Sensational Haiku Wednesday - Living

I took this picture of a toad that had crawled into a empty spot in a partially planted flower flat.  No idea what it was doing there, but it was cozy place and it lingered there for a few hours.  By evening, it had hopped off somewhere, going about its toady business.  In the last few days I've seen several tiny new toads, each no bigger than a fingernail - the next brown, warty generation.

Here's a close-up.

LIVING

Other living things

Circle through my yard in their

Own cycle of life.

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Six Word Saturday

It's rained every day this week.

Got the Thursday park concert in.

Nate's baseball games weren't rained out.

I was able to cut grass.

It's supposed to rain again today.

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Sensational Haiku Wednesday - Joy

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JOY

Time to count blessings

And look on the bright side to

Find the JOY in life.

I'm joyful but tired

Today, so only one shot

At the Haiku theme.

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L.A. Time Crossword Puzzle Blogging - Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Don Gagliardo and C.C. Burnikel 

Cross-posted (with a few last minute corrections that did not find their way back here) at THE CORNER.

Theme: Solve This Puzzle.  Each theme answer is a 3-word, common, in-the-language phrase beginning with the letters S, T, and P, in that order.

16. Makes an offer more desirable : SWEETENS THE POT.  Adds some inducements or incentives to an offer you can otherwise refuse.

27. Hopelessly ruined : SHOT TO PIECES.  Literally destroyed by firearms, figuratively in a bad state for any reason.

36. Stock trader's goal : SHORT TERM PROFIT.   The average holding period of stocks purchased on the NYSE is about 20 seconds.  I am not making this up.

44. "Satisfaction guaranteed" catchphrase : SURE TO PLEASE.  Ad slogan.

58. Editor's "Whoa!" : STOP THE PRESSES.  Wait a minute, something just came up . . .

And the unifier:
58. Auto additives co. that hints at this puzzle's theme : STP.  A company that makes engine oil and fuel additives, functional fluids and appearance products for your car or truck, and sponsors racers. 

Hi gang, it's JazzBumpa, fresh from rehearsal and finishing off a busy day with an outing with our good friends C.C. and Don.  Hop aboard and let's see where they take us. 

Mellow Yellow Monday - Dancers

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Here are my dancing girls after the Disney-themed recital.   The grand finale was "Step in time" from Mary Poppins.  All the competition tap dancers were chimney sweeps - hence the white shirts and smudged faces.  The small girls large group did "Bake a Cake" from Snow White.

They were all terrific!

Flashing feet, bright smiles,

Arms reaching to catch a dream:

All my dancing girls.

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Shadow Shot Sunday - Father's Day

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Here is a picture of my dad with his only son.  Yep, that bespeckeled tyke is the past tense of crusty old Bumpa.   I look to be about 4 or 5 here, which would make it 1951 or '52 - the Truman Administration.  My sister would arrive in '53. 

The original was badly off-center, so I cropped the right-hand half, which showed his vegetable garden.  That's right folks, I cropped his garden.  You just can't let an opportunity like that go by.

So many years have

Passed; a man long gone, his son

Looks back . . . across time.

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Six Word Saturday

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Big Recital today - four granddaughters dancing.

Three are sisters - plus Cousin Em.
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Sensational Haiku Wednesday - Fortitude

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 Image source 

 That caption misses being a haiku by two syllables.   So . . .

FORTITUDE

I

Suffering weakens

You to the point where only

Virtue can shine through

II

In adversity

Fight the good fight for honor

And never give up.

III

Nothing worth while comes

Easily.   Resolve to do

Whatever it takes.

IV

A tough prompt for sure

But you can count on me to

Conquer the Haiku!
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Six Word Saturday

Grandson Ryan is 13 today - Yikes!

And now we have three teenagers!

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Sensational Haiku Wednesday - Health

HEALTH

I

My cardiac kid

Had surgery at one week.

Now he's in good health.

Grandson Nate was born with transposition of the great arteries, and had open heart surgery as a new-born.  He'll be 9 in August.  Here is a video clip from last night's baseball game.   He went 4 for 5, and pitched an inning.

II

Heath is a precious

Gift.  Don't throw it away with

Bad lifestyle habits.

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Shadow Shot Sunday - Wetlands

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Here is a picture I took on a Sunday afternoon almost two months ago in a wetlands preserve near my house.  Can you see the mallard pair across the water?

Web-footed swimmers

Are there signs that you can read

Among the brown reeds?

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Obama Ate My Lunch

I mean he had the same lunch I do sometimes, from the incomparable Rudy's Hot Dog in Toledo.

He had the FAMOUS Rudy DOG....mustard, onions and sauce of course...and order of fries AND a bowl of our YUMMY chili with beans!

We have Rudy's 2 or 3 times per month, and we live 70 miles away!

Check it out

Six Word Saturday

Got our Mud Hens tickets today.

We have a family outing at a Mud Hens game every Summer.  It's quite a challenge to find even one day that meets everybody's schedule.  This year, with some out-of-town, second degree relatives in the mix, we have a party of 20!

Blimp's-eye view of Toledo's 5th-3rd Field.

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Sensational Haiku Wednesday - Future

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FUTURE

I

Looking ahead.  What
Do you see?  Are you opti-
Or pessi-mistic?

II

What is the outcome?

Did you bring your bright crystal

To the old ball game?

III

Past performance is

No guarantee of future

Performance --- Is it?

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L.A. Time Crossword Puzzle Blogging - Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Donna S. Levin

Cross-posted at The Corner.

Theme: Center of Attention.  Four theme answers plus the unifier start with synonyms for the human midriff.

17. Abdominoplasty, familiarly : TUMMY TUCK. Two terms for the surgical removal of unwanted fat and droopy skin from the center of the body.

23. Pepto-Bismol target : STOMACH ACHE. Hospital-tested, pink Pepto-Bismol provides fast, temporary relief from various internal disorders of the central region. Temporary side effects may include turning your tongue black.  Lovely.

36. Bourgeois : MIDDLE CLASS. Bourgeois is derived from the Middle French word for townsman, and is therefore similar in historical intent to the German BURGHER. Connotations of these words varied a bit across history. I'm guessing they originated during the late medieval period, as the merchant class developed in the towns of Europe, midway in social status between peasants of varioius sorts and the landed gentry.

49. Lint receptacle? : BELLY BUTTON.   If you sussed the theme, this was an easy fill (so to speak.)  Proper lint removal technique is demonstrated here.

59. Easy A (or where to learn about this puzzle's theme?) : GUT COURSE.   I've never seen this phrase outside of a crossword, and I never had the occasion to take one, either.  I guess that's why my average was only a B.  Of course, in a literal GUT COURSE the midriff would be the center of attention.

Hi gang, JazzBumpa here, with a cute and fun offering from Donna.  Nothing middling about it.  Let's get right into the center of things.