’t that what we have them for?
C. Hey, if it bothers you, you can clean it up!


If you answered mostly A, you are a:

Domestic Diva – There’s not a mess that you can’t handle. No stain goes untreated. No pillow goes un-fluffed. You are the type of housekeeper that others envy. You make it look so easy.
As much as your cleanliness is to be commended, don’t forget the reason you do it: You do it for the benefit of the people that live and visit there. Ditch the plastic covering on the furniture. Take time off from dusting the back of switch plates to spend some more with the ones you love. You’ll never see a gravestone that reads, “I wish my house were cleaner.”

If you answered mostly B, you are a:

Middle of the Road Molly- Congratulations! You are average! You understand the importance of keeping a tidy home, but you don’t let it run your life. Your house is clean, when it needs to be. You like an orderly home, but won’t sacrifice time with family or friends to do it.
Perhaps, now, it might be time to step up your game. Asking for more help and setting regular routines will help you have more order in your home. Be proactive when it comes to cleaning your house, focus on maintaining instead of waiting to clean until it’s messy again. This will help you to avoid the mad dash of pick up and put away when friends phone to say they are five minutes away.

If you answered mostly C, you are a:

Lazy Lady of Leisure – Girl, youz got some `splaining to do! Oprah isn’t going to come to your rescue. You’ve got to dig your own self out of this one. Your house didn’t get that way overnight. It’s going to take some time to get it in order.
Start with small steps. If you can’t tackle a whole room, start with the flat surfaces, like the countertops or tabletops. Purge all the garbage, sort what is left, and then assign it a home. Enlist the help of others in the household. It didn’t get messy on its own and it won’t get cleaned on its own, work together to create and maintain a well-kept home. A messy home not only drains your energy, but it could also make you sick. You very well could end up with a gravestone that reads,
“I wish my house were cleaner.”

Good Mail Girls: End of an era?

First of all, thank you (you know who you are) for brightening my day with these
Easter goodies.

(Sorry for the crummy picture. Santa is a big fat liar.)



I've been considering deleting the Good Mail Girls blog. I think interest has wained a bit. I would keep it open if the participants wanted me to.
The above is the only Good Mail I've received in awhile, but like I always say, "If you want to get, you've got to give." I admit to not giving in awhile, too.
So, all my GMG's let me know what you think. Delete or no delete?

Saturday, April 11, 2009

Easter, International Holiday of Mystery


Christmas is the most anticipated holiday, Halloween is the spookiest, but Easter is the most mysterious. Easter is shrouded in questions, some of them have answers some of them do not.

One of the greatest mysteries of Easter is the mystery of my favorite Easter candy, the Reese’s Peanut Butter Egg. Why does it taste better than the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup? They are both made by the same company. They are both made with peanut butter and chocolate, so why the difference?

Then, there is the mystery of how to boil the eggs. Why is it that I can never remember how long it takes to boil an egg? Every year we dye the eggs and I have to look up how to boil an egg on the Internet.

Not mysterious enough? Here’s another one. Why is it that they only put one metal egg dipper in the Easter egg coloring kit? Don’t they know that the average American family has 3.18 kids? Why not 3.18 dippers per box?

Because that’s how they get ya, that’s why! If you want 3.18 of those ingeniously designed egg dippers, you’re going to have to buy 3.18 boxes of egg coloring. And you know you have to, because spoons just don’t work as well. You just can’t dye eggs without those dippers!

Here is something you can do without, that annoying, green, fake grass that goes in the Easter baskets. That stuff gets everywhere! It’s like finding sand in your underwear days after you’ve been to the beach. Every year I end up cleaning up little strands of Easter grass until Independence Day.

Speaking of Independence Day, every year we know that Independence Day will be on the fourth of July, no fail. But, Easter changes from year to year. Why is that? This is a mystery that actually has an answer. According to the all-knowing Wiki;

“Easter falls at some point between late March and late April each year, following the cycle of the moon. After several centuries of disagreement, all churches accepted the computation of the Alexandrian Church, now the Coptic church, that Easter is the first Sunday after the first fourteenth day of the moon (the Paschal full moon) that is on or after March 21st (the ecclesiastical spring, or vernal, equinox)…” blah, blah, blah. Clear as egg yolk?

Although Easter Sunday changes from year to year, I never miss watching "The Ten Commandments." What is the mystery in that? The mystery is this: How is it that year after year Yule Brenner just keeps getting sexier? I love it when he says, “Moses and the Hebrews think they can out-wise my fathah.”

Mini Me has an Easter mystery of her own. She can’t figure out why I'll pay fifteen bucks to have her picture taken with a stranger in a Santa suit, but I won’t pay to have her picture taken with a stranger in a Bunny suit. What can I say? The bunny creeps me out a little. The one at our mall needs a new costume. He looks like he has mange.

Oh, there are many things that are mysterious about Easter, but probably the biggest mystery of all is why the Easter Bunny brings eggs? Bunnies don’t lay eggs, chickens lay eggs. Shouldn’t an Easter Chicken bring eggs? The Easter Bunny should bring, um…Easter Pellets?

Yeah… never mind. Let’s just stick with the eggs.

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Black and White Easter Egg Tree, a.k.a. A good use for an old vase.







This was such a joy, honestly, a joy for me to make. Not only did I make use of a much appreciated, but under used vase, I also got to spray paint! I am a little addicted to black spray paint. I will show you more evidence of that later.




In case we are not friends on Facebook (yet) and you haven't seen my outdoor Easter Egg Tree, here it is! Say "hello" to our little birdie mascot, too (We are into birdie mascots at the House of Payne). He/She has no name, yet. I'm taking suggestions.






Later that day....more fun with black eggs and old vases.


I decorated the eggs with colored chalk and used friendly-to-the-environment shredded paper instead of plastic Easter grass.

Monday, April 6, 2009

Anniethology Spring Cleaning, Stage 1: Purging


I've been thinking a lot about excess. When is enough stuff, enough? I often feel like I spend my day as a slave to my things. Moving them from one place to another. I know there is a better way to live. I know that if I can live more simply, I'll have more room, time and energy to focus on the things that really matter. (I laugh at myself. I get so Zen when I talk about my home.)

I wasn't planning on doing this today. I was busy cleaning the kitchen when I tried to throw something away under my sink and realized that the cabinet door wasn't closing. I pulled the trash can out to see what was back there and found nine vases! Nine vases! When am I ever going to use NINE vases?

I'm not going to go crazy. I'm not going to throw all of them out, but definitely most of them have to go. Then I am going to find a new home for them other than under my kitchen sink.
I'll keep the red and green vases. And the vase with the wrought iron base. I'm also going to keep the clear, square vase, because it's from Aubrey and I love her. The other generic clear vases are going to go away.

How many vases do you have? Do you save them? Do you use them? Where do you store them? Do you have any creative ideas for their use besides holding fresh flowers?