A local mom has entered a contest to try to make the world more fun, by providing Birthday Party packs to local children coming through the Marion House soup kitchen, which is a block from our office in Colorado Springs. These are kids whose birthdays often go largely uncelebrated due to family financial circumstances, over which they have no control.

Her idea has made the top 10.... And has gone out for a vote.  The idea form these top 10 that gets the most votes will win the supplies and cash to put their idea in motion.  The person who enters the idea will also win cash, and this lady has said she will also donate her winnings to the soup kitchen (where her husband is the director).

It's a great idea, and the soup kitchen involved is an incredible organization, and well worth your vote. So please click and vote:

http://story.maketheworldmorefun.com/blog/storyfinalist-8

The first two stories that seeped through my semiconscious this morning as the TV-alarm vainly tried to wake me up, were a couple of city names very familiar to me. The sort of names that you just don't hear out of the mouth of Robin Meade & Co. all that often.

--an Earthquake centered near Evansville, IN (just down the road from where I grew up),

--a lady here in Colorado Springs has been arrested, apparently under suspicion of making the call (supposedly from a 16 year old girl) that led to the raid of that Texas polygamy ranch.

I suspect it's going to be a wierd day. 

According to CNN reports, legendary animator Ollie Johnston has died of natural causes at age 95.  He was the last of Walt Disney's "Nine Old Men" - the first generation of Disney's great animators, whose groudbreaking work turned animation into an art form.

Ollie contributed animation and direction to classics such as "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," "Pinocchio," "Fantasia," "Song of the South," "Cinderella," and "Alice in Wonderland."

In addition, he was the last remaining half of "Frank and Ollie". The lifelong friendship and working partnership between Ollie and fellow "9 old men" member Frank Thomas was the stuff of legend -- best friends and next door neighbors for over 60 years, bringing to life many of childhood's most memorable characters and inspiring multiple documentaries.

And finally, he was one of my heroes, right below the Disney brothers themselves.

Ollie's passing truly marks the end of a generation of incredible creativity and world-changing art. Ollie, you will be sorely missed. But at least Frank and Ollie will be together again...

Walking around over lunch break today, in the sunniest corners of the otherwise barren landscape beds, we found saw two small clumps of yellow and purple Crocuses (Crocii?) exploding with blooms, and a stand of daffodil buds, preparing to burst into lemon-yellow blooms, likely by the end of the week. 

It's finally SPRING!

From careerbuilder.com:

"While faking a resignation, gluing office supplies to the desk and covering someones cube in aluminum foil are among the most common office pranks, here are 10 of the most memorable pranks from this year's survey:

1. Placed a pair of pants and shoes inside the only toilet stall in a men's room to make it appear someone was using the stall. It sat there for hours until someone called security to check if the person had died.

2. Sent a fake love note to a co-worker from another co-worker.

4. Called the electric company, used a co-worker's name and told them he was moving so the electricity got turned off at the co-worker's house.

5. Filled the vending soda machine with cans of beer.

6. Rigged the boss' chair to drop suddenly during a staff meeting.

7. Placed a sign on the restroom door that read, "The company ran out of toilet tissue; please use your own resources."

8. Paged a co-worker over the loud speaker claiming the CEO was looking for him. The worker went into the CEO's office and the CEO didn't know who he was or why he was there.

9. Shrink-wrapped everything in a co-worker's cubicle.

10. Put a 'house for sale' ad in the newspaper regarding a co-worker's home"

I love spring.  Daffodils are my favorite flower, because they signal the beginnings of a new year of possibilities, and the end of a winter season that always last just a little too long.  So Mom e-mailed me the other day, and mentioned how the daffodils are blooming and spring has sprung down in Houston..

I look at the calendar. Here in the Springs, we are at least 2 months from Daffodils downtown , closer to 3 months at our house, and I daren't even think about what to plant in my outdoor flowerpots until at least Mother's Day.

Now, the trade-off is that I won't be drowning in my own sweat and dying from mosquito bites from May to October, and I get year round sunshine, much more than nearly every other sizable city in the country... so even the winter here is usually pretty nice.  So 95% of the year I know I've got the better deal.

But for the next week, as winter here gets old, and I long to put down my convertible's top (instead, I drove carefully through the icy streets to work this morning.), and I'm taunted by tales of springs appearance elsewhere, I'm just a little depressed by the brown grasses, and desperately seeking some sign of fresh spring-green shoots popping out of the mulch.

Most of you by now will have seen the news stories on CNN or other national news outlets about the gunman who showed up at the New Life church in Colorado Springs yesterday, killing 2 teenage sisters, and wounding their father and two other adults. 

The good news is, it wasn't a lot worse.  An early morning incident in a Denver mission center about 90 miles away (still unknown if it was the same guy) sent the churches here into security mode, which included several armed volunteer guards patrolling the New Life church grounds.  One of those volunteer guards stepped in quickly and prevent what could have been a much bigger catastrophe.

