Beauty

[dosey]

Happy December!!  Can't wait to read about everyone's holiday favorites.

My family had that Bing Crosby album.  We also had this one.

I played it repeatedly on our record player.

We did not have a metal or white tree.  My mom would not go for that.  We did, however, had one heck of a styrofoam christmas tree.  My mother displayed it on our television.  I remember her laying down fluffy cotton for the snow.  Then, she assembled the tree.  It was made out of big styrofoam balls that had been flocked.  She stuck toothpicks in the balls and then placed tiny, glass, colorful, round ornaments on the ends of the toothpicks.  The metal caps had been removed from the ornaments, so she could put them on each toothpick.  The toothpicks were flocked, too.  It looked something like this.

Again, ours was different because we used large balls and did not hang the ornaments.  I was thrilled when I was old enough to help.  Each year, the balls and toothpicks lost a little of their flocking.  Finally, my mother threw it away.  I was really sad.

We lived in a tiny house that did not have a fireplace, so my mom bought one of these beauties.

There were lightbulbs that gave it the authentic look of a real wood burning fireplace.  Can't you just feel the warmth?

[just bee]

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@geezerette wrote:

Australian Kelpie, really?  I'm impressed.  They're gorgeous.  I've always thought they looked a little like a large fox, or a cleaned-up version of one of the original dog species.  I don't think I've ever actually seen one in person, though.  You're right--no need for a Rottie to keep you in shape, I'm sure he/she already does that sufficiently.  That is, unless you have some sheep to keep him/her occupied.

Oh, we skipped the cat clock craze, thankfully. 

You are talking to someone who owns this:

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[just bee]

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@dosey wrote:

Happy December!!  Can't wait to read about everyone's holiday favorites.

My family had that Bing Crosby album.  We also had this one.

I played it repeatedly on our record player.

We did not have a metal or white tree.  My mom would not go for that.  We did, however, had one heck of a styrofoam christmas tree.  My mother displayed it on our television.  I remember her laying down fluffy cotton for the snow.  Then, she assembled the tree.  It was made out of big styrofoam balls that had been flocked.  She stuck toothpicks in the balls and then placed tiny, glass, colorful, round ornaments on the ends of the toothpicks.  The metal caps had been removed from the ornaments, so she could put them on each toothpick.  The toothpicks were flocked, too.  It looked something like this.

Again, ours was different because we used large balls and did not hang the ornaments.  I was thrilled when I was old enough to help.  Each year, the balls and toothpicks lost a little of their flocking.  Finally, my mother threw it away.  I was really sad.

We lived in a tiny house that did not have a fireplace, so my mom bought one of these beauties.

There were lightbulbs that gave it the authentic look of a real wood burning fireplace.  Can't you just feel the warmth?

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I remember these fireplaces.  Have you seen the TV stands with the built-in fireplaces?

Toasty!

[geezerette]

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dosey wrote:

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I remember both of these!  We didn't actually have one of the Styrofoam trees ourselves, but somebody we knew did.  Yeah, I thought they were cool, too.  But like you said, each year they came out of their boxes looking sadder and sadder.

My sister had one of those cardboard fireplaces, complete with light bulbs.  She and her husband had just gotten married, their budget was tight, they'd just had their first baby and their new house didn't have a fireplace for Santa.  Hence, the cardboard one. 

Wow, you guys are invoking shades of Christmases Past!

[geezerette]

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@just bee wrote:

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@geezerette wrote:

Australian Kelpie, really?  I'm impressed.  They're gorgeous.  I've always thought they looked a little like a large fox, or a cleaned-up version of one of the original dog species.  I don't think I've ever actually seen one in person, though.  You're right--no need for a Rottie to keep you in shape, I'm sure he/she already does that sufficiently.  That is, unless you have some sheep to keep him/her occupied.

Oh, we skipped the cat clock craze, thankfully. 

You are talking to someone who owns this:

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Okay, I give up.  What the heck IS this?

