The E's

Robert Craig Knievel (October 17, 1938 – November 30, 2007), better known as the Evel Knievel (pronounced /ˈiːvəl kɨˈniːvəl/;^[1]), was an American motorcycle daredevil, an entertainer famous in the United States and elsewhere between the late 1960s and early 1980s. Knievel's nationally televised motorcycle jumps, including his 1974 attempt to jump Snake River Canyon at Twin Falls, Idaho, represent four of the twenty most-watched ABC's Wide World of Sports events to date. His achievements and failures, including his record 37
broken bones, earned him several entries in the Guinness Book of World Records.^[2]

'Nuff said.

No, not a toy, however, many toys in the 70's were inspired by him. My brothers and I thought he was the absolute, unquestionable, s-h-i-t. The man. He was the Elvis of crazy. The man who made deathlike stunts look oh, so ultra cool. Thus, the huge red and blue "EK" initials on his patriotic belt. Not many men can get away with that kind of stylish statement. Only Evel and Elvis. E and E. Two men who were over the top, bigger than life, flamboyant and yes, I think they both wore capes from time to time. Capes, for crying out loud! And they weren't even drag queens.

But they were superheroes.

God, I miss the 70's.

Stretching My Patience

He's not this tiny, but this is the only image I could find. Remember this guy? I wish I had one right now. Mr. Wapkaplet is finally walking and with that new stage, comes another round of separation anxiety. Help. I would like to stretch his little arms out and then tie him to the banister until he turns 3. Why the banister? Why the hell not, I say.

Seems as if he's always there, all day long, pulling on my pants legs, wanting to be picked up. Go figure. He's mobile now but still doesn't want to use his legs! Little people are so strange. And whiny! Geez, I hear it in my sleep. It'll pass, these phases always do. Only problem is by the time it passes, I'll be on the verge of ripping the hair out of my scalp.

Whoever said Grandparents have more patience is full of crap. Oh, wait...maybe that applies to grandparents who can actually spend small increments of time with the precious ones instead of raising them. Sometimes it's a strange place to be.

I love him, of course, I do. And I would literally kill anyone who tried to take or hurt him, he's my joy. Most of the time. But today, not feelin' the joy people.

I suppose I could start drinking early in honor of St. Patrick's Day, huh?

Pedal Power

Ahh, the Big Wheel. Each of my brothers had one of these. Actually, I think my younger brother had a smaller version, simply called, the Little Wheel. Seems like it was blue with a red seat. The coolest thing about these were the awesome slide that happened when you were pedaling at a speed that seemed like 90 miles an hour, and then turned the wheel sharply. The plastic wheels slid so well! If you were really good, you might be able to pull off a complete 360.

Suh-weet!

They were also loud. All that hollow plastic rolling across sidewalks and gravel. And because they were so low to the ground, they were impossible to flip over. It was pretty hard to wreck one of these sturdy bad boys!

I had a bike by this age, but secretly, when my brother's weren't around, I took the BW for a little spin. I remember my knees hitting the steering wheels as I pedaled furiously down the hill in front of our house, the wind whipping through my hair.

You gotta love a toy that's name is a description of exactly what it is. Sigh. How I long for those simpler days.

A Moment

Feeling a little maudlin tonight. On my way home, this happened and at first, I was so angry. I wanted to get out of my car and scream, "Who are you calling an old lady, little girl!" but, I didn't. I just took a deep breath and looked straight ahead, turned up the radio. Thank God for David Gray.

Anywho, this is the result.

Old Lady Backing Up

Tonight, driving through downtown,

I went too far through an intersection,

hit a yellow light, and had to back up.

As I did, a handful of youth, all dressed

in black, walked through the crosswalk,

behind my sensible car.

I heard one girl say, “blah, blah, blah…old lady

backing up.”

Bitch, I thought.

Then, I realized, she’s right.

I am an old lady,

trying to back up.

How do I take it all back?

There really aren’t any do-overs.

And yet…

I want to back up.

Take it all back, start over.

Old lady.

Lovely Lemon

Over at Dino's blog, she wrote about the spirograph and it took me back. Way back. And so I thought it would be a little fun to do some pieces on the cool toys of the 70's! So many and so many stories that accomodate each one.

This is one that immediately came to mind. The Lemon Twist.

I loved, loved, loved it. We took them to school even though we weren't supposed to and at recess had contests to see who could twist the longest. It was much easier for me than jump rope because it only required leg-work. I'm not very coordinated so sometimes, moving more than one limb at a time throws me. Literally, throws me...down.

My brothers, however, saw the immediate weapon potential. They could slide their arms through the hole and grip the cord, ensuring that it never went flying out of their hot, sweaty little hands when they used them like medieval weapons, mostly towards each other.

Geeks.

Ideas anyone?

Mind Purge #3,784

This is for you Doodlebug.

Bacon is good. Bacon is delicious. Bacon, my friend, makes the world go 'round.

Anytime you're hungry and don't want just a sandwich or a cracker, bacon is always there. It's saltly, crunchy and oh, so tasty. And I love pigs. Go figure. Well, love may be a bit too strong, but I am definitely fond of the filthy, fat animals!

I saw a commercial the other day with two pigs eating bacon, or ham, at a restaurant and they were unapologetic. They said, and I quote, inaccurately, "We are paying homage to a fallen friend."

I have become my Grandmother, to whom I will always pay homage. She used bacon and bacon grease for everything, and I do mean everything. There was always a mason jar sitting near or on her stove that was full of the congealed, beautiful, bacon fat! She used it for frying eggs or seasoning any dish that she happened to be cooking that day. A spoonful of bacon fat made everything so much more, well, bacony delicious!

So take it from me Doodlebug, we can love the pig AND love it's meat! And Junebug, bacon is supercool. Really supercool.

Bacon...it does a body good!

Ahhhh.....sweet, daylight savings time!

Why is that an extra hour and a half of daylight makes all the difference? There's still 24 hours in a day, 14 to 16 of those hours of which are filled with productive activites that one can do while one is awake. But yet...

I love you daylight savings time! However, I wish you didn't exist! I wish the powers that be would just leave time alone. I mean...it's time. TIME. Leave it alone. Let it be what it wants! Let it collide with the seasons and work everything out without us droll humans interfering.

Artists have written great songs about you, dear TIME. "If I could save time in a bottle..." Gotta love Jim Croce.

"Tickin' away, the moments that make up a dull day," Pink Floyd.

We love you TIME, we try to acquire more of you and we curse you when you slip away. We ponder the moments that we've lost and dream about the moments to come. And yes, as we grow older, you seem to move even quicker. You become more elusive.

But we love the daylight. We are creatures of the light.

Thanks for the extra sunlight. We'll take it, no matter how it comes.

Thank God I don't live in Alaska. Sorry, Mrs. Palin.