It's Friday and you know what that means, time for the Friday Five. This week with a Grandma Baba Twist. As always, answer any 5 or go corn chip crazy and answer them all....Ready....Have at it....

1-Do you have hair on your big toe?

Not now. I shaved it off earlier.

2-Favorite sandwich meat?

Deli sliced roast beef.

3-Favorite sandwich spread?

Underwood Roast Beef

4-Next person in your family to have a birthday?

My daughter.

5-If someone gives you back too much change, do you keep or return it?

Return.

6-Last person you went out to eat with?

The Yankee

7-Something you have a hard time keeping organized?

My jewelry, purses/handbags.

8-Last time you ate a homegrown tomato?

Today.

9-How often do you take naps?

Maybe twice a week.

10-Do you nap in the bed room or elsewhere?

Usually on the sofa in the living room.

11-Can you nap while riding in a car?

Depends on who is driving. I WILL NOT nap with my daughter or Daddy driving. Can't nap when The Yankee is driving, because alot of hand holding and groping is going on.

*****AFTER DISCUSSING THIS QUESTION WITH THE YANKEE, I MUST MAKE IT CLEAR, THE HAND HOLDING AND GROPING IS MUTUAL. Okay....?

12-Have you ever flashed someone?

Yes. Flashed, The Yankee last Sunday.

13-Last thing, other than dishes, you washed in the sink?

Bras.

14-Do birds burp?

Yes, right after eating a big, thick, juicy worm.

****I UNDERSTAND FROM THE YANKEE THAT BIRDS DO NOT BURP, NOR DO THEY FART...AND SOMETHING ELSE ABOUT ALKA SELTZER AND THEM BLOWING UP THAT I DON'T UNDERSTAND. FORWARD ALL QUESTIONS TO HIM.

15-A song you remember singing as a child?

I'm A Little Teapot.

16-I like Baba because:

She is very sweet and loaned me her purple bra.

17-Baba makes me...

She makes me laugh out loud!

18-Baba has

THE BEST BUD LITE PIES!

19-Baba is...

A great blogger.

20-My personal message to Baba is...

Will you make me a LARGE Bud Lite Pie?

Later Ya'll...^Belle^

"My home's, in Alabama. No matter where, I lay my head. My home's, in Alabama, Southern born and Southern bred."-From the group; ALABAMA

Alabama, the state where I drew my first breath, her people and beauty, lives inside me and calls my name.

Years ago while working and living in Dalton,Georgia, even though I enjoyed the work and people, Alabama called to me. I was far away, not only from home, but from the man I loved. Each Wednesday afternoon when I got off, I jumped in my car and headed just as fast as I could toward Alabama. Rolling West on 1-20, as soon as I got a glimpse of the state line, with the press of a button, the opening bars of Skynyrd's, "SWEET HOME ALABAMA", blasted through the car. An audible sigh of relief would leave my body and I would think, "HOME".

Mt Cheaha, is not only the highest point in Alabama, but one of my favorite places. I have a relationship and bond with this mountain. Fond memories of care free childhood spent sitting on this huge rock, dreaming dreams of the future.

I have stood on this mountain as a little girl, holding tight to Daddy's hand.

I have sat on rock in this forest as a teenager in the first stages of love, watching as he carved our initials into a tree. I couldn't imagine then, that the young man with me sharing the view would be dead 3 months later, the future that we talked about that day died with him. Exactly one year later I returned with his brother. We walked through the woods searching for the tree with our initials. When he found it, I cried.

I have sat on Bald Rock with my Mother as cancer ravaged her body.

I sat on Bald Rock,alone, after her death.

As a Mother, I have held tight to the hands of my own children on this mountain.

For over 12 years I had thought,dreamed about and anticipated, this moment, on this mountain, with this man.

I would see us at sunset, sitting on the huge rock that looked down on my home state. I wanted to show him, share with him, one of my favorite places in the world.

With each step on the boardwalk, anticipation rose inside me, to share this place and view with the man I love.

Stepping down onto Bald Rock, a place that holds cherished memories and serene moments, I watched as he took in the view for the first time.

Navigating the rocks in search of a perfect place to toss down a blanket among the trees and let the afternoon unfold. How perfect to share this with him, to be in his arms, feel his touch and kiss.

A much needed afternoon rain shower cut the blanket time short as we went in search of shelter. Not exactly as we imagined it, but the rain did play an important part in bringing us together, so we took it in stride.

Yesterday, my past, present and future collided on this mountain as he held me in his arms. I was reminded of the song and it rang so very true: ON A CLEAR DAY, YOU CAN SEE FOREVER. And, I did.

**photos courtesy of THE YANKEE

Later Ya'll...^Belle^

Bev has been my best friend for around, oh, 27 years, but she could tell you down to the month, day and year. She is the keeper of facts and retainer of knowledge. True there is an age difference between us, but that always bothered other folks more than it bothered us. I guess to some we seemed like a mismatched pair of socks, she recently widowed and the mother of 2 teenagers, and me, just out of high school.

We traveled the roads in her van, music blaring, smoking cigarettes and laughing. Stopping occasionally at the local coffee shop, to sit, drink coffee, smoke more cigarettes, play the juke box and mind our own business. But that wasn't good enough for some people as we soon became the talk of the town, by those that make it their business to mind the business of everyone else.

The busy bodies just couldn't understand what the commissioner's daughter and a recent widow could possibly have in common. If they only knew! We have often said we are Lucy and Ethel, Thelma and Louise, Clammily Jane and Annie Oakley all rolled up together. More than 2 peas in a pod, a dear friend of mine described it this way:" You 2 are so close that when one has gas, the other farts".

We each shared a love of music,all things ELVIS and writing Countless hours were spent sitting around my kitchen table or hers, taking turns writing poems about different subjects, or weaving fantasies aloud about 2 certain firemen.

In these fantasies, we made our lives as we wished them to be, only on a much grander scale, and it would always begin with, "Suppose".

Suppose, I was a successful writer.....I would say, waiting for her to add her what she supposed she would be. Once occupations were out of the way, we moved on to what kind of homes we lived in and where we lived, followed by how we would change our appearance. It was at this point that the 2 fireman were mentioned. Where would we go for a romantic getaway? This started one of our favorite catch phrases. It began as we were deciding the destination.

"How about the beach?" I said.

The look on her face quickly told the answer. She began shaking her head, no slowly back and forth, turned up her nose and said:

"I don't wanna go to the beach".

We both cracked up. From then on, "I don't wanna go to the beach", became our catch phrase for anything we didn't want to do, followed by hysterical laughter. An inside joke that only we were privy to, that drove other people crazy.

Like any other long time friends, we have our share of stories. Below is one of them.

KNOBLESS IN ALABAMA:

Her husband was a truck driver and installed a CB radio in her car so she could talk to him when he blew through town. Shortly after, they presented me with one for my birthday so I could talk to her during my weekly shopping trips. I'm sure at the time they had no idea what that CB would eventually lead to, and by that I mean, The Yankee, but that's another story.

For some reason that escapes me, one night we were traveling together down I-20, me leading the way in my car, with her behind. Keeping one another company on the CB.

The emergency flashers on my car had suffered a severe mishap about a week before and had been willy nilly put back together. I reached down for something and my sleeve became hung on the knob. When I jerked my arm back, the knob went flying to parts unknown, and not only that, but the flashers were on!

I am trying to drive and turn off the flashers at the same time, to no avail. In the meantime, I happen to glance in my rearview mirror. She is shaking her head slowly back and forth as she is prone to do when tickled, driving with the left hand, holding the mic up with another, yet....not saying anything.

Finally, I hear silence that usually occurs when someone is about to speak. Then....nothing but the crackle of the radio. Glancing back once more in the rear view, I am about to cue her up, when I hear:

"Uh....R/R..........(giggle.....giggle) uh..........(giggle....giggle)"

"My flashers are stuck"

"(giggle....giggle.....) Yeah........(giggle....giggle.....) I see that.....(giggle....giggle)

"What's wrong?"


"(giggle.....giggle..........giggle....) Well.....you have no idea how funny........(giggle....giggle), you look......(giggle.....giggle)

"I can't find my knob"


"Your....what......(giggle......giggle)?...(giggle....giggle)......

"My knob. It flew off and I can't find it."

"You.......oh....oh....(giggle....giggle) mean to tell me......that.......(snort) OH.....OH.....I CAN'T STAND IT......IT'S TOO FUNNY.......(SNORT)

"What....."

"Oh.......(snort).......you.....you....are flying down the interstate in that big old Buick, with that wild hair all over the place.....with your flashers on.......(snort....snort) ......(.huge laugh)

Now, she has me tickled and I begin to laugh so hard I'm crying and it's making the mascara sting my eyes so bad I can't see.

"Blondie, I can't see"

*At this point I had to slow way down and we look like a parade of 2.

"(giggle....giggle...snort)......FLASHERS......(snort...giggle)

"Did you hear me? Mascara is all in my eyes, and I don't have a tissue or anything. I don't want to ruin this white shirt.....what do I do....?"

"Oh.......oh.......FLASHERS......( GIGGLE...GIGGLE)

Flashers still on, eyes burning, I dig around in my purse, finally grab something soft and pull it out. Of all things, a panty shield.! Hey, it's better than nothing,and I wipe my eyes, relieved to be able to see again.

"R/R.....(giggle....giggle) can you see?"

"Yeah. Found a panty shield. Wiped my eyes with that."

One look in the rear view, and I can tell, she is gone! By now, the big Buick with flashers going along with the conversation between me and Bev has been picked up by some truckers, who decide to offer their assistance via advice over the CB about how to get my flashers off. For some reason, they just aren't getting that I can't turn them off without the knob which is still MIA.

"Listen, you've heard of Sleepless In Seattle....? Well, I'm Knobless in Alabama."


"Oh.......OH..... I can't stand it.........(snort....snort)

That was it for Bev. I didn't talk to her anymore until we reached our destination. But, every now and again, I would hear her cue up the mic, the sound of giggling and then 1 word and 1 word only would she speak until breaking out in laughter once more......

"Flashers".

Arrived at a local coffee shop where I finally found the knob. We sat at a table, not speaking but laughing like a couple of hyenas while the other customers looked at us like we just got off the Good Ship Lollipop.


IN THE COMING WEEKS, LOOK FOR THESE EXCITING STORIES:

YOU WANT ME TO TELL YOU STUFF,RIGHT? or MUCH ADO ABOUT A BOOGY

AND, THEN WE GET TO THE SHOES

HALLMARK MOMENTS

HANGING ON.

Later Ya'll...^Belle^

It's Friday and you know what that means. Time for the Friday Five. This week with a Vegas Twist. As always, answer any 5 or go Burger King bonkers and answer them all. Ready....have at it....

1-What brand of dryer sheets do you use?

Gain Original Scent

2-Have you ever milked a cow?

No. I tried once but didn't like the way it felt

3-How many containers of flowers do you have outside?

12

4-Tree or bush nearest your house?

Lilac tree right outside front door and 2 gardenia bushes.

5-Last thing you put in the fridge?

Case of Diet Coke Plus

6-Embarrassing moment?

See the post below this one for SEVERAL.

7-Do you exercise?

Does jumping to conclusions count...?

8-Do you like or play golf?

No/No

9-Last CD you bought?

Travis Tritt:The Storm

10-Favorite college football team?

UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA......ROLL TIDE ROLL!

11-How old were you the first time you left your home state?

7. Didn't know we were free to leave.

12-Which do you eat most often: Chinese,Mexican or Italian?

Mexican.

13-If you could recall any former president, dead or alive to finish Bush's term, who would it be?

Franklin D Roosevelt. (I'd rather have Roosevelt in a wheelchair than Bush on a horse!)

14-Last thing you put on the grill?

Chicken breast and wieners.

15-Thing nearest your bed that requires batteries?

My flashlight.(WELL.....IT IS...!!!)

16-I like Vegas because...

She is really sweet.

17-Vegas makes me...

Want to wear bright red lip stick. (But, I can't pull it off)

18-Vegas has....

Beautiful lips.

19-Vegas is....

A delight to know.

20-My personal message to Vegas is....

Thanks for your friendship!

Later Ya'll...^Belle^

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you did some of the things people do in commercials in REAL life?

Next time I go shopping, I think I'll begin dancing around in a circle with one of the new Glade "non" candles and see what happens.

While there, I'll open a bottle of Pine-Sol and go, "WHOO".

After that I'll mosey on over to the health and beauty aids, pick up a bottle of Herbal Essence Shampoo, open it and begin to moan as if in a state of extreme ecstasy.

But, why do that when some of my real life blunders and boo-boos are equally as entertaining.

FINGERNAILS:1

Boy have I had adventures with fingernails. Years ago when my children were little, there was no such thing as nail salon in our little town. You had to go to Birmingham or Atlanta for that. But, Lee Press On Nails finally arrived here about 10 years after they hit the market and I couldn't wait to get a set. They looked good, as long as you didn't look too close, and talk about hard to stay on!!! Remember those glue strips that went underneath them....? What was that all about?!

I discovered how easily they came off less than 4 hours after putting them on during a trip to the post office. As I was entering, I swung the door open and my thumb nail popped off, landing right at this old man's feet. He was bending over to pick it up as I dashed inside. Just to prove that chivalry is not dead, he followed me inside, holding up the missing bright red nail and said loud enough to wake the dead:

"Missy, yew dropped yer fangernail".

FINGERNAILS:2

About 6 weeks later while at a Kenny Rogers/Dolly Parton concert in Birmingham, I was totally caught up in Lee Greenwood's opening act (and tight black jeans). All the ladies stood up applauding wildly as he thrust his hips back and forth during the song, "You've Got A Good Love Coming", just after singing the line: "You're gonna get it (thrust....thrust....) as soon as I get there (thrust...thrust.....thrust....).

Well, naturally, I wasn't going to be the only female sitting, so I jumped up and applauded right along with them. After the song ended, I sat back down as he went into a tender ballad. The gentleman beside me who had been sipping beer out of his cup, began to sputter and spew.

"What the hell is this?" He said lisping while inserting two beefy fingers into the wide open hole in his face.

To my horror, I saw him remove one my fingernails from his MOUTH!

It seems in my exuberance during Lee's thrusting, I somehow lost a fingernail and it ended up in his cup of beer.

"Is this yours?" He said to his wife. She shook her head no, holding up both hands.

Then, turning to me, "Is this yours?". I shook my head no also. There was no way I was going to admit that it was mine and I certainly didn't want it back after it had been in his mouth!

"Really?" He said, adding, "It's the same color".

Once again I shook my head no.

"Do you mind if I see your hand?"

I held up my left hand, while trying to hide my right.

He began to laugh.

"Can I see the other one". I knew I had been caught, but pretended like I didn't hear him.

"Come on lady....take your fingernail. Red is really not my color."

I finally had to take it, and did offer to buy him another beer, which he refused.

FINGERNAILS:3

I finally had what I thought was a brilliant idea....hey....if Super Glue can hold a 200 pound construction worker from a beam by his hard hat, nails should be a piece of cake.

One night while performing with my newly glued on nails, I got rather caught up in the moment and the music and raked the keys a couple of times. The third time was not the charm, as I noticed my thumb nail stuck between 2 white keys without a finger in it.

This didn't go unnoticed by the bass player standing near me who began laughing. I couldn't stop playing during the song, so he quickly leaned over and tried to get the nail out with no luck. It was stuck.

As soon as the song was over, I got the nail out from between the keys, and placed it on the piano until our set was over.

Trouble was, I forgot it until the next groups pianist held up the nail to the audience and went on to say that I deserved a standing ovation, because he had never seen anyone play the piano so hard that their nails came off.

FINGERNAILS: 4

So, the next big town over, finally starts getting some nail salons. The guy that does my nails, his name is Cee. I just LOVE HIM....! He has the most beautiful voice and sings to me while doing my nails. He knows how clumsy I am about bumping or smearing them right after they are polished. And it never fails that as soon as he is through, something will begin to itch.


Not always possible to get into the big city to get my nails done, but the kind you buy at the drug store have improved a lot since back in the day, and I still use Super Glue.


So, Saturday evening, having a nice casual dinner out with my sweetie pie, I discover that my thumb nail is about to come off.....and, I can't have that. Digging around in my purse, I note that when I changed hand bags before leaving, I also left my Super Glue that I carry in case of a finger nail or other glue emergency.

I grabbed my purse and excused myself under the pretense of going next door and getting some gum....(which I DID get), along with some Super Glue. I watched as the man checked me out.

"Some combo", I said, while handing him a 5.

"Oh, this is nothing. Just rang up motor oil,box of condoms and a Yoo-Hoo".

A little more information than I needed, but okay. That beats my chewing gum and glue. Although, I do think my buttermilk and cotton candy a few days ago might have gave it a run for the money.

I proceeded into the ladies room, where I tore open the glue. The overhead light for some reason was very dim and flickering. Finally I have the glue open and twist off the cap, relieved that it isn't the kind you have to poke a hole in....because....I think my poking device is back home in the other purse. In cahoots with the glue I guess.

Just as I am about to drop a dab of glue on my nail, the lights totally go out, it startles me and I just know that the glue has landed somewhere other than on my nail, and I sincerely hope it wasn't on my boob. Turns out it hit the floor.

I flip the switch a time or two,and because my eyes ain't what they used to be, I have to take push my glasses up onto my head in order to see. About to squeeze the glue they fall down hitting the bridge of my nose with a PLUNK. I finally settle on pushing them down to the tip of my nose.

I squeeze. Nothing comes out. I squeeze harder this time and it comes and keeps coming as I move the bottle over not wanting to Super Glue my entire hand. Quickly put down the bottle, press and hold the nail in place and note a big glob of glue on the toilet seat.

After holding the nail in place for a full minute, recapping the glue, I should have known better than to try and wipe it up with toilet tissue.

I never did get it totally off and returned to where The Yankee sat waiting, not having a clue about my near fingernail disaster and Super Glue mishap.

****************

SHORT SERMON:

Prayer is asking for rain. Faith is carrying the umbrella.

FUNNY FARM:

It has been so hot and dry in Alabama this summer:

The Baptist have started sprinkling.

The Methodist are using wet wipes.

The Presbyterians are passing out rain checks.

The Catholics are trying to turn the wine back into water.

Later Ya'll...^Belle^