[just bee]

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@geezerette wrote:

Australian Kelpie, really?  I'm impressed.  They're gorgeous.  I've always thought they looked a little like a large fox, or a cleaned-up version of one of the original dog species.  I don't think I've ever actually seen one in person, though.  You're right--no need for a Rottie to keep you in shape, I'm sure he/she already does that sufficiently.  That is, unless you have some sheep to keep him/her occupied.

I was doing my nursing assistant clinicals in a dismal nursing home -- a truly awful place.  We had lost our Boxermatians (Boxer/Dalmatian brother and sister) to diabetes and bladder cancer and I promised after the crushing expense (after our boy was diagnosed with diabetes, he went blind -- so we had new lenses implanted so he could see his sister) that I would not actively pursue adoption of a new puppy.  I went two years without a dog.  Every day I'd drive home from the horrid nursing home and pray for a dog.

One day I opened the garage door to go to work and there was a dog.  We searched for his owner, yet no one claimed him.  He had a peculiar habit of herding me.  Clearly, he mistook me for livestock.  He began nipping the insides of my forearms.  I had to take the state exam to get certified as a nursing assistant and I was afraid they would see my arms and assume I was a heroin addict.  It was grim.  Would he have to go?

We worked with him and he stopped perforating me.  He has turned out to be the most wonderful dog.  I'd move to Australia just to be around kelpies.

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[just bee]

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@geezerette wrote:

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@just bee wrote:

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@geezerette wrote:

Australian Kelpie, really?  I'm impressed.  They're gorgeous.  I've always thought they looked a little like a large fox, or a cleaned-up version of one of the original dog species.  I don't think I've ever actually seen one in person, though.  You're right--no need for a Rottie to keep you in shape, I'm sure he/she already does that sufficiently.  That is, unless you have some sheep to keep him/her occupied.

Oh, we skipped the cat clock craze, thankfully. 

You are talking to someone who owns this:

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Okay, I give up.  What the heck IS this?

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This... if I'm not mistaken... was ordered from QVC and is a clock purse.  Sick with jealousy, aren't you?  Now you know why I stopped carrying purses.

[aprilskies]

I really like the tv stands with the fireplaces. Great way to add a fireplace to a room. 

[just bee]

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@aprilskies wrote:

I really like the tv stands with the fireplaces. Great way to add a fireplace to a room. 

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They come with a remote so you can crank up the heat.  An interesting concept, but I would end up watching the fireplace instead of the TV.  I'm thinking TV stand with wet bar.  Or TV stand with slurpee maker.  TV stand with pizza oven?

My new TV is still in the box.  I must have looked at every TV stand there is online and I finally found one I really liked.  It was an interesting piece of furniture.  But then I realized the thing was over 30 inches tall.

Came home from work this morning and found an email from Better-half: He ordered one and provided a photo.  Have no idea when it will arrive.  Now I have to arrange for the old TV to be taken away.  Maybe they can take the possessed microwave, too.

[aprilskies]

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@just bee wrote:

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@geezerette wrote:

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@just bee wrote:

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@geezerette wrote:

Australian Kelpie, really?  I'm impressed.  They're gorgeous.  I've always thought they looked a little like a large fox, or a cleaned-up version of one of the original dog species.  I don't think I've ever actually seen one in person, though.  You're right--no need for a Rottie to keep you in shape, I'm sure he/she already does that sufficiently.  That is, unless you have some sheep to keep him/her occupied.

Oh, we skipped the cat clock craze, thankfully. 

You are talking to someone who owns this:

---

---

Okay, I give up.  What the heck IS this?

---

This... if I'm not mistaken... was ordered from QVC and is a clock purse.  Sick with jealousy, aren't you?  Now you know why I stopped carrying purses.

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A little girl may love that. Such a novelty item.  Could be  fun. 

But, yes, LOL, the things we have bought.  you gotta love it.