I would be negligent if I didn’t supply a means for everyone to get their morning cuppa joe!

Large Coffee Double-Double = Sling me a jorum of java, me hearty. Twice the tooth rot and double the butter broth!

Coffee with sugar and no cream = Make a java sweet as love and dark as the night!

Black Coffee = Brew mine pure n’ shimerin like obsidian.

Finally, not to overlook our tea drinkers out there… you know who you are:
I would like a large cup of tea = I’ll be needin’ to get meself around a mutchkin o’ scandal broth!
DRINK UP!

You can meet up with other Fans of International Talk Like a Pirate Day… they have a Facebook page, like who doesn’t these days.  It’s HERE!

So you don’t sound like a dimwit, here are a few greeting to use depending on the circumstances:

Hello Friends = Ahoy, mateys!

The weather this morning is excellent, my good colleagues! = ‘Tis a proud mornin’ me hearties!

I beg your pardon? = Anan?

Whose step is that I hear behind me? = Was that yer, beetle-crushing tread, dimsel wit?

If you are meeting up with someone who has a wooden leg, here are a few terms of endearment:
Plank Shank,  Spruce Boot,  Lumber Limb,  Pine Foot,  Splinter Toe.

Oooops!  I thought I had posted my August book, my bad!  A Great Book!

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver.
It's amazing to see all the girls from the same family go in such different directions.  Makes me want to visit the former Congo.  Also makes me so mad that people on the other side of the ocean can have such a huge part of destroying a culture so far away.  Read it.  You'll love it.  Here is the summary, because they do it better than I ever could:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Poisonwood_Bible
Thanks so much to Deb for lending it to me!

FIRST things FIRST.  You must pirate-ize  your name.  Here are a few suggestions.
Pick a work from the first list.  Insert your name.  Add a phrase from the second list.  Eg.  Barnacle Steph the Forgetful
LIST ONE:
BLACK,  GUNPOWDER,  NAUGHTY, SCURVY, BIG, CANNONBALL, GASSY, BARNACLE, DIAMOND,  SWORDFISH, PINK,  RUSTY,  ANCHORHEAD, SPLINTER,  MATEY,  MISSY,  SWASHBUCKLER, SMART,  SHAKEY,  MAIDEN,  JOLLY…..

LIST TWO:
the Weak, the Filthy,  the Smelly,  the Bloodthirsty, the Fancy,  the Forgetful, the Angry,  the Naughty,  the Beautiful,  the Ugly,  the Strong,  the One-Eyed,  the Flatulent,  the Haggard,  the Jolly,  the Fetching,  the Salty…. 

Come up with your own ideas… be creative, a Pirate name is no joking matter!

I know what you’re thinking… where has she been?  We had a bit of a laptop meltdown in July, something about not being able to find the operating system.  Apparently this is a bad thing. Enter new laptop finally.  So I’m hoping you will be hearing from me more often now!  Yeah for you.  As a peace offering here is my favourite summer camping salad.  Also good in the fall, winter and oh yeah, spring!

 

1 cup couscous

1 1/4 cup boiling water

3/4 cup dried cranberries

1 Tbsp. curry powder

1 tsp. salt

1 Tbsp. sugar

1/2 orange, juiced

3 Tbsp. olive oil

4 scallions chopped

2 Tbsp. chopped parsley

1/2 lemon, juiced

3/4 cup walnuts OR almonds, toasted.

Stir couscous, cranberries, curry, salt, and sugar in a heat safe bowl (glass).  Add boiling water and orange juice.  Stir to combine, cover, and let stand for 5 min.

Fluff the couscous with a fork.  Add the olive oil, scallions, parsley, lemon juice, and nuts.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Great warm or cold.

I take this camping every year because it packs up to the beach really well!

My girl Ginger has been sporting some new accesories that you might like.  They are the new cool neckware for dogs (at least that's what we're telling her).

She has allergies.  She's ticked. (When she's not drugged up on Benadryl) And she's trying to chew off her own butt.  Thus the protective headgear.

Well, my 12 year old Kevlar canoe... my pride and joy, needed a face lift.  The UV had done a number on the finish and it was badly scratched.  So, I did what I always do.  I painted it.




If you've never painted something large... you need to try it.  Even if it's just a huge piece of plywood you find at the back of the garage.  There is something about doing art on a BIG scale that just makes you stand back and say wow.  I can't say it enough... art is not about doing something that fits into a certain box.  It's ALL about putting yourself out there, through paint, pottery, beads, yarn, words, crayons, etc.  It's about having fun and expressing your soul.

Eagle

Whale fin

Happy One Year Anniversary to our mudpuppy GINGER.  It's been a long year.... a BLAST!

Loved this book.  End of story.  OK, I will expand on that for you...
This is actually a business book but when I read it it came to me how many different areas of my life it applied to.  And before you get your knickers in a knot, it's like the anti-business book.

It was written by Jason Fried and David Hansson, the ideas presented only take up a page or two at a time so it's really easy to pick up and put down as you have time.

Here's a list of some of the "chapters":
Why Grow?
Make a Dent in the Universe
Live it or Leave it
Meetings are Toxic
Press Releases are Spam
How to say you're Sorry
Send people Home at 5

... and the list goes on.  I picked it up because I own my business, I love reading about economics, and it came highly recommended.  I wasn't disappointed.  Check for it at your library, I found it at mine!

My friend Wendy sent this to me and I have to say I'm lovin it... try it out, it works, and we can all use more bags to lug our mommy stuff around in, I mean really.