Now, like a large number of Springs residents, I don't hold much truck with New Life Church. I rather strongly disagree with their theology and politics, and they can get a little evangelically pushy around town.  But New Life is a big part of this city.  Agree with them or not, you can't live here and *not* have at least some friends, neighbors or coworkers who are members. We have all of the above.  So far none who knew any of the victims directly, but they're all thinking how an hour or less could have made all the difference. 

Colorado Springs is a resilient kind of place--it takes a certain hardiness of spirit to live in a desert at 6000 feet, and the people here will get through this.  But the city is a very subdued place today, and it's going to be aching this holiday season.  As we all sit down to Christmas dinner, we'll all be thinking of those 2 empty chairs in a home somewhere nearby where two teenage sisters should be sitting.  So if you have any prayers or good thoughts to spare today, please send them to the family of the girls, their people of their church, and the city in general.

Not as good of a match, but after Neil Armstrong, I had to boost my self-image somehow...

I posted this once, I thought, but it dodn't show up... so here goes again.

What I expected:  a nice simple anniversary celebration on Sept 2,  flying to Mobile. AL to meet up with some of Clayton's family for a week and a half vacationing on the Gulf Coast on Sept 5.

What I got:  on Sept 2, surpruise #1 - the anniversary card includes 2 tickets to Avenue Q on Broadway the night if Sept 5... and an explanation that., surprise #2! we're going to NYC for a couple days beofre continuing on to Mobile as planned.  in New York, we go for a pre-show dinner, and surprise #3!  Clayton's parents are already at the table. (not too much of a stretch, I knew they were in the area for another family function and planning to catch Wicked...)

 ** I should note here that while I'm pretty well-travelled, and have been to most of the major cities of Western Europe and North America,  this was my first trip New York City (other than the airport).  And "see a show on Broadway" has been the top of my "must-do" list since I scratched off "find my soulmate" about 7 years ago.  So this is HUGE for me!!! **

   So we have a nice dinner, Clayton and I see Avenue Q, go to our hotel, and set the alarm - Clayton has already mentioned we're moving to a less-expensive hotel farther from times square, and a car service has been arranged.

The car service shows up the next morning, and surprise #4! It's my parents. Who drove all the way up from Houston (yes, the one in Texas).  and they are taking us to, surprise #5! the pier in Brooklyn, where we are all catching a 9-day cruise to the Caribbean.

By the time we get to the ship, I've figured out that Clayton's folks will be coming along too--and that explains his sureptitious text-messaging,.. as he tries to let them know where on the shiop we are sitting around waiting for the sail-away.

Only, surprise #6! I hear a voice, turn around, and friends Chris and Llonda are marching over--they're on the cruise too! (turns out that was who he really texting.)

So I finally piece the full picture - Clayton has been planning this, including coming up with all the money for it behind my back (pretty amazing, since I do all the money stuff), for over 6 months now.  Apparently most of you who actually know me outside of Multiply have been in on some aspect of the devious plot along the way  There had been a few slips along the way I should have caught onto, but this is so beyond anything I could imagine him trying to pull off, and the "fake" Mobile vacation was so well and plausibly put together, that the hints just sailed right past.  I was definitely surprised!!!

(after that:  9 incredible days of cruising, snorkeling, sun, relaxation, trivia... and one last day and night in NYC, with a grey-line tour of downtown Manhattan, and one last show--"Curtains" with David Hyde Pierce, Ernie Sabella, and the line captain was even a fellow NU alum who was in the Waa-Mu show I worked backstage on my Freshman year...  and now finally home.)

   So to all who helped, or those who just knew, but managed to keep their mouths shut, congratulate yourselves on a job well done... My thanks to you all for a wonderful surprise.  But most of all, thanks to my amazing husband... I don't know how you managed it, and I know I'll never be able to top it (not that I won't try).  7-year-itch-be-darned.... May the next 7 years be as incredible as the first 7!

building on Kayt's 10 top books post...http://kayt.multiply.com/journal/item/115/10_Books

These are some of my favorite books,  in no particular order. I couldn't manage fewer than 15, and I know I'm forgetting some favorites even so. But here goes

1) the Foundation trilogy  - Isaac Asimov. (or maybe his Robot books)

2) Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen   (or Sense and Sensibility... or Emma)

3) The Giving Tree - Shel Silverstein.

4) Jurassic Park - Michael Crichton

5) Are you there God? it's me Margaret. - Judy Blume

6) The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold

7) The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe - C S Lewis

8) Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe - Fannie Flagg

9) To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee

10) Anne of Green Gables - L.M.Montgomery

11) Rebecca - Daphne DuMaurier

12) The Moonstone - Wilkie Collins

13) Curtain - Agatha Christie (this one, or Murder on the Orient Express)

14) The Source - James Michener

15) The Monster at the end of this Book (Starring Loveable, Furry Old Grover) - Jon Stone

A few "look at my fancy brand-new car" posts recently have had me waxing nostaligic about past vehicles.  And it's always interesting to hear about some of the teen tanks and lemons folks have been stuck driving for whataver reason (usually money)...

So, what was your First, Worst, or Most Interesting car?

I meant to savor the last Potter book, but alas! I got into a good part last evening (as if the whole thing wasn't good parts...), and just kept going until it I was through the epilogue.

I hadn't put much effort into guessing what might happen, but much of what I had thought of turned out pretty close, though there were plenty of the usual twists down new roads noone was likely to have forseen... but that seemed to fit.

And now, as with any book or series I truly enjoy,  I'm just melancholy that it's over...

So, what did you think?

Seen on a soccer-mom SUV in the heart of the best school district in the state...

"My child reads your honors student's e-mails."

In the same spirit as the "5things"  posts Pez started about 4 months back (http://pez.multiply.com/journal/item/152?mark_read=pez:journal:152)... 

What are  5 memorable places that you've been (be the 'place' be a country, a city, or a pizza joint)  ... and why are they memorable to you?

Here's mine...

1) Grenoble, France.  We traveled extensively through Europe  when we lived there my Jr high years... but mot of it's long since a blur.  But I remember Grenoble -- it was the destination of both the first and last roadtrips we took over there. Each trip was completely different (probably because I'd changed so much in the 19 months or so in between), but both are good memories..

2) The Rocks.  These are a bunch of big flat concrete blocks haphazardly piled along Lake Michigan in Evanston, IL, to hold in the dirtfill.  In college, I loved to study there the rare occasions when weather permitted.  Over the years, students had painted the rocks with everything from rants and swear words to poems and marriage proposals. Lots of scope for the imagination. (I rarely got much actual studying done.)

3) Garden of the Gods. I was first awed by the red rocks on a roatrip when I was 18. Then again as I posed for cheesy photos all around them on my honeymoon, and now at 32, I get to see those magical red rocks every morning on my commute to work.

4) Brazoria County, Texas. 30 miles from nowhere. Thanks to Habitat for Humanity, I learned to drywall, spackle, install windows, and to avoid pigs feet and collard greens at all costs. 

5) Fiske's store in Holliston, Massachusetts (my Mom's hometown).  The local mom and pop shop that has eveything an 8 year old could imagine, and many things you couldn't. A magical bonus trip whenever we visited Nana and Pompa.

I think most of you ladies will agree with me that these days, a lady has got to kiss a lot of frogs before she finds her Prince. (I had my small share...)   And to think, Disney announced just a couple years ago that they were dumping the old-fashioned hand-drawn style animation for good, in favor of digital methods.  Maybe Disney really is going to get back to its old magical ways now that Eisner's gone?  The following is from CNN.com....

NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (AP) -- The Walt Disney Co. has started production on an animated musical fairy tale called "The Frog Princess," which will be set in New Orleans and feature the Walt Disney Studio's first black princess.

The company unveiled the plans at its annual shareholders' meeting in New Orleans.

John Lasseter, chief creative officer for Disney and the Disney-owned unit Pixar Animation Studios, said the movie would return to the classic hand-drawn animation process, instead of using computer animation that has become the industry standard. He called the film "an American fairy tale."

"The film's New Orleans setting and strong princess character give the film lots of excitement and texture," Walt Disney Studios Chairman Dick Cook said.

The movie will be scored by Randy Newman, who also wrote the music for Disney's "Toy Story," "A Bug's Life," "Toy Story 2," "Monsters, Inc." and "Cars."

Newman performed a song from the score for the shareholders.

John Musker and Ron Clements, who co-directed "The Little Mermaid," "Aladdin," and "Hercules" will co-direct the movie. The pair also wrote the story for the film.

Disney said its new animated princess -- Maddy -- will be added to its collection of animated princesses used at the company's theme parks and on consumer products.

The film is set for release in 2009.

Teens Accused of Making Ostrich Impotent

BERLIN (AP) -- Three teenagers may be on the hook for a hefty fine if a court decides that their festive firecrackers outside an eastern German farm scared the libido right out of an ostrich named Gustav.

Rico Gabel, a farmer in Lohsa, northeast of Dresden, is claiming $6,450 in damages for the alleged antics of the three youths, ages 17-18, between Dec. 27 and 29, 2005.

According to his lawsuit, the farmer claims that fireworks set off by the boys made the previously lustful Gustav both apathetic and depressed, and thus unable to perform for a half-a-year with his two female breeding partners.

Before Gustav regained his sex drive in the second half of the year, the farmer estimates he lost out on 14 ostrich offspring - worth $460 apiece.

The suit is due to be heard next Monday in a regional court in nearby Bautzen, the court said Monday. The teenagers' names were not released.

It always fascinates me the variety of ways & places people cheer in (or sleep through) the new year. Plus I know a lot of people in my Multiply network have been through a lot of big changes this year, like moving to a new home, or adding a new child to the family, which all can add an interesting twist.

 So, how did you ring in 2007, and how did it compare to how you 'usually' ring in a new year?  Please 'Reply' with your